Maledictus

Ch.31 - The Jump

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"MOVE!"

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Draco was listening at the door, shaken to the skin.
For just a second ago he heard Alice and now he heard a hissing snake.
He burst in, holding his wand tight.

The snake slithered over to him and he yelped, backing away.
He tried to stun it, he tried to push it away but nothing would work.

The black, scaly snake was getting angrier, and moved closer and closer to Draco.
Soon enough Draco made the wrong move and threw a dining room chair at her.
Not. Good.

The snake's eyes turned red for a split second before biting Draco's ankle, making him tell out in pain.

The scream brought Alice back into human form and the transformation had weakened her greatly.
Between, exhaustion, lack of food and water, beatings and transforming, she was on the verge of collapsing.

It was then she heard the whimpering.
She rolled over onto her side and saw Draco, holding his leg and his hands covered in blood.
She did it.
She bit him.
She hurt him.

"Mr. Malfoy?" she said short of breath and shaking him.

"Alice? Get away from the snake" he shouted, pushing her away.

"Mr. Malfoy, let me see your leg!" She said, tugging at his arm, trying to release his grip.

"Get away from the snake" he shouted.

"There is no snake!" she shouted back, still trying to pull his hand away from the gash.

"What?"

"There is no snake" she said again. "Now, do you trust me?"

"No, not really"

She looked at him, and pulled his hands away from his leg, and placed her hands on it.
Soon enough, a sliver mist surrounded her thin hands and the cut was healed.
Nothing but a small scar was left behind.

Draco turned around to Alice, but she wasn't the same.
The healing had weakened her tremendously.

"Alice? Alice?" he asked, shaking her, but she wasn't responding.

He ran over to the nearest window to look at the drop.
It wasn't that far and there was a bush at the bottom.

"Alice? Alice can you stand?" he asked, dragging her over to the window.
She managed to shake her head.
Draco opened the window.

"Mr. Malfoy" she managed to whisper. "You'll get into trouble"

"I'd rather do that instead of watch you die in front of me"

She smiled a weak smile, and tried to stand before falling to the ground.

"Do you trust me?"

"No" she smiled.

"Nice to see you've still the same Alice!" he laughed. "I need you to jump"

Alice's eyes widened but with the help of Draco, she climbed up onto the windowsill and took one last look at the stars before pushing herself off the windowsill.

She fell head first into the Bush, surprised to find it quite soft.

She waited for Draco to jump out the window but he just opened the front door and walked out.

"Why couldn't I have done that?" she asked.

"Because I only thought about it after you jumped"

"Thanks Mr. Malfoy" she replied rolling eyes.

He pulled her up onto his shoulders and began walking.

"What now?" she asked, staring at the stars.

"I don't know, I thought the jump would kill you!" he laughed, stopping to cross the road.
She hit him across the head. "Blimey!"

Just as Draco was beginning to think that Alice was getting better, she fell silent and her eyelids were closing.

"Come on Alice, we're almost there" he said, looking for some mode of transport.
And that's when he spotted an abandoned car.
He carefully placed Alice in the back seat, and he put his coat over her to act as a blanket.

He started the car with magic (since there was obviously no keys) and began to drive.
Very. Badly.

He slammed on the breaks, banging into a building.
To be honest, he almost banged into everything in sight.

"Do you know how to drive this thing?" she asked, getting up from the cold car floor.

"Usually I'd lie and say yes, but considering the fact I almost crashed into the building, I'm assuming you know the answer"

Alice was mortified.
This boy was trying to save her, but while doing that, there was a chance he might kill her anyways!

Once he stopped the car, she hopped out and opened the door to the drivers seat.

"Move" she said, struggling to stay on her own to feet.

"What?"

"Move!"

He scooted to the passenger, curious as to what she was doing.

"Your not going to drive are you?"

"Why not?" she asked, putting her seatbelt on.

"Because you're eleven! It's illegal!"

"And you're sixteen, still illegal"

"Do you know how to drive?"

"I lived with clowns for seven years, of course I know how to drive"

Draco slumped lower in his seat.

"You're sick!"

"And you're an idiot"

"Thanks"

"Your welcome!"

The car lurched forward as she pressed the pedal and released the handbrake.
Draco covered his eyes, afraid of crashing.

Within minutes they had reached Hogsmead.

"Where can I meet those clowns?" Draco laughed as he hopped out of the car, checking if he was really alive.

"You really don't want to meet them, they're all bastards"

Just then, her legs buckled under her and she fell to the ground, banging her head.

"Alice!" exclaimed Draco, picking her up and wrapping his coat around her.
She was ice cold and her teeth her chattering.

He carried her all the way to Hogwarts.
He was exhausted, but Alice looked worse than ever.

He knocked on the huge oak door and Mc. Gonagall glared at him before noticing Alice in his arms.

"What on earth are you doing Malfoy?" she asked in her nightdress.

"Alice isn't well" he  replied, looking down at Alice.

"Bring her to the hospital wing immediately!"