A Child Changes Everything. (A Draco Malfoy Story)

A Child Changes Everything. [Dinner With The Devil]

Your heels were being dragged among jagged gravel and rocks. Fresh cuts tore open your skin the entire journey up the old drive to the decrepit property that the greasy wizard Apparated you to. It sat alone atop a hill, the front garden covered in dead patches of grass and dirt. Clearly whoever owned it had not bothered to keep it well maintained over the years. Several pops sounded behind you, signaling the others’ arrival.

“Rowan!” 

The man pulling you froze at the sound of the velvety smooth voice of Charlie, the woman that broke into the cottage. Clearly she was the leader, because the man dropped your foot and stood fearfully before her.

“Yes, Miss. Jensen?” 

“Pay more attention! We can’t present her to Thomas all beaten and bruised!”

“Yes, Miss. Jensen.” 

“Never mind. I’ll take her from here. Go inform Thomas of our arrival.”

He nodded and walked off. Your eyes shifted back to meet Charlie’s, who was staring down at you with an unreadable expression. She squatted down to where you lay on the floor, using her wand tip to slide the strands of hair that fell in your face behind your ear. Seeing your entire face, she gave a somewhat dismissive shrug and flicked her wand, levitating your body up in the air and floating you the rest of the way into the house. You could only see the ceiling above you as you entered. It was dusty and definitely old. The floor boards creaked as people moved around on the second floor above your heads. The temperature in the house felt to be at least twenty degrees colder than outside. You shivered, wishing you had your coat. Charlie took you upstairs, passing bare walls with chipping paint in the long hallway until you came to a bedroom. She finally laid you down onto the bed and shut the door. She left you a prisoner in your own body as she moved around the room, humming a song you didn’t recognize. 

“You know, I’m not sure what these men see in you.” She finally said, coming to the side of the bed and craning her neck over you. Her wand tip came to your cheek and you felt yourself begin to perspire on your forehead. “You’re average looking at best.”

Suddenly, you felt your arms and legs being freed from the curse. You exhaled loudly, finally able to open your clenched jaw and move your mouth. 

“I wouldn’t bother running if I were you.” She said. She sat on a chair in the corner of the room, legs crossed. You stared at her, confused at her relaxed demeanor.

“Why is that?” 

“Well, for starters, you have no wand. And there are about fifty armed men in this house prepared to stop you by any means necessary. But besides the obvious reasons, there is the matter of Harry Potter, who is currently being held hostage somewhere. His survival depends on you.”

The mirror on the ancient vanity in the corner shattered as you clenched your fists in anger. Charlie kept her demeanor cool, not even jumping at the unexpected explosion.

“Let him go.” You said in a deadly whisper. 

“Oh, we will. But first things first. Dinner.” 

“Why the hell does he want me for dinner?!” you screamed. She got up, slipping her wand into her robes and making her way to the door.

“It’s at six. Don’t be late.” She motioned toward the clock by the bed, then exited the room and shut the door behind her. You shot forward, grabbing the door handle and yelping in pain. It was scalding hot. You took a deep breath and grabbed it again, your skin searing as you pulled, but to no avail. You ran to another closed door, your heart leaping and falling as it opened to reveal a bathroom. You tried each of the windows, finding that they all had the same charm on them as the door. Starting to panic now, you tried Apparating. Nothing.