a/n: First of all, Y'ALL'S REACTION TO THIS STORY IS SO AMAZING. YOU HAVE MADE ME SO FUCKING HAPPY.
*in the joker voice*: and here. we. go!
Chapter Four: A Long-Awaited Party.
Draco had just stepped out of the shower when someone began banging on his bathroom door. When he heard Ginny's muffled voice calling his name, he didn't immediately open it, smoothing some pomade into his hair before wrapping a towel around his waist.
"Look Weasley," he said, swinging the door open and smirking at her. "If you're really that keen to know what I look like naked, you are just going to have to ask Cal—"
Ginny frantically took in Draco's falcon tattoo and stamped medallion before looking fearfully up at him. She still had curlers in her hair, and other than the sparkling diamond chandeliers in her ears, she was dressed in nothing more than her corset and slip, a sheer dressing gown haphazardly thrown over them.
"Leolin's gone."
"Gone?" he scoffed. "What do you mean 'gone'?" I just spoke to her twenty minutes ago."
"She's gone," Ginny repeated. "She left a note."
Draco pushed past Ginny at once, striding to his closet and dropping his towel. She blushed a little and turned as he tripped into pants and tracksuit bottoms before throwing on a faded Slytherin quidditch shirt.
She followed him as he burst across the hall, taking in Leolin's empty room. The bed was made and the closet was extremely picked over. Blaise was sitting waiting for them, his head in his hand. He stood at once when Draco entered.
"Let me see it," Draco demanded, and Ginny gestured to the balcony, where a fluttering parchment had been adhered to the glass door. It was wrinkled a bit where tears had fallen on it.
Draco,
I love you more than I can say, but I can't marry you. I know you
want to protect me, but your father's planning on using me to manipulate
you, and I can't put you through that again. Please know that I'm doing this
for you, and please my love, don't come after me .You won't find me, and I don't
want to be found. You told me once that you hoped I would come to love someone
else in your absence. Now I hope the same for you. Know that I will love you until
I die, and I only want what's best for you. I love you. Je t'aime. Rwy'n caru ti.
I know we'll meet again in that place between sleep and awake;
that place where you still remember dreaming.
That's where I'll always love you.
That's where I'll be waiting.
Find happiness, my love.
Your Leolin.
Draco looked up, already half-mad with grief. There were tears in his eyes.
"No," he fumed, hanging his head for a second before looking up at Ginny and Blaise. "This isn't real."
He drew his wand from wherever he'd been hiding it and cast a spell on the parchment. Immediately Leolin's tearful voice filled the room as she read the letter aloud.
"What does that mean?" Ginny asked desperately, flinching as Draco obliterated the note, the force of which shattered the glass behind it.
"It means that Leolin wrote that note herself," Blaise said.
Draco crumpled to his knees, sobbing desperately. Ginny covered her mouth to stifle her own sobs. She'd never seen Draco this way before, and a lifetime of hatred for him instantly melted away.
"Oh Draco," she said, anguished.
She sank down beside him, and he allowed her touch, his head on her shoulder as he wept pathetically.
"This was my father!" he screamed. "He has her. She would never have left on her own. Never."
"We'll find her," Blaise said seriously. "Her parents are already working on it. We'll bring her back, Drake."
Draco detangled from Ginny, standing now. The tears had all bled from his eyes, and now his gaze was dangerous.
"Find me Lucius," he said in a soft fury. "I am going to torture him then kill him. I know he has Leolin, and he's going to give her back to me."
"If you're right then we need a better plan than that. If you kill him, she could be lost to you forever."
"I'm going to torture him first in every way he taught me," Draco bit out. "I'm going to cleave all the flesh from his bones until he gives up the truth."
"Draco," Ginny begged. "Don't be reckless. He could kill you."
Just then, the door flew open so violently that it cracked the wall behind it. Lucius swept in with such fury and malice that he looked ready to breathe fire. Both he and Draco drew their wands, but Lucius was a hair faster.
"Crucio," he hissed with venom, and Draco dropped to his knees, screaming in pain.
"Where is she?" Lucius sneered, advancing with his wand still trained on Draco. "Where is your traitorous little bitch?"
Draco began to cough up blood, and Ginny cried out.
"Stop!" she wailed, you're killing him!"
Lucius let off, sneering at Ginny as Draco rolled heaving onto his back.
"Where is she?" Lucius demanded again, crushing a foot against Draco's sternum with enough pressure that they heard a crack.
"Stop!" Ginny cried again, trying to push Lucius off.
He flung an arm at her, sending her crashing into a marble-topped side table. She crumpled at once, and Blaise was at her side instantly.
"You alright?" he said, easing her into a sitting position before training his wand on Lucius.
"Let him go or I swear to Merlin I will kill you right now," Blaise said, his voice deadly low.
Lucius eased up his grip, kicking Draco in the side before stepping back.
"Where is Leolin?" Lucius repeated as Draco spit out another huge mouthful of blood.
"You tell me," Draco said, his breathing laboured. Lucius cracked a rib, maybe more. "Give her back to me."
"You think I have her?" Lucius spat. "She's of no use to me dead or missing."
His diamond eyes were sparkling furiously, as he bent to Draco, grabbing him by the hair.
"If word gets out she's left, you'll be a laughingstock, and I will not allow her to ruin this family's reputation. If she's gone, you bring her back here now. If you don't, I will, and believe me, you will both be sorry. I will make you watch as I fuck her in two."
"Make him stop," Ginny sobbed, crying against Blaise's chest as Lucius yanked Draco's head back.
It was clear now that Draco was fighting for consciousness, his face anguished as the realization sunk in. Lucius hadn't taken Leolin. She really had left on her own.
"You tell you're guests Leolin's sick," Lucius said. "And you find her and bring her back here in twelve hours. If you don't, I'll find her myself, and you'll be lucky if she doesn't tragically…succumb to her mysterious illness."
He released his son, whose head fell pathetically back onto the carpet.
"Twelve hours," Lucius warned, standing and rounding on Blaise and Ginny.
He pointed an accusatory finger at Blaise.
"If either of you breathe a word of this, I will crucio this little cunt to death."
Ginny cowered a little against Blaise, whose expression remained resolute.
"Happy hunting," Lucius called, and with that he spun into nothing.
When he was gone, Ginny flew to Draco's side, taking his hand.
"I can mend the bones and stop the pain," she promised, and he nodded, still a little dazed from the Cruciatus.
"I'm going after her," Draco croaked.
"Not like this, "Blaise said sternly as Ginny mended him.
"Every second I wait she gets farther from my grasp," Draco said, his strength and determination returning. "I have to find her. When I do, she and I are going to disappear. Help me up."
Ginny traded a fearful glance with Blaise, and when neither moved, Draco rose labouriously on his own.
"Drake—" Blaise protested, but with a snap Draco was gone as well.
"We have to go after them right now," Ginny said resolutely.
"We can't," Blaise said, frustrated, "Fuck!"
"Why not?"
"Only the Malfoys can apparate in and out like that, and I'm sure Lucius has disabled the floo network as well."
Blaise spared one more glance at Ginny.
"I'll start in London. I'll floo when I know something."
Ginny nodded, and Blaise gave her another critical look before advancing on her. Before she could protest, he held her cheeks, firmly kissing her surprised lips.
"What—" she began, but he was already striding out the door, slamming it shut behind him.
"Leolin? We're getting ready to head out. Can I come in for a second?"
Leolin sat on the floor with knees tucked to her chest. She thought about what Draco wrote. She hadn't expected to feel this fragile.
"Lai?" her mother called. "I'm coming in."
Gingerly Ariadne opened the door, and she did so to find Leolin still sitting on the floor, her knees tucked to her chest. She gave her mother a doleful look then looked away, and despite her fine silk gown, Ariadne sunk down next to her.
"Are you alright?" she said gently, and Leolin sighed.
"I've imagined this so many times," Leolin admitted. "Coming home and seeing Draco. It's all I've wanted for so long. But now that it's here, I'm terrified."
Ariadne nodded, tucking some of Leolin's hair behind her ear.
"I understand completely."
"He hates me, doesn't he?" Leolin queried. "I don't blame him; I would hate me, too."
"Non," her mother said gently. "Don't do that to yourself, lapin. This is all brand-new. Give it time. I promise everything will be made right in the end."
Leolin hugged her knees a little tighter.
"What—" she began, licking her dry lips. "What if he ends up marrying her?"
Ariadne considered.
"That is a ways away yet," she said diplomatically. "Try not to fret."
"But what if he does?"
"Then you will mourn, but eventually you will move on and find someone else. Either way, it will be okay, lapin. I promise."
Leolin nodded. It was almost absurd to think that two days ago she thought she'd be able to waltz back and reunite with Draco. That fate would finally stop punishing her and let her have her happy ending.
"Do you want me to stay with you?" Ariadne asked. "I don't have to go."
Leolin considered. She sorely wanted to say yes, even though she knew that was selfish.
"No," she said at last. "Draco will want you to be there. Go. I promise I will be fine."
Ariadne nodded, kissing Leolin's cheek.
"James and I won't be out late."
Leolin nodded, forcing herself to smile.
"Thank you."
"And James agreed to sleep in the guestroom tonight so you can come in with me. I already changed the sheets. Feel free to go in there and lie down."
Again, Leolin nodded.
"Thanks, Mum."
"I love you, lapin," Ariadne said reassuringly. "It will all be okay. You'll see."
"I hope so," Leolin admitted.
"It will be," Ariadne reassured her. "I promise."
"If Draco says anything about me…" Leolin began, but she trailed off when she realized she didn't know what she would want her mother to do if he did.
"He knows better than that," Ariadne said fiercely. "He's not a boy anymore, and he knows I don't tolerate his childish antics."
Leolin nodded, feeling a bit relieved. "Have fun, then."
Ariadne stood.
"I'm sorry we have to leave you for this," she said in response. "I wish it didn't have to be this way."
"It's this way because I made it this way," Leolin said in redolent tone. "I have to pay for my mistakes."
"Try not to be too hard on yourself, my darling. You were young then. I should have insisted you too wait until you were older."
Leolin gave a sad laugh.
"You couldn't have kept me from marrying him," Leolin said. "We were too desperately in love."
Ariadne nodded.
"And so you will be again," her mother said. "Come say goodbye."
Leolin stood and took her mother's hand, heading down the stairs.
"I'm sorry I'm not going," Leolin said, managing a small smile. "But you all have fun. Give—Genevieve my love."
"I'm sorry we have to do this, lapin," her father said, folding her into his arms. "I wish we didn't."
"We still don't," Amelie offered, and Leolin tossed her head back and forth as she hugged her stepmother.
"No," Leolin said. "That would only be punishing Draco."
"We will be home before you know it," James promised. "We'll regale you with how dreadful it was."
Leolin gave a feeble laugh.
"Thank you."
He gave her a reassuring wink.
Ariadne looked at the mantle clock, which began to boom the hour.
"I'm so sorry, Leolin," she said. "But we have to go. Are you sure you will be alright here?"
Leolin nodded.
"Don't worry about me. I want you all to go. Please."
Ariadne smiled, giving Leolin one last kiss before throwing some powder in the fire and disappearing. The others filed out as well, and Adrien, who was last, gave her a reassuring wink before stepping into the flames as well.
When Leolin was really alone, she flopped down on the couch, reaching for the crystal decanter of whiskey and taking a hearty chug. It burned and she gagged a little as it slithered down her throat. She imagined Draco and Genevieve descending the main staircase to wild applause, Gen's stupid gown sparkling as if she were a star in the night sky. What pained Leolin the most was imagining Draco looking at her in a way he used to reserve only for Leolin. It was agony to know that while she was still entirely his, he was no longer hers.
Leolin poured herself a more appropriate glass of whiskey before padding up the stairs, shedding her white blouse and tight skirt and wandering to her old closet. What was she going to find there?
After digging a little, she found an old soft jumper she was fairly certain had once belonged to Draco as well as a pair of leggings and wool socks. She then sat on her bed and brooded, sipping the whisky and remembering her own engagement party at The Manor. It was after the week she'd spent with Narcissa. The week she'd first realized that Draco's mother did love him after all. Absently, she wondered what Narcissa thought of Gen. Leolin was fairly positive she hated her. How could she not? She could barely stand Leolin, and she was a pureblood with two families who could trace their lines back to the age of Merlin. Genevieve was an American, and Leolin imagined her being far too cavalier and pushy for Narcissa's taste, though she had admittedly no basis for this assumption. In the Manor, only Narcissa was allowed to have power. Anyone else that tried was immediately public enemy number one.
Leolin cashed out the last of the whisky in her glass and she stood, padding back downstairs and refilling her tumbler. As she turned her back, the fire began to crack, and she frowned in bemusement. Surely her parents weren't back already. They'd only been gone an hour at most. The fire crackled again then flamed green, and suddenly a fiery projection of Lucius appeared in the room. He gave her a cool look.
"Don't you have somewhere to be?" she asked, turning her back.
"Yes, and so do you," he said imperiously
He was dressed in smart black dress robes, and his patent leather shoes gleamed in the light.
"Get out."
"We had a bargain, Leolin," he hissed coldly. "You're not backing out now."
"I'm not backing out," Leolin said furiously. "I'm just not going tonight. It's only going to make things worse with Draco."
"I disagree," he said sharply. "It shows you mean business."
"You—"
His projection flickered, and suddenly he was actually standing in the room. She sneered at him, drawing her wand. She should have remember to close the floo grate after her parents had left.
"There is no discussion here," he said hatefully, snapping a hand and disarming her. "I have two Aurors standing guard outside right now. Either get dressed or they haul you in and charge you."
Leolin grit her teeth. She so bitterly hated that he had the upper hand in this. She moved to retrieve her fallen wand, but he kicked her back, wincing as his boot sizzled a little.
"Half an hour," he said, watching her rise. "Half an hour or you go to Azkaban. And don't even dream of running."
She said nothing, and he narrowed his eyes.
"Don't push me. Leolin. You won't like the way I push back."
"Someday I am going to drive a knife in your heart and watch the light drain from your eyes," she said in a deadly tone.
"See you at the Manor," he replied nastily, tossing her wand carelessly back at her before stepping back into the flames.
Her heart was still hammering in her chest five minutes after he'd left. In her anger and despair, she chucked the decanter at the flames, the whiskey hissing as it fell on the fire even as the glass shattered on impact. Finally she consulted the clock. She only had twenty-five minutes, and she desperately needed a shower. She sprinted upstairs, tearing off her clothes and lathering her body with every balm and lave they had. She dried her hair quickly when she was out, giving several wrist flicks and coaxing her bob into a voluminous up-do. She applied her blood red lipstick quickly, knowing it would set off her vermillion gown.
She looked in the mirror nervously as she consulted her clock. She had three minutes. She examined herself critically. Leolin had always been exceedingly vain, and she openly admired how exquisite she was in this gown. It didn't have the glitz that Genevieve's did, but she would have to be one hell of a beauty to outshine Leolin.
For the final touch Leolin found the perfume that she'd used to wear when they were in school. She'd taken to wearing something sultrier when she'd moved to Florence, but this fresh scent brought memories flooding back. Leolin had always felt that smell was the strongest vehicle of nostalgia, and she could still smell this perfume mixed with Draco's cologne and sweat after they made love.
She only had a minute, and she sprinted from the room, her voluminous skirt billowing as she descended the steps. Immediately she threw a handful of powder on the flames, screaming "Malfoy Manor!"
Seconds later she was spinning away, and she closed her eyes and forced herself to be calm as she spun. She had to face Draco with courage and poise. She hadn't done anything wrong. She hadn't betrayed his trust. She knew he would be sneering and hideous when they finally came face to face, but she had to rise above it for both their sakes.
She stepped out of the floo a minute later, her heart plummeting to her throat as she realized where she'd ended up. It was her old bedroom, which was the last place she'd seen in the Manor. Every shred of her presence had been stripped away, and the room was now colourless and practically empty, save for the large bed and other assorted sofas and divans.
Her heart was pumping furiously, the blood rushing to her stomach; she made it. She looked quizzically around the room, wondering how in Merlin's name she ended up coming through the network her and not in the receiving hall. That's when she realized: Lucius had done it so she'd be forced to make an entrance. She curled her lip in disgust. She wasn't going to play that game. She would go down the servants' stairs and slip into the crowd instead.
Steeling herself for what she knew was going to be a long night, she stepped from the room, immediately looking down the darkening hallway toward the servants' staircase.
"Not a minute to spare."
She turned and sneered, drawing her wand instantly. Adrian was leaning casually on the wall next to her door, clearly waiting for her to emerge. His suit was black, as were his shirt and tie, and his sandy hair was pushed off his brow. If he wasn't so hideous, he would have been handsome. In his hand he held a resplendent diamond necklace.
"This is for you," he said, holding it up so it sparkled. "May I?"
"Fuck off."
He rolled his eyes, blocking a jinx she threw at him.
"Don't be difficult," he scolded. "We don't have time for your to throw a temper tantrum. I expect Draco is waiting for you, even if he doesn't know it."
She threw a curse that hit six inches to his right this time, searing the wall instead.
"Oh enough," he said in a bored voice, and she threw another.
This one knicked his cheek and he hissed in pain, touching a hand to the skin to ensure she hadn't drawn blood. She watched him for a second before turning swiftly to the servants' stair and starting off.
However, he'd recovered quickly, and he was on her immediately, slamming her against the wall.
"Stop fucking around, Lefevre," he growled, his hair a little mussed and his teeth glinting as he snarled at her. "We're on a tight schedule."
"Get off," she said, struggling. "I will claw your eyes out."
"Don't make me punish you," he snapped.
She gave a cold laugh, despite the fact that his tone scared her a little. There was something in his gaze she'd never seen before.
"As if you even could," she said defiantly.
"Imperio."
She hadn't been expecting it, and the curse caught her off guard, engulfing her at once. Dazes, she stop fighting him, and he reached around her neck to fasten the necklace. When it was done he pulled back, grinning wickedly at her. Suddenly, she had the overwhelming urge to suck Adrian's…
He smirked arrogantly as she sank to her knees, her hands on his belt buckle. The warm sensation left as quickly as it came, and Adrian laughed outright as Leolin struggled to her feet.
In her rage, she did something she'd always considered herself too classy to do. She spit in his face. He responded by slapping her so hard that it drove her to the ground and left an angry mark on her cheek.
She looked up at him, stunned as she touched her smarting skin. He was glaring down at her imperiously, tawny eyes glittering hatefully. She hadn't expected him to hit her as hard as he had. She rose to her feet and made to leave, but he grabbed her and slammed her head so violently against the wall that she felt dizzy.
"We're not at Hogwarts anymore, you snobby little brat," he warned, teeth bared. "I'm dangerous. Don't fuck with me."
With this, he vanished his handprint and dragged her to the landing near the stairs, seemingly waiting for something. There were plenty of couples on the floor, but the music was about to change, at which point there would be a short pause before the next one began. Lucius had timed it to perfection; Leolin was going to arrive to a captive audience.
As the finally strings of a minuet began to fade, Adrian gave Leolin a hardy shove, forcing her ungracefully down the first few steps before she could catch her balance. This drew the attention of those closest to her first, and her resplendently bright gown and dazzling necklace soon drew more stares. It was like a wildfire the way eyes snapped to her, and as she descended, she saws myriads of faces watching her in utter disbelief.
The dance floor was still crowded, but Leolin could pick out familiar faces. Pansy stood at dead centre dressed in white. She looked largely the same, and her dark eyes glittered as they drank Leolin in. Her husband Tieran stood beside her, giving Leolin a look that was a mixture of his usual disapproval and genuine shock.
Ieuan was close by, hands still resting on the shoulder of a mild-looking blonde man.
Blaise stood a ways off with Ginny, and his eyes were unkind. Ginny's were unreadable. Leolin's heart hammered. She'd yet to see the glittering Genevieve, but finally the dazzle of 5,000 gold beads caught her eye, and Leolin took in the gown in conjunction with the form underneath it. Leolin, for all her courage, didn't, couldn't look at Genevieve directly. She wondered if Genevieve knew who she was. She did. Of course she did. How could she not?
Leolin watched a familiar hand slip from Genevieve's, her engagement ring glinting as she was forced to let go. Whispers broke out as Draco cut through the crowd, which gave him a wide berth. Everyone seemed to know what was going to happen next because the dance floor emptied almost immediately.
It was here that Leolin's courage waned a little. She bowed her head to watch her glittering heels lead her downwards. In her peripheral, she could see Draco's Testoni Norvegese dress shoes arching towards her. When she reached the bottom stair, which was rapidly approaching, he was going to be waiting for her.
Lucius's calculation had been exactly right; he'd caught Draco off guard, and now he was acting on emotional impulse. This made him more vulnerable.
Five, her ears were ringing. Four, the floor was spinning. Three, her palms were tingling. Two, her throat was tightening. One, her heart was hammering. Have courage, Leolin, she told herself. You never wanted to leave him.
After what Leolin had suffered at Lucius's hands and Cristian's, it had been a long time since she'd felt the once-familiar blood pooling in her stomach. It was desire, long dormant, but as she stared into Draco's perfect face, she felt it building up again. Her heart ached with a bitter anguish she'd not known was possible, and she desperately wanted to kiss him, to tell him she loved him.
His eyes were two hard-cut diamonds as he took her in. His eyes bled from her black hair down to her necklace and the tantalizing gown below it before snapping up to re-memorize her face. The naked hatred in his gaze seared her, and she felt ill for a moment, as if the poison in his eyes had seeped into her soul. After a split second he wordlessly extended a hand to her, and she touched him for the first time in five years.
The minute she had accepted his proffered hand, a haunting waltz began, and he pulled her flush against him, gracefully sweeping her across the now empty floor as if she weighed nothing. She could feel the fury simmering in his tense form, but she nonetheless welcomed the sensation of being in his arms again. Leolin's eyes flitted up to look at him as the music swelled in the kind crescendo that made one's heart he spoke, and the silky timbre of his voice resonated in her heart as much as it did in her ears.
"You have a lot of nerve," he said as she met his gaze evenly. "Coming here tonight."
"Your note said not to come would be a grievous mistake," she said, trying to keep her voice from quaking.
"How dare you come back here after all this time," he said softly. "And in that gown, no less."
She swallowed the tightening ball of nerves crawling up in her throat. She looked at him again, re-memorizing the curving bow of his lips and the smooth line of his jaw. He was studying her again, eyes arcing back and forth across her face.
""You look good, Cal," he said venomously, crushing her a little closer, her breasts so tight against his chest that it was a little hard to breathe. The effect was like a drug on Leolin. "I must say, you're breathtaking as ever."
His insistent hand was warm on her bare back, and it sent a shiver down her spine.
"Thank you," she said, taking a deep breath so he would feel the weight of her breasts against him.
His eyes glittered at her manipulation, and it was painful to endure his malicious gaze.
"Don't worry, though," he grit out quietly. "It doesn't make me hate you any less. In fact, I think I hate you a little more, if that's even possible."
Her eyes fluttered closed for a second as she pursed her lips. However, she opened them a moment later, her face resolute.
"You can't expect me to believe that," she murmured.
"You should," he replied. "It's true. Still, I can't deny that you have an…effect on me. Part of me wants to rip that dress off of you and have you right here, in front of all these people."
She swallowed a jagged knot. He was being cruel on purpose, and there was no point in denying how much it hurt.
"I wonder," he said coldly, his breath falling on her neck as she turned her head away. "If your cunt is still as tight as I remember."
Her eyes snapped back to him, blazing.
"How dare you say that to me," she hissed.
Love or no, she was done stomaching sexual threats.
"I bet it is," he continued, his ire a poor mask for the lingering anguish of the loss of her. "If I didn't love Gen so much, I would make you my little whore for the rest of your miserable life."
"This may be your engagement party," she said in a low tone. "But say one more thing and I swear to Merlin I will hex you in front of all your guests and that Yank fiancée."
He raised his eyebrows even as he crushed her close again. "I see you've grown claws and fangs," he sneered. "My, my, what a beast you've become."
"I didn't come back to stomach your sexual threats," she snapped.
"I see," he grit out. "Then why did you come back?"
She surveyed him critically. Should she tip her hand and betray where she stood? No. He wasn't ready to hear it, and he would only throw it back in her face and grow obstinate.
"Five years was long enough," she said. "My family needs me, and I need them."
"And me?" he demanded. "What should I make of your timing?"
She met his sparkling gaze. He did so look like his father.
"Nothing," she said, not quite able to hide the degree to which this pained her. He noticed. "Blaise tells me you love this girl."
"So I do," Draco said.
"Then I'm—" Leolin began, though she couldn't manage more, and she bowed her head.
"Happy for me?" Draco finished. "One of us should be. Happy, that is. Of course, I intend to make sure you never are."
"That's not your place," she pointed out, growing agitated.
He was still the ultimate instigator. He still knew exactly which buttons to push to hurt her the most. The last thing she wanted was to break under his pressure.
"I wept for you," he bit out. "I tore Europe apart looking for you, and in return you humiliated me. I could punish you for ten lifetimes and it wouldn't be enough to make up for what you did to me."
She bowed her head. She desperately wanted to tell him the truth. At this moment it almost seemed worth going to prison to get him to stop looking at her so hatefully.
"I thought I was protecting you," she said, remembering the words of the note Lucius had forced her to write.
"That was never what I needed," he hissed. "And you know it. You left because you're selfish. Admit it."
"No."
"Admit it," he demanded, crushing her forcefully against him.
"No," she snapped, struggling against him. "I won't admit to something that isn't true."
"And what is the truth, as you see it?" he sneered.
"The truth," she said, a little breathless. "Is that I loved you desperately, Draco, and the day I left you was the worst day of my entire life."
"Don't call me that," he snapped, spinning her a last time before forcefully grabbing her hips and peeling her away. "That's what my friends call me. You and I aren't friends, Lefevre. We never will be. I bloody hate you."
"This hasn't been easy for me either," she admitted. "Why can't you see that?"
"Get out," he said in a soft voice.
She didn't move, ignoring all the prying eyes.
"Get out or I swear to Merlin I humiliate you in front of all these people," he said, voice still quiet but no less dangerous.
Her heart was pounding, and her tapering breathing was making the dazzling necklace sparkle as her chest rose and fell. They stared at each other for a moment, and besides the music, which continued to play, the room was utterly silent.
Finally she shook her head, unwilling to take anymore of his hateful glares. She turned her back to him, feeling his gaze slip down the smooth exposed skin as she faced the miles of empty ballroom that separated her from the exit. He was circling around her clockwise like a hawk, making her feel like prey for the kill. She realized as they moved in tandem that he was retreating back to Genevieve, who he grabbed fiercely as soon as he was close enough, his kiss passionate.
"I'm sorry," Leolin heard him breathe to her, and suddenly she felt a sudden and power urge to lash out at him, wounding him the way he'd wounded her. Savagely she forced it back down.
When she was ten or so feet from the couple, smack in the middle between them and the staircase, he called her name again.
"Lefevre," he said, soft enough that it would still be difficult for others to hear.
She turned, forced for the first time to take in Genevieve's pretty face, silky blonde hair, and threatened expression. Draco waited until Leolin's eyes dragged back to him.
"If you want even a prayer of being happy, I suggest you leave London at once. Go crawl back to the rock you've been hiding under all this time. If I hear even one whisper of you after tonight, I will crush you."
She turned her back at once as the whispers broke out, and she pulled her heavy skirts up so she could make her way more quickly. However, she refused to cower or run, even for him. She held her head high as she ascended the steps, acting more dignified than she felt.
She wasted no time stepping through the closest floo as soon as she was out of sight, and she gave a wild scream of fury when she reached her own home again, tearing the diamonds from her throat and obliterating the piece so the gems were burnt and tarnished. She tore off the dress as well, leaving it in a satiny heap on the living room floor as she fleeing up the stairs to her own bedroom. She got to her room still heaving, and she picked up the perfume bottle, studying it for a moment before hurling it at the mirror, shattering the first and splintering the second.
She then dissolved into a heaving pile on the floor, screaming and screaming until she simply had no voice left.
Leolin woke early the next morning to find that her mother had already gotten up. Ariadne had arrived home ten minutes after Leolin'd left the Manor, and she'd allowed her daughter to scream her lungs out before interrupting. She'd gently urged Leolin out of her corset and and into pajamas before rocking her gently to sleep.
Leolin sat up and stretched. Despite how outrageously comfortable her mother's bed was, her whole body ached. Could agony take on a physical manifestation? Clearly it could. Leolin had slept fitfully at best, plagued by Draco's cruel gaze and his threat. She woke up knowing what she had to do, and she knew that even now her window was shrinking.
Quickly she flooed Severina.
Ri,
Tell Xavy and the girls I'm coming home. I don't have time to explain, but make some preparations. I won't be able to say in Firenze for long. I will call in you a few hours with more details.
Vi Amo e ci vediamo presto
-L
She threw the note into the crackling hearth before standing. When she reached the stairs she could smell what seemed like a full English Fry, and her mouth watered. She realized she hadn't eaten since Domus Aurea with Blaise and Ginny. That was well over twenty-four hours ago.
"Good morning," Ariadne said, turning from the bacon sizzling in the pan. "How are you this morning? Better?"
Leolin considered but didn't answer.
"Why were you up so early? Have you already been out?"
"Yes," Ariadne said, putting a full plate in front of Leolin. "Coffee?"
"Black, please. And have you finally taken running?"
"I don't think it's cold enough in Hell yet," Ariadne replied. "And you really are grown up, taking your coffee black. You wouldn't touch it when you were younger unless you could make it taste like a milkshake."
"I've come to the realization that that's what tea is for," Leolin said. "Where did you go this morning, then?"
Ariadne said nothing.
"Mum," Leolin said, taking a bite of toast. "Just tell me."
"I made a social call," Ariadne said flippantly, and Leolin understood her meaning at once.
"You went to Draco's this early in the morning? I can't imagine he was too pleased."
"Well that made two of us," Ariadne said in a clipped tone, pursing her lips angrily. "I can't believe the way he acted last night. How dare he try and drive you out of England again."
Leolin took another bite of toast, looking down at her plate again. Her love for her mother warred with her heartache over Draco, and in the end the latter was simply too bitter, especially considering she could win him back and still lose everything again. She needed to get away. She needed refuge from Lucius where she could break this new gag and win Draco back properly. It was the only way.
"He's right, Mum," Leolin said in a tight voice at last. "I can't stay. I don't belong here anymore."
Her mother's eyes snapped up.
"No," Ariadne said fiercely. "Leolin, no! You cannot leave again! Your father and I just got you back!"
"I have to," Leolin said. "This is breaking my heart, but I can't be near Draco. It will kill me. It won't be like last time," Leolin reassured her. "I'll write, and you can come visit me."
"Where will you go?" Ariadne demanded. "Back to wherever you were before?"
"I was in Florence," Leolin affirmed. "But I'm not going back there. I'm thinking Budapest."
"Hungary?" Ariadne asked, dismayed. "That's thousands of miles away!"
"I know," Leolin said desperately. "But anywhere else is too painful."
Leolin could feel herself getting fretful. It was as if the entire city of London was collapsing in on her, and it was growing difficult to breathe amongst the rubble.
"You're breaking my heart," Ariadne said quietly. "Please, don't go."
"Mum," Leolin said, clenching her jaw and shutting her eyes, her face the very portrait of anguish. "I have to. Draco is free of me. Now I have to get free of him. I have to move on, and I can't do that here."
She considered telling her mother everything. She deserved the truth. Still, Leolin couldn't seem to manage it. She would explain everything when she was well and truly rid of Lucius.
"I hate this!" Ariadne cried. "This is so terribly unfair to us, Leolin."
"I know," Leolin admitted. "I'm sorry. But I have to do what I think is right."
Ariadne sighed in disappointment.
"When will you go?"
Leolin looked down, ashamed.
"I'll be gone by this evening, most likely."
If she was going to go, she had to do it before Lucius or Adrian or anyone else got wind. Otherwise she'd be dead in the water.
"Oh Leolin," Ariadne said discontentedly. "Don't do this."
Leolin bit her lip.
"I have to."
Ariadne shook her head.
"I have errands to run this morning," she said tightly. In reality, Leolin suspected she simply wanted to get out of the house. "I will be back mid-morning. Please don't leave until I get back."
"I won't," Leolin affirmed. "I promise. I love you, Mum."
"I love you, too," Ariadne said tightly, tears already shining in her eyes. "I will see you in a bit, lapin."
She gently touched Leolin's shoulder before grabbing her purse and disappearing through the floo. Leolin buried her head in her hands, giving a scream of frustration. She tried to remember that she hadn't wronged Draco and that she'd literally been ripped from his arms, but it was difficult. The way people looked at her—she was starting to feel guilty herself.
If only they knew. She'd suffered, too. She'd wept for him, too, and in the 1,816 days that she'd been away, there wasn't even one that she hadn't thought of him. She loved him. She would always love him, and she couldn't stay knowing that after all her struggles, he simply didn't love her back. It was perhaps cowardly to turn tail and run, but convincing Draco of her innocence without proof had never been part of her plan. Besides, after last night Leolin knew that it would be impossible. Draco would never stop hating her until he knew the truth.
She looked down at her meal, feeling awful that her mother had fixed it for her when she'd lost all appetite for it. However, she dutifully remained at the table, eating every last bite. She felt positively sick to her stomach when she'd finished, and she poured her coffee down the drain as she cleaned her dish and put it back.
She was dreading it, but it was time she flooed Ginny. She would likely be more mad that Ariadne, but Leolin couldn't very well leave without telling her. She'd seen too little of Ginny. It made her gut ache.
Leolin began her note to Ginny, apologizing for her appearance at the ball and explaining she thought it best she leave. Almost immediately she received a floo back saying that Ginny would be over in the early afternoon to convince Leolin to stay or to say goodbye. Saddened but satisfied, Leolin closed her floo.
She then flicked open her floo to find a reply from Severina.
Floo me.
Leolin bit her lip, trudging back up the stairs before throwing a handful of blue powder into the flames.
"Palazzo Borgia," she announced, and the flames slithered upward in silent ribbons for several seconds before Severina's face appeared. Her glittering eyes were ablaze.
"You're not leaving, tesoro," Severina said at once. "I wont let you."
Leolin sighed.
"You don't understand," she lamented sadly. "I fucked up. I ruined everything."
"Fucked up how?" Severina pressed.
"Lucius knows about La Genie. He blackmailed me into keeping my mouth shut."
Severina gave a heavy exhale. In some grim way, Leolin appreciated the candor of the gesture. It only would have agitated her more had Severina acted as if this weren't a major impediment.
"But he's allowed you to stay?" Severina asked.
"So he can use me," Leolin affirmed in a doleful voice. "He wants me to drive a wedge between Draco and his fiancée. Break them up."
"Why?" Severina said. "What is he hoping to gain?"
Leolin shook her head.
"I don't know. But it doesn't matter. I can't stay in London as his lackey. I need to disappear and start on breaking this new gag."
Severina shook her head now, dark curls sliding over her shoulders like black water.
"There isn't time for that, cariña!" she said sharply, perhaps more sharply than she'd meant to. "Draco is getting married. You don't have two more years to wait."
"You don't understand," Leolin pleaded. "He hates me. I'll never be able to make him stop until he knows the truth. Trust me on that."
"I'm sorry," Severina said in a resolute voice. "But I don't. Leolin, have courage! You can do this. It's not going to be easy, but you have to stay the course."
"With Draco snarling at me? With Lucius breathing down my neck? Ri, do you have any idea what you're telling me to do? It's going to tear me apart."
"No," Severina snapped. "It isn't. Think of all you've done to get back to Draco. This is your last chance at happiness with him, tesoro! Don't waste it."
"I could lose everything!" Leolin pleaded. "Can't you see that?"
"Better to lose everything fighting for what you love then cede it willingly," Severina pointed out. "If you leave now, you lose Draco forever. That I can promise you."
"Then what am I supposed to do?" Leolin demanded.
"Stay the course," Severina urged. "Keep the faith and keep fighting. Draco is well within your reach, tesoro. Don't give up on him now. You owe the two of you that."
"I can't do it," Leolin said, shaking her head. "I can't be around him knowing he hates me this much. It's already tearing me apart."
"Then do what you always do and stitch yourself back together," Severina said. "Please, don't give up before you've begun. You'll regret it for the rest of your life if you do."
Leolin bit her lip. She knew in her heart that Severina was right. Still, she thought of the way Draco had looked at her the night before and her mind was made up.
"I'll be back in Rome by tonight," she said. "I'll see you then."
"Leolin—!" Severina began, but Leolin doused the flame and her friend disappeared in a hiss of steam.
Leolin sat with her knees to her chest, watching the tendrils of smoke swirling up from the ashes. Some part of her knew that Severina was right. She'd come this far; she couldn't give up now. Still, even her courage extended so far.
The food had made her soporific again, and she felt weary. Standing, she trudged back to her mother's bed, collapsing onto her back and staring at the ceiling before she was finally subsumed in another restless sleep.
When she woke up, it was almost half-three. She stood and stretched, She felt dirty, and she didn't know if that was because she needed to bathe or because last night had made her feel worse than she had in years. She thought again about Severina had said. It was a charming sentiment, Severina's call to arms, but it was ultimately futile. This was Leolin's real life, not some epic poem. If she wanted to beat Lucius, she had to be rational, not foolishly romantic. Besides, she didn't think it would take any less time for Leolin to convince Draco to stop hating her then it would take her to leave London and break the new gag.
Either way, she should shower. She stood under the stream for well over an hour, laying her head on the steamed tiles as she relived everything. The fireworks at the rehearsal dinner. Lucius coming to her as Draco in disguise. The hideous shame of the next morning. Her bargain with Cristian for his silence and his help. Her theft of the David, The Birth of Venus, Las Meninas, The Winged Victory of Samolthrace, The Death of Socrates, Guernica. Her confession to Severina. Her plan to return. Her dance with Draco.
If she were the type of person who still cried, she would have cried her eyes out. However, she wasn't. Not anymore. She was stronger than that, despite the pain. She wasn't a sniffling child anymore. She was the master of her fate. She was the captain of her soul.
Finally, she got out, drying her hair and her body before heading in search of bra and knickers. She went in her old closet, and the only pair she could find where lacy and embarrassingly wanton. She felt stupid even wearing them where no one could see them, especially because she'd never felt less desirable in all her life. She of course continued to be a sexual object that the unsavory men in her life loved to abuse, but as a woman, she hardly even remembered what it was to be cherished body and soul.
She was still standing naked contemplating her knickers when she heard the floo crackling downstairs.
"Gin," she cried. "I'm up here!"
She received no response, so she threw on the lacy undergarments and hurried down the stairs and into the den.
"Gin, I'm just getting dres—Salazar's pants!"
Leolin threw her arms over her chest as Draco watched her, nonplussed.
"What are you doing here?" she cried in a strangled voice.
"Looking for you," he said stonily. Whether on purpose or incidentally, Draco's eyes fell to her familiar cleavage, and he clenched his jaw. His eyes swept to her hair, and she realized self-consciously that he'd not seen how short it was in her up-do the night before.
"Turn around!" She demanded, and he acquiesced, though not before rolling his eyes.
When he'd done so, she tore from the room, going to her own bedroom and slamming the door. Her heart hammered in her chest. Draco'd just seen her in bra and knickers, which of course was not new to him, but still. Leolin felt agitated that he'd come at all. Was he there to make good on his promise from the night before?
She moved away from the door, running her hands through her jet black hair and fretting. She didn't want to face him again. She didn't want to have to see the hatred burning in his eyes again. She didn't want to have to swallow any poisonous guilt, even knowing that she hadn't betrayed him.
She didn't have any more time to contemplate. Her door banged open as Draco admitted himself.
"Where you just hoping if you left me down there long enough I'd go away?" he demanded in a hideous voice.
"Merlin!" she cried, covering herself with a towel this time. "What is wrong with you?"
He folded his arms across his chest, wholly unmoved by her embarrassment.
"There isn't a thing about you body that I don't know intimately," he sneered. "You can save your false modesty."
"Get out," she snapped, turning to conceal the hurt in her eyes.
"I'm not going to wait another twenty minutes for you to not get dressed," he snapped back.
"Let me put clothes on," she demanded, pushing on his chest.
They both reacted to her touch, and she withdrew her hand at once.
"I just need a minute," she said in a defeated voice. "Go put on the kettle or something."
"You know I don't drink tea," he said evenly.
"Then get something from the wet bar."
Draco clenched his jaw before obeying her request.
Ten minutes later, Leolin came slinking in the den where the same jumper as the day before with a pair of fitted jeans.
Draco surveyed her.
"I always wondered where that went," he said tightly, looking at the jumper.
"Sorry," she said, and they fell silent.
"If this is about last night," she said. "You're right. It was a mistake for me to come back. I'm leaving tonight."
He looked down before looking up at her.
"Where will you go?"
"Florence," she replied, and he nodded grimly.
"This is about last night," he grit out. "But it's not what you think. I—" he trailed off, trying to find the words before shaking his head and clenching his jaw. "I owe you an apology," he admitted. "I have no right to drive you away. This was your home once too, and I—I shouldn't be trying to keep you from it. That was wrong of me."
Leolin bowed her head, completely unsure what to say. The old Draco never would have admitted something like that. He'd grown up considerably in her absence.
"Thank you," she croaked.
"Your mum and Ginny would never forgive me if I forced you to go, and I love them both. I don't to make them unhappy."
Leolin swallowed painfully.
"What about you?" she asked in a quiet voice. "Where do we stand?"
"You're inevitable," he admitted quietly, and she shook her head to signify she didn't understand.
He ran his hands through his hair the way he'd always used to, clenching his jaw.
"I can't avoid you even though I want to," he bit out. "So I have to learn to accept you."
"Thank you," she said, even though it was exactly what she couldn't bear to hear from him.
She was suddenly acutely aware of the fact that they were alone together in a small space. It made her ache to touch him again, though she knew he'd never let her.
"Draco," she began. "I—"
"Don't," he said fiercely. "Seriously, just don't."
She nodded and hung her head again.
"I know it doesn't change anything," she said in a whisper. "But I am sorry for what I put you through."
If only he knew what she'd suffered as well.
"It's the past," he bit out, looking at her. "I have Gen now; I have no right to be bitter."
"I'm glad you're happy," she lied.
A long silence reigned, and Leolin could feel Draco's eyes scrutinizing her, but she didn't care to absorb any more of her hateful stares then she had to.
"I'm expecting a floo from Florence," she lied tightly, finally meeting his gaze again. "I—I should go."
He stood, clenching his jaw as he warred with himself. Finally he fixed her with a searing look.
"We're having another engagement party at our flat tonight," he said in a sharp voice. "Just friends and booze. Gen's asked me to invite you, and I can't seem to deny her anything so you'll be there. I'm—asking you to be there."
"I—"
"After what you pulled last night," he snapped, his eyes a little anguished. "It's the least you can do for her."
"Why does she want me to come?" Leolin asked candidly. "I'm sure she hates me."
"Wouldn't you, if you were her?" he said coldly.
"I don't know," she replied, bowing her head. "I guess."
"It's at nine," he said. "Ginny has the address."
"What should I wear?" she asked.
"What do I care?" he snapped with venom.
"Is it cocktail attire, or—"
"Yes," he bit out. "And do try not to dress like a whore."
"That's not fair," she said in a hurt voice.
"By whose estimation?" he sneered, glaring at her over his shoulder.
"I don't remember receiving any complaints when we were engaged."
He whirled on her at once, his hands like vices on her arms.
"Get off," she snapped.
"You don't want to go down memory lane with me, Lefevre. If you really to know what I think of the clothes you wear, get on your knees and I've fucking show you."
"I'm not a whore," she said fiercely, shoving him off. "Don't call me that again. And if you ever touch me without my permission, I'll drag you in front of the Wizengamot before you can even call your lawyer."
He took several steps back, still sneering.
"You mean the crooked Wizengamot that my father controls?" he said bitterly, clearly taking no pleasure in that fact. "Good luck with that."
"I mean it," she said seriously. "I will make you very sorry."
"Wear what you want," he snapped finally. "Thankfully, it's no longer my concern."
She bent her head, his words a cold sting.
"Please leave," she said quietly.
"With pleasure," he said. "See you at nine."
He was gone with a crackle, and when the flames bloomed orange again, Leolin sank down, taking a large gulp of Draco's forgotten gin and tonic before once again heaving the glass into the fire.
She thought again about what Severina had said as she watched the shards of crystal blacken in the flames. She mulled over what Draco had said about accepting her as they began to bubble and melt. Severina was right; the only way forward now was downward into the fray.
a/n: what did you think? Did it live up to your expectations or where you disappointed? Let me know! Next chapter the real fun begins: Leolin faces her old friends and Genevieve! Stay tuned!