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'' I missed you more.''

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Amelie Avery.

Her fists repeatedly collided with the door as her palms roughly struck against the wood in a desperate attempt to force it open — non of the spells she sought to cast did the trick because he was more advanced than her.

Draco knew types of magic. She didn't.

'' Help—'' She yelled out as the note in her undertone slightly broke in desperation, '' Please, someone let me out.''

Nothing. Not a student, teacher, or ghost present to let her out of the classroom Draco had locked her inside. Her veins swelled in panic every time her mind reached the thought of him and what he would do to Blaise.

How upset and missed by his own temper he was when he stormed out, but even if she wanted to do something, to fend off the blonde boy from hurting his friend — She held no chance in doing so.

Amelie huffed out. Her fingers brushed through her hair, and she took a step back as she sought to give up the possibility of sneaking out until he came back.

She couldn't believe him, that he would do this — that he would seal the door with his magic, but that wasn't a strange thing to her either, because he had watched her mind, he studied her every thought, and through that, he doubtlessly knew Amelie better than she knew herself.

She slipped onto a chair, elbows heavy on the desk, as she sighed again. Amelie remained there, for what felt like hours, bored out of her own mind, with the only sound circling her was the ticking clock, but barely that scored through her senses as she got used to it.

Her eyes shifted more than heavy as she rested her head on her arms, nearly falling asleep before she flinched back — jolting off the chair at the boy ripping the door wide open, '' There you are.''

Amelie's head shook, and she sucked in a harsh breath as the drowsiness flooded off her,'' Theodore?'' She practically yawned. Her knuckles rubbed against her eyes before she stared back at him, '' How did you—''

'' Doesn't matter,'' He mumbled, and he seemed visibly upset. He didn't look at her as he used to do. His eyes met Amelie's for a slight second before tearing them apart. '' We should go—''

_____

Days passed without her seeing Draco. The constant feeling of him ignoring her made Amelie believe that she had done something wrong. She could tell he did, and that didn't bother her — he was free to do as he pleased, but the sense that managed to crawl beneath her fragile skin was the truth where he hadn't given her a reason to why he stayed clear of her.

He simply did, without as much as a word.

Her eyes flicked over her best friend. His hand rested on the table as he chewed on the last pieces of lunch, '' When is Adrian coming back?'' He asked, his fingers stretched to take a sip of his pumpkin juice.

'' I don't know, he was—'' Amelie shrugged, holding her tells as she thought of him — how the peace she felt these past weeks was meant to be over soon, '' He was supposed to be back yesterday.''

Theodore quietly nodded, peering over his shoulder to look at the girl seated next to the Slytherin boys, '' Do we know anything else about Pansy?'' His words iced the blood flushing through her veins, and her mind became dizzy as she looked at Pansy, how she sat completely numb next to Blaise, how she didn't speak to anyone.

'' No. She hasn't talked to me since that night.''

He nodded again, his fork placed in between his lips to take another bite, '' I'm scared,'' He stuttered with a bitter grimace on his face, and his head shook, '' I don't—'' He held, dropping the fork onto the table, burying his head in his hands.

'' I know—'' She whispered, reaching over the table to stroke her hand against his, '' I know you're scared. I am too, but we can't avoid this, Teddy. The mark is something we're meant to get.''

His fingers parted to glare at her as he sighed loudly, '' I know. I just wished we could run away like we said we would.''

She felt a shy smile as it arched on her lips, and she knew that it would have been the best option — running away with him, to hide and stay away from everything their bloodlines craved for them to do. That thought had crossed her mind a million times.

'' We still could, you know?'' She smiled, prying his hand off his face before she braided her fingers with his, '' We could leave right now and never look back.''

'' Don't say that—'' The boy snapped, tugging his hand out of her hold, '' Don't say things you don't mean.''

Her face fell into guilt as she pulled her touch away, and her heart ached. Amelie really wanted to — she would've done anything to leave the life they both were living to be free.

'' But what if I do mean it, what if we just—''

'' Amelie,'' A familiar, frightening voice trailed a path of shivers down her spine as she caught his tone close, '' You need to come with me.''

She spun around in her seat, and her fingers clawed into the backrest of her chair the instant her eyes caught the brown hues. They bored through hers with might as not even a flash of emotion showed on his face,

'' No,'' Amelie spoke back as Theodore's neck popped up, and his eyes flickered between the both of them — she knew the reasonable thing was to leave with Blaise, to walk to class with him as they did every day, but today — she didn't want to.

She was tired, sick of being the one in the wrong — to be the one living under sustained supervision, and she couldn't do it anymore. If Adrian were to be here, things might have turned differently, but he wasn't — he was still in the wind of his missions, and Amelie was stuck here, with Blaise.

As it always had been. Adrian always left her, and she was to be held behind, waiting for her love to return — similar to the wife of soldiers that were to be read about in old, dusty books.

It was always her waiting.

Always her on hold, for everything.

She had given her life to the boy she promised her hand to, yet it wasn't enough. He craved to take every single piece of light and heaven away, and he did, slowly — merely as if she hadn't noticed it.

It started with the way she dressed, how he — in small, gentle words, asked her to change the little things, but the tiny details shifted in mean comments and cosmic trades.

Amelie's friends that she always kept close and dear were being replaced with him — him giving her a guilty mind for spending time with the people she cherished the most and not the boy he repeatedly told her she loved.

The way Amelie existed. He suffocated every inch of place she held in this world, a little tiny bit at the time, but those small inches quickly turned into feet of abuse, and before she knew what was happening — before she even had a slight chance to get out,

She was trapped, and she was chained in a lie that would be held in play for the rest of her life, with a boy who sought to do everything possible to kill her, slowly, unnoticeable.

'' What did you say?'' Blaise growled as he strode forward. His hand stretched in the air to snatch Amelie by the arm, but before his fingers could clutch her skin — he hewed himself off, pulling away from the cruel touch he sought to bring upon her.

Amelie rose a brow. Her view gazed over his shoulder as it immediately locked on the blonde boy with his shoulder leaning against a wall. Her heart fluttered at the look of him, standing there, watching over her with his hands shoved into his pockets and the black signature jacket firmly suited over his chest.

The grey eyes studied her for the briefest of seconds before Blaise closed in again, bending down to parallel her gaze, '' I told you that we have to—''

'' And I told you that I'm not coming with you." Amelie sought to fight back, and her sight of the blonde dragged back to the boy standing before her, '' I don't have classes until after—''

'' Darling—''

Amelie froze.

Her whole self was numbed by his husky vocals as they loudly tore through the busy dining hall.

Adrian.

He was back, and he was standing in the doorway with his arm held out for her.

Even if there was a slight wash of relief welling over her and all the waver she had felt. The heavyweight in her chest lingered as if someone put pressure upon it, a fist clenching around her heart.

The courage she held only seconds ago was blown away, taken from her the instant her eyes placed on him. He looked worn, yet so much stronger.

Amelie pushed herself off of her seat, and she could feel, all the way up to Adrian — how Theodore's stare burned into her back with every step she took until she held — only inches apart from him.

The tips of her fingers lightly brushed over his cheek as he watched, with his green eyes locked on her startled self — his skin soared weary and pale.

'' I missed you—'' He said with confidence before his head leveled down, and he placed a kiss on her lips.

'' I missed you more.'' She whispered as her arms moved around his neck to pull him closer. Still, even if she had him close, near — even if everything Amelie believed she ever wanted was right here, in her arms, home with her again — her eyes searched for Draco's, and the longing feeling of him scored through her every sense.

_____

Draco Malfoy.

His spine arched off the wall as he watched her hold him. The way her arms wrapped around his neck made Malfoy sick, how he pulled her closer, burying his head into her shoulder, whispering lies after lies to her.

Draco wanted to kill him — right there and then, but he couldn't do that. Not yet.

He was of value to the Dark Lord, the way Adrian's mind worked — how he felt no sympathy, no remorse for his acts made him a machine, all for the Death Eaters to use as they pleased.

He was a murderer — the humans he had ceased of life while being away was of a countless amount. They wielded the boy to their fullest and turned him into someone they all feared.

And now, he was here — with his arms wrapped around her waist, breathing the scent of newly cut flowers in — her scent.

The hands he had used for such horrifying acts were now tangled into her hair, bending her head back to place another kiss on her lips — it stung in Malfoy's eyes because she let him.

Amelie was as foolish as he was, but she didn't know — she was manipulated, toyed with to the extent of not being able to tell the difference between right and wrong, black and white.

Amelie's world was grey — a fusion of grasping the light of truth and being kept in the utter dark.

Draco marched past them, out of the hall. He couldn't bear to look at it anymore, at them, at her.

Malfoy had played her just as Adrian had done, but the difference between the two boys was that he showed his true colors, and Draco didn't — he lied. He was soft, gentle with her, and all for acts.

Draco was a liar, and he didn't deserve her at all — he didn't even deserve to look at her. He wasn't worthy of the respect Amelie kept humbling him with, and he knew that if she even sought to grow closer to him — he would be trapped, and he would have no chance of staying away from her.

So he had to avoid her before it was too late. Draco needed to distance himself — a girl like her, a human with so much compassion and grace, he would never be named to have because whatever Adrian had done, every cruel, inhuman act he had executed for the Dark Lord,

Draco had done worse.

'' Malfoy—'' His voice rushed after him, and the heavy palms pushed into his shoulder to slam him against the wall, '' What are you up to, Malfoy?''

Draco's spine collided heavily with the stone, and his grey eyes snapped up to face Theo's green ones, '' Don't you fucking touch me, Nott—'' He spat before he forced himself off the wall, brushing the material of his jacket off.

'' Then tell me what you're up to. What are you doing with Amelie?'' Theodore's vocals held harsh yet low, presumably scared that his best friend would hear them, and he grew impatient with Draco's silence.

'' I don't know what you—''

'' Don't lie to me, Draco—'' He cut the blonde off. His hands frustratingly scratched over his jawline, '' I heard you and Zabini the other day.''

Draco's insides felt as if they twisted, and the guilt of what he had done caved within. '' I said that I don't know—''

'' The deal, Malfoy,'' Theodore said, '' The bloody deal you two made.''

Theodore's arms bolted out in the air as he narrowed his green eyes in Draco's, '' Do you think that I'm stupid? That she's stupid? No wonder that you were so eager to help her, to be close to her—''

But Malfoy's temper missed him completely at Theo's words and his lack of understanding just how wrong he was — his hand flew to the brunette's throat as he forced him down onto the ground in a sudden move.

'' You have no idea what you're talking about, Nott—'' Malfoy seethed, and his teeth gritted with his wand pushed into Theo's chest, '' This doesn't concern you, or her, so do us both a favor and stay out of it.''

The boy let out a quiet whimper at Draco's doings. His hand roughly yanked his wand away from the coarse hold in his chest.

'' Why do you care so much, Nott?'' Draco mockingly smirked, '' Don't forget that I watched your mind too, Theodore. I know how you feel about her, how she's the reason to why—''

Theo's figure visibly shook, and his skin flushed in color, '' Shut that bloody mouth of yours, right now, mate or I'll—''

'' Then you should do the same, Nott. Just as I have nothing to do with your secrets, you have nothing to do with mine.''

Draco felt his hand as it tensed around his wand, and all he craved to do at this moment was to kill him — to do what he had done so many times before because Nott had failed her. He knew, he saw, he lived right next to her as the abuse turned more violent, and he did nothing.

He didn't deserve her, just like Draco didn't.

But Amelie needed him. Malfoy noted that in her mind, that he was more than necessary to her, that he was the reason she still lived to see another day, and he could never take that away from her — not after he'd caused her great pain himself.

Theodore shook his head, and his jaws dragged together into a sharp line, '' But this is about her, you lied to her—''

'' Who lied to me?'' Amelie's heavenly voice uttered from behind them. Her steps halted inches away as her head flickered between the two Slytherins.

'' Who lied to me?''

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