| Girl on Fire |

22

VERONICA MALFOY

"Pathetic weak little bitch" "He can't protect you." "Marcus's name carved into your skin." "Mattheo, help me!" "Just trust me." "You have no shortage of enemies." "Draco! Draco, please help!" "Nobody is coming to save you." "I'll kill your brother." "I thought he loved me." "I love you."

I thrashed in bed and my chest constricted. Those words echoed through my head as memories flooded my brain. I heard my father screaming. "Veronica!" Mattheo said, shaking me. I felt the sweat on my body and I was shaking. "Please no!" I cried out. "Veronica wake up!" Mattheo yelled. I shot up and looked around. Tears poured down my cheeks. Mattheo pulled me into his arms. "Hey, hey it's ok. I'm here. You're alright. It was just a bad nightmare." he whispered. "No, it was real." I cried. He ran his fingers through my hair and I cried on his shoulder. "Just breathe. It's over. I won't let them hurt you." he whispered. Eventually I stopped crying and he lifted my chin to face him. "Are you ok?" he asked. I nodded. "Tell me about your nightmare," he said. I looked at him and he held my hands. "I- I can't-" I stammered. "You need to talk about this stuff. If not with me, then with Draco, or your friends." he said. I nodded. "It was Marcus. I was back in the locker room. I couldn't get free. He was going to kill Draco." I said. His eyes flashed with anger. "It's over now. You are safe. He can't hurt you." he said. I just laid in his arms until it was time for breakfast. We got dressed and walked to the Great Hall. I sat down with Mattheo and began to eat. I was in the middle of talking with Allison when Draco rushed in. "Ronnie!" he called out. I looked up and he was holding a letter in his hands. Not good. "What?" I asked. "You know what, get over here." he said. He was mad, really mad. I kissed Mattheo on the cheek and followed him out. We walked into an empty classroom and he lost it. "Are you crazy? Using the cruciatus curse on father! What are you thinking?" he yelled. "I was thinking that my whole life he has abused us. He ruined you Draco. You are so broken and I wanted him to feel our pain. Just for one second he deserved to suffer like we do." I said blinking back tears. "So you are going to Azkaban just to teach father a lesson." he asked. "No. Nobody knows." I said. "What?" he asked. "When Mattheo marked me, it gave me certain abilities. I can use unforgivables and not get caught. He wants me to be able to protect myself." I said. "Are you insane? What if father told the Ministry?" he asked. "He didn't. Because he knows if he did, we would tell them everything he did to us." I said. "Ronnie, I don't know what Mattheo told you, but this isn't who you are." he said. "Yes it is. You can either accept that or leave me alone." I said. His face fell. "Veronica, are you ok?" Mattheo said walking over. "What is wrong with you?" Draco yelled. "I did what I thought was best for her. She deserves power." he said. "No, she doesn't. She is a kid. My sister. I won't let you turn her into some dark wizard." he said. "I have never done anything she didn't ask me to do." he said. "Bullshit. She would never use the cruciatus curse unless you told her to." he said. "Actually I did. And I would do it again. Why are you protecting father?" I asked. "Because you know that no matter what you do, he will always win. I'm just trying to keep you safe. That's what I care about. Your safety, not dark magic and power hungry boys." he snapped. "I'm protecting you, don't you see? I'm learning all this so I can take the mark. So you don't have to." I said. His face fell. "What?" he said. He was more angry than I've ever seen. "For once, I decided for you." I said. He looked at Mattheo. "I can't do this with you right now." he said. He started to leave but he turned around. "If she gets hurt, I will kill you." he said. Then he stormed out and slammed the door. I looked at Mattheo. "He just needs to cool off. I'll talk to him later." I said. He nodded. "You don't have to take the mark. It's not too late to-" he started but I kissed him to cut him off. "Stop talking." I whispered and he smirked. He lifted me onto the desk and stood between my legs. He ran his hands up my thighs and rested them under my skirt. As I kissed him, I unbuttoned his shirt and he did the same with me. I dragged my hands down his chest and felt the scars on his skin. He palmed my breasts gently and I moaned softly at his touch. Then his hands went to my cunt and he slipped his fingers under my panties. "So wet for me darling... it's precious." he teased, smirking at me. He slipped his fingers inside me and my body lurched forward. I grabbed his shoulders and buried my face in the crook of his neck leaving soft kisses. He pumped his fingers in and out as his thumb massaged my clit. I was a moaning mess and I tried to muffle my sounds in the crook of his neck. As he continued to finger me, I felt the coil in my stomach tighten as I panted for breath. "Fuck Mattheo, I'm gonna-" I started and he pulled his fingers away before I could finish. "I want you to cum on my cock." he said smugly. He stuck his finger in my mouth and I tasted myself. My hands found their way to his belt. I undid it and palmed him through his boxers a few times. "Fuck Veronica" he groaned. He was hard and I felt him press up against my slit. "Fuck me Mattheo." I said. He kissed me hard as he slammed himself inside of me. I moaned in his mouth and his thrusts were merciless. I threw my head back and my eyes rolled to the back of my head. He kissed my neck and left hickeys on my skin. "Fuck Veronica, you're so fucking tight." he groaned. I felt my climax coming and we came together. I panted for breath as he pulled out. He kissed me and smirked. "Good girl." he said. I smiled. He cast a cleaning charm and we got dressed. Then we walked to class with our hand intertwined.

"Lessons went by quickly today, don't you think?" Allison asked. I nodded. "Has anyone seen Draco?" I asked. He wasn't sitting with us. "I haven't seen him since Charms." Blaise said. I bit my lip and scanned the Great Hall. "I'm sure he's just with a girl. Pansy isn't here either." Theo teased. I nodded. I finished my lunch quickly and stood up. "I'm going to go find him." I said. "If you find him fucking a girl and get scarred for life don't say I didn't warn you." Theo called after me. "You're hilarious Nott." I said sarcastically as I walked out. I headed to his dorm and he wasn't there. I was walking back to the Great Hall when I heard it. I walked towards the music room and peeked in the window. Draco sat in front of the piano with his eyes closed playing a beautiful song. I opened the door as quiet as I could and walked in. I sat down and listened. He was incredible. Then the song ended and he opened his eyes and looked at me. "Why are you here?" he asked. I got up and sat next to him at the piano. "I'm sorry." I said. "I'll ask again, why are you here?" he snapped. "Because you're my brother and I love you." I said. He scoffed. "You have Mattheo. You don't need me." he said. My face fell. "I will always need you. But I can't let your life be all about protecting me. You can't save me from the world Draco." I said. "I can try." he mumbled. I smiled. "I know you want to. And I love you for that. You are the best brother anyone could ask for. But I need you to let me do this." I said. He shook his head. "No. I won't risk your life for me. That dark mark is-" he started. "I know what it is. I know what it means. And I know what happens if I screw up. But I won't let you risk your life either. We don't trade lives, Draco." I said. He buried his face in his hands. "My sister, my responsibility," he said. I laid my head on his shoulder. "I love you so much big brother. But you deserve a life too. Mattheo will protect me from our father and his. I know he will. That means you can be free. To play piano and play quidditch and not live your life in pain. Why can't you let me do that for you?" I asked. He stood up and grabbed his stuff. He walked over to the door and opened it. Then he paused and turned around. "My sister, my responsibility." he said, then he walked out. "My brother, my responsibility." I whispered to myself. It's time to protect him.