Annabelle
The next morning, after breakfast, we had free time and decided to walk along the Black Lake to enjoy the warmth of the first days of October. Aurora, of course, told me everything that Snape had told her. Sure, it was terrifying, but all the information she gave was questioned in my mind.
"What the hell? Why on earth would Snape tell you this?" I was perplexed.
"He was very persuasive. And besides, this does not change the fact what or whom I saw."
"But why is the Dark Lord doing this? Why does he need a seventeen-year-old Hogwarts student? It's ridiculous! Maybe Snape is just intimidating you?" I suggested, not abandoning my attempts to find another meaning in the words of our Head.
"I doubt that he would have started such a conversation then."
"All right, we'll see what happens next, but for now, never mind. This, as Snape puts it, power hasn't done anything bad to you, which means it's unlikely to do it," I summed up, assuring my friend and myself as well.
I wanted to continue to live a normal life, as before, and not to think about some conspiracies, problems of a global scale that had never touched us before. All my life it was an adult game, but not ours. So why should anything change now?
Yes, the hell was going on in the world, but it's normal when power changes, isn't it? And it's only for the best! All our families, from time immemorial, aspired to such ideals, which the Dark Lord propagated. Alas, coups have never been without casualties, but do we really care about that?
Undoubtedly, Aurora's gift (and I considered it a gift, albeit a terrible one), was extremely rare. Well, let it be! She just needs to learn how to control it, that's all! It can brings her greatness, honor, respect! Maybe that's why the Dark Lord needs her? To become his right hand, for example, why not? Yes, this is not what we dreamed about, but what's wrong with that? Being as close to power as possible — isn't that what any Slytherin wants?
*
A few weeks later we had our long-awaited first trip to Hogsmeade.
During this period of time, nothing happened, Draco was still silent and ignored us. But I don't bother him anymore, I was completely satisfied with revenge and his humiliation, I didn't need more. Besides, I really understood that he was busy with the execution of the task of the Dark Lord. So let him do it, and I, sort of, calmed down.
At first, our heads with Aurora were busy with other things, and later peace and quiet came into the world of ghosts, so we began to safely forget about problems, not at all thinking that this could be the calm before the storm.
By the time we got to Hogsmeade, we managed to curse, perhaps, everyone who came up with the idea of borganizing a trip to the magical village on this very bad day. The gray, leaden sky was completely covered with thunderclouds, as if it was about to rain or the first snow would fall, and a heavy wind tore the last golden leaves from the trees. Ora and I made a unanimous decision to go to Three Broomsticks and treat ourselves to butterbeer.
We have always associated Hogsmeade with some kind of fairy-tale world, a cute village where you could find almost everything: from shops with magical trinkets to shops with delicious sweets in all of magical England!
It's always been fun here. By Halloween, Madame Levett's shop with magical fancy dress was opening, in which Ora and I could get lost and fall out of reality for several hours, and also, not to the delight of relatives, spend an impressive amount of Galleons. At Christmas, it was a real winter kingdom from fairy tales: Christmas carols were heard everywhere, performed by amateur choirs consisting of local residents, ice sculptures adorned the streets, a magic fountain in the main, tiny square of the village spewed streams of water of all colors of the rainbow, like taps in the prefect's bathroom, Christmas sweets were sold right on the streets and here everyone could find a gift for every taste.
I remember in my third year, shortly before Christmas, Draco took me to choose whatever I wanted for my birthday present. Then we still got along well with each other and I was pleased with such attention from my groom. It seemed that he himself enjoyed the realization of its importance, that he, on his own, without the help of his parents, could buy whatever he wanted.
For a long time I could not choose a gift for myself, and only when I dragged it to Mr. Clafflin's jewelry shop, I calmed down in search. My soul liked the insanely expensive decoration for the handle of a magic wand, encrusted with obsidian and emeralds. Draco appreciated my choice and easily agreed to give me exactly this. His self-confidence and his own sense of importance exceeded any price for whatever I chose.
Merlin's beard, how he was bursting with indignation when the seller, Mr. Clafflin, doubted the availability of sufficient funds for such a purchase from a thirteen-year-old boy. And, to be honest, I was proud of Malfoy when he put this pathetic huckster in his place, who judges everyone by some stereotypes and his own vision of the world.
It was the best and most memorable birthday present from Draco. And yes, times were better. At that time we were really friends, appreciated and respected each other, and then we grew up and everything changed in an instant.
*
The weather got worse and worse, the rain that had begun turned into sleet and the wind was already blowing off our feet. But we were not discouraged after a few mugs of butterbeer. Wrapped up in a warm cloak and tied a green and silver scarf around our necks, Ora and I left the tavern. The people were already returning to Hogwarts, it was getting dark, and the sleet was falling in a white veil, through which little was visible, so we walked arm in arm, so as not to get lost in this darkness.
Before I got a few steps, I tripped over something, so much so that Ora could not hold me and I ran into someone in front. I think she was a Gryffindor a year older than us, she still plays on the Quidditch team. I tried to get up, but she pushed me nervously, looking for something she had dropped, apparently in the fall.
"Hey, take it easy!" I was outraged.
As I straightened up, I saw an envelope lying on the wet ground, inside of which something flickered like some jewellery. By inertia, I bent down to pick it up, but immediately felt someone grab my waist and quickly dragged me back.
At that moment, there was a scream and everything around seemed to stop. The snowflakes seemed to have frozen and they became so clearly visible, as if a dome had formed over that place. Inside it, I saw that Gryffindor, who, like a puppet in the hands of a puppeteer, shot up and hung in the air, and then just as abruptly collapsed to the ground and began to writhe in convulsions.
I twitched, terribly frightened, but strong arms still held me so that I wouldn't break free.
"You idiot!" I heard Draco's angry voice above my ear and was very surprised that I didn't recognize him right away.
"What is it?" I tried to break free. He continued to look at the Gryffindor that Potter and his friends were already running up to, and then released his grip to grab my arm and drag me after him towards Hogwarts.
"Hey! Let me go! What are you doing, Draco?" I didn't understand what was going on. What was that? He pulled me away from this girl like he knew what was going to happen. But how did he know this?
Draco was walking fast, like he was running from a crime scene, I could hardly keep up with him.
"What happened? Where are you pulling me?" I couldn't stop asking.
"You'd better say "thank you", Anna," he said irritably.
"Thank? For what?" I didn't understand.
"Fool, you could hang there instead of that Gryffindor!"
To say I was shocked is an understatement. Draco, it turns out, saved me from something that I did not even understand, but at the same time he was angry with me? For what? What did I do?
"Thank you," I decided to thank him, saying the word as softly and calmly as possible, hoping that it would calm him down.
I felt there was some trick here. Of course, I was flattered that he saved me from something terrible. I didn't expect Malfoy to act like that. But there was something wrong here.
We entered Hogwarts, but Draco still wouldn't let me go, and I could feel him starting to shake.
"Listen, why are you mad at me? I already thanked you. True, sincerely. What else do you want?" I didn't let up when we were already descending into the Slytherin basements.
"What do I want?" he exploded. "I don't want anything from you! It's you, every now and then, messing around under my feet!"
"What? I? Under your feet?" It already pissed me off. "How dare you?!"
Draco stopped short of the entrance to our common room and turned to face me. He began to shake with anger even more and he glared at me angrily.
"Do you think I didn't realize it was you who gave me that filthy love potion? Who else would have dared?! You humiliated me!"
"And why did you immediately humiliate? What's wrong with that? You two made a good couple! She suits you," I smiled cheerfully in response, but immediately regretted it. Draco shoved me sharply around the corner and moved forward, pressing me against the wall.
"Of course, not like you…" he sneered and continued angrily. "Because of your idiotic clumsiness, you ruined everything for me today! And you will pay for it!"
Malfoy was shaking with anger even more, and his usually indifferent and cold look could now incinerate anyone on the spot. Apparently, this case was really very important for him, and he was already losing his nerve.
"What? I don't understand what you mean at all! Why is it that I'm to blame? If something didn't work out for you, then what have I to do with it? This is your fault, not mine!"
I fired at his face.
Draco's lips trembled, as if he wanted to say something, but did not dare, his eyes flashed with some unkind light, and he pressed me against the wall even more, so much so that it was already hard for me to breathe.
"It's not my fault, do you hear? Everything worked out for me! It's all you!" with a share of hysteria, he gritted through his teeth, hovering over me.
"Draco, let me go!" I ordered him, unable to move.
"And no one will love you, no matter how many love spells you cast, even on me, even on anyone else. And you will have to live with me, but don't even think that such a life will be paradise," he did not let up. Malfoy took pleasure in putting pressure on me.
I managed to free my hand and slap him across the face. Draco didn't expect this and loosened his grip, clutching his cheek in fear, and that was enough for me to try to escape. But as soon as I took a step, he grabbed me again and pushed me against the wall with all his strength. I closed my eyes, hitting my back painfully against the stone wall.
"How dare you wave your arms around like you're a filthy mudblood?!" he said in disgust, grimacing. "What, you don't have enough strength to act like a pureblood? Or did they give me a Squib as a bride?"
Malfoy gripped my shoulders tightly, shaking me with every question he asked. I have never seen him so aggressive, he was always a coward, but his behavior scared me a lot. What else is he capable of?
"Let me go!" I cried out in tears, my fingers fumbling for my wand in my pocket, pointing at him discreetly, but Draco didn't listen.
"Uskarem internicionem!" I quickly said a spell and the guy instantly flew off to the side.
Draco clutched his throat, scratching his skin, and fell to his knees. He was clearly short of breath, as if he was suffocating. I was still staring at him in fear, not even realizing that the Blacks' combat spell had worked.
"What's going on here?" Snape's voice rang out and he immediately ran up to Draco.
It's only now that I realize what I've done. This spell, though not lethal and will soon wear off, but I shouldn't have cast it. The professor looked at me accusingly, and I burst into tears.
"I ask you once more, Miss Black, what happened here?" he pressed on.
"I didn't want to…" I managed to squeeze out through my tears. Draco had let go of his throat now, he was getting better. "He just pissed me out..."
"And what is it, do you think that all quarrels can be ended with combat spells?" Snape lifted Draco, who was still trembling from what had happened.
"I didn't want to…" I repeated. "He hurt me a lot..."
"Well, I'm not interested in who started it first. I see results and that's enough for me. You could be expelled for this!" I have never seen Snape so angry and annoyed.
"But professor..."
"What is it? Merlin's beard! Severus, what happened here?" On top of everything else, Slughorn appeared. This was still not enough, why not the whole of Hogwarts at once?
"Well, it's good to have you here, professor. You can keep an eye on Miss Black for the time being, and I'll take Mister Malfoy to the hospital wing," Snape suggested. "We're not done with you yet," he tossed that out to me as he walked off and dragged Draco over to Madam Pomfrey.
"Oh, my girl, why are you shaking here like an aspen leaf. That's enough, no need to cry!" Slughorn turned to me. "Come to me, I will treat you to mint tea. You need to calm down!"
The professor patted me reassuringly on the shoulder and led me into his office.
"I dare say it was one of the many spells of your family, right?" he ranted as he entered the office and seated me on a cozy sofa by the warm fireplace. "I have learned more than one generation of Blacks and I can determine exactly what it was," he explained, noticing my bewilderment and, a kind of embarrassment.
"I remember your father, Sirius, used one of these in his fifth year. Poor Severus, he was then…" Professor Slughorn stammered, apparently considering that it was not necessary to tell the details of the life of one of the Hogwarts teachers, especially those where he did not shine in a good light.
This interested me, I noticed that the tears slowly ceased to flow in a stream, and I looked up my even greener from tears, like the depths of the sea, eyes, expecting to hear the story to the end. But the professor ignored my interest, handed me a porcelain cup of tea, and sat down in the chair opposite.
"And you did a similar spell just brilliant! Oh, of course, poor Mister Malfoy, but don't worry, one night in the hospital wing and he'll be as good as new!"
"Professor Slughorn, I didn't do it on purpose. I didn't want to harm him like that at all..." I sincerely uttered, imagining with horror what would happen now.
Oh Merlin! If my grandmother finds out, it will not seem enough to me! And Narcissa? What will she say? After all, I gave her my word that I would take care of Draco and support him. My head was splitting from all these thoughts and after the shed tears. Slughorn was muttering something, talking about his next outstanding students who managed to do mischievous tricks in their school years and go unpunished.
As soon as I thought about the punishments, I instantly turned pale and again I was seized by nervous tremors. Now what will happen? After all, I really did wrong and, as Snape said, I could be expelled.
"Oh, it's getting late, Miss Black," Professor Slughorn's voice snapped me out of my thoughts. "Go to sleep, my girl, you have turned so pale. I don't think Professor Snape will arrange a conversation with you at night, at the very least, I'll tell him that I sent you to rest. You can't beat yourself up like that."
I really felt how my body does not obey me and becomes too heavy from the stress experienced. I slowly got up, thanked the professor for the tea, apologized again, and went to bed.
As it turned out, sleep was too much of a luxury that night. I lay in bed until dawn, unable to sleep. Thoughts did not leave me, turning that ill-fated situation over and over again in my head.
Yes, I should not have acted so cruelly. But Draco's words and behavior hurt me so much! To the depths of the soul. What did I have to endure? To humbly accept, bowing my head and smiling at the next spit in the soul? I couldn't do that. I'm not a weak-willed doll, I also have feelings. And it hurts me too.