Light in the Darkness

Chapter 67

Adelaide couldn't hold back her tears much longer, she felt her vision growing blurry as they began to fill. "Draco I'm sorry, I-I didn't know where else to go and I passed out for weeks before I was healed and then I was cornered by an Auror when I was summoned to come here. I didn't mean to be gone for so long I'm sorry."

Draco slammed his palm onto the table, "Addie you can be so stupid at times. I could've saved you! You gave me your necklace, I could've cleared your name and you would've gotten away with it and none of this would've happened! But now there's posters all over London with your face on it, your face is in the Daily Prophet everyday, and I can't bewitch everyone in the Wizarding World! But it gets worse because then I find that when you did leave, you went to Sebestyen? I mean of all people him? Seriously?"

She felt her blood turn cold, "H-How did you know-?"

"How did I know you went to Sebestyen? Because Perseus told me in the shop after you left." he seethed.

Adelaide could feel her stomach lurch forward, she hoped Draco didn't think she cheated on him.

"I hope he makes you happy Adelaide because we're done. It's over. Go back to Sebestyen go back to Hungary. Perseus and I can do this task without you. We've managed just fine the past few weeks." He stormed out of the kitchen, slamming the door, leaving Adelaide paralyzed.

She sunk to the ground, burying her head into her knees crying silently. She couldn't lose him, he and Perseus were the center of her universe. She had never seen him so angry at anyone before in her life, she never expected him to yell at her like that.

Narcissa hesitantly walked in, her eyes swimming with horror, "He didn't mean that Adelaide, he's just upset."

Adelaide cried, "Of course he meant it." she sobbed, "He has every right to be upset, I'm so stupid." she buried her face into her knees as she cried harder, "This is all my fault. It was my plan that got Philip killed. My plan that got Mr. Malfoy arrested. My plan that got Draco into this. Then I run away from my complete failure and leave everyone else to deal with the consequences. How could he not hate me?" Narcissa bent down, quickly placing silencing charms around the kitchen as Adelaide sobbed. She sat next to Adelaide in silence as she wept. "And it probably doesn't even matter b-because once the Dark Lord finds me he'll probably kill me for failing my task and disappearing for weeks. It's all over for me, I'm finished. I can't do this anymore."

Narcissa whispered intently, "He gave you another task, that means he isn't planning on killing you. You can't give up Adelaide." she hesitated, "I know you did everything you could to try to save Draco from this. I've sold my soul numerous amounts of times throughout my life to try and prevent this from happening. You'll never understand how appreciative I am that you went through so much to try to save him." her eyes were now beginning to grow misty.

"He's just scared. He doesn't hate you. He pushes people away when he's scared, you just have to talk to him, assure him. You and I know he can't do this alone." her voice was beginning to shake. She was practically begging Adelaide at this point to go after him. She knew her son wasn't as tough as he acted. She saw the way he flinched when her husband walked up to him. She saw how over the years his young, boyish confidence diminished as he was constantly chastised by Lucius. She wanted her son back, she wanted him safe, and she wanted him happy. She didn't want to see him build this cold, calloused shell around him like Lucius did.

Adelaide looked up at Narcissa, "I don't know how to fix this. I can't even fix myself." she scratched at her Dark Mark, its presence on her arm causing her great anxiety. It was a brand of ownership, a decisive explanation of who she was, a representation of what she was supposed to stand for. It was the embodiment of everything she wanted to escape and everything her parents wanted from her.

She couldn't escape. Draco couldn't escape. It was suffocating. She could feel her lungs burning from the lack of oxygen. Philip was dead, Draco was Marked, her plan failed, Draco hated her, Perseus hated her, she hated her, The Dark Lord hated her, her parents were disappointed in her, it was too much hate. So much hate. It was burning her from the inside out and she couldn't handle it. She didn't want it to consume her, but she thought for a split second that if she allowed it, maybe it would stop hurting so much.

No.

She quickly jumped to her feet, startling Narcissa. She flicked her wrist, cleaning up the broken glass and firewhiskey on the floor.

She walked out of the kitchen and stormed up the stairs. She threw open Draco's door in a rage, causing him to look up at her abruptly. She could see the sadness fade in his eyes and be replaced with an anger. He went to stand up, but Adelaide's anger was too powerful, he was shoved back into his seat forcefully.

"Let me explain and afterwards if you still don't want to talk to me then fine, but you will listen to me." she growled.

She could see fear beginning to creep the corners of his eyes seeing Adelaide so angry, "Do you think I purposefully left you for weeks Draco? Do you think I purposefully left Perseus for weeks after the death of our brother? Do you really think I'm that selfish?" she paused, the only sound in the room was her enraged breaths from sprinting up the steps.

Draco's face paled, he clenched his jaw staring up to Adelaide, maintaining the painstaking silence.

"Don't you think if I knew for even a second that the Dark Lord was going to Mark you that I wouldn't be there to beg him not to? To bargain with him? Do you think I'd just run away from everything? Have I ever given you any reason to think I'd be so cruel?"

More painful silence

"I asked you a question Draco, this isn't rhetorical. I can feel myself slipping through the cracks and I genuinely can't tell who I am or what I'm capable of anymore. I need you to tell me."

His eyes softened slightly, the anger and fear disappearing back to sadness. He stared towards the floor, shaking his head no.

"The reason I went to Sebestyen was because the news of me would spread quickly through Britain and I had to make sure I didn't put anyone in danger for harboring me. You couldn't save me. In the Department of Mysteries Harry saw me, his friends saw me, Dumbledore saw me, the Minister saw me, a dozen other Aurors saw me. Dumbledore cursed me with an injury that wouldn't heal, so I was unconscious for weeks. I wasn't awake for even an hour before the Auror came after me and I was summoned to the Manor. I didn't know how long I had been gone, I didn't know about your father's trial, I didn't know you were marked, I thought I was being summoned to be killed, so I had to decide in that moment whether I wanted to be kissed by the Dementor or killed with the Killing Curse by the Dark Lord." Adelaide shuttered.

Draco sat in his chair, his expression unreadable. His eyes though, his eyes were swimming in guilt, more sadness, more fear, slightly angered, but not at Adelaide, "I'm sorry." he whispered.

Her anger disappeared softly, "Don't be. You couldn't have known until I explained." she sat on the foot of his bed, covering her mouth to hide the cry that threatened to come out. She still felt horribly guilty that she had been gone for so long, even if it wasn't her fault she felt like it was.

She couldn't bring herself to look Draco in the eyes. She looked sadly out the window. The sky was dark and grey. The darkness seemed to follow her wherever she went, she couldn't remember the last time she saw a nice, sunny day.

They both just sat there in silence. Draco's rage was still simmering, he was afraid if he said something it would be horrible. Adelaide's sadness was slowly strangling her, she couldn't gather the strength to swallow it. They were broken, scared, sad, angry, cold, dark.

The sudden realization that there was no escape settled deeply in the room. There was nothing to say. There wasn't even enough warmth in each other to provide the sensation of comfort or support. It was like two corpses sitting in the room, numb, yet neither could bring themselves to leave. So they just sat there.