𝐁𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞 𝐀𝐦𝐞 | 𝐇.𝐏.

𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝟕 - 𝟏𝟎

I landed hard on wet, course sand. 

Immediately my knees gave out from under me, and I felt three more bodies fall to the ground with me. Potter's arms were wrapped around me impossibly tight—and Hermione's, and Weasley's. We all sat there holding onto each other for a long time before I slowly lifted my head from where it had been buried in the crook of Potter's neck.

"How did we get out of there alive?" I whispered, voice cracking.

Potter smiled weakly. "Dobby."

Dobby the house elf carefully walked up to us, like he was afraid of interrupting something. "Miss. Malfoy has to forgive Dobby," he squeaked. "Dobby got there as fast as he could, but Dobby didn't get there in time to save Miss. Malfoy from Master Bellatrix."

"You have nothing to be forgiven for," I promised, but my eyelids felt heavy and I was having trouble thinking straight. "You saved our lives."

Dobby smiled sheepishly. "Dobby supposes so, Miss, but Dobby has been very scared for Miss. Malfoy ever since she was twelve when Master Malfoy—"

"Thank you, Dobby," I interrupted him as quickly as I could. I did not feel like reliving that moment right now, but I couldn't help remembering the Christmas break during second year when Draco had stayed at Hogwarts, and father punished me because of it. I had always been scared of my father, and the rest of my family for that matter, but that was when I really began to realize how terrible he truly was. 

"What's he talking about?" Hermione asked softly.

I waved my hand meekly, as if to brush off the question. I could barely keep my head up off my chest now, and I certainly didn't have the strength to speak anymore.

"We're at Bill and Fleur's," Weasley suddenly said. I forced my blurring vision to focus on my surroundings. We were on a beach. I could feel the sand against my legs and hear the waves washing up on the shore. In the distance, against the grey sky, was a darkish blot that could have been a house, but it was getting harder and harder to tell.

I distantly heard Dobby saying something about Hogwarts and leaving us here, and then there was a crack of Apparation, and then everything went black. But I welcomed it. The black was easier to be in then the white-hot pain piercing through me, both physically and mentally. The sand disappeared from under me, wind tickled my hair across my cheeks, and then there was something soft and warm. I let some of the weight fall off my shoulders onto whatever I was laying against for now, and allowed myself real sleep for what had to be the first time in months.

When I woke, I didn't know where I was. Sunlight slanted dimly through a pink-tinted window and danced across the floor in pale spots. There was a cool breeze coming in from a random draft, and I breathed deeply before sitting fully upright. It hurt to move.

There was a familiar gasp across the room, and Hermione jumped up from a chair and hurried over to my bed. Her eyes were puffy and she had dried tear tracks running down her face, but new ones fell from her eyes now as she knocked me backward into the headboard with a bone-crushing hug.

I heard Potter and Weasley's footsteps following her, and soon all three of them were sitting on my bed. When Hermione finally let go of me, she was furiously wiping at her face. 

"Are you okay?" Weasley asked timidly.

A tear fell from my eyes, and then another, and then I was completely, undeniably crying, and Hermione had started again too, and Potter's arms were around me, and even Weasley held onto my hand as I trembled.

When we had all finally settled down, after what seemed like hours, Potter took my arm and slowly brushed a finger over the carvings Bellatrix had made in my skin. Blood traitor was printed, crudely but unmistakably, into my right forearm. The area around it was red and blotchy, but I could tell it had been cleaned, probably while I was sleeping.