Abused

Ship

~Continued Flashback~ 

November 27, Saturday

Pansy stood speechless for a few seconds, standing in plain sight. However, she quickly gathered herself and rushed around the corner to hide herself for Draco and the other girls. 

"Malfoy?" one of the girls exclaimed, clearly trying to mask her fear. Draco was staring down at the girls, his eyes dark. "We didn't mean it! Honest!" Pansy saw that it was Parvati speaking. "We were just joking around. Right, girls?" Parvati asked desperately to the girls around her. All of them shook their heads vigorously. Draco took a menacing step towards them. 

"Yeah? Well, it wasn't very fucking funny," Draco growled. All of the girls flinched. All except  Padma. Pansy knew that she should probably leave to find Hermione, but she also couldn't help but want to see Draco beat the girls' asses for talking about Hermione like that. Pansy had never had anything specifically against any of the four girls, but now she wanted to hurt them. Badly. Padma suddenly stepped forward. She seemed to have a confidence that wasn't very well-justified. Draco was almost a head taller than her, and he was probably stronger than all four girls combined. 

"Why are you protecting her, Malfoy? She's everything we said she was. We're not lying, are we?" Padma asked, a smirk creaking up on her lips. Parvati grabbed her arm and tried to yank Padma back, but Padma only shook her off. Draco's eyes narrowed even more. "Why don't you hang out with us instead of that bratty Granger. We're much better company than her." Pansy was taken aback for a moment. Was Padma... hitting on Malfoy? Who would've guessed that Padma Patil would actually like him. Draco, however, seemed unfazed. 

"She's better than any of you will ever be. You call her a brat, but look who's talking trash, too scared to even say it to her face. I bet you're all too scared of her because she's a better witch all of you combined." Pansy could tell that Draco was trying hard to keep his cool. Pansy wondered why, but then she realized how bad it would go for Draco if he was reported for hitting a girl. A flash of hurt crossed Padma's face, but it would quickly replaced by unmasked anger.

"You're only defending her because she's a good shag! I don't know why all of you boys are all over her. She's nothing but an insufferable, flat-chested mudblood-"  Pansy seemed to be watching in slow motion as Draco raised his hand, ready to slap Padma into next week. Pansy's earlier realization came rushing to her, and it pushed her forward. 

"Malfoy!" Pansy exclaimed, stopping him before he could strike. Padma gasped at Draco's raised hand. 

"You were going to hit me!" Padma yelled. She turned to Pansy. "He was going to hit me!" she exclaimed once more. Pansy realized that Padma thought Pansy had stopped Draco for her sake. Pansy almost scoffed aloud at the thought. Draco looked down, clearly angry that he had almost lost control. 

"Yeah? Well you damn well deserved it, you bitch," Pansy started, her voice dripping with venom. Everyone's face snapped up in surprise to look at her. Even Draco looked surprised. "The only reason I stopped Malfoy was because he would probably be expelled if he was found guilty of slapping a girl." Pansy looked up at Draco. His face was nearly unreadable, but he subtly nodded as if to thank her silently. "I, however-" Pansy turned back to look at Padma. "-will get a lesser punishment of beating you all up than him." Pansy cracked her knuckles, ready to fight them all at once. 

"Parkinson." Draco grabbed her arm only to have her shake him off. "You may not get as bad as a punishment as I would, but you'll still be in trouble," he whispered to her. "Don't hit them. As much as I want you to beat their asses, just send them a message and get it over with." Pansy rolled her eyes and sighed. 

"Fine," she spit out. "Look, you four," Pansy growled. "I'm not going to beat you up today because I would like to graduate without any bumps. However, if I ever hear another word of gossip about Hermione again, I will rip your vocal chords out so fast that no one will hear you scream." Pansy pushed Padma back a few steps. The four girls had clearly grasped the message. They all nodded and ran from sight. Pansy turned to go and find Hermione. 

"Thank you, Malfoy. But, let's be clear, just because I stepped in doesn't mean I like you. Oh, and it you break Hermione's heart, I'll rip out yours." Pansy started to walk away.

"Wait. What do you mean? Hermione's is dating Weasley, not me." Pansy laughed to herself and turned to face Draco. 

"Yeah, well, I don't like the weasel at all. Especially not for Hermione. And even though I don't really like you either," Pansy smirked and turned away. "let's just say I ship you two more." And with that, Pansy disappeared around the corner. 

"Ship?" Draco wondered aloud. "What the fuck does that mean?" 

Author's Note

Hello! Yeah I'm sorry I didn't post this past week. The thing is, finals are coming up, and I wasn't sure I would be able to pound out another update before today. And why was I so adamant about posting today? you may ask. Well, guess what guys.... Today is the one year anniversary of Abused!! Can y'all believe it? I can't believe I started this a year ago. And I can't believe I've stuck with it. I haven't had this much motivation since- Well, never. So thanks to anyone who's been here since the beginning, and thank you to everyone who has joined along the way. I love all of y'alls. Okay, I don't wanna get sappy and drag this out so... Kiss Kiss!