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DracoXOC Fanfic

Disclaimer: Not JK Rowling, But Elizabeth Marshall and alot of what gets twisted is of my own creation

Chapter twelve:

"LIZZY!" Pansy yelled from across the gardens as she came bouncing through the grass and wrapped her arms around the brunette. Elizabeth smiled and broke out into laughter as she nearly fell over, and Daphne followed suit, shouting into the air and flinging her arms out. The two wrapped around her and Elizabeth buried herself in their embrace. Quickly she was whisked from the spot and down the garden path and towards the table where they were intending to have tea. Pansy was already chattering away about what the plan was for the night, what she wanted to do tomorrow, and what she intended them to have for dessert. Daphne was a bit softer in her chatter as she linked arms with Elizabeth. Pansy rushed towards her parents who stood on the upper porch, happy to introduce the two to Elizabeth. Despite how many times Elizabeth had actually been to the house, they had never met.

"How is Draco?" Daphne whispered to Elizabeth as they were alone.

"Quiet, he's stressed out and won't tell me why." Elizabeth answered as she leaned against her friend for support. "We all should be."

"War is coming, I can feel it." Daphne whispered as she patted Elizabeth's arm. "We should be ready to do things we never wanted to." With that, she disconnected from Elizabeth's arm and walked over to receive a hug from Mrs. Parkinson. Pansy tugged Elizabeth after her and she tried not to act like the things Daphne said bothered her. She had never thought about what Daphne might be up to. If the rumors had been true about Draco's parents, she should expect that the rumors about Daphne were too. Did that mean Daphne was a death eater too?

Elizabeth looked at Daphne who didn't seem different. She didn't seem changed, like Draco had. Then again, Daphne was always good at saving face. Her ability to pull a facade out of her ass was top, there was no one better. Which only made Elizabeth fear her more. Did her best friends hide more secrets than she knew. It was about time she learned everyone's secrets!

She smiled, she laughed, she drank tea, but finally when Pansy's parents left, she looked to the two girls. "Draco's a Death Eater." She put out, and only Pansy made a look of surprize. Pansy looked a mix of horrified and a mix of confusion, but Elizabeth turned to look at Daphne who slowly sipped her tea. "You knew?"

"We got ours on the same day." Daphne whispered, as she looked to her plate.

"No… Daph…" Pansy whispered as Daphne stood up slowly, with a light lift of her skirt, she smudged her hand against her thigh and there it was. Dark and disgusting, and horrifying.

"Why?" Elizabeth whimpered.

"I didn't have a choice, Father held a wand to my throat and told me to take it. I didn't really argue." Daphne sat down and pulled out the concealer from her purse.

"Does Snape know?" Elizabeth asked lowly, almost as if it didn't happen at all. Daphne nodded and looked up to Pansy who teared up.

"Daphne, why didn't you tell us." Pansy crumpled lightly under her emotions. Daphne reached over the table and took one hand of each girl.

"I couldn't risk you hating me." Daphne's voice hurt to hear. Elizabeth tightened her grip on Daphne's hand as she smiled lightly to the strawberry blond.

"We've got your back." Elizabeth whispered, Pansy nodded as she dried her tears with her palm. Sweet, emotional wreck Pansy, she wouldn't do well in war. She would end up screaming at people and firing off at whoever she thought would solve the problem fastest. If they asked for Harry Potter's head, she would give him up in a second if it would mean the torture would end.

Daphne was a stronger soul, she held out through a lot, she gritted her teeth and put on a mask that could never crack. She was meant to be a threat to everyone.

So Elizabeth sat there as Pansy promised to be there, and Daphne promised to not hurt either of them, and Elizabeth just sat there. What was she then. What did she have to offer?

"Elizabeth?" She looked up from her lap to Daphne. "Was this what you were mad at Draco over?" She nodded as the girl squeezed her hand.

"But I don't blame you, either of you…" Elizabeth confessed. "I just wish there was something I could do." Daphne smiled softly as they held hands longer. Elizabeth placed a light kiss to Daphne's knuckles before she let them go and went to take a sip of her tea. The trio was quiet for a moment before Pansy jumped as an Owl came fluttering down onto the patio. It was a startling black color with shimmering, almost gold sparkles underneath the feathers. It was a beautiful bird.

"Who is that?" Elizabeth quipped as Pansy took the letter from the birds claw and her lips grew up in a wide smile. "Okay, definitely… who is that." Elizabeth poked lightly at Pansy's elbow. The dark haired beauty blushed as she tucked her longer locks behind her ear. She had started off with a pixie cut, but here it was, nearly all the way down to her shoulders. Pansy intended to grow it out again, ever since Daphne made the statement that her short cut was cute, but longer hair got husbands.

"It's Theo. He wants to know if I'm free for dinner on thursday." Pansy whispered as she set the note to her right. Elizabeth's eyes lit up as she looked to Daphne who smirked.

"The answer is yes, the answer is always yes!" Daphne remarked with a wicked grin.

"You think so?" Pansy asked as she bit her lower lip and trailed her finger over the note that was engraved with Theo's family crest. Elizabeth saw it, that desperation for connection, for love, for someone to feel back that was screaming from Pansy's dark orbs.

"Write back now that you would love to." Elizabeth whispered as she leaned lightly to catch Pansy's eye. "You need this, we both know Love makes life a little less horrible." Elizabeth added as the girl grinned and nodded. With a whirl on her toes she was up with the owl on her shoulder and she rushed for the door to grab a piece of parchment and a quill.

"Love makes life a little less horrible?" Daphne cocked a brow towards Elizabeth who rolled her eyes.

"Yes, it's true!" Elizabeth shot back as Daphne shot her a smug look and Elizabeth scowled. "You tricky little-"

"So you love him." Daphne wiggled her eyebrows at Elizabeth who felt her eyes twitch from how dark her glare was at Daphne. How she hated when they made that face at her. Elizabeth only pulled her tea cup up to her lips, never leaving the eye connection with Daphne and took a long sip of her tea. "But… you know… that's none of my business." Daphne winked as she turned from Elizabeth and took a sip of her own tea.

~!~ ~!~ ~!~

Elizabeth stood under the stream of water as she tried to breath in slowly. Inhale, one, two, three, four, exhale, one, two. Elizabeth saw it there, sparkled in her eyesight and danced before her. Her head was unable to handle it as she felt her body begin to tremble. The darkness, how it itched, how it stung, it burned. Elizabeth clenched her hands hard as she clamped her eyes shut and ducked under the water. Inhale. She couldn't. Exhale, even worse. Water crawled down her throat and she coughed. The cough took everything out of her.

Elizabeth fell to her knees, a whirlwind in the shower as her hands took most of the blow and screamed in pain. Her nails screeched lightly under the waterfall as they dug into the porcelain before her. Black ink, a disease, her guilt, it ate up her arm and devoured her flesh. The burning grew worse as the water hit her harder and harder. It was bullets on her skin.

"Please! StOP!" She croaked as she tried not to touch it, but she couldn't.

She grasped her arm and dug her nails into it. Blood swirled down her arm and muddled the water that pooled around her knees. Air still took forever to work in and out of her veins.

"Stop!" She cried out harder as she crumpled further into the tub, the water seemed to grow hotter and hotter. The blood that seeped from where her nails dug into her forearm seemed to flesh out the disease on her skin, but as soon as she let go, it stung and took over again.

"MAYBEL!" Elizabeth screamed as she covered her eyes and screamed harder. The stabbing in her stomach from how cramped she put herself in this position, it grew worse as she cried out into the water that turned from burning bullets to slaps against her skin, slaps made of acid.

Just as it was started, it was gone. The water turned off, the shower curtain shot back and she was lifted from the tub. She was placed on the tile floor, her arms spread against the cool of the tile and a towel snaked around her torso, synched on her left side. Maybel was there, her hands over Elizabeth's eyes.

"My Lady," She whispered, and nothing else was said as Elizabeth felt the sting of her cuts slowly decrease. "You have a guest, he will be here in two minutes, I will keep him occupied while you dress. Should I set out some suitable clothes for you?"

Elizabeth nodded numbly, and in a puff of smoke, Maybel was gone. Alone in the bathroom, Elizabeth slowly stood up and looked to the mirror. Her arms were clean of all blood and disease, but the darkness was now on her face. A huge swirling, snake like slithering mess that began to take over her reflection.

"Stop." Elizabeth hissed and with a slap of her hand against the corner and her eyes shut, she inhaled. One. She opened her lids lightly, her eyes downcast to the sink. Two. She slowly turned her chin upwards and her eyes followed. Three. She opened her eyes and saw her body clear of everything. Elizabeth exhaled and sharply bolted towards the room.

There on the bed were a pair of dark jeans and a matching black tank top with a grey camisole. Elizabeth took no time to pull it on and just as she brushed her wet hair into a controllable mess, a knock was heard on her door.

"My Lady, a professor Snape is here." Maybel spoke through the door and Elizabeth stepped to the door. She opened it and smiled to the little elf.

"Thank you Maybel."

"I serve the Marshall house, I am your elf My Lady. It's what I do." She added with a gentle pat to Elizabeth's leg. "Now, go, I've got a whole house to keep clean and a yard to take care of without the neighbors seeing."

Elizabeth smiled again and stepped down the steps towards the foyer. As she rounded the door frame, she found him standing in the middle of the room. He didn't make any notice or proof that he seemed to care that she was there. Step after step, she came into the room and stood next to him.

"What did Draco say when he saw the muggle neighborhood?"

"I told him it was close to the restaurant and it was a high end neighborhood, and that my brothers work for the ministry, and they put them here in the Muggle world to keep muggles from finding out about the wizarding world." Elizabeth explained as she ruffled her hands.

"Which, isn't too far off the truth." Snape snickered.

"My brothers are employed by the ministry, as my siblings, they are responsible for making sure other muggle police don't stumble into the wizarding world." Elizabeth added. "It's the truth, I just… haven't told him I'm-" Her throat closed up.

"A Mudblood?" He sneered. Elizabeth shot him a dark look.

"Muggle born," She hissed as he rolled his eyes.

"Don't take such a tone with me girl," He whispered darkly.

"Then don't offend a host in their own house." Elizabeth retorted as she motioned with her hand for him to sit down. But the cardigan was not enough to cover her bruised wrists as she motioned for him to sit. Snape snatched her arm and she instantly flinched.

"What is this!" His voice was loud and booming.

"You're hurting me!" She boomed back as she yanked for her arm.

"Answer me, girl!" He shook her arm.

"Bruises, Sir!" She cried out as her body crumpled lightly at the pain. He stopped his incessant shaking and used his other hand to push up her sleeve. He could see it, the places where her nail dug into her skin, where her scratching had left scars, where she pinched and slapped at her arms.

"Where did you get them?" He snarled as he grabbed the other arm and found the same amount of abuse.

"I did them msyelf." She confessed as she freed her wrists from his hands as she trembled. Elizabeth backed away from him and sunk into the love seat of her house. Snape glowered at her from his height as she looked to her arms and slowly rolled the sleeves of her cardigan back down.

"Why?"

"It's eating me up inside, the guilt." She whimpered. "I see the signs, hallucination, the incessant unconscious need to harm myself, the depression, I've lost most of my appetite. I feel like I'm losing my mind." Elizabeth added.

"That's it, you're going. I've decided it will be good for you." He added as he walked straight up to her and uprooted her by the upper arm. "And most entertaining for me."

"Whoa, where! What!" Elizabeth sputtered as he dragged her towards the fireplace and with a hand full of powder, she was whisked from the spot.

Suddenly, she was in a cold room, and her whole body recoiled as they stepped from the fireplace. The darkness of the house as they walked towards what looked to be a dining room. "AH! Miss Marshall, so glad you could join us for dinner."

Elizabeth stopped in her tracks as she saw before her was Dumbledore himself, and Mcgonagall. The room almost felt icy, but the closer to the table that she got, the warmer she felt. Snape shoved her into a seat and pulled out his wand.

"You can talk freely about everything for two hours, that's your limit. After that, it's gone, you're back to keeping your secret, you understand." Elizabeth nodded and closed her eyes as she felt a wand tap against her head and without a lack for a better description, it felt like something was slowly yanked from her mouth and she ended up coughing. There on the table was a stop watch and it was ticking.

"So, Miss Marshall, what is it that's eating you up inside?" Mcgonagall asked with a quirked brow. The brunette slytherin girl sighed and sunk into the chair more and more. Finally able to speak again, she took a second to collect her thought and her mind but couldn't help it.

"I Imperiused Katie Bell, It was me." Dumbledore nodded softly, but Mcgonagall looked like she had been slapped.

"ALBUS!" She hissed.

"I didn't want to, I was forced! Draco is a death eater, but he doesn't want to be, I know it and I wanted to keep him safe. If he murders someone because of some evil guy, doesn't matter, he'll be put in azkaban for it." Elizabeth confessed to the two of them. "So, I made Katie Bell take it to you."

"Does Draco know?" Albus asked.

"That Katie took it? Yes. That I imperiused her? No." Elizabeth added.

"And he never will, not by you atleast." Professor Mcgonagall added.

"So what now… I go to azkaban?" Elizabeth winced as she looked between the two. They look at her with a pained look on their faces. The table was cold and quiet now, no longer full and warm. The clock that sat in her hands was closing down on the time as it was. Elizabeth wished Draco could be here. He deserved to know. He hated what she'd done, the insanity her guilt had grown in her, and still didn't hate her.

"No, much better than that." Snape stated as he nodded to Dumbledore, "If you help us, do as we say, you'll never have to worry about going to Jail. Ever."

"What about Katie?" Elizabeth whipped towards the dark professor.

"Well it's a good thing you didn't harm her too bad, the worst effect was when she touched the hexed necklace."