Disclaimer: I don't own it.
Peeks out from behind building Is it safe to come out now? Yes it is because I have finally updated! YAY! I know it's been a looooong time and I'm sorry. Things have been hectic as always and it took me forever to decide what to do with our young hero Draco. But I have gotten my muse back and am now ready to reveal the next part of the story to the world, or well to the people who read this.
Speaking of readers...I would like to thank noire grimore, Scouter, Airlady, Booksurfer1500, and finally Gackts Sanura for reviewing. I appreciate it more than you will ever know.
If you want to see your name here, please review! But more importantly read and enjoy! Magnolia
And for those of you waiting for a really good fight, stay tuned cause it's coming and it's going to be good!
Another thing, I was thinking of changing the summary to attract new readers. If you have any suggestions or have something really good of your own, please send it to me! Thanks.
Chapter 29 Questions But No Answers
He wasn't showering in the bathroom or hanging halfway off a sofa in the common room. He wasn't sprawled out on the wooden floor of their room and he definitely wasn't cramped in the window seat. Isabella couldn't find Draco anywhere. Not even his dirty uniform lay in a mess on the floor. There was no indication that he had returned back to their room last night.
After her fruitless search, Isabella paced through the common room still in her night gown, occasionally throwing her arms up in frustration.
'How could he?!?' part of her fumed while the other half questioned.
'Why are you angry with him? It's not like you care. You have Jason. Remember? Your fiancée? Love of your life? Does the name ring a bell? That's what you need to worry about. Not Draco but Jason. Let Draco have his fun, it's not like he's having any with you.'
With her metaphorical angel and devil atop her shoulders Isabella continued to pace, arguing with herself. Finally they all come to an agreement. There must be a reason he wasn't there. Regardless of how innocent or not he is, don't be angry with him till you hear the truth from the camel's mouth.
Isabella decided that was the best course of action and began to get ready for the day, ignoring the flames of fury tickling her insides.
The Slytherin table was barren that morning, all of its residents still hung over in the dungeons. Actually many students missing from both the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables as well. But Isabella had other things on her mind then the empty hall.
To her surprise, she found Blaise at her table, as perk as ever, drinking a cappuccino as he thumbed through the Daily Prophet.
She plopped down beside him and stole a big sip of his coffee.
"Mmm," she groaned, "tastes like heaven."
"Good morning to you too," he grumbled, taking his cup back.
"How are you Blaise? Didn't party to hard last night did you?"
"Oh, I partied. Never partied so hard in my life," he smirked, "but unlike my fellow classmates I have mastered the art of the elusive hang over potion."
"Ahh, you always were good at potions. Now the question is where is my darling husband Draco?"
Isabella watched Blaise's reaction to Draco's name but saw nothing out of the ordinary. She was hoping the first tell-tell signs of guilt or even pity would emerge on his features soon.
"I don't know. Did he not return last night?" he asked with a curious eyebrow raised. "And aren't you suppose to know where he is? You are his wife."
Isabella glared, "No, I don't know where he is. I'm his wife, not his mother. He didn't return last night. He promised me he would. Did he do anything foolish last night Blaise?"
"Why do you care what he does? I was under the impression that your marriage was a fraud and you were planning on running the first chance you got? Are you developing feeling for him Isabella?" he shot question after question trying to break behind her façade.
She stared at him in shock, and then her rage for Draco shifted to Blaise.
"Don't you ever question my feelings for Jason," she said as she pressed an accusatory finger into his chest. The angrier she became the looser her tongue held her secrets.
"You could never understand how much I love him. He is the only reason I married Draco and the only reason I am still here. I did it to save him. I couldn't let him die because of me."
"Die? Isabella what happened?" Blaise pleaded as he grabbed her hand in comfort.
She sighed, wishing she hadn't exposed so much but there was no going back now.
"We can't talk about it here. Come back to the room. I assume Draco is passed out somewhere, still drunk on whiskey. I'll yell at him later," she said, pulling him quickly behind her.
The later part of the afternoon consisted of Isabella confessing to Blaise the secrets of her marriage: the death threats, the beaten agreements, and her naïve husband.
Blaise listened carefully and closely as Isabella relayed her tale, occasionally handing her a tissue. Once she had finished, red eyed and exhausted, Blaise spoke.
"So Draco does know about any of this Isabella?"
"He knows some but not about Jason. I don't know what will happen if I tell him. He's so protective. I feel sometimes like I'm his property. If he ever found out…he would probably lock me up in an ivory tower and never let me out."
Blaise sighed and ran a hand through his dark curly locks.
"I'm sorry Isabella for this whole thing. I had hoped your separation from your mother would have saved you from all of this but it seems that is not the case. I assure you though that this marriage was not for nothing. Jason is safe and more importantly you are safe. Your last name grants you protection, especially from your mother. And Draco, as childish and foolish as he can be, is not naïve. There are things Isabella, things I hope you never know about from Draco's past. He was a different person a year ago and I pray he will never be that way again. I mean haven't you ever wondered why everyone in this school fears and hates you and Draco? Why he's so guarded and protective? Draco's past in not pretty and neither is yours. But I think that together you can both find happiness whether that is in each other or through each other. Believe it or not Draco needs this marriage as much as you. He needs a chance to redeem himself and you need a chance to live."
She soaked up his words in silence and reminisced over the last few weeks of her life.
She was safe, as was Jason. Her mother still has influence in her life but she was basically a free woman. All thanks to Draco.
And Draco wasn't as horrible as she made him out to be. He was funny and intelligent and the way his face relaxed as he slept and the smile he gave only in her presence made Isabella's knees weak. He was protective and tried his best to shelter her from the world which she had never questioned till now.
Why? Why did he need to redeem himself? She knew full well the prejudices against purebloods and what a crazy family can do to some people, but Blaise made it sound like he did something horrible in his past. What does he have to hide? Something had happened at this school, in this community that was being hidden from her. Little did she know that those secrets were far bigger than Isabella could ever anticipate.
With her face pressed up against the glass, Isabella left foggy breathes across the frozen pane. The snow had stopped sometime last night and was now being packed down by the little feet of younger students enjoying a winter Sunday.
The atmosphere following their conversation was as cold and frozen as the ground outside. The silence was so empty that Isabella could hear the whispers of three young Hufflepuffs on the ground far below them.
"I'm going to take a walk," Isabella announced suddenly as she hopped up from the window bench.
"Do you want some company?"
She shook her head no while wrapping Draco's wool scarf around her neck.
"I need to…think for awhile. I've…I've spent the last few weeks in chaos. I feel like I don't know anything anymore and I hate that. I just need to think."
Isabella pulled the door open, and let it slam shut. The sound resonated a sharp wood thud that followed her as Isabella raced through the corridor.
