"I want to become a Morana's servant" she blurted out. Draco's heart stopped. He couldn't breathe. Had he heard the correct thing? Draco looked at her disbelievingly, trying to find any hint of a joke. But there weren't any. She just looked down at her black lace shoes, her eyes guilty and hopeful...both.
"Y-You aren't serious, a-are you?" he asked her. She just continued looking at her shoes. Draco felt like something inside him was falling...falling...leaving him forever.
"E-Explain," he demanded, "Now, you are joking right? You seriously don't mean...you have a brilliant plan, don't you?" She looked up suddenly hearing his words. Draco couldn't simply assume that this girl wanted to go over to the dark side. She sure must have a brilliant plan as she mastered, 'trickery, talks and strategies'. She looked more hopeful now.
"l-look." she started. "please don' freak out. I want to become Morana's servant so that we can observe her and fight her from inside. You told me that you were either assigned to kill me or bring me over to your side right?" Draco nodded. She continued, "Exactly. She will remove the poison in me when she will know that I am on her side and then we can be with her, observe her, know her weakness, and then use it against her. And we have no idea if her soul is only in me. What if she has transferred it to other people too?"
Draco rolled his tongue inside his cheek in annoyance.
"And miss perfect you do know how dangerous that is, right?" he asked. She looked away. "Isn't be being in constant danger enough for you?"
"That's not what I meant" she pleaded. "Look...this poison will kill me in some time. If we don't hurry...she will become immortal, Draco. Then it won't be only me in danger, but everyone. There won't be any home to come back."
Draco stared at her, his mind racing. How stubborn and tough this girl was? She was going to risk her life for something so dangerous and what if they failed? How two 16-year old students going to defeat the darkest witch of all time, he didn't know. But he did know that they were just playing a game between life and death. It was as if they were only provoking their deaths to come faster. Draco wished he hadn't told her anything. In the past few days, any attacks or death notices in the newspaper, Aria blamed herself. She took the offence personally.
Aria looked at him hopefully, trying to understand what he was thinking, but Draco kept his expression blank. He continued looking at the girl, whom Draco used to hate, no...loathe, but now...he had started admiring her. The way she risked her life for everyone, the way she blamed herself for someone else's agony, the way she forgot everything Draco had done in the past and despite him being an evil person, being Morana's servant, she promised him that she will protect him. Be with him...till the very end. Draco knew she was in pain, Morana's comeback had alarmed everyone but Aria was exceptionally alarmed. It was as if Morana had sucked all the happiness out of everyone and in return she had...spread agony, pain, despair and Aria seemed to think that if she had killed Morana faster, everything would have been fine.
"Draco" came Aria's voice. Draco came back to his sense. He had been so lost in thought that he didn't notice Aria kneeling beside him and shaking him in order to wake him.
"what?" he asked as if nothing had happened.
"where were you?" she asked.
"On the Astronomy Tower, didn't you see?" he snapped sarcastically. Aria frowned at the sudden change of attitude. Their bickering was interrupted by a loud book falling. Draco quickly pulled Aria behind him, alarmed. He wondered who was there, and if anyone was, how much had they heard. Draco looked between the shelves but he didn't see anyone.
"Consider this an accident?" he asked Aria, but she shook her head.
"Marissa?" she called. Draco looked at her confused, but sure enough, a guilty and embarrassed Marissa came out from behind the shelves.
Aria raised her eyebrows as if she already knew that Marissa was here, but it still amused her whereas Draco looked aghast. What if she heard 'Morana's servant' part?
"what are you doing here?" he demanded. She tried to look at anything but them.
"Marissa?" Aria asked but still no answer.
"I-I was reading." Marissa stuttered.
"Then why did you take so long to answer?"
"Um...nothing," she replied. Draco and Aria rolled their eyes in sync.
"Marissa quite spying on us." said Aria, "It's not gonna help."
"I-I wasn't doing anything, just reading," Marissa said, still not meeting eyes. Draco, frustrated took a step closer but she backed off, terrified. Draco looked at Aria, sending her a silent question, 'how much has she heard?' Aria nodded.
"Marissa, how long were you here?" she asked. Marissa didn't reply, but then took a deep breath and said, "Aria, please come with me"
Draco suspicion was clear. Marissa had did heard a lot than she should have. Draco gritted his teeth but didn't say anything, instead looked at Aria, who was looking at Marissa.
"You talk to me here, with him or not at all," she said fiercely. Marissa looked on the verge of tears now. "How long were you here?"
"I-I" Marissa stuttered but Draco cut her off with a loud frustrated sigh, "How did you know it was her?" he asked Aria.
"It's her journal on the floor," Aria said, pointing down to the book that had fallen. Draco rolled his eyes, unbothered and turned to Marissa, looking at her in a demanding way. There was silence. Pin-drop silence but at last Marissa cried out.
"FINE!" she cried. "Aria, he is Morana's servant." By the looks of it, Marissa expected Aria to look shocked and guilty and run away to report him, but she just stared at her calmly as if there was nothing wrong in the world. "What" demanded Marissa. Aria sighed.
"Tell me something I don't know," she told her. Marissa looked aghast. Her face turned radish colour as if she was just going to be sick.
"no...no...no no" She whispered, looking between Draco and Aria, back and forth. "You...i-i refuse to believe this...y-you support him...no...no no" she fell to her knees, tears flowing down. Draco stood where he was but Aria sighed and knelt down beside her, rubbing her back trying to soothe her. Marissa didn't pull back but continued crying.
"I don't support him" Aria quickly rushed on, looking at me." I mean-I don't support Morana" Marissa, just think...If he was her supporter, don't you think he would have killed me by now? He had so many chances!! But now...instead he is spying on her for us, Marissa. A stupid mark on his mark doesn't matter if his intentions are pure. Just think!!! All this time, I was alone with him, couldn't he have just made a move on me?"
"b-but you t-trusted him before that too" Marissa cut off Aria. Draco just looked at them, his heart feeling heavy, dripping with guilt.
"Yes, I did" pressed on Aria. "Because I didn't see any cruel intentions, Marissa. He is just an innocent boy! Please..."
Aria hugged her. Draco looked away. He was finding it difficult to breathe. He just hoped that they would be friends again. He had enough crime on his shoulders already. He didn't need one more. He felt broken and exhausted. He felt like crying, screaming...anything which could help him ease his guiltiness. He was crammed between his parents...Aria...Morana...Aria's friends and let alone Draco's friends. Draco had been avoiding them so much. He didn't even know what their jokes sounded like now. And after everything...he himself. He was frustrated with himself. It would have been better to die heroically than dying like a coward. Draco would have stood up to Morana and...well we all know the consequences. But it would have been better to die that way rather than accept the mark and be her servant for life. His life was now in constant danger and now not only his...but Aria's...his parents'...Draco wanted to be free, free for everything. Right now he wasn't only physically suffocated, but mentally too. He wasn't a criminal, but...he had been forced to be one.
He felt like someone was moving his organs the way they wanted and Draco was fighting with them. The only time he felt happy...free...was the time when he was with Aria...She never showed her emotions even if it was killing her inside. She was a silent sufferer. They both were. Aria tried to fix Draco's broken self when she herself was shattered horribly inside. He did the same with her and tried to show her hope but to say the truth, he at times believed that the hope and vanished from the earth...just evaporated into the air forever...Draco even woke up from nightmares in the middle of the night and when he debated that Aria would be asleep, he found her awake, looking at the night sky on the Astronomy tower. She insisted that she was asleep and woke up suddenly so was just spending time here, but Draco knew better. She was worried that the bright sky she was looking at...would end...turning to a horrible blackout.
But Draco always liked those nights. They both were silent, but there wasn't an uncomfortable one. It was a warm and reassuring silence. They both enjoyed each other's company even though their thoughts were filled with terrifying images of the future. The last time Draco had a nightmare and had decided that he would clear up his thoughts on the Astronomy Tower, he had found her. Their meeting was...
Flashback...
Morana was sitting at the head table, looking at them all angrily but was especially eyeing Draco, who was standing next to her.
"Failed your task, eh?" she hissed at him, her snake doing the same but Draco couldn't decide which was more dangerous. "you know the consequences?"
"MORSUS!!" she screamed, pointing her wand at him. Draco fell to his knees, tears flowing out of his blue, electric eyes. His face twisted in agony. He felt like all the things in the world had developed fangs and were digging them in his flesh, biting him. Draco could hear someone screaming before realizing that they were his own. Draco fell to the ground. His knees couldn't take more, he writhed in pain.
"you know what happens when someone DISOBEYS me?!!!" he heard Morana scream at him. 'And do you know what happens when you torture me? you die, idiot.'" He didn't know what made him think that, especially when he himself was in extreme pain. Morana was increasing the spell again and again. He could briefly hear his mother sobbing...
Draco sat up straight, panting. He looked around and realized that it was a dream. He felt his arms...no, his whole body shaking. He recalled the horrific dream he had, but Draco couldn't ease his nerves thinking that it was a dream. He would bet his life that it could come true in seconds. He rubbed his eyes trying to go back to sleep but he felt wide awake. He looked beside him only to find his twin friends, snoring comfily. He wished he could do that too...
He wondered if Aria was doing the same...you know, snoring. But he doubted that, as he didn't want to ruin her peace. He decided to go to the Astronomy Tower to ease his thoughts, even if it was past curfew. The stars would calm him down.
He got dressed silently and made his way out. He passed the dark corridors, which were kind of scaring him, considering he just had a horrible nightmare. Finally, he felt the warm lights illuminating the tower. But as he got closer, he heard sweet humming. It was a girl, not just any but it was Aria. Her sweet, gently voice made Draco smile warmly. He walked closer and found her sitting on the edge of the tower, her legs dangling off the edge. There was a cool breeze which made her hair look extremely beautiful. She was wearing a red, puffy sweater with a skirt. She went on humming in her beautiful voice, signalling Draco she hadn't noticed him yet.
"Didn't know you had a sweet voice," he said, quietly walking over to sit beside her. She stopped and looked at him. She looked concerned.
"What are you doing here at this hour?" she asked.
"I could ask you the same," he replied. All the concern and worry on her face dropped to be replaced by an angry and irritated one. She shut her eyes tightly and looked away, her nostrils flared angrily.
Draco smirked.
"How about you go back?" she asked, putting on a fake, sarcastic smile.
"I could tell you the same," he said, smirking while he was laughing on inside. Aria gritted her teeth and then just humped, tiredly.
"Why don't you leave me alone? You have no reason to be here," she said.
"I could say the same," Draco sang playfully. She rolled her eyes, though Draco could have sworn he had just seen a smile. She huffed.
"Do you want anything? Do you want to do something?" she asked, tiredly.
"Yes. I want to annoy you" he replied.
"then you are successful" she muttered.
"What are you doing here?" he asked.
"Seconds before I had asked you the same," she said. "You didn't answer and neither will I"
"Fine" he muttered. They both looked at the stars in the sky that were shining brightly. Draco always loved stargazing. The weather was stormy today and he loved storms. People found it weird but it just gave him comfort.
"you like storms don't ya?" asked Aria. Draco knitted his eyebrows in confusion. Was she reading his mind?
"How do you know?" he asked, suspiciously.
"Oh," she laughed. "Just your expression and if you don't remember you had told me once."
"oh yeah"
"you didn't tell me the reason," she said, smiling.
"Well...It just reminded me that not all times are good...or...bad," said Draco. "Take the sky for instance. It looks so bright on a sunny day but then on storms...it just reminds me that the sky needs to scream too."
Aria looked at him, but he couldn't quite read her expression. It was a mixture of sadness, grief, disappointment, pity and well...as he said, he couldn't read. She sighed deeply.
"You know what? I had a nightmare," he told her. She didn't ask what it was which Draco deeply appreciated. It was scary enough to think about it.
"I couldn't sleep. I am afraid too." she said, "These nightmares...worries...I am afraid the nightmares will come back the moment I go to sleep." Draco nodded. He could understand what it felt like.
"I am sorry," he told her. "I didn't want to bring you in this. I never wanted to. You were having such a nice peaceful life..." he trailed off.
"No one can have a peaceful life now that she has returned, Draco," she laughed bitterly. "And I think that the sky realizes that too."
Draco looked up and saw what she meant. The storm was getting bigger now.
"Wanna go back?" he asked, standing up. She nodded and took the hand he offered.
"Didn't know you had such a sweet voice," he said as they were walking back. She didn't reply which made Draco look at her and saw that she was blushing. A faint blush rose up to his cheeks too...
Draco came back to his senses, in the present. Aria and Marissa were still talking but it seemed like Marissa had stopped crying. They were standing and were having a light talk or at least that's what it looked like.
"What happened?" he asked. "What did I miss?"
Aria looked at him, confused, "what happens to you sometimes??"
Draco looked away. He wasn't telling her that he was thinking about her.
"Nothing. Just answer."
"Well...I was just telling Marissa about our plan," she said. Draco snapped his head to her.
"Which plan?" he asked sharply.
"well...about me becoming her...servant..." she said. Rage filled Draco.
"NO just NO. You don't bloody know what it is like. I have nightmares about her, Aria. I am not putting you in DANGER!" he shouted.
Aria's face turned distressing, "Draco, please..."
"NO"
"Bu-
"NO
"Dra-
"Do you hear me?" he asked sternly. She looked away.
"Francis?" piped up a new voice. Draco irritated, drew his stern gaze from Aria to Marissa.
"What?"
"L-look as much as I hate this, " she continued. "Aria has been distancing herself from us. She is doing all that for you. Don't lash out at her. She just cares for you and you have no idea to which extent she can go for her friends. She is doing all that for you..."
Marissa expected Draco to soften and agree but this only angered him more.
Did they think he didn't understand what they were doing for him? He was more than thankful for that but...
"So?" he asked, angrily. "So what? I should put her in danger? Risk her life? And for what? For me? This useless man?"
"Fra-
"No. You know what? You are right. S-she is the only one I have. Without h-her" his voice was breaking. "I-I wouldn't be anything. She is everything for me and Morana isn't exactly a warm and loving type. She won't hesitate t-to...
He broke completely. A single tear escaped his eyes and before he broke down completely, he ran out. He heard Aria and Marissa calling for him but he didn't stop.
Didn't they understand what he felt? Did they think he was selfish and was using them? They didn't know anything. How could he put Aria into such a danger when she was the only thing he had. She was the only thing that kept him alive. And if he let her do something so dangerous for him...he was nothing but selfish. He needed her to be safe. After all the worldwide drama, Aria was the only thing he found comfort in and now...
No. Never. Never ever. He was not going to lose her. Not even in his dreams...