A Serpent and His Rose (A Draco Malfoy Story)

A Serpent and His Rose [Two Broken Hearts]

Draco's POV:

The view from your Aunt Belletrix’s hideout  in Somerset was beautiful. Rolling hills of green flowed as far as the eye could see. You sat on the porch swing, just taking a moment to yourself away from your family. It has been a nightmare since you arrived, so it was nice to be alone to appreciate the English countryside for a moment. You often thought about just Apparating back to Hogwarts, but you couldn’t risk angering your family and the Dark Lord. So instead you sat, staring at a herd of sheep grazing on the side of the nearest hill and wishing Andrea was by your side.

Your trance was broken when a hoot filled the air. You looked up in surprise to see a stern looking brown owl sitting on the far side of the porch railing. When you reached him, he held out his leg for you. You untied it quickly, glancing around to make sure nobody was watching. You opened it and recognized Andrea’s handwriting immediately. As you read through the letter, your heart jumped for joy at the revelation that she had shown up at the wedding. She was going to fight for you. You had hoped she would. You had barely gotten to the last sentence when the letter was snatched roughly from your hands, the edges leaving a few paper cuts behind on your fingers.

“Hey!” you yelled angrily. When you turned and realized it was your father that had come up behind you, the color drained from your face.

“Draco, what is this?” he hissed.

“Father I--”

“Draco, I’ve have spent countless hours making this whole thing go away. I convinced the Ministry that Adam’s death was out of self defense, I convinced that Mudblood-loving Headmaster of yours to let you back into school despite your poor grades and attendance and I convinced the Wests to reconsider the arrangement between our families.”

“But I don’t WANT the arrangement between our families!” you yelled. You couldn’t help yourself. Your blood was boiling in anger. In a flash, Lucius took out his wand and had you writhing in pain on the floor. The old wood of the porch left splinters in your skin, and your eyes watered. When the curse was lifted off of you, you opened your eyes to see your mother looking at you from through the window briefly. She disappeared, a look of worry and fear on her face. You knew she felt ashamed that she could do nothing to protect you from him.

“The Ministry raiding the event was a blessing to us, Draco. The chaos masked your absence.” he said angrily. “The Wests have no idea about your attempt to run. In their minds, we ALL still want this marriage. And it is going to stay that way! Is that understood?”

When you didn’t respond, the Cruciatus Curse was set on you a second time. You tried not to give in, tried to withstand all the pain. But soon you couldn’t breathe, and you felt your entire body burning. It was only a matter of time before bones began to break from the strain. You let out a yell and the curse was lifted.

“F-fine.” you gasped.

“This girl is no good for you. She’s a distraction! She will jeopardize everything for you. You need to focus on your tasks with the Dark Lord!”

“Alright!” you said exasperatedly. A flash of anger crossed your father’s face at your tone. You shrunk and added quietly, “I mean, yes father.”

He nodded and stood, holding the letter up and glancing at what was written. He scoffed and then set the edge of it on fire with his wand. You watched the piece of paper shrivel up and burn on the floor next to you. You were able to read the last sentence before the words were charred and lost forever. Would you have said I do?

“If I find out you are having any contact with this girl, you will have much more powerful people to answer to. Do you understand?”

“Yes, father.”

“You will return to school tonight. And so you know, you will be watched there. Now clean yourself up a bit. We leave in an hour.” he said curtly before making his way back into the house. You stared at the black curled up paper next to you. The edges were still smoldering a bit. It wasn’t long before you felt your mother’s presence behind you.

“Draco…”

“Don’t.” you glared at her. You knew in your heart how much she loved you, and how she wished she could protect you from all of this. But in that moment, you felt nothing but rage toward her for letting this all happen. You stood up and brushed past her, going inside as well to gather your things. You heard her whimper, and knew she was crying. But you were stubborn and continued to your room, ready to return to Hogwarts. Even though Andrea would no longer be waiting for you there, at least your family wouldn’t be there either.


*    *    *    *

Andrea’s POV:

To say that you were disappointed when Bernie returned without a reply was an understatement. You were crushed. He didn’t return with your letter, so you know he got it. How could he not reply? Tammy’s reply a few days later didn’t really cheer you up, either.

Andy,

WHAT?! I can’t believe you aren’t coming back to school?! What will I do without you? Yes I’ll come visit as soon as exams are over, I promise! And I think you should know that Draco’s back at school. He arrived a few days ago and he’s been a total hermit. The only person he talks to is Felicia, so I suppose they are still together. Nobody really has the guts to ask them. I’m sorry, I just thought you ought to know. Send me an owl when your showcase is, so that I can plan to come! Work hard! It will all be worth it. And remember, this too shall pass.

Love,
Tammy

So that explained why he hasn’t written back. He’s still with her. Obviously he would have gone through with it. You shook your head and set the letter down on your desk. You sat on the floor of your room and began to do your relaxation breathing. It was a part of this new yoga thing you started to try. Jason took you to a class and it really helped your stress levels. But even the philosophy of Patanjali couldn’t rid you of the dark cloud that had fallen over your morning. You sighed and stood up, examining yourself in the mirror. You hadn’t been back home very long but already the workouts with Jason were paying off. You decided to give him a call to see if he was free to rehearse.

“Hello?”

“Hey Jason. Studio today?”

“Girl! We’ve been there everyday this week. It’s Saturday! Take a break. You’re pushing yourself too hard.”

“But Jason, I need to rehearse!”

“Well I can’t. I got family stuff. Just relax. It’ll help you out in the long run.”

“Fine.” You hung up. You knew he was right but you still were annoyed. When you ventured downstairs you found your mother sitting at the kitchen table flipping through a cookbook. Her eyes brightened at the sight of you.

“Good morning, honey! Sleep well?” she asked. You shrugged. You saw her mouth twitch in annoyance at this. You smiled inwardly, loving to throw this noncommittal gesture at her. She absolutely hated it.

“So, going to the studio today?”

“No. Jason’s busy.”

“Oh no! That’s too bad.” she said. You chuckled. She was obviously ecstatic to hear that you were free. “So, what are your plans? Because I was thinking of going into town to do some shopping.”

“No thanks.” you said. You felt bad as soon as you saw the disappointment on your mother’s face. She wanted so badly to help you. And what else would you do today? It was either this or sitting around your room thinking about Draco. “Actually… I do need a new outfit for the showcase.”

“I’ll get my purse!” She said happily, dropping the cookbook with a small thump. You smiled and went upstairs to change. You just pulled a sweater on and some yoga pants, since they were easy to change in and out of. Because when you shopped for a performance, you probably tried on about 100 different outfits before deciding. At least you would be distracted from your broken heart, if only for one more day.