Cancer represents Karkinos, a crab sent by Hera to distract Heracles when he was fighting the Lemean Hydra. Also an astrological sign, Cancers are known to be sentimental, intuitive, and often wear their hearts on their sleeves.

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Crabbe and Goyle sniggered between themselves as they bumbled down the frozen path to Hogsmeade. He had only agreed to come with them this time because he thought he might go absolutely mental if he stayed in that bloody castle a minute longer. 

Pansy lopped beside him, gossiping about the most tiresome things. He remembered how Angel thought Pansy fancied him, suddenly wishing he were walking with her instead.

But to ask her would have been social suicide. Imagine the reactions from Blaise and the rest of the Slytherins! The less attention on him this year, the better. Besides, she wouldn't have wanted to come with anyway. She always went with those two Hufflepuffs girls, and that dreaded Diggory boy, of course.

Upon reaching the village, the two fools immediately disappeared into Honeydukes', leaving him with the dreaded Pansy. "Shall we get a butterbeer, Draco?" she shrilled, already half-dragging him towards The Three Broomsticks. 

The pub was warm and alive with the dull chatter of students huddled around their mugs. Despite the unwelcome company, he was glad to be able to remove his heavy coat and gloves.

"Two butterbeers and four pumpkin pasties please!" Pansy called, before turning back to grin at him. "We'll have two each!" He did not bother objecting.

"So, Draco, I haven't seen you much in class recently."

"Can't be arsed," he replied curtly. If she noticed his indifference, she did not show it."Didn't see you at the game last weekend either. We trashed Ravenclaw, you so should have been there. It was epic!"

He merely shrugged, but she soldiered on. "Come on, Draco. Don't you miss Quidditch? I used to love watching you play!" 

He was about to say he couldn't be arsed about Quidditch either when their food and drinks arrived. The pasties smelled absolutely foul. He chugged his butterbeer, grateful for the excuse to not talk.

"Anyway, listen!" Pansy's nasally voice was like a cheese grater to his ears. "Cedric Diggory is dating that girl from Hufflepuff - oh, what was her name!" She thought hard. "See, I can't even remember. Imagine! The Triwizard Cup champion, going out with a boring Hufflepuff! I mean, I know he's from Hufflepuff too, but I dunno, he should be dating someone like Granger at least. Apparently, he and this girl have been together since the tournament!"

He was barely listening. At her first mention of 'Hufflepuff', Draco's mind had drifted to Angel. He wondered what she was doing at that moment.

"Helloooo? Draco?" Pansy snapped her fingers in front of him. "Draco!"

"What?"

She sighed dramatically. "It's like you haven't been yourself lately. What's the matter with you?"

"Nothing," he said, searching the pub for something more interesting to look at. Fine, he had taken Pansy to the Yule ball two years ago, and admittedly, taking someone to the ball was a bit like a proposal. But he had only asked her because he did not want people whispering about how Draco Malfoy didn't have a date. He just did not expect her to cling on like a leech.

"Anyway, what are you doing tonight?" she carried on. "I was thinking we could sneak out for a midnight stroll, just you and I."I would rather be eaten by werewolves, he thought to himself in disgust. 

Just then, the doors swung upon and Crabbe and Goyle stumbled in, sniggering about something. They spotted the couple, and to his relief, started to make their way over. 

"Having a little lover's chat, eh?" Goyle squeezed in next to him, Crabbe parking himself beside Pansy.

"Actually, I'm going outside for some air. This place smells like the owlery." Draco stood up quickly. Throwing two gold Galleons on the table, he pushed past Goyle so forcefully the boy almost fell over.   

It was freezing outside, his breath forming white puffs of clouds. But he was glad to be rid of them. He shoved his hands deep into his pockets and started making his way down the lane, reading off the names of each shop and looking into their windows as he went.

He turned the corner into an alley he never noticed before. He and the Slytherin gang always made a beeline for the pub or Zonkos or Honeydukes'. This part of the village was unfamiliar. 

From a distance, he saw that one shop stood out in particular. Going closer, he realised that it was entirely pink from top to the bottom. Even the doors and windows sills were coated in the same gaudy cough-syrup shade. Behind the glass, mountains of cakes and pastries were piled hastily on top of each other. Madame Puddifoot's... tea and cakes... he read the sign in his head. His stomach grumbled, and he remembered he hadn't touched the pumpkin pasties.

He peered through the window. For a Saturday, the shop was surprisingly empty. Curiosity got the better of him and he pushed open the door. An overpowering smell of vanilla and coffee whacked him in the nose. 

The interior was truly horrifying, with bows, frills, and lace tacked onto every visible surface. I will just get a coffee and leave, he thought. A burly woman popped up from behind the counter. "Yes, dearie?"

"Uh, just a coffee. Milk and sugar."

She nodded and hastily disappeared again to make his drink. He peaked at the cold display. Rows and rows of assorted cakes sat prettily, some decorated with jam and frosting, some left plain. Nothing new. But right at the end, his eyes landed on a particular tag. Apple Strudel.

The brown pastry looked light and fluffy, plump with filling. The lady reappeared and placed his coffee on the counter. "I'll take an apple strudel too," he blurted, captured by a sudden impulse.

She went slightly red with pleasure as she clasped her hands together. "Of course, dearie!" she exclaimed in a grandmotherly excitement. "Our strudels may look boring, but tastes like a slice of heaven, I tell ya! Ha! Best in England, I'll bet!"

He highly doubted that, but watched silently as she packed it into a little pink and white box. Bloody hell. Did he really have to carry that all the way back to school?

"Here you go, handsome! That'll be seven Sickles in total." He placed the coins on the counter, mumbled a thanks, and hurried out the door as fast as his legs would go.

He leaned on a lamppost and took a few gulps of coffee. The hot liquid burned his tongue slightly as it trickled down his throat, making him feel much better against the cold.

He disposed the cup and started to make his way back. The whole Madam Puddifoot experience had been quite embarrassing, but he felt pleased with himself - excited, almost - as the strudel weighed his coat pocket down.

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

He had reached the foot of the hill when a girl's laughter sounded in the distance. His head snapped up, fearing the worst, but it wasn't Pansy.

Angel was coming down from the castle and headed straight towards him. They had never met or spoken to each other outside the confines of the Tower, and he had no idea what to do or say. He spun around sharply and hurried back down the path he came, praying she hadn't seen him. 

But the path to Hogsmeade was a straight, unwinding road, and there was nowhere to hide. He heard her come up just behind him. "Malfoy...?" Cursing inwardly, he turned around.

A pale pink scarf was wrapped around her neck, and her dark curls fell over her white coat like a waterfall. He waited for her to say something. She, too, seemed unsure of herself, but her lips parted into a smile anyway. "What're you doing here by yourself?" she asked, looking around.

"I was just heading back to the castle," he said, before realising his mistake.

"Really? It looked like you were just going into Hogsmeade!"

He didn't know how to answer. He wasn't prepared. So his mind reached for the next thing he knew. "None of your business. What's it to you?" he spat defensively. 

Her eyes widened, clearly taken aback. "Oh, nothing. Nothing at all." She gave him a tight but polite smile before trying to side-step around him.

"Wait!" he said, moving in front of her before she could get past. "I... I have something for you."

"Malfoy," she sighed. "I'm really not-"

"No, no. It's actually-" he was about to hold out the box when another voice called out towards them.

Cedric was bounding down the hill, black felt coat fluttering in the wind. Angel lifted her hand to him in greeting, and his blood boiled. Merlin, did he despise this Hufflepuff boy.

She turned back to him and laughed weakly. "Cedric was supposed to meet me at the Three Broomsticks. He had some homework to catch up on so I got a head start. Guess he changed his mind! I'm so sorry, what were you saying?"

"Uh- I was just- it's a small thing, really. I just saw it and-" He couldn't help being distracted by the flashes of Cedric's yellow jumper under the black. He closed the distance between them quickly and barrelled into Angel playfully.

"Is he bothering you?" Cedric placed a protective arm around Angel's shoulders, eyeing Draco up and down. 

"No, he was just..." she looked at Draco, waiting for him to finish what he was saying. He was about to tell Cedric to piss right off before more voices called his name from behind. "Oi! Malfoy!"

He turned and saw Crabbe, Goyle, and Pansy quickly approaching. Curse them all! He wanted to Wingardium Leviosa all of them into the Black Lake.

Pansy skipped up to him and wrapped both her arms around his. He saw that Angel had noticed this, although she was pretending not to. Trying to wrench his arm away from Pansy only made her grab on tighter.

"Hi Cedric!" Pansy grinned slyly.

"Pansy. Goyle. Crabbe." Cedric greeted each one with a polite nod and smile.

"Hi Pansy," Angel offered softly. Pansy ignored her completely, keeping her attention on Cedric. "Fancy seeing you here, Ced!"

"Yeah, Angel and I were just heading to the Three Broomsticks. Or perhaps the Hog's Head." He turned to Angel. "Which did you prefer?"

Before Angel could answer, Pansy cut in. "Well, Draco and I," she emphasised loudly, "were just at The Three Broomsticks. Their pumpkin pasties are simply the best, aren't they, Draco?" She turned to him expectantly.

"Yeah. Fantastic pasties," he mumbled. Angel gave him a strange look. "I thought you didn't like pumpkin pasties?"

"He just said he does," Pansy spat, glaring at Angel like she was the stupidest person ever. Then, turning to Cedric, she smiled sweetly. "You should try them some time."

"Oh, Angel doesn't like pumpkin pasties," said Cedric quickly, looking at Angel for confirmation.

"Does Dawson not have a mouth of her own?" Draco snapped, beginning to feel rather angry at this whole situation. He had just almost had a private moment with Angel before this darling, chivalrous Hufflepuff boy came barging in, pretending he knew everything about what she did or did not like.

The tension hung thick in the air before Pansy let out a loud squeal. "Ooooh, Draco, what's this!" She snatched the pastry box from his hands, which had been partially hidden by his coat. "Madam Puddifoots! Aww, Draco, you really shouldn't have!"

He watched in horror as she made a big show of opening the box, revealing the brown pastry inside. "Apple strudel, too!" Pansy screamed again. "Who told you it was my favourite? It was Millicent, wasn't it!"

His eyes flicked to Angel anxiously as they watched Pansy taking a bite into the strudel, sighing loudly with pleasure. Angel turned her gaze back to him, her eyes curiously studying his expression in silence, a look that seemed as if she could read his thoughts.

"Oi, I want me some of that!" Crabbe shouted, trying to grab the box. Pansy swung it out of his way easily. "Absolutely not! Draco bought it for me, didn't you?" Pansy looked at him again.

The sudden urge to Avada Kedavra her coursed through his veins.

"Well, we've got to get going," Cedric chirped as he hugged Angel closer to him and rubbed her shoulders, much to Draco's resentment. "Enjoy your strudel!" With that, they both trudged past the Slytherin party.

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

A/N:

Hey beauties! Thank you for reading this chapter, I enjoyed writing it so much. Leave a vote or comment if you thought it was super cute too! 🥰