"Decide!" Draco screamed. The veins in his neck bulged as he pinned her shoulders to the wall. "These are your only choices!"
Ginny's entire body shook with sobs while her sense of smell was invaded by the Firewhiskey that saturated his breath.
"We will be married in two weeks or there will be no child," he raged. "Are you listening?"
He shook her again, and it took all the strength Ginny had to hold her neck stiff in order to avoid having her head bounce off the wall. "Yes."
"Then what is your choice?" His words reeked of venom and for the first time in a long time, Ginny was afraid for her life.
They had gotten along so well in the three weeks since Ginny had confessed that she loved him, the same night he discovered her pregnancy, that when Draco brought up the subject of marriage, she assumed it was safe to tell him the truth.
"I'm not ready to be married," she had told him. "I'm not old enough."
His expression didn't change. "I would say that in every way except for the legal way, we already are."
"I know. But, marriage is . . . permanent."
"You are having my child. If my child is born and we are not married, it will be a bastard."
"Don't say that," she tried to protest.
"Not only that, if my first born is a bastard, it will not be the Malfoy heir."
"Of course it would be! It's the first-"
"And, according to the law, if we are not married before the midway point of your pregnancy, the child will still be considered a bastard."
Ginny frowned. "Why?"
"Do I make the laws?" he snapped.
"But no one even knows that I'm here. How would anyone even know?"
"Do you really think I'm going to hide my son from the world? This child is being born into great responsibility. His path in life has already been laid."
His words froze Ginny, and she opened her mouth several times before she found the courage to speak in a whisper. "So I would be contributing to the Death Eaters? Strengthening their numbers?"
Draco's eyes narrowed and Ginny could feel the ice that had gathered in her stomach cutting at her flesh.
He had barely spoken to her since then, not until that afternoon, when he burst into the library, yanked her from the couch, and pinned her to the wall.
"What will it be?" Draco raised his left hand from her shoulder, as if he was going to hit her, bringing her back to the present. "Chose!"
Ginny's eyes darted nervously to the goblet he had brought into the room, a potion to terminate her pregnancy, she was sure.
"Before you decided, keep in mind that if you will not bear my children, I will have no use for you." His voice was so low she could scarcely hear his evil words as they tickled her ear.
Her very bones seemed to melt from her body as the impact of his words struck her. If he did love her, it was in such a warped and twisted way he would just as soon abandon her or kill her if she didn't do his bidding. She sagged against the wall, until she was only held up by the pressure from his hands. She brought her hands up between his and covered her face. "Is that why you brought me here? Just for that?"
The wall rattled as he shook her, and her head connected with it. "How many sodding times will I have to answer that for you?" he hissed. "You are here so that you are safe! You are here so that you are not being fucked by men like my father. You are here so that the Dark Lord does not have you. You are here and so you are not dead, so you do not beg for death, and so you are not made to please all the wizards who want you. That is all."
Slowly she removed her hands, but couldn't bring her saturated eyes into contact with his. "Then I am grateful," she whispered.
"And what is your choice?"
"You. It's always going to be you."
"Of course it is always me," he snapped, grabbing her chin and forcing her face towards his. "I am all that you have."
As Ginny nodded, it never occurred to her that Draco had just played her so skillfully that she really did believe him. She believed him when he said that she would be dead if not for him. She believed him when he insinuated that he would be done with her if not for this child, and even so, he would never let her go. She believed him and he was all that she had.
Draco stepped back and Ginny wilted to the floor. "My mother will be here tomorrow morning to help you arrange the wedding."
Ginny lay in bed alone that night, tossing and turning. She thought about the life that was growing inside of her stomach. She could not honestly say that she looked forward to bringing a child into this world, particularly, into the world that she currently lived in. It would be so perfect, so innocent, and then if it was a male, he would be groomed for corruption. Her pure child would be brought up like Draco - without hugs or kisses or the informality of love, but with a heavy and stiff hand. The child would be taught to become a Death Eater.
Tears rolled into her ears, and Ginny slid out of bed, ignoring the mindless temptation of her Muggle telly and perched at her window seat. She had never needed her mum more in her life.
Slowly she raised her window. "Mummy," she whispered into the humid night air. "I don't know what to do."
She waited patiently, and felt a fresh batch of tears rolling down her cheek when there was no answer and no divine revelation, just the overwhelming sense of being absolutely alone.
Why do I do this? she asked herself. Why do I put up with his cruelty? Why don't I try to escape? Why do I want to stay with him?
Again, there were no new answers that came to her, but simply an old truth. She loved him. He was all that she had.
Ginny sucked in a fresh breath of sticky air and made up her mind. She crossed the room, seating herself at her vanity and lighting a candle. She reached for one of the many jars of facial creams she had, each of which she knew cost more galleons than her family made in a year, and carefully began to apply it, hiding the tear tracks and red blotches. She undid the top of a different jar and applied it to the finger-sized bruises that decorated her skin, rubbing gently until they were no longer visible. Next, she removed the bands that held up her hair, and carefully tousled the strands around her fingers. She stood to her feet again and removed the cotton gown she wore, and then her blue silk knickers. She chose a slinky, deep green shift from her armoire and pulled it over her head. She adjusted it so that it showed off just the right amount of cleavage, and with one last look in the mirror, she left her room and padded quietly down the hall to Draco's suite.
If she was marrying him, she was going to be the best wife and mother possible. There was no sense in living miserably.
She tried to steady the racket of her heart, but her efforts were useless. Instead she focused her energy into making certain that her outward appearance looked calm.
She didn't allow herself to hesitate as she raised her fist and knocked carefully on Draco's closed door. She waited several moments and knocked again.
When the door swung open and Draco stood before her, his expression irritated and sleepy, she discovered that even after all this time, the sight of him took her breath away. Only Draco Malfoy would sleep in handcrafted linen trousers and manage to look so attractive, when she knew he held so much wickedness and deception, and maybe somewhere, some confusion. Maybe that was why she loved him. She could barely peel her eyes away from him. Everything, his silver eyes that held such cold disinterest, the messiness of his slept on hair, the narrow point of his chin, the smoothness of his bare chest and stomach, even the mark on his arm that symbolized everything evil and cruel, they all held her attention. He was beautiful on the outside, and she was determined to bring out what was on the inside.
"May I sleep in here?" she asked quietly.
He stared at her with no compassion and no feeling.
Ginny held her ground and waited for his answer, ignoring the swarm of fairyflies that had invaded her stomach.
Finally he stepped aside and held the door open for her.
Ginny saw his heavy black robe tossed carelessly on the floor and knew that he had been called out earlier that night.
He crawled back into the bed with his back to her, but she didn't mind. She knew that he was no longer angry at her, and she didn't have to worry about him leaving her for anyone else.
The first caresses of sleep had only been brushing at her mind for several moments when she felt Draco's body shift and his hand glide across her skin. He didn't speak as he slid closer to her, until there bodies were pressed into one another. His hand moved across her stomach, and Ginny wondered what he was hoping to feel - perhaps the third life in the room. Slowly his hand moved up and cupped her breasts, and she could feel the delicate pressure of his lips against her shoulder blade. His fingers rolled her nipple through the erotic fabric of her nightie, and the smallest of moans escaped Ginny's mouth.
With his other hand, Draco moved her hair from her neck and let his mouth trail kisses up to her ear.
Ginny's legs twitched involuntarily as the electricity between her thighs intensified. "Please…"
He covered her breast with his hand, kneading it gently. "I want you. I want you so bad."
She moved her arm behind her, until she felt him, hard and lustful. She tugged at his trousers until his shaft was wrapped in her hand. She moved her hand up and down, using her thumb to caress the tip.
Draco's fingers moved down her body, and then slid beneath the hem of her gown. He began to rub her clit, making long stroking motions over her sex. "You're so wet," he groaned. "Feel." He picked up her other hand and brought it between her legs.
Ginny gasped and arched her back. "Use your fingers," she begged.
He centered her pointer finger on her clit, before gently sliding one, and then two fingers inside of her. "Like that?"
She rode his fingers for a moment, unable to speak.
"Tell me, is that what you like?"
"Harder. Do it harder." The electricity flowing through her body was taking over her mind and all she could think about was Draco.
He pushed his fingers upwards with more force.
"Please," she whispered, "please fuck me."
Draco pulled her upwards and yanked her gown from her body. He leaned down and took her nipple in his mouth while wiggling free of his trousers.
Ginny ran her hands through his hair and pulled his face closer to her breasts.
"I'm going to make you come," Draco mumbled while pressing kisses into her chest. "I'm going to make you scream."
Ginny pulled her between his legs and brought her knees up. The slow intrusion of his shaft entering her most sensitive area filled her senses. "Draco, Draco…"
He pressed down slowly, pulled his body back, and then came down with enough force to make them both cry out. "Oh gods."
"I want to ride you," Ginny whispered in his ear. "Let me ride you."
When Ginny woke in the morning, she was sleeping on top of Draco, and Narcissa was in the room, giving orders to Sully. "We'll need to find a caterer. Check with Master Hobkins. He is the best in all of France. Tell him that I want him, but if he is unavailable for whatever reason, we will go with Madam Tasco. I'm confident the Master will rearrange whatever plans he has to make way for us though."
Both Ginny and Draco were naked and she was still straddling his body, and as Ginny slowly tried to roll off Draco without being noticed, she realized that he was still partially inside of her, and the nonexistent space between their skin that had previously been sticky, but was now stuck together.
"Mum, what are you doing here?"
Ginny hadn't even noticed that Draco was awake.
"You asked me to come this morning," she said, continuing her dictation to Sully.
"I didn't ask you into my bedroom," he told her from beneath Ginny.
"Then how was I to wake you?" she demanded.
Ginny carefully peeled herself from Draco and then pulled the sheets above her breasts. "Good morning." She tried to remind herself that there was no need to feel ashamed of her actions inside her own house.
"Good morning." The finally glanced over at the two of them. "Are you ready to do this? Or do the two of you need more time with your pre-wedding escapades?"
"Honestly mother," Draco snorted. "We've been living together for quite some time now."
"Yes, I see how well the separate rooms are working out."
"They're being removed this week."
Ginny glanced at him.
"We're going to have one suite," he announced.
"Really?" Narcissa looked amused. "Then you'll be the first in the Malfoy line to share a room."
Ginny tried to keep her expression neutral as she processed her new information. She was too afraid to ask what their married life would be like, but she was willing to place all the Knuts she had on the answer. Except for the room sharing and change in last name, everything would be the same. She knew that Draco did not really love her; at least, not in the way a normal married couple should love one another. Draco possessed her. He controlled her, and her pregnancy and marriage to him was just another part in his steps towards complete and total domination of her.
Her family would not be at the wedding. Her father would not give her away. Her brothers would not booby trap the honeymoon suite. Her mother could not help her pick out her dress.
Not that her family would have approved anyways. The animosity between the Weasley's and Malfoy's went back nearly a millennia. But all that was beside the point. She would be married. She would be a mother. She would be Mrs. Draco Malfoy, and she would remain locked inside the great Manor, living a sheltered existence. And her family would continue believing that she was dead.
The dread, the anguish, the hate and disgust she wanted to feel didn't come. Instead Ginny smiled up at Narcissa and said, "I'll get dressed and be right down. Have you had breakfast?"
Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Draco's eyebrow raise a fraction of an inch, a sign she had grown familiar with when he was surprised.
"I have not," Narcissa answered smoothly. "Scones and tea? Perhaps some fruit?"
"That sounds lovely. Sully, go see to it."
Sully disappeared with a crack, and Narcissa turned on her heel.
Ginny paused a moment before getting out of the bed, waiting to see if Draco would react.
"You'd better hurry," was all he said, yawning leisurely. "Mother hates to wait."
Impulsively, Ginny leaned over and kissed his cheek before rolling out of the bed. She pulled her nightgown over her head, and with one last glance at Draco, she padded down the hall to her own room.
After a quick shower to rinse off any out of place body fluids, Ginny pulled on a pair of denim trousers and a light cotton blouse. She reconsidered her first impulse to head to the dining room with bare feet, and instead slipped her feet into a pair of rubber thongs that she wore outside. It wasn't like she was going to have much of a say in the wedding anyways.
When Draco came home for dinner that evening, he took one look at Ginny and began to laugh. "Is mother still here?"
"No," Ginny groaned. "She decided to go to Milan. Something about someone's new line and getting a wedding dress made." She picked herself up from the library floor where she had collapsed the moment Narcissa left. The entire day Narcissa had talked incessantly about clothes and decorations, about food and drink, about who would be invited and who would not be, about colors and flowers, until Ginny wanted to scream.
"So what did you decide?"
"I decided nothing," she told him, sitting down beside him. "Your mother decided that our colors will be silver and cerulean, that our flowers will be roses and oriental lilies charmed to match, that I should wear my hair up and not down, and that I absolutely must get some new jewelry."
"And you agreed?" he asked.
"It's fine with me. Did you know that it matters where people sit? For instance, we cannot have any of the less prominent guests at the tables nearest us."
"Of course not."
Ginny couldn't tell if he was being serious or just teasing her.
"That's my mother. All this for a small wedding."
"How many guests will we be having?"
Draco didn't answer immediately. "The Dark Lord knows that you're here now. And he understands."
Ginny highly doubted it. Her stomach clenched at the thought of him, knowing anything about her.
"He will not be attending, of course."
She let out a breath she wasn't aware she had been holding.
"There will be my mother and father, my grandparents, and several co-workers."
She was too afraid to ask if the co-workers were from his day job, or his night job. "Alright. It will be lovely."
As the wedding drew closer, Ginny's fears increased. People were going to know that she was alive. If people knew that, they would talk. After all, according to Narcissa, it had been all over the papers when she disappeared, and she was presumed dead. If people talked, then eventually, word would get back to her family.
She had denied it for several days, but finally Ginny admitted to herself that after a year of living with Draco and only Draco, she didn't want to face anyone else. If her family or anyone else came looking for her, she would be forced to choose. And the thought of what her choice might be scared her. Draco was the only source of contact that she'd had for so long, she didn't know if she was even capable of living without him anymore. No one else would even think about calling their relationship healthy, but it was all that she had, and most of the time, it was all that she wanted.
Would I choose my family? Or Draco? It pained her that she even had to consider it.
-->