!!TW: Sexual Assualt, PTSD, Anxiety!!

Draco's term was going worse than shit; The cabinet was doing fuck all, he'd tried to send a bird through it but it died; The death eaters had found out about the Katie Bell incident; His mother was sending non-stop letters about how important this all was. He knew how important it was. He knew his life was on the line.

To add to it Gardner wasn't speaking to him, he was aware he'd asked her to leave him alone but they'd argued loads and she'd never held up the silent treatment this long.

He wasn't sure why it bothered him so much.

Maybe because he felt like she wasn't ignoring him simply because they'd argued. He hadn't even said anything bad this time - he was sure there was something else behind it.

Surely she doesn't know about... the mark.

No she can't. She was so sure I didn't curse Katie.

Draco liked that she didn't think he was capable of cursing Katie, like she saw something redeemable in him. Even if he knew that wasn't possible.

He'd tried his hardest to get her to speak throughout the past two weeks without being too upfront, he decided he'd gone a little too far when he trapped her in the library last week.

Violet was roaming the bookshelves looking for a Transfiguration book McGonagall had suggested. She spotted it on a bookshelf in the far corner of the library, it was late at night and the rain was pelting against the large windows. She couldn't shake the feeling that there was someone watching her but whenever she turned there was no one in sight.

Once she reached the shelf she leant forward onto her tiptoes to reach the book but, alas, it was just out of her reach.

But then she felt a toned build press against her back and an arm reach over her shoulder and remove the book from the shelf. She didn't need to turn to know who it was; the cologne, the mint, she knew exactly who it was.

"'Theories of Transubstantial Transfiguration'? How boring"

She turned to face him but he hadn't backed up and was towering over her with his arm resting against the bookshelf, locking her in place. She made a grab for the book but he simply lifted it above her head.

"You've been awfully quiet recently Gardner" She didn't respond and just turned her head to look out of the window to her left. Malfoy grabbed her chin and turned her face back to look at him. "You'll speak when spoken to - or weren't you taught good manners?" He rasped, glaring down at her.

"You asked me to leave you alone. Remember." she simply glared at him.

"Well I didn't mean-"

"I'm just fulfilling your wishes" she made a grab for the book while he was mid-sentence and ducked under his arm, swiftly leaving the library.

He knew he should just leave it and let her ignore him but she had gotten completely under his skin and he needed to speak to her. Badly.

*****

The next two weeks were hard for Violet and the golden trio. Hermione never wanted to be around Ron because wherever Ron went Lavender would always trail behind. Hermione and Violet spent much more time with Ginny and often spent their weekends at the Three Broomsticks.

Violet had been avidly avoiding Malfoy, he had told her to leave him alone after all, but it was mostly because she didn't know what to say to him after her dream two weeks ago. But despite all her attempts to avoid him, he actually seemed to be seeking her out.

During potions lessons he would ask her questions about the work which she knew he understood and last week he even cornered her in the library.

Needless to say it's been mildly uncomfortable. What Violet didn't like was that she couldn't for the life of her figure out what she was feeling towards Malfoy, she knew all her friends - bloody hell her whole house hated him. She knew she should hate him. He has always acted like an arsehole after all. But every time she looks at him a little tingle is sent through her body which comes to rest in her lower abdomen.

She just assumed if she ignored him for long enough that feeling would go away.

Hermione, Ginny and Violet were all in Hogsmeade looking for dresses for Slughorn's Christmas party, it wasn't as extravagant as the Yule Ball but it was a black tie event. Hermione was going with Cormac and Ginny was going with Dean, Violet didn't have a date but she didn't mind too much.

"What do you think about this one?" Ginny exited the changing room wearing a strappy emerald green dress that had a v neck and stopped around her knees.

"You look stunning Gin" Violet beamed as Hermione clapped. "You should definitely get that one"

Ginny took her dress over to the till as Violet went into the changing room. She changed into a midnight blue sparkly swing dress that had lace sleeves and stopped just above her knee. Violet really liked it, it looked pretty while covering the things she didn't necessarily want to show. The lace sleeves hid her upper arms and the high waistband meant that it didn't cling to her stomach. She stepped out of the changing room to show Hermione.

"Do you like it?"

"Oh Violet it's gorgeous - go on give us a spin" Violet twirled around and the skirt of the dress flared out around her. "Yep, that's definitely the one"

Violet went to make her purchase. Hermione had already bought a pink v neck sleeveless dress for the party.

The girls made their way back through Hogsmeade towards the castle, chatting about the forthcoming party, but as they crossed the bridge they ran into Harry and Ron.

Everyone stopped, it was extremely awkward - Hermione didn't want to say anything because she was angry at Ron, Ron didn't want to say anything because he was annoyed at Hermione, Harry didn't want to say anything because he liked Ginny and didn't know what to say to her and Ginny knew Harry liked her so was uncomfortable around him.

They all stood staring at each other for what felt like hours before Violet decided to break the silence.

"So... why are you two at Hogsmeade?"

"We were just, um, going to the Three Broomsticks. Why are you here?" Harry responded.

"We were just getting dresses for Slughorn's Christmas party"

Ron scoffed.

"Ok well we'll be heading back to the castle then" with that the three girls headed back on the path to Hogwarts. The snow swirled around them catching in their hair and eyelashes, Violet was reminded of the day Katie Bell was cursed and how happy her and her three friends had been earlier that day.

It was the second to last Friday before Christmas and Slughorn's party was tonight. No one understood why Slughorn didn't just throw it on the last day but he would just respond with "It's tradition". So the girls went to the library to finish off their homework for the week before going to Hermione and Violet's dorm to get ready.

All the girls had put their dresses on and were doing their hair and makeup, Violet was curling her hair while Ginny cast a spell to straighten hers.

"Do you think it was the right idea to take Cormac?" Hermione absentmindedly questioned while fiddling with a tube of lipgloss.

"Yes! that boy is obsessed with you and it's quite funny how much it irritates Ron" Ginny giggled.

"No offence 'Mione but Cormac kind of creeps me out. I can't put my finger on it but every time he's around I feel really icky" Violet added curling the final piece of hair. "How are things going with you and Dean, Gin?"

Ginny looked down at her nails, "Yeah, fine. I guess"

"You know we see how often you two fight" Hermione got up from the bed and walked to stand behind Ginny and placed her hands on Ginny's shoulders.

"Well all couples fight" Ginny shrugged.

"Yeah but-"

"Come on, we're meeting the boys in the common room in five minutes". Ginny butted in.

The girls made the final touch ups on their appearance and Violet slipped on her black flats. Violet's dress didn't have any pockets so she left her wand on her night stand, she really wouldn't have any need for it anyway.

They made their way down the stairs to find Cormac and Dean sitting on the sofa in front of the fire, they heard the girls on the stairs and stood up to meet them.

"No date, Gardner?" Cormac smirked placing his hands in his pockets. He really agitated her and she honestly couldn't work out why.

"No. Obviously not."

The group walked out of Gryffindor tower to head for the Slughorn's office. Dean and Ginny were talking ahead of the group and Violet was walking next to Hermione. Every so often Violet would catch Cormac eyeing her and she would feel a shiver shoot through her body, and not the good kind - she would avoid eye contact by fixing her dress or fiddling with her nails.

They followed a trail of lanterns down the corridors, it added a warm glow to the halls. They could hear chatter floating from the open door at the end of the corridor, leading them to the party.

They stepped into Slughorn's office and were amazed by it's transformation. There were green, red and yellow drapes and net curtains hanging from the ceilings and the room was filled with ex-slug club participants. There were waiters in white serving all different kinds of food which filled the room with a fragrant aroma.

Harry was already there with Luna, Violet thought she looked like a Christmas bauble - a very pretty bauble at that. Violet broke away from the group to talk to Harry.

"Harry, you're here and you brought Luna, that's great - how long have you been here?" Violet grinned.

"Oh not long at all" Luna smiled before twirling and drifting off in another direction. Harry and Violet just laughed as Luna waltzed off.

"Luna?" Violet questioned.

Harry cut in quickly, "Oh no just friends"

"Okay. We really don't need anymore relationship drama in our group"

"I know, I hate how distant we've all been recently"

"Me too, hopefully it will settle soon... Is that-" Harry turned in the direction Violet was pointing and they noticed Hermione hiding behind one of the curtains by the window. "How about you take this one. Catch up with her?"

Harry walked towards the curtain where Hermione was hidden and Violet smiled at her friends. Violet recognised one of the waiters and waved him over "Neville! What are you doing here?"

"Well I couldn't get into the Slug Club so I thought I'd volunteer my services as a waiter"

"How very noble of you" Violet beamed.

"Would you like some... uh..." he raised his plate and it held some odd, squishy grey food that seemed to be oozing all sorts of different juices. "You know what never mind"

Neville stepped away to offer the Hors D'oeuvre to someone else, leaving Violet by herself. She was about to go and find Ginny when someone interrupted her.

"Looking good tonight, Gardner" that familiar shudder was sent through her body. Cormac.

"Yeah, thanks" she tried to brush past him but he lightly took a hold of her wrist.

"No I mean you look really good" he leant in too close for comfort.

She turned and glared at him. "Aren't you meant to be 'Mione's date-"

"Of course I preferred what you were wearing on Halloween," he smirked.

"What do you-" Violet thought back to Halloween and her run in with her unknown attacker. She couldn't make out his face but she remembered his blonde curly hair, overly similar to... "It was you," she grimaced, removing herself from his hold.

"It's a shame you got so flustered on Halloween, it could of been fun-"

"Merlin! Get away from me" She needed some air and tried to get to the exit of the party as calmly as possible, as to not draw too much attention to herself.

Once she left Slughorn's office she turned down a corridor that wasn't lit by the extravagant lanterns and rested against one of the walls - she felt safe in the cover of darkness minus a few dim torches and Violet bent over, holding her knees, trying to catch her breath. She thought back to Halloween and how Cormac had violated her, it made her feel sick. Her heart rate started to increase just thinking about it.

"You look so sexy tonight"

To make it worse Cormac had left the Christmas party to come and find her, she looked up to see that he was approaching. She took a step back as he approached her.

"Come on, Gardner don't be so overdramatic"

"Seriously Cormac. Leave me alone."

He stepped directly in front of her and ran his hands up her sides. She first reached to her side for her wand but remembered that she had left it in her dorm. Shit. She tried to push his hands away instead but he grabbed her wrists and pinned them against the wall by her head.

"Relax, this is going to be fun. Trust me."

"Hey, it's alright. Just calm down"

Cormac's lips attached to her neck with such a force that she was sure they would bruise from the impact alone, she thrashed against his body trying anything to get him off. Her breathing had become so inconsistent that she was struggling to get enough oxygen and her vision was starting to blur. She had never had a panic attack before but she was sure this was what it felt like.

She started to become desperate, the corridor was deserted because everyone was in the party and she couldn't fight him off because his hold on her was too tight. She was still wriggling under his grip and he was starting to become agitated.

He removed his mouth from her neck and grabbed her neck pushing her further to the wall "Stop moving"

"Please... please get off me" she whimpered as a tear rolled down her cheek. Cormac simply shot her an evil smile tightening his grip on her neck. She had become completely hopeless, she saw no other end to this situation.

Until Cormac was suddenly removed from her body, she stumbled forward just managing to keep her balance and relishing the feeling of air filling her lungs. By the time she had regained her senses she saw Cormac on the floor with Malfoy on top of him.

Malfoy was mercilessly striking Cormac in the face. His face was bloody and cut and Violet knew she should stop it, yet, she stood there for a moment feeling her body ease each time Malfoy's fist connected with Cormac's face. She quickly snapped herself out of it.

"Malfoy get off of him" she said with no conviction in her tone.

"Malfoy!" she grabbed his shoulder and yanked him backwards "That's enough"

Cormac just groaned from his spot on the floor and brought his hand up to his face. "Malfoy you're insane. She was fine - weren't you slut?"

Violet walked up to him, the word slut on Cormac's tongue definitely didn't have the same effect it did from Malfoy's. She looked him in the eyes for a moment before kicking him in the crotch and walking back to lean her back against the wall.

Malfoy towered over his body and raised him off the floor by his collar "Call her that again, I dare you. Now piss off before I kill you." he released his collar, slamming him into the cold, stone floor.

Cormac stood up and made his way out of the corridor presumably to the Hospital Wing. Malfoy stood with his back to Violet and she thought about putting up a front and telling him that she was fine and didn't need him to defend her, but by the time Malfoy got there she was practically praying for someone to save her. But she also wasn't about to break down all her walls just for him.

"Why do you care if he calls me that?" she crosses her arms over her front. "If I remember correctly you called me a... a- slut on Halloween"

"That's different" he wiped the blood off of his split lip with his thumb then ran his other hand through his hair.

"Why is it differ-"

"Aren't you going to at least say thank you. You know for saving you and all" he marched towards her and stood a couple feet in front.

"You didn't save..." she stopped, she knew what would've happened if Malfoy didn't show up, she took a deep breath and redirected her train of thought "Why is it different?"

He clenched his jaw and looked away "You- no one can hurt you. When I insult you I don't have that intention"

She unfolded her arms and pushed herself off the wall to stand within a few inches of him, she held his jaw and brought his face back to look at her "Then what are your intentions?"

"You're not ignoring me anymore" he smirked.

"Don't avoid the question" she raised her eyebrow, tightening her grip on his jaw.

His eyes flicked from her eyes to her lips for a brief moment and he then crashed his lips into hers. The kiss felt better than her dream; he was much more delicate with his movements and she could taste the metallic twang of his blood laced within the kiss.

However a memory quickly flashed across her mind.

"I pitied you. I thought I could have some fun and give the miserable Gryffindor her first kiss"

She pulled away and removed her hand from his jaw, but keeping their bodies close, "I don't want your pity"

Malfoy let out a sigh and pressed his forehead against hers "This isn't pity, Gardner" he brought his cool hand up to her face to cup her cheek and lightly brushed his nose against hers, she slightly flinched at his touch. His eyes shot to hers with concern the second she flinched "Is this ok?"

She hummed and nodded her head slightly in agreement and Malfoy reconnected their lips; it was soft, light, simple. His other hand went to the small of her back and pulled her closer, she let out a small gasp and he used the opportunity to deepen the kiss. Her hands started to move upwards from his chest and had only just touched his neck when a low, fake, cough sliced through the air and they both pulled away from each other and turned in the direction of the sound.

*****

Discussion :)