I hope you enjoy this chapter. More to come. Please review. Thanks!
Disclaimer: The wonderful world of Harry Potter and all it's characters do not belong to me, but to J.K. Rowling.
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A mist wisped around me as I lay flat on my back. Hard stone made my back sore, but the mist lifted me and set me down on a softer ground. As I sank into the cushion of the moist earth, the blackness surrounding me faded. Still, no light graced the darkness behind my tightly closed eyes. The black faded to green. A dark, tinted green at first, but as the mist began to take the color of the hue, it became a brighter, sharper green. The mist began to move quicker, circling me, taking form to stab at my chest and strike at my face. Although I felt nothing of the smoky entity attacking me, my body still jerked as if suffering.
I couldn't force my eyes open. They were tightly sealed as my jaw clenched. I couldn't move my body to strike back at the wrathful mist. Outwardly, I couldn't feel anything. Inside, everything burned and ached.
My forehead was suddenly cooled. I thought the mist must have finally pierced my skin as a liquid began to glide down over my eyes. My blood trickled down the sides of my head, but it froze the skin it touched instead of warming it.
The green haze continued to jab.
Quickly, as if bounding out from within me, a cloud of purple began to form and overtake the green. It fell over me in a blanket, protecting me, whispering and gliding throughout my hair. Finally I took a deep breath, filling my lungs with the violet fog.
As it streaked throughout my hair, the warmth of it's touch brought on a deeper color. Slowly, the purple got darker and darker till it was a royal blue.
The blue filled my eyes, until I finally realized my eyes had opened. I had awoken to my own room, my own bed, the blanket drawn high to my chin. The purple and green were gone. Only the touch remained.
I blinked slowly, opening and closing my eyes, letting my senses take form. The shuttering of my eyes became more rapid as the blanket over my thoughts lifted. As I realized something was still running through my hair, I let out a weak cry, closing my eyes again and sobbing. It wasn't a dream. Something was still there. Something could still carry me away into the darkness forever. My frozen blood still trickled down my brow. I thought it had seeped back within and frozen my heart.
Suddenly the frozen pressure lifted from my head and the trickling stopped. The only wetness running down my face were my own tears. Still, the mist was not gone, although I could no longer see it. It whispered into my hair and in my ear like a smooth breeze. As I felt it begin to grace my face, putting pressure on my eyes and over my tears, my sobs grew as I panicked.
My body was still sore and weak, so I could only jerk around to try and dissipate the fog. I uttered sobs and small screams as my tired body allowed, but it didn't go away. It only persisted. Clenching my eyes again, I could only shake my head and repeat "no."
"Penelope..." The stroking through my hair continued but the feeling spread to my arm and began to hold me tightly. I thought I saw the green creeping back from the darkness behind my eyes.
"Penelope...Penelope! Open your eyes!"
"No!" I cried and fell limp again. It was even too painful to clench my eyes and they slowly fell open. The only green I could see was the emerald within Oliver's eyes.
His face froze in silent concern but he didn't ask what was wrong. My breathing slowed to scarcity and we merely stared at each other. I couldn't speak and he couldn't form the words to inspire me to. So, instead, he climbed over me and laid down with his arms wrapped around my frozen body. Together, we laid there, staring at the ceiling as the world around us muted in empathy. We stayed that way till the window began to shine with the warmth of a new day.
Throughout the night I gathered my thoughts. My eyes moved about the room to see a washcloth with a bowl of water next to the bed, my door glowing with nearly every locking charm, two robes crumpled on the floor, and my torn shirt from the night before. I had lifted my hand to my forehead to realize it was not blood but water trickling down my face, as Oliver must have placed the washcloth on my head. The robes were obviously mine and Oliver's. He must have changed my shirt while I was unconscious, since I was now wearing a loose t-shirt.
When the sunlight fell over us, I turned to look at him. His eyes were closed. His face was face from peaceful, looking as if he fell asleep with the same concerned look he wore as he stared down at me. Now the troubles were taunting him in his dreams.
I simply studied him. How could this boy have gotten himself into something so troublesome? He had the ability to live the perfect life. He was everything every boy in Hogwarts wanted to be. Still, he had fallen into a trap of turmoil. We had fallen into it together.
I stared at the ceiling again, my eyes heavy but no where near tired. My body felt weak, but I had the feeling I wouldn't be able to sleep again for the rest of my life. I sighed heavily, but calmed as Oliver began to slowly stroke my cheek. Looking at him again, his eyes were still closed, but his face was more relaxed.
"Wanna talk about it?" He asked softly, still with closed eyes as he nuzzled into my hair.
"No." I quietly answered.
"You know you need to. I need to you tell me." He waited.
"Last night..." I couldn't continue.
"You need to." He opened his eyes and propped on his shoulder to look at me. The concerned look returned. I couldn't stand to see him so worried and upset.
"Last night...Percy attacked me." Instantly his eyes narrowed and his jaw started to flex. Before I could go any further, he leaped over me and was at the door, screaming unlocking charms.
"Oliver, stop! Oliver, wait a minute! Stop! OLIVER!" A thumping began in my head and I fell back to the pillow with a groan.
I heard Oliver stop and rush back to the bedside.
"Are you alright? What happened? I'll kill Percy, I swear I'll bloody kill him."
"Please, Oliver, don't do anything. It'll only be worse. I think keeping it a secret will be better for now. He's not ready to know. He might never be ready. He's gone mad. Truly mad. I was able to get him off of me and out, and that's when you came in. Oliver, I'm terrified of him. I thought he was really going to kill me. He tried to rape me." Remembering and saying it aloud brought tears to my eyes. Oliver quickly wiped them away as he pledged revenge.
"No, he can't get away with this. He won't. I won't let him ever touch you again. Never."
"Oh, Oliver. Just...Shut up!" His head snapped back as if I had slapped him. My heart ached as if I had, but I couldn't help it.
"What?" Was all he managed to get out.
"Oliver, you have yet to truly listen and grasp what I've been trying to telling you for weeks now. Weeks! You act as if you understand, and you may truly think that you do, but you don't. You don't! Now stop and really think about what's happened. Really think about what Percy has done. About how he's changed up to this very moment." He sat back and stared deeply into the carpet. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and looked down at him. He looked helpless. It hurt, but I had to finally drive into his head what was happening to our worlds. Percy and his temper were not just weeds in our garden.
"Percy is no longer the bitter and jealous ex-boyfriend, Oliver. He's not angry, or on the rebound, or struggling to move on. He's dangerous. He's not the same Percy Weasley that he was at the beginning of term. Think about what he talks about during meals. Think about the way his eyes are constantly sharp and dark. His shoulders haunch now. He stalks instead of walks. His voice is raspy and low. Nothing is the same. He's become sinister. Everything is done in spite or vengeance. Oliver, he tried to rape me! Percy used to tremble when he touched my shoulder when we kissed!" The mention of intimacy between Percy and I made Oliver's lip curl, but I could see his eyes beginning to cloud with realization. "He's not safe, Oliver. We can't let him know what's going on. Not for anything. No matter what. If he finds out that I really am with anyone, if his suspicions are without a doubt confirmed, he will completely go over the edge. Nothing will stop him. And if he finds out that it's you, his best friend, the only other person in his life whom he still connects with, then Oliver, he may never go back to who he was. He would lose everything. And the two of us would be in true danger. More so than we are now. Because right now, Oliver, we aren't safe. Not really. He's willing to harm me. Which means he's willing to harm anyone near me."
I waited for a reaction, and his eyes slowly lifted to mine. They were coated in tears, but he wouldn't let them fall. He merely nodded his head and reached for my hand. He inched towards me and rose.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I wouldn't let myself see." Softly, his lips met mine. It was so gentle I felt as if air had passed over my lips rather than touching his. Instead of continuing, he pulled away. "I'm sorry. Do you want me to stay? Or leave? You've been through so much tonight. I... I don't..." He looked down and moved back slightly, but held onto my hand.
I had been through a lot that night. Obviously, he didn't know how I felt, what I was going through inside, or what to do. What he should have known though, was that the only thing I needed was him to be next to me. I needed him to be with me. My entire ordeal would mean nothing if I didn't have him. I needed his love; I craved his touch.
"I just want you." I whispered, and pulled him to me.
Our lips met again and I made sure there was more heat between us this time. He fell over me and we were flat against the bed, our feet dangling over the side. His hands slid down my sides and at my waist, slightly lifting my shirt to rub my skin.
I began tugging at his sweater. He stopped momentarily to raise himself and let me help him remove it. Before he fell again we quickly lifted mine up and off, tossing it to the floor alongside his. I felt him kick off his shoes as I pushed at his belt. I had to stop, however, as his lips moved down my neck and I began to quiver.
My fingers glided over his bare back, feeling his toned muscles, as his lips continued to travel down my collarbone. He nibbled and sucked gently all the way down, settling at my breasts. Reaching behind me, he undid the clasp of my bra and it slid away, exposing my chest to his hot breath. His hands continued to glide over my torso as his mouth grazed my breasts.
When I realized how loudly I was moaning, I gasped, "Silencing charms?"
Between sucking he mumbled back, "Dozens."
My fingers ran through his hair as he continued down over my stomach and began to unbutton my pants. I propped myself on my elbows as he pulled them off. He stood up and I began to unbuckle his belt. Sliding his pants down, he kicked them off and fell over me again.
It was all happening so fast, but the feeling of our bare skin rubbing against one another lingered, creating the feeling of slow motion and intensifying our need for one another. The more we touched the faster we tried to move, pushing our bodies together. No matter what we did, it was as if we weren't close enough.
Soon we were completely naked, clutching each other beneath the blanket, barely stopping for breath. With Oliver on top, our movements pushed the blanket down until it stopped at his waist. My fingers pressed into his shoulders, my palms rubbing against his smooth skin.
Our rhythm slowed as we savored each moment. He pushed softly as my legs wrapped about his and my back arched. It seemed as if we would last forever in our epitome of ecstacy, our bodies wet with perspiration and the only sounds around us being our panting and moans. Finally, our moans rose to screams that filled the room, and with a harsh shudder, Oliver collapsed against me. My fingers ran through his hair as my other arm wrapped around him, waiting for our breath to slow.
He moved to lie next to me, and I nestled into his chest, his arms drawn around me. We didn't speak, we didn't move. We just merely stayed that way until morning. Until we had to face the new rays of sun and whatever they brought...together.
