Chapter 3

There could have been an advantage if Draco ate her meals in the kitchen, spent most of her free time in the Library, preferably at a table that was in the direct line of Madam Pince's sight, and attend all her classes relatively late, when the rest of the students were already in their seats, supervised.

But she wanted to practice flying, visit Hogsmeade, and sleep undisturbed in the Slytherin dorms (where she had a room to her own this year, thank Merlin, but nothing to keep out other Slytherins, except for some basic wards Draco had put up).

So it would be still better if the people lining up to curse her wouldn't lie in wait and possibly ambush her at the most unexpected times if the conflict was unavoidable. She couldn't hide.

Therefore, Draco had found herself doing something she'd never thought she'd do.

"May I sit?" she asked simply Granger and Ginny Weasley, gesturing at the table of the lions at breakfast time, where there was plenty of space left, but that wasn't what she'd meant, anyway.

The conversation halted, and they stared at Draco for almost a minute, but she waited for an answer.

"Why?" Granger finally asked.

"It's mostly a cowardly self-preservation tactic," Draco told her.

"Mostly?" Ginny Weasley picked up on that.

"And a crucial step in my evil plans to try to get you to forgive me sometime in our magical lifetimes," Draco said, and when she figured it wasn't taken as a joke as she intended, she quickly added. "Please. I'm willing to do whatever you ask, in return."

"Fine," Granger decided, before Weasley could. "But just look at any of us in the wrong way, and I'll feed you to the wolves myself."

"Thank you," Draco sat.

"And, it's only for a couple of weeks," Ginny added. "Until the majority of the school won't try to kill you. I want to be able to talk to my friends without anyone eavesdropping on everything I say."

"Even this is more than I could have hoped for," Draco agreed. "Thank you for being so kind."

"Let's make one thing clear, Malfoy," Weasley only frowned. "We aren't doing this out of the kindness of our hearts. We aren't your friends. I will not forgive you, possibly ever. It just happens that I don't want a repeat of last night, even if you're the target. So stop the false humility and empty flattery, before you make my breakfast come back."

Draco never thought she'd think of Ginny Weasley as refreshing, but she could barely contain a chuckle hearing her words.

"Noted. But just so you know, if I was still intent on becoming your friend - which I can't possibly be, but if I was - what you've just said would have just made it more of a challenge, and more interesting."

The youngest Weasley didn't even deem that worthy of a reply, but Granger did.

"How Gryffindor-like you can be, Malfoy," she noted in a sarcastic tone. "The next thing we'll know, you aren't just sitting with us because it's advantageous for you, but because you're braver than any of us."

"Is it bring your enemy to school day? I missed the announcement so I didn't do anything," Ron Weasley also appeared and was already putting food on his plate. "Oh no, wait, you already have Draco Malfoy at our table for some reason, so I'm good."

"It's temporary," Ginny told him.

"Has anyone told him that, though?" her brother asked, fake whispering.

"Her," Draco told him, trying not to sound forceful. "If you're going to insult my character, Weasley, all I ask is that you do it with the correct pronouns, if you could."

"And I've told her off already," Ginny Weasley gave Draco a frown.

"I'm sorry I missed that," Longbottom also appeared, not even hesitating when he sat right next to Draco as if to show how he wasn't intimidated the slightest. And once he did that, the conversation shifted to the upcoming classes, the food, and if Draco kept her head down, she was allowed to eat with them - for now.

Potter arrived late, and the conversation died quickly when he sat the furthest from Draco, but after a few seconds, Potter grabbed a toast and asked.

"Dare I drink the juice, or is it laced with poison or something?"

"We were here before Draco," Granger told him, but Potter only smiled.

"I was only kidding. I don't think she has the guts to poison us anyway."

"It's not my style," Draco said, barely audible.

"Then what is? Educate us about your evil, evil ways, Malfoy" Potter asked, making the rest of the table snicker.

It could have been that Potter just truly wanted a laugh at Draco's expense, but somehow it could have been also a covert way to make everyone relaxed around Draco, by reminding them that she wasn't that dangerous.

She was though, wasn't she? At least there was a circumstance once in her life when she tried to resort to such tactics, and even just remembering that made her appetite disappear.

But, when was Potter ever cloak-and-wand about anything? And, doing any favors for Draco for any reason? Favors she didn't even ask for? Draco was clearly overthinking that part. Even if this Potter she could appreciate more than yesterday's, when the savior thought Draco only "put on a skirt" because she was maliciously plotting something.

"As interesting as that could be, we have class in like ten minutes," Longbottom said, and made everyone clear from the table as if the room was on fire, while Potter grabbed a piece of bacon to go.

Classes were boring as usual, but Draco had newfound novelty for boring as long as it meant she didn't have to be more on edge about schoolwork, at least.

She was paired up with Granger for double Potions, and when Slughorn declared their brew the best of the class, Draco thought it wouldn't be so bad if she could somehow work with Granger for the rest of the year as well - if only she could manage it without making Granger unnecessarily uncomfortable.

Transfiguration was mostly fieldwork: helping with the mend of some parts of the castle wall and ceiling where it was weakened or dangerous, and Luna Lovegood took Draco's silence as permission to talk to her about everything and anything, which only reminded Draco of Pansy - if Pansy ever had an interest in strange, mythical creatures instead of gossip of who was dating whom.

By lunch, Draco was accepted by the Gryffs as if she always sat right next to them, even if not participating in the main topic of conversation: they were telling Potter running his friendly DADA club still had merits, even if the Dark Lord was gone, but Potter didn't seem convinced.

And since Draco was finished with classes, and was prepared to only do some homework during History of Magic class that was only due on Friday, she left the castle after lunch to make her first - potentially very awkward - apology, with a small bag she prepared.

"Whate'er yer sellin', Malfoy, I'm not buyin'," Hagrid gave her an unamused look when Draco finally found him, planting some seeds that Draco had a hunch weren't entirely legal, but she cleared her throat.

"I thought… I could help you. With smaller tasks, maybe? I didn't mean to… intrude if it's not convenient. I can come back. Just let me leave this here," and she put the small bag she had brought.

She thought the gamekeeper would be a good start to her series of apologies because Hagrid didn't have magic, so Draco could help him out, and if they were to work together on something, it would be easier to sneak an apology into the conversation.

But once Draco was there, Hagrid could be more intimidating than she remembered, so at the very last second, her resolve melted, and since it paired with some inexplicable surge of panic, she was about to run back to the castle, and maybe try again some other day.

"W'at's t'is? Dungbomb? A 'ursed object, per'aps? " Hagrid left his work to open the bag.

"It's not," Draco said. "But you can Banish--I mean you can just get rid of it if you don't trust me."

"Yer right on 'hat," Hagrid said, but before Draco could warn him, he sniffed the bag's contents. "'ut this could cost a p'etty penny."

"It's the best treat sold at Diagon Alley," Draco said. "And they told me most beasts would at least tolerate it, if not like it."

"Useless, 'hat's wut it is. 'he treats I'm usin', I make meself," Hagrid declared.

"Right. So I'll just leave you to it," Draco felt defeated, even if she always guessed some fancy treats for Hagrid's animals might not work as the ice-breaker.

"Why 're you really 'ere, Malfoy?" Hagrid might have dismissed the bribe, but he didn't do the same with Draco.

"I thought… with all the Professors so busy this year, maybe you could use some help. And if I was to apologize to you, it would be better perceived if we were doing something else."

"Ye want my forg'veness?" the gamekeeper echoed in a voice that didn't reveal whether he thought the idea was completely stupid, or just laughable, but Draco wouldn't have faulted him for either.

"I'm trying to make amends with everyone," Draco stuck to honesty. In for a Galleon, in for a thousand. "Just thought it might be easier to start with you."

"'m sure ye did," Hagrid took it as an insult, so Draco had to explain.

"No, I didn't mean it like that. I meant that some people I owe an apology to are usually in the castle, and it can be harder to tell them I'm sorry if there's always a group of fans following them around, like the members of the Golden Trio. Not that it's a bad thing, but…"

"I don't want ye runnin' ye cakehole at me, Malfoy," Hagrid said, and Draco supposed it was understandable. She honestly wanted to apologize but ended up only insulting Potter and his friends even when it wasn't her intention. "But if ye wan' ta 'elp, 'here's the seeds 'hat need plantin'."

Draco was to levitate the rest of the seeds to the flowerbed Hagrid already prepared with a single spell, and cover them with some dirt with another, but that's when Hagrid said.

"And put yer wand away, be'ore they get ruffled."

"They must be some plants if their seeds can already have an attitude," Draco mumbled but put on a dragonhide glove Hagrid was holding, and put a seed into its place - or at least she thought.

"No, not 'ike that," Hagrid was quick to show, that Draco did nothing right, but when Draco tried to imitate him, the gamekeeper showed surprising patience.

"Jus' a 'ouple o' hundred more and ye might jus' get 't righ'."

But he let Draco work, even if he dismissed Draco after the first row was done.

"May I… maybe help you some other time as well?" Draco tried to ask politely, but not too politely in case Hagrid would think she didn't mean it.

"'d hardly call i' helpin'," he told Draco, but when she turned to return to the castle, he added. "But I'm thinkin' o' doin' some work in de Forest on Saturday."

"I'll be here," Draco immediately said.

"T'ere's a lot to do," Hagrid announced. "So I t'ought to leave real' early. Not comfor'able for a student, sleeping in."

"I'll be here for sunrise?" Draco asked. She would much rather not enter the forest while it was still pitch dark outside, and Hagrid seemed to get that from her question, because he only nodded.

As it turned out, being a gamekeeper was often just a lot of walking and carrying stuff (mostly for the animals), that Draco wasn't particularly versed in, but as long as she didn't use magic, Hagrid was a comforting companion, and Draco appreciated that.

Not as if Draco's day were anything like her first night at Hogwarts. The amulet McGonagall gave her worked for most curses, and a larger percentage of the students rather made malicious comments than to attack her. Even when Draco returned to her dorm, and everything she owned was torn to pieces, for instance, it wasn't anything she couldn't fix with a couple of spells.

In the meanwhile, she had no open confrontation with Potter and his friends, even though Draco ate with them, and she got some confidence that she was on the right track when she was doing chores with Hagrid, and by then she forgot she first was so intimidated by the gamekeeper that she wanted to run away.

She just didn't notice how on edge she was until she almost pointed a wand at Fang one day, thinking he was going to attack Draco, when the dog seemed adamant about showing her affection, making Draco cry because the stupid dog didn't know he wasn't supposed to be friendly with someone like Draco, who didn't deserve anyone's sympathy. And Hagrid happened to witness the exchange.

In the past, if anyone could even guess Draco had any weakness, she would have taken cover by insulting them first, but now she wouldn't do that, especially not with the gamekeeper, so she could only ask.

"Please don't say anything," what happened was mortifying enough to a Malfoy's pride after all.

"I don' know what to, 'nyway," Hagrid only offered some more tea to Draco, even when she discreetly wiped her eyes, because she was suddenly having a tiny breakdown.

"I'm sorry," she snuffled when she started to cry a little, and the next thing she knew, there was no stopping it, all the stress coming out of her in sobs.

"Leave it to a Malfoy t' be allergic to everythin'," Hagrid just waved her concern off, saying that as comfort, when they both know it wasn't Fang's fur that made Draco Malfoy publicly break down. "'ut maybe you shoul' talk with some'ne."

"I'm good," Draco said. "Really."

And Hagrid didn't push the issue, so she managed to pull herself together soon after, although she was so out of it that she even ingested some of the cake Hagrid made and she was fairly sure wasn't meant for human consumption.