Fallen

Chapter One : Going Under

Caramel brown eyes widened at the sight before them in the Daily Prophet, the bearer's hand rose to her mouth as she gasped and dropped the manila-colored paper, a feeling of complete and utter dread consuming her. "Mum, you had better come read this!" she called frantically to the kitchen, as tears began slipping silently down her cheeks. Her heart raced as sweat beaded her forehead and her face paled.

Molly rushed out of the kitchen, spatula in hand, a look of pure worry coating her features. Her fear, at the sight of the manila-colored paper on the floor in front of her only daughter, evaporated, "Ginevra Weasley, you know very well that I am not interested in that paper and have not been since they started writing nasty lies about your brother and Harry." She shook her head at the frustration in her daughter's eyes.

"Mum, I guarantee this little bit about Ron will be of at least some minute importance to you." Ginny tried. Seeing no change in her mother's lack of enthusiasm towards the paper, she announced, "Here, let me read it for you:

'Today there has been a Death Eater attack, yet again, blah blah blah, eleven found dead, blah blah blah. The bodies of blah blah, blah blah, and Ronald Weasley are yet to be found, possibly captured or members of the clan who attacked the store…'

"Now, mother, tell me, which do you think he is?" Ginny glared at her mother for a moment, moving just barely in time to catch her before she fell to the floor in a dead faint. "Well now, I suppose I'd react similarly if he were my son…"

She dragged her mother to the couch and made her way to the fireplace, thinking on her feet. Acting rashly, she threw some floo powder into it and shouted, "Malfoy Manor!"

Feeling the familiar tug of her navel, she prepared herself for what would seem like a ceaseless fall.

"You can open your eyes now, Miss Weasley." The easily recognized British drawl reached her ears from across the room. Blinking her dust-caked eyes furiously, Ginny was glad to have the distance between herself and the head of the Malfoy family, more so knowing that he had been capable of capturing her brother, than ever before. "I have been expecting you," he paused, a slight grimace painting his lips. "Well any of the red-headed bunch of fiends you call family would have done well enough, but I had hoped that it would be you I were to deal with personally today. Too long has it been since our last meeting, six years, am I wrong?"

She shook her head feverishly, keeping her caramel eyes locked upon his molten silver pair, as she moved to the chair directly opposite of his desk, closing some of the distance she had originally been happy to have between them.

"Mr. Malfoy, clearly you know my intentions, must we really bother with the small talk? I'm here for my brother, as you well know and I am quite aware that you, as a Death Eater, have access to him. Obviously, you or your 'dark lord'," she spit them out as if they were the vilest tasting words she'd ever spoken in her entire life. "Want something from me, my family, or perhaps even the Order. Would it not be a hell of a lot easier for us both if you simply named your terms and got it over with?" She crossed one leg over the other and gave him a once-over to determine if she'd judged his greeting wrongly and had set herself up for a shortcoming. His composure faltered none, his smile shown pleasantly at her.

He shook his head, grinning at her from across the desk, "Now, now Miss Weasley, you sure are making a woman of yourself, a pleasant surprise. I had envisioned you storming into my office in a huff with half the ministry behind you… I suppose you could say that I have underestimated you, but fear not, I rarely make the same mistake twice. Now, you want his release, I am sure, but what else is brewing in that swift little mind of yours?"

Ginny smirked, a cinnamon-colored eyebrow lifting on her forehead, "I am here for his release, yes, but to barter for more, I am also going to request that your family and your family's 'lord' back off and leave my family and I to our peace."

"He said you would like such a thing, but in return he asks much, are you sure you want this with all your heart?" She nodded quickly, not missing a beat. "He asks first that you join him, the Dark Lord as a loyal legion in his army of Death Eaters. Next he asks that you marry my son, Draco Malfoy and produce at least two heirs by the time you are twenty, which will give you three years. How doth thou respond to these conditions?" Lucius asked, a darkness clouding his eyes ashe thought of the life he was taking away from the girl and his son as he asked her to do these things on behalf of the being he had served without question for the last two decades of his life.

"Mr. Malfoy, with all due respect, must I? Are there any alternatives?" Ginny closed her eyes and sighed, knowing that her fate rested now on her brother's shoulders as his did on her own. "I will accept the terms stated, so long as you accept mine."

"Then it is done. Are you ready for your initiation, I am sure that the crowd grows weary of waiting on you and I."

"Now? But what would happen had I refused?" she asked, giving him a quizzical look.

"I knew you would say yes, after all, you are a Weasley and Weasleys are family through and through, which is why you have been chosen to marry my son and bear his children. We know that no matter how much you dislike it, you will never abandon your children or their father, you certainly will do well enough for the purpose at hand, therefore, I must thank you for being so predictable." Clasping his hands together in front of him, Lucius rose to his feet and made his way into the hallway, beckoning for her to follow him.

After only a few moments of walking, he stopped in front of a pair of tall, double doors, "Beyond these doors lies your new life, your new career and your new lover, are you ready to join them?"

Ginny nodded, moving closer to him and grasping his hand that had dropped to his side, causing him to glance at her, momentarily unsure of how to view her. His uncertainty didn't last but a moment, as he pushed the doors open wide and walked her into the room, right up to the menacing figure cloaked in a long, green robe standing in the middle of the room.

"Welcome to your and Mr. Malfoy's ceremony, Miss Weasley. Did you have a nice talk with Mr. Malfoy senior?" The bittersweet, slightly sarcastic tone of Tom, her first love's, voice caressed her bare arms into goose bumps.

"As always, Tom." She replied, glaring up at him through dark eyelashes.

"Good then, are you ready to do what has been asked?"

"Would I be here if I was not?" she asked almost suavely, trying to hide the fear from her face and eyes. She knew that with each word that fell from her lips, she tossed away more and more of her chances at a life of good and any possibility of love until there was absolutely no turning back. Her career as a medic would now mean nothing but a scam, a mask used to cover up the lies and deceit she would now practice. She knew that she could never be like Professor Snape, he was a lot stronger than her and she would never be able to truly keep Tom from her thoughts.

His slits of eyes filled with joy as he stared forebodingly into her wide, young orbs, "Yes, Miss Weasley, you are smart to realize such things. Thank you ever so much, my child for making the choice of joining us of your own free will. Are you ready to accept me into your life as your leader and only truth?"

"Naturally, my Lord." She said, bowing her head slightly and giving him a swift, yet graceful curtsy. "I would no sooner betray you than I would my own mother or father."

Tom threw his head back in laughter, to which she glared at him in reply. "That's a bit ironic, isn't it?" he accused with a grin. "I mean, you are here joining the fight against everything your family believes in. Hell, you don't even know what we really think on the fight and yet you are here willingly giving up your life for your brother's." His eyes scanned her face, expecting to see her crying, but there was no weakness in her features, her deeply set eyes held their gaze into his strongly, not even her bottom lip was quivering like he remembered it doing so very long ago.

"You expect too much of me." Ginny laughed, noticing his disappointment. "I'm no longer the little girl you once corrupted, my sweet. You made sure of that."

"Are you ready to proceed?" he asked, taking her hand from Lucius' as she nodded her head and leading her to the middle of the circle of Death Eaters. "Draco, would you join us now?"

A tall figure clad in a black cloak sauntered towards them, the candles making a silver glitter as they reflected off his eyes. "As you wish, my Lord." He complied, taking his place in front of Ginny and next to Tom.

"Repeat after me, Ginevra." Tom instructed, taking a scroll from the table and reading it aloud; "I, Ginevra Weasley, swear to cast away anything and everything I find 'good'."

"I, Ginevra Weasley, swear to cast away anything and everything I find 'good'."

"And I swear to take in what my teachers of the Dark Arts have to teach without trouble."

"And I swear to take in what my teachers of the Dark Arts have to teach without trouble." She stared coldly into Draco's eyes, he held her gaze, all her feelings were numbing as she searched his dark gray eyes for a story, one she had not already found, one she had longed for time after time.

"I will listen to the Dark Lord's reasonings."

Her lips moved without her command, "I will listen to the Dark Lord's reasoning."

Tom waved his wand in the air twice, making a dark green mist appear and the end grow into a fiery red emblem of the Dark Mark. He grabbed her left wrist, whispering a few soft words and placed the tip of the wand on the inside of her forearm.

The pain was so intense that she nearly cried out, until Draco's hand clasped her right, pulling her attention back to his eyes and away from the searing pain in her arm. For a moment, he held her gaze before he looked away in shame. Her was red, the blood racing through her veins so much faster than normal. Draco released her hand, wiping his own against his robe, as if he'd touched something dirty, causing her focus to fade back to her arm. She felt as if she was falling deep within herself, as she filled with fear.

At the exact moment she lost hope of returning to a reality beyond the pain, Tom removed the wand from her arm.

"Thank you for your assistance, Draco. Are you two ready for the wedding?"

Ginny's eyes glazed over; she wondered if she'd ever be ready to marry someone who was so easily swayed by how his family and friends thought of him that he would refuse her comfort. Thinking about spending nights in Draco Malfoy's bed made her cringe, how could she make love to someone she felt nothing but hatred towards? How could she pretend for her family and the rest of the world that she wanted to be with him for the rest of her life, when in all reality she wanted to be as far away from him as possible?

Pushing her indecision, guilt and fear out of her mind, Ginny nodded, "Of course, my Lord…" she lied, feeling the betrayal she was committing against herself deep within her heart.

"Anything to help the cause." Draco whispered his acceptance, allowing no emotion whatsoever to cause his voice to waver or show upon his carefully guarded face.

Tom performed the ceremony quickly, giving neither the time to complain or have second thoughts, not that Ginny really could have gone back on her word either way. In unison, the two said their 'I do's sealing their fates together for eternity. She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes when they met with her husband's for their first kiss. Just as she had imagined it the whole evening, the kiss was cold and hard, no love or compassion in such a kiss… she hated him more for it.

"Thank you all for attending tonight's joyous meeting, but it is time for me to say goodnight. The apparition space is the first door on your left when you leave the library. Until we meet again." With that, Voldemort disappeared in a puff of green smoke, leaving only the echo of his sinister laughter in his wake.

Ginny started walking towards the exit, but was soon stopped by a hand on her shoulder. "What?!" she hissed rudely, turning about to face the person that had stopped her. An unexpected wave of guilt washed over her when she realized that it was her new husband and that he looked hurt at her cruelty.

Regaining his usual icy composure, he said in a strong tone, "You are a Malfoy now, therefore, you can enter and exit the manor through apparition whenever and wherever you so please." With that, he turned on his heal and stalked out of the library.

Ginny bit her lip, unsure of whether or not she should even bother apologizing to him. He probably didn't really care all that much anyway, if anything, she most likely only bruised his sky-high ego for a second. With a scowl, guilt won out the fight in her mind, causing her to apparate into his room and onto his big, floppy feather bed.

Taking in the room around her and all the lovely, antique-looking furniture placed throughout it, she realized that the Malfoys were far more well off than she had ever imagined.

Before she could get up and really get a good look at the lovely wall-hangings, Draco came through the door on the opposite side of the room backwards, carrying something, or someone, in his arms. "I just knew you wanted me!" he laughed, placing Pansy Parkinson on the ground in front of him and attempting to ravish her entire body with her clothing still intact.

Ginny wanted to scream, but the sound just wouldn't come, it was frozen on her lips. She was in such a state of shock that she couldn't even bring herself to apparate away.

With ease, he picked up his lady partner and threw her on the bed next to Ginny, causing the scream to finally come and the apparition to overcome her. And before Draco's mouth could even open, his wife disappeared into the night.

End of Chapter One.

A/N: Alright, I obviously haven't updated anything on this site in… years. That's right, YEARS! I started Fallen when I was thirteen, I'm sure most of you could tell it was written by someone pretty young just by reading through some of the first paragraphs, haha. I still really like the plot, even though it's been years and I haven't done anything with it in forever, but looking back on it now, there are things that don't sit as well with me now creatively as they did before… sooooo! Guess what…

That's right.

I'm rewriting.

The plot's pretty much the same, but I'm definitely beta-reading it, which means there are going to be changes of all shapes and sizes… lots of them.

To sum it all up, I'm back for sure this time. While at this very moment, I'm simply rewriting this story, I do fully intend to take it to the end this time, which I'm sure some of you will greatly appreciate. While the changes might be hard for some of you to take, I hope that I can keep you all as fans and friends.

NOW TO THE GOOD PART!

Review. Or die trying. 'Welcome back, yo' is only.. 16 characters counting the spaces, not too much work, so there's no excuses this time!