Unnatural | D.M.

Chapter Thirty

It wasn't long after we'd been instructed to write the notes down that Amycus abruptly got up from his chair, starling a few of us with the sudden noise, and walked to the front of the class.

"Get up." He commanded. Everyone got up as fast as they could and he took his wand out. I looked at Draco across the room and he looked extremely worried. The desks parted, moving to either side of the classroom.

"Now, everyone gather round." We moved closer, apprehensive about what was to happen next.

"This is how you perform the Cruciatus curse for those of you who don't know." Neville outstretched his arm in front of me protectively and my lips parted, waiting to see the horrors unfold before me.

"Crucio!" Neville collapsed to the floor next to me, writhing in pain and my eyes watered. I knelt next to him and looked back up at Amycus who was thoroughly enjoying this. Amycus looked away from Neville and I saw his body calm down. He was breathing hard and refused to let me help him get up, glaring at Amycus.

"Now, we'll have to practice to use it correctly. You. Come here." Amycus pointed at me and I hesitantly stepped forward, stomach churning. I felt on the verge of throwing up as I stopped right in front of him. He smiled mischievously and turned to the other side of students.

"Draco." I took a step back and Amycus grabbed me roughly by the arm, throwing me to Draco's feet. My hands shook as I got up, brushing the dirt from my skirt. Draco was struggling to keep his composure and I sniffled, suddenly noticing the tears that were coming down my face. Draco looked from me to Amycus and then at the floor.

"Is this really necessary?" He asked flatly.

"I'm sure your father would be pleased to hear you're a coward." Draco's fists clenched and he looked at me, fiddling with his wand.

"Do it." My heart raced in my chest as Draco lifted his wand, pointing it at me.

"Crucio!" An unbearable searing pain flooded my body as I struggled to stay standing, not wanting to give Amycus the satisfaction. It felt as though my entire body was on fire, and I didn't know if I could handle it much longer. I saw Amycus pull out his wand and felt the pain double in its intensity, sending me straight to the floor. My screams filled the classroom and I clutched at my body in a feeble attempt to somehow alleviate the pain. Amycus took steps towards me until he was standing directly over me as the tears poured onto my face. He knelt over, pressing his wand into my cheek as more sobs escaped my lips. I wasn't going to beg. I couldn't let him win. I endured the pain for what seemed like hours before it alleviated significantly, causing me to look for Draco. His head was turned away from me and his wand was lowered. His eyes finally met mine and I pleaded with him not to lower his wand. He weakly lifted his wand again but didn't actually perform the curse so I knew I had to cover for him. I let out a few more screams of pain before the effects of the curse went away completely.

I sat up, wiping at my face and glared at Amycus who was notably satisfied. I was having trouble getting up and I saw Draco take a step towards me out of the corner of my eye, but Neville helped me.

"Are you alright?" Neville asked me softly as we joined the rest of our class on our side of the room. I nodded but still leaned on him for some support.

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I waited for Draco in our usual spot in the Room of Requirement, carefully laying down on the bed that was still there. The soft mattress and silky sheets provided much needed comfort for my aching body. Perhaps this was a test to see how Draco would react. I couldn't get what Pansy had said out of my thoughts and I wondered if there was any correlation between what had happened in class today and her warning. The door opened and slammed shut, startling me.

"That fucking sadist! I can't believe this bullshit." Draco barked angrily as he came around the corner, taking off his Slytherin tie and throwing it on the floor. I tried to sit up which resulted in pain, and I hissed in agony. His eyes softened when he met mine, and Draco kicked his shoes off to get into the bed with me. I rolled over to face him and tangled my legs with his, enjoying his closeness.

"How are you feeling?" Draco kissed my forehead and I felt a bit better.

"I'm as good as I can be." He paused, looking away from me and pressing his lips together.

"Delia, I-"

"Stop it. It's not your fault and I know you didn't enjoy that in the least bit."

"I could've come up with an excuse."

"Not if you wanted to avoid suspicion." A silence fell between us and I felt tears pricking at my eyes.

"I suppose this is what we have to do now." I choked out.

"We don't have to."

"Yes we do. They know." Draco backed away from me confused.

"What do you mean they know?" I sighed and looked at the ceiling before looking back at him. I'd been wanting to tell him but I wasn't sure how he'd take it. Besides, we'd already had a terrible day so I didn't exactly want to add to it.

"Nothing." I curled up more under the sheets and moved my head so I wouldn't be forced to look at him.

"I know you're lying."

"I'm not."

"Honestly do you think I'm that stupid? Why do you think they know? Did someone say something to you? Was it Pansy?" I rolled my eyes, annoyed with his many questions.

"Yeah, your stupid ex girlfriend said something, alright? Happy?" Draco scoffed and put his finger under my chin so I'd look at him.

"No, I am most certainly not happy. What did she say to you?"

"She said they know. The other day at the library. She was in the aisle before us."

"She's a spiteful girl. I'm sure she was just trying to scare you."

"Right. Spiteful." I muttered, still not believing that all that had happened was mere coincidence.

Pansy

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"Your accusations were false, girl." Amycus snarled at me, hitting a stack of papers on his desk, sending them flying all over the place.

"They're not. I know what I saw. I'm not a liar."

"No, you're just pathetic."

"You're causing problems that simply aren't there. Do you think we're stupid?" Alecto had her hands on her hips and her face was inches away from mine. I could see the vein in her neck, meaning she was infuriated with me.

"Did he hesitate?" I asked. They looked at each other and I smiled victoriously.

"We all know that if he didn't harbor any feelings for her, he would not have hesitated."

"It may have escaped your notice, but Draco Malfoy is a coward. Just like his spineless father." I was growing tired of their comments and their refusal to see what I'd laid out in front of them.

"I'll find evidence. I'll find something you can't deny and you'd better hope the Dark Lord or Lucius Malfoy don't find out." I threatened, walking away from them but not before turning my head over my shoulder.

"And when I do, you can kill the little bitch."