Grace tenderly rubbed her wrist, the purple marks already forming from his harsh touch. She brought her eyes up to meet his. It was difficult to lock her gaze with him, but he despised when she didn't make eye contact with him. He believed it to be disrespectful, but Grace had another idea of what disrespect was.
"Grace!" he yelled, waving his hand in front of her face, breaking her blank stare and shoving her back into reality. "Are you even listening to me?"
She nodded softly before replying, "Yes, Ryan."
Ryan took a step forward, pinning Grace against the cold stone wall of Hogwarts castle. She glanced up at him, wincing slightly as her back hit the rough wall.
"You better not be telling people things, Grace," he warned, his eyes narrowing as he tightened his grip on her sore wrists. "These bruises are for your eyes only. You got that? I swear to Merlin you'll regret it if someone...ANYONE finds out."
Grace had a sharp tongue, but it got her into trouble often. Right now, she knew it would get her into deeper shit if she said anything other than what he wanted to hear. She swallowed her words of defense and let out another simple, "Yes, Ryan."
Both of their heads turned at the sound of footsteps echoing down the corridor. Ryan pushed himself off her and immediately took out his wand, letting it hang by his side. Grace glanced at his knuckles— white. He was scared. He wouldn't be caught dead with his hands on Grace in front of someone. He was a coward.
The boy that rounded the corner was a familiar face, although Grace had never talked to him before. Noah Dolohov, a sixth year Slytherin boy, was rather peculiar. He was fairly well known around Hogwarts, as was Ryan. Now that Grace thought about it, she realized how similar the two boys were. Both were Slytherin, both were sixth years, and both of their fathers were deatheaters— faithful followers of the Dark Lord, the most evil wizard of the century seeking to kill the famous Harry Potter. She wondered if Ryan would go down that path, too. Grace, however, didn't wonder the same thing about Noah. All she could focus on was how the Dolohov boy stared at her as he walked by.
Did he hear something before he turned the corner? Would someone finally figure out that Ryan Carrow was not just a popular Slytherin god but an abusive bully?
For a brief moment, Grace's heart fluttered. For the first time in awhile, she felt like she finally had hope. That wasn't the case, though. Her little daydream was whisked away when the boy opened his mouth, his eyes now moving to Ryan.
"Hey, Ryan," he said with a nod. "You're coming to the party in the Slytherin common room tonight, right?"
Grace's heart sank. That's all she needed to hear. The two of them were...friends? Of course they were. Nothing could ever work in her favor. For some reason, she was still drawn to Noah, still living her daydream of someone saving her, perhaps. She brought her attention back to Noah as he continued.
"It's mainly Slytherins, but feel free to bring your Gryffindor girl," he said, gesturing to Grace.
A smile placed itself on her face before she could even try to control it.
"Thanks," she said, her eyes lighting up. It felt nice to be invited somewhere. She actually felt like a normal teenager for a second. That was when reality set in. She wasn't just going to a party, she was going with Ryan. She might as well be handcuffed to him. Grace was basically a prisoner.
Ryan put his arm around Grace, squeezing her tightly against his side.
"We'll be there," he replied, nodding a few times as Noah said his goodbye and walked away. Grace wanted to shout for him to come back, but she had to be realistic. No one knew how Ryan treated her. She would never escape. She had to come to terms with that.
"What the hell was that?!" Ryan shouted once he was sure that Noah was out of earshot, twisting Grace's arm painfully as he spun her to face him.
"What are you talking about?" She asked, a little louder than necessary. There it was— her backtalk. Her stubbornness always got the best of her. "I said 'thanks' because of his invitation and you're mad? Did you want me to be a bitch instead?"
Smack.
Ryan's hand collided with her cheek. Grace stumbled back slightly, bringing her hand up to gingerly touch her face. Her eyes stung with the tears that were threatening to pour out.
"You are a bitch, Grace. Every little thing you do pisses me off lately," he spat, grabbing her by her robes to pull her closer. "So here's what you're going to do." Grace's lip quivered for a short moment as he stared menacingly down at her. "You're going to go back to your dormitory, pull yourself together, and we're going to have a great time at this party, you hear me?"
Grace nodded. She wished she had her wand on her. She would hex that confident look off his face in an instant, but he didn't like when she carried her wand around. She bet he knew she could do some real damage.
Ryan finally released her, brushing off his own robes.
"I'll see you in an hour," he said before walking away, leaving a shaken up Grace to stand alone in the deserted corridor.