Desolation Row | A Draco Malfoy Fanfiction

Chapter 14

"Ready?" asked Draco and we all nodded, beginning to head out the door.

The boys all seemed to fall into formation around me as if it were planned. Draco stayed fiercely by my side while Blaise, Crabbe and Goyle all seemed to spread out behind me. They were like my own personal bodyguards and as exaggerated as the situation seemed, it helped me to feel a lot calmer. Somehow, during the quarter of an hour I had taken to get dressed, the disturbance in the Slytherin Common Room had made its way to the whole school. Most people were sat down when we entered the Great Hall. I pushed the doors open and our protective circle entered the room. Everyone fell silent. Many people were staring at me with looks of sympathy while others were staring at Draco in awe and veneration. We headed towards the Slytherin table and I saw Elisa look at me with pity but there was also a hint of loyal protection. I smiled briefly at her, to tell her I was okay before turning to my breakfast and realising I was really quite hungry. 

It was the fourth Quidditch match of the year and the whole school had shown. Surprisingly, I hadn't been to the previous three, even those that Slytherin was playing in but I felt it my duty to go to this one as Elisa was commentating. Her love for the sport had drawn her away from Ron's side, despite the fact that, ironically, she had only begun to enjoy the sport because of his place on the team. I was sat beside Draco with Blaise to my right and Crabbe and Goyle either side of Draco and Blaise as we watched the match. Gryffindor vs Hufflepuff was not a match we would usually spectate, however, we were rather enjoying ourselves so far. That was until Cormac McLaggen, Gryffindor's interim keeper, committed one of the worst Quidditch fouls I had ever witnessed. As we all watched the game, McLaggen took one of the Beater's bats and smashed the bludger that was hurtling towards him in the opposite direction. Unfortunately, however, the 'other direction' happened to be straight towards Harry Potter's head. The bludger connected with Potter's skull and knocked him unconscious immediately. The crowd had gone insane as Potter fell to the floor, the game, however, continuing. We all watched on in silence as Hufflepuff thrashed Gryffindor 320 points to 60, due to the latter's lack of a Seeker. As the Gryffindor supporters forlornly left the pitch, I urged Draco, Blaise, Crabbe and Goyle to head inside as I was going to wait for Elisa. 
"I don't want you to be on your own." countered Draco as he refused to leave. 
It took a lot of persuading but eventually, Draco gave in and by the time he had, almost all of the Quidditch spectators had left the stadium. As I waved goodbye to Draco, Elisa appeared at my side. She was fuming. 
"They can't just continue the match like that!" she yelled as we headed into the castle, drawing our clokes tighter around us against the breeze. "It's not fair, there was no way Gryffindor could win."
I shook my head. 
"It w-wasn't f-fair at all."
"Enough about that though, I want to know what the hell Jack Atkins did to you!"
I sighed and explained to Elisa everything that had happened after she had left but I decided to leave out what Draco had told me, Elisa was too stressed to talk about that right now. As we continued into the castle, Elisa was coming up with more and more inventive ways to kill Jack.
"I mean we could always cut off hi-"
Elisa was interrupted by a tall blonde girl who stepped out in front of us, tailed by none other than Pansy Parkinson and a few more Slytherin girls. 
"Well, well, well, Thing 1 and Thing 2."
With a nasty grin, Izzy Perry made sure that she was blocking the entirety of the hallway. 
"Oh shove off, Perry."
Izzy's smile dissipated and she whipped her wand out, getting ready to hex Elisa. 
"Don't you dare talk to me like that!" she screeched. 
In a split-second decision, I leapt in front of Elisa, feeling Izzy's hex hit me square in the chest. Suddenly, a burning sensation was spreading over my scalp and I could hear Izzy and Pansy squealing with laughter. Apprehensively, I reached up to my head and felt large moose-like antlers. Shit. My face was burning and my head was pounding. I couldn't really hear was what going on around me, only the shrill shriek of anger emitting from Elisa as she rummaged through her bag, looking for her wand. I caught a flash of platinum hair come round the corner, followed by locks of greasy, black hair, just as a flash of light hit Izzy. She dropped to the floor, the body-binding hex flooring her. I was vaguely aware of Professor Snape escorting Elisa down the hall and I was sure I heard the word 'detention'.
"Lia?" called a familiar voice. "Lia, come on."
The pounding in my head began to dissipate as Draco led me towards the hospital wing, towards Madam Pomfrey. 
        As we pushed our way into the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey gasped. She was tending to an unconscious Potter but waved to one of the beds. I could also see Ron a few beds down from Potter.
"Find anywhere, I will be over in a second."
I chose a bed a few down from Potter's and climbed onto it. Draco looked concerned, his eyes flitting back and forth from mine to the protrusions adorning my scalp as he sat down on a chair next to me. It wasn't long before Madam Pomfrey came bustling over. 
"Mr Malfoy, I am afraid you will have to leave."
Draco nodded understandingly and took my hand in his, squeezing it slightly before heading out the door. Madam Pomfrey did not ask any questions as she worked, gently removing my antlers. It didn't take long, however Madam Pomfrey was apprehensive that they would begin to grow back, therefore she requested that I stay in overnight. I sighed but agreed. I would rather not stay here overnight but I would have to. I looked around the room as Madam Pomfrey hurried away from me. Just then, the doors opened. Looking over, I expected Draco but was pleasantly surprised when I saw Elisa, albeit angry Elisa but Elisa none the less. 
"Ugh, Snape, man," complained Elisa as she reached me. "Detention for three days."
I chuckled as Elisa ranted but then, she looked up at my head. 
"Awhh! Are they already gone? And they were just beginning to suit you as well!" she teased and I playfully rolled my eyes at her.