Healing // d.m.

| 14 |

DRACO let go of her hand as they reached the beach. It was getting late and the waves were high today, crashing into the shore. The water was black, reflecting the gloomy sky. He looked over at Ariendra and she swayed slightly. He helped to steady her by placing both hands on her shoulders.

Her face was a little pale, and a few drops of sweat dotted her forehead. "You never used a portkey or something?" He asked.

"I'm fine," she said, taking deep breaths and wiping her forehead with the back of her hand. "Just a long day."

"What the hell did you do at work? Why didn't you say you were tired?" Draco looked at her intently. He was relieved to see the colours slowly returning to her cheeks. Using the portkey may exhaust someone but he thought Ariendra must've used one before.

"It's fine, Malfoy. Just give me a minute to-" she was taking deep slow breaths but then she looked up and her face morphed into a look of horror. Her mouth half opened, she pointed to something in the sky. She stuttered, "Is that.. isn't that..."

Draco furrowed his brows. He quickly turned around to see what made her so scared and he felt his heart stopped. Dark cloaked creatures were circling around the roof of his mother's cottage. Their scabby grey cloaks emit black smoke as they glide in the air. No wonder the air around them was colder than usual and the clouds were angry.

"Dementors..." Draco whispered in fear. He counted three at least and one was by the front windows. He didn't understand. He layered the area with protective charms so how on earth do they get here. More importantly, Shacklebolt had made sure they stayed in Azkaban where they belonged.

One of them finally realised that Draco and Ariendra were there. He signalled his friends and slowly they hover to get closer to them. Draco felt his body turn to lead. He couldn't move. He knew he had to do something, he had to protect Ariendra, but he was stuck inside his bubble of fear. The worst part was that they could smell his terror.

"Malfoy, they're getting closer." Ariendra whispered and she held tight onto Draco's upper arm, squeezing his biceps.

"I can't... I don't know how to..."  It was like he was turned to stone. This was one of his weaknesses. He never could do the patronus charm and he was ashamed of it. He somehow found the energy to push Ariendra behind him, the least he could do is surrender himself. He saw them take off the hood of their cloak, opening its sucking mouth and scrunched his eyes close preparing himself for the inevitable.

Suddenly his body was pushed back. Ariendra stepped forward blocking him. Her wand pointed at the disgusting creature, a silver blue light starting to emerge from the tip of it. There was a gust of freezing air coming from the dementors's mouth. Just as he felt a part of his soul being dragged away from his body. Ariendra conjured the spell Draco could never cast all his life.

"Expecto patronum."

A burst of smoke formed in front of them, creating a vaporised barrier. The dementors tried their best to force their way across but none of them succeeded. Draco could hear their screams, screeching into the air. Their long scrawny hands clawed into Ariendra's incorporeal patronus, it's black fingernails long and deadly. Her patronus started to get smaller and smaller...

"Ariendra..." Draco felt his throat getting dry as the dementors came closer.

She closed her eyes tight and concentrated. The lines on her face prominently illuminated by the charm. She shouted again this time loud and clear.

"Expecto patronum!"

Draco saw her create a ball of light, it grew bigger in size before morphing into the shape of a dolphin. The animal twirled around them, letting them know that it was present and it was going to protect them. It created a new barrier, this time surrounding them both like a circular tent. Ariendra flicked her wand and the bottlenose dolphin charged towards the dementors. As it made contact with their black figures, they shrieked and shot up in the air, before flying far away into oblivion. She made a motion for the dolphin to return to her and it did. It bowed, then slowly it disappeared before his very eyes.