Breaking Free (Book 3 of the Lost Potter Series)

This Isn't So Bad

Olivia had disliked the feeling of apparation before, but this time was much, much worse. With scraped up hands, fractured wrists, at least one broken rib, and shards of glass all over her left torso, the squeezing feeling hurt like no other. In addition to the physical pain, her powers were completely depleted, her hangover had yet to fully disperse, and she had no idea where she was being taken, so a combination of fatigue and panic swirled through her mind.

Bellatrix's grasp on the front of her jacket didn't loosen once they set foot down on solid land again. In fact, the first thing Bellatrix did was knock Olivia out with a stunning spell.

~

Olivia thought that the apparation hurt, that was for sure, but waking up on a cold, wet, stone floor in an unfamiliar space with all the previous ailments ramped up to a ten was somehow even worse.

She did her best to try and sit up first, but her injuries proved to make that an issue. Seeing only stone columns intersecting the room, she pulled herself over to one and used the crevices to prop  her back up against it. Her chest hurt with every breath, her wrists caused her to cry out with every movement, but the panic seizing her was the worst feeling of all.

Calm down, let's assess the situation before panicking. She told herself as she surveyed the room. Columns were spaced out every 10 feet or so, with the only sources of light coming from a lantern flickering in the distance and a slit in a dark doorway that was barely visible to Olivia. The door looked vaguely familiar, but she couldn't place where from in her current state of mind.

Just as she was trying to decipher the door, it opened creakily. Low and behold, a disheveled white-haired boy approached her with a tray in hand.

"Look who decided to wake up." He seemed to try and joke, but neither party saw it as very funny.

"Draco? What are—" Olivia cut herself short as the memory of the door crashed down on her, "Am I in the cellars?" She practically whispered.

Draco nodded, sitting at an angle to her and placing the meagre tray of food and drink in between them.

Olivia couldn't help the tears that flowed. She had never been allowed in the cellar before, but just being trapped inside Malfoy manor once again sent horrible imagery through her mind.

"Don't—" Draco stopped himself short of the comforting pat on her shoulder he was about to attempt as she involuntarily flinched away from him.

"I-I'm sorry," Olivia said through her tears, not wanting to offend the only friend she may be seeing for a long while.

"I'm not supposed to tell you this, but he's not here, if that makes you feel any better. He's been arrested and put in Azkaban for the time being." Draco said in a low, grumbling whisper that still seemed to echo in the barren room.

Olivia would've hugged Draco at the news right then and there if it weren't for her injuries. Instead, her tearful face began to smile as she thanked him.

"Don't mention it, really." Draco sighed, "Though, I do have to ask an unfortunate favor of you so that they think you're complying."

Olivia nodded, though very unsure of what he was about to ask.

"Once you wake up I'm supposed to chain your neck and wrists to the wall over there," He pointed towards ancient chains attached to the stones in the basement walls, "But I figured I'd at least let you eat your meal first before doing any of that."

"Thank you, Draco." Olivia said, still feeling panicked at the thought of being chained up.

"It won't be a forever thing, just whenever I'm not down here with you. And whenever other people are around, of course."

Olivia nodded again, "But I can eat first, right?"

"Yeah, of course," Draco slid the tray her way, "Oh and I almost forgot, I grabbed some healing potion to give you for your injuries." Without pausing, he took out a vial and poured it into the cup that sat on the tray. He refused to look her in the eye after this moment.

"Thank you again." Olivia wished him, grabbing some of the bread before even touching the drink. She swirled the cup once or twice to incorporate the potion, though the smell still seemed to be layered and the room wasn't bright enough to tell anyway.

"Can I ask what healing potion it is? It smells delightful, like some sweet wood, something flowery, and pure warmth, almost." Olivia swirled the drink once again, revelling in the delicious smell.

"I-I'm not sure, it's just labelled at a healing potion in the text." Draco stuttered uncharacteristically, his hands fidgeting.

"Huh. Guess I should probably see how well it works, hmm?" Olivia tried to joke feebly before taking a sip of the very odd tasting drink. The first sip tasted like fiery cinnamon, probably the healing potion,  but beneath that sat a more watered down sickly sweet taste that baffled her senses.

Her wrists and ribs were numbed pretty quickly after the drink, though her head felt more foggy and drowsy than before. Her thoughts began to run amuck, with her attention turning completely towards the still slumped Draco.

"Hey," Olivia grabbed his jaw without thinking, forcing his eyes to look at hers, "Why do you look so sad? How can I help? I don't want you being sad."

Draco shook his head and stood suddenly, dislodging her hand, "It's nothing, Olivia."

Olivia couldn't figure out why she felt the urge to hug him and never let go, but managed to stop herself from actually doing so.

What she couldn't stop herself from doing, however, was pushing the subject, "Are you sure you're alright? It's nothing I've done, is it? Was it me flinching earlier? I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"It's nothing, Olivia. Can you hurry up eating so that I can lock your chains? I don't want them getting suspicious."

Olivia, without thinking once again, shoved all the food and drink on the tray into her mouth immediately after he said so, chewing as fast as she could as she dragged herself once again across the dungeon floor, almost eagerly awaiting the chains.

Draco once again wouldn't make eye contact but followed her to the wall nonetheless. He clasped each chain around her with a spell Olivia had never heard before. He turned and began walking away with the tray in hand before saying his farewell.

"I'm sorry Olivia. I'll be back soon, okay?"

"Okay Draco. I can't wait to see you again!" Olivia giggled to herself as that last swing of the potion concoction hit her stomach, making her head feel even more muddled and foggy. Though, oddly enough, Olivia found that she didn't seem to mind.

~~

Current Author's Note:
        I've decided to start this book on June 5th, 2019 because it's Draco's 39th birthday! I'm about to write him into such a mess but we're celebrating him anyway.

Original Author's Note:
     Off to an amazingly traumatic start as (per usual with this series)! I'd again like to thank everyone who's kept up with Olivia so far and I hope you're just as excited as I am to see what's next!

Anyway, please leave feedback and I hope you enjoyed!