Bright

-9-

TRIGGER WARNING: Mentions of r*pe and other mature themes. Reader discretion advised.

After a few days, she got used to the feeling of Adrian drilling into her. She got used to the stars above her head, finding a new constellation every night to look at. She got used to her routine after she got home. She would shower, making sure to wash her sore parts at least five times, sometimes ten if she really feels the need. Lately, she felt the need. After her ritualistic washing, she would lay herself down on the left side of the bed, stare out the window, sing her lullaby, memorizing the words and she falls asleep. Adrian has been picking her up every night since the first time. That was two weeks ago.

"What's going to happen when we go to school? That is a week from now."

"There are other spots where we can have fun, correct?" Adrian said with a sadistic smile.

"I suppose." Elle said, now upset realizing that Hogwarts wouldn't be her escape from this torture.

She thought back on that memory. That was from the seventh time he took her. She still wondered if there was a way that she could escape Adrian. If she could get out of her relationship without hurting anyone. Knowing that Adrian won't let her go, and knowing that she doesn't want Draco to find out about Adrian's activities, she had to act like nothing was wrong. Like her innocence wasn't being stripped from her every night.

There was a knock on her window about an hour after Adrian dropped her off for the night. She had just come out of her shower, where she worked up the courage to do five washes instead of ten. Her hair wrapped turban style above her head, and her drying body making its way around the dark room, she picked her clothes up off her four poster, feeling her smooth silk pyjamas. She changed into the forest green pyjama set and made her way to the window to allow the owl entrance into her room. She recognized the owl to be Adrians. He sent it every night after their excursions to say thank you, and to say that they would do it again the next day.

This time, though, there was a box attached to the owl. It was a beautiful, long, black box with a forest green bow atop. She untied the box and letter, gave his owl, Archimedes, a treat and ushered the owl out of the door. She made her way to the left side of her bed with the letter and the box, and she curiously removed the top. She was met with the most beautiful bracelet. It was encrusted with diamonds and emeralds, and she knew that this bracelet was expensive. She said something about that bracelet before they started their excursions.

She opened the letter as well, and it said:

"A beautiful bracelet for a beautiful girl. Thank you for these last few nights. See you tomorrow at Hogwarts."

She looked at the clock on her wall and it read 2:30 a.m. She knew she had to be up early because she had a train to catch. She was starting fourth year, and she hoped that it would be normal... but that seemed like too much to ask at this point.

She lay her head onto her soft pillow, setting the bracelet box down on her nightstand and exchanging it for the words to her lullaby. She had grown so accustomed to the words over the last two weeks that she now knew them by heart, but she still liked to look at the paper. The old crumpled paper had her dad's handwriting on it. She knew that she messed up by telling him off in second year. She regretted it now. She read the words to her beautiful lullaby and sang, imagining her father holding her like he did in the photo. This imagination of hers finally allowed her to drift off into a deep sleep. One filled with dreams of the future. A future where Adrian was gone, and she had her dad. And Draco.

She knew she needed to talk to him. She wanted to clear up the air between them. After all, they had a tradition that they needed to fulfill. She awoke a few hours later to the sound of a knock at her door. Her clock said 8 a.m.