Thanks bunches for all the reviews! Sorry if this is belated but I've had a crazy school-month. My super nerd extracurricular activities got us to the state competition and then I took this huge AP Exam that took 6 hours, jeez. So basically I've been studying instead of typing, sorry. Also, I posted a new story: it's the sequel to my Eragon fic Curiosity Killed the Cat Kai, and it's called Cats Out of the Bag. Go read it cause no body else is, what's worse is everyone's been harassing me to post the sequel :( Anyway, I have a feeling you all will like the ending...enjoy!
--
We were in Venice, three days later, before we considered what the "good guys" might think of our peculiar disappearance. I was digging the Italian way of life while Draco worked on mastering the few techniques I'd taught him. If we wanted to saunter across Europe without either of the two sides seeing us: Draco was going to have to work some big "don't notice me" spells. I hadn't known they were so hard to learn given that I'd been doing them without knowing it since I was little (it's best if people don't notice a little girl stealing their stuff). But now that I could see the difficulties Draco was having, I wondered how I'd ever managed them before. And on top of things, I didn't seem to be a very good teacher.
He was glaring at me now, coincidentally for my bad teaching. It brought me back to when this whole journey of ours began—when he had glared daggers at me for saving his life. I was sitting on the end of the bed with all of the other furniture of our room pushed against the wall around me—Draco had needed prime angry stalking room. I had just finished giving a horrible rendition of what it felt like when you knew the spell had worked and Draco was far done with being amused with me. I sighed exasperated and began my own set of thoughtful pacing.
"Maybe I can figure a way to fold you into my spell." I said airily. It was hard to fully focus on what I was supposed to be doing when the long white curtains covering the small balcony kept billowing in the slight breeze and reflecting the warm sun outside, I swear they were calling to me. I really wanted to go stand out there for a while. I was lost in thoughts of the view out our tiny wrought iron balcony when Draco spoke. Understandably enough, I didn't hear him. "Muh?" I mumbled. I had stopped pacing and was staring longingly at the curtains. Draco was glaring again. I think it's his favorite expression.
"Annabelle," he said with a snarl. I frowned when he stood in front of the curtains and forced me to look him in the eye. He was blocking the wonderful play of light the curtains made on the faded rug. I sighed and met his gaze. Its funny how much more beautiful his eyes are when he's angry then when he smiles—they were this lovely crystal grey when he bristled. He forced himself to stay angry, but I knew he had calmed a bit when he met my dreamy gaze. I unfortunately had that kind of effect on him, I rather favored him angry. He sighed unable to force the look for very long and I watched his eyes adjust to a more azure color. The corner of my mouth momentarily twitched down in mourning. "I don't want to depend on you to hide me in plain sight." He said much more calmly. This stormy blue was still equally lovely, but that glass grey color really was a treat to see. "I said I'll do it myself." it sounded to me like he was trying to reassure himself something. I just smiled a weird crooked thing and patted his shoulder on my way to those alluring curtains.
"Better start practicing." I smiled wider when I heard him snort behind me. The bed and breakfast sort of place we were hiding out in for now was built right on the cusp of one of the water roads Venice was famous for. I stood out on the tiny balcony and sighed appreciably. The dirty water below was glistening with the early sun and a warm shadow stretched over the ancient building across the waterway from our room. A thin sidewalk gripped tightly to that old building and barely hovered over the waters surface. A few wandering Venetian people hurried across the sidewalk to their homes and the echo of playing children bounced roughly off the aged rock buildings. The breeze sifting through our white curtains had started tugging at the waves in my hair and at the ends of my shirt not long after the last shopper turned a corner out of my sight. We were far off from the wizarding part of Venice; only muggles surrounded us out here.
It was tough to admit that I'd forgotten Charlie for a while there; so much had happened at once that I didn't think of much actually. I felt better after Rich (that little chocolate brown owl) showed up one day with a letter from her. She had made it to New York unharmed. And though she hadn't said anything: I knew she had met the photographer I had seen when I held her left hand that last normal day. It was very clear we were never going to be those best friends we had been most of our school life. My world was here in Europe and her new world had opened up in America.
I had sat down on the weaved wrought iron and let my legs dangle between two thin twists of rail when Draco came out on the tiny structure with me. The ends of my hair twisted this way and that in the wind and my thighs were warm from the heated metal and the bright sun. It was the last peaceful moment I had in Venice.
"They're downstairs talking to the landlord." Draco said lightly. It wasn't hard to figure out who Draco was talking about. I pulled my legs back onto the balcony and Draco helped me to my feet as we went back into the room. Our stuff was already packed and we didn't even bother to deal with the jumbled furniture against the wall. I pulled the strap of my small bag over my head and perched my big sunglasses on top my head. We looked ordinary enough, I was in neutral shorts and a plain shirt with Nike's and Draco had a FIFA World Cup t-shirt with dusty colored pants and sneakers. Once we met a crowd they would never be able to pick us out. But we had to get out of this sleepy neighborhood first, and out of this building before that. I was pulling my hair into a mess on back of my head as I leaned an ear against the door. I could hear the murmur of voices from down the hall and down the stairs. I left it to Draco to recognize the voice as a Death Eater. The lost in translation fray the landlord and Death Eater seemed to be going through was buying us time. There was only one other way out of the little hotel-house other then the front door and kitchen door (which you had to pass the Death Eater and landlord to get to) and that was the old rusted fire escape out the hallway window. I swear they installed that thing the same year the house was built. Even now, through the door I could hear it creak because the wind was blowing. I wasn't quite sure it would even hold our weight. But I'd fare that rusted trap before I faced a Death Eater in front of an innocent muggle with Draco in tow.
Our only trouble was we had to pass the narrow staircase to get to the other end of the hall. We would have to risk the lackey downstairs seeing us to get to the deathtrap of a fire escape that will most likely make an orchestra of creaks and moans protesting us using it. And then the sound alone will convince the bad man downstairs that he doesn't need to deal with the muggle landlord and he'll come running upstairs only to watch the fire escape collapse on top of us and impale Draco and me with rusty railings and ladders.
With the image in my mind, Draco leaned against the door above me (because he's so much taller). I couldn't help but wonder exactly how they found us this time. We were careful; we used muggle cash and used the name William Martin to sign us in. I was itching with curiosity. How did they do it?
I slipped out from between Draco and the door to check over myself. Since the death promising fire escape seemed our only option, I had to make sure I didn't make noise when I moved. A zipper jingling could ruin us. Draco already knew what we were going to do. When we had first arrived at the small hotel we went over all of our escape options just in case—it was a good thing too, we couldn't risk talking at the moment. Draco looked at me and I nodded. He leaned heavily against the door and slowly turned the doorknob. If us being killed wasn't one of our outcomes today, I might think this was exciting. He eased the door open with the most concentration I'd seen Draco commit to something with. He took small steps farther into the room and luckily the door stayed silent as he pulled it open. Once the crack was big enough for us to fit through he maneuvered the doorknob back into its resting state.
I was ridged with tension as he readied himself to let go of the door. The door had always made some kind of squealing noise all other times we used it. We were in some trouble if we made too much noise. His grip was lessening, and just when I thought he had it: creaaak!
We both froze horrified. The murmur of angry talking had paused. Oh god. Draco's wand was clutched in his white knuckled grip in an instant. The silence was killing my head, my ears were buzzing with nothing and my sight was growing white around the edges. Creak…. Someone was coming up stairs! I looked at Draco with huge eyes, but that was before our Italian landlord/bellboy man roared all sorts of cusswords at whoever had tried to ascend his stairs. I took off once my footsteps were covered by their heated yelling match. We didn't have long before yelling took to fighting; there was no doubt who would win that. I stopped right before the stairs. The yelling was even louder at the top; their echoing seemed to be directed right at me. Draco came up behind me and put his hand on my shoulder. Together we leaned against the floral wallpaper trying to quiet our breathing. I could see the window on the other side of the stairs, and toward the bottom the rusted railing poked up into sight.
I took a silent breath. I braced my self against Draco with one hand and the other right at the edge of the wall before the staircase took over. Slowly I took a peak, I could see the huge Italian flag the landlord hung over the front door, and I saw the small desk he kept his sign in book on and the back of his huge pants. No Death Eater. And that unnerved me to no end. I liked to know where these kinds of people were. I didn't want any surprises.
A worried crease was probably forming over my brow when the huge pants of the landlord lurched forward. He had pushed the Death Eater and he fell to the floor. I got a full view of his face. I pulled back so fast I smashed right into Draco. He grabbed me around the shoulders to steady me and tried to look past my head to see what made me pull back. I wasn't positive, but I think the Death Eater saw me. Hopefully since he only saw me and not Draco he won't have an urge to run up the stairs quite yet.
I risked it and took another look, the landlord was getting pushy. I wish he knew what kind of trouble he was getting himself into. But other than the big guy downstairs initiating his own murder—Death Eater guy was busy. I grabbed Draco's arm and we hurried as quietly as you can across a hall when a likely murder loomed downstairs followed possibly by your own. I was easing open the ancient window when the Death Eater unmistakably pulled out his wand. The landlord was laughing at him for how ridiculous he looked. However much self preservation was pulling me out the window—I didn't want the landlord's death hanging over my head. Gosh, I was really going to do this.
Draco gave me a look I fully deserved when I pulled my bag off and handed it to him. This is the kind of thing I do; I track down and capture Death Eaters. I've been doing it since I was 12—it would be stupid and unfair of me to let the landlord die just so we could escape. Especially since I was specifically trained to deal with these kinds of situations. But still, it would be nice if I had my wand.
I had started walking back toward the top of the stairs when Draco stopped me. He turned me around and held my shoulders tightly as he looked into my face. I was dead set on doing this, and he knew that he couldn't change my mind. I didn't really understand why he had stopped me until he kissed me. Kissed me! Leave it to him to complicate things for me. Of course at the time I hadn't grown any indignities about it yet. I was just too shocked. The damn man kissed me! Where does he get off doing this to me?
I was quick to push Draco out the window; he had left me in such a daze it took the loud creaks and moans of the fire escape to get me moving down the hall again. I had to head off the Death Eater and make sure the landlord didn't die quite yet. I was down the stairs so quick my appearance confused the two down there for a moment. I was right in assuming the Death Eater couldn't put me and Draco together, he thought I was just another muggle staying here at the hotel. But to him I was another muggle he got to kill.
I didn't have time to mess around with this wizard, climbing down the fire escape was making such a commotion he was ready to just skip killing us to get up there. I kicked him in the gut without a second thought before he could make it past me. He yelled some very hurtful insults toward me and my "sire" as he brought his wand up toward me. But I'd done this before, no biggie. My lovely Nike's shattered his face and he dropped his wand to howl and grip his face. I was quick to pinch his wand and use it on him. He slumped to the floor silent and the landlord probably thought he was crazy now.
Landlord called the cops and they took Death Eater guy away. Without his wand he was pretty much useless. Hopefully some wizarding justice would recognize him and take him into their custody. Other than that, my hands were clean of him. Since landlord was right there, I had to pay the rest of the fee for our room. He'll probably be mad when he sees the room and the rearranged furniture.
--
I was meandering through a street soccer game between some little kids in a longstanding neighborhood and just starting to enjoy the day again when I got to the meeting place. He was standing in the shade with our bags at his feet and some preteens giggling his way. He looked relieved when he spotted me.
"What happened?" he asked. I could practically hear the young faces fall when I showed up. In the shade I raised my glasses and situated myself out of view from the main street.
"The muggle police took him away. He's unconscious right now but I don't know for how long. And where do you get off!" I thought I was going to be cool about the kiss, but I found myself yelling at him instead. The street was busy enough for everyone to find something else to do rather then listen to us. "Kissing me?" I asked glaring. "Where did you get that idea?"
"It seemed like the thing to do in our situation." He said calmly. I hated how the tiniest thing got him glaring, but when I was mad at him all he could do was stay cool and calm. "I didn't know if you were coming back." Oh I wanted to slap him.
"So you kissed me?" I wish he wouldn't be so collected like this. "You're such an ass!" He was actually smirking! The jerk! "Don't smile at me!" I hate him. I was ready to hit him when he held my wrist and kissed me again! I pushed him off and glared like the dickens ready to start yelling again. Then he smiled knowingly and I hated him more when I gave in. Poor Annabelle, falling for Draco Malfoy and not even knowing it.
Review please!!!!!
-BS