𝐀𝐔𝐑𝐎𝐑𝐀 𝐁𝐎𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐒 | h. granger

CHAPTER TWENTY

She was awoken by the loud clang of the door slamming open against the wall. Opening her eyes, she is greeted by  the towering figure of Dolohov walking towards her. He smirks down at her, reaching for her arm and pulling her up roughly, the blanket which was keeping her warm falling to the floor.

"Smiles on, sweetheart. It's wise to please the Dark Lord." Dolohov says, dragging her over to the door and up the stairs.  She was brought into one of the many dining rooms and roughly sat down in one of the many chairs. She didn't dare move a muscle, nor did she remove her gaze from the table, knowing that if she lifted it, she would be staring into the eyes of the Dark Lord himself. 

Silence filles the room before an earie voice interupts it. "Look at me, child." A calm unnerving voice said, making her tremble in her seat. Her blood ran cold as he addressed her. She knew refusing was foolish so she carefully made eye contact with him. Her heart was beating out of her chest as she looked at the bald man with the nose of a snake and red slit eyes that held such evil. She had to look away, instead looking at his shoulder, not capable of looking into those red eyes. He didn't seem to notice or care anymore because he went on talking.

"Aster did have such beautiful eyes, you are lucky you have them, child. Severus' are so dark." He said matter of factually. She didn't move, but at the mention of her mother who He had in one way or another given the order to kill, she felt something get lodged in her throat.

"I am certain you know why you are here, child." He said calmly. "Severus had been teetering on the edge for a while, but he went too far, and that's where you come in. He cares deeply for you, which is very fortunate for me." He grinned at her and she almost stopped breathing.  She didn't move. There was silence for almost a whole minuet and she didn't dare breath in fear of breaking it.

"I sense such fear within you." He mumbled. "Such anguish." He gave her a calculating look. "There is something else isn't there, child. Something else..." he almost whispered the last part in this unnervingly calm way in which he spoke. She wasn't sure what he was referring to, but she assumed it was the sadness that had constantly consumed her since fifth year. 

 "Take her away." he said, frowning for some reason she did not know. He waved her away with his hand and immediately hands grabbed her and pulled her up and back into the basement. She was pushed in and landed roughly on the stone floor, her hands coming back slightly bloody from catching her fall. She lay there as the door slammed closed behind her and let out a strained breath, a shaking sob escaping. She had hardly been able to breath the whole time, being so scared in his presence. She crawled over to her corner and pulled her legs up to her chest, wrapping her stinging hands around them, rocking back and forward. He had unnerved her and just being in his presence terrified her. It made her blood run cold and she struggled to get any warmth into her body, even with the blanket tightly wrapped around her. She sat there in the dark thinking about who she had just met and what would happen to her if her father did in fact not do as told. She didn't want him to have to do bad things for her, but she knew he would, which almost pained her more.

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It had gone what she assumed was a week. She had no perception of time down in the dark dungeon. Draco had come down almost everyday with some food and water, but she was still starving most of the time. One small meal a day was not enough, but she was eternally grateful for his kindness. After his confession she understood a lot of his past behavior towards her. The teasing, seeking her out just to torment her, the focus on her and Hermione's relationship when he in truth did not care who she liked, boy or girl. He just wanted her to like him. The help he had given her in Hogsmead from the creepy man following her and the sincere apology when he had helped Blake. And his reluctance to kick her when she was down, because she had realized that Draco had hardly taken part. Draco Malfoy could actually be explained.