When they got home Ivy sent an owl straight to Draco to request his presence that evening for Tea. Osanna set to getting things organized and tidyish while George followed her around worried that she might leave without him again.
The sun started to set and a knock came at the door. "Draco." Ivy stated the obvious, no one came to the house unless they had an invite and they absolutely had to. George rushed to greet the newcomer tripping Ivy on the way. Ivy opened the door and ushered the young Slytherin inside, sat him down with a cup and a slice of a rather dubious cake that Osanna had baked.
Draco eyed the cake for a moment, then he tentatively took a bite of it, finding it wasn�t as terrible as it looked he chewed thoughtfully as Ivy brought tea to the table. Osanna followed her plopping down a container of milk, some lemon slices and honey and sugar.
"Sugar Draco?" Ivy asked sweetly.
Draco looked up from his cake and actually allowed a SMILE to cross over his lips. "Yes Ma'am" please, just a bit...I like my tea black with sugar."
Ivy nodded and spooned in two teaspoonfuls of sugar, Osanna was still gaping at what appeared to be a smiling Draco. Ivy handed Draco his cup of tea, and he sipped at it slowly.
"SO Draco...I hope you didn�t get in trouble with your mother for what happened the other day..."
Draco narrowed his eyes and sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "My mum hasn�t been acting right lately like I said.... and it's kind of.... embarrassing..."
Ivy clucked her tongue in sympathy and nodded. "I could understand how it would be."
Draco made a noise of disgust and gauged both Ivy and Osanna as he spoke. "She threatened to ground me when I came home, said she wouldn�t send me sweets at school anymore...she was quite upset."
Ivy shook her head in disbelief and patted Draco's hand, to Osanna's surprise, he said nothing, but she did notice him staring up at Ivy with interest, respect and... something else.
"Entirely unfair and unreasonable really... and what of your father? Does he agree?"
Draco laughed so hard he nearly spit out his tea. "OF COURSE NOT! My father is a pureblooded wizard; he hates muggles.... and half-breeds! He thinks she's going crazy too! As a matter of fact he does all he can at home to avoid her...sometimes I feel like I don�t HAVE a mother. She does nothing at all but spend money and look fancy for Dad, who just ignores her anyway!"
He huffed in annoyance and looked up at Ivy again.
She shook her head and squeezed his hand in hers. "Well Draco, you deserve more attention than that...how she could ignore such a lovely, talented young man is beyond me."
Draco was basking in the attention...positively glowing. Osanna was in disbelief, either Ivy was laying it on thick...or she really felt terrible for Draco.
Draco shrugged and bit into his cake again. "I don�t know, Dad says she's losing it...I think he regrets ever marrying her, of course he doesn�t realize I KNOW, but I think it was out of pity."
"What was out of pity?" Ivy asked in a soft, sympathetic voice.
Draco sighed dramatically and actually seemed to scoot his chair closer to Ivy, Osanna watched in fascinated silence.
"His marriage to Mum.... she was pregnant with me, and I think that�s why he married her.... he felt OBLIGATED...I mean he's never affectionate towards her at all..."
Ivy squeezed Draco's hand again and gave him a smile that would melt the Ice Age...Osanna noticed how he reacted to her every move...making himself look even more upset and downtrodden.
"Sometimes...she acts as if I don�t even exist..." Draco added, pouting rather pathetically.
Ivy sighed in sympathy and the unthinkable happened...Ivy slid off her chair and wrapped her arms around Draco, kneeling so she was at just the right height. Osanna gasped and expected Draco to have at Ivy with nastiness, but once again she was mistaken, Draco seemed to give into the hug to easily. He was obviously surprised because he issued forth a gasp as if Ivy had squeezed him to hard. He closed his eyes and Osanna watched as his "pity-me" pout turned into an almost angelic smile. Something odd was definitely going on here. He wrapped his arms carefully around Ivy and placed his chin on her shoulder.
This is INSANE Osanna thought. Perfectly insane.
Draco thought the whole situation was to really. He wasn't used to physical affection, from ANYONE. His mother...well she never bothered, and his father saw it as a sign of weakness. He hated not being in control of a situation, but he had no choice really but to give in, it was almost a little to much for him to handle...all a little too confusing, but this was after all what he had hoped for, it had worked a little to easily, his ploy for sympathy...but he let that thought go. He was content to stay exactly where he was. He would absolutely kill anyone who tried to interrupt. This was HIS moment, even if he was not in complete control. He gave in and just allowed himself to lay there in her arms, immobile and weak, nearly vulnerable as it were..........he both hated it and adored it all at once. So what if people thought he was crazy? He knew enough to know that when you feel like this...few other things really matter. All that mattered was that no one interrupted or ruined this. He pushed away all thoughts that he was weak for this indulgence.... just for a moment he wanted to feel something. He saw something in Ivy, something amazing, she was strong, and evil...oh yes he knew that. She wasn't a simpering, cowering wallflower like his mother, very rarely had anyone earned his respect, but he respected Ivy, and there was nothing he wouldn't do to prove that. He was not just a foolish young boy...and he would prove that as well. He snuggled himself together into her arms, as if he were trying to find safety.
Osanna watched the scene in abject horror......and mingled confusion. This couldn�t actually be happening. Not with Draco.
She watched Draco's face, he was grinning ear to ear and seemed to be in heaven as it were, curled in Ivy's embrace as if he were her child, but the look on his face suggested much more than that. She shook her head in disbelief and just sat there. The whole thing seemed to be in slow motion.
She felt compelled however to extend her sympathies so she slowly stood up and made her way to Ivy and Draco who were still wrapped around each other. She kneeled down as well and placed her arms around them both and despite the weirdness of the situation she kissed both Ivy and Draco on the cheek. None of them moved, as if they were frozen.
It was a rustling, and an audible expression of "OH MY GOD MALFOY!" That came from outside that finally stirred Osanna. She jumped up and bolted for the window before either Ivy or Draco could recover. What in the hell was it... or better yet who in the hell was it this time?
It was unmistakable, she saw Ronald Weasley retreating from their window, his cape fluttering in the wind
She hissed and swung open the door, causing both Ivy and Draco to sit upright again.
"I WILL GET YOU RONALD WEASELY! I WILL" Osanna shouted vehemently, a look of disgust and absolute rage on her usually delicate features. "YOU LITTLE BASTARD!"
Draco's face turned into a snarl, as if his moment had been interrupted, and before either girl could stop him he bolted out the door after Weasely, he was screaming the entire way, shouting curses and phrases that would have put Voldermort himself to shame.
Ron Weasley ran up to the picture of the Fat Lady and panted out the password, "Poppycock". The picture swung open and he jumped through the hole and ran into the common room where he joined Harry and Hermione next to the fire. "You won't believe what I've just seen!" He exclaimed, immediately commanding both friends attention away form Hermione's homework checking. He spilled out the description of the scene he had just seen play out in the kitchen while the other two listened fascinated. When he had finished he stared at the others waiting for their reaction.
"Who would have thought it? Malfoy being so caught up in emotions." Hermione commented. "Call it emotions if you like," Quipped Fred, from the other side of the room where he and his twin had been eavesdropping Ron's spectacular news, "But it sounds to me like there's a little something going on between the little snake Malfoy and our two most controversial teachers."
"Do you really think so?"
"Yes Harry we do," George chimed in, "And I can�t wait to hear what the rest of the school�s going to say when they here about it." He shot his twin a conspiring wink.
"Well Miss October saw me, so she�s going to be really mad at me in Magical Creatures next week. Plus to make things worse I had Malfoy chasing me all the way back. Thank God for the password, he won�t be able to get me until tomorrow."