XXV

" And you must be Cassiopeia," she heard an overly sweet and thin voice from just a few steps from and quickly raised her head from the potions book in her hands.

Cassiopeia and Draco were just a few days away from starting school and everything was ready for when they did so, from her robes to anything else she'd need for the rest of the year.

Standing by the door, a short woman dressed completely in pink stared at the teen, looking far too interested and smiling too much for the girl's comfort.

" Yes?"

Cassiopeia stood up as soon as her father entered after her, and the woman walked in her direction.

"Cassiopeia , this is Dolores Umbridge," he introduced the two. "She works in the ministry and is working at Hogwarts as Inquisitor for the next year."

A bit confused, the teen just raised her eyebrows.

" Oh?"

" The ministry is very concerned with the direction the headmaster is taking Hogwarts to, you certainly understand, Cassiopeia. He has been spreading terrible lies around and that is scaring some people. We are afraid that those lies can be extended to the students and he may cause some unwanted phenomenon."

She just nodded slowly.

" I see your point, ma'am."

With Cedric Diggory's death, Harry Potter had sworn his life to the fact that You-Know-Who was back – something that Dumbledore had backed with no doubt, but no one else did, and the two had been discredited in every single possible way by the Ministry of Magic and the media. Honestly, if Cassiopeia didn't know the truth from her parents' themselves, she'd disbelieve them just as well seeing how many proofs had been fabricated to show they were wrong.

" I've heard great things about you, Cassiopeia," she said in an overly sweet way, and the blonde girl couldn't help but feel uneasy at how she pronounced her name. "It will be a great pleasure to have such an intelligent and beautiful young lady like you there for when I need a reminder of what I'm there to do."

The blue-eyed girl forced a fake smile, crossing her hands a bit in front of her body, trying to put some distance between the two of them discreetly.

" I'm sure it will be a pleasure, ma'am," she affirmed. "I'm looking forward to it."

She nodded to the girl and an elf entered before the conversation could become even more awkward.

" Sir, ladies," she said submissively. "The tea is served."

Cassiopeia fidgeted with her skirt while listening to Umbridge's words, unable to tear her blue eyes from her figure.

She had told George about their encounter and – as far as the girl knew - he had already passed the news to his friends before the woman showed up, and Granger was rightfully worried.

With Umbridge in a position of such power in Hogwarts, things were about to get very complicated.

If the Malfoys disliked muggles and muggle-borns, Umbridge didn't just hate or despise them, she preached their death!

According to some gossiping Cassiopeia heard, she was single because no one could take being beside her for more than a few hours; as everything about her was utterly annoying from her voice to her personality.

" You're not gonna eat?" Eleanor questioned, and the blonde girl shook her head to try and clear her mind when she realised she was still staring.

" Yeah," she moved a hand to grab a fork, glancing back at the new member sitting with the teachers for a moment before moving to serve herself.

" Is everything okay?" Sarah – a girl from the 7 th year – questioned. "You've been weird since you arrived."

Cassiopeia turned to her for a moment, a bit confused, but soon found an answer in her head.

" I'm tired," she decided to lie. "I didn't sleep well this week."

" She has a French boyfriend now," her cousin jumped onto the conversation. "And now that she is here, they won't be able to see one another until Christmas."

" Eleanor!" Cassiopeia reprehended her cousin.

" What?" her friend frowned. "It's the truth."

" She spent her birthday with him and his family," Draco said nonchalantly, turning to his sister. "And came back home all smiles."

His older sister just raised her eyebrows at him. She didn't even know he knew about the boy story, she had only told it to their mother and to Eleanor.

" His mother invited me," the Malfoy girl affirmed before anyone could make assumptions. "It's not that big of a deal."

Draco turned fully to his sister.

" Not that big of a deal? Mum was looking into wedding dresses for you and places you could get married in, and whether or not they'll be free in three years."

She stared at her brother with her greyish eyes wide and pinkish lips slightly gaped.

" Wait, what?"

What in Merlin's sagging balls actual was he talking about?

" Well, if you're officially together now and he takes around 12 to 18 months to propose, then she'll only have 12 to 18 months to plan your wedding," Eleanor agreed. "You need to have the place booked for at least two years. She's just being logical."

Cassiopeia tilted her head to the side, still unable to fully process their words. Finally, she shook her head.

" You're insane," the girl decided. "And I don't know if I'm gonna spend Christmas with his family. He didn't invite me."

" He will," her best friend cut a piece of pie. "Trust me. He definitely will."