Hey Guys! Thanks so much for your reviews. I really appreciate them!
So, this chapter was a reminder to me that there IS a point to this story beyond the love-triangle! Actually, I hadn't intended for any sort of relationshippish action at all, but it sort of came out towards the end. Oh well, I hope you guys like it anyhow! Thanks for reading! Enjoy! ((Oh yeah, and I'm on a roll again so the next chapter should be coming fairly soon!))
Disclaimer: You know the drill. Not mine. No money. No sue.
"Dammit!"
Katie and Alicia both looked, startled, at Angelina as the silence of their studying was so oddly broken.
"Every time," Angelina muttered under her breath, "Every time I leave something back there! Sorry mates, did it again. Left my wand back in the changing room after practice. Going to need it if we're practicing charms later, yeah? I'll be back, but I wish it weren't so bloody cold right now."
She stood up from their table in the common room and looked out of the window into the inky blackness of the winter night. She shrugged and quickly ran up to her room and grabbed her cloak and scarf before heading out the tower and out of the castle.
The freezing air practically knocked the wind out of her as she broke into a full sprint just to keep warm. It was actually too cold to snow just then, so Angelina's biggest worries were patches of icy grass as she rapidly covered the distance between the nice, warm, cozy castle and the building at the end of the Quidditch pitch.
Finally reaching her destination, she was pleased to find that for some reason the main door was unlocked. She entered and muttered the password to the Gryffindor lockers and noticed her wand immediately as it poked longingly from her still-open locker. She grabbed it, gave it a sweet little kiss, and headed back out of the room for the second time that day.
On her way out, though, she noticed one of the other rooms well lit with the door slightly ajar. Screwing up her face in concentration, she remembered that Slytherin was scheduled for an evening practice that day as well. Tentatively, she took a small step forward and made out two distinct voices bickering. One was a slow sort of drawl; the other unmistakeably familiar, though she hadn't heard it since before the winter holidays.
Always curious, she decided to kill two birds with one stone by practicing a new charm and getting a chance to listen better. Raising her wand above her head, she rapped it hard on the top of her skull and felt the unpleasant trickling sensation that meant she'd done the Disillusionment Charm correctly. Examining her hands, they looked like an oddly warped version of the dark paneled walls around her. She quietly stepped closer to the door and listened in.
"You know well enough that there's only a few more months left in the school year, Montague. Upon graduation, you'll have to go face that big, scary world all by yourself. But you know we can help. The Dark Lord provides for his followers."
There was a small snort, and Draco spoke again, this time clearly more annoyed. "My father can set you up with a very nice job right out of Hogwarts. All he asks in return is you loyalty. Think about it, won't you?"
Angelina strained to hear what she could only speculate was David's low growling voice. What on earth was he saying? Would he actually agree to take the Dark Mark? Angelina felt a wave of embarrassment at her naivety. He was who he was, and a Slytherin through and through.
Just because he'd had feelings for her at some point a while back didn't make him a good guy. Her thoughts were cut off as Draco roared. "Please! I don't know where you've been getting these silly ideas of yours, Montague. Perhaps that little Gryffindor you've been fancying for so long?"
Angelina gave a self-righteous little snort. What on earth did he mean by 'little'? She was older, and taller, than him by quite a bit. She felt flashes of her temper, and had to work a good deal to keep herself from storming in right then and strangling the obnoxious little git.
"And just because you've been ignoring her doesn't mean we don't still know how you feel. Besides, you should know that the Dark Lord had plans for her as well. She'll be on our side soon or none at all. He is growing tired of her insolence. So why don't you go ahead and tell her how you feel? You might end up saving her life in the process. I'm sure the Dark Lord will approve of the match. I'll even be your Best Man…"
She felt the bile rise up into her throat as Malfoy laughed. She heard some more mumbled words and then a loud thud. Seconds later, the door nearly hit her as it swung open and an outraged Montague stormed out with Malfoy following a few steps behind, cradling his cheekbone gingerly. "You're making a mistake! Mark my words; nothing you do is going to change her fate. You might as well look out for yourself!"
Angelina remained flattened against the wall as Montague passed her in one direction while Draco stomped off towards the exit. David just stood at the end of the hallway, only moving once the outside door has shut itself once more.
"So, how much did you hear?"
Angelina's breath hitched in her throat as he slowly turned around and searched the room, his eyes narrowed in anger.
"Yes, Johnson, I'm talking to you. I know you're here. So," he finally 'spotted' her huddled against the wall. "I'll ask again: how much did you hear?"
She stood slowly, forgetting about the charm making her nearly invisible as she walked towards him. "I couldn't make out anything you were saying, but I heard Malfoy's offer to you. And how did you know I was here?"
David's face tightened into a thinly-veiled mask of hatred at the sound of Malfoy's name. "So I guess you and I have something in common now, don't we?"
"But I heard him saying something about Voldemort having plans for…he was talking about me, wasn't he?"
Angelina blushed slightly, remembering the way Draco has spoken about her to David. Malfoy was holding David's feelings for her against him, and she had to admit feeling a certain sort of pride in it. "Don't play dumb. Of course he was talking about you. And he wouldn't tell me what they're planning. Do you have any idea what he meant?"
She shook her head as fear began to grip the pit of her stomach. Her face paled a bit as her mind raced through the thousands of things Draco could have possible meant. Torture…blackmail…death?
Her knees began to weaken dangerously until they finally gave out. She waited to hit the ground, but felt herself supported around her waist by two very strong, very protective arms. She looked up at a pair of concerned eyes as David pulled her closer to him. "I'm sure that not what he meant, Angie."
Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around his neck and allowed herself a moment of weakness. Still trembling, she cried into his neck, unable to control the plethora of emotions bearing down on her. She was terrified. But here was David, someone that knew her secrets and understood her fear. And she somehow knew that he was a little afraid too. Not only for himself, but for her as well.
And so he held her. He held her and didn't feel ashamed of her tears. He held her as long as she needed someone like him to support her and keep her from falling. She'd done as he had told her: she learned to feel.
And although he hated that it had led her back into Fred's arms, she was here in his right now. She needed him. And he silently vowed that no matter what happened in the future, he would do whatever it took to make sure he was there for her.
Slowly, they parted. Angelina felt extremely self-conscious and wiped her eyes furiously and tried to scrape some sort of dignity from the situation. David, though, looked rather at peace with the situation, his face calm and determined as he used his own wand to lift the disillusionment from her.
"If I find out anything more about this, I'll tell you straight away."
Angelina nodded mutely and pulled her cloak tightly around her, heading for the door.
"Wait!" Angelina turned around to face Montague again from the doorway. "Just to answer your question, most of the time I just know when you're nearby. I can feel it."
He looked down at the floor, embarrassed with his admission. Angelina smiled softly and walked back over to him and cradled his face in her hands. She noticed absently how pretty his eyes really were as she leaned up and kissed him on the forehead.
He closed his eyes and relished her gentle touch, wanting to reach out and hold her again, this time for himself. He let her pull away, willing his skin to forever remember the feel of her hands and lips on his face.
She checked her pocket, making sure her wand was still securely inside it. His eyes still closed, she heaved a quiet sigh and turned, walking out of the door and through the cold back towards the castle. Back to Fred. Back to pretending everything was going to be okay when there was no doubt in her mind that things would never be okay again.