Chapter 95:

Avoidance of Acknowledging Changes

"Ariella! Ariella, wait!"

She obeyed, despite not having to. She waited for her…peer?...to catch up. "Have you been avoiding me?"

Slowly, Ariella shook her head, not sure if she was lying or not. She doubted it mattered much; the man wasn't her master.

"Then will you talk to me?"

"What do you want to know?"

"Why won't you talk to me? I thought we were…okay? Unless you've been forbidden from talking to me?"

Finally, Ariella turned to face her friend. "I'm sorry, Harry. But things have changed."

"Can you tell me anything? At all? I have to be the one to defeat Voldemort; anything you can tell me could help."

Carefully, she shook her head. "There's only so much I can answer. I haven't been forbidden from talking to you, but I have been forbidden from talking about certain topics, especially to you."

Harry ran a hand through his hair, frustrated, though he knew he couldn't really blame her.

"Harry, I'm not avoiding you, but things have changed. With the bond, with Draco…between us. We can't ignore the war, Harry. You of all people know that. And I – I can't forget how you hurt him."

"Ariella, I am sorry about that. I swear, I never would have used that curse if I had known what would happen."

"I know that. But I – I have new…different…duties now. I can't help you, Harry. I'm sorry."

"How is he holding up?"

Sorrowfully, she shook her head. "He's getting worse," she admitted. "It's getting harder. I don't know how to help him. Can you talk to him? Friend to friend?"

Theodore nodded. "I can try, but at this point, I think he tells you more than he tells anyone else."

"I'm worried for him. He's had months to do this nearly impossible task and the Dark Lord and the others…they aren't happy, to put it mildly. He turns of age in a week. If they're already hurting him now, what's going to happen then?"

"I don't know; I don't even want to think about it. Just be ready. Though…are his scars from two months ago finally healed?"

"He has the scars, I think he'll always have them, but as far as I know, they've finally stopped hurting him."

"That's something, at least."

"Is there anything I should be aware of? That you've seen that maybe I haven't noticed?"

"Not that you don't already know about." He paused, before continuing, hoping he wouldn't trigger the bond. "Will the bond change once he's of age?"

"Probably," Ariella acquiesced. "But how, I can't say, beyond probably wanting more submission. I'm...scared of what it's going to want, once we are both of age."

"It's messed up."

"It's the way it is. Unfortunate, but true."

"How are you holding up?"

"I'll be better once…whatever this whole mess is…is resolved."

"Understandable."

"Thank you. For being here, I mean."

"Of course. I wouldn't dream of having it any other way."

"I do want to – "

" – I'm afraid I need to interrupt," a sharp voice interjected. The two looked up, startled. "Nott, I'll see you later. Ariella, come with me."

With a nervous glance at her friend, Ariella obeyed, following him once again to the Room of Requirement, though this time, it was set simply as a lounge area. Draco gestured for her to take a seat on the recliner across from him, though he kept his body tensed as he sat down.

"Sir? What is it?"

"I've received another summons. I'm to return to the Manor for my birthday."

"What do you think they want?"

"Nothing good."

"Do you want me to come with you this time?"

"Yes. In fact, it was specifically requested that you do so."

She paled. "That can't be good."

"No. I doubt anything about this summons is. We'll most likely be there at least a few days."

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Just be prepared to be hurt and to assist me."

"I meant aside from the usual," she retorted, before realizing what she had said. Draco looked up and, seeing her reaction, held up a hand to stop her before an apology left her lips.

"I know what you meant. No offense was taken."

She just nodded a bit shakily. He was puzzled though, as to why she was reacting so badly to such statements.

"Why are you so afraid of stating your situation?"

"Because if I imply or state how…unsatisfactory things are, then the bond will think I'm ungrateful; that it will punish me for insulting my owning family."

"Ariella, what you're going through, some of the ways you've been "taken care of" are…unsatisfactory, to say the least. I'd rather you admit to the reality what you have."

"But your father won't like that, the bond certainly won't. if I'm perceived as ungrateful, I could lose what allowances I do have, and I will certainly be punished."

"I see. Well, for what it's worth, to you or the bond, I don't find you or your comments ungrateful."

"Thank you. That…helps." She paused, before asking another question. "Do you know how the bond will change, if it's demands will change?"

"No. I'm certain it won't be pleasant," he answered, only partially lying. In truth he was scared himself of what may be coming, what the bond would force them to do; he had his suspicions, but he wouldn't say anything until he was certain. He didn't want to scare her more.

"I doubt it would be."

"Will you…if I feel a pull towards…submission, tasks, reprimand, anything it may ask, do you want me to come to you?"

"Who else would you go to?"

"Your mother. Or your father. With the way things are, who knows when he'll be let out; it could be soon. Not to mention, I'm fairly sure that while he can't summon me right now because of Azkaban, the bond can't fully prevent me from serving him."

Immediately, Draco shook his head. "No. The minute I become of age, the bond will shift and I will have more power than my mother. It's silly, but it's an ancient bond. And I refuse to let you go to Azkaban to visit my father, unless the bond absolutely demands it. No. I'll take care of it, whatever it may be."

"Thank you, Draco. Truly. I know it's a lot."

"It's our life," he replied matter-of-factly.

"Still…is there anything I can do to help? To assist with your coming of age?"

"We'll find out. I'll be sure to let you know. And if…when…the bond demands things of you, especially if it's something different, let me know as soon as you can."

He paused for a moment, before continuing. "Do you want to stay here for tonight?"

She startled for a moment, before looking up. Slowly, she nodded. "We're here anyway. Though…" she hesitated for a moment, but pressed on anyway. "Can you check the bond in case I need a punishment while we're here anyway?"

Draco stiffened, but nodded. "Of course. I'll do so shortly."

He knew that whatever happened at the Manor in a week's time would be more than sufficient, but he didn't want to add on to that if she already needed something. As much as he hated it, the result would be better if they both dealt with this now, as opposed to later on, when she was to be hurt for certain.