One week later:
Lillian and Draco's family sat at the dinner table, eating their dinner like every evening. "We are having another party tomorrow. We expect you to go back into the cellar." Lucius told her and she nodded. She didn't want to go back there. She hated it but she guessed it would be better than getting caught.
The next morning, Draco led Lillian down to the cellar, opened it for her, and allowed her to step in. "Draco, I don't know if I can do this!" A panic attack was setting in. Draco gulped and reached over to hug her. The hug soothed her; it allowed her breathing to calm. They both waited there for a moment, arms intertwined. "I'll get you out of here as soon as the party is done."
He left seconds later as Lillian just sat in silence, praying she would return to the comfort of Draco's arms wrapped around her again. She hated this place; all she wanted was to be back in her bedroom.
As time went on, she couldn't take it anymore. As she heard the people upstairs, she wondered what a Slytherin party would be like. Lillian stood up and started snooping around to find a chest. She opened the drawer to distract herself. She barely could see the mask she pulled out of the chest. She placed it on her face, took a deep breath and softly opened the cellar door. She walked up the steps and sneakily approached the nearest mirror. She had been unrecognizable. This was her chance.
She took one sigh and decided then and there she was going upstairs to see the death eaters herself. She wouldn't get caught; she just had to fit in. Don't draw any attention to herself. She had always been good at that.
Lillian left the room and proceeded to walk slowly toward the noise of the crowd. She found herself in the large living room, the music blaring, and people all around. She approached the room, standing in the corner, looking out, trying to find anyone interesting. Some were standing in the corner like her, some were making out, some were wasted in alcohol, and others were dancing proudly to the beat of blaring rock music.
There was no sign of Voldemort but she sensed Bellatrix by her crazy laugh and curly jet black hair. Lillian felt as if her heart stopped when she saw Neville Longbottom. She had never been good friends with him, but she had spoke with him multiple times. It sickened her when she realized Bellatrix was mocking him. She noticed his figure beaten and bruised. Bellatrix clearly had tortured him countless times. He seemed only a glimpse of his former self at that point, barely able to stand on his feet. There was a tattoo on his arm, barely recognizing the words imprinted. It read Bellatrix.
She looked away to spot Snape in the corner across from her. He had turned toward her direction, staring straight at her. She tried to remain calm, looking back at him, then bringing her attention back at Neville.
Then, Lillian heard a laugh from a man on a couch. Next to him was the girlfriend of her brother. She wore a vulgar outfit, her face only showing fear and disgust. She was clearly bruised and beaten but not as terrible as Neville. The death eater drew Ginny Weasley close, his hand wrapping around her waist.
Lillian felt sick, like she was about to throw up. Disgusted, she turned to the kitchen to get a break from these insane death eaters.
All of a sudden, she heard a familiar voice coming from a woman. It was professor Mcgonagall's voice full of distress. "Get your hands off of her!" Lillian could see Mcgonagall stepping into the room, bringing with her a plate full of alcohol glasses. Her appearance seemed a lot more cleaner and unharmed. She dropped the plate, crashing it to the floor, as she rushed Ginny's way.
The man who sat with Ginny stood up and raised his hand, slapping Mcgongall across the face. Bellatrix made an evil laugh as the man proclaimed. "How dare you! You dirty half blood!"
Lillian stomach churned, her anxiety was getting heavy. She wanted to do something but knew one wrong move could kill her along with Draco and his family.
The older lady had recoiled for only a second and then began to physically fight the man. Snape rushed between them, separating the two. "Stop!" He demanded. The witch stared at the two men in anger as she wiped the blood from her mouth. Severus looked toward the man and spoke in a stern voice. "Don't touch her. Mcgonagall doesn't belong to you."
The man rolled his eyes and went back to the couch, leaning toward Ginny once more.
Lillian couldn't take it anymore. She rushed out of the room, finding herself in a quiet room nearby. There was no one to be seen. Her breathing increased. She was going to hyperventilate if she couldn't control her breathing.
She suddenly heard Mcgonagall's angry voice. "This is sick! Neville is half dead! Ginny, the poor girl!"
Lillian strode over to peek her head out of the door into the hall. Professor Snape and Professor Mcgonagall were both talking to one another face to face.
"I know! But there is no way to help. We are going to die if we try." Snape sighed in frustration. "Never do that! No matter how much you want to! They could kill you." He paused in thought. "I took you to protect you from these people!"
Minerva replied full of worry. "We have to save them, Severus. They are too young! They don't deserve-"
Instantly, Snape saw Lillian out of the corner of his eye. She had been terrified once she knew even with the mask he somehow recognized her. She ran as fast as she could, through a secret area to a different room, then made her way into the kitchen.
Out of breathe, she gripped the countertop in despair of what she had just heard and saw. Her anxiety became extreme as images of Ginny and Neville flashed before her. She leaned her head on the counter, praying that she would calm herself but her thoughts continued to race. She thought of the other classmates from Hogwarts and what happened to them.
She was filled with anguish as she thought of Draco and his parents. What if they had left her on the battlefield? Would she have died or be a prisoner of war like the rest? Would she have been owned by the Malfoys or be a servant to the worst of death eaters? She didn't know and it made her nauseous just thinking about it. How would Draco treat her, knowing she would be his or his family's property? She shook her head in disbelief. No, he would have never let anything happen to her. They loved each other too much.
The thoughts of her brother's friends and her own echoed in her mind. What about Ron, Hermione, and Luna? Were they dead? Were they slaves to the death eaters? The unbearable twisting of her stomach got worse.
She thought of Draco, his parents and how they would be furious if they caught her at the party. It was dangerous. She turned away from the table top to head back to the cellar quickly. As she turned, her heart skipped a beat; her chest became tight with uneasiness.
A tall, slender man, had been behind her in the kitchen. "Hello, why is such a elegant woman in the kitchen alone? You should be out enjoying the party." He held out his hand for the girl to take it. "Come with me. We can dance together." He smirked. She had no idea what to do other than to take his hand and follow him. "You should remove the mask. I would love to see your true face before the dance."
Lillian gulped in fright. Her heart was pounding out of her chest. "I can't do that. I-"
Then, she heard a recognizable voice and in that moment all her worry disappeared. Draco's hand firmly grasped hers as he mentioned to the mysterious man. "She is not dancing with you. She's with me." He cleared his throat. "She's my girlfriend."
"I didn't know you had a girlfriend, Malfoy." The man chuckled instead of arguing.
"There's many things you don't know about me." Draco said as the man walked away, from the kitchen.
Once the death eater left, Lillian spoke first. "How did you know it was me?"
"Your voice." Draco told her. Lillian smiled the first time that day.
~
Bellatrix told Snape in a sluggish tone, clearly drunk from all the alcohol in her system. "Go to the cellar and fetch some more wine." Snape rolled his eyes and headed down to the cellar.
~
Draco and Lillian walked together hand in hand into the cellar until they were in the dark.
"I can't believe they are doing this to my people- to our people." Lillian told him, tears in her eyes from the overwhelming sorrow.
"Listen, I know. But I have an idea to get our minds off of it." He said. "May I have this dance, Lillian?" Draco questioned. Lillian made a sad smile as she brought her hand into his once again.
Draco traced his fingers onto her mask, lifting it off her face. He brought his hands to her waist in exchange for her arms around his neck. They were slow dancing while the loud ruckus continued upstairs.
"Draco, what happened to Hogwarts? My friends?" She asked as he sighed.
They unexpectedly heard a door open and could see beneath the moonlight, Snape looking directly at both of them.