Disclaimer: I do not own any of this.
A/N: Thank you Aliya for beta-ing for me.
Chapter 16
Wednesday came much too quickly for Draco's taste. He woke up Wednesday morning with a deep feeling of dread. His father would be home soon, and he would see the letter Pansy wrote him. Draco knew that he would be in deep trouble. His father had been angry with him before he went to Azkaban, but now he would be furious. Not only did his son refuse to become a Death Eater, but also, no, he was dating his worst enemy's daughter.
Sighing softly, Draco pushed thoughts of his father to the back of his mind and got out of bed. He got ready for class quickly. He didn't want to miss breakfast. It was one of the only things he looked forward to during the day. Seeing Ginny was the only thing that kept him going each day. Without her, he wouldn't be able to get out of bed in the morning.
Draco looked at the clock that sat on his nightstand. He only had about ten minutes before he had to meet Ginny outside the Great Hall. He rushed out of his dormitory and out of the Common room. When he arrived outside the Great Hall, Ginny was already there waiting.
"Good morning, Draco," Ginny greeted cheerfully when she saw him approach.
"Good morning," he replied giving her a kiss.
"You don't look like you slept very well," she told him, concern entering her voice.
"I didn't. I haven't slept very well, but let's not talk about that now. Slytherin or Gryffindor?" he asked, referring to which table they would sit at. Draco slipped his arm around Ginny's waist and she leaned against him.
"Gryffindor," she answered. Draco nodded, and they entered the Great Hall, making a beeline for the Gryffindor table.
They sat down near Ron, and began to pile food on their plates. "Hi, Ron," Ginny said.
"Weasley," Draco acknowledged him with a nod of his head."Hey, Gin. Malfoy," he greeted in return.
"Where are Harry and Hermione?" Ginny asked curiously.
Ron merely shrugged and replied as nonchalantly as he could, "Don't know. I haven't seen them very much recently." this was true. Harry and Hermione had slowly been pushing him away. It was unintentional, of course, but it was happening all the same. It had gotten worse after they had taken their relationship further a few days ago. Now, one was rarely ever seen without the other. They were inseparable and just seemed to forget about everyone else in the world.
At that moment, the two people in question walked into the room, hand in hand. Ron's face lit up considerably. "Oh, is the weasel happy to have his best friends around? Did you miss them while they were ignoring you?" Draco taunted.
"Draco," Ginny warned reproachfully.
"What? I told you I enjoyed fighting more than speaking civilly," Draco reminded her.
"I can deal with him myself, Ginny," Ron said huffily. "Just `cause you don't have any friends, Malfoy, doesn't mean you have to be jealous of me because I do."
"Jealous? Why would I be jealous of you? You're a Weasley," Draco shot back without thinking.
"Yeah, well so is your girlfriend," Ron sneered.
Draco froze for a minute and then turned to slowly look at Ginny. She was watching the situation with amusement. "I didn't mean that," Draco said honestly. "It was habit."
Ginny only shook her head and laughed. She then gave him a kiss to show she knew he didn't mean it. "Good morning, everyone," Harry greeted as he and Hermione sat down.
There was a chorus of greetings from Ginny, Ron, and Draco. "So, what did we miss?" Hermione asked.
"Nothing, believe me. Only Ron and Draco going at each other's throats," Ginny answered with a roll of her eyes.
"Again? I thought they were going to behave," Harry commented. Ginny shook her head. "They had a civil conversation the other day, but Draco told me he prefers fighting," she informed them.
"And I agree," Ron added.
"They can be so childish sometimes," Hermione said, chuckling.
"Can't argue with you there," Ginny replied.
"Hey," Draco protested, his voice laced with mock hurt. "I'm offended that you would say something like that about me.
"Ginny rolled her eyes and ignored him. He made a sulky `hmph' before turning back to his breakfast. "Oh, stop sulking," she berated. "You look too sexy with that pout on your face. If you keep doing that, I might just have to ravish you on the spot, and I don't think Ron or anyone else for that matter would appreciate that very much." The last part was whispered seductively in his ear.
Draco's eyebrows rose, and if he would have had pumpkin juice in him mouth, he would have spit it out. "Well, I have to get to class," Ginny announced. "Good bye, everyone.
"In actuality, she had plenty of time to get to class, but she thought that she'd just leave Draco there, looking shocked. That was her plan anyway. Draco, however, had different plans. "Gin, you have almost half an hour to get to class. Why don't you stay a few more minutes?" he asked, grabbing her arm. "Yeah, come one, Ginny don't leave yet," Ron said.
Ginny sighed and sat back down, resigned. "You ruined all my fun," she complained quietly to Draco.
He turned and smirked at her. "Who? Me?" he asked innocently.
Ginny rolled her eyes and then turned back to Harry, Hermione, and Ron. "You never explained what you need my map for," Harry informed Draco and Ginny.
"Oh. Didn't we? Well, we needed it to find Pansy Parkinson because she was going to send an owl to Lucius to tell him that Draco and I are dating," Ginny explained.
"Did you find her in time to stop her?" Hermione asked.
"No. By the time we found her she'd already sent it," Draco replied.
"When is he getting home?" Harry questioned.
"Today," Draco answered miserably. "He'll be ready to kill when he sees that owl. I can't wait to see his owl or, more likely, hear that Howler. Well, I better be getting to class. Want me to walk you, Ginny?"
"Yeah," Ginny replied, standing up and following Draco out of the Great Hall. "We've got rough times ahead, don't we?"
"Oh yeah, but don't worry I'll make sure he doesn't hurt you," Draco assured her.
"I know you will. Well, this is my class, I'll see you later," Ginny bid him farewell, kissing him on the cheek.
"Bye," Draco called as he made his way to his first class.
*~*~*~*
Later that day, after classes, Draco walked back to his dormitory, hoping there was nothing from his father. He was disappointed when he arrived. Lucius had definitely been trying to contact him. There were ashes all over the floor by his bed. It was a telltale sign that there had been Howlers delivered, and no one had been around to open them. Draco groaned and flopped gracefully back on to his bed.
Judging by the amount of ashes, Lucius had sent a Howler about every half hour since he got back to Malfoy Manor. That was what made Draco the most nervous. Lucius never wasted time contacting his son unless he was really angry or it was really important. And he'd obviously been wasting a lot of time today.
Draco decided that he didn't want to be around when the next one came. He knew it was stupid. He would have to face Lucius sooner or later. He preferred later. Draco exited the Slytherin Common Room and headed towards Gryffindor Tower. Hesitating for only a minute, he told the Fat Lady the password.
Draco entered the Gryffindor Common Room and was met with curious glances and outraged glares. He looked around the room a little uncomfortably until he spotted Harry, Ron, and Hermione studying in a corner. He walked over to them preparing to ask them where Ginny was. "How did you get in here?" Ron demanded hotly.
"The same way you do, weasel," Draco sneered cruelly. "I mean, I know you were thick, but I didn't think you were that thick."
"Shut up you stupid ferret," Ron shot back.
Draco ignored him and asked, "Have any of you seen Ginny?" "Yeah. She's up in her dormitory. I'll get her for you if you like," Hermione offered.
"Could you? Thanks," Draco replied.
Hermione got up and walked away. "I was hoping you'd try to go find Ginny yourself," Ron said bitterly.
"Why?" Draco asked.
"Because, as Ron learned in fifth year, when a boy tries to go up to the girls' dormitories the stairs prevent them from doing so," Harry explained.
"What happens?" Draco replied, intrigued.
"Well, the stairs turn into a slide so you can't get up, and a loud alarm goes off. I wouldn't suggest trying," Harry advised.
By this time, Hermione had returned with Ginny in tow. The former looked concerned, but when Draco saw the latter, his heart broke. Ginny looked terrible. Her face was tear stained and flushed, and her hair was tangled into a huge mess. As soon as she saw Draco, she burst into tears again, launching herself into his arms. "Shh. It's okay. Shh. Everything will be fine," Draco soothed quietly, rubbing her back and patting her hair. "What's wrong?"
"Lucius sent me a Howler," she choked out between sobs and started crying harder.
"He sent you something too?" Draco sputtered in surprise. "What did he say?"
Ginny didn't answer at first, she couldn't, she was crying too hard. When she was finally composed enough to answer, she replied, "he said that if I knew what was good for me, I'd stay away from you. He threatened to kill me, just like he killed Christina because I was in the way. He said that I was an obstacle in your path to becoming a Death Eater and that all obstacles had to be removed. That's not the worst, though." She began to cry again, and Draco began to whisper comforting words in her ear.
"What was the worst part?" he asked gently.
"He said that if I continued to be an obstacle, he would have to kill you for not being a Death Eater, and he said it would be all my fault for standing in the way. He then added that it would be my fault if I weren't dead yet. Oh, Draco, I'm scared." she sniffed. She knew what Lucius Malfoy was capable of.
"I know you are. So am I, and I'm beginning to think that I should just become a Death Eater to get him off my back," Draco said, sounding resigned.
"No, Draco, you can't do that!" she exclaimed in alarm. "You can't just give in! You can't!"
"Why not? If it weren't for the fact that I won't be a Death Eater he wouldn't care who I dated! He probably wouldn't have even read Pansy's owl. He would have been too busy with Voldemort, and once I become a Death Eater he'll probably turn a blind eye to my faults," Draco snapped coldly. "You can't run my life anymore than my father can."
"I'm not trying to run your life, Draco. I'm trying to save it!" Ginny yelled, obviously hurt by his words, and she then turned on her heel and stomped to her room.
Draco watched her go, glaring at her, before he turned around and sauntered out in a billow of robes.
*~*~*~*
An hour later, Draco was laying on his bed, seriously regretting how he'd handled Ginny. He wished he hadn't been so cold with her, but he was stressed and upset. He'd been stupid, and now he was paying for it. Within five minutes of his arrival hack to his dormitory, he'd received a Howler from Lucius. He had obviously charmed it so he would know when Draco had finally received one in person because they stopped coming after that. Lucius had yelled about how he would regret refusing to become a Death Eater, and how he would kill Ginny for getting the way. He also said it would be Draco's fault. He said pretty much the same as he had in Ginny's. He also told Draco that he had until the end of next month to give in and become a Death Eater. Draco sighed. He was in deep trouble, and there was virtually nothing he could do about it. He jumped up suddenly and went in search of Ginny. It would make him feel at least a little better after he'd apologized. He decided to check Gryffindor Tower first.
When Draco entered, he spotted the Trio almost instantly. They were huddled in the same corner as they had been before, but there was something definitely wrong. Hermione was crying on Harry's shoulder who was trying his best to comfort her, but he looked extremely worried. Ron looked like he was on the verge of tears also, and somehow, Draco wasn't sure how, but he knew that something was wrong with Ginny. Maybe it was the fact that she was no where in sight or the fact that Ginny's friend, Shannon, was looking worried too. Or maybe it was just instinct, but whatever it was he knew with all of his heart that it was true. "What's wrong?" he asked them urgently.
The other four paused uncertainly for a minute before Shannon handed him a piece of parchment mutely.
Dear friends and family,
I just wanted to inform you all that I've run away to take up an offer by Lucius Malfoy. You probably won't understand, but it's for the best. I'll be fine, don't worry. I love you all. Please, don't tell Draco what I've done, but tell him I'm sorry and that I forgive him. I'll be back soon. Also, please don't tell Mum and Dad, they'll only worry. See you all soon.
Love, Ginny
When Draco had finished reading the parchment, he looked around with wide, questioning eyes. "I found it on her bed," Shannon said wearily.
Draco stared at them for another minute and then turned on his heel and ran back to his room. When he arrived there, he grabbed some Floo Powder and went into the Common Room. He stepped into the fire and threw the powder in, yelling, "Malfoy Manor." he felt the familiar dizziness come and then go as he arrived at his childhood home.
"Father!" he called angrily. "Father, where are you?"
"Why, right here, Draco," Lucius replied silkily, stepping out of the shadows.
"What did you offer her?" Draco screamed at his father. "Where is she?""I don't know what you're talking about," Lucius said smoothly.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about," Draco snarled, glaring at his father.
"Where's Ginny?"
"You mean your little slut of a girlfriend?" Lucius asked, smirking.
"She's not a slut, now where is she?" Draco demanded.
"Oh, by now, she's probably proving herself worthy to the Dark Lord," Lucius said, laughing humorlessly.
"What?" Draco sputtered, going completely pale.
"Didn't she tell you? She's decided to become a Death Eater," Lucius informed his son, his eyes glinting maniacally. "She realized the only way for you to stay away from being a Death Eater was for her to take your place. The Dark Lord's getting at least one of you to join his ranks. He doesn't necessarily care which."
"She's going to become a Death Eater?" Draco repeated dumbly.
"Yes. If you ask me, she's too painfully loyal to you. All the things she'll have to endure for the likes of you. Torture, physical and-" Lucius began evilly.
"Where is she?" Draco cut him off. "Tell me, now."
"You think intimidating me is going to work?" Lucius asked, clearly amused at the prospect.
"Please. I'll do anything. Just take me to her," Draco pleaded.
"Anything? Very well, follow me," Lucius commanded. "I'll let the Dark Lord decide what to do with you."
Draco obeyed quickly and followed Lucius. He hoped Ginny knew what she was doing. He hoped she was just bluffing or something, anything to keep her from actually getting the Dark Mark.
They soon arrived in front of a stone door, similar to the one that Draco had been kept behind before he'd escaped to the Weasleys'. Lucius opened the door with an incantation that Draco didn't hear. When they entered, Draco's breath caught in his throat. Holding back a gasp, he surveyed Ginny. She looked miserable and helpless. She had bruises and marks or various curses all over her body. She looked exhausted.
"Lucius, what is it?" Voldemort hissed.
Lucius bowed and answered humbly, "The boy said he would do anything if I took him to see the girl."
"Very well, come, Draco," Voldemort said, his voice chilling Draco to the bone. "You may talk with the girl.
"Draco kneeled next to where Ginny lay on the ground, barely conscious. "Ginny, what were you thinking?" he asked softly. "You're going to get yourself killed.""He said I could become a Death Eater in your place, and then he wouldn't harm either of us," Ginny answered.
"Ginny. Haven't you learned? Lucius doesn't keep promises and he's never honest. It isn't like you to be so rash. I told you I wouldn't let him hurt you. Don't you trust me?" Draco whispered.
"I do trust you. I know you wouldn't let him hurt me. That's what I'm worried about. You'd probably put yourself in danger just to save me. I don't want to lost you, Draco," Ginny replied sadly.
"You won't lose me," Draco promised.
"You don't know that! Something could happen! I realize now that it was stupid, but it seemed like the right thing to do when he made the offer," Ginny explained.
"If you let Ginny come back to Hogwarts with me, I promise to become a Death Eater at the end of next month. If, for some reason, I go back on my promise, you can begin take your original course of action," Draco bargained with his father and the Dark Lord.
"That sounds like a good plan. Don't you thing so, Lucius? Even if he does back out on his promise, he'll become a Death Eater eventually, that is, if he values his and his girlfriend's lives at all," Voldemort sneered coldly.
"Whatever you say, my Lord," Lucius agreed, bowing once again.
"Very well, you may go back to Hogwarts," Voldemort dismissed them. "But I will warn you that if you even think of running away or going into hiding, squash the thought immediately. I will be watching both of you.
"Sighing in relief, Draco picked up Ginny, who was too weak to walk, and carried her to a fireplace. "Slytherin Common Room," he stated his destination clearly, still holding Ginny.
When they arrived in Draco's Common room, Draco carried Ginny up to his room. He laid her on his bed and inspected her. She was beat up, and badly. "What happened there, Ginny?" he asked, trying to heal as many of her wounds as possible.
"I got there, and Lucius was there, almost as if he was waiting for me. He asked me a few questions and then took me to see Voldemort. As soon as I saw his red eyes and horribly misshapen face, I knew I had made a mistake. I couldn't back out then, though, so I just went along with it. He started shooting all kinds of curses at me, most of them I didn't know, probably Dark Magic. He said he was testing my strength and my ability to block certain curses. He wasn't exactly impressed with my curse blocking skills, but he was impressed by how long I had stayed conscious and standing. He said my strength and endurance were good qualities for a Death Eater. That was about when you arrived," Ginny explained mournfully.
"Oh, Gin," Draco muttered sympathetically. He kissed her soundly on the lips, trying to get the mournful note out of her voice. "You should have talked to someone before you left."
"I know," Ginny said sadly before bursting into tears and wrapping her arms around Draco's neck. He responded by moving his arms around her to stroke her back. "I'm sorry. I was so stupid."
"I'm just glad they let us go. I figured they would have kept us hostage," Draco commented.
"Maybe they didn't want to attract Dumbledore," Ginny suggested.
"Maybe," Draco agreed, not convinced. "Or maybe they just have something so gruesome planned that they want me to refuse to become a Death Eater so they can go through with their modes of torture."
"Do you think we should talk to Dumbledore about this?" Ginny asked.
"What could he do? It's not as if he could stop my father from killing us," Draco argued.
"Yeah, but maybe he could help us escape or something," Ginny pointed out.
Draco shook his head. "They're watching us, remember?" Draco reminded her.
"We're screwed, aren't we?" Ginny stated.
"Yep," Draco replied bluntly. "but we might as well make good use of the next month and a half, starting right now." he then leaned in and kissed her on the mouth, his tongue almost immediately darting out to run over he bottom lip. She automatically complied, opening her mouth under his, letting his tongue stroke hers. She moaned and pulled him down on top of her.
They kissed like that for a few minutes before Draco pulled away to kiss her neck. Ginny sighed in pleasure, but sat up suddenly. "What's wrong?" he asked, still kissing her neck and flicking out his tongue to taste her skin.
"My brother and all of the other Gryffindors don't know I'm back," Ginny replied.
"And your point is?" Draco questioned.
"They're worrying, I have to tell them I'm back," she told him.
"Ginny," he whined. He had finally started to get his mind away from what had happened earlier and what was to happen in the future. Then she had to go and remind him.
"I have to Draco," she said apologetically.
"Alright, fine,' he relented. "But let me come with you."
"Okay," Ginny agreed, following Draco out of his dormitory. "How did you know I ran away, anyway?"
"I went looking for you to apologize earlier. When I got there, the Trio and your friend, Shannon, were all looking like someone had just died. Somehow, I knew something was wrong with you. They showed me your letter. I'm sorry, by the way," he added as an afterthought.
"I know you are. I already forgave you in the letter. They weren't supposed to show you that or tell that I was gone," Ginny replied.
"Well, I was worried, so they must have figured they had to," Draco defended them, not sure exactly why he was defending them in the first place. "I guess," Ginny mumbled. "I'm glad they told you, though. Otherwise, I'd probably be getting the Dark Mark right about now.
"At this point, they had arrived at the Portrait Hole. Ginny gave the Fat Lady the password, and Draco entered, Ginny following close behind. Hermione, Harry, Ron, and Shannon were in the same spots they had been when Draco had come earlier, and they still looked as distressed. "Hey, guys," Draco called cheerfully. "Look what I found.
"Four heads snapped up to look at Draco as Ginny stepped out from behind him. In seconds, she was smothered in hugs and questions. "Are you alright?"
"What were you thinking?"
"Where were you?"
"What happened?"
"If everyone will shut up, I will tell you everything," Ginny announced, quieting everyone. She then told them all about Lucius's proposal, and how Draco had come and rescued her.
"Ginny? Why on earth would you want to be a Death Eater?" Ron exclaimed in shock.
"So Draco wouldn't have to be," Ginny replied quietly. "I realize now that it was stupid, so please, please, please just leave me alone."
"As long as you're fine now. Do you need to go to the Hospital Wing?" Ron asked in concern.
Ginny shook her head. "I don't think so, Draco did a pretty good job of healing my wounds. Besides, Madame Pomphrey would probably ask too many questions," Ginny answered.
"Are you sure? You don't look very good, Ginny," Hermione said wearily.
"I'm fine. Believe me, you didn't see me before, I'm much better than before," Ginny assured.
"She's a lot better than before," Draco confirmed, trying to convince them she was fine. "If you're worried about her, I'll give her a Pepper Up Potion when we get back to my room."
"You have a Pepper Up Potion in your room?" Hermione repeated in surprise.
"Yeah. I always have some made, just in case," Draco replied. "Well, you ready to go back now?"
Ginny nodded. "I'll see all of you later," she said, giving them each one last hug. "Don't do anything you'll regret," Ron warned as he pulled out of her embrace.
"I know, Ron," Ginny assured him before turning and grabbing Draco's hand. She then proceeded to pull him out of Gryffindor Tower.
*~*~*~*
Three hours later, Draco sat on his bed watching Ginny sleep. She looked so peaceful, he didn't want to disturb her. She had been through a lot today, and she deserved to have a good night's rest. Looking at her sleeping form, Draco resolved that he would keep her like that as long as he could. He resolved that he would not let his father hurt her in anyway that could break that peace.
Looking once more at Ginny's sleeping body on his bed, Draco turned away. He stood up and began getting ready for bed. When he had completed his nighttime rituals, he turned off the light and slid silently into bed next to Ginny. "I love you," he whispered softly before falling asleep. "And I won't let anyone or anything hurt you."
A/N: Sorry I've been so slow with updates but my beta hasn't been checking her e-mail very often and I was at cheerleading camp last week and didn't have internet access. Anyway, I'll try to be faster. Please review!
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