𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐬, 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 • (𝐝.𝐦.)

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐢𝐱𝐭𝐲-𝐭𝐰𝐨

♔

Over the course of the next few weeks, Fleur taught me how to hone my Veela abilities into the weapon they were supposed to be. 

I was stronger than ever before, I let nothing hold me back. I could conjure up the fire from my hands at will and make it any size I wanted. 

I could throw the fireballs far as hell, and I was proud of myself. We were both seventeen now, we could do whatever magic we wanted, so practicing spells wasn't a problem.

Draco was not one to mess around about this kind of stuff, and it was obvious that he wanted me to succeed in each task we practiced. 

"You've got to be quicker on your feet, Maggie. You really have to be quicker," Draco snapped, casting a spell in my direction. I dodged it, sending a counterspell at him, which he deflected. 

"I am quick," I snarled back. He was beginning to get on my nerves with the intensity he always brought to training.

"You need to be better. Voldemort won't let you off easy like I'm doing," Draco said, and I scoffed. "Then don't let me off easy!" I shot back. 

"If I didn't let you off easy, you'd get seriously hurt. That's why you need to train more," He said with a tone of confidence that irked me. 

"Try me," I said, stancing myself to oppose him directly, which he chuckled humorlessly at. "You're playing with fire," He said, talking down to me once again. 

I shot fire from my hands in a controlled manner, just skimming him. "No, I think you are," I said. 

"You missed me," He snarked, taking a step back, clearly surprised. 

"I meant to," I said. 

"Fine, you want to play dirty? Let's play dirty," He said, pulling his wand out. "Stupefy!" He shouted, but the disarming spell flew from my mouth faster, knocking his wand from his hand. 

"Accio wand," He said, using wandless magic to bring his wand right back to him. "You think you're clever?" He asked.

"I'm being quicker, just like you asked," I said back, standing up straighter and glaring at him. 

"You can't be petty when fighting a pack of Death Eaters, it's not going to work. Drop the brat act," He said, and I scoffed again. 

"What is your problem?" I snapped, finally done with his theatrics. "My problem is that you seem to have no real motivation to prepare for this fucking war we are about to face, Magdelena," He barked, and I tensed. 

"Do not call me that," I said gravely. 

"Then get your head in the game," He said patronizingly. 

I was boiling with rage now. I stepped back from him only a few steps, taking my wand back out and pointing it at him, Draco doing the same. "Cascadia!" I shouted, causing a small explosion around him, forcing him back in pain. 

"Stupef-" He started, but I reacted faster. "Ennervate," I said, countering his spell. 

"Confundus," I said, magically confusing and clouding his head temporarily. With that, I left the large room we practiced and tried to calm myself down. 

I walked out of the house to the back where large hills bounded for miles on the French countryside. I did what any rational person would do and apparated far enough away from the house to achieve escape for just a few moments. 

There was a field of flowers down by where I had apparated and I walked to them. Within their beauty, I wondered what life could've been like if my mother did take me to her home country and let me grow up here. 

I would've gone to Beaubaxtons and most likely been free of being a Death Eater. I always forgot what I was. I looked down at the mark on my arm and shuddered. 

I did not follow Voldemort, there was no way in hell I ever would, but this mark made people think differently. Would there ever be a time in my life where I would not be feared for something that was not my choice?

I had to make a choice for myself now. And what I chose was to tell Harry the truth. 

"Accio paper and quill!" I shouted, summoning it to me in a matter of minutes. I began writing, and when I say writing, I mean pouring my heart out. That letter covered everything. Beginning to end. 

I left no stone unturned, no detail left out. I needed him to know the extent of everything, he was family after all. 

I made what I knew very plain as I scrawled down the words that had been clanging around in my head for weeks. I only hoped he wouldn't be mad at me for hiding this from him for so long. 

I didn't realize how much I truly had to tell him until I had finished my three and a half-page letter. I apparated back to the room I shared with Draco, sealing it up and sending it off with Fleur's family owl with her permission. 

When it was done, it was near dinner time, and I knew we would eat with the rest of the family, so I prepared myself for having to see Draco again even though he had pissed me off to no end today. 

Who did he think he was talking to me like that? He talked down to me like I was worthless. Like I depended on him. He should know better than to demean me. I was strong, I could handle myself. 

I know we were both preparing ourselves for this battle, but he had to stop being so intense where it mattered the least. I understand we had to take this seriously, and I was, but he was taking that too far. 

I heard him enter the room but I decided to keep my back turned to him. 

"Where have you been?" He asked, and I concealed my exaggerated eye-roll.

"I went for a walk," I answered. "Where, Russia? I've been looking everywhere for you," He said, and I sighed. "Clearly not everywhere, I was pretty close-by," I said. 

"It's time for dinner," He said after a long pause. 

"I guess it is," I said, getting up and leaving the room to head to the dining room.

♔

ok i'm geeking right now. 100k reads??!!!!! thank you!