Being a passerby in HP female protagonist fanfiction

Draco's eyes were filled with fear and panic.

That person was standing right in front of him.

That person that every Slytherin knew perfectly well was someone they absolutely should not mess with.

Willott Gaunt.

The heiress of the Gaunt family, an elegant noblewoman.

A demon that appeared out of nowhere a few years ago.

"Malfoy".

Willotte Gaunt's eyes were always filled with a gentle smile, and the corners of her mouth were always slightly upturned, the perfect, standard example of someone else's child.

A year ago, Draco first met Willotte at a party at the Malfoys' house.

Purple eyes?

Lucius had told Draco that most of the known members of House Gaunt were black-haired, and he had never seen anyone with purple eyes.

At that time, he doubted the bloodline of this so-called heir of the Gaunt family, so the meeting was not pleasant. His arrogance made him look down on Willotte, whose bloodline was questionable.

But Draco soon paid the price for it.

He will never forget the threat that person delivered with a smile.

"I never expected that such an idiot could be so arrogant." The blonde, purple-eyed girl said. Her expression was gentle, as if they were having a pleasant conversation, but her words were as ruthless as a knife. "If all heirs were like you, no wonder the purebloods are in such a sorry state now."

The oppressive feeling was palpable only to Draco.

"What, are you doubting my lineage?" Willott smiled contemptuously. "That kind of thing doesn't matter, the Gaunt family has already acknowledged me. Only an idiot like you with hair gel in his head would question it."

How dare she say such a thing!

Draco couldn't help but tremble, unsure whether it was from anger or fear.

In that instant, the child's intuition made him feel fear.

“If they dare to cause me trouble, I’d rather they were dead,” Willotte said, her elegant bow drawing admiration from onlookers. “Even a fool should have his own value.”

"you you--"

"Of course... these are all just jokes, please don't take them seriously, Master Malfoy."

“Or, you could tell your father what I said.” Willotte lowered her eyes, her purple eyes devoid of light. “I’m also very curious about his reaction.”

What a load of bull!

That damned person really tried to kill him!

Draco trembled as he thought about it. He had to tell Lucius, he had to expose this man's true colors. That damned Gaunt dared to threaten Malfoy.

"Dad, I..."

“Draco, you’ve come at just the right time.” Lucius, beaming, interrupted him and stood with Narcissa. “You must cultivate a good relationship with that Miss Gaunt. The Gaunt family is not simple, and befriending her will be a great help to the entire Malfoy family.”

“Yes, Miss Willotte is such a wonderful child,” Narcissa said gently. “It’s clear she’s well-educated and a good girl.”

"..."

"Draco, what were you trying to say?"

"...No, it's nothing."

From that moment on, whether he wanted to admit it or not, Draco couldn't escape the fear of Willotte Gaunt; that fear was ever-present.

“Malfoy,” said Willotte Gaunt, who was standing in front of him, her smile sending a chill down his spine.

"I heard you've been bullying classmates outside the library lately?" The slow, deliberate tone carried a hint of danger. "And it's even ruined the reputation of the entire Slytherin."

"Of course, I believe you're joking, but it's best not to implicate Slytherin. It's better for both of us. It's not a good thing if the collective is harmed because of an individual."

"If possible, I hope this won't happen again next time."

It's not that serious!

Hasn't Slytherin always had a bad reputation?

Draco wanted to argue, but ultimately remained silent. If their first meeting had brought fear, then Willow in Slytherin had long since become someone he couldn't afford to mess with.

She's a very good madwoman.

If someone absolutely had to confront Willotte's madness, Draco hoped it wouldn't be him.

Draco only relaxed his clenched fist after Willotte left.

"hateful."

In any case, it was not something the proud Draco could easily accept because of a single threat from the other party.

Draco, unable to contain his anger, punched a tree next to him.

Two Hufflepuffs happened to pass by in the distance and looked at him, seemingly startled by Draco's actions.

One of them instinctively hid behind another Hufflepuff.

Draco glanced over in annoyance.

Hufflepuff again—wait, no, wait.

The person blocking the way is... Claire?

That Hufflepuff who was very special to Willotte.

The only person Willow was treated differently.

Draco chuckled, narrowed his eyes, and for the first time seriously examined this Hufflepuff.

Black hair, black eyes—I really don't know what's so special about him that he could catch Willow's attention.

Yes.

Draco felt as if a flash of inspiration had struck him.

If we can get close to this Hufflepuff, could we exploit Willotte Gaunt's weakness?

Or could we use this Hufflepuff to probe Willott Gaunt's thoughts?

“Hey, you’re Claire, right?” Draco sneered. “Come here.”

Claire frowned slightly. She ignored Draco and instead turned to say something to the Hufflepuff behind her. The Hufflepuff glanced at Claire with concern and then quickly left.

After doing all this, she looked directly at Draco again and took a few steps forward.

"Excuse me, is there anything I can help you with, classmate?"

“You should know me,” Draco said arrogantly. “I am Draco Malfoy.”

He hesitated for a few seconds, weighing the pros and cons in his mind.

What is your relationship with Gaunt?

"...Uh, friend?" Claire's voice was hesitant as she answered, her face showing lingering doubt and wariness.

"Heh." Draco almost blurted out a sarcastic remark, but thankfully Willotte Gaunt's warning was still fresh in his mind, and he held back.

Are your parents Muggles?

“…No, both my parents are wizards.” Claire’s expression began to look complicated.

That's alright, Draco breathed a sigh of relief.

“Since Gaunt approves, I can give you a chance to be friends with Malfoy,” Draco said.

The air suddenly became quiet.

"..."

"..."

"What do you mean by that?" Draco's eyelids twitched.

“…Ah, it’s nothing, I was just a little surprised. I didn’t expect Malfoy to want to talk about this.” Claire said earnestly, speaking very quickly. “I would love to be friends with Malfoy. It would be an honor.”

These words made Draco, who was in a bad mood, feel a little better. It seems that Hufflepuff is quite sensible.

Draco glanced at Claire again.

She has an unusual background, excellent grades, and is quite respectable. Judging from her clothes, her family is probably not poor either, a wizarding family. It's a pity she's not a pureblood. I heard she's popular in Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, and has a close relationship with Willotte, which could be used. Her face is also... well, not bad.

Draco reluctantly accepted it; it seemed that getting close to Claire wasn't so unbearable after all.

Don't be stingy with the cost if you want something, but don't forget to avoid risks. This is a family motto of the Malfoy family that is ingrained in Draco's bones.

“Since that’s what you think, I’ll agree,” Draco said, his face displaying his usual arrogance.

He extended his hand to Claire, "No one would refuse to be Malfoy's friend."

Claire seemed to pause for a second, probably because she was too excited. In the end, she hesitated before taking Draco's hand.

Perhaps because of her female identity and her Asian physique, Draco could feel that her hands were noticeably smaller.

“…Okay,” Claire said.