What He Knew

Chapter 22

I let out an ungodly scream and darted forward towards the curly haired witch,  lunging for my wand. I heard Amycus hurl a spell at me and I ducked, it hit the witch sending her flying back against a wall, my wand fell from her grip. I rolled onto the ground and grabbed the wand. Having it back in my hand soothed me.

"Oh no you don't!" cried the woman shooting a red light at me but I dodged it.

"Bellatrix stop!" cried Draco, stepping in front of his aunt, his back to me. 

I recognised her name from the night Draco had been talking to his aunt. This woman, the woman who killed my parents was his aunt.

"This is your aunt?" I yelled, shaking with anger.

"Fiadh, stop, lower your wand."

"So you knew all along that your aunt killed my mother?" 

He glanced over his shoulder at me.

"Fiadh, I said lower your wand."

"You knew! You knew and still you dragged me along on this... on this death trap!" I was screaming now, unable to contain my anger.

"Now, now, Ms Rose," came the drawling voice of Snape from beside me. 

I whirled around wand trained on him now.

"You!" I hissed, tears welling in my eyes. "You killed him. He begged you and you did it!"

"I did it so Draco here wouldn't face the same fate," Snape sneered. "Now lower your wand."

My eyes darted around the room. Draco was still pointing his own wand at his aunt who was smiling manically in my face. Fenrir was looking hungrier and hungrier. Amycus was hunched in a corner, want in hand, pointed right at me. I had no chance. Slowly I lowered my wand.

"Very good Ms. Rose, now both of you," he gestured at Draco and I, "Follow me and Bella do try to keep your hands to yourself. Ms Rose will not need any further convincing."

I stalked ahead of Draco and Snape and he ushered us down the stairs ahead of the other Death Eaters. The corridor was dark and covered in dust; half the ceiling had caved in during our time in the Astronomy Tower. There were bright flashes of curses and hexes flying everywhere. Snape pushed me behind him, right into Draco. "It's over, time to go!" called Snape to the people in the hall, gesturing for us to follow him down the corridor. I could only make out shadowy shapes around me.

I heard someone call my name but I couldn't see the person in the havoc. A green light came flashing by and would've hit me if Draco hadn't grabbed me and pulled me to the side. I tore away from his grasp in disgust. 

"Rose-" he began but another jet of light forced us to fall to the ground. Draco sent a stream of light in the general direction in retaliation.

"Do not get involved you two," snapped Snape, dragging us off of the floor.

We were pushed down the many flights of stairs, dodging explosions and curses as they flew by. Draco's hand had found mine in the chaos and I was too concentrated on staying alive to shake him off. Soon we were outside in the fresh air and I inhaled my first clean breath since the Astronomy Tower. I tried to pause to get my bearings but Draco pulled me after him, Snape's cape billowing behind him as we made our way across the grounds.

"Let go of me!" I said struggling to get out of Draco's grip.

"Rose, listen to me, you have no choice either you come with me or you're going to die," Draco yelled.

"I'd rather die than join the Death Eaters!" I screamed. "I'll tell them what really happened. I didn't do anything."

Snape was back beside us, "Ms Rose, if you think they will believe that now that Dumbledore is dead, you are foolish. They will not accept you back amongst their ranks. You need to come now. This is your only choice."

"You murdered him! He was your friend and you murdered him. You can't make me do anything."

"Rose, The Dark Lord will accept you with open arms once he knows you have aided Draco. Your efforts will be wasted if you stay here."

I looked at Draco, the boy was more pale and shaken than I'd seen him and the side of me that pitied him was still there.

"Where will I stay? I can't very well go back to my aunts."

Snape's face relaxed, "You may stay with the Malfoys but we must leave. Now."

With resignation we began to run towards the forest once more but we were quickly interrupted as a voice yelled, "Stupefy!" behind us and a red light soared past Snape's head.

Snape yelled, "Run! Both of you!" and turned to face potter.

Draco dragged me into the woods further and further we went, the darkness engulfing us. Draco had illuminated his wand and led the way deeper still. Soon he came to a stop.

"I'm so sorry, Rose," he said, getting his breath back. "I should never have put you in that position-"

"Shut up, Malfoy. I chose to do this, I didn't think it through and now.."

He looked at me, "Did you tell those DA lot what was happening?"

I turned red, but didn't deny it.

"Come on we have to get to the portkey." He glanced down at his silver watch, battered from the battle scene.

"When... when you said someone had died..." 

He was pulling me towards a destroyed looking muggle tyre in the copse.

"I don't think they actually died... Fenrir just had a good go at Bill Weasley."

Even Malfoy had grimaced at the thought of Greyback. 

"1 minute...grab onto the tyre, Rose."

I looked at the boy in front of me, wondering how the hell I had ended up here. We'd just witnessed the murder of the greatest wizard of our time by our potions professor. After months of fighting each other, hating each other. Then to find myself tangled up in this web with him. Being tied to the murder and running from the scene of the crime with the boy who's aunt killed my mother. It couldn't get any more fucked up than this. I shook my head, ridding the screaming that echoed in my head for long enough to grab the tyre just before it transported us away from Hogwarts. Away from my friends. Away from normality. Away.