Liar. Harry Potter's sister ~ Book 2

chapter seventeen

I don't know how long we've sat here for. All I know is that we haven't moved. His arms are locked around me, still, slumped against the wall. We sit here just enjoying the company of one another. My sobs had faded a while ago, but I knew that I could carry on forever if I was set off. My mind kept drifting to Neville's parents. How they had to go through that until they were driven to insanity. I don't think I could've lasted that curse another second before I would have blacked out. My whole body feels achy and sore. I don't really know what to think. I never knew she could get any worse, and now she's done this. Every time I shut my eyes I see myself in that graveyard at the end of last year, and then myself in her office squirming in pain the exact same way both times.

"Liv?" I hear a faint whisper in my ear. His breath is hot on my cheek but it comforts me. Makes me feel safe somehow. I hum in response, not having the energy to make conversation, right now. His arms shift around my waist and I feel him straighten out his legs in front of him.

"We should get going," He whispers, after pushing my hair away from my ear, "If Filch catches us out this late, we're dead meat."

I nod, sitting up. I feel his hands move up to my neck, gathering my hair in his hands and moving it out of my face. I smile appreciatively, looking down at the back of my hand. Dried blood was smudged over the irritated skin, but I was in too much of a different kind of pain to even care, at this point. Draco's pale hand reaches out and lifts my own to his eyesight. He examines the back of my hand, gently, before pulling out his wand and placing the tip to my hand.

"Scorgify," he mutters. The blood appears to sink right back into my skin where it came from, leaving the skin, clean and free of the blood. It stings, slightly, but I know that's just the cuts cleaning themselves. I look up and smile gratefully at him, sliding my hands around his neck and hugging him.

"Thank you for staying with me," I murmur, into the crook of his neck. I feel the muscles in his jaw tense up as he smiles. I pull away from the hug, looking around the deserted passageway. I grab my bag from the floor, and wrap it over my shoulder. Draco stands from beside me and he holds out a hand for me. I take it, heaving myself up, with much effort and pain. I wince as I put weight on myself, but the pain dissipates within a few seconds.

"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Draco says, as he hooks his arm around my waist, steadying me when I nearly topple. "I still think you should go to the hospital wing..."

"I'll be fine," I say, turning to look him in the eyes. I can't make out what he's thinking. Usually his face is pretty easy to read, but this is different. He stays silent. Cautious almost. As if I was going to break at any moment. "I promise." I add, reassuringly. He looks at me uncertainty and sighs.

"Ok, fine," He says, skipping his hand into mine, "But you've got to promise me that if you feel rough in any way you'll go to the hospital wing."

"I promise," I say, smiling. I know that's not entirely true, and he doesn't look all too convinced, but I ignore him, and let him guide me to the Common Room. We peer around each corner before turning it, to be certain that we weren't going to bump into any unsuspecting teachers. We stop outside of the portrait hole. I recite the password and slip my hand out of his grasp.

"I'll talk to you tomorrow, yeah?" I say, faking a smile. The truth was that I didn't really want to leave him. I know I'll be bombarded with questions when I go back into the Common Room and I didn't have the energy at all to be dealing with that. All I wanted to do was to be curled up back in that passageway with Draco. I definitely did not feel like spending the night in a dorm with a group of giggling girls.

"Yeah," Draco says smiling back. His face falls slightly. "Be careful, ok? Take things easy, you're still a bit unsteady on your feet."  I nod, before hurrying over to him and pressing a kiss to his cheek. I hide my smirk with my hair as I say goodbye and clamber through the portrait hole, closing it behind me. I take a deep breath, putting on a fake smile and striding through the portrait hole, confidently. Each step is a pain, but I know that I can't give it away.