The Eagle and The Snake: A Tragic Love Story

69. A Girl Worth Fighting For

Carly was worried about telling Draco that her and Luna were taking over his mission, as he hadn't reacted well to her attempts to help him in the past.
She decided it would be best if she spoke to Draco alone, since they were both family.
So, while Luna was studying in the Malfoy library, Carly headed to Draco's room, to inform him about Voldemort's new plans for them all.
Draco was sat at his desk, going over some notes, when Carly entered his room.
"Hey, we need to talk" announced Carly.
"What about?" Asked Draco, as he spun around to face her.

"The dark lord told me and Luna about your missions, and he has instructed us to help you with them" revealed Carly.
"I do not need any help. I can do this by myself" insisted Draco.
"Well, the dark lord doesn't agree. He wants insurance that his missions will be completed, which is why he has also tasked Luna and I with them" replied Carly.
"There is no need for you to help me. I've got it all covered" announced Draco, as he jumped to his feet.
"Whether you do or not, doesn't matter. The dark lord has assigned us this task, so we have no choice but to aid you with your missions, even if you don't need or want our help".

"I suppose if the dark lord has ordered you to help me, then it's true that you don't really have any choice... I'm sorry that I dragged you both into this, by being such a failure" apologised Draco, as he sat back down.
"There is no need to apologise, for Luna and I jumped at the chance to complete another mission for the dark lord" replied Carly.
"You still wanted to help me, even after hearing what my mission was?" Asked Draco.
"We will leap at any opportunity to prove ourselves to the dark lord"
"But this mission is insanely difficult, and it involves murdering someone"
"I am aware of that".

"And you're O.K with that, killing someone I mean?" Questioned Draco.
"Luna and I have killed people in the past. And this situation will be no different to the last time. We have no issues with killing other people, no matter who they are" lied Carly, who was just as unsure as Luna was, about having to kill Dumbledore.
"Really? Luna Lovegood has killed someone?" Quizzed Draco.
"She isn't some weak female who can't take care of herself. She is strong. She murdered Fudge right alongside me, and the two of us killed Umbridge together. We have also used all 3 of the Unforgivable Curses".

"You killed Cornelius Fudge?" Gasped Draco.
"It was what the dark lord instructed us to do, so it's what we did. We follow the dark lords orders, because we know he can get us what we want" answered Carly.
"I think you'll find that following the dark lords orders will be a little harder this time. I've been trying all year, and I have still not managed to accomplish either of my missions" admitted Draco.
"We will not fail the dark lord!".

"I can't afford to fail him... He has promised to kill me and my family if I fail to complete this mission. You were right, at the beginning, when you told me that I didn't know what I was getting myself into" revealed Draco.
"He said that he'd kill you and your parents, if you failed your missions?" Asked Carly.
"Yes. Did he not threaten you and Luna in the same way?" Questioned Draco.
"The dark lord said there would be serious consequences if we failed him. But he didn't go into specifics"
"You're lucky then, because that means your life isn't on the line, like mine is".

"Listen to me, we are not going to fail him, and I'm not going to let you or Narcissa die. The three of us are incredibly smart and determined, so I know that we can pull this off" insisted Carly, as she perched on the end of Draco's bed, closing the gap between them.
"How?" Quizzed Draco.
"Well, for now, we will divy up the assignments, and focus on one each. You will continue trying to fix the Vanishing Cabinet, since you've been dedicating so much time to it already. And Luna and I will come up with a plan to kill Dumbledore, since your attempts at this so far have been disastrous, and we don't want more people getting hurt by accident".

"I didn't mean to hurt Katie Bell, or Ronald Weasley... Even though I hate the blood traitor Weasleys, I didn't feel any joy when I found out that my actions had nearly killed Ron. In fact, I felt awful about what I'd done. I didn't intend on anyone else getting caught in the crossfires" admitted Draco quietly.
"Of course you didn't" Carly replied softly.
She was beginning to think that despite what the world thought he was, deep down, Draco was actually a good person. Unlike her and Luna, who had a list of people they wanted to hurt, and potentially kill.

"My father would call me weak, if he knew I felt such things" said Draco.
"Well, he is not here to judge either of us, for he's in prison. Besides, you're nearly a man now, so it's time you stopped caring about what your father thinks of you, and started being your own person" encouraged Carly.
"I can't exactly be my own person, can I" mumbled Draco, as his eyes flicked to the arm where Carly knew his dark mark was.
"Once the dark lord has won this war, then we will all be free to live the lives that we want. And all the suffering and pain we caused and endured, will have been worth it"
"I wish I could believe you"
"You can. You just need to have a little faith".

"It's hard to have faith in anything, when the world around us has fallen into shit" sighed Draco.
"Having faith in yourself, and your loved ones, and the cause you fight for, is the only way you will get through this... Anyway, I had better go and rejoin Luna before she starts to wonder where I am" informed Carly, as she began to leave.
"Wait... How do you do it? How do you live with yourself, day in, day out, knowing that people are dead because of you? How do you lie and betray people in your life, on a daily basis? And how do you live with that guilt, without looking like you are falling apart?" Asked Draco.

"It takes practice, and sometimes a lot of make-up, to hide my true feelings from the world... But the real reason I can do it, is because I have something and someone to fight for. Once you have that, it becomes easy to sacrifice yourself and your morals, and live with the consequences of your actions. I do this for Luna, my Luna, to keep her safe and happy. There is nothing I wouldn't do for her. And if serving the dark lord is what it takes to protect her, then I will do it. I will continue fighting for Luna, until my dying breath, and I know she will do the same for me. Love is what gets us through. And as long as we have each others love, then we can do anything" announced Carly.