Collecting a bit of Emotion Points from Harry was something Kate hadn't expected—probably the conclusion of the Chamber of Secrets business had genuinely put him in a good mood.
Come to think of it, that made sense. After nearly half a month of poor sleep, finally being able to get a good night's rest tonight would leave anyone feeling elated.
But Kate couldn't bring herself to feel happy.
Because when she returned to the Common Room, she saw Malfoy sitting at a table, face pale, with Pansy and the cronies taking turns comforting her.
Kate caught a few offhand words and learned that Lucius had just come to see her; the father and daughter had talked privately for a while, and no one knew what had been said—but after she came back, she'd ended up like this.
Though she didn't know what had happened, provoking someone at a time like this seemed like a bad idea.
She'd just decided to pretend she'd seen nothing and head straight for the dormitory, but she'd barely taken two steps when Malfoy called out to her, voice thick with grief and indignation: "Shafiq, stop right there!"
Hiss... that tone didn't bode well.
Kate stiffly turned around, met her gaze cautiously for a moment, then quickly looked away, feigning composure. "Something wrong?"
Malfoy strode over to her in a few quick steps, an abnormal flush rising on her pale little face.
"I—" She struggled to draw a few breaths, but couldn't get the rest of the words out no matter what.
Whether the words were too humiliating to voice, or her pride simply wouldn't allow her to say such a thing, no one could tell.
And behind her, not to mention Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle, stood a whole crowd of gawkers gathered to watch the show.
They all knew she'd gotten a dressing-down from Lucius, but none of them knew what for.
From the looks of it now, though, Malfoy had swallowed a defeat and was preparing to save face at Kate's expense.
Most of those present had spent two years watching the two of them bicker, and of course they didn't mind catching a free show after such a great event as the discovery of the Chamber of Secrets.
"Shafiq, I—my father said..." Malfoy forced the words out with difficulty, but as she spoke, her eyes reddened once again.
Kate frowned and scanned the ring of onlookers, letting out a somewhat displeased "tsk."
That single sound was practically the trumpet call of war about to reignite; the people around them began to light up, just waiting for the two of them to come to blows.
"As it happens, I have something to discuss with you too." Without leaving room for argument, she seized Malfoy's wizard robes, then cast a cold glance at the others. "This isn't a good place to talk. Come with me."
And with that, she forcibly dragged Malfoy out of the Common Room.
Some students, still unsatisfied, wanted to follow along and join the fun, but Pansy blocked them without the slightest courtesy.
This time, Kate didn't lead Malfoy back to that corner deep in the dungeon either—mainly because it was too dark there, and she was afraid she'd accidentally say the wrong thing and make the girl cry without even realizing it.
Well... though she was already showing signs of about to cry as it was.
So she took her to Lockhart's office instead.
The setting here was decent, Lockhart himself was away, and Filch certainly wouldn't come snooping—it was practically the perfect spot for a secret rendezvous... no, a private gathering.
Quietly drawing the curtains and casting all sorts of shielding charms around them to keep this conversation from being interrupted, Kate finally turned on the light and instinctively held out a tissue. "Here, wipe up."
"So you think I've been crying too?" Malfoy's expression shifted slightly as she glared, aggrieved, at the tissue in Kate's hand.
"I meant wipe off your sweat," Kate said, changing tack without batting an eye. "Summer's nearly here. After walking so long, even if you're not hot, I am."
As she spoke, she even made a show of dabbing some sweat off her own neck.
Malfoy's expression eased a bit, and only then did she pull a tissue from the desk, turning her back to wipe—who knew where.
Seeing that the mood had finally softened somewhat, Kate let out a breath. "Go on, then. What were you trying to tell me just now?"
Malfoy's movements paused. She didn't answer.
"I've already brought you all the way here," Kate said, planting her hands on her hips helplessly. "If you still don't want to talk, then once you walk out that door, don't ever bring it up again."
She kept a constant eye on the other girl's movements, even as she made as if to turn off the light and leave.
"Wait!" Malfoy finally spoke, turning her head to look at her with a complicated expression.
"Do you know what my father said to me today?"
Kate paused. "I'm all ears."
"He said he knows I've never gotten along with you at school. But today he told me that if I can't become your friend, then I'd better be prepared to become your enemy."
Malfoy murmured in a low voice, seemingly talking to herself, yet also as if speaking to Kate. "I don't know what to do, but he demanded that I make a choice."
Her eyes fixed intently on Kate's face, taking in her every expression. "If it were you, what would you choose?"
Though it was phrased as a question, the anticipation in her words already made clear that she hoped Kate would give the answer she wanted.
But what, exactly, was it that she wanted?
Probably even Malfoy herself didn't know why she agonized so much over her relationship with Kate.
She wanted to grow close to Kate, yet held back because of Kate's attitude and various other factors tangled up in it.
But to truly hate Kate, to let their relationship deteriorate into what outsiders assumed it to be—that she couldn't do either.
In fact, much of the time, she quite enjoyed this relationship that looked utterly terrible in others' eyes, yet in private had Kate treating her with special regard.
As if... it were a secret that existed only between the two of them—a secret that not even Granger, the person closest to Kate, knew.
Perhaps in another two years, she might come to understand what this feeling of hers really was. But Lucius was no longer giving her the chance to wait.
She didn't know what to do, so she could only pin her hopes on Kate, hoping Kate could sort out the relationship between them.
Or even not sorting it out was fine—as long as Kate gave one clear stance, she'd know what she ought to do.
In all her life, the young lady of the Malfoy family had never once trembled with anxiety over reading someone else's expression.
Now, she was experiencing it.
"Tell me, then—what should I do?" Her eyes didn't so much as blink, as if she wanted to burn the image of the person before her deep into her mind.
Kate tilted her head, somewhat puzzled. "You're asking me? Isn't this the kind of thing you ought to decide for yourself?"
"No," Malfoy said, secretly grinding her back teeth, unable to help pressing, "You tell me first!"
But Kate only laughed softly. "Your father didn't just say that, did he? Did he also tell you to invite me to Malfoy Manor as a guest?"
"How did you know?!" Malfoy started, and the composure she'd finally managed to gather began to fray into panic.
Kate approached her step by step. "Honestly, I don't like your father. He's a deeply scheming man, and he loves to meddle in his child's friendships—so Malfoy Manor is somewhere I won't be going."
The moment those words came out, Malfoy's face went deathly pale.
But Kate wasn't finished. "Yet it's not your father who'd be my friend—it's you. Why should you let his attitude decide how you make your own friends?
Are you saying that when you finish your studies and inherit the family estate one day, your father's going to do that for you too? Or when you marry someday, is your father going to wear the wedding robes in your place, live your life for you?
If not, then why, on the matter of friendship, should you be swayed by his opinion? You're merely his child—not a puppet whose will he controls. Isn't that right?"
By the time she finished, Kate had backed Malfoy into a corner against the wall.
Bowing her head slightly, Kate braced one hand against the wall. Though she'd kept some distance between them, she could still clearly make out Malfoy's trembling eyelashes.
"Now, back to the earlier question. If I said I'd be your friend, could you really treat me the same way you treat your other friends?
And if I said I couldn't accept you, could you then regard me with hostility like a true enemy—attack me, even put me to death?"
Malfoy shuddered, breathing with difficulty, her face ashen.
She had never once thought of treating Kate that way; from the very first moment she'd laid eyes on Kate, she'd never imagined doing such a thing to her.
Even if she often spat out things like "damned Kate," she had never—never—thought that one day she would actually kill her.
"So," Kate said with a faint smile, stepping back a couple of paces to leave her plenty of room to breathe, "I'm quite used to the way we get along now. And you?"
Malfoy slowly raised her head, and from her still-shaken look, it was clear she hadn't made up her mind yet.
No matter. There was no rush.
"Take your time thinking this over, and come find me once you've sorted it out," Kate said, softening her voice as she walked over and gently patted her slightly trembling back. "Don't worry—I'll always be waiting for you to give me your answer in person."
The warm, trembling body leaned little by little into her embrace under the gentle comfort. Kate froze for a moment, then gave a small shake of her head.
Just a child after all—rushing recklessly to find her before thinking anything through.
Looking at it this way, perhaps Malfoy's fondness for her really would gradually fade over time.
A child's affection wasn't to be taken seriously.
After murmuring a few more words of comfort, Kate saw that curfew had already passed and that lingering any longer would still be dangerous, so she gently coaxed Malfoy into slipping away together with her.
As luck would have it, Filch wasn't on this floor, and clutching each other's wizard robes, they made it back to the Common Room without a hitch.
"Pure-blood!" Malfoy hurriedly recited the password and made to go in, but as she turned her head, she found that Kate hadn't followed.
"You go in first," Kate said, standing leisurely at the door with a smile. "If we walk in together, they'll start asking all sorts of questions again. Remember to look sour when you go in, and no one will dare come pester you."
A wave of warmth surged through her heart. Malfoy shot her a complicated look, then nodded and walked straight in.
Kate waited alone in the dungeon corridor for a few minutes, and only when she reckoned Malfoy had already returned to the dormitory—and as she heard Filch's footsteps gradually drawing near—did she slip in through the entrance.
What a heart-stopping night it had been. In every sense of the word.
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