Little Miss Diggory || A Draco Malfoy Love Story

Chapter 74

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The weeks had passed, and Ron had returned. But an undeniable sadness still loomed over me. I felt empty. I can't even be sure they're still... No, I shouldn't go there.

We had ventured to the Lovegood resident. Though Luna wasn't around, her father was. Xenophilius Lovegood. However, he seemed on edge. It proved to be contagious, as after seeing this matter, I felt sick to my stomach. We had learnt of the Deathly Hallows, though. And hopefully, that would bring us a step closer to finding whatever it was we were desperately searching for.

"Let's get out of here," Ron said, grabbing a hold of his bag. I'm not touching this stuff, hot or cold." I shook my head, laughing to myself as the three of them fleed down the stairs. I suppose they were right.

"Mr Lovegood. Thank you, sir," I said, arriving at the foot of the stairs.

"You forgot the water," Ron stated, catching everyone.

"Water?" Xenophilius replied, bewildered.

"For the tea..." We all shared glances, and a wary feeling arose in my chest, making it hard to breathe. Something was wrong.

I watched as Xenophilius rushed over to the pot filling it with water. "It's no matter. We really should be going anyway."

"NO, YOU CAN'T!" He smacked his hands down on the bench, causing things to fall and break. I flinched back at the sound. This wouldn't end well. I could barely make out the conversation from there on out. The next thing I remembered was the loud crashes of spells being cast.

Deatheaters.

All four of us were crawling across the ground at this point. We had to get out. There is no way we would survive much longer. But what about Xenophilius? "Layla!" Ron screamed. I finally reached my hand out.

And there we were, once again apparating.

Spinning.

And then, with a thump, we landed. Instantly back to Rons complaining. But something still seemed off. While the others discussed, I scanned the area. Everyone seemed fine. Well, until I had to do a double-take. Part of a head sticking out from behind the bush. I had seen them before... A snatcher. We would be caught. There are so many of them.

And then they emerged.

There could have been up to six of them. I could barely process it all. Slowly we backed up. Maybe, just maybe, if we ran fast enough, we could get out of here before they catch us.

'Run, Layla, run!' My heart was beating out of my chest. Left foot in front of right, we sprinted through the forest. I had scratches around my exposed ankles from the thorns. And my sure lack of coordination didn't help much either. 'Just remember, left foot in front of right.'

If I fell, that would be it. The man who followed closely behind would have caught me. And who knows what would follow. I would never get to teach Charlie to cast a Patronus charm. I would never get to see Jemma on her wedding day. I'd never get to watch Cormacs first quidditch game. And I'd never get to say "I love you too."

Keep running.

But that's when I heard it, the muttering of a spell. Before I knew it, chains wrapped around my ankles, and I was face first in a pile of log and bush. My vision blurred, and as he lifted me from the ground, I felt blood trickle down my cheek. I winced at the sudden sharp pain in my head.

Harry better be running fucking fast.

I couldn't really make out anything around me. But I could tell when I was reunited with Harry and the others something was up. With his face, to be exact. Hermione. But she missed something.