And if we dream - Draco Malfoy/ OC
Chapter 37- Routine
Summary: Like some magnetic force, like some unbreakable bond she was drawn back to him again and again. And now, staying away was an inconceivable notion. "Always." she murmured, one hand finding his, the other tangling into his platinum hair, "Always."
-…-
…. Sorry….
-….-
There was a moment, when she woke the next morning where she could almost believe that she was safe and happy and that the sun shining on her face was shining through the Gryffindor dormitory window and not through a window in Malfoy Manor. It could be worse though, she mused, there could be no window and no light in that cell she had spent so long in during her stay here. At least here in Draco's bed with the slumbering boys arms wrapped around her she felt some modicum of safety, she could almost ignore the ever present feeling of dread and fear of the people outside of this room.
"Are you with me?" Draco's sleep roughened voice asked.
"Yes." She replied, turning around to face him. She almost smiled at the sight of him, platinum hair a tousled mess and pillow creases in his cheek, he looked almost innocent and nothing like the boy she had grown up loathing until recently.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yes. No. Tired and confused." He leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to the skin of her forehead, running a soft hand through her hair.
"Confused about what?" he asked softly.
"I was thinking," She began as she sat up in the bed, pulling her knees to her chest, "Why did Vol- uh- he have Snape check my memories? Why wouldn't he just do it himself? That way there was no chance anyone could get it wrong – or lie to him."
Draco sat up too, "He was checking. He was checking Severus as Severus was checking on you."
"Then how-"
"Severus is one of the greatest wizards I've ever met, I've always said that and not just because he always favoured Slytherin over you ridiculous Gryfindors. He's incredibly strong in most magic. Occulmency being just one of them, he was blocking and altering what he saw even as he rifled through your brain."
"And Vold- he wouldn't have known?"
"It would seem not."
"So why? Why did Snape lie?"
"Do you know where Potter is heading next?"
"No!"
"Then he didn't lie did he."
"Why didn't he tell him about us?!" Avery cried, "Why is he keeping it a secret and helping you to cover it up? What- is he just going to hold it above our heads, blackmail us?"
"He did it for me." Draco said, voice still calm. "Despite what you all seem to think, he isn't a complete monster. I grew up with him, he's been more like a father than my father at times."
"I don't trust it, Draco."
"You don't have to, I trust him."
Avery nodded and watched as the blonde climbed from the bed and dressed, "We're going to the kitchens today." He said as he buttoned one of his usual dark shirts, "You need something real to eat."
"I can't just walk down the halls Draco."
"Of course you can, the dark lord gifted you to me remember, everybody here knows that, you won't be harmed."
Avery dressed in more clothes conjured by Draco and as her stiff hands fumbled with fastenings and buttons on the ill-fitting garments she realised again just how much she missed her wand. Before all this a simple spell and she'd be ready, awkward robe fastenings tied without the use of clumsy fingers, teeth cleaned, hair styled. The muggle way was much more difficult especially when she felt like her entire body had been trampled on repeatedly by a herd of Hypogriffs.
The journey to the kitchen seemed to take forever as she tried not to lean too much on her companion, as she became more awake and alert the painless bliss of sleep washed away to be replaced by lingering aches and pains in various places. She limped slowly down the hallways and around corners, cringing away when they passed anyone else, thought Dracos assurances seemed to hold true apart from the usual snide comments and insults.
The kitchen was large as she had expected, and held the same barely lived in look as Draco's bedroom, though Avery knew that the Malfoys had house elves that would keep the place spotless even after it had been used to feed all of the people currently residing in the manor. She wondered how those poor elves were faring under the cruel rule of Voldemort and his equally cruel goons, she hoped they were staying out of the way and subsequently the line of fire. "Mopsey!" Draco called, interrupting her from her thoughts.
A crack, and a young looking elf, as far as Avery could tell anyway, appeared by the stove. "Master Draco, you called?" she spoke, her voice pitched high in a way that only house elves were, her little dress though plain and shabby looked clean and warm and she seemed much more kempt in general than Dobby had when Avery and her friends had first met him.
Avery ignored her protesting muscles and crouched to Mopseys height, "Hello Mopsey," she smiled holding out a hand, "I'm Avery, and it's a pleasure to meet you."
Mopsey's wide eyes stared at Avery's outstretched hand, then to Draco and then back to Avery repeatedly before she hesitantly reached out a tiny hand and shook. "Hello Mistress Avery."
"Just Avery please."
"Yes Mistress Avery," Avery chuckled, she had already known it would be useless but wanted to attempt it anyway, "Master Draco, what can Mopsey do for you?"
"We're very hungry Mopsey." Draco spoke in a voice that she hadn't imagine he would use to a creature he considered to be inferior. "We didn't have breakfast with the others, perhaps you could make us something?"
"Yes master, right away!"
Avery found a small smile creeping onto her face again as she watched the elf begin her work, seeming genuinely happy in it.
"Is she your only elf?" Avery asked.
"Ours yes, though some of the others brought theirs when they came, they come in useful when there is feasts or meetings."
"Are they treated well?"
Draco scoffed, "Yes Red, well enough, I am aware of your friend's affinity for elves, I should have known it would rub off on you. I'm aware of Potters involvement in freeing Dobby too."
"Dobby hated it here."
"I know, I tried sometimes but you know my father. I was rather fond of the noisy creature."
Avery smiled, "you big softy."
Breakfast appeared before them just as it did at Hogwarts and Avery ignored the harsh pang of grief she felt. Boy did she miss those days and that place. Instead she focused on the delicious looking food in front of her, truly feeling hunger for the first time. She piled her plate high as Draco did the same next to her, even offering some to Mopsey who obviously refused. She ate slowly, not wanting to cause a stomach ache and also wanting to savour the tastes on her tongue, she hadn't eaten properly in so long.
"How long have I been here?" she asked Draco.
"Sixteen days."
"Is that all?" She asked, "It seems so much longer."
"Time seems to slow here," Draco admitted, "Living in constant fear will do that." Avery nodded and took his hand in hers.
-….-
The walks to the kitchen became an almost daily routine, it seemed that the majority of the Death eaters were not often actually in the manor, off causing unknown horrors and damage she had no doubt. She rarely saw anybody but Draco and Mopsey and on the odd occasion Narcissa and Lucius both of whom would completely ignore her existence. It seemed to Avery that Draco was often ignored and disregarded too, he had failed in his given mission to kill Dumbledore he had told Avery one night in the dark, and this seemed to mean that he was rarely involved in any plans or destruction too. Avery was glad for this, it meant that she was not left alone here, but also it meant that Draco had less guilt in all this, she knew he felt it at all times, she could see it, but he had not killed Dumbledore as far as she knew he hadn't killed or hurt anyone really. He wasn't one of them out there, despite the ugly mark on his forearm that said otherwise. Draco Malfoy was inherently good and Avery would spend all of her life convincing him of that the minute they were free and clear of this place. They would be free Avery believed, even after everything she still believed in Harry and Hermione, she knew that they would do what they could and that somehow the light would prevail. She and Draco just had to hold out until then. It was becoming almost normal this routine, sleeping in Draco's bed, waking with him and eating with him and then spending the rest of the day in his bedroom, talking, sleeping- healing. Her bruises had mostly healed and faded to a sickly yellow, her cuts healed and closed over, scabbing and the worst ones scarring. She hadn't checked herself over properly, she didn't really want to see, though she knew that there were muscles and ligaments torn and ripped that hadn't healed, bones had been broken before and she couldn't be sure how they had healed either even with Draco's attempts at healing throughout her time here. A thin silver line dissected part of her bottom lip and her chin, that she knew of as it was hard to miss every time she glanced herself in a reflective surface. Forget it, she thought, what's a few scars if it means survival.
It was on day twenty nine that their routine was interupted, they were returning from the kitchen, Avery having thanked Mopsey with her own small curtsey as she did every morning and laughing slightly at the elves flustered reaction and Malfoys not so subtle eye roll when they came into contact with the imposing figure of Fenrir Greyback. Avery's eyes widened as she physically collided with the werewolf and simultaneously felt a clawed had wrap around her forearm and Draco's hands entwine with the back of her shirt and yank her backwards.
"What's this then?" the wolf growled though Avery could barely hear him through the pounding of her heart in her ears. The wolf leaned towards her breathing deeply and she cringed.
"Back off Greyback, the lord gave her to me." Draco shot back hands pulling harder at the back of her shirt, though she found she couldn't budge against Greybacks superior strength even as she too attempted to yank her arm from his grasp.
"Let go of me!" she cried, tugging again and again at his grip on her arm that was now beginning to hurt as he squeezed harder, claws pressing into her arm, Don't break skin, she prayed, Don't break skin.
"Doesn't look like you're putting her to much use." The wolf grumbled, "I could take her."
A yelled spell, a blinding flash of light and she is released from Greyback's grip as he is pushed away, "Get back to the room!" Draco yelled, wand still pointed in the growling wolfs direction. Wandless, weak and she realised completely useless right now Avery turned in the opposite direction they had been heading, she didn't have time to tell Draco that the bedroom was in the direction that Greyback was currently blocking, and ran blindly into the corridor. She had no idea of where she was heading, she only knew the one route from bedroom to kitchen and back again, she could find and ask Mopsey she knew but she didn't want to risk the little elf being caught up in this if, Merlin forbid, Greyback should get past Draco. She knew little of Greyback or werewolves for that matter other than Remus, but she knew enough to know that Greyback was bad and hurt and destroyed things just for fun. She knew that there was nothing in particular that caught his attention only those that were weak and defenceless. Avery thanked Merlin that she had Draco now more than ever. She kept running, trying various doors until one finally opened under her hands. She ran through and once again collided with a body.
"Miss Greenwood," a blessedly familiar voice drawled, "Do you think it is a good idea to be running around here alone. Guests may get- ideas."
"I-"
"I would imagine you are safer with Draco are you not?"
"Greyback –"she gasped, clutching onto the professors robes, "Greyback-"she pointed in the general direction of Malfoy and Greyback. Snape thankfully seemed to understand her breathless explanation and swept past her, wand already raised. "Follow me."
She stumbled after him the way she had just come and stumbled upon something she almost hadn't expected, Draco seemingly winning. Greyback was still down, though much angrier than he had been.
"What is happening here?" Snape shouted, using his best teacher voice. "Greyback, you are aware that our prisoner was given to young Mr Malfoy here, what would the dark lord think if he were to learn that you were defying orders?"
"I was just passing." He growled, turning his ire to Snape and the girl behind him.
"You grabbed her!"
"Enough Draco, take her back to your room, and Miss Greenwood- I would suggest you stay out of any more trouble."
Avery nodded, hesitated and thanked him.
-….-
After day twenty nine Mopsey started to bring breakfast to the room, an order from Draco she had no doubt though she hadn't seen him give the order and neither of them left it. This lasted for three days before on day thirty three a few hours after Draco had been called out of the room by his father and Avery had been left alone, a knock sounded at the door. Avery jumped from where she had been seated on the bed reading through a third year Herbology text book, she remembered very little from it and wondered if she had ever really read it all, maybe that's why she had always been so bad at the subject.
She stayed silent as she tiptoed quietly to the window, if it was Greyback or Bellatrix of Merlin forbid Voldemort perhaps she could get so far out of the window before they realised. Would either of those three knock though? She thought.
"Draco?" she asked quietly.
"No."
Narcissa Malfoy entered the room all black clad elegance and beauty replacing her wand into her robes, she had obviously used it to take down any protective wards Draco may have had up.
"Those wards are my creation, a Malfoy special", she spoke as if reading Averys mind.
"He isn't here." Avery said in leiu of a reply.
"I can see that. I came to bring you these. We are required at a feast tonight with the Dark Lord." She spoke, her eyes trained on Averys form, "All of us."
"Me?" Avery gasped, "No. No way, not me."
"These are mine," she gestured to a black robe that Avery hadn't noticed yet hung over her arm, completely ignoring her outburst "You will wear them. Since you have none with you."
"I'm not coming!" Avery cried, jumping from the bed and text book falling to the floor. "I won't sit in there and eat with that monster! With any of you! And- and how could I have had the foresight to bring robes when I was abducted? I'm not coming!"
"Listen here you brat!" Narcissa cried, wand suddenly pressed hard against Avery's exposed neck, "You're in here with my son because he asked for you. The Dark lord gave you to him under the impression he would keep you under control. Now I don't expect you to care a single bit about my son, I'm well aware of your past interactions. I do not understand why he asked for you, why he wouldn't just let you rot in that cell or why he wouldn't just leave you to the wolf but he didn't, he fought for you and if you don't come to that feast it looks bad on my Draco. I will not have anything happen to him, even if I have to drag you there myself by your hair. Do you understand?"
Avery stared for a minute swallowing hard against the pointed pressure on her throat "What would he do to him?"
"I'm not willing to find out." Narcissa responded, lowering her wand and pressing the robes forcefully into Averys arms, "Be ready on time."
She left the room without another word and swish of robes, the door closing gently behind her belying her previous anger. Avery breathed deeply and returned to the bed where she waited for Draco to return, when he did, obviously aware of their orders for that evening Avery forced a laugh, "Under different circumstances I would probably think that your mother was awesome."
"What?" he asked.
"Nothing." She said, laughing hollowly again, "Nothing at all."
-….-
Apparently they did not trust Avery enough to come along with Draco because come seven on the dot a nameless Death eater burst into the room and dragged Avery by her borrowed robes down the hall towards where she assumed was the dining room, blatantly ignoring both hers and Draco's protests. "I was coming anyway!" Avery cried as she was pushed roughly in to a plush high back chair along the left hand side of a long dining table.
"How nice of you to join us Avery, Draco." Voldemorts distinctive voice spoke. Avery didn't respond as she took in her surroundings, a massive long dining table filled most of the dining room and what seemed like every Death Eater in existence sat around it. It looked like they sat according to importance, Snape and Bellatrix next to the dark lord and the ranks moving down the table. Avery found herself sat near the top of the table, next to Draco who sat beside his mother, the seat to her other side she saw was occupied by her mother who studiously ignored her. In fact she noted that her arrival had not been met with the usual jeers or shouting, there was almost no reaction at all, instead everybody watched Voldemort and only Voldemort. Avery realised that this would have been her seat if she had been here willingly, next to her mother but just that little bit more important because of her relationship with Draco, they had after all been told they would be together for years before they had even met, their mothers planning it before the dark lord had even returned. A long time ago Draco had even said it himself.
Voldemort began speaking, though Avery took nothing in, instead studying the faces of his followers, the majority, her mother included, were completely enraptured by their leader, agreeing to whatever he said eagerly, taking everything in. Snape remained expressionless, Avery couldn't even attempt to read him, though she knew from recent experience that he was always concentrating, always shielding and manoeuvring behind the scenes. The elder Malfoys seemed unlike the rest, she could visibly see the fear and loathing on both of their faces as Voldemort spoke. It seemed that worshipping the man was vastly different when he and his army inhabited your home.
Draco however was the one that fascinated her most. She knew how much he feared Voldemort she knew but she had not anticipated the pure unadulterated terror she could see inching over his porcelain features, she swallowed loudly, and tuned back in to what the snake faced man before her was saying to cause such an intense reaction
"- you have after all earned a show."
"A show?" Avery whispered to Draco, "What does he mean?"
Draco did not respond, pale face gone clammy as he stared wide eyes towards the door, seconds later it banged open, the same death eater that had dragged her to her seat now dragged someone else in, a small woman in muggle clothing who struggled uselessly. Avery tensed, what was happening? The woman seemed to be screaming and shouting though a silencing charm stopped anything from being heard.
"This lady has been smuggling muggleborns to safety right under our noses- undermining what I say and what we are trying to accomplish. We caught her red handed." He raised his wand and the womans struggling stopped as she rose into the air. Avery's breathing quickened, "What are you doing?" she cried, standing up, her chair scraping across the floor loudly, "Let her go!"
"Sit down!" her mother hissed wordlessly waving her wand, Avery found herself suddenly too heavy and collapsed back into her chair, unable to lift herself again under an invisible crushing force, she shouted again though this time nobody reacted and she knew that her mother had silenced her too. The poor prisoner now levitated above the large table, almost serene and still if it hadn't been for the fear in her eyes.
Avery watched in mounting horror as Nagini slithered in to the room, tears streaming down her face as the horror dawned on her and she realised what was about to happen. She vaguely felt Draco's hand grab hers where it was glued to the arm rest, whether to comfort her or him she didn't know, she couldn't even turn her head away from the scene unfolding before her to see. Time seemed to move slower than it ever had. The snake moving painfully slow, the heart-breaking moment that the unnamed prisoner also realised her fate and the nightmare inducing image of the snakes jaws opening, unhinging and devouring as Avery squeezed her eyes shut tightly and screamed beneath the silencing charm.
-….-
"She wasn't the first." Draco finally spoke hours after they had had to sit through a dinner as if they hadn't just watched an innocent woman murdered slowly before their eyes. Avery looked to him hollowly from where she sat against the headboard knees drawn to her chest, "Professor Burbage, the muggle studies professor, he did that to her too. You were in the cell at the time."
"Why would he do that? What does he gain?"
"I don't know. I'm sorry you had to see that, I'm so sorry that you're here. I'm just so sorry." Avery frowned and launched herself across the bed, taking his face between her still shaking hands.
"This is not on you." She said forcefully, pressing a kiss to his forehead, "This is not on you! I got caught, I chose to help Harry instead of running, and this is not your fault!" He nodded, her hands moving with him. She looked at him then, his red rimmed eyes, his messy hair, and his robes awry and she remembered again just how much she loved him, they had such a past together that much was true, a dark sometimes terrible past but that was all gone now, this was all that remained and nothing else mattered. How long would she be allowed this for? She wondered, how long until they barge in here and take her away and give her to someone else. How long before Voldemort gets bored of asking her to join them and gives her over as Naginis next meal? How long until she no longer had this? Until she could no longer wake up to this face, until she could no longer touch him? She could barely even think of it? She breathed deeply and leaned into him and kissed him deeply, hands moving from his face to his soft hair.
"What are you doing?" he asked pulling back even as her hands moved to his shirt, fumbling to undo the buttons. She ignored him and kissed him again still undoing buttons, "Stop Ave." Draco said, grabbing her wrists and stilling her hands.
"Why-"
"Not like this Ave, not here. I want you, Merlin I do, but not now, not after that."
"I'm going to die here Draco, don't you get that?"
"That's no reason to do this." Draco spoke, stroking a soft hand against her cheek, "I told you I would keep you safe and I will, you're not dying here."
"Draco-"
"No Ave, Listen. This-"He gestured between them, "is special. What we have- I never thought- and that should be special too, I don't want to wake up tomorrow and regret it because we gave in due to fear."
"I won't regret it." Avery sniffed.
"I would. I'd regret that it wasn't special, that I didn't make it special and take my time."
Avery bit her lip, the adrenaline rushing through her body dying in a flash, she fought the tears that threatened to spill from her eyes.
"Ave," Draco sighed pulling her into a hug, "That isn't rejectiuon."
"I know." She smiled, cuddling in, "everything is just-"
"I know." Draco said when she couldn't find the words.
Avery wasn't sure she would ever be able to find the words again.
-...-
What do you think? I had a long conversation with a friend about whether or not Avery would attempt to start something right after what they witnessed and the horrors they saw at that dinner, in the end her advice was to say that Avery is my character and I honestly think that she would. It's all adrenaline and panic and fear and the thought that eventually the baddies will off her the same way she just witnessed, she doesn't want to die and she is terrified and she loves Draco, and right now he is all she has so I think this makes sense in Averys head.
Draco is a gentleman so we're all good.
Please do let me know what you think so I know what to work on etc!