DISCLAIMER: In no way do I own any of the characters in JK Rowling's Wizarding World. I am but a fan who has run away with her imagination.
Chapter 23
"Adara Vega Burling, if you do not stop squirming like a worm I will take you over my knee this instant." Draco Malfoy wasn't playing around. He looked murderous as he gingerly held Dara's swollen hand in his. Dara immediately obeyed trying her best to shrug the pain away. Sighing and shaking his head, he went back to work mending the bones and skin on her right hand.
They were in the kitchen, huddled over the counter. After a thorough investigation of Dara's right hand by a trusted Malfoy house elf, they had found three broken fingers, an almost broken ulna, and a torn ligament along with broken and bruised skin. Draco made quick work of her hand after she had hesitantly chugged down a glass of Skelly-grow, after which the bones immediately began snapping back in place with sickening pops.
Dara was pale. She had lost most of the color in those rosy cheeks. But her eyes seemed determined not to succumb to the bone chilling pain.
"Hold still Dara." Draco almost growled through gritted teeth. The bones were on their way to healing. But the ligament and the swelling were being stubborn.
"I'm trying okay? It's just…" she screamed mid sentence when her knuckle popped back in place with a cringe worthy crack.
"God of Merlin and the Seas that fucking hurts!" She cursed, cross-eyed.
"It's all your fault, really." Draco waved his wand and the torn ligament began wrapping around each other, mending the tear.
"He was being an asshole. Ouch! Mother of Merlin!" Another bone popped back in place.
"Language!" He glared at her. "And hold still. We're almost done." Dara clenched her teeth and free fist to fight the pain. Draco had been cranky and irritated since they left the bar. She tried to explain that Callum was out of line but he wouldn't hear it. Had she ruined her chances all too soon?
"There. That should hold." He exhaled loudly letting go of her hand. "But just in case, you should take another Skelly-grow." Dara was about to protest but the look on Draco's face made her choose otherwise. When she had emptied the contents of her glass Draco finally relaxed with a big sigh as he leaned back into the counter. He shut his eyes and tilted his head back. He looked tired with his sleeves rolled up, his hair slightly ruffled, his shirt unbuttoned and eyebrows furrowed.
"I'm sorry." Dara whispered feeling bad at what she had done.
"You should be." he glared at her suddenly. "Do you have any idea how much more damage you could have done to your arm? If your ulna had fractured?! If your elbow had dislocated? Did you ever think how your painting would be affected? You have a show to complete and prepare for Dara. Did you think punching Callum in the face with that much force would not have physical consequences on your part?" it was the first time Dara really saw Draco this angry. He was scary like this; eyes cold and harsh. She swallowed hard before posing her question.
"You're not mad at me for punching Callum? Embarrassing you in front of your peers? And possibly ruining my chances of getting on your mother's good graces?" he leaned into her space on the counter, towering over her.
"I couldn't care less about Callum's face; he deserved it." he spat, irritated. "You did not embarrass me. On the contrary you showed everyone exactly why you are mine. My mother will find out but again I don't care. I am mad at you for punching Callum because, without thinking about it, you hurt yourself." he still looked serious but those gray eyes were slowly softening back to normal.
"I'm confused." she blinked up at him momentarily stunned at his handsomeness. His face was close now, only a few inches apart. "I don't know whether to be happy or cower in the corner."
"Oh you should cower, pet." again, his face had turned menacing. He reached for her chin with his long fingers and forced her to look straight into his eyes. "I do not take hurting yourself lightly. If you ever, carelessly or willingly put yourself in danger or any dangerous circumstances ever again, I will put you over my shoulder or my knee and not have you walk for weeks. Is that clear Ms. Burling?" she blinked,unsure if that was a sexual innuendo or a real threat.
"Is that clear, pet?" he asked again, kissing the tip of her nose.
"Crystal." she managed to say despite her throat tightening and closing.
"Good." he reached for the fridge and pulled out a slice of leftover cake. Magically conjuring a fork, he offered a piece to Dara.
"I'm not hungry." she mumbled.
"You look pale. You need sugar. Eat." it was an order not a request. Again, obediently, she took the piece in her mouth surprised to find that she actually liked it. They shared the slice of cake before Draco sauntered around the bar and pulled her to the direction of the bathroom. "Time to finally get that bloody dress off of you." Dara was still confused.
Draco had set up the shower and pulled her inside, not once batting an eyelash. He was so sure about the things he wanted, always decisive and calculated. Dara felt like she was walking on eggshells. She wasn't sure if Draco was silent because he was mad at her. He was being authoritative but the tender touches and gazes threw her off. He was so hard to read, exhausting to keep up with.
When they were done with the shower Draco took her to the bed and tucked her in. Yes, tucked her in. "You've had enough action for one night, pet. Sleep." he said when Dara shot him a confused look. Kissing her forehead, he pulled her closer to his chest and slowly fell into a deep sleep.
Thank Merlin. She sighed relaxing her back. She had been hunched over the canvass for hours madly working to capture the image she had in her head and transfer it onto canvas. She woke a few hours after Draco had fallen asleep and left him on the bed to slumber. Her brain was buzzing. Well into her dreams, she still felt confused. Her dreams were muddy and cloudy and her breathing was jagged. She fidgeted a lot and later craved to be released from Draco's embrace. She tried going back to sleep but she knew her mind was already awake. Unable to put her mind to rest, she decided a bit of painting should do her good - help clear out the fuzz.
It's been a few hours since then she was surprisingly able to finish 3 of the 5 she needed to finish for her show. Sighing and stretching she peered at them drying against the wall to her left. Again, they were paintings of women in different positions, with different expressions against different backgrounds. Today her color scheme seemed to reflect the cloudiness and the grey in her thoughts. Throughout the process of completing her works she had thought of calling the show 'Mirrors', a reflection of the different types of woman she had found herself to be. She ran it by Draco and he liked it. Considering she had asked him after he had just scolded her for putting herself in danger, his 'nice' would have to do.
Draco. What was she going to do with him? His reaction to last night's shenanigans had honestly surprised her. She wasn't expecting him to be that scary. Although she knew he'd never hurt her, his intensity was frightening at times. And of course there was the fast approaching birthday weekend. If her calculations were correct she had about 2 weeks left before facing a room full of pure blood sharks - the same two weeks to complete the last 2 pieces for her solo show. She was far from ready. How in Merlin's name was she supposed to pull this off? How? She still had to acquire a new wardrobe, remember all the normal and standard practices that is expected of her and on top all of that, try not to panic and go bonkers in the process. Panic was slowly coursing through her veins as she chewed on her lip. Oh this was so unsettling. She sighed, leaned back a little and felt Draco's strong arms wrap around her waist.
"Why are you awake?" he asked, kissing her exposed shoulder.
"I couldn't get back to sleep. I guess the canvas was calling me." she replied leaning her head against his shoulder.
"What's bothering you?" he spun her stool around and gently lifted her chin up, his chest bare and smooth.
"Just everything." Not wanting to let her emotions rule her, she looked down and played with the strings on his pajama bottoms. "The show, last night, the birthday weekend. I feel like my brain's on fire."
"Talk to me then." He coaxed gently. But Dara didn't know where to start or how to start. While she took her time, he conjured a stool identical to what she was sitting on and seated himself in front of her.
"Am I going to have to read your mind? I am pretty good at occlumency." he sighed and took her hand in his, entwining her fingers with his. "You're worried about your show because you currently feel distracted with the birthday weekend. You feel overwhelmed. Judging from your reaction at the club last night, Tori dumped a heap load of information on you and you're having a hard time wrapping your mind around how you're going to go about all of it. And top of that, you're scared of me. Am I right?"
How in the world did he do that? It was like he took the words right out of her mouth. She sighed and averted his gaze embarrassed that he had seen right through her.
"Your show will be a success Dara. Your talent will shine and it will leave everyone in awe. Look, you're almost done and so far they all look beautiful. You just need to find your footing, just like what you did tonight. It'll come to you. Don't worry." he sounded so soothing and convincing. He was right of course. She did need to find her footing and she was almost done. She just needed probably another day or two to complete her collection.
"Now you'll have to help me with the rest, love. What's bothering you about the birthday weekend even if I've told you repeatedly I won't leave you alone." he kissed her fingers one by one before she was able to answer.
"Tori said so many things that seemed so concerning. I need a new wardrobe? I should know my place? I must not talk unless spoken to? And of course I cannot leave your side. If the stories she's told me about people getting kicked out of the event and banished from the grounds are true then I'm definitely not leaving your side." she sighed, pulling her hand away and running it through her hair.
"If I can't control myself to act the way I'm supposed to then I'd rather not go to the birthday weekend. What if what happened last night happens again? I don't want to cause any problems, Draco. I don't want to give them the opportunity to take you away from me." Draco sighed and pulled her hand back in his.
"You're worrying too much. You were riled up last night. During the birthday weekend, no one will talk to you because you'll always be by my side. They'll be too scared. It sounds bad but it might work to our advantage." he kissed her knuckles before looking at her. "Your new wardrobe is currently being put together by my people. It'll be all packed and ready for you in time. You need not worry about it." she snapped her head up in surprise to meet his calm grey eyes.
"What?" she blinked, trying to make out if he was telling the truth or not. "You're being serious?" he nodded.
"I want to dress you in the finest dresses I can buy. The world will be a witness to your beauty the way I am a witness to it everyday. Don't think I want to change you, please. Think of the new wardrobe as an accessory, to enhance what you already have." she blinked, still letting this news sink in. He's thought of everything like the businessman that he was. She could only nod in agreement.
"People got kicked out of my mother's birthday weekend because of their stupidity and because of my mother's pettiness. We will be smart about it Dara. Trust me, please. Trust that I will move mountains to keep you safe, away from harm and happy." how could she resist him when he was like this? "Trust me?" again she nodded in response earning her a kiss on the knuckles.
"Now, if I have frightened you, I am sorry. Understand though that I do not like you getting hurt. And last night you put yourself in danger."
"I was only trying to defend…"
"I know, love. I was going to punch him but you beat me to it little minx." he smirked, touching her cheek. "All I ask is that you take care of yourself, always."
"Were you really going to put me over your knee?" unsure and shy, she was biting her lip and averting his gaze. She noticed his breathing had changed and had become slightly more rapid.
"Not if you don't want me to." he cleared his throat and reached for her cheek. "Anything else I missed?" She appreciated the time he took to talk to her and soothe her nerves. Draco wasn't a very patient man but with her, he always was. She was resigned to the fact that she just had to try and trust Draco.
"Thank you." she leaned over and kissed the corner of his lips but before she could completely pull away, he caught her lips with his and pulled her onto his lap, his hands all over her torso and back. They were quickly completely lost in each other's kisses and touches. Draco stood from his stool and carried Dara to the empty couch on the corner of the room where he crashed into her the way the waves crashed on the shore. Any and all the tension they had been keeping to themselves was gone and was replaced with pure passion - the type you couldn't get enough of.
