𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐠𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐲 | 𝐝.𝐦.

fifty eight

All good things must come to an end.

Both Draco and Betty have been lounging against the thin blanket for hours already, drinking their stress with the bottle of firewhiskey he had stolen from his manor's pantry.

The sun has begin to dim its shine on them, before long, the noon is over and it is almost three.

Knowing that they have a lesson with Bellatrix in the impending evening, they knew that they couldn't remain in the woods all day.

The pair considered ditching the witch and staying stranded in the woods where no one can find them. But even though Betty had much wished they could, she had decided rationally that it wasn't a good idea.

Bellatrix is recognised to be a bit of a lunatic. If they missed her class, wasted even a split second of her time, they would be on the receiving end of their parent's wretches.

Draco was fine with that - he had convinced Betty that there were only so many meagre punishments his father could sentence him to... but Betty was the fretting one.

She had already defied her father by being absent for many weeks. She couldn't afford a second time, otherwise, she feared that her father might actually fancy replacing her with her younger sister.

That might have been the worst punishment she could get.

Hence, why the pair of them are strolling into the back gates of Malfoy Manor now, a little wobbly on their feet, but sober enough to hopefully please the teaching witch later.

As if it were a spell, as soon as the two entered the manor, they are immediately filled with dread. Their earlier euphoria washing away like a coat. Betty cannot shake off the feeling of something bad looming over them.

They enter through the kitchen, where house-elves are scattered all around the place, scrubbing at already polished glassware.

Betty tries to catch the eye of any one of them, hoping to greet them, but they pretend as if she were inexistent. As they usually did with the other witches and wizards in the house.

On the other hand, Draco behaves precisely like the elves. Holding her hand, he drops the basket on the table and leads her out of the kitchen without acknowledging the elves that clean his house.

They almost make it to the stairwell which lead to the corridors of bedrooms - but they are stopped at the great hall.

"Draco!" A sharp, drawling voice rebounds against the walls of the hall, catching them in their tracks.

Bellatrix is standing in the middle of the hall, where the dining table should be. Along with other silhouettes, including Lucius, Narcissa, and to Betty's disappointment, Joseph.

She cannot miss the way her father's forehead creases with perplexity when his gaze lands on their hands.

"Draco! Get over here this instant!" Bellatrix repeats, waving both of them over, a dark look hovering over her features.

The young couple exchange paranoid glances, but obey against their will. They are so close to getting two hours of swift peace before the lessons. Although, by the looks of it, Betty guesses that this has nothing to do with that actually.

"Where have you been?" Narcissa sweeps across the marble tiles of the hall, her touch on Draco's shoulder as gentle - yet frightful - as her voice is.

She glances at Betty offering her a quivering smile. "Hello, Betty."

The girl wants to speak, but her voice catches under the scornful scrutiny of the other adults in the room, so she only musters a faint smile at the woman.