Disclaimer: All characters belong to JKR.

Dose of Your Own

By: OurLoveIsForever

Chapter Twenty-Three: Desperation

"You're nothing if not amusing, Astoria." He laughed, running a hand through his hair again. I ignored his previous warning and pushed my way up. My arms shook under my weight. He watched me do so with no expression. "I knew you would do that eventually."

"So, what now? I get the Cruciatus? I die a horribly painful death?" I growled, settling with my back on the head board.

He shook his head slightly before moving from the window to sit on the edge of the bed. I did not flinch or draw away. What was the point? "I told him to not get involved with you." His tone was soft, but I knew better. My trust was long gone. I would never trust him again. He was a viper and he was out for blood. He hid behind a nice façade. "He didn't listen to me." Shrugging, he slapped both hands on his knees. "I knew that this would happen and now look. You're a prisoner of sorts. I have the duty of keeping Pucey, Crabbe and Carrow from killing you...or worse..." At that I did flinch. I tried to steel myself from my emotions, my fear.

"Just why kill me?" I asked. "I'm unimportant."

"You underestimate your pull, Astoria. Before, it was simply because Carrow hated you in school, a side-task, a hobby of sorts. Now, you are Draco's- lover." I narrowed my eyes at him dangerously. I could tell that he had thought the word out before speaking it. There was humor in his eyes. "Regardless of the name it is given, Draco cares for you deeply." I snorted. "If there is a way to get to him, it's through you. We aren't above using it either." He shook his head, the dirty blond hair catching in his eyes. "Ultimately, it was Pucey who orchestrated it all. I simply helped him along here and there. Your father was a great help with the funding. He would have been screwed had I not warned him of the raid." I shook my head slightly. "We have nothing to fear right now!" He threw his head back and laughed a bit manically. "Draco is far too proud to go to the Ministry for help!"

Images flashed in my mind. The peacock with the feathers splayed. Blood. His blood.

"Don't you want to ask me why?" He murmured. I snapped my attention back to him. His eyes were cut over to me.

I smirked. "Not particularly."

His eyes rolled. "It all makes sense now though, doesn't it?"

It did. The wedding attack, Zabini Manor, the failure of the raid, my position now; they all made complete sense. The only bit— "Jamison?"

"Sacrifice. The mole? The man had no idea what was happening. Simply doing his job, he was." Nott snickered, pulling his hand up to cover his mouth. "The look on his face was priceless though. It was a jolly good show."

"And—" I didn't get to finish my thought when there was a hard knock on the door before the door swung open. A large man stepped in, one that I recognized as Vincent Crabbe Senior. His eyes ran over me causing chills to run down my spine. The way he leered at me made me uncomfortable. His eyes slowly went to Nott, who was already standing. I noted that he had taken his wand from its holster at his side.

"He's on the move."

He? I thought. Draco was alive and coming. I knew it. I could feel it in my very bones. I couldn't really say how I knew. For all that I was a aware of, Draco could have been dead. At that thought, panic shot through every nerve in my body. That dream, while I had been unconscious, with him clearly tortured and stabbed in the back, his blood- a manisfestation of feelings that I had kept to myself. My fears- my nightmares-

I looked up, trying to hide my fear, when Nott gave a curt nod. Crabbe eyed me once again before stepping out, pulling the door closed as fast as possible.

Trust...

My eyes widened to the point where they hurt. I narrowed my eyes at the man standing beside my bed. He didn't allow his eyes to stray from the door. His mouth had not moved and yet I had heard his voice.

Before I could ask him anything, he nodded my way before heading for the door. His shoulders were tense and his back straight as he strode from me. When his hand made contact with the handle, he froze. "Astoria, you should have stayed away." There was a strange note to his voice, a lilt that I couldn't place.

I should have stayed away?

No shit.

"Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more. Men were deceivers ever." I slammed my hand into the window harder than before. Small bits of glass were embedded into my palm. It was but a small sacrifice for my life. Momentary pain could be overlooked if I would be able to live a minute longer. Drawing back my hand, I brought it down on the glass again. To keep my mind off of the searing jolts of agony, I sung. I was a ruddy horrid singer, but it served its purpose. "One foot in sea and one on shore, to one thing," The glass was beginning to crack. "Constant," I lowered my bleeding hand to use my shoulder against the weakened glass. "Never." I threw my body against the surface before stumbling out onto the terrace. The cold wind broke over my face.

Cursing I pushed myself against the side of the house, feeling the brick beneath my skin. If I left the area, a trigger ward would likely be sounded, giving away my escape. It wouldn't be that hard to figure out anyway really with the broken window and blood.

"If I get out of here, I am killing him myself." I muttered, moving slightly to the right. I really wasn't sure who I was going to kill. "Wand or no wand, I am beheading him." I pushed the pain in my hand to the back of my mind. Compartmentalizing once again was saving me.

The stairs were to the far right of the terrace, just past another set of bedroom windows. If I could make it to those stairs, I assumed that they would take me to the side of the house, where I could sneak into the collection of trees that surrounded the house. I wasn't going to be the damsel in distress and I sure as hell was not going to wait for Draco to save me. If it meant his neck, he wouldn't come. He wasn't a prince in shining armor. He was a snake. Now, I had to rely on all that I had learned over the years. Sneaking.

Sliding one foot over the other, I stepped down slowly one step and a time. I eased down with slick movements in a way that I never thought I could work my body and muscles. I felt bloody ridiculous, but I suppose that when one can be killed at any given moment, one tends to overlook appearances.

I made it to the manicured garden safely though just how many wards I had triggered were beyond me. It didn't matter at that moment. All I had to do was run. And run I did.

My feet pounded the earth. Even when I was much younger, I had never been known for my running prowess. Considering the reputation given to Slytherins, running should have been in my blood, but sadly this was not the case. I was a bit like a cheetah. I could run very fast for very short distances. The woods were within sight when I felt a shock of magic run through my veins. A ward. My heart was pumping as my limbs began to go numb from the exertion and lack of oxygen in my blood. I was bloody out of shape and I had certainly discovered that fact at the wrong time.

Just before the cover of the trees, I heard it.

"Torpeo!" My legs crumpled underneath as I fell to the ground with the inertia of running sending my forward as my knees hit the ground. As I fell, I tried to stop my contact with a rock by throwing out my arms, but they were useless since I couldn't feel them. I also didn't feel any pain as the temple of my head slammed into the large piece of granite. Disoriented, I rolled to my side. A black cloaked figure sauntered up, sneering down at me.

"Miss Greengrass, I never pictured you the one for foolhardy escape attempts. You were never so stupid before." Carrow laughed, squatting beside me. I glared up at him. He tutted, shaking his head. "What will we do with you?" His wand tapped his knee as if in thought. Gritting my teeth, I felt the numbness spell wearing off. A tingling was filling my limbs as if blood was starting to return. Fisting my hand, I moved as fast as I could, bringing my fist in solid contact with the side of his head.

Pushing my muscles to sustain my weight, I stumbled upright as Carrow cradled his head behind me. Adrenaline was coursing through me, giving me extra energy. I wanted to shout, to cry out, to simply give up, but I couldn't bring myself to lay defeated. I was going to get out if it was the last this I did. It probably would be.

"Cruci—" I heard behind me as I was almost three feet from the bushes. The shout stopped abruptly, but I did not stop to look. I rushed into the underbrush, the branches drawing on my skin, tearing at my clothes. A vine caught on my ankle and sent me flying forward. This time, I arrested my fall and landed fully on my hands and knees. Every single wave of pain made me want to be sick. I simply didn't have the time as a wave of nausea washed over me.

My energy was spent. Wheezing, I flipped to my arse. At least in the trees I had a bit of cover. I kept my head low and simply waited. There was the sound of something approaching, but it didn't sound like the heavy footed advance of Carrow. My heart was racing, beating wildly. I didn't want to die.

In the moments as I waited, my muscles aching from exertion, I thought.

I had never expected anything to come of my life. True, I had been able to support myself. It seemed overly romantic of me to say that when I met Draco, the bare minimum changed, but it was the truth. Draco had served to alter my life, for the worse or for the better I could not say. I hoped that he was safe wherever he may have been. Closing my eyes, I knew that my consciousness was flying from me quickly. The loss of blood from my hand was surely causing more of my light headedness. My head lolled to the side as the rattling of leaves grew closer.

When a mass of white broke through the leaves of the underbrush, I thought perhaps I was hallucinating. Peacocks didn't just walk around Carlow. My heavy eyes widened at the pristine bird as it almost strode forward. I watched it as it seemed to look me over before taking a few steps toward me. I thought perhaps that it was some sort of sign that Draco was coming. I had never been one for divination, though the subject was interesting. My eyes began to droop closed once more as I watched it observe me.

There was a sharp pain in my ankle and my eyes flew open again. The bird looked at me strangely. Almost a smirk in its eyes. I glanced to my ankle where there were two punctures on either side.

The damn thing bit me!

"Bloody chicken!" I growled, raising an arm to bat the beast away.

It screeched at me, batting its wings irritably. I glared, huffing slightly. It was then that I noticed something very puzzling. The eyes were silver as opposed to the natural black color. My mind flew back to Malfoy Manor. The gray eyes of that peacock in the gardens of the Manor had the same eyes…Draco had the same eyes. His face flashed in my mind. I struggled to sit up. The bird continued to watch me, an almost smug expression on its face.

I really felt crazy when the question left my lips before I could stop it. "Draco?"

The bird's head cocked sideways. I sighed. There was nothing like losing your mind completely before taking a one way trip to the hereafter. Another sharp pain around my knee made me open my eyes again. "I swear to Merlin if you do that ag—"

"Good morning, Astoria."

Kneeling there with a smirk on his face was the one person I never expected to see again. "What the bloody he—"

"Animagus." He said, reaching out to lightly touch my face. I stared up at him. I had to be hallucinating. As if reading my thoughts, his head shook. "No, you're not imagining me."

"This doesn't make any sense."

"Wouldn't expect you to understand that quickly." He retorted, pulling a wand from his dark robes. I sighed as he muttered a healing spell over my legs, then my arms and face. Gently, he picked up my hand. "What the hell did you do? Break the window?" I grinned. "Honestly, right piece of work you are." He muttered the healing spell over my skin and watched as the cuts sealed shut.

Feeling a bit better, I leaned forward catching his hand with my previously injured one. "What are you doing here?"

Draco looked slightly irritated, rolling his eyes at my question. "What do you think I'm doing here? Having tea? Reading the Daily Prophet?" His eyes narrowed a bit. His voice lowered to a deep whisper. My eyes widened. "Stay still." He pressed over me, blocking nearly everything from my view. He was breathing heavily, his muscles tensed. His neck turned toward the right, toward the house. "When I move, run. Apparate to the Manor. Get to safety." I didn't respond.

"Malfoy, you are far too clever for your own good."

"I should think so, Crabbe." Draco drawled, one arm holding his wand aloft.

"You want to settle this? That doesn't look like the optimum dueling position. I daresay that the wench can handle herself." Crabbe said slowly, with a calculating air. I tensed, my hands automatically flattening against Draco's chest. He didn't turn to me, keeping his eyes on the threat.

"Astoria, run." His wand flew about as I struggled to my feet. I bolted away from the house, away from him, my heart racing. Spells and curses soared through the trees, sending sparks and limbs. Dodging a flash of green light, I staggered into a soft object. Hands wrapped around my upper arms. My lungs burned as I opened my eyes. Green eyes smiled down at me with a slightly amused glint. I recoiled, but his hands held tightly. Jerking to the right, I slammed my foot down on his instep.

"Damn it, Astoria!" Nott cursed, letting me go. I started to run off again, only to be blocked by my lanky attacker. "Listen to me!"

"Hell. No." I snarled, jumping when a jet of purple light hit the tree beside me.

Nott rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "You're going to get yourself killed if you keep this-"

"What do you care?"

Nott's face became serious, all hints of humor disappearing instantly. I tensed. He never held that expression unless he was deadly. Behind me, I could hear shouting before I seized up, my muscles coiling. Worse than a Cruciatus Curse, the pain enveloped every nerve, every inch. I could feel my muscles ripping free of my bones. I screamed and began to writhe, trashing back and forth with no control of my motions. My body cried out for the pain to stop. I would die of the pain alone I was sure. Somewhere in a haze, I saw Nott's eyes widen in surprise and...and...fear? He jumped forward catching me before I fell to the ground. My screams caught in my throat. Every part twitched and drew. My breaths came in short ragged spurts. Tears filled my eyes.

"Astoria!" A shout in the distance.

"Nott, kill her! Kill her now!" I wasn't sure who it was, but somewhere in my swimming vision, I could see a wand being raised. Keeping my eyes on his face, I felt a pull at the edges of my mouth. A slight smile, but I had no idea why. Tears were freely streaming down my face. The pain was still ripping through every fiber of my being. I was staring Death in the mask, but I could accept it. If it would release from the pain, I could take it. If the pain would-

"Do it!"

Those emerald eyes glanced at me as he readied his wand. I continued to writhe, to scream without making a sound. I could feel Death approaching-

"ASTORIA!" Desperation. Draco.

"Avada Kadavra!"