Monsters

forty nine

"What the fuck happened?" I ask him as I go to his side and his eyes meet mine.

"I'll explain everything, I promise." He pauses and tries to read my facial expressions. "What happened with the twins?"

"They believe me." I smile weakly. I don't want to talk about that right now. I want to know if he's okay.

"Good." Draco says as he leans down and connects our lips. All three of our friends start acting grossed out.

"Oh grow the fuck up." I say sarcastically and roll my eyes. I turn to Draco after that, "Your turn."

"Okay, okay." Draco says. I notice him start to twitch uncomfortably and look away from all of us. Something bad must have happened for him to act this way..

"Well, he said he was going to kill me for failing the task." Draco begun, not looking at any of us directly. "But Snape explained that I almost had it when he interrupted and finished the job."

"Snape made sure you didn't get killed?" Blaise asks, almost sounding amazed at Snape's actions.

I study Draco's face as the others talk among themselves about Snape's action. Something is wrong. Something happened.

"What did he do?" I ask. Everyone shuts up and refocused.

I already think I know what he did. I had a feeling something like this would happen. He used the cruciatus curse on him.

"He said he couldn't let me get off without being punished." Draco explains. "Instead of killing me, he decided that it would be better to use the cruciatus curse on me."

Pansy let out an awful sound and Blaise wrapped an arm around her. Theo just stood there. None of us knew what to do or say at that moment. The anger was literally building inside me, I want to kill him.

"Guys, relax. It's not like it's the first time that's happened."

"What?" I can't even hide the surprise in my voice.

"When I- it happened the summer before our 6th year."

"Fuck man. Why didn't you tell us?" Blaise asks Draco but he just shrugs his shoulders.

"I'm actually really tired.. can we talk more in the morning?" Draco asks everyone and they nod and start to head out.

"Maya.. we kind of share a room, get back in here." Draco says as a small chuckle escapes his lips.

"Oh, right." I say awkwardly before going back over to him. "You need help getting up there?"

"No." He says firmly as he tries to stand up. How does he expect to get up stairs if he can't even stand up? I just stand a little away from him and watch him try and stand up and then get mad at himself when he can't.

"Okay, fine. Yes. I need help." He says reluctantly and I laugh before going over to help him up stairs.

When we got up stairs and into our room, the two of us got into the bed and I gently laid down beside him. I want to hold him, but clearly he's in a lot of pain.

"Everything went well with the twins then?" He asks after a long moment of silence.

"Yes. They even let Blaise come inside the joke shop."

"Really?" He couldn't hide the shock in his voice. "I thought they hate us."

"They don't trust you guys but they're going to try and change that."

He smiles at me and shakes his head. "Only you could convince Weasleys to try and trust a Malfoy."

I roll my eyes and smile because yeah, only I could do that.

"They told us that Harry, Ron, and Hermione won't be going back to school this year." I whisper.

"This might be our best year, then." Draco jokes.

I laugh. Yeah it would be nice to walk the hallways without being questioned about who I'm with every five seconds.

Wait.

"So we're going back then?"

He nods.

"And we weren't supposed to have any communication with Harry."

"At least we don't have to worry about that." I say.

Another long moment of silence.

"Draco, I don't want to go back..."

He slowly and carefully pulls me closer to him until my head is on his chest and his hand is gently tracing circles on my arm.

"I know, love." He begins. "I don't either but we'll have each other, and our friends."

"Everything is going to be a constant reminder of that night..."

"I know." He whispers. "Let's just get some sleep."

"Okay, good night."

-

The next morning we had to fill in Draco's aunt on the events of last night and he we're returning to school next year. She was not impressed that the dark lord has requested us all go back after what Draco and I had to witness last year but she understood that we have to. Blaise was disappointed to be returning and to hear that Harry won't be there. Apparently he came up with ideas on how prank him. Another reason to be glad he's not coming back this year. A prank war between Blaise and Harry...

"You guys are welcome back here any time you need a place to hide." Andromeda says to us. "All of you."

"Thank you." Draco says softly to his Aunt. They haven't spoken a whole lot since coming here but they have an understanding.

She smiled weakly at us all and then walks out of the kitchen, leaving us alone again.

"She reminds me so much of your mother." I say to Draco and he chuckles a little.

"I guess." He says as he motions for me to come sit beside him at the table. Theo, Blaise and Pansy join us. We have about two weeks before we have to go back to Hogwarts and I know none of us are ready for that.

"Are you guys going to be okay going back to Hogwarts?" Pansy asks us after a moment of silence.

"We don't have much of a choice, Pans." Draco explains.

"We'll be fine." I add. It'll be hard but we all know we don't have a choice in this. If we don't go back, he'll kill us. At least if we go back, we can help some how.

"At least people won't bother you this year." Blaise adds.

"Yeah, no Harry there to piss you off." Theo joins.

"Yeah, but no ones going to like me." I look to Draco. "Us."

"The Slytherins aren't going to care about what happened last year." Blaise says calmly.

"But the other houses will."

"Maya, you know they don't understand." Theo says softly. "They don't understand that you had to."

"I didn't have to though."

"You did what you had to do." Theo says. "We understand that."

"And the Weasle twins get that too." Draco says with a smirk.

"That's true."

"This year is going to be so different though. Snape as headmaster and the Carrow twins as teachers." Pansy adds. I can hear the slight fear in her voice when she says this.

"I know." Blaise says as he puts an arm around her to comfort her.

I look from them to Draco and Theo who are smirking. I guess they're getting closer.

Though I guess we all need someone to get closer to during a war.

Someone to fight for.

I just feel bad for Theo after what happened with Hermione.