His North Star. *Complete*

87. We Are Going To See The Headmaster

I thought I had prepared myself. I was sure Draco was a Deatheater, so why was I so scared now that I was seeing the mark for myself? Why was I so worried? Draco still hadn't taken his eyes off me. I moved closer to him. He looked so...lost. He looked like a frightened and lonely little boy. I suddenly realised what he must be going through. How scared he must feel.

I reached out to touch his arm. He recoiled. "Don't! I do not deserve your pity or sympathy or... love. Not after what I have done. I am a monster." I took another shuffle and grabbed both of his hands. "Draco. Look at me." He looked up, meeting my eyes. My tears betrayed me as they pooled over and down my cheeks. "You are not a monster, Draco. You didn't ask for this. I know you would not do this willingly. You need to tell me everything." He shook his head. "I can't, Isla." I gently tugged him. "Yes, you can. It's me. You once said you could tell me anything. Time to prove it. I am here, and I am not going anywhere and I am listening to you because I love you, Draco. I love you! I do not care that you are a Deatheater. I love you." I gave a small smile. I pulled him towards me, hugging him tightly. I pulled us to our feet and moved both of us to the bed, and we sat down. "Tell me from the beginning. From when you got home for summer holidays."

He was shaking as he took a deep breath. "It was awful. I really regret not taking you up on your offer to go with you. My mum met me off the train and we went back to the manor where my aunt is now living. For the first few days, it was not so bad. It was just her. She is deranged but her I could handle. But over the next few weeks, more and more Deatheaters came to visit. They held meetings in our dining room. All preparing for his arrival.
Then one evening, Bellatrix came to my room and told me I was needed downstairs. When I followed her down, I went into my father's study, and there he was. The Dark Lord. He is fucking scary-looking. Red eyes and skin so sickly looking it's almost grey! He said my father was a failure, and because of his foolishness, getting himself locked in Azkaban, I had to take his place in the ranks.
He told me there was a job that needed to be done at school and that he needed someone on the inside to do it. Me. So he gave me the...the...well this," he said, pointing to his arm. "He said I had to complete the task before the end of the year, and I was not to fail him. If I proved my use, then I would be rewarded. If I failed, he would take away the things that mattered most to me. My family...and you."

"Me?" I gasped. How did he know? "He does not know about you. He only knows that I have a girlfriend, and he is using that as leverage." Draco sniffed. "Did it hurt?" I asked looking at his arm. "What?" I gestured down. "Getting the mark?" He sighed. "At the time? Yes, it was excruciating, but it eased slightly after a few days. Now, it only burns when he is calling you." I took a deep breath, trying to absorb everything Draco was telling me. It was like a plot from a very badly written thriller novel. "Draco? What is your task? What is he wanting you to do?" He shook his head.  "Isla...I can't tell you. I can not implicate you." I moved so I was sitting on his knee as he wrapped his arms around me and I wrapped mine around his neck. "No more secrets, Draco. Tell me... now!" Again, he looked into my eyes. I think he was checking to see if I was going to back down. I wasn't. "He wants me to kill Dumbledore." I gave a small gasp. "Kill? Kill? As in dead, kill?" Draco simply nodded and began to sob again. "So is that how you knew about the Mead? You poisoned it?" He nodded.

Poor Ron. An innocent victim in all this. He was simply at the wrong place, at the wr- Shit! "Draco, was it you who gave the cursed necklace to Katie Bell?" Again, Draco nodded. "She wasn't supposed to touch it. And Weasley was not supposed to drink the mead. Everything is falling apart, and I do not know what to do." He squeezed me and leaned his face into my neck. "Is this where you have been sneaking off to? Coming up with plans?" He sniffed. "Not exactly," Draco said. "What do you mean 'not exactly'?" I brushed his hair out of his face. "Well, I have been in the ROR. I have been working there." I was lost now. "Working?" He nodded. "Yes mending a cabinet to be exact."