Xenith
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Chapter Twenty-eight
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"Chris!" Fred called, pushing his way through the swarms of students coming his way at the conclusion of breakfast the next morning. It was the first time he'd seen her and he needed to ask her something. "Chris!" He called again. She turned this time, hair fanning out behind her. Fred waved to her and she nodded towards a door heading off the Hall near the teachers table. Fred nodded his consent and was about to follow her through when he heard someone call his name from behind.
"Fred!"
It was Angelina.
"Fred, wait up!"
He did.
"Fred, where are you going?" She stood on her tip-toes to kiss him hello. He turned his head; her lips landed square on his pale freckled cheek.
"I have something to do," he said not looking at her.
"It's History of Magic, I'm always late." He made to move past her but she blocked his way.
"Why have you been avoiding me?"
"I haven't."
"Yes, you have. We were supossed to meet in Hogsmeade last weekend. Where were you?"
"I just forgot, is all," Fred's eyes darted over her shoulder, eager to get to Chris.
"The girls think you're seeing someone else."
"What? No, I'm not."
"Fred---"
"Angelina, this isn't working."
"What?"
"Us, we aren't working."
"Are you breaking up with me?"
"We've grown apart---"
"You ARE seeing someone else, aren't you?" Angelina cried.
"WE don't want the same things out of life . . ."
"What?!"
"It's not you, it's me."
"I can't believe you just said that! You're such an arse!"
"I have to go," he pushed past her.
"Fred! Where are you going, Fred! Are you going to her? Fred!" Angelina cried from behind him.
"Fred stuffed his hands in his pockets and plowed onward. He hadn't wanted to do it like that, but George was right, he was just hurting Angelina by staying.
Not to mention the fact that he didn't want to be with her. He wanted Chris.
---
"What do you want?" Chris snapped from the shadows when she caught sight of Fred.
"Huh?" He turned to face her, startled away from his purpose by her callousness.
"Fred, I can't, and don't, want to fool around right now. And besides, you have class!" She didn't move from the shadows that concealed her.
"No! It's not that at all!" Fred said, running both of his hands through his hair and making it stand on end. //Is that all she thinks I want from her?// "No, it's just, at the start of breakfast Dumbledore announced that all Creatures classes would be cancelled for now until they can find another instructor. Why aren't you teaching anymore?"
"Mat doesn't want to."
"That doesn't mean you can't though."
"Christmas is coming."
"What?" Fred asked, startled at the sudden change in topic.
"Christmas. You can smell it in the air."
"What are you getting at?"
"We'll be leaving, Fred, just before Christmas."
"What!"
"The boys and I. Hayde has sent for us."
"Who?"
"My father."
"Why do you---where do you have to go?"
"He summoned us, and I don't know."
"How'd you get that scar?" Fred asked, eager for a change in topic. He realized in that moment that he never wanted her to leave and didn't ever want to have to think about that possibility. "The one on your face."
Chris took a long time answering and when she did it was far from the answer he was expecting.
"You heard Mat and I yesterday, didn't you?"
"Yes," he answered reluctantly, but he knew he could never lie to her. "George and I were worried. Mat went kind of mad."
"George and I were worried. Mat went kind of mad."
"He's just like that."
"But your scar, you've never told me how you got it."
"There's a reason for that."
"Have you EVER told anyone?"
"No, only my brothers know."
"Will you tell me?"
"They were after my mum."
"Who?"
"You-Know-Who's Death Eaters, they were after my mum."
"To get to Hayde, he was close to Dumbledore."
"Am I going to have to pull the whole story from you?" He couldn't see her eyes but he would have bet his last galleon that she was fixing him with her patented fiery glare. "I'll take that as a yes. So what next?"
"She was teaching us about one of the larger dragons, the Opaleye. He was supposed to be sedated---to slow down his reaction time."
"Who was with you, besides your mum?"
"Mat. It was one of our first lessons. He would have been put with Eddie but he came down with pneumonia and had to be put with me. I was five-and-a-half, Mat, six-and-a-half. The dragon attacked. "She took a deep breath, Fred wished she'd come out of the shadows. "It went up on his hind legs and struck both myself and Mathew. What you see on my face runs down my chest to my left hip. But you knew that." She gave a harsh laugh. He could just see her hand move to touch her cheek before moving delicately to her eye. Something was wrong. Fred was about to inquire as to what was erroneous when she spoke again.
"We were taken, then, by the Death Eaters, the three of us," she said, not making the best of sense. "I think I passed out then because when I awoke Mat was holding me in his arms and we were in a dungeon. I could hear water dripping nearby and screaming from far off. The dungeon reeked; there was a dead man in the corner."
Fred swallowed thickly. He hadn't known she'd been through so much. "How'd you get out?"
"Severus Snape showed up outside the bars."
"Snape!?"
"Yes, Snape. He entered our prison and crouched down before us and told us what he was to do. He had been permitted to close our wounds but not heal the scars. You-Know-Who instructed him to leave them as a warning to Hayde. Severus led us out of the dungeons and into what I think was the Main Hall. HE was there. There was a pale, blond, man on his right and a dark, brooding, man at his left."
"Do you remember who the blond one was? Was it Lucius Malfoy?" Fred interrupted.
"I don't know, Fred. I was only five."
"Sorry, what'd they do?"
"They brought my mum in."
"How was she?"
"Beaten, bruised . . . half clothed . . ."
"What'd they do, Chris?" Fred asked gently.
"They raped her."
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¸..· ´¨¨)) -:¦:-
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((¸¸.·´ ..·´ -:¦:- tbc -:¦:-
-:¦:- ((¸¸.·´*
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Chapter Twenty-eight
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"Chris!" Fred called, pushing his way through the swarms of students coming his way at the conclusion of breakfast the next morning. It was the first time he'd seen her and he needed to ask her something. "Chris!" He called again. She turned this time, hair fanning out behind her. Fred waved to her and she nodded towards a door heading off the Hall near the teachers table. Fred nodded his consent and was about to follow her through when he heard someone call his name from behind.
"Fred!"
It was Angelina.
"Fred, wait up!"
He did.
"Fred, where are you going?" She stood on her tip-toes to kiss him hello. He turned his head; her lips landed square on his pale freckled cheek.
"I have something to do," he said not looking at her.
"It's History of Magic, I'm always late." He made to move past her but she blocked his way.
"Why have you been avoiding me?"
"I haven't."
"Yes, you have. We were supossed to meet in Hogsmeade last weekend. Where were you?"
"I just forgot, is all," Fred's eyes darted over her shoulder, eager to get to Chris.
"The girls think you're seeing someone else."
"What? No, I'm not."
"Fred---"
"Angelina, this isn't working."
"What?"
"Us, we aren't working."
"Are you breaking up with me?"
"We've grown apart---"
"You ARE seeing someone else, aren't you?" Angelina cried.
"WE don't want the same things out of life . . ."
"What?!"
"It's not you, it's me."
"I can't believe you just said that! You're such an arse!"
"I have to go," he pushed past her.
"Fred! Where are you going, Fred! Are you going to her? Fred!" Angelina cried from behind him.
"Fred stuffed his hands in his pockets and plowed onward. He hadn't wanted to do it like that, but George was right, he was just hurting Angelina by staying.
Not to mention the fact that he didn't want to be with her. He wanted Chris.
---
"What do you want?" Chris snapped from the shadows when she caught sight of Fred.
"Huh?" He turned to face her, startled away from his purpose by her callousness.
"Fred, I can't, and don't, want to fool around right now. And besides, you have class!" She didn't move from the shadows that concealed her.
"No! It's not that at all!" Fred said, running both of his hands through his hair and making it stand on end. //Is that all she thinks I want from her?// "No, it's just, at the start of breakfast Dumbledore announced that all Creatures classes would be cancelled for now until they can find another instructor. Why aren't you teaching anymore?"
"Mat doesn't want to."
"That doesn't mean you can't though."
"Christmas is coming."
"What?" Fred asked, startled at the sudden change in topic.
"Christmas. You can smell it in the air."
"What are you getting at?"
"We'll be leaving, Fred, just before Christmas."
"What!"
"The boys and I. Hayde has sent for us."
"Who?"
"My father."
"Why do you---where do you have to go?"
"He summoned us, and I don't know."
"How'd you get that scar?" Fred asked, eager for a change in topic. He realized in that moment that he never wanted her to leave and didn't ever want to have to think about that possibility. "The one on your face."
Chris took a long time answering and when she did it was far from the answer he was expecting.
"You heard Mat and I yesterday, didn't you?"
"Yes," he answered reluctantly, but he knew he could never lie to her. "George and I were worried. Mat went kind of mad."
"George and I were worried. Mat went kind of mad."
"He's just like that."
"But your scar, you've never told me how you got it."
"There's a reason for that."
"Have you EVER told anyone?"
"No, only my brothers know."
"Will you tell me?"
"They were after my mum."
"Who?"
"You-Know-Who's Death Eaters, they were after my mum."
"To get to Hayde, he was close to Dumbledore."
"Am I going to have to pull the whole story from you?" He couldn't see her eyes but he would have bet his last galleon that she was fixing him with her patented fiery glare. "I'll take that as a yes. So what next?"
"She was teaching us about one of the larger dragons, the Opaleye. He was supposed to be sedated---to slow down his reaction time."
"Who was with you, besides your mum?"
"Mat. It was one of our first lessons. He would have been put with Eddie but he came down with pneumonia and had to be put with me. I was five-and-a-half, Mat, six-and-a-half. The dragon attacked. "She took a deep breath, Fred wished she'd come out of the shadows. "It went up on his hind legs and struck both myself and Mathew. What you see on my face runs down my chest to my left hip. But you knew that." She gave a harsh laugh. He could just see her hand move to touch her cheek before moving delicately to her eye. Something was wrong. Fred was about to inquire as to what was erroneous when she spoke again.
"We were taken, then, by the Death Eaters, the three of us," she said, not making the best of sense. "I think I passed out then because when I awoke Mat was holding me in his arms and we were in a dungeon. I could hear water dripping nearby and screaming from far off. The dungeon reeked; there was a dead man in the corner."
Fred swallowed thickly. He hadn't known she'd been through so much. "How'd you get out?"
"Severus Snape showed up outside the bars."
"Snape!?"
"Yes, Snape. He entered our prison and crouched down before us and told us what he was to do. He had been permitted to close our wounds but not heal the scars. You-Know-Who instructed him to leave them as a warning to Hayde. Severus led us out of the dungeons and into what I think was the Main Hall. HE was there. There was a pale, blond, man on his right and a dark, brooding, man at his left."
"Do you remember who the blond one was? Was it Lucius Malfoy?" Fred interrupted.
"I don't know, Fred. I was only five."
"Sorry, what'd they do?"
"They brought my mum in."
"How was she?"
"Beaten, bruised . . . half clothed . . ."
"What'd they do, Chris?" Fred asked gently.
"They raped her."
---
¸..· ´¨¨)) -:¦:-
¸.·´ ·´¨¨))
((¸¸.·´ ..·´ -:¦:- tbc -:¦:-
-:¦:- ((¸¸.·´*