Dark: Enjoy & review.
Summary/Disclaimer: check the prologue.
Italics – thoughts
"..." – speaking
Chapter 4... Apologies: accepted or not?
Draco sighed for the whatever-time that night.
He had tried everything to make his mind forget about what happened two days ago. Through these two days, he didn't saw Iris once. Nor did he sleep. This bloody thing got in his way. Her eyes appeared in his mind every time he closed his eyes to try to sleep. Those eyes, sheer humiliation and loathe in them... He shuddered involuntarily.
Quidditch didn't work; his house-mates had also tried, but failed; and he was tired of doing homework and researches to increase his already good grades.
No, nothing worked. This is getting ridiculous...
Her absence also worried him. Dumbledore Junior had started to look at him more closely too. And just what I needed. A bloody body guard. She could do us both a favour and put her nose in her own business. Icy grey hues rolled.
He got up. There's no way I'll sleep tonight either... Dressed in a pair of trousers and a warm cloak, he exited his room, not bothering with a shirt. And as he thought, he glanced at her portrait, almost instantly. He had that bad habit.
"Is she there?" the unicorn on the painting looked up at him in boredom.
"No, she is not, young Malfoy."
"Damn it..." he softly cursed, heading for the stairs.
"You do know that you should give her your apologies, do you not?" the mystic animal continued. "She deserves it."
"She deserves nothing. What she deserves is some guy coming, ripping her clothes off and raping her. She needs to learn a lesson." To his dismay, he felt a sudden pang of fear, as that chance came over his mind. His eyes narrowed, For fuck's sake, I'm not developing stupid feelings over a female like that, am I!
The equine seemed amused at his shock, "Why, I do think you are, little dragon."
"I do not love. My father made sure of that long ago."
"Everyone is able to change."
"Not that much." He stepped away, tired of that fruitless chatter. Walking along the empty and dark hallways, he found himself shivering. Not from cold; the temperature wasn't that low. Everything was eerie quiet. The exact opposite as it normally was.
The crispy cold air met him as he stepped outside, making his bare skin end up with goose bumps. But he didn't mind. Whistling loudly, he stared at the full moon suddenly. Wonder if she's seeing it too.
Hearing a soft galloping, his eyes turned to look at the edge of the tall trees, the beginning of the Forbidden Forest. Pravus poked its head from the thick foliage around it, looking down at the young man. Snorting softly, it walked up to him.
"I know it's late, but bare with me tonight." He whispered quietly, while fisting the mane with one hand and hustling himself on the unicorn's back, "I need something to clear my mind right now."
The young equine bowed its elegant neck in understanding, letting him mount. Feeling Draco's heels press onto his flanks not so gently, Pravus neighed softly, standing up on its hind legs and starting to gallop at a gentle pace, going into the forest.
Both unicorn and rider were startled at seeing a black blur heading their way. Swiftly stopping before they collided, Draco recognized the black unicorn right away, "Onyx?" and that lead to... "Iris!"
"What are you doing here?" her voice sounded for the first time in two days. No one had found her, and now the person she least wanted to see did. How fucked up can my luck be?
"The same thing you are doing, I'm sure."
"Save the sarcasm, asshole.." he could almost swear she had rolled her eyes. Her ride started to walk away. He quickly did the same. "The forest is quite big, you know. No need to be following me."
"Yes, but it's also public. So, if I want to be here, I have every right to be."
"Whatever."
Guess I can consider myself lucky; she didn't try to kill me... yet. "You ok?"
"Why do you even care. After what you tried to do to me..." her icy blue orbs looked behind her, glaring.
"It's not what you think, it's just that-"
"-That you're a stupid bastard, and just because I pushed you away the other night, you simply decide to bloody rape me! For crying out loud, I knew you had no honour, but I really thought you had shame in your eyes."
"If you do recall correctly, you had had that potion. If we had continued, you'd be perfectly willing."
Iris turned away from him, knowing he had a point. Still, her pride wouldn't let her tell him that. "Just stay away from me, and you might be alive when the year is over." With that, her heels dug into Onyx's flanks, as the unicorn galloped away. Leaving a surprised Draco behind.
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Early morning.
Ten quickly prepared Chestnut, looking back at the Forest once in a while. It was around six in the morning, but who was she to care about that when she hadn't seen her best friend for about two days? "I hope we can find her together, Chestnut..."
The unicorn snorted lightly in reply. If someone could find a unicorn, that someone was the leader of its herd. Mounting swiftly, the two companions turned to the tall trees.
"Let's go, my friend. I just hope she didn't do anything foolish yet."
Neighing softly, Chestnut galloped into the Forest.
She hadn't missed classes, not the Iris she knew. But ironically, Iris walked away every time anyone tried to reach to her. Even from her best friend. It's not that she doesn't know how to take care of herself, but her behaviour is starting to worry me.
««Flashback»»
The auburn haired girl looked at her grandfather's phoenix as she spoke, "...And because of that 'small' incident, she's even more quiet than usual. And she hasn't spoken to me yet. Which is starting to get on my nerves. She's not normal! Besides, Malfoy's stupid joke could have gone very, very bad."
Dumbledore nodded in understanding, the glint in his eyes telling that he wasn't surprised by the news whatsoever, "I see. And agree. Mr. Malfoy does need to learn a lesson. But you took care of that, didn't you, Tenebrae?"
"Well, I did, b-" her eyes widened, "How did you know that!"
"These walls have ears all around, child." One of the paintings chuckled, looking at both relatives in amusement. "After all, this is Hogwarts."
"Anyway, what should I do?" the teen sighed softly, "I just hope she's alright. If that happened to me, I... I dunno what I'd do.."
Once more, he nodded, "All she needs is a shoulder to lean on. Do not push her about it. Just be there, if she needs you. You are the one, if not only, who can calm her down right now."
Two pairs of blue eyes met briefly, as the young witch got up, "Thank you, grandfather."
««End Flashback»»
After almost half an hour lost in thought, Ten found herself looking into the lake that was right in the middle of the Forest. Indeed, Onyx was beside it, lying down on the soft grass. And Iris was resting right on top of him.
"Why?"
Silver hues snapped open, as she fell off of the big unicorn, which had gotten up, startled. "Why what?" she sounded a bit annoyed, as she looked up from her spot on the ground.
The other would surely laugh at that, if the situation wasn't serious, "Why do you keep running away?"
"I don't want to see him."
"It's not only for that. It's not, and you know it. You need to talk about it, you know you do. Or at least, let it all go. I'll be here for you. If you don't understand something as simple as that, mark my words that I'll make sure you do."
To her surprise, Iris just smiled. But the smile didn't reach her eyes. Those were unusually cold, "You know me too well, huh?"
"Stop it." At seeing her this way, this weak, tears prickled her blue eyes, "Please, just stop it." Sliding off of Chestnut and falling to her knees before her, she hugged her friend. "You're not like this. This cold, this fragile. That's not the Iris I know."
Sighing one last time, Iris hugged her back tightly, She's right... I can't go on like this... Burying her head into her shoulder, she let her tears flow. Forgetting about looking bad, her reputation, her past, she cried like she never did before.
Not knowing why and feeling confused about it all, she swiftly told all that to Ten, "...I just don't know! I mean, I should be feeling angry, not... disappointed! Or sad!"
And suddenly, that something that was amiss upon her thoughts clicked. The heiress of Dumbledore gasped silently, eyes widening, She.. she can't be falling in love with him, can she! "What else do you feel?"
"I dunno.. He just looks at me strangely. And I feel strange every time he does that. Like all I wanted was to forgive him."
"Iris..." pulling back only enough to look into her eyes, Ten spoke slowly and clearly, unsure, "You aren't... Falling for him, are you?" at the astonished look on her friend's features, she continued, "How can you even think about forgiving him, after what he tried to do to you?"
Scared silver pools looking at her was the only reply she got.
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"Hey Potter!" a barely accented voice called out over the crowd.
Said green-eyed boy looked up to see Iris and Ten walking up to him, "Hey, Ten. Iris."
"Yeah, hi, whatever, now come here!" blinking, Harry found himself being dragged by Iris, away from Ten, Hermione and Ron, "Now... I'm organizing a party, on the Slytherin common room. Ten's birthday is on Friday."
"Errrr, that's great... But I'm a Gryffindor, remember?"
"So what? You have been in Slytherin before."
"Well yeah, but- What! How do you know that!" he looked at her in shocked surprise.
She smirked, "The eyes are the windows to your soul. I read it in them. But that's not the point. Weasley over there knows the kitchens better than anyone else, so he could get the food. And you, you know all the exits from Hogwarts, for you have the Marauders' Map."
His eyes were as wide as they could go, "But how-?"
Icy hues rolled, "For Christ's sake, Potter, I'm trying to have a two-sided conversation here! I can read minds, alright? No big deal! Besides, that's not the point! It would be important if you came to the party. Will you?"
"I don't even know the password."
"You know where the entrance is, don't you?"
"Umm, yeah."
"Good. Meet you there around ten o'clock." Without even waiting for a reply, she turned around, walking back to Ten.
"What was that all about?"
"Oh nothing. Nothing at all."
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Friday had finally arrived. However, for a certain Tenebrae Dumbledore, that was blissfully unnoticed.
But not to her best friend.
"Silencio." With a small wave of her wrist, the walls around Ten's room were promptly soundproof. "Good." She quickly ran downstairs and climbed the other ones that lead to the boys' dorms.
After hesitating for a few seconds, she finally knocked on his door. Malfoy answered it, still half asleep, not noticing who was at the door; "Yeah, what is it?" let alone noticing he was bare from the waist up.
A dark eyebrow rose in amusement at seeing the oh-so arrogant and well dressed teen fresh out of bed, "We're going to have a party tonight. I was hoping you could help me with that camouflaging charm, which I didn't master yet. Although I know you did it, since I saw you do it at Flitwick's class. Besides, Ten mustn't know about anything."
"It's her birthday, I know." Wide awake now, he leant casually against the door frame, looking down at her, "And as the good friend you are to her, you'll throw a party." He sneered lightly, "How... sweet of a Slytherin to do."
"Thanks, but you can save the sarcasm to yourself, you know." She smiled charmingly, a smile which could rival one of his own if he wanted to seduce a girl. But hers had a hint of coldness... Revenge.
The spell Draco used on the common room came out perfect. It didn't change anything, to Ten's eyes. She would be the only one who would not see all the changes made for the party, once she'd wake up.
"Happy now?"
"Yes, a lot. Thank you, Malfoy."
"Don't I get anything for my work?" a smirk quickly graced the lips of the boy.
Iris turned around, the 'thank you' from before completely gone, "Don't push your luck."
"Look, I'm sorry for all that, alright? Can't we just try to get along, to start it all over?" grey emotionless depths suddenly softened, "I don't want us to act this way. Slytherin's aren't supposed to be fighting with each other."
Her own silver eyes relaxed momentarily, lips curving into the softest of smiles, "You know, I would like that."
The blond smiled in return, "Draco Lucius Malfoy, a pleasure to meet you."
Bowing a bit and lifting an imaginary skirt, she replied, "The pleasure's all mine. Iris Bridget Koltchak." Stepping forwards, one of her hands rested upon his cheek.
She leaned in, brushing her lips against his other one. The one she had slapped the other night, "There. That's the reward you get from your work."
After pulling back, the Slytherin Prince actually seemed taken aback, as strange as that sounded. She turned around, to go back to her own room.
"Thanks."
Looking back at him, Iris quirked an eyebrow, Was that Malfoy being nice? "What for, Draco?" his first name escaped her lips unnoticed...
...To her, that is. He did hear it, loud and clear, as the sound tingled his senses, "For giving me another chance... To prove you I'm not like you think I am." And with that, he passed by her, entering his own room.
Blushing softly, the girl followed his example, her thoughts shortened to, What was that all about?
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The day passed without many other incidents.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"
Ten flinched as practically all Great Hall shouted that sentence. A grin curved her lips as she walked up to the Slytherin table. "Thanks guys!" when she sat down, she received a few pats on the back from her friends and Iris, of course.
"You're seventeen!"
The blue eyed girl grinned widely, "Yup! Heh, and you're only sixteen!"
"Meh, I'll be seventeen in two months!"
"Me knows." Ten quickly served herself, "So, everything's alright?"
A sudden need to blurt everything out almost overcame the other girl, but she suppressed it, faking a bright smile, "Yeah. Everything's fine. Just fine."
Knowing she was lying but not wanting to annoy her by asking, the now seventeen year old kept quiet. For the time being, that is.
Later that day, Ten returned to Slytherin, slightly tired. She had just spoken to her grandfather and her features were quite thoughtful. When she entered, after giving the correct password, everything was bathed in darkness, no fire, no light. Only the outline of a young woman.
"Welcome back. And by the way..." Iris's eyes, even in the dark, were glinting in amusement, "Happy birthday, in the Slytherin's fashion."
The scene all around the two friends suddenly came to life, as the lights of the torches and the main fireplace on the back of the room quickly blazed with flames, giving a soft glow to everything, leaving the place still a bit in the dark. Almost every Slytherin was there, slowly surrounding her and congratulating her. And before she knew it, she was grinning back at them all from ear to ear.
"Thanks." Turning to her best friend once more, who haven't moved from her spot, she quickly hugged her, "I guess this was all your doing?"
"Yeah, that guess is correct."
"Eh, I thought you'd never do a thing like this!" pulling back, she couldn't help but notice that the black haired girl was holding something back, "Are you sure nothing's bothering you?"
"The thought of bothering you with what's bothering me on the day you should be completely carefree isn't very appealing to me, my friend." Perhaps it was just her, but the heiress of Dumbledore could've sworn there was a discreet try to avoid the subject in her tone.
It was time to change strategy and go straight for the point then, "Well, what if I don't mind being bothered with that? You're my best friend, you'd never bother me. Tell me?"
Doubt in clear silver pools. Yup, she's hiding something serious. "Alright... But somewhere in private, please."
"Ok." After finally reaching a quiet corner, and also because Iris wasn't really sure herself if she could keep this to herself, she simply told everything to the other. Again. By the time she was finished, the cup on the auburn haired girl's hand was almost falling to the ground.
"Right… You just befriended the son of a Death Eater, and you think that's normal…" Why do I have the feeling of complete déjà-vu? Didn't I talk to her about this a few days ago?
"Well, he seemed sincere. He also did seem to regret what he did-"
"He tried to rape you! Come on, I know you're more intelligent than that! You know his style, Iris; he only wants to seduce a girl to simply have sex with her. Don't be one of them… Please." At that moment, the subject of their talk walked up to them, leaning casually against the wall. Bright blue eyes sparkled in annoyance.
"Iris, someone's waiting for you outside, in case you have forgotten."
Said girl blinked, before finally remembering who he was referring to. Potter! Oh man, I forgot all about him! Glancing at her wristwatch, she noticed it was 22.15 already. Shit… She broke into a fast run, heading for the exit, leaving the other two alone.
"Alright, Malfoy, what the heck are you trying to do to her?" his name escaped from her lips like a curse, her dislike for him evident.
"Why nothing, Dumbledore. Can't a guy make friends with a girl that actually seems worth it?" his eyes narrowed slightly, moving to the direction of the exit briefly.
Something doesn't feel right on this picture… And I'm rarely ever wrong… "If you really want to know, no. You do not deserve her."
Laughter escaped him suddenly, "What! You must be joking, right? How could I not? Besides, who are you to judge that?"
"Why."
He seemed a bit confused at that, "Why what?"
"What's your motive? What do you want from her?" she snorted lightly, "You can't say that you think she's nice and pretty or that you simply want to be her friend."
"So what if I think she's pretty, what's it to you? What if I think she's more than that? What if I think she's hot? What if I think she's hot enough to please me? What if I do want to get her in a bed with me? What can you do about it? That's not up to you, after all."
The blue eyes narrowed dangerously, "You are a-" at that time, the noise the people in the common room were doing suddenly grew considerably, muffling her reply.
Smiling charmingly, his blond head turned to all the commotion, only to frown once more, "Potty and Weasel..."
"What?" Ten pulled away from the wall, making her way through the crowd, the talk with the Ferret forgotten at hearing him say that. Indeed, the two Gryffindor's were there, looking slightly tense. Iris was in front of them, almost seemingly to protect them from the rest of the green and silver population.
"I did invite them, so sod off! They have all right to be here." Glaring at each of her housemates in turn till they lowered their gaze was enough to calm down most of the commotion. Catching sight of her best friend, she grinned, "Liked this surprise, Ten?"
Shaking her head at her, said girl hugged the newcomers, "Hey guys... Welcome to my birthday party! Enjoy!"
"It'll be difficult with so many snakes in here, but we'll try." Ron chuckled, only to quickly shut up as he glanced at a glaring Iris.
"If you don't shut your trap with those stupid comments, you'll only leave the food here and be on your way, get it?"
The party continued long into the night, the students not caring or not being tired enough to retire for bed. Besides, tomorrow would be the game Ravenclaw versus Hufflepuff, not to mention it was Saturday. No one was really worried about not getting enough sleep. Soon, it was presents' time.
"Hehe, pressies..." Ten was suddenly buried in a big pile of presents of all shapes and sizes, as everyone on the party surrounded her once more, eager to know what had she got.
The first one she picked up was a small velvety black box, not bigger than her own palm. In one of the corners, there was a small silver dragon. For a second, the chance of being Malfoy's crossed her mind, but it soon left as she saw what was inside. The small delicate bracelet was, of course, silver in colour. Four phoenixes were crusted on it, intertwined by three thin chains. "Thanks, Iris." She placed it on her wrist, watching as the chains shortened to fit her, clasping together afterwards.
"Meh, don't. I liked it, so I bought it. I have one too, but as you can guess, mine has dragons instead of phoenixes."
"Thought so." One peculiar present caught her attention. It wasn't too big, or as small as Iris', but it was just curious. "Wonder what this is.." picking it up carefully, she unwrapped it. A fluffy looking teddy bear was now in her arms. "Awww... Isn't it cute?"
"Glad you like it. I only knew you liked teddy bears. It was what gave me the idea." The male owner of the voice said from behind her, near, very near. Looking over her shoulder suddenly, Harry's lips didn't touch her own because he pulled away at the last minute. And strangely, Ten felt disappointed for that.
"Yes.. Yes, I like it. Thanks, Harry." She got up, following his former example. Leaning in, she pecked his cheek, "I love it." Did she mean the teddy or the pecking? Riiiight...
Half an hour later, everyone was comfortable and only a few Slytherin's even remembered that Ron and Harry were in forbidden and hostile territory. The butterbeer was almost all gone, but while it wasn't, the consumers sure enjoyed it.
Silver eyes looked around the room, the owner of them barely aware of that fact. And soon, they widened, Malfoy's not here... Her eyes closed, concentrating on his room. She didn't feel his presence there either. But he wasn't long gone; fifteen minutes at max. Where did he go then? Hogwarts had too much magic in the air for her powers to pick up his presence in the whole castle. She had no choice but to wait.
...10 minutes earlier...
Glancing around the room aimlessly and sometimes stopping to look at a certain black haired girl, Draco Malfoy was now officially bored. Nothing's going on, not an interesting girl at sight. Except the one and only who dared to push me away, that is. The look of boredom was replaced by an annoyed frown.
Something vibrated inside his pocket, which made him quirk an eyebrow. His wand. That usually meant his father wanted to talk to him via the Floo Network. Great. Just what I need too... Quietly, he made his way into his room sighing once, before entering.
No, the fireplace was intact, but lit. That's odd. I didn't let it lit... On top of the bed, a letter was laid there, the Malfoy crest on it. He picket it up.
Dear Draco,
There was a slight change of plans. You will come to the Manor as soon as you receive this letter. Being the heir of one of the noblest families has its advantages, as you can see. Do come prepared; you may have to stay the whole weekend.
Lucius Malfoy
Short and to the point. His father's, for sure... What the hell does he want now anyway? With a wave of his wand, his trunk was ready. With another wave, the portrait was effectively closed for those who may want to enter. Using the Floo Powder, he was in his family's mansion in only a few seconds. The sight of his father greeted him.
"Good evening, Draco." His voice was silky, cold, controlled. Something was up.
"What did you wish from me, Father?"
The reply seemed to please the Malfoy senior, "You will have the Dark Mark tomorrow, my son."
Draco could have been waiting for many, many things, but certainly not that. Luckily, his control over his emotions seemed to pay off, for a change, "I see." But his voice cracked.
"Something wrong?"
"No, no." the only thing giving him away was the tensing of his shoulders, "May I go to my room then, Father?"
"Of course. Tomorrow night, right after dining, I want you to be ready. You will finally meet the Dark Lord."
It took all his self control not to retch right then and there, Aren't I the lucky one?
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««Vision»»
"Your arm, Draco."
His right hand squeezed his left arm. He lifted the latter, pulling up the sleeves; the contrast between his skin and the dark clothes was alarming. But at the moment, he could care less.
A claw-like nail ran along his skin. He didn't react. The Dark Lord's cool fingers slowly wrapped around his wrist, tighter and tighter. "Morsmordre in perpetuum." The sharp hot pain shot up his arm, getting even stronger by the second. A hiss escaped his lips, the pain becoming too much for him to take. The hold on his arm soon disappeared, and the next thing he felt was his knees making a harsh contact with the wooden floor.
"Where does your loyalty lie, Draco Lucius Malfoy?"
"To you, my Lord… Only to you…" he felt tired beyond belief, drained. His breathing was shallow, his muscles ached. But more than anything else, he wanted to bloody rip his left arm off. It was throbbing in pain. Taking a small glance at it, he flinched inwardly. The fair skin of his wrist there was red and welted, the now bright green tattoo glowing faintly. The skull with the serpent surging through the mouth was in the least, sickening.
««End Vision»»
Ten woke up, screaming inaudibly. Sweat was pouring down her fair skin; her breathing was short and in gasps; her heart was beating rapidly as if she had ran a marathon of two hundred miles. White top clung onto her sweaty body as she ran her hand through her tangled, soft brown hair, her blue eyes dull and filled with worry and horror.
"Oh no," she gasped. "Draco… Voldemort… Dark Mark… too soon… too soon…"
She got out of her bed, almost tripping over her tangled bed sheets and went straight to the toilet where she puked her dinner out into the toilet seat, holding her hair to one side. Once the whole digestion was over, she went to the sink and splashed some cold water onto her hot face, her eyes still dull and still worried.
"What am I going to do now?" she asked herself, "It was too soon for him to take the Dark Mark. If only he was able to delay it… then maybe… just maybe…" the night's event was too much for the heiress. She fainted right there and then.
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Something was definitely wrong. The Draco Malfoy whereabouts were completely oblivious to anyone through the weekend. After the party, no one had seen him.
And now, it was time to start a new week. Everyone was having breakfast, and there was still no sign of the blond Slytherin Prince.
"But anyway, why do you even care, Iris? He's gone, enjoy the calmness. I'm sure that when he's back, he'll start annoying the hell out of us yet again." Ten said, while she and her best friend were eating breakfast, "He should be at home, maybe, discussing with his father how much of a good boy he is.." that was just meant to lift the mood, but the other girl didn't seem all that convinced, "Hey, I could ask my grandfather, if it's annoying you all that much."
Yes, please. "If it's not much trouble.."
"Sure." The two friends got up, heading for Transfiguration. They were early, but since the door to the class room was already open, they entered. And what they saw, made their eyes widen.
Talking to a worried looking Professor McGonagall was Draco Malfoy, looking extremely tired and even paler than usual. His eyes were tired, dull, his cheeks slightly flushed, breathing irregular. Indeed, something was definitely wrong with the blond young man.
"Merlin, he seems he's with a fever and just ran a marathon or something. Wonder what happened..." Ten muttered while they sat, looking curiously at him.
As they entered, the talk between student and teacher had stopped. Malfoy looked over at them, scowling deeply. For a moment, the grey depths seemed to reflect... Hurt? Jealousy! It was too quick for either of the girls to catch. He hided it right away, turning away from them and sitting at a desk near the end of the room.
Without counting this, the rest of the class didn't have any other strange occurrences. The strangest one though, happened on the second class, Potions.
While Ten sat beside Harry, she watched her friend slowly make her way towards Malfoy, almost as if she was afraid he'd lash at her.
"Do you know what's up with Ferret boy over there?" the black haired boy asked casually.
"Don't have a clue. No one saw him through the weekend and now, he's like that." Both teens shrugged mutually.
Half way through that class, Iris didn't know if she should be annoyed or worried. Everyone had a normal magical aura around them, as long as they had some sort of magic in them. Even Muggles had, albeit, it was very, very little. And with her powers, she was capable of detecting it.
Malfoy's was wavering dangerously low, sign that he was not alright. He seemed to be in pain and the way his left arm was pulled back near his chest as if he wanted to protect it left Iris wondering if he had hurt himself in that arm.
This class was simply to gather information about the potion they had done, so they weren't really occupied. Good for him, too.
"Malfoy, what happened?" she didn't know any other way of asking, so she simply went straight to the point.
Cold grey eyes looked her way. He just wanted to growl and snap at her, telling everything that happened. But instead, he simply replied, "Why do you even care.." He looked back to his text book, continuing to write his part, ignoring her.
She found herself frowning, "You said you didn't like us acting this way. It's you who's playing hard to get now." The way he had retracted into himself made her feel bad to her stomach. Whatever it was, it had to be bad. She knew he was perfectly capable of holding out the pain.
The memories of that night, her lips brushing his cheek, the party, his father, the Manor, the next faithful day, Voldemort, his father- Everything went blank there. Only a voice, a sweet voice, calling for him.
"Malfoy? Malfoy, wha- Malfoy! Mal- Draco. Draco, can you hear me?"
After that, even the voice faded.
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"Malfoy? Malfoy, wha- Malfoy!" Iris had managed to hold the blond boy at the last minute before he fell from his chair, clearly out. He had fainted right after her last comment. "Draco. Draco, can you hear me?" Nope, he couldn't. His powers were as low as they could go and now, now that her hands were holding his, touching him, could she feel just how hot he was. Fever...
Most of the class was around her by now, wanting to know what happened, if she was the one responsible. Idiots. Professor Snape took care of everything though, and easily levitated the young Malfoy out of the classroom.
After she told the others for the umpteenth time that she didn't do anything, the teacher was back. Grim face, looking worried. Which just worried her more...
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The rest of the day and the next went by as a blur for our young heiress of Dumbledore and soon, it was almost at the end of the school day. Through it, she wasn't able to grab Malfoy to talk to him in privacy but now, now that the school had finally ended, and as she was sitting right next to the door, she seized the chance as soon as the bell rang, and grabbed Malfoy by the arms and out into the corridor, only stopping once they both had entered a very empty classroom.
"What do you want." the Slytherin Prince snarled. The last thing he needed was this... He had things to do.
"It happened didn't it?" she croaked, looking up at him, almost dreadfully, not really knowing another way of asking him.
"Why do you care?"
"Because… when you told me back at that Quidditch practice that you were going to have the Mark at Christmas… well I was planning on a way to help you," she whispered quietly.
This was what Draco didn't expect. Sure, the girl was beautiful and friendly and caring and even though she fit perfectly as a Gryffindor, it was really unexpected for someone on the light side to help someone on the dark side such as himself. "Why me?"
Ten simply looked up in confusion.
Draco sighed, "If it was a different Slytherin, you wouldn't be offering any help."
"Well, you were the one who told me and since you weren't happy about it, I guess I somewhat tried to made an effort to help you." The next thing was a total gobsmack. Ten was expecting shouts, hexes or a train of threats but what Draco Malfoy did was so rare and unexpected. He hugged her.
"I'm sorry if I was being pissed at you since the beginning of the term. I don't really know why I acted like that," he said, his voiced muffled. "But ever since you had that injury back at that Quidditch match… I dunno, I felt I had a duty towards you."
"Duty? What duty?" asked the girl, her features softening.
"Somehow, I'm attracted to you."
A pair of bright blue eyes widened at those words. Draco could do nothing but laugh. The laugh wasn't cold and arrogant, but somewhat warm and welcoming.
"I hope you're not thinking-" she stammered.
"No," he shook his head. "I mean as brother and sister."
"Oh," was all she could say. She broke into a smile and so did Malfoy. Guess things will be different now. the heiress thought.
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...Previous Saturday evening, Malfoy Manor...
Draco found himself looking into the mirror, up in his room.
"Not bad..." his reflection was chattering away, not that he was really listening, "But black makes you even paler, you know. But it is one of your colours. You should put a smile in your face though."
Smile... Right, with what's gonna happen? He got up, sighing. Black boots, back slacks, black silk shirt, black velvety cloak. Nothing blacker. Ready, but not feeling so, he exited his room just in time.
"Draco. It is time." his father called quietly from down stairs.
Gulping soundly, he descended them. Calmly, quietly. The opposite of what he was feeling right now. He stood, eyes glued to the floor. He could feel him there already, looking at him with those red vivid eyes he knew were waiting. Finally, grey eyes lifted. Meeting the crimson eyes as he had predicted.
"Ah, Lucius... Indeed, you were right." Voldemort took a few steps forwards, head tilting to the side, one hand on his chin, "The boy isn't ordinary. Has much power. Not as much as Potter or Dumbledore, but with his power and your experience, I'm sure we'll do great things. Terrible, but great things. Do you not agree, Draco?"
"Yes, my Lord." The response was mechanic. The way his father wanted.
"Good. We shall begin. No need for witnesses, no pointless gatherings." Voldemort started walking languidly around Draco, observing with apparent interest, his wand peeking through his robes, "Where does your loyalty lie?"
"To my Lord." Glad his voice wasn't cracking like yesterday. Glad his Father did warn him about what the Dark Lord would ask him. Glad he knew what he had to do, "And to the Death Eaters." The being whom he just called 'Lord' seemed pleased.
Voldemort was, indeed, pleased. His wand was now wavering between Draco's lips. The teen repressed the urge of quirking an eyebrow. "Kiss the wand, Draco." The one who shall doom my whole future. How... ironic. He did as he was told. The wand withdrew. "Your arm, Draco."
His right hand squeezed his left arm. He lifted the latter, pulling up the sleeves; the contrast between his skin and the dark clothes was alarming. But at the moment, he could care less.
A claw-like nail ran along his skin. He didn't react. The Dark Lord's cool fingers slowly wrapped around his wrist, tighter and tighter. "Morsmordre in perpetuum." The sharp hot pain shot up his arm, getting stronger by the second. A hiss escaped his lips, the pain becoming too much for him to take. The hold on his arm soon disappeared, and the next thing he felt was his knees making a harsh contact with the wooden floor.
"Where does your loyalty lie, Draco Lucius Malfoy?"
"To you, my Lord… Only to you…" he felt tired beyond belief, drained. His breathing was shallow, his muscles ached. But more than anything else, he wanted to bloody rip his left arm off. It was throbbing in pain. Taking a small glance at it, he flinched inwardly. The fair skin of his wrist was red and welted, the now bright green tattoo glowing faintly. The skull with the serpent surging through the mouth was in the least, sickening. In time, he knew the colour would fade to black, but still...
"Stand up, boy." Slowly, tiredly, he did so. Both the older men had identical smirks upon their lips.
"You know, little dragon, very few of my followers were capable of achieving such a thing. Most of them fainted as soon as I uttered the incantation. That is... outstanding." Should he feel proud of that? Or should he curse him for calling him something his mother used to when he was a child?
"May he be dismissed, my Lord?" he noticed vaguely the voice of his father intervening. That should be the best thing he ever said and that'll serve for my advantage...
Voldemort gave a short nod, "Yes, he may. And Draco.."
The now stormy grey eyes (the only thing still fighting the terrible reality he now knew he was in) looked up into piercing red ones, "Yes?" the only thing that warned him he had forgotten the 'my Lord' part was the flashing of his father's eyes. But the Dark Lord paid no mind to that.
"I am expecting to see great things from you. A proof of your faithfulness, if you prefer." The crimson eyes narrowed slightly, hissing the last few words, "I do not approve... Feelings... of any kind." Did he know?
Impossible. But then again, he could use occlumency. At that, his eyes turned away immediately. If he finds out, I'm as good as dead. "I am aware of that, my Lord."
"Glad you are. You're dismissed."
That was what he most wanted to hear at that moment, "Thank you." Not caring about anything or anyone else, he tiredly made his way back into his room and under the silky satin covers.
Draco didn't wake up till around half way through the next afternoon.
…TBC…