Beautifully Damned (A Draco Malfoy Fanfic)

Chapter 32 - The Shrieking Shack

My emotions had got the best of me and I can’t believe I actually started crying because of that cheating, lying, bastard. 

I take Draco’s hand and follow him outside. Everyone stares at us, bewildered. But I don’t care. I don’t care what anyone thinks and I don’t care what my friends will say. I just want to get out of here.

“Where do you want to go?” Draco asks once we’re out of sight.

“Anywhere but here.” 

“Ok, follow me.” He instructs. 

We briskly walk towards a large tree in the distance. As we get closer I see the tree swaying side to side and occasionally whipping its branches whenever a bird gets a little to close.

“Isn’t this the Whomping Willow?” I ask. 

He nods. “There’s a secret passage beneath it.” 

“But it will kill us if we get too close.” I say. 

“Don’t worry, I know how to handle it.” Draco says coolly as he pulls out his wand. “Stand back ok? Don’t come any closer until I tell you.” 

I nod nervously at him. 

He races through towards the base of its trunk, dodging its branches that come crashing down around him. He stays calm under the pressure, its looks as though he’s done this many times before. 

He gets to the trunk and quickly places his wand on a knot at the bottom. Almost immediately the willow calms and stops moving. Its immobilised. 

“Ok come over Jess.” 

I walk over to Draco as he bends down and opens up a hidden trap door. 

“You can go first.” He gestures for me to climb down into the passageway. 

“Lumos.” I whisper so I can see on my way down the ladder. I jump down the last few runs and wait for Draco to join me. 

 We start along the walkway silently for a while.

“Thanks.” I say randomly. 

“For what?” 

“Punching Harry.” I laugh slightly, only just now actually realising what had happened. 

He smirks, “Its no trouble. Scarface deserved it.” 

We reach the end of the passage in good time and  he usher me into the rundown room. 

“What is this place?” I ask. 

“The Shrieking Shack in Hogsmeade.”

“Never heard of it?” I encourage him to tell me more.

“Its supposably the most haunted building in the whole of Britain.” 

“Do you think that’s true?”

“Doubt it, I’ve never met any ghost in here.” 

The entire place is covered in dust and cobwebs. I take out my wand and non-verbally cast as spell that completely restores the shack to its former glory. The peeling wallpaper clings back against the wall, the moth-eaten curtains return to a brilliant red velvet and the hardwood floors become shindy scratch-free. 

I collapse on the plush couch and Draco sits down next to me, pointing his wand at the fireplace in front of us casting it to light. 

“This place is pretty cool.” I say. 

“Yeah I used to come here all the time.” 

“Let me guess, this is where you bring girls. All your conquests?” 

“I actually I’ve never brought anyone here, until you.” 

I force myself not to smile, for some reason this made me feel special. “Well where do you take all your other girls?” 

“I don’t have any.” 

“That’s not what I heard.” I press on.

“What exactly did you hear about me?” 

“Well, that you’re a player. Silly girls fall for, thinking they can change you and they end up alone and disappointed.” 

“I don’t date girls that actually like me. I don’t really date at all for that matter. There’s been a few girls over previous summer holidays, but its never anything special. None of them really liked me or bothered to get to know me, and that’s ok because I didn’t like them. Purely physical” 

“Why not actually be with someone that’s means something to you? Someone you could love?” 

“Love?” He says. “I don’t even know what that is.” He almost whispers. 

I remain silent. 

“Did you love Potter?” He says not bothering to hide his scowl. 

“No. not even close.” I say. “I thought maybe I could, over time something more could grow. But.. I never really felt right with him. And especially now, after what’s happened, there is no way in hell I’ll ever be with him again.”

“He never deserved you in the first place Jess. You’re more special than you realise. I would never do anything like that to you.” Draco says. 

“Now don’t go making promises you can’t keep Mr. Draco Malfoy.” I grin at him playfully. 

Draco’s POV 

I’d managed to get her completely alone in the Shrieking Shack, cosy on the couch with a warm fire flickering in front of us as it starts to pour down rain outside. The setting couldn’t be more perfect. If this doesn’t win me some points with her I don’t know what will. 

We had skipped our afternoon classes without even a second thought and spent the entire afternoon and evening talking together.

I find myself telling her things that I wouldn’t usually tell anyone. 

She makes me feel different, its strange. There’s a reason I never talk to anyone like this, why I never let anyone get too close to me. Its because I don’t know how to handle warm emotions properly. I’ve never been in love and never want to be in love. 

Its completely foreign to me. 

And now I find myself in a position where I’m trying to get her to fall for me, without actually allowing myself to fall for her. 

She has a way of talking to me, that enables me to somehow open up genuinely. Its pleasantly bizarre. 

But then she asks me the one thing I had been praying to Lucifer she wouldn’t, “Are your family Death Eaters?” 

“Why would you ask that?” I say buying time to think of my answer. 

She shrugs, “I’m curious.” 

“Let me guess, you’ve heard things about me?” 

“Well yeah.” 

I smile and roll my eyes, “Every conversation we have includes you telling me something you’ve heard about me from other people. I must be really popular.” I grin. 

“I see what you’re doing.” She smiles at me, “ Its fine though, its none of my business. You never pry on my past so why should I intrude on yours.” 

A clap of thunder sounds near by and the rain begins to pelt down heavier. 

“You know we might have to stay here tonight, the tunnel floods sometimes. We can head back to the school in the morning.” 

“Oh.” 

“Don’t worry, there’s a bedroom through there.” I point to the door behind us. “I’ll sleep on the couch.” 

“Thanks.” She flashes me a sweet smile. I wish she wouldn’t do that, it makes it harder for me to restrain my feelings for her.