AN: this is it folks, been a long journey and it's finally over. Thanks for sticking with me and enjoy the read. I apologize for nothing, not even my behaviour. Oh, I do however apologize for all errors that seeped into the chapter. So I guess the only thing I'm not apologizing for is my behaviour. Interpret that as will. I have read OotP, this does not fit in per say, unless in its obscurity and lack of reference to any actual events that occurred happens to mesh with the book 5. Bon Appetit!
Disclaimer: Not mine. Don't sue.
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Ginny twirled her quill quickly, biting her lip as she studied the massive text in the soft glow of her lamp.
"Are you still up?" Came the incredulous and sleepy voice of Draco as he pushed aside the partition and saw her sitting in her dressing robe and pyjamas.
Ginny started at the sound of his voice coming out of nowhere and fairly slammed her book shut. "Draco!" she said in surprise as she stood up, pushing the text behind her. "You were supposed to be sleeping."
"So it seems." He walked stealthily over to where she was hiding the book. His eyes glinted warmly and Ginny grinned half-heartedly, hoping against hope he wasn't going for the book. He drew nearer and she backed up against the desk until his face was mere inches from hers. He smiled and Ginny, lost in the gesture, missed the glint that appeared in his eyes. He began to kiss her slowly and she sighed, and as their kiss deepened, she wrapped her arms around his neck.
Her mistake. With a smirk of triumph, he immediately seized the text from behind her waist and withdrew, holding it aloft.
Ginny's face grew red in anger, her amber eyes spitting fire as she glared at his smug face.
"Bastard." She hissed out.
"Thank you." He responded idly with a sly glance over to her. "Honestly though, I am Slytherin. You can't expect me to change. Now suppose you tell me what you were doing with…" he glanced at the text "Advanced Transfiguration: Animagus. This is from the Restricted Section, how did you get it out?" He stared at her hard and she sat down on her bed with a sigh.
"Not that you deserve to know, but I took it from Dumbledore and Snape last time they were in here. I transfigured another book to look like it, they returned it to the Restricted Section and voila, my own copy."
"You conniving little thief." A grin spread across his face. "I'm proud of you."
"You would be. Slytherin to the core." She muttered.
He shot a glance at her. "You still haven't told me what you were doing with it."
Ginny rolled her eyes. "I heard Ron and Hermione talking about Animagus, they wanted to see if they could do it." She shrugged and gazed at her fingers entwined in her lap. "So I took the book and now they can't find out."
He furrowed his brows at her. "You really hate them don't you…"
Her eyes were hard and her jaw was stubborn. "Not hate, strongly dislike. Ron's my brother, I can't hate him even when he's the second supreme git of all gits, Harry being the first, though of course normally that title is reserved for you," Malfoy smirked a bit and bowed at her, "but sometimes he and his little friends really get on my nerves." She shrugged as if that explained it all. "They treat me like I'm not even here."
Draco nodded and moved over to where she was and pulled her down so they were lying side by side on the bed.
Ginny giggled softly.
"What?" Draco mumbled into her hair, his eyes already closed.
"Imagine Ron walked in." she giggled again.
"No thanks, one Weasley is all I can deal with. Now shut up. You talk entirely to much Gin."
Ginny mumbled something but as she lay relaxed and warm in his arms, sleep began to overtake her and soon enough the two were asleep together on the bed.
Draco's arm was suddenly no longer draped comfortably over Ginny's waist and sleepily she reached for it, craving the warmth and security. She felt bereft.
Draco shook Ginny hastily. "Get up Weasley." He muttered harshly and she turned and looked at him, her mind not registering the note of panic in his voice. His eyes were gazing straight ahead and with a puzzled look she sat up as well and looked to where he was watching.
"Shit…" she hissed out and threw off their covers. "Ron look, I can explain. It's not what it seems." Her hands were outstretched towards him as she approached in a placating gesture.
She'd seen Ron so angry his face went blue and he'd frothed at the mouth. But he was so deadly still and calm but for the anger burning in his eyes that she knew he'd never been quite this mad ever before. His icy, relentless glare went straight through her and focused on Malfoy who was standing his ground, arms crossed in defiance.
"Ron, listen to me," Ginny touched his chest and he stared down at her, nostrils flaring.
"Virginia Artemisia Weasley, why was that…death eater in your bed?" The silent fury made her quake momentarily, the use of her middle name made her flinch. Tom had called her that. Tom! She gathered her courage around her like a sheltering cloak. If she had faced down the Dark Lord once, then she could certainly face down an irrational brother.
Hermione's knuckles were white as she gripped Ron's arm, a silent spectator to the unfolding drama, Harry positioned likewise with a vice-like grip on Ron's other arm.
"Ronald Weasley, you will listen and you will listen good." Ginny placed her hands on her hips and stood firmly in place, stance wide and ready to take whatever he threw at her. "You can't pick and choose when to pay attention to me. It's all the time, or none of the time. You forfeited your chance. So now that you've made your bed, lie on it, and stay out of my life."
She glared at him and saw his face grow pink through the angry pallor, his nostrils flare even more and his gaze shot to Malfoy, who, to his credit, barely flinched.
"This is your fault Malfoy. You poisoned her mind!" He began straining at Harry and Hermione who wrestled him back.
"No, Ron, not right now!" They tried to stop him, but neither could get a hold of their wands as their hands were occupied with preventing Ron from getting loose and beating Malfoy senseless. Or killing him, which, considering the highly volatile circumstances, seemed much more probable.
"Petrificus totalus" Ginny waved her wand and saw Ron go stiff in Harry and Hermione's arms. She stepped in front of him and narrowed her eyes dangerously.
"Get him out of here." She whispered brokenly.
"Malfoy…" Harry's voice came out hoarsely through in anger even as eh stuggled to Lift Ron with Hermione.
"Yes, Potter?" Draco sneered.
"First you hex her, then you brainwash her and now you've turned her against her own family. I hope you're prepared to face the consequences." He looked ominously at Malfoy.
"Well that about sums it up Potter. Is there anything else you'd like to add to my list of wrongdoings? Manslaughter? Murder? Allegiance to Voldemort?"
Harry didn't miss the way Draco's eyes had narrowed to slits or the hard ring of steel behind his flippant words, nor the use of You-Know-Who's name. He turned and began to drag Ron out without responding but for a glare.
Ginny stared at the door. "Not exactly the way I'd pictured telling them…" She muttered thoughtfully, an unperturbed look in her eyes.
Draco burst out in laughter. "Not exactly?!" He exclaimed. "Did you fancy they'd understand and congratulate you? I can imagine it now.
"'Good job Ginny on landing one of the wealthiest young men in all of the Wizarding World.' They'd say. 'Let's let bygone's be bygone's and try to forget his father tried to kill you in an attempt to bring back the Dark Lord. Let's forget the things he's done to your brother and dear precious Harry, let's forget that he values your pure blood, and forget how much of an inescapably evil man he's bound to turn out to be.'"
Ginny turned sorrowful amber eyes on him. "They'll probably transfer me. Or get me home-schooled. As soon as this binding thing is broken."
Draco nodded thoughtfully, half lidded eyes gazing thoughtfully at her, his expression decidedly neutral.
"Ah well." Her eyes glistened but she smiled bravely, not chancing a glance at him, knowing instinctively he'd hate tears, sign of weakness as it were. "If there's one thing I've learned, it's this. And you'd better pay attention Draco Malfoy.
"They can control my actions, make me parrot words, they can put me under the Imperius curse and they still won't be able to control my thoughts, my feelings. The part of me, that is only me. No one else. And with that part, I say, you're worth it."
Draco almost choked, but controlled his face to remain impassive. "Am I?" He said slowly, almost unconcernedly.
Ginny narrowed her eyes at him and stepped closer. "I'm onto you Draco Malfoy. There's more to you than meets the eye. Maybe it's not exactly good, but it's better than a lot of the alternatives." Her eyes were calculating as she turned to him finally. "No one can control you, just like no one can control me. Not really." She drew closer and Draco, with a solemn and carefree face pulled her close, not even bothering to check the door for…innocent bystanders.
"In that case, find me when you get free." He whispered. "Even if it' somewhere bad. Come get me." He whispered the last part even quieter before kissing her, and kissing her well.
Ginny drew away with a laugh. "Eww, morning breath!" He grinned back.
The howler from her mother came, but she was in the privacy of her room, and their illicit, clichéd romance, in all its Romeo and Juliet-ness remained a secret.
The letter informing her of her transfer to Beauxbatons came, but she was in the privacy of her room, with Draco to talk it over with.
The release from the binding spell came, and she felt bereft.
Draco watched from the parapet of the North Tower as Ron, the faithful concerned brother to the end, Harry, Hermione, Neville, Colin, Luna, Professor McGonagall and the Headmaster Dumbledore all saw the beloved Weasley girl off; off to her new life in France.
Her friends had been fed a story about lingering effects of the binding spell she'd been under, but Dumbledore knew the truth, much as it pained Draco to admit it. But Draco knew that he knew whenever Dumbledore turned a pitying glance on the young Malfoy, making him squirm in his seat and duck his head, like a chastised 5 year old.
Draco watched the carriage pulled by those grotesque winged beasts ride away from the castle. A flash of red at the window and suddenly she was leaning out, her face upturned to the towers, eyes searching. She saw him and smiled a secret smile, before ducking back inside as a late snow began swirling through the air.
Ginny was safe in France, Malfoy was safely a few countries away, and war was breaking out. Tension mounted in the stone halls of Hogwarts Castle, students had taken on a slouching furtive look as they were escorted between classes. The unbridled animosity between the Slytherins and the Gryffindors had mounted, reaching an all time high.
It had reached the point where Slytherin/Gryffindor brawls were breaking out in the halls after hours, during dinner, whenever Teachers were absent, even when they weren't. And in the thick of it all, calm, aloof, perpetually unruffled and undyingly loyal to his housemates, stood the Slytherin Prince, one Draco Malfoy.
Ginny read the censored version of encounters with Voldemort, of the burgeoning army rising against him and of the inter-house strife that was increasing at Hogwarts through letters sent by her family.
She curled up in the window seat overlooking the magnificent gardens of Beauxbatons and gnawed her lip as she worried a piece of parchment. What if he forgot, what if he decided she had just been a stupid emotional mistake? What if he'd been playing her all along? Ginny worried and threw herself into her studies. There was nothing for her here except the distant letters form her family radiating their disapproval of her actions and full of well wishing that her counselling sessions were going well.
She'd been stuck in those sessions once before, after Tom. And she did now as she did then; smiled, gave the right answers, made them think she was getting somewhere and took the sleeping draughts, the depression potions dutifully and pretended to use them.
Ginny touched the heavy book she was reading and ran a slender finger over the embossed title lovingly.
One more year, and she'd go free. One more year. A smile curved her lips.
Years down the yellow brick road, we find out two heroes…….
Draco broodingly stared into the fireplace, the paragon of evil with his hard grey eyes and high-backed chair illuminated eerily by the firelight. Lightning cast a flash of light over his ominous features, his fingers tapped restlessly on the armchair.
He'd tried to forget he really had. He tried to erase, in the three years since the end of the war, the memories of faces full of pain and fear as he looked out from behind his own blank mask.
Dumbledore had vouched for him. Lucius had gone down, but the Malfoy still survived though Draco. Dumbledore had vouched for him…the old bat was probably the only one who knew why too. Draco certainly hadn't stuck his neck out being a double agent. Oh sure, he'd helped occasionally, but only when there was no risk to number one, himself.
One hand tightened around a glass of scotch and he suddenly threw it down his throat, the familiar fire easing it's way down into the pit of his stomach like the security of a baby blanket. Not that he'd ever had one; Malfoy's were too rigid by far. He'd had a thick book and a lesson in pain instead.
But still. The scotch helped. If he had enough, he'd forget. Forget the faces. Forget her. He scowled into the fire with renewed vigour. He would douse the flames from the sheer intensity of his eyes…
He'd seemingly gone on without her perfectly at Hogwarts but for the heightened animosity between Ron Weasley and him. They'd gone beyond the petty insults to blows almost whenever they met. They skipped right to the violence and forwent all the preliminary 'sticks and stones'.
Ginny had no doubt forgotten him as well. Rumours of her had circulated back to him during the war. Of her skill as an Auror, and her sheer cunning. She had been priceless as a strategist. AH well, promises given in youth had no meaning. He'd been foolish to thin otherwise.
Rain pounded the windows. But the fire shone bright. Sullenly Draco poured another Scotch and reflected on how the flames looked like her hair. He was a man haunted by his past, demons and ghosts surrounded him in his dead manor, keeping his mind on his dead past, making him more like his dead father every day.
And no one wanted a man with demons. She'd made that abundantly clear. She'd promised and he'd waited. She'd never come. Not after Beauxbatons, not in the four years before the war, not during the war, not after the war.
He squeezed the glass so hard he barely felt it crush in his hand, shards biting into his skin and distantly he welcomed the pain. But he understood, because really, why would she ever want a man with demons, a man who could barely remember the boy he'd been when he'd met her.
Ginny laughed brightly and swirled away from the crowd of people in the Burrow, anxious to cool her body in the night air.
The rain poured down around the porch and thunder rumbled in the distance. Ginny smiled and stepped out into the rain. She loved it out in the storms. Rain cascaded down her face, soaked her hair and turned the green dress she was wearing into a second skin, clinging tightly.
The party went on inside and Ginny went from standing in the rain, to sitting in the rain, her thoughts somewhere else as she fought off the cold through a warming spell.
Chin in hand, she stared off at the distant hills and her thoughts went inevitably to the war, when those hills had been scorched and great holes had scarred the countryside. Fires from battles had swept the moors and forests.
She'd only fought in a few battles herself, most of the time she'd spent her hours planning out the next move, anticipating that he was anticipating their actions and doing her utmost to make sure the fewest possible died.
A harsh bitter laugh broke from her lips. She'd made sure the fewest people had died. She'd never tried to save them all; she'd been reduced to thinking of them strictly as figures, numbers on a page. How mercenary.
A wry grin broke her lips as she remembered him saying something like that to her. He'd probably have been proud of her. And maybe when she grew distraught about the people she knew she was sending to their deaths, he'd have soothed her troubled mind and held her.
Ginny could feel a tears mingling with the raindrops on her face and she futilely brushed it away. But after Beauxbatons, she'd thought a bit differently. She didn't think he'd want to see her. After all, all they'd had was a couple of weeks of something, barely significant in the larger scale of things. And so she'd put it off and put it off, but he hadn't made an effort either. Then the war had come.
Word of Malfoy had filtered through to her. Bits of information that had come from of who Malfoy had slaughtered this time, how many children had died at his hands.
Her family had looked askance at her, and kept her close to them, where they could watch her and be of comfort. Poor misguided Ginny, she'd had a run in with that evil one. Poor Ginny, fated to pick the ones that she shouldn't.
Poor Ginny bore it all with a smile and screamed on the inside.
Then rumours had trickled in of Malfoy's double agent status. She'd grinned lightly to herself and thought about him more and with renewed hope. Maybe he was doing all right then and not embroiled too heavily in the Dark Lord's inner circle.
She'd urged Dumbledore to vouch for him as he had for Snape, when the time came for him to be tried.
She'd never forgotten him. And she'd always meant to show him. Show him now Ginny. The voice inside her head whispered and she sat bolt upright as the enormity of what she realized she fully intended to do hit her.
But what if he laughs? She worried.
Insult him, hex him, don't be a doormat. Face him. Where's that Gryffindor bravery huh girl?
Ginny nodded firmly and stood up with scarcely a backward glance at the house full of friends and happiness. Fine then. She set her jaw stubbornly. Since she couldn't stop thinking of him, she needed to see him. To know that he was okay, to at most begin a friendship. And so with a wave of her wand she apparated away to go show him what she'd done for him.
Draco waited for the sound of his butler's footsteps to answer the door. He cursed when he remember he had given the few staff the night off wanting the manor all to himself.
"I'll get it." He mumbled and drew himself t his tall height and walked heavily to the door curious about his late night caller.
Drawing the heavy door open, he glanced about curiously. There was no one there, predictably. "How cliché." He muttered as he walked back to his awaiting chair and warm fire.
He started when he saw the cat. There it was, sitting in his chair, bedraggled and muddy, serenely cleaning itself. The cat slanted a look towards Malfoy as he drew near and stopped licking it's paw and meowed.
"Stupid cat…." Draco's face paled as he remembered saying something like that to another kitten long ago. Another kitten that had looked much like this cat did. He roughly grabbed the cat and pulled it to his face.
"Weasley?" He gasped hoarsely, his eyes full of hesitation, fear and excitement.
The cat meowed and purred, very smugly.
"My god."
Ginny leapt free of his arms and suddenly a very wet, bedraggled looking Ginny Weasley was standing before him, smiling nervously and shifting from foot to foot.
Draco stared blankly and gaped before uttering the first thing that came into his head. "What took you so long?"
Ginny laughed and the tension disappeared. "Malfoy, what kind of host are you? I'm freezing."
One hour later, Ginny sat warm in a pair of Draco's pyjamas with a blanket tucked around her and a mug of hot coffee in her hands, ensconced in his chair as he sat across from her, coffee in hand as well.
Ginny paused in her narrative and cocked her head, a queer smile hovering around her lips.
"What?" Draco asked.
"You know, it's almost like there's been no time gone at all. It feels like we could still be sitting in the ward at Hogwarts, staying up over a game a chess."
Draco grinned softly and then sobered. "But time has passed. And things are different. I'm not the same person I was back then Ginny." He shook his head to forestall her interruption. "I've done things that I'm not proud of, done horrible things to people, all to save my own skin." His eyes were full of anguish as he brought them up to Ginny.
"But you feel remorse, you're sorry, I can tell. And that means you have changed. Besides, you're not the only one who killed people." Ginny grinned bitterly and a tear slipped down her face.
Draco drew close. "You're not to blame for your father's death. Or your brother's."
Ginny sniffled pathetically and wouldn't meet his eyes.
"I have to confess something Gin." He continued, drawing her attention away from her problems. "This is the first night in a long while that I've felt remotely whole. When I saw you sitting there as a cat, which brings up another point entirely, I was ready to go out and find you because I realized that I couldn't stop thinking about you, no matter how much I deluded myself. I need you Ginny."
Ginny lifted great big eyes to his and smiled softly. "I have to confess something too. I lied."
Draco flinched.
"Not about anything important so calm down." She placated quickly. "The book back in seventh year, Advanced Transfiguration: Animagus, I stole it so I could learn to be a cat. I took it with me to Beauxbatons and completed my Animagus." She leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially. "All for you." A sly grin parted her pink lips.
"That's" Draco punctuated his sentence with soft kisses, "so…very…gryffindorish…of...you…"
She smiled into his lips and squirmed her way into hi embrace, much like she wiggled her way into his heart.
Epilogue
Ginny woke warm next to a very real, very naked Draco Malfoy in a very real room that was very really not her own. She rolled over and faced Draco's chest and snuggled closer, rewarded by a contented rumble of pleasure. She looked into his grey eyes and blushed, her freckles still stark against the red cheeks.
Blond wisps of hair fell into his eyes as he grinned contentedly at her.
"Draco…"
"Mmm?"
"Do you think I'm old enough that my family will stay out of it this time round?" She questioned him sleepily.
"Who cares what they think or say or
try to do…" He muttered drowsily.
"They
"And you're so sure I'm not?" he quirked a brow at her and held her tighter.
Ginny smiled and burrowed into his embrace. "Luv, if I'd wanted a git, I'd have married Harry Bloody Potter."
AN: Okay dokey. First story I've ever finished. And posted. I'm astounded by the amount of you who responded that you did read author's notes. Writers of the world beware, there is an active audience!! *gasps echo around the lecture hall and excited whisperings break out*
So, first
story ever finished. And posted. Thanks to all of you who offered criticism and
to all you who made me laugh with your futile demands of UPDATE! NOW! MORE!!
What are we, two? No just kidding. That was sarcasm. Sorry. Those reviews in no
way, shape or form, influenced how much less I would write…*snickers*
Okay, no seriously, sorry this
was SO long in coming. I have no motivation o write when I have unlimited time.
It takes the pressures and strict boundaries of school life and dull homework
to make me want to indulge in my creative side. So that's why in the first week
of University, I wrote the whoel bloody chapter. So on that note, I apologize
for all roughness, OOC nature of Draco and Ginny, and Ron, and everyone else.
Please note that I do INTEND (I haven't planned anything yet, I only INTEND) to go back and work on the last bit to fix Draco so he's a little bit more mean and therefore more loveable/adorable. What a sick twisted world.
What fun we've had together on this fic. You laughed while I cried and then it was over…with no sequel. Maybe.
I did have some horribly evil, unhappy ending planned. But it was difficult to write and I stopped. If you really want to hear that one, leave a review.
Buh bye
Muffin.
FemmeDraconis: Thanks for the mention about the poem, I wrote it myself when I was really tired and bored in History ^_^
Peaceoutgrlmehi: Wow! Thanks for the lovely feedback, now that was your feedback for your feedback. Ain't you special…^_^
Darcel: Don't' sweat the small stuff; it's all small stuff. The dark mark business, well it all made sense in my head. And I have too much schoolwork to go back and neaten it up. Sorry for the confusion
Evilryokojesse and Undone1: thanks for your extra special, amazing reviews!
To all of you who think you deserve special mention and I didn't mention, I intended to but I ran out of time, (sorry 'bout that) this is for you. Thank you so much!!