Untamed Dragon

Prologue: An angel forever

A trickle of sweat broke out on his pale forehead as the tip of the cursed wand touched his lower left arm and began to mark him. A scream was building up in his throat, threatening to escape and display his terror to the people in the black cloaks standing around him. Blood-red lines burning into his skin started to form the familiar tattoo he had seen so many times on others, the scull with the snake-shaped tongue. In the dark circle around him, his father stood gazing at him with satisfaction and pride, eyes narrowed and mouth set in a sneer. Draco took in a deep breath and gazed at the white hand with the long thin fingers holding onto his arm while the wand continued it's job. It belonged to the Dark Lord, who towered over him like night does over day in the early hours of the morning. Two crimson eyes shining mercilessly in the darkness and a bone-chilling laugh was what Voldemort looked like to the seventeen-year-old Slytherin. He stood shivering, even though around him fires had been burning brightly ever since the first Death Eaters had arrived that morning. It was nearing midnight now and all was silent in the forest surrounding the clearing where the gathering was held.

Reverting his gaze to the mark, Draco noticed that it was almost complete. He didn't like it. It was binding him to a force which he had not chosen to join, almost like slavery. He had been promised power and glory yet those things now seemed minimal compared to the freedom of his mind and body. He watched, trapped in a sort trance, as the last line etched into his skin, forming the tongue of the serpent. Around him, hidden faces nodded in approval. People who Draco knew he wouldn't even remember afterwards started shaking his and his father's hands and kissing the Lord's feet. 'Poor fools...' thought the boy, recoiling in disgust as one of the Death Eaters threw himself on the ground in front of Voldemort, sobbing in worship. However, on the edge of the breaking circle, newcomers had arrived, carrying what looked like a long, heavy black box. Muffled sobbing could be heard from inside and the blood in Draco's veins turned stone cold. It was a coffin. Hands started prying at the clasps on the sides and the lid was lifted off effortlessly. Inside, clad in a simple white garment, lay a girl. Her waist length blond hair fanned out around her like an angel's halo, innocence flowing from her dainty figure. Her sea-blue eyes were wide incomprehension and shock. She tried to move her hands, but they were firmly bound to her sides by ropes of silver magic and a small gasp reached Draco's ears as she took in the frightful scene around her. Suddenly, he felt his father's hand on his shoulder, pushing him forward. He wanted to puke. It was taking all of his will power not to turn and run. One step at a time, he marched up to the coffin and knelt down, waiting. Maybe they wouldn't make him do it, maybe, with his father being one of Voldemort's most faithful followers, they would trust him enough not to force him...

"The Mark has been given. Bring me the blood."

Lord Voldemort's cold voice sent chills running down Draco's spine. In front of him, the girl in the coffin shut her eyes very tight. A short, cowering Death Eater, whom Draco recognised as Wormtail, handed him a silver cup filled with dark, crimson liquid. It shone uninvitingly in the glow of the surrounding fires. Draco shuddered and took it. He was doomed.

"Drink it."

Struggling to keep an unreadable expression on his face, Draco closed his eyes and downed the Dark Lord's blood, choking back the wave of sick that overcame him. It felt as though evil itself was trying to strangle him from the inside, gripping at his heart and stabbing at his lungs. Someone removed the cup from his hand and checked that it was empty, but Draco remained kneeling with his eyes shut and his fists clenched tight.

"To complete your initiation, you must take the girl to the Slab in the Forbidden Forest, violate her and kill her. Her body will afterwards be searched for proof of your actions. Do not deceive me, Draco Artemis Malfoy. Go now, you have an hour."

As those dreadful words filled the night air, Draco's eyes flew open. The girl in the coffin was screaming, thrashing against her unbreakable bindings. He couldn't do it. It was against human nature, against everything he believed in, he just couldn't. Around him, Death Eaters whispered, some with excitement, others with envy. It was obvious the girl was considered a precious gift from the Lord, even though Draco could not see what pleasure he was going to get out of it. If he could have chosen one place other to be at the moment, he would have chosen Hogwarts without any second thoughts. Even though he had always disliked Dumbledore greatly, he knew the man would put a stop to this horror straight away if he knew what was going on, and Draco would never have to see Lord Voldemort's face ever again. But unfortunately, that was impossible and by the impatient looks his father was throwing him, he knew he had to get moving. Sighing and muttering a silent apology to the frightened girl, he picked her up effortlessly and slung her over his shoulder. She had stopped screaming, probably from utter panic, and was sobbing uncontrollably, her tears wetting the back off his robe. Composing himself, he walked out of the black circle, past the flicking fires and into the dark forest. He knew where the Slab was, his father having showed him it's exact location countless times. It was rumoured to be the place where the Dark Lord had first held Death Eater meeting and where he'd first changed his name, trading Tom Marvolo Riddle for Lord Voldemort. It made many a wizard's blood freeze to hear the name mentioned. He had no desire to go there, but then, he didn't really have the choice. He knew Voldemort would be sending a couple of servants to follow him at a distance, to check that he really did go where he was supposed to and that he did his task correctly.

Above the trees, clouds shielded the moon and his path was shadowed to nothing. His heart was pounding in his throat and he fought down the impulse of dropping the girl and running away. She was a Muggle, that was easy to tell. But even though Draco despised Muggles and Mudbloods, he would never go to the extent of raping them...not even Granger. The girl's breathing came out in ragged breaths near his ear and he could feel her struggling against him. He wanted more than anything else to calm her, to tell her that everything would be alright, that he wouldn't hurt her, but he knew it was no use. He would suffer from things far worse than death if he came back without having done anything.

Suddenly, when he was just starting to think that he'd lost his way and wouldn't have to harm the girl after all, the trees parted to reveal a clearing, much smaller than the one he's just come from. A shallow pool of dark water took up half of the glade and above it, a smooth rock stretched up towards the clouded sky.

"The Slab..."

It was breathtaking. Draco thought that if it's purpose hadn't been so horrible, it was the kind of place he would go to meditate in peace. Slowly, the clouds parted, causing the stars and moon to shine down onto the still water, casting diamonds of light across the surface. As he walked towards the rock, he noticed some ancient steps carved into the stone, leading to the top of it. Carefully, so as not to trip and break both their necks, he climbed the Slab and set the girl down on top of it. There, the rock was smoother and completely flat as though someone had cut through it horizontally. On the surface, mysterious words shone in a deadly way. Draco could not read them, and had no desire to either. The girl, still tied up, was trying not to look at him. Gently, he sat her down and removed the bonds, except for those on her hands. Cupping her face in his fingers, he said:

"I want you to know I really don't want to do this, but I don't have a choice. A fate far worse than death awaits both of us if we go together."

He meant together with her alive and she knew it. The girl whimpered, but did not look away this time. Her cheeks were stained with tears and more were welling up in her eyes. As softly as he could, Draco wiped them away.

"Why do they want you to hurt me?"

The voice that came out of her trembling mouth was barely a whisper, but Draco understood all of it. He felt her sadness reach towards his own face, but managed to push it back.

"If I told you, you wouldn't understand. It's a cruel world in which we live and I don't want to scare you more than you are already."

Slowly, he laid her down on the cold stone and took of the last of the magical ropes. Her white robe hung around her frail body in a mesmerising way and her creamy skin made her look like a ghost in the pale moonlight. Draco had to fight hard against the urge to fall in love with her, now fully understanding why Voldemort had given her to him. She was beauty personified and it broke his heart when he thought of what he had to do. Maybe, on top of some other slab, some other night, he would have made love to her and they could have enjoyed gazing up at the stars together afterwards. But not here. Glancing down at her, he said:

"I'm going to put a spell on you so that you go into a deep sleep, ok?"

"Will it hurt?"

"No, it won't. I promise."

The girl nodded, a heavy sob escaping her lips. Stroking her cheek one last time, Draco took out his wand and muttered:

"Conscius Corpus."

Her eyes fluttered gently as they closed and her face relaxed instantly. Draco added a charm which ensured she would be dreaming of her family and friends, as a sort of goodbye to them. Then, making sure she was totally unconscious, he did what he was supposed to do. He was a virgin and so was she, he noticed as he lowered himself gently on top of her. Many times he had imagined what his first time would be like, but never had he thought of this. Brushing back strands of shiny blond hair from her face, he kissed her forehead and whispered 'sorry'. Underneath him, she stirred a little, but did not wake. Afterwards, he felt tears roll down his face as he sat back on the rock in the moonlight and pulled her bloodstained dress back down over her pale legs. Getting back up and putting his robes back on, he grabbed for his wand once more. Draco sighed heavily. Many Death Eaters killed their first victim using horrible curses unknown to him or wandless torture that went on for hours. He refused to do it. If she had to die, it would be painless. Closing his eyes, he whispered:

"Avada Kedavra."

He could see the flash of green light even from behind his eyelids. When he opened them again, no change had occurred, except for the stopping of her heart. Her body lay still on the cold rock, her head slightly turned to the side, her hair softly framing her deadly pale face. He didn't touch her for a while, until a cry rose up through the Forbidden Forest, calling him back to Voldemort and the Death Eaters. His senses rearing back into action, he bent down and picked her up in his arm, carrying her back to the clearing princess-like. To the Death Eaters who later burned her body in one of the fires, she was nothing but another victim of their master's power. To Draco, she would remain an angel forever...