kalon ~ d.m

{44} Black days, and darker ones to come

CHAPTER FOURTY FOUR; BLACK DAYS, AND DARKER ONES TO COME

❝ yes professor nightingale.❞

♫:' ik heb een masker opgezet, zo ga ik door het leven. Zodat niemand mij kent, ik heb de moed opgegeven.'
(Translation from Dutch: I've put on a mask, that's how I live my life. So no one knows the real me, I've given up hope.) ~Anouk, Wen d'r maar aan.

"You knew?!" He shouted furiously, stepping a bit closer towards his mother. "You knew he was going to take her away from me!" He accused, raising his voice.

"Draco-" Narcissa Malfoy attempted to calm him, but his outburst only increased in severity.

"You knew.." He muttered. "I can't believe you! I hate you!" He spat dangerously.

"Lucius-" She gasped out as she saw her husband lunge forward, slapping their son across the face.

"Speak to your mother with respect, Draco." He demanded, a stern look on his face. The younger Malfoy rubbed his throbbing cheek with his hand and shook his head.

"Fuck off." His tone held pure hatred, and he turned on his heel, and quickly moved up the stairs.

Narcissa flinched as they heard his bedroom door slam shut.

"I told you this would happen, Cissa." He sighed, beckoning her closer. She refused, shaking her head and dropping her gaze to the floor.

"He hates us, Lucius."

"He'll get over it."

[⌁]

Leah Nightingale wasn't known for giving up. The opposite, in fact. She was known for her determination. For not giving up. However, know did she not, whether this would still be the same after the war. She figured it wouldn't be.

Why not?

Because she'd lost count of the amount of times she had wanted to give up in the past day alone. Part of her felt pathetic. That she depended so heavily on someone else for her strength, and happiness. But she couldn't help it. She was just better with him. They were better together. Yet again, they had been forcefully separated. And this time, she was sure they could never be together again.

"You must understand, that the purity of blood comes before your sad little crush on the Malfoy heir." He spoke tauntingly. She did nothing but whimper silently, and nod. "You must also understand, that there is no longer place for you in Draco's quarters, or Malfoy Manor. So, instead, you'll be travelling to Hogwarts with Severus." She nodded again, and pretended that her mind wasn't racing. That the walls didn't seem to be closing in on her. That the room wasn't spinning. "That'll give Draco and the young Greengrass enough privacy to do as they're told." He continued speaking, but Leah no longer listened. No longer cared. No longer spoke.

She followed Snape as he walked out of the room, and apparated with him back onto school-grounds, but even then, she didn't speak.

"Miss Nightingale." His drawn out voice called out to her and she didn't even look up from the ground. "I'm speaking to you." He tried again, but still, there was no response from her. He stopped walking, and stepped in front of her, urging her to look at him. "You have to keep up a facade, Miss Nightingale. Stick to the plan, and the students will eat out of your hand, like the Lord requested." He instructed. She just nodded in response.

[⌁]

The screams were haunting. She could hear them in her dorm room, which felt oddly empty without her sister there. Everything was so much more dull. The lessons, the students, the atmosphere, the professors. Everyone seemed tired, and worn out. They wouldn't stand a chance like this. Being the heroine she was, she vouched to put her own misery aside, and help others. The War was to dawn upon them soon, and no one seemed ready in the slightest bit.