His face was in his hands. Azadeh was in the hospital bed, pale and found half-dead. From what they could tell, she fell into the river, damaging her bracelet and that's why he lost her beacon. They cleaned her up nicely, she looked fairly normal, her hair laid out, looking like a shimmering black river across the pillows. According to the healers, she was dehydrated and lacked nutrients, so they were feeding her through a type of tube that magically attached to the skin and they would be absorbed through it and into her bloodstream.
Draco came in, he had bought out half the gift shop, flowers, balloons, a teddy bear that danced around and said "get well!" Lucius rolled his eyes. Draco sneered, "well, it's more than YOU'VE DONE. And I would think you would have bought her an entire flowershop by now!"
"I will handle my affairs MY way," Lucius snapped.
A little voice was heard that was slightly groggy, "why must you two always fight?" Draco smiled so broad, that he looked like a joker in a card deck. Azadeh blinked open her eyes, Lucius sat up and waited for her to respond to him, which she did, but in a sad way. She looked over and seemed hurt, then turned her attention to Draco, who she seemed happier to see.
"How are you?" Draco said softly.
"Don't exactly feel like running a marathon, but I'll be okay I think," she smiled.
"Well, I brought you flowers and this teddy bear...look, he dances."
Azadeh started to laugh, but her body hurt a bit and she winced. "DRACO. Put that thing away, she can look at it later!" Lucius snapped. "Now please, will you give her and I some time alone?" Draco complied reluctantly.
She only looked at him neutrally, distant...not being able to really respond, and when she did, her eyes only expressed hurt. "I want...to explain what happened. She is an old flame, a good-time girl I met a while ago and I ran into her..."
"I don't want to know," Azadeh said softly.
"I wasn't finished," Lucius stated.
"I don't want to know...I don't need details. If she's what you want, then give me to someone else, sell me to someone else, because I will not stay in the same house with a woman who looks at me like I am nothing, and will most likely treat me as such. I'm sure there are a few people that you know who are eager for you to just drop me," she started to tear.
Lucius wanted to yell at her, but she had every right to feel that way, "be that as it may, I am not WITH her and I sent her away. You won't see her again. But I have every right to bring home any woman I choose and the way you behaved was uncalled for, I was getting rid of her as you were standing there and you weren't listening to me."
She couldn't believe what she was hearing...he was BLAMING HER? Draco shook his head, he was listening just outside the door and he was outraged at his father, he should be beaten with his own cane. Harry was listening as well, undetected and he was five seconds away from killing the man...he was making her feel worse.
"The way I behaved was uncalled for? I get upset after seeing you with another woman, after the way you romanced me for the past few days...and just because your dick gets a twinge from seeing another, I'M BEING IRRATIONAL?" Azadeh narrowed her eyes at him, a look worthy of a Malfoy. Draco almost died laughing when she said the last part.
"NOW SEE HERE!" Lucius stamped his walking stick on the ground.
"No, YOU SEE HERE. If you think you're going to turn this around on me, you have another thing coming! And if you think you're going to touch me again after being with that...from what I hear...HARLOT, you'd better disinfect...I don't want to CATCH anything!" she fluffed her pillow and rolled over, turning her back to him.
Harry was grinning from ear to ear, he deserved that one. Draco smiled...but wondered what his father's response would be.
"Don't you DARE turn your back on ME!" Lucius went around to the other side. "I romanced you because I am planning on MARRYING YOU!" Harry's and Draco's face fell immediately.
Azadeh glared at him, "I WILL NOT marry you. You're cruel, selfish, blame shifting, and manipulative. I practically DIE in the damned river and you tell me that it's pretty much my own fault, you made me feel horrible and the way THAT so-called PURE-BRED made me feel when she looked at me...calling me your servant girl! Making me feel like a toy...and I am NOT a toy!" She was starting to feel dizzy. "SO..SO, go marry that two-legged brothel because I don't want you!"
Harry was jumping around, mouthing, 'yes! yes! yes!' Incidentally, so was Draco, his father was getting told off and that was priceless, especially when it was being done by Azadeh. What they didn't count on was Lucius's reaction, which nearly made them both come after him.
Lucius's temper flared and he jumped on Azadeh's bed, straddling her and grabbing her wrists, forcing her to turn and face him. "YOU'RE MARRYING ME WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT! YOU WILL HAVE MY CHILD, YOU WILL BE MY WIFE, AND I WILL HAVE MY WAY WITH YOU ANY TIME I CHOOSE... Do I make myself clear?" He hissed.
It was then the healer came in, "MR. MALFOY! What are you doing!"
"None of your business!" he snapped.
"It IS my business, you shouldn't yell at her...YOU'RE UPSETTING HER, AND SHE'S BEEN THROUGH ENOUGH!"
Lucius slowly got off of Azadeh and headed towards the woman, but she stood her ground, "Don't tell me how to TREAT her, I KNOW she isn't well." He left.
The healer shook her head and gave Azadeh something to calm her nerves, "here you go dear." Azadeh took it and then smiled and soon she was feeling very warm and was put into a slight daze.
Draco came in after the healer left, afraid she'd yell at him too. "How...are you, my father...he, did he hurt you?"
"Not really, no," she said softly.
"I'm sorry he's so...cruel to you, you don't deserve it. You deserve to be loved, caressed, and rediculously spoiled," he put Azadeh's hair behind her ear, which made her blush.
Harry was not happy, gritting his teeth, his jealousy was coarsing through his veins like a poison, "touch her again you BOUNCING FERRET...go ahead and I'll..."
"May I see the teddy bear?" Azadeh said softly.
"SURE!" Draco grabbed the bear and handed to her. He watched as she looked at it and then hugged it...he really, REALLY wanted to be that bear right now.
"Thank you," she blinked her eyes and started to fall asleep. Draco leaned in and kissed her on the cheek.
Harry was going to hurt him and he watched as he left her room with a huge grin on his face, but that stopped when Harry mumbled a spell and caused Draco to fall flat on his face and into a cart of medical supplies. After he cursed and yelled, Draco left and Harry went into Azadeh's room, watching over her. He then slid into bed with her, waving his wand and locking the door, making sure a 'do not disturb' sign was put outside of it so healers wouldn't barge in. She seemed to instinctively rollover into chest and cuddle next to him with her little teddy bear, and even though Draco gave it to her, it was adorable the way she clung onto it like a little girl. He threw one leg protectively over her and was taken aback when she sighed and said, "I missed you."
Was it him she missed, did she instinctively know it was him? She couldn't be talking about Lucius...what it was Draco? He decided to see if she would answer him in her sleep. "Who did you miss?" he asked.
Azadeh sighed again, "Harry."
He froze, that was his name, but how could she know his name? Maybe it was another Harry? "Harry who?"
"Harry Potter."
He froze again, that was his true name...Harry Potter. "Where did he go?" he needed to find out more.
"You died and left me, I loved you so much," she started to tear, so he stopped asking questions. He couldn't believe it, HE WAS HIS OWN COMPETITION! Harry wanted to laugh, he was the man she thought was dead, he was the man that took a piece of her heart with him. His heart lept with absolute joy, there was no competition, that was never any competition..but where did she know him, she said she knew him briefly?
Harry didn't have time to ask, Lucius was back and trying to get into her room...his instinct took over he held her to him, crouching over like a tiger over their prey when a jackel tried to steal it. He looked down when she whimpered, "Harry, don't let them take me away..."
That alone nearly broke his heart and it took everything he had not to leap out the window and onto his broom with her. He was trying very hard to follow the rules, but she was making it difficult...the one person who clouded his judgment.
But he had to leave her, Azadeh whimpered as he did...however, he promised he'd be back for her. And like a thief in the night, he called his broom to her window and took off, just before Lucius got in. "WHY IN THE HELL WAS HER DOOR LOCKED!"
"I don't know sir, we did hire some new healers..maybe they thought she needed rest?" the healer panicked, she didn't want to make Lucius Malfoy angry.
Azadeh blinked open her eyes, she had the most wonderful dream. That Harry had come and laid down with her and visited her for a while. It was then she wanted to cry, it must have been his spirit coming to visit her, knowing she needed him...he would do that sort of thing, always so kind hearted towards others.
'It's a shame I didn't die in the river, I would have seen you again,' she thought. A tear did escape, but she quickly wiped it away before Lucius noticed, not that he would anyway...he was still arguing with the healer, 'always arguing, always yelling.'
Finally he calmed down and went to Azadeh's side, she wouldn't even look up at him. Lucius looked down at her, "you're going home with me tomorrow, they want you to stay overnight for observation." He sighed and sat down, "I didn't want to do it this way..."
Azadeh looked at him now, wondering what he might do to her or say to her, but instead he pulled out a small black box, it was ornate, obviously meant to be a keepsake of some sort. She looked at it as he opened it, a ring sat in the middle of a cushin, one of the most beautiful she'd ever seen. It was a platinum ring with carved leaves on it, and nestled in it were three square cut diamonds, not too big for her finger, but just right.
"Give me your hand," he said softly. Azadeh knew she didn't have a choice, she gave him her left hand, Lucius placed the ring on her finger and then kissed it. "I want you to marry me, Azadeh...you WILL marry me." He stayed for a little while, telling her when she would be fitted for her wedding dress, where they would be married, who would be invited. Kissing her good night, he left with a smirk..he was happy, while Azadeh rolled over, curled up into a ball and wept in her pillows, grieving her fate.
She was up, looking around the room, not being able to sleep when the head healer came in, the one that had been taken care of her, her name was 'Magda'. "What are you doing up, sweetheart, you need your rest?"
"I know, but I can't sleep," Azadeh said softly.
"Did you want me to give you something?"
"No, I'm fine."
Magda noticed the beautiful ring on her finger, "he proposed?"
"Told me, more like."
"The younger or older Malfoy?"
"Older."
Azadeh noticed she didn't have a bracelet on, "you're a pure-blood, aren't you?"
"Yes."
"A lot of them say they want to marry a Death Eater, you know."
"Don't say anything, but I don't... I just don't agree with the politics, with the way they do things. I'm a healer and well...I couldn't live with myself if I married a man who didn't act like a human being."
"I agree. I'm being forced to marry...you know, the bracelet and all."
Magda looked down, "yes, those blasted things. I have my opinions on those too, but it's best I just keep it to myself, in case someone's listening. But, I don't like them for my own reasons, my half-sister, she's a half-blood, my father married a muggle after my mother died. She was nice enough...I grew really attached to my half-sister, we did everything together and then they told my father that he had to register her, you know, the war had killed so many of the females." Her eyes teared, "I watched her get taken away...she was begging for me to stop them, and I couldn't do anything when they took her to the auction block. They sold her to this man, pure-blood, who thought she was very pretty and he bought her, he's nice enough to her, but because I don't agree with a lot of his ideas, I don't get to see her much. He's afraid I'll influence her." She gave a weak smile.
"I'm sorry about your sister," Azadeh said softly.
"I am to. But how did they find you...were you registered?" Magda listened as Azadeh told her story. "Wow, to go that long without being registered, not even known about...so you knew freedom like a pure-blood? That was brave of your father...especially being what you are." Azadeh nodded. "Well, it's the end of my shift, but head healer Nancy will be up next, she's very nice, a little more stict than me, but she's got a good heart."
"Are you married?"
"Oh no, just going home to two cats, my familiars...Heckle and Jeckle. Hard to find love when you're a pure-blood."
"So, you'd marry for love instead of status or money?"
"Yes...those things don't really bring you happiness."
"A pure-blood that marries for love, I like that...," Azadeh turned over and went to sleep as Magda left, for some reason, she could sleep better knowing that there was at least one pure-blood out there that made the world better.