Chapter Sixteen-As the Sky Darkens
The moment Devon said the incantation, warning bells echoed in Rain's head.
No!
She pushed herself away from Devon, trying desperately to roll her sleeve down.
"What do you think you're doing!" she almost yelled at him.
Rain tried to regain some modicum of normalcy in the situation by muttering charms on the bruises she knew Devon had seen. Devon said her name, but she took no notice.
"Airen," he said again.
She stopped moving, her wand arm dropping limply to the side. Obviously, there was no denying it anymore. Devon had seen them.
"Who beat you up?"
It was like the time when she had gotten in the way of the Bludger that was heading for Skye, only minus the intense physical pain. Rain felt like the wind was knocked out of her as she bowed her head, looking defeated.
She didn't answer Devon right away. In any case, she couldn't answer his question. She simply stared at the ground before her, not even aware that Devon was coming closer.
"Rain?" Devon's voice came, much gentler this time.
Rain forced herself to her feet. She cast another Concealing Charm on her neck, where a nasty looking mark was visible. Her original intention was to run, but she found she couldn't quite do that because Devon was now standing in front of her.
With his fingers, Devon brushed away a lock of hair from her face. He gingerly touched the mark that now couldn't be seen. She knew his blue gaze was locked on her, but she couldn't look at him.
"You don't want to tell me, do you?" he asked her.
She couldn't answer. She didn't know where her voice went.
With those long, well-manicured fingers of his, Devon made her look up at him. The expression of concern on his face made her eyes involuntarily fill with tears. She tried to look away again, but he didn't allow her to.
"I care about you. I thought you knew that."
"I do," she managed to choke out.
"Then tell me who did this to you," Devon said, his voice controlled.
Unable to grasp how she managed to overcome the chasm of fear and silence that was between them, Airen opened her mouth to speak.
"I don't know," she whispered.
If the rumors were true, Skye would probably be...in the library.
Devon rounded a corner and made his way, carefully phrasing what he had to say in his head. It was always better to have a few witty lines prepared whenever you were dealing with a Weasley.
Upon his entrance, Devon immediately started looking for any sign of Skye. He looked among the tables where most of the students were...but Skye wasn't there. Devon walked towards the numerous shelves, looking casual, trying to make it as though he was merely perusing the volumes for something interesting to read.
There he was.
Walking more casually now, Devon approached Skye, who was standing next to a girl with brown hair.
He's with Faber. I gather the rumors are true, then.
"Weasley," he said when he was within earshot.
Devon was taking a huge risk, even just by addressing Skye like that. If this conversation with Skye were to be connected to his relationship with Rain, the results would only be slightly less than catastrophic.
Skye looked up and frowned.
"What is it, Malfoy?"
"I need a word."
Devon waited while Skye whispered something to Faber. Their classmate nodded, got a book from the shelf, and left them. He waited until he was sure Faber couldn't hear them.
"Have you noticed anything odd about Rain, lately?" he asked as soon as Faber sat down at a table some distance from them.
"There's always something odd about Rain, Malfoy. What are you talking about?"
Clueless as ever.
"I'm talking about the ugly bruises I saw on her arms and neck. Any idea how they got there?" Devon hissed.
The look of shock on Skye's face told Devon that he didn't know how they got there-though, suddenly, Skye's expression changed into one of confusion.
"But Malfoy, I saw her in a sleeveless dress just last night."
"Weasley, you've got a wilderness of female cousins. Don't tell me you never heard of Cosmetic Charms," Devon said, heaving a frustrated sigh.
"No, Malfoy, I was never taught those. How do you know about them then, eh?" Skye returned, a grin spreading all over his face.
"Could we please stay on course, here? At this very moment, Airen is trying to behave that she's perfectly all right, while both of us know that there is something wrong with her. Are you going to help me find out or not?" Devon spoke in a tone that always got people's attention.
For a moment, Skye didn't say anything. Then, he swallowed subtly before running a hand through his hair.
"Alright, then. D'you know where she is?"
"I left her in a room in the west wing-"
"Go to her. I'll catch you up."
Devon didn't even wonder how Skye knew which room in the west wing he was referring to. He just turned on his heel and left.
The urgency in Malfoy's voice was enough to scare Skye, whose breath was increasingly becoming strangled by wild panic. Was this it? Was this the danger that he was warned of?
A thousand and one questions ran through Skye's head, each one more confusing that the last. One idea stood out, though: if he was going to take care of this, he needed to come up with some explanation to give Cel.
Damn it all.
He and Celestia were beginning to get closer to each other. He didn't know for sure, but he had a sneaking suspicion that she might...no. No assumptions. He would not assume anything at this point.
"Would you mind terribly if I leave you right now?" he asked as he sat in a chair opposite Celestia at the table she'd been occupying since Malfoy came.
"You have to go?"
Skye nodded with a contrite expression on his face.
"Something came up and...well, I'm really sorry," he said.
But Celestia gave another one of those radiant smiles of hers that made his knees weaken. She shook her head.
"It's okay, Skye. I'll be fine," she replied.
"I'll make it up to you," Skye said, grabbing her hand and giving it a squeeze before standing and leaving the library.
What did Malfoy say? Rain had bruises-ugly bruises on her neck and arms. How could those have gotten there? Rain had her moments of clumsiness, but...
Shaking his head, Skye broke into a run. A cold feeling of dread was starting to settle in his stomach, and he didn't like it one bit.
"Avarhawiel," he muttered distractedly when he came to the portrait of the bald warlock.
The portrait dissolved. He walked down the dimly lit corridor and entered the room at the end. Sure enough, like Malfoy had said, Rain was seated in front of the fire curled up into a ball. Malfoy was standing two feet away from her, an unreadable expression on his face.
"Rain?"
She didn't acknowledge him. She just sat there, in the exact same position she had been in when he entered. Skye looked at Malfoy, but the Slytherin merely shook his head.
Skye winced. It looked as though they'd just had some sort of row.
Of all the embarrassing situations...alright, well, at least they're both fully dressed and Rain is deep in her seeming depression so Malfoy isn't even THINKING of touching her at this moment...
Skye sat beside Rain. He looked at the spot she was staring at.
"Nothing very interesting in the fire, there, unless you plan of turning it silver or something," he remarked.
Skye knew exactly how he was going to get Rain to talk. He knew that she was bursting to tell someone right now, but she wasn't because she wanted to prove that she could handle whatever it was on her own. So, he was going to play it like he always played it: he was going to make small talk.
"Say, Rain," he said. "I need your help with something. I realized this morning that I have absolutely nothing to give Cel for Christmas. It has to be something special, you know. Any ideas?"
Rain didn't reply.
"No? Oh, well, too bad. I asked Jon for help but all he gave me was his own worries about what to get Dionne for Christmas. Did he tell you that they're going to meet up during the next Hogsmeade weekend? He really moves fast, that one..."
There was still no reaction from Rain, though Skye knew that he was starting to get through. This girl couldn't keep her feelings in to save her life, and even though he knew he was treading on dangerous ground, Skye also knew that he had to say certain biting aphorisms in order to break her mask of supposed numbness.
"Is that what went on between the two of you on the train home last year? Was he flirting with you? Tsk, tsk, and they say I'm the biggest flirt Hogwarts has ever seen-"
"Shut up, Skye. If you came to see the bruises that Devon saw, all you have to do is ask." Rain said finally, flatly, without a single emotion on either her face or in her voice.
Knew I'd get there soon enough.
He stole a glance at Devon.
Hurrah for me then, and no thanks to you.
"May I see them?" Skye obliged.
Slowly, Rain rolled her sleeves up. Skye tried not to wince when he saw the marks on her arms. They were...hideous, to say the least. Rain then pulled her hair up to reveal even more bruises on her neck.
"Happy now?" she asked in that same flat tone.
"When did you get these?" Skye asked in a level voice.
He was used to seeing bruises, although the number of them on Rain was really startling. She'd had bruises and scraped when they were younger, of course; it was unavoidable since she was playing with little boys all the time. To the best of his knowledge, though, she outgrew the rough-and-tumble phase years before.
"Three days ago," came the stoic reply.
"Um...do they hurt?"
"Of course they hurt, you dunderhead. They're all black and blue if you cared to notice," Rain retorted, rolling her eyes.
It was really strange hearing something sarcastic when the statement didn't sound sarcastic at all.
"Then why don't you go to Madam Pomfrey?" Skye demanded.
"Use your brains," Devon suddenly spoke up from behind him. "Madam Pomfrey would have asked the exact same questions we're asking. If Rain doesn't want to explain it to us, why in the world would she want to tell Madam Pomfrey?"
He's got a point.
Skye sighed and settled on his heels. Rain was being completely stubborn again. Fine. He would wait this out. He got to his feet and walked to where Devon was standing.
"So?" Malfoy said in a low voice.
"She's being hard-headed."
"I can see that. Shouldn't we be doing anything?" inquired the Slytherin captain.
"What's there to do? She'll crack eventually."
Devon's eyes darkened. He then made his way to the door.
"Oi, Malfoy, where are you going?" Skye called out, surprised.
"She hasn't eaten anything. It's past lunchtime," Malfoy said shortly before leaving.
With a thoughtful expression on his face, Skye sat on the loveseat. Malfoy's behavior was new to him. Did Malfoy sincerely care about Rain? Frankly, he was mildly surprised, although if Rain knew, she'd probably hit him over the head with her broomstick. Just because Devon was the son of a Death Eater didn't mean that he didn't have feelings, right?
But, no...that wasn't what surprised Skye.
A Malfoy falling for a Weasley. Who would have thought? Oh, well, stranger things have happened.
When Rain cracked her eyes open, she felt a bit disoriented.
Where am I?
She looked around her for a few seconds before her location dawned upon her.
Oh.
Rain's brown eyes fell on the person who was blocking the light from the fireplace. He was seated on the edge of the bed.
Bed!
"Wondering about the bed, I see. Your cousin and I transfigured the loveseat. I figured you'd be more comfortable," said Devon, turning around and seeing her awake.
She nodded.
"Devon, what time is it? I think I should be getting back to the dormitory-"
"It's all right. Skye went there just a few moments ago to tell them that you aren't going to be sleeping there tonight," he spoke in a low voice.
She wanted to ask how he and Skye were now on a first-name basis, but somehow, the question got lost and all that came out were two words.
"I'm sorry," she murmured.
Devon looked surprised.
"What for?"
"It's your birthday today, isn't it? You should be with your housemates, celebrating," she said guiltily.
"I was already down there, we already-er-celebrated, and I found that my mind kept wandering," he replied with a slight smile tugging at the corners of his lips, turning back to the fire.
They both remained silent for a few minutes. Slowly, Rain sat up. Devon turned his head to watch her, but made no move to help. She moved towards him until they were side by side. Then, she placed her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.
She felt so tired. It had been such a task to keep this to herself, but her pride had kept her from saying anything to anyone. And now that Devon and Skye had seen...
A little sound of contentment escaped her when she felt a strong pair of arms encircle her. Devon never made her feel like she was being coddled or overprotected. She realized that now. Devon...took care of her in his own Malfoyesque manner, and yet he never babied her.
Rain snuggled closer. With light fingers, Devon ran his hand up her arm, making her skin tingle. The feeling of his skin on hers-be it only his hand-made uncanny sensations wash over her like tidal waves.
"When I saw what was happening between you and Nott, something erupted inside me. It was...odd, primarily because I've never felt anything that strong before," Devon's voice came. "I wanted to get you away from him, as far away from him as possible. I still don't know how in the world I didn't end up cursing him right then and there."
Some instinct told her to remain silent. It was rare that Devon opened up to her like this.
"I felt helpless, and I hated that. It was within my means to help you, and yet I couldn't," Devon continued in this tone that she had never heard him use before. "I couldn't do anything."
For a second, it seemed that he had pulled her closer. His face seemed to be buried on her hair, because his words were slightly muffled.
"It's quite alright. Malfoys aren't allowed to help Weasleys, remember? Especially Weasleys in trouble. I am grateful, though, and I understand completely," she replied softly.
He didn't know what had prompted his sudden confession, but he found that he needed to know that she understood his behavior. He needed to know that she was still okay with the idea of being with him only in secret.
He needed to tell her how he felt...and yet he couldn't manage to. It wasn't in his nature to express his emotions in such a frank and candid manner. To be completely honest, it scared him.
"Promise me you won't get yourself into that situation again."
Rain opened her brown eyes and turned her head to look at him, a smile on her face.
"You mean threatening to take away points from a Slytherin for doing magic in the corridors? I know prefects don't have that happy power, but…" she trailed off teasingly.
"I'm serious, Airen."
His voice booked no room for refusal. He was dead serious, and by the way he was staring into her eyes, he wanted to make it clear to her. Rain's smile did not leave her face, however.
"I was only teasing, Devon. Yes, I'll do my best to avoid it," said Rain.
As was usual, she was making jokes. She was trying to get him to stop being so serious. But the fact was, he was in too deep to pull back. He couldn't stop feeling the way he did any more than he could stop breathing.
Devon shifted his position so he was now facing her. His eyes roamed her face, taking in her features. He tucked her hair behind her ears, brushing her cheek in the process. Then, he touched his lips to hers in a kiss that was both gentle and fierce at the same time.
What was it that he was going through? He knew that he cared about Rain, but what was it that he was feeling? It was intense...it was growing...it was totally indescribable, and it was driving him crazy. So many questions kept on running through his head, and he could never find the answers to them all. There were so many contradictions and ironies that he was left totally confused. He simply was not used to this, and it was getting harder for him to keep it all locked within.
When he broke the kiss, Rain touched her forehead to his, her eyes closed once more. Her breath was pleasantly warm on his cheeks.
"Don't you have to go to your dormitory?" she whispered.
"You needn't worry. Nobody's going to look for me tonight."
"How can you be so sure about that?"
Quickly, Devon considered telling Rain about exactly what he had said to his brother earlier that evening. The idea was quickly scrapped, though. He doubted if she would seem pleased if she found out that he said he was 'going to collect another birthday gift' from a certain female student.
"I just am."
Rain put her head on his shoulder, planting a small kiss on the side of his neck. After that, she lapsed into silence.
"I think I'm going insane, Devon," he thought he heard her whisper before she fell asleep once more.
The chapter has now ended.