It was hard to tell what was worse: the violence or the awful mind games and verbal abuse she'd receive on a daily basis.

"You played with my heart, tore me apart with all your lies and games"

Flashback

"Guess who I saw today," Draco said without greeting her. Rosa was bewitching all the housework equipment to clean the place as he hadn't bothered to tidy up after himself – again. She smiled in what she hoped was a calm manner.

"Who?" Rosa asked, to humour him.

"Pansy," Draco said, not looking at her as he examined the kitchen. "God, it's filthy in here."

Rosa bit back a retort, and was forced to compose her face once more. "Oh yeah? Did she say anything to you?"

"Nah," Draco said, finally looking at her. He looked cocky and rather pleased with himself. "But I can tell she still wants me."

Her heart thudded and she had to turn away, biting her lip. Pansy was always her main enemy at school, once Marcus Flint and his terrifying gang left.

"She wasn't looking too bad herself actually," Draco said, further driving the knife into her heart. "She's got good curves." He threw a pitying glance at Rosa. She didn't have to look at herself to know that she'd lost a lot of weight and consequently her own good figure. As she collapsed in tears, Draco walked out, seemingly oblivious to the damage he'd done. He was always trying to make her jealous these days, it was just one of his unpleasant games.

End of flashback

~~~(O.O)~~~

Flashback

"I'm uh… off tonight with a few of my friends for a, uh… work meeting," Draco said, avoiding eye contact. He was definitely acting shifty, and Rosa folded her arms.

"Work meeting?"

"Yes, Rosa, a work meeting!" Draco said, losing his temper. "It's not for you to question me! I'll be back before ten!" He slammed the door on his way out.

Rosa knew he was lying.

~~~(O.O)~~~

She backed against the hallway wall as Draco stumbled in, clearly blind-drunk. It was quarter to one.

"You said you wouldn't do this anymore!" Rosa said tearfully, edging away as he lunged towards her.

"Sorry darling," Draco slurred, holding onto the bannister to keep himself upright. "I won't do it again, I promise."

Rosa knew he didn't mean it. And she was right.

~~~(O.O)~~~

"You said. You said you'd stop going out and drinking like that."

Rosa was addressing Draco from across the kitchen table. She stabbed her food angrily with her fork.

"No I didn't," Draco said calmly, eating as if nothing had happened the previous evening.

"You did, you said last night and a few days ago," Rosa insisted.

"No, Rosa. I didn't," Draco said firmly, shaking his head with a small smile on his face.

"You did," Rosa said faintly. Was her memory deceiving her? She could have sworn he had promised her that.

"You're probably just tired. I never said I'd stop drinking. You're just imagining things," Draco said confidently.

Rosa was now full of doubt. Perhaps he was right. Maybe she had just imagined it.

End of flashback

~~~(O.O)~~~

Flashback

"You look like a cheap slut."

Rosa was wearing a beautiful red dress just cut above the knee and not particular low cut at the chest. Anyone else would have told her, truthfully, that she looked beautiful, but not Draco.

"How?" Rosa asked, her heart pounding at the anticipation of an ugly fight with Draco.

"It's far too revealing. Pansy would never wear something like that." Draco wrinkled his nose.

Rosa sighed. She was always being compared to Pansy these days. It was destroying her self esteem.

"Wear this one instead," Draco ordered, holding out a plain black dress. Rosa would look lovely in anything, but it wasn't her style and she didn't want to wear it.

However, to avoid unpleasantness, Rosa took it and obediently went to get changed. What if he broke up with her and went for Pansy instead? After all, Draco was always saying how well dressed and nice she looked. Rosa needed to look her best at all times. She wanted to please Draco.

End of flashback

The most previous fight had been one of the ugliest.

Flashback

"I want a job, Draco."

Rosa tried to stand her ground confidently. It wasn't going particularly well.

"Why?" Draco questioned her harshly.

"Because I do," Rosa said, faltering slightly. "I always planned to work once I left Hogwarts…" Her voice tailed off at the look on his face.

"Well I want you to stay at home. Leave the career to me. You're not even smart enough to get the job you want."

Rosa stared at him. She'd outperformed him on all of her OWL and NEWT exams , yet she was the dumb one? He told her this so often that a less intelligent person would start to believe it.

"I want to work," Rosa repeated more forcefully.

"Well I'm saying you can't!" Draco seized her arm, pushing her into the wall and twisting her arm painfully behind her back. She cried out in pain.

"Say you won't go out to work and leave me. Say it!" Draco ordered, twisting her arm further until she was almost white with pain.

"Ouch- Fine, I won't go!" Rosa screamed, as he let go of her, panting. His usually pale face was flushed, and he clenched his fists before striding away. Rosa collapsed against the wall in tears, holding her sore arm. Would she have to put up with this for the rest of her life?

End of flashback

Tears welled up in Rosa's bright green eyes. She'd been a fool to move onto Draco after George broke up with her. For a moment, she thought of him: tall, ginger, an endearing lopsided grin… If she'd had it her way, Rosa and George would never have broken up. He was perfect for her, in all the ways that Draco was an awful match.

She needed to be strong now. Rosa had previously been good at this, but Draco had sucked away most of her strength until she was almost totally dependent on him.

"You took all the strength I had, but I crawled up on my feet again"

Rosa reminded herself that she had literally crawled up on her feet again many times and had escaped the house – months ago this idea wouldn't have even entered her mind. It seemed like a huge step, and it was, but she had a lot of healing to do yet. It would take time.

"Excuse me." It was the same woman from earlier. "Sorry, love, but we're closing up now. Are you alright?"

Rosa wiped her eyes automatically – Draco hated her showing any negative emotion, even after he had mistreated her, and now this had become a habit. She tried to smile.

"Yes, thank you. I'm just tired." Partly true.

"Do you need me to phone a taxi or anything?" The woman looked slightly concerned. Rosa smiled more convincingly.

"No no, it's okay. My mum's waiting across the street." She got up, picking up the bag she had ran away with. "Thanks so much for the food earlier."

"Not a problem, dear," the woman said, smiling at her. "Take care."

"Thanks," Rosa said quickly, turning away so she couldn't see her tears. She pushed the door open and stepped out into the London street. Naturally it was busy, but everyone else seemed to walk with a purpose; they seemed to know where they were going. Rosa straightened her shoulders and tried to copy them. She turned left, and walked on, passing pubs, shops, hotels…

The only option Rosa had was to return home to her mother, Hayley, but that involved a lot of patching up. She desperately wanted to recreate the same loving relationship they'd had previously, but Rosa hadn't wanted to move back home while doing that.

All around her, people seemed to be enjoying themselves. It was a Friday, so everyone was looking forward to the weekend; the pubs were almost full already and those walking with friends were chatting animatedly. Rosa suddenly felt a rush of sadness for the friendships she had lost since her relationship with Draco. Hermione, Ron, Harry, Fred, George, Bill, Fleur, Ginny, Luna… Now she had to stifle a sob, in the middle of the street. Unable to be around such happy, carefree people, Rosa took a turn into a less busy street, one full of fancy offices.

There was just one figure walking the opposite direction as Rosa walked down the pavement. She almost ignored them, but there was something very familiar about them. The walk, the posture, the bushy hair…

Rosa stopped dead in her tracks.

"Hermione?"

Hermione, who had looked lost in thought, looked up in alarm. Then a look of mingled delight and shock passed across her face. She let out a small shriek.

"Rosa!" They hugged, fiercely. Hermione surveyed her once they let go, looking slightly anxious.

"Where's Draco?"

"I left him," Rosa said, trying to sound strong. Even so, her voice wobbled. "Hermione, you've got to help me. Can I come back with you… wherever you live these days?"

"Sure," Hermione said immediately, "I have a flat with Ron, but it's tiny. Of course you can come back with us, I'll make you dinner and we can talk – I have a feeling that things aren't good."

"Worse than you can ever imagine," Rosa said grimly. It was finally time to admit the terrible truth to her friends.

~~~(O.O)~~~

Hermione had a small but stylish apartment on the outskirts of London. Ron was not home yet; according to Hermione, he had to stay late at his Auror training frequently.

"Do you have a job now, Rosa?" Hermione asked, switching on a fan in the living room and inviting her to sit down. Rosa's lip trembled.

"No." She decided to be honest. "I wasn't allowed one."

Hermione looked up in horror. "'Not allowed?'" she repeated incredulously. "Draco wouldn't allow you to go out to work?"

Rosa shook her head. Hermione looked grim.

"It is worse than I thought then. I mean, Draco is a total arse, but I never thought… that's really controlling!"

"I know." She had to fight back tears. How could she have done this? Rosa hadn't spoken to any of her friends since she left Hogwarts… in fact she didn't actually have any friends, except for Draco. It had been a lonely year stuck in his house; it wasn't like she was going to become best friends with Millicent Bulstrode or Goyle.

"I haven't seen any of my old friends in over a year," Rosa explained, before breaking down in tears. Hermione moved across the leather sofa to comfort her. "I realised today that I want my old life back, I couldn't survive in Draco's house. Not anymore."

"You can get your old life back," Hermione said determinedly. "We're still in contact with everyone, it's almost like we never left school. But before I reintroduce you to everyone, I really think it would be best to fill me in on everything that's happened since you moved in with Draco."

And Rosa did.