dislike ↠ draco malfoy

forty-two

Evangeline

The rest of the day passed by slowly. I quietly chatted with Luna, but there just wasn't enough to talk about anymore, so we just laid down on the floor. We had nothing comfortable to lay on, so we were stuck with the cold, hard floor of the dungeon.

Draco wasn't here yet.

Even though I didn't know exactly what time it was, the train ride was surely over by now, but yet he wasn't here.

The light behind cell door of the dungeon was gradually getting darker, so I could tell that the sun was setting. The train ride was over now. Draco should be home.

I shivered. It was incredibly cold down here, and I was almost afraid of freezing to death in my sleep. I closed my eyes. I would somehow have to sleep on the floor, which was harder than it seemed. I pushed my knees into my chest and wrapped my arms around them, forming a ball. It warmed me up slightly.

I could hear snores from Ollivander. He had somehow fallen asleep already, though I supposed he was probably used to it, as he had been here for five months. Luna was laying a few feet away from me. I could hear her softly humming to herself.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps from outside of the dungeon. I snapped my head up and listened closely. There were more footsteps and then someone knocked on the cell door.

I looked back at Luna. She was still humming, and must not have heard the knocking. I scrambled over to the door, and in dim lighting, I saw him.

Draco.

He was standing there waiting for me. He had a melancholy expression on his face. He sunk to the floor and I sat down on the floor across from him, separated by the cell door.

"Thank god," he muttered. "You're okay." He reached a hand out and gripped my hand through the bars.

I squeezed his hand. "What took you so long?" I hissed. "It's night time."

"I had to sneak down here," he whispered. "My father won't let me see you."

"You have to get us out of here," I pleaded. "Please."

He shook his head and looked down at the floor. "Eva... I can't."

"What do you mean you can't?" I demanded in a whisper. "Just open the door, and we can Apparate away from here."

"They would know it was me," he said in a small voice. "They'd kill me."

"Just open the door, please. You can blame it on me," I said.

"I don't even know how to open this door," he said. "You can't just use Alohomora on it. It requires a special spell that I don't even know."

I slumped against the wall. "How are we going to get out of here?"

He looked at me gravely. "I don't know. But you'll be okay, all right? I'll make sure they won't hurt you."

"You can't make sure of that," I said.

"I know— but I'll try, okay?" Draco whispered. "Look, I wish I could just open this door and run away with you, but I can't."

We sat in silence for a moment before Draco said, "I have to go, alright? They have Death Eaters patrolling, and if they catch me down here— just, I have to go."

"Okay," I said, my voice small.

He let go of my hand, and it dropped into my lap. I watched him stand up and walk the other way.

I sunk back down the stairs and collapsed onto the floor.

* * *

Sleeping on the dungeon floor was awful. My entire body was sore after the first three nights. I could hardly stand up. They provided us with hardly any food, and my stomach growled ravenously throughout the night.

Every night, Draco came and talked to me through the cell door. It was nice to see his face everyday. It was the only thing I looked forward to.

One night, I was already sitting at the door waiting for him when he arrived.

"Hey," he muttered, sitting down on the ground.

"Hey."

"Merry Christmas, Evangeline," he said. He was smiling slightly.

"It's Christmas?" I asked.

"Yes, it's Christmas," he said. "It's December twenty-fifth."

"I've only been in here for four days and one night," I whispered. "It feels like it's been forever."

"You'll get out of here soon," he said. "I got you something." He reached into his pocket and pulled out an assortment of candies and placed them onto the floor. He pushed them through the slot between the door and the floor. "I know they don't feed you much, so..."

"Thank you," I breathed. I immediately reached forward and grabbed a Chocolate Frog. My hands shaking, I unwrapped the packaging and shoved the chocolate into my mouth. The sweetness hit my tastebuds. It was the best thing I had eaten in days.

"You were hungry," he said with a small laugh.

"You know it," I replied, chewing the rest of the frog.

"I got you something else," he muttered, pulling a small box out of his pocket.

"You didn't have to get me anything," I said sincerely. "I didn't get you anything."

"You can't get me anything when you've been stuck in this dungeon all day," he replied.

"Right."

He opened the box and there was a small necklace inside. It had a silver chain and a dark green gemstone on the end.

"You got me a necklace? You didn't have to do that," I said.

He took the necklace out of the box and slid it under the slot. "I would put it on you, but I can't really reach you threw this door."

I picked up the necklace and looked closely at it. It was quite simple, which was nice because I didn't like extravagant jewelry. I unclasped the hook and put it around my neck.

"It's beautiful, Draco. Thank you," I said.

"I just want you to be happy," he breathed.

"I'm happy with you just coming down here and talking to me," I whispered.