Darkness Rising: Cursed Guardians

Secret Stairs

The coppery smell hits me full force and I choke down bile. I can hardly believe what I’m seeing. Draco is half on the ground half leaning against the stone wall completely covered in blood. The spirit pops up next to Draco looking stricken. “Help him.” Is all she says before she disappears. There are deep gashes on every b***h of his body. His breathing is labored and he’s barely holding himself up. Without thinking I grab the arm not currently death gripping the stones and bring it around my shoulders. He gasps and groans at the pain it’s caused. Holy f**k. So. Much. Blood. “No” he manages to grate out at me. Seriously? Now is so not the time to be anti-witch. “Draco you need help.” Is all I manage to get out as we straighten. He’s so weak nearly his whole weight comes down on me making me put forth a good amount of effort to keep from crumbling to the ground in a heap. I work out on the regular and I’m stronger than I look but am I going to be able to carry him back to the house to get help? I steal a look at his face. Oh my god. The cuts. The gashes. His beautiful face. I want to cry. He looks like he’s ready to pass out on me. No good. Need to move. 

One foot at a time I start moving us. “Draco? Hey. I need you to stay with me. We need to get back to the house to the door so we can get you help and...” “NO!” He says with some force this time. Stubborn dragon. “Stairs” he says and points behind us. Okay? Well it’s his house he’s know where to go. I carefully turn us and begin walking to where he pointed. Sure enough there was a staircase. This is gonna suck. Looking at my furries “Find Niccademus and stay with him. I don’t know when I’ll be back. I have to help him.” I turn and look up the stairs. One at a time. We got this. “Draco? I found the stairs. We need to start climbing okay. We’re gonna go slow. Just push on my shoulder if you need to stop okay?” He grunts and we start up the first stair. He’s dragging his right leg and as I take this in I see the blood trail. It’s taking some doing but I am ignoring the smell of the blood that is coming from absolutely everywhere, focusing on getting Draco up these stairs. Please don’t be stairs to heaven. What seems like an eternity later we reach a landing with…an elevator with a keypad. Thank you baby Jesus in the Manger. Praying the combo is the same as the front door I punch in the numbers and the doors thankfully open. Once we’re inside Draco braces against the wall, the doors slide closed and we slowly begin to ascend. A very short ride later the doors open. I grab Draco, pulling his arm over my shoulder again and also taking his full weight back on. Stepping out into the room my eyes adjusting to the low lamp lights, I see it’s an enormous bedroom. Dracos bedroom. I just know. Well, add secret stairs to a secret elevator leading to a bedroom to the wow factor of this place. Now what to do?

Clearly Draco didn’t want to go to the hospital wing. No way I’m leaving him in this condition. So I go on gut instinct. Scanning the room and finding it looks similar in layout to my own,  I find a door that leads to the bathroom. I flick on the light on on the way in. Just like my bathroom. Good. I lead Draco over to the countertop between sinks and set him down leaning his back slightly onto the mirror. In the light I can see the extent of his wounds and oh f**k me is it bad. His clothes are in tatters and beneath is an even bigger horror show. His eyes are glassy. Not good. “Hey! Puff! Stay with me. Don’t you dare pass out. I need to turn on the water.  Your leaning on the counter and mirror. Just hang tight for a second.” Moving as quickly as I can I go into the walk in shower and turn the water on low and warm. His wounds need cleaning. Looking at my hand on the handle I see the blood I’m covered in. I can now feel it all over me, dripping from where his arm was around me and in my hair where his head had been as we walked. Thank god there’s a bench seat in the shower. I dash back out to Draco who is clearly fighting the urge to pass out. Must move faster. 

“Puff don’t you quit on me.” I say as soothingly as I can. “I need to clean your wounds. I’m going to take off your clothes and get you into the shower” I finish as I reach of what’s left of his shirt. He snatches my hand and I snap my head to look him in the eyes. Panic, fear, shame all swirl in his gaze. “I won’t hurt you.” I whisper. It’s not a statement it’s a vow. He drops my hand and his eyes start to glass over again. s**t. As quickly as I can I remove his shoes and clothes and try not to cry at the flesh in tatters I reveal. Once his clothes are gone and thrown in a corner. I rip my hair out of its bun, kick off my shoes, and strip down too. I’m too freaked out about making sure he’s okay to even worry about my self confidence issue. I put his arm back around my shoulder and get us into the shower. Placing both his hands against the shower wall I slowly begin to rise the wounds with the shower head that comes off the base with a hose attached to it. He gasps, hisses, and winces in pain. Once all of the blood is off I find his soap, lather up, and as lightly as I can begin to clean out the wounds. As I go he groans and his gasps become more intense. At this I move him to sit on the bench seat more because I’m afraid the pain is going to make him pass out. The more I clean the more I notice there are small thorns imbedded in the gashes. f**k, f**k, f**k. Once I’ve done as much as I can I lean him all the way back onto the wall attached to the bench and quickly wash myself and grab his shampoo to wash out the blood. 

I shut the water off, jump out of the shower and find the towels in the linen closet located in the same place as my bathroom. Wrapping myself up I quickly go back in to the shower and lift Draco guiding him out of the shower. Leaning once more against the countertop I dry him as gently as possible. Thinking of my next steps I tell Draco “I’m going to go take off the stuff on your bed so I can lay you down. Stay with me. I’ll only be a second.” Dashing into the bedroom I rip everything, pillows, throw blankets, and the comforter, off the bed and toss it into a heap on the floor and mad dash back to him just as he starts swaying. “I got you” I murmur to him as I get a hold of him, leading him to his bed. With as much effort to be gentle as I can I lay his naked form back onto the bed helping him bring his legs onto the bed. The full picture of what’s been done to him is nothing short of horrifying.