Heliophilia; d.m

XXXVII

DRACO

She wasn't in any room, she wasn't outside, she wasn't anywhere, and she didn't come. Not in ten minutes, not in half an hour, not in ten hours. She was nowhere to be found, and I could only hope that she was alright, because being in the state Violet was in when I last saw her, anything could have happened.

Exhausted and desperate, I returned home to our manor with a small hope that she might have been there, but of course she wasn't. Of all the places she could have gone, my house was the last.

I was greeted only by my mother's worried face, and the emptiness of the house. The silence and emptiness of Violet's room, and the silence and emptiness of my heart.

I didn't even know how to find her, where she might be, if she was safe, or if she was going to come back at all — the only thing that warmed me was the thought that at least she still remembered me.

"Lost something? Or maybe someone?"

I heard Seth's mocking voice behind me as I was once again in Violet's room, peering out at the forest beyond the window.
My heart beat faster in an instant, sending a shiver of rage through me — I was ready to just kill him, for everything he'd done, for everything he'd ever done to her, for making her feel like this, and for losing her because of him.

My hand was already gripping the handle of my wand in my pocket when I heard his footsteps approaching me — and the next moment the end of my wand was already pressed against his throat.

"I could kill you right here and right there." I spoke in a low, threatening voice, through clenched teeth, pressing the wand harder against his skin, hoping it would eventually pierce his throat.

"But you won't do it," A cocky smile tugged at his lips as he croaked, not even trying to pull my hand away from his throat. He knew I wouldn't do it, and he enjoyed it as much as ever, "You can't do it."

I knew I couldn't, even if I really wanted to — I couldn't kill him, because his death would mean my father's immediate death as well.

I hated the unbreakable vow, I hated the power it contained, tying the hands not only of those who made it, but of others as well. I hated that my father had made an unbreakable vow with his second cousin, to protect Seth's life — to protect Seth's worthless life.

And I hated that Seth was using it to his advantage, knowing that he would have gotten away with it.

I hoped that he would be back in Azkaban, this time for life.

"If Violet is not found, then you will be lost. And no one will be looking for you." I said, making him gasp for air as I pressed down on his throat for the last time.

I couldn't kill him, but no one had said he couldn't be made to suffer.

VIOLET

I felt that something was wrong.

I saw his eyes say goodbye to me when I wasn't ready for this, I felt he was leaving me forever — but there was something else, something I couldn't understand, but something definitely scary that made my blood run cold.
My inner voice said, even shouted, "run!" and I obeyed.

I ran as fast as I could out of the house, where I no longer felt safe, hoping that I wouldn't be caught, hoping that a change of scenery would help, hoping for a miracle.

So I ran and ran, along the back side of the street, trying not to run into any more eyes — panting, feeling my lungs burn, feeling the branches cut against my skin, feeling the cold wind get caught in the strands of my hair, weaving them into knots, I ran without looking back until I was sure I had found a safe place to apparate.