A/N: Once again I'd like to thank Lady Lanera for the beta and Daughter of Ares for being my sounding board for this chapter. In this chapter we get to see a littleof Demetri's past and some of the reasons behind Luc being a complete Arse! Enjoy!

Chapter 3

Demetri didn't know how long she lay on the floor of the classroom, still shaking from the aftereffects of the Cruciatus Curse. She knew she had to get to the common room before she was caught out after curfew, though.

Pulling herself up off the floor, Demetri made her way to the door. Opening the door enough to see the corridor and finding it empty, Demetri slid out of the room. She almost sobbed in relief as she made it to the portrait of Salazar Slytherin without being caught. Giving the password, Demetri slipped into the common room, grateful that it was empty. She was halfway across the room when she caught movement out of the corner of her eye.

She watched as Severus unfolded himself from one of the couches by the fire and walk towards her, a concerned expression on his face. Sighing to herself, she kept on walking, hoping she'd make it to the girl's dorm before he noticed her shaking and started asking questions.

"Where have you been? You left the Headmaster's office two hours ago," Severus asked, following her.

"I really don't want to talk about it right now," Demetri replied, walking a little faster. Unfortunately, the change in pace made the pain in her hip, where she hit it on the desk, even worse.

"Demetri, are you ok?" Severus asked, the concern in his voice causing her to swallow a sob.

"I'm fine, Severus. I'm just really tired and want to go to bed," she replied, not stopping.

"Now, why is it I find that highly doubtful?" he responded, reaching towards her and grabbing her gently by the shoulder.

Demetri's knees buckled as the pressure of his hand aggravated the welt on her shoulder from Lucius' beating. She would have fallen completely to the floor had Severus not gotten his other arm under her.

Seeing the pain on her face, Severus knew that she was anything but fine. Scooping her up in his arms like one would a small child; he carried her over to the couch he was previously sitting on.

Setting Demetri down carefully, Severus knelt on the floor in front of her. He brushed a lock of hair from her face and was at a loss for words. She was passed out cold.

Sighing to himself, Severus went to remove Demetri's school robes, but stopped as her face scrunched up in pain as the material brushed against her shoulder. Drawing his wand, he vanished the robes then gently rolled Demetri onto her side.

Severus swore at the sight before him, a sight he was all too familiar with. The back of Demetri's shirt was bloody and torn in several places, and what little of her skin he could see was littered with already darkening bruises as if she was whipped repeatedly. Severus had to take a few deep breaths as his mind pointed to the one person who could be responsible for this.

Sighing once more, Severus summoned a Pain Reliever potion from his school bag and debated on whether he should wake her so she could take it or just spell it into her stomach and let her sleep.

The choice was made for him, however, as Demetri started to stir, a low moan of pain escaping her lips. Severus carefully rolled her onto her back and rested his hands into his lap.

Demetri moaned again as she opened her eyes and found herself lying on one of the leather couches in the common room. Knitting her brow in confusion, she tried to figure out how she managed to fall asleep on the couch when the last thing she remembered was heading to the girls' dorm. Turning her head to the side, Demetri gasped as she found that she wasn't alone. Severus was sitting on floor next to the couch, staring at her with an odd look upon his face.

"Do you always watch people sleep, Severus?" Demetri asked jokingly as she pushed herself up to a sitting position. She winced as her back rubbed on the arm of the couch and tried to cover it with a yawn, hoping that Severus wouldn't notice it. She knew she didn't fool him when he sighed and handed her a potion phial.

"What's this for?"

"It's a Pain Reliever potion," Severus said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Drink it."

"What makes you think I need it?" Demetri asked in a challenging tone.

"Because you didn't just simply fall asleep," he replied. "You passed out on the way to the dorms when I touched your shoulder. You and I both know you're in pain."

"I don't know what you're talking about," she mumbled, lowering her gaze to the bottle in her hands.

Severus snorted. "I'm not stupid, Demetri. I saw the way you were walking before and know you were trying to avoid me. I also saw the blood on the back of your shirt."

"I fell on the way down here, scraped up my back on the wall," she lied, still not looking at Severus.

"Don't lie to me, Demetri. I know that you didn't fall. I also know that it doesn't take two hours to get from the seventh floor to the common room and that the last person you were with was your brother, Lucius." Severus leaned forward and lifted her chin so that she had to look him in the eye. "I also know how purebloods discipline their children."

Demetri couldn't stop the tear that fell as she closed her eyes on the look of understanding and sorrow in Severus' eyes. She had never told a single soul about Lucius' treatment towards her, for fear they would tell on him. But something about the boy in front of her made her want to tell him everything, knowing he'd never betray her trust.

Demetri's eyes opened as she heard Severus whisper "Trust me" as if he had heard her thoughts. She sighed as she made her decision. Moving her hands to the back of her neck, she found the clasp to the pendant that her mother had given to her when she was just a baby. The pendant was infused with a Glamour Charm , and if Demetri ever removed it, the Glamour would fall.

Demetri looked into Severus' eyes once again as she unclasped the pendant and let it fall into her lap. "This is why Lucius treats me the way he does," she whispered.

Severus gasped as he watched Demetri's trademark Malfoy blond hair and cold gray eyes darken. Her hair was now an inky black, almost darker than his own, while her eyes had darkened to a cobalt blue.

"I am the only Malfoy in the history of our family to be born without the pale features that has people whispering we are part vela." Demetri said bitterly, "The first in a long list of shortcomings in my brother's eyes."

"Your brother is a complete and utter arse in my opinion," Severus replied, earning himself a small smile.

"You're telling me," Demetri sighed, the smile disappearing. "When I was five, I was Lucius' favorite target for trying out new spells and hexes once he got his wand. It got so bad that Mother took me to our home in France whenever he was home from school. When I turned eleven, Mother thought it best that I attend Beauxbatons Academy, since Lucius was still at Hogwarts. When Mother died my third year, however, I had no choice but move back to the Manor."

"Is that when the abuse started?"

Demetri scoffed. "I wouldn't call it abuse, Severus. Just because Lucius would hit me for mouthing off, it didn't mean I was being abused."

"What do you call what happened tonight? I doubt a little swat caused you to pass out in pain and cause the marks I saw on your back," Severus retorted, raising an ebony eyebrow.

"Me getting what I deserve, for royally pissing him off and embarrassing him in front of the Headmaster," Demetri muttered, lowering her eyes to her lap once again. "Besides, it was the first time Lucius has ever struck me with his walking stick."

"Once is one time too many," Severus growled.

Demetri shrugged, ignoring the pain that gesture caused. "It doesn't matter, Severus, I'm stuck with the git for another year. I just need to keep my mouth shut and my arse out of trouble, and I'll be fine."

With that said, Demetri stood up from the couch, wanting desperately to forget the entire evening. She was at the door to the girl's Dorm when a hand on her arm stopped her once again.

"You forgot to take the potion," Severus said, nodding to the phial of Pain Reliever potion still clutched in her hand.

Demetri uncorked the phial and drank it, nearly sighing in relief as it took effect. "Thank you, Severus," she said, handing him the empty phial. She then turned and stepped into the dorm.

A/N: Please read and Review. Chapter 4 may be a little late. I'm taking part in a Fic Fest over on Potions and Snitches, and the story im writing for it is due in less than a month! while you wait why not check out some of my other fic's if you haven't already? :D