This chapter contains scenes of violent actions. Please read with caution.

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'' Never walk away from me, ever again.''

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'' What is this, Draco?'' Amelie uttered quietly, already knowing what the mark meant since Adrian recently was granted with his — but the thing that nagged her, that annoyed her mind to the edge of breaking — was that he didn't say anything, that no one said anything about him getting it already.

He yanked his arm back as he roughly rolled his sleeve down, '' Nothing that is of your concern,'' He spoke sternly while taking a shoe back, '' Well, if you don't want to tell me what happened with —''

'' Why should I?'' She snapped, feeling as a wave of betrayal washed over her, '' Why should I tell you things about myself when you are more than dishonest?'' He rose a brow at her words, and his jaws clasped together,

'' This goes both ways, Draco—''

Draco swallowed his stubbornness as he tilted his head to the side, avoiding her stare that made him feel more than guilty, '' I know it does.'' He mumbled, sounding quite annoyed with the truth of needing to explain himself, '' I know it goes two ways, Avery.''

Amelie didn't believe that he was telling the truth — she allowed him to see everything, to feel everything she felt, only for him to shut her out, for him not to trust her the way she trusted him. He didn't trust her. It clouded her mind, and her heartbeat began to pound in her ears. Even if he didn't speak it, even if he never said that he didn't trust her, it undoubtedly seemed as if that was the case.

Her sights grounded as her bravery fell. Everything Amelie had worked so hard for with him — felt as if it was wasted. " I'm sorry." She hushed down in the attempt to stride past him. She didn't want him to feel uncomfortable with her — and she didn't wish for him to feel as if he needed to clear anything up — he didn't owe her a thing, and she could simply walk away.

" I won't bother you anymore."

With a loud sigh, Draco snatched her by the arm, pulling her back to where she stood, " Don't do that. Don't walk away from me–" His eyes glared through hers, a quick look of anger rent through them, " If you feel the need to say something, or if you think my deeds are deeper than I'm letting on, ask me."

" Ask me, and I will try and answer in the most honest way possible, but Avery—'' His eyes still locked in hers, and she could feel his heated breaths as they fanned her skin, '' Never walk away from me, ever again. Shout at me, be mad — I don't care, but never turn your back on me again. Understood?"

A harsh breath filled her lungs to the fullest, and her heart lightly missed a beat by his touch, " I won't. I promise."

He nodded, hesitatingly, still not convinced that she would do as she promised, but what Draco Malfoy didn't cherish was that a promise meant much to Amelie — for someone that never felt the comfort of honesty, a pledge was everything.

" I trust you, Avery—" He said, in attempts to sound severe, to mean it, but somewhere within, she knew that he didn't. Why would he? She was nothing to him, simply something to fix — someone to banish the instant he's through with her.

'' I'm glad that you do.''

" Don't—" He caught again, narrowing grey eyes in hers as the note in his voice darkened. " Don't push me away. Don't be that shallow.''

Her brows knitted together, and she took a step back over the stone-covered floor. He was still standing close to her — almost so close that she could see the light pieces of his hair that held out of order, but then her eyes flickered.

She looked around in the room, over the dusty bookshelves, student desks standing in a mess to left and right — everything to avoid the eyes that she had a habit of falling lost in.

His hand slowly moved up to her cheek, and she cringed — her lower back struck a table the instant the tips of his fingers sought to brush over her skin.

" Don't be afraid of me—" He pulled his touch away, '' I would be the last person to hurt you.'' Even if she was frightened by the thought of another soul's touch on hers — Draco's touch didn't bother her; instead, it calmed her, it soothed every evil thought circling through her worn mind.

'' Can I look at it?'' The puzzle of a girl in front of him made him flustered, almost visibly distressed as he silently groaned, stretching his arm out to roll up the sleeve. '' Draco—'' She gasped as a jittery breath ripped her vocals.

The ashen skin was reddened. His arm scratched, burned, cursed — he had done everything imaginable to eliminate it, to not have the ink coating his pale forearm.

'' Why did you do this, Draco?'' His neck closed away, withholding his eyes from hers, and the glance in his eyes shredded in pain. He felt ashamed. '' Does it hurt?'' Amelie sought to carefully stroke her fingers over it, but the instant her touch came close to his — he pulled away.

Draco's eyebrows frowned as a shaky hum bolted off her lips. He didn't want her to touch him. She could tell that this was more than challenging for the blonde boy with him and all his secrets, emotions, hopes — that he kept buried deep inside.

But she knew what she needed to do to teach him that he could trust her — to ensure him that she's more like him than he lets himself believe. With a rigid swallow — she tenderly pulled the fabric of her shirt down over her shoulder, and the gesture caused his breaths to hitch.

Malfoy's eyes continuously flickered between her hands, shoving down the textile and looking away from it. He had no strength in making up his mind — but the instant the end of her shirt lowered beneath the abuse Adrian had put her through — his eyes didn't hesitate anymore.

Draco stood as blank as she did, emptily gawking at each other.

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Draco Malfoy.

He was aware of the abuse her boyfriend had put her through, he had heard it — seen it on the small glances of her body, from when she slipped down onto a chair in the library and her skirt slightly hitched up, revealing the bruises — or when she once, as they waited outside of class, tilted her head to the side, and the purple burn marks of his hands around her neck showed.

And now — now she stood there, before him, and she unraveled her darkest secret, without question or force. She simply wished to trust him, how she, without anyone making her, confided in him — that painful emotion in his chest ached when she was close to him.

Draco's nerves sped in a hurtful way the very minute she held to near, and that was the reason as to why he couldn't speak to her about the mark. He knew that she was aware that he was destined to have the dark mark, but not when — and the only reason he couldn't explain it was because of that stinging feeling, that sickening ache chewing at his bones.

He was born for this. He was given life to carry and cherish the mark he'd been given. To serve the Dark Lord. His father was sure to beat that view of life into his head at a young age — but what Amelie didn't know, what she'll believably never grasp — is that all of this was intended.

He was deemed to care for her, to grow close to her and be there for her in the possibility of her father failing the Dark Lord, then she would be next to take Andrew's place.

Her father was not to be trusted, yet Voldemort went to further lengths in order to keep Amelie in check. He used Draco to keep an alert eye on her, and he did. Malfoy carried out his task well until he watched her break down.

He saw her pain. The pain Draco had felt himself all those years before he managed to restrain it and to look at her, how her voice split in torture, how her mind haunted her, and all she wanted to do was to leave this life — he decided to stop it. Malfoy couldn't do this anymore — he couldn't betray her more than he already had done.

That was more than wishful thinking — as he watched her at Adrian's ceremony, looking as she within, broke in agony yet held the most gracious of facades; it took his breath away.

Amelie was irresistible.

Her pain, her humble mind — it triggered him because he knew that he had fooled her, played her for the benefit of someone else, but not anymore.

Now, he wished to protect her after being given a glimpse of her soul and see the world spinning in her head. It would be impossible to stay away. It was something about Amelie and all the hurt, grief, and sorrow she kept that made him — weak, vulnerable, yet more capable, strong-minded.

It was a strange thing, Draco Malfoy wanting someone he couldn't have.

'' Now, will you tell me what happened?" Draco asked her again, " Or do I have to speak with Professor Snape—"

" It was just a childish argument with Blaise..." She held, her fingers nervously whirling a lock of brown hair in between them, " It... we...." Her hands dropped, her head slightly tilted.

" He did something, in front of the whole class—"

" He did what?" Draco growled as his blood fumed, " Tell me exactly what Blaise did, Avery."

" Right now."

She blinked quickly, swallowing hard in uncertainty before she stretched her spine, winning the courage that Malfoy prized rested within her, '' He hurt me.''

It was as if the kindness Draco held within for the girl standing before him shattered the trice he caught onto the words she spoke,'' He hurt me.''

He hurt her.

Blaise wasn't supposed to talk to her, to touch her — not even look in her direction, yet again, he did.

And now — now he was more than doomed to settle for it.

Draco marched past her with severe sharp steps as he forced the door shut right in front of her. He locked it with a spell that he knew she had no chance of breaking. She had already been in enough trouble, cursing Adrian, her father visiting the school, she couldn't be held responsible for anything else.

But Draco could — because Zabini hurt her.

He booted the door leading to Professor Snape's classroom-wide open, and the act made all the students turn their heads in his direction. '' Mr. Malfoy,'' Snape sighed from the front, ''What are you doing?''

Draco couldn't care less for what the professor spoke. His eyes merely reamed over the boy he once — before Adrian dug his vicious claws in him — called his best friend.

'' Zabini,'' Malfoy threatened with his teeth gritted, and the furious gaze upon Draco made Blaise's face fall into pure confusion, '' Outside, now.''

'' Mr. Malfoy. Do I have to remind you that this is an ongoing class—''

'' Right now, Zabini.'' Without faltering, he did as charged. He sauntered past Draco, rolling his eyes as he went. Professor Snape returned the favor of Malfoy interrupting his class with an evil glare, nearly promising with that stare — that he hadn't nor will hear the last of this.

'' What is it, Malfoy? Why are you—''

His words were cut off by Draco's fist as it collided brutally with the sharp bone in his jaw — the punch struck him to the floor, and blood shattered all over as he bent over the wounded boy.

Malfoy hauled a napkin out of his pocket, wiping his knuckles clean of the stains as he watched Blaise's figure tremble by the aching pain that scored throughout his bones.

'' That's right, Zabini, that's your place—'' Draco breathed out, dangerously as he earned a groan from Blaise's whining lips, '' Always second to me.''

'' Remember that the next time you even think about her.'' The blonde spat, '' That was not our deal. You weren't supposed to harm her, and still, you did.''

Nothing could tame Malfoy's raging temper as his hands gripped around the collar of the boy's shirt, forcing him up to face him. His head hung, and his jaws dropped as a path of blood trailed down his lip, '' You pathetic halfwit,'' Draco snarled inches away from his face before pushing him back, striving to turn around — and the second he does — Blaise's hand gripped his ankle.

'' What about—'' He coughed, propping himself up more from the stone-covered floor, '' What about our deal?''

Draco's eyes rolled at the boy's meanless words, '' You will keep doing, exactly, what we agreed on, but Blaise—'' He held, glaring down at him, shoeing his desperate touch off of himself, '' If you touch her, ever again—''

'' You're done.''

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