The Dark Side (A Dramione Story)

Chapter 15

"On page 246 of Miranda Goshawk's Book of Spells, you'll find the Impediment Jinx described as 'a vital part of any duellist's arsenal'," Aberforth began after everyone had taken their seats. "You'll find that many witches and wizards, including myself, happen to agree with this account. Therefore, I have chosen to dedicate the next week to perfecting the art of performing this spell."

Despite the fact that Hermione could aptly perform the Impediment Jinx and had used it several times during their perilous quest for Horcruxes, she eagerly listened to Aberforth's rendition of the hex.

After he explained that they would be practicing the jinx with a partner, she scanned the room for someone she could pair up with. She smiled when she saw Parvati Patil looking in her direction, but Aberforth quickly added, "to avoid chaos, I think the people from the first and third rows should work with the person on their right."

Hermione outwardly groaned when she realised that she was in the third row, and the person on her right was Draco Malfoy. After their encounter in the hallway, she wasn't enthused at the idea of being in close proximity to him. But if she was unhappy about the situation, he was irate. He ran his hand through his platinum hair and sighed loudly.

Aberforth asked them to stand and find some space to practice the jinx, so Hermione rose and headed towards the back of the room. She watched as Malfoy shuffled over to her, his anger puzzling her. However, it was not nearly as confounding as the look in his eyes when they had stood in the hallway.

"Alright, everyone," Aberforth rumbled. "Wands at the ready."

Hermione looked at Malfoy, but his gaze was fixated on the floor. "You go first Malfoy," she said, trying to hide the tremor in her voice.

"Begin!" Aberforth's voice boomed through the room, but Malfoy remained still. The room erupted in cries of 'Impedimenta' and turquoise beams of light set the room ablaze. She started to call his name through the chaos, but his head slowly rose and his eyes met hers. She inhaled sharply as she saw the profound anguish in his stare.

He turned away from her and briskly strode to the front of the room, before heading out into the hallway. She glanced at Aberforth, who was watching her with a knowing stare. He nodded, and she hurriedly seized her books, as well as Malfoy's, and followed him out of the classroom.

Holding both sets of books slowed her down, but she still managed to catch Malfoy in her sight. He was running his hands through his hair, obviously distressed, and turned down a corridor on the left.

When she eventually found him in the trophy room, the books fell from her hands and pounded against the floor.

He was in a corner, crumpled into a ball. His shoulders wracked as his shaking hands tried to cover his face. Hermione crept over to him and pulled him into her arms, whispering words of assurance she knew would be of no comfort to him.

"Please, talk to me," she cried. "Tell me what's wrong, Draco."

His head jerked up in surprise. "Don't call me that," he muttered while trying to push her away. "Please, just leave me alone."

"Tell me how I can help," she whispered.

"You can't help."

"Then just tell me what's wrong. You're scaring me."

"What you've done wrong?" He laughed unpleasantly. "Look, the only way you could help me is if you let me kill myself."

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A/N

Poor Draco :( 

Remember, if anyone needs to talk, I'm always here. Email me on chanellefaith12gmail.com

I just wanted to let you guys know that I've had a major setback - I recently updated my laptop and a lot of my work has gone missing, including many chapters of The Dark Side. In order to have time to catch back up, I'm going to have to start uploading every 2-3 weeks instead of every week. So sorry guys, but don't give up on me! 

Thank you all so much x