Whisper → Draco Malfoy

CHAPTER SEVEN

Elise could barely breathe at the sight of the dangling pupet hanging from the air.

"Who is that?"

Both her and Millicent stepped backwards, their feet crunching the snow beneath them. "W-what?"

Hanging several feet above the air was Katie Bell, her mouth wide open, her eyes bloodshot. Her scream was the only sound that could be heard, it was chilling, more so than the crisp winter air, more so than the snow pouring down onto Elise's bare skin.

Elise watched as the scene before her unfolded, Katie's friend grasping her ankles tightly, trying to pull her back to the ground, the three figures before her rushing to their side. It was chaos. Screaming, shouting, the sounds of footsteps against the snowy ground.  Her hair danced violently in the wind, her face eerily placid.

Katie let out another terrible scream, thrashing and screaming as her body fell back down onto the snowy ground with a soft thud. As soon as she hit the ground, her eyes rolled back, deep into her skull. 

"Come on-." Millicent tugged at her arm, "we should go."

But Elise couldn't pull herself away, everything she was watching was like a movie. By Katie's side, someone reached down, taking something from her possessions and a few moments later, Hagrid appeared by her side, taking her in his arms. Despite his distance from her, his voice bellowed through the crisp air, "get back! All o' yeh!"

In a few short moments, the scene before her vanished, Katie Bell's lifeless body being carried away by Hagrid, a group of students following close behind.

Elise blinked rapidly,  wiping away the heavy sleet that had collided with her face "what just happened?"

"Something we shouldn't question." Millicent shook her head, somehow, it meant nothing to her. She was able to shake it away with just a move of her head.

"But-"

Millicent cut her off, "no buts Elise."

Elise couldn't remove the image of the wailing girl from her mind. Somehow, it was locked in there, as though it had been permanently burnt into her brain.

On the walk back to the castle, it was all she could think about. Every time she closed her eyes, she could see Katie's haunted face, screaming out for help. Although Millicent seemed unfazed, Elise certainly couldn't say the same. 

Every step she took closer towards the castle made her heart pound, it all reminded her of when she had found her father that fateful day. The eerie silence followed by screams. Elise had never screamed so much. No magic in the world had prepared her for what she had seen, all she could do was sit and hold her fathers hand while she waited. She had felt so useless. It was something she hoped she would never feel again.

So now, given the opportunitiy, Elise needed information. She needed to feel helpful, even if she wasn't truly. Elise wanted to know everything that had happened to Katie Bell, including who had done it to her. She simply had to know.

There had been so many events occur at Hogwarts that she had simply brushed under the rug. She had been too young to even understand the events that unfolded during her first two years, and by the time she reached her third year, all she had was fear. Hearing that a serial killer had escaped did not make her feel curious, or brave, or intrugued; instead, all she felt was afraid. Elise could barely utter a single word that whole year. 

Come the Triwizard Tournament, her curiosity had begun to grow, but she lacked the abilities to fully understand what was happening around her. By the time she came to return for her second term she found herself deep in a pit of sadness after her fathers tragic accident. Not an ounce of curiosity could blossom in the dark abyss of her depression. All Elise could feel was blank.