A Life of Pain

1^st July 2004

Dear Diary… (wow that sounds stupid, I’m writing to a book. Might as well put ‘dear Ginny’ or ‘To me’ or something)

Oh god I’m so tired! Another year of school finally over! I’ve just had to drag my trunk up three flights of stairs, you’d think we’d be allowed to use magic now, with you-know-who being back and everyone knowing about it! But no, I still have to nearly die of exhaustion every time I walk up the bloody stairs! So now I’ve just collapsed onto my bed, deciding it’s time to begin actually writing a diary - one that I seriously hope doesn’t talk back to me this time! I got this for Christmas but never actually used it, so now I reckon it’s about time I wrote things down, all the things I don’t want to forget, or talk to other people about. So I’ll just tell ’em to myself instead.

I’ve been thinking a lot about the last year at Hogwarts on the train home. Its been an eventful year! Getting together with Michael, all those secret meetings and Hogsmeade weekends with him, it was totally amazing! Then Ron found out, which was funny at first but ended up ruining everything, I guess Michael couldn’t take the insults and threats and decided to run away to Cho instead.

Finally getting Harry out of my mind - an achievement of which I’m was especially proud! It took me long enough!

Umbridge arriving at school, the ministry decrees, the detentions, the bloody awful defence lessons! And Dumbledore’s Army - our brilliant act of rebellion. That secret defence club was what kept me going all year, well, that and Fred and George’s pranks and Skiving snackboxes, which was a great help too.

The break-up with Michael. Argh that was not nice! But Dean was there for me though, and he’s quite a nice guy really, he likes me a lot I think, and I kinda like him too. I think.

The Department of Mysteries and the death eaters! I have never been so scared in all my life, I really thought we were all going to die. I can’t remember a lot of what happened, a stunning spell hit me in the head and apparently shook up my short-term memories according to Madam Pomfrey. Well whatever the reason I’m glad of it! But you know what? I actually felt a strange elation while fighting, I don’t really know why. But I felt that I was doing something right, something actually helpful rather then just sitting back watching Harry, Ron and Hermione become the heroes and saving the day. But then I got stunned, and woke up to find myself in the Hospital Wing, Hermione unconscious on a bed one side of me, Ron and Neville on the other. It didn’t feel so good then. Then I was told about Sirius.

Oh god, Sirius. I didn’t even known him that well, and now I really really regret it! And Harry! I can’t even begin to imagine what he’s going through - his only connection to his parents gone. His dad’s best friend! Harry has been like a ghost the last few weeks at school, hardly talking to anyone, sending everyone out of their minds with worry. I just hope he’s gonna be ok with the muggles. At least he doesn’t have to be there long - Dumbledore told mum that he can come here in a few weeks. Well, that’s if we’re still here of course, it all depends on the ‘Second War’. That’s what the Prophet is calling it, although nothing else has happened since June, it’s all been really quiet since the fight at the Ministry.

No one knows what’s going on, the death eaters that we caught are still holed up in Azkaban, with at least five Aurors guarding each one all the time. But everyone’s on edge though, we all know they’re going to escape at some point. I haven’t even seen dad yet, not properly. He was at the train station to meet us, but then had to rush off back to the Ministry. They are really starting to depend on him now, mum says he’s really busy, hardly has any time at home since the ‘Ministry Incident’ - another of the Prophet’s names that’s caught on. And for course Harry is now once again the hero of the piece, the ‘boy-who-lived-again’ after another encounter with Voldemort, and of course Ron and Hermione are the sidekick and heroine.

The rest of us were mentioned in the Prophet’s write-up, but not as though we actually did anything more useful than get ourselves in the way of the real heroes and trip over our own feet. But that’s the way of things I suppose, I’m always just ‘that girl that fancies Harry Potter’ or ‘Fred and George’s little sister’ or something else equally dismissive and unimportant. But I’m really sick of it! I’m going to be 15 in a few months, I don’t want to be daddy’s little girl any more! Or the baby of the family! Why can’t I just me?

Oh this is going well isn’t it?! I started off talking about the last year at Hogwarts and end up complaining to myself about how much I hate being small and insignificant to everyone. Great going Ginny, just get yourself worked up about nothing! Right, I’m off, gonna stop talking to myself now.

Summer 2004 - 5^th July

Five days into the holidays and I am bloody sick of everything. With father gone this place is a mess. Mother is a wreck, she’s spent the last few weeks crying and just hovering around the place according to Mag (our new elf). And it’s been worse since I came home, every time she sees me she rushes out the room sobbing about how I remind her of father. Its appalling to see a Malfoy act so weak. Her disgraceful conduct will reflect on the way the world sees the Malfoys. And seeing a Malfoy crying and pathetic is enough to make the Dark Lord cringe!

If she doesn’t pull herself together soon I’ll have to do it for her. I’m not so twisted as to use force on my own mother, but words will be exchanged and I will remind her that she is a Malfoy and the head of this family while Father’s away.

He won’t be gone for long, we will have him back home in a matter of weeks. He’s still stuck in that mudblood infested hole with the others. I feel physically ill just thinking of a Malfoy surrounded by that filth that call themselves the ‘Order’. Of course it’s almost as bad at bloody Hogwarts, at least there I can keep the muggle lovers and mudbloods away, but father is surrounded by them day and night, defenceless as a baby! I will not stand for this! Those muggle loving fools will soon know the true power of the Dark Lord and his followers! On the 21^st July the world will come crashing down around their ears! Oh yes, we know where their headquarters is. And once father is free they will regret opposing us! And I will love to see the look on Potter’s face when he sees me standing beside my father, both our wands pointed at that stupid scar of his. And they think their headquarters is so secret! We’ve known for months that it’s been the weasels’ hovel. that’s where the so-called ‘Order’ have been hiding out for a year! And we intend to burn it down, they might even be inside it at the time. One can hope.

I must go, we’ve got company arriving soon and I must sort out mother before the others get here. I will not let her attend the meeting if she continues as she is, and I dare not let the Malfoys be seen as weak, we have too much to lose.

Attack at the Burrow

Ginny shrieked as a loud Crack! exploded by her elbow, followed by another one on the other side of her. “Alright Gin” Fred said, ducking as a slice of toast flew over his head. “Steady on!”

Ginny chucked another one at him and stepped backwards and fell over her overturned chair. “Can you two stop doing that!” she complained furiously, rubbing her elbow as twin grins appeared on her brothers’ faces. George stepped over the chair and helped his sister to her feet. “Sorry Gin” he said, sounding far from it. She just shot him a deadly look. He put his hands up and made a sign against evil. “Nooo spare me!” he moaned, scrunching his eyes closed, which he regretted as a piece of toast hit him squarely in the face that he hadn’t seen coming.

“Unlucky friend, very unlucky” Fred said, grinning at the butter all over his brother’s face. “Never mind mate. Anyway Gin, is mum around?”

Ginny shook her head. “She’s gone to the shop in the village”

“Oh good. What about dad?” George asked, rubbing his face with the sleeve of his luminous yellow jacket.

Ginny shrugged. “At the Ministry I s’pose. And no, Percy’s not here, neither is Bill or Charlie. Ron is but he’s writing a letter to someone, he wont tell me who, but it’s a girl though, he goes all red when I ask him!”

“Aw has little Ronnikins got himself a girlie?” Fred asked, eyes sparkling. Ginny narrowed her eyes. “I don’t know. But why do you want to know if everyone’s out? What are you planning?” she asked suspiciously.

Identical innocent looks appeared on the twins’ faces. “Nothing” they said together. Fred shrugged. “We’ve just come to put some stuff in our room, that’s all. For storage.”

“Why can’t you keep it at your shop?” Ginny asked, following the twins outside. Fred waved his wand at a glowing pile of boxes and made them hover a few feet off the ground. Ginny bent to pick another stack up off the floor. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you Gin” George said, grinning. “Not if you want to stay looking the same as you do now!”

“Cant see why anyone would-” called Fred over his shoulder as he conducted the boxes into the kitchen

“But that’s beside the point” finished George. Ginny chose to ignore their comments. “Why? What do they do?” she asked.

“Well we’re not really sure, but if you like the fact your human I wouldn’t touch them. Because if you do- ”

“You might not be human for much longer, and it takes awhile to reverse the effects, trust me.” said Fred, grimacing at a painful memory.

“Well why can’t you keep them at your shop?” Ginny repeated.

“Because it’s a safety risk, we wouldn’t want our shop blowing up now would we?” at the look on Ginny’s face, George quickly continued “I don’t think they really would blow up, but when they come into contact with some of other, er, experiments, they tend to react.”

“And when the back wall melted down we decided that enough was enough, and we’ll store them here in out room.” Fred glanced at Ginny who suddenly had an expression on her face a lot like their mother “Don’t look at us like that Gin, as long as they don’t come into contact with anything living it’ll be fine!” he said reassuringly. Ginny frowned. “Then how did they melt down your back wall then? Is your wall alive”

Fred and George exchanged looks. “No, but I am” Fred said darkly. George carried on “Yes, and when dear Fred tripped over one of our little boxes here, he landed against the wall, and the…reactions…melted it down. But without harming Fred I might add. Well, there’s no long term effects anyway” he said with a shrug.

They spent the next hour moving the glowing boxes up into their old room above the kitchen. Ginny had been enlisted as a lookout in case their mother returned early from the village. Soon they were finished and said their goodbyes to her before going upstairs to torment Ron for a while then disapparating.

By the middle of July the Burrow was bursting at the seams. Members of the Order who had business with the Ministry was in and out at all hours to see Arthur who now had considerable influence with the Minister for Magic. Molly was hurrying around packing cases and food, they were all going to move to Grimmauld Place in a few days. Dedalus Diggle and Elphias Doge had turned up earlier that morning to talk to Arthur, who was currently in deep conversation with Hestia Jones and Kingsley Shacklebolt about Fudges latest blunders. Harry and Hermione had just arrived, adding to the chaos in the Kitchen. Ginny helped Hermione brush the soot of her clothes and hefted her trunk out the way to make room for Harry who stumbled out of the fireplace coughing, his glasses black with soot and ash. “Alright Gin?” he said when he got his glasses clean. “Blimey, its like a circus in here, has headquarters moved?” Ginny shook her head and shrugged. “No, they’re all here to talk to dad. We’re going to London tomorrow or the day after I think. And what’s a circus?”

Harry just shook his head and told her he’d take her to one someday then him and Hermione wandered off to find Ron, holding hands. Ginny scowled at their retreating forms, weaving their way through the crowd in the kitchen. Why did he have to treat her like a kid? This ‘circus’ thing, whatever it was, would it have taken so much time to tell her what it was? “I’ll take you to see one someday” Ginny mimicked as she glared at the wall. “Oh yes, just the kind of thing you’d say to a little child. And I’m bloody sick of it” she muttered, kicking the pot of floo powder in irritation and causing it to topple over and spill glittering green powder all over the hearth. She knelt down to scoop it all up, and that’s why she escaped the explosion of heat and light that soared over her head.

Everything seemed to happen at once. The kitchen was full of chatting people, then suddenly there were masked men shouting spells and curses. A blinding flash of light and boiling fire streaked across the room, instantly burning people. Ginny heard someone shriek in pain as the scalding light hit them and everyone fell to the floor in agony, clutching their faces. Some of the death eaters ripped off their masks and Ginny gasped as Lucius Malfoy’s face was suddenly visible. They had escaped! Malfoy heard her gasp and turned to face her, wand raised. His lips curled into a sneer. “Well well if it isn’t the baby weasel. Looks like you’re the only one left standing little weasel. What you going to do?” Ginny stood up, wide-eyed, eyes trained on Malfoy’s wand. Her wand was in her hand, she’d been using it as a stick to scrape the floo powder into the pot. Her grip tightened. Come on Ginny think! Think damn you! she mind raced, what was she going to do? There were seven death eaters in the room, three pointing wands at her. She would never get hers up in time. Goddamn you Ginny! Think!

There was a noise from the hall, a thundering of feet down the stairs and every death eaters head turned as Harry, Ron and Hermione skidded into the room, stopping dead as seven wands were suddenly pointing in their direction. All eyes were on them, everyone’s attention away from the harmless little baby trembling by the fire. At once Ginny pointed her wand upwards at the ceiling and shouted out the first spell that came to mind. “reducto” she yelled, causing the ceiling to shrink to the size of a coin and drop down. It was instantly followed by dozens of glowing green boxes from the room above. The death eaters had no time to get out the way as the boxes burst onto them, causing an instant reaction. Malfoy yelled in surprise as his wand arm suddenly shrunk to the size of a stick and the other death eaters were having similar problems. Wherever the boxes had touched them their bodies started changing shape and size, some even turning into something totally different. One of the death eaters shouted out as his foot disappeared entirely and he toppled sideways, falling into Ginny. He ripped off his mask to better inspect the damage and Ginny found herself pinned down beneath Draco Malfoy.

“Get off!” she yelled, pushing him. He just ignored her and twisted around until he was sitting on her and continued prodding his leg that ended suddenly at his ankle. The other death eaters were focusing again and found themselves trying to fight Harry, Ron and Hermione with out the use of various limbs. Lucius launched himself at Harry and punched him, totally ignoring his shrunken arm, grappling with Harry one handed. The other death eaters followed suit, some still fighting with wands, others with fists. Ginny pushed at Malfoy again. “Get off me you bastard!” she shrieked, looking around for her wand. Malfoy found it first and grabbed it, twirling it in his hand.

“Shut up weasel, we wouldn’t want you to get hurt now would we?” he said, smirking at her and turning back to watch the fight, trying to aim with both wands at Harry, trying to get a clear shot. Ginny’s temper boiled over. “Bloody move you little ferret!” she growled. He continued to ignore her, focusing on the fighting, wands raised. Ginny looked around and saw the floo powder pot lying on its side on the floor by her head. She grabbed it and hit Malfoy on the head before he had even had a chance to look round. He saw it coming though and put his arm up to deflect the blow, but lost his balance and fell off her. Ginny heard a crack as the pot shattered against his wrist and noticed his face go grey. “Shit Weasley you broke my wrist!” he yelled at her and brought his right hand round and hit her hard. She gasped and glared at him wide-eyed. He just brought his hand round and went to hit her again. Ginny growled and lunged at him, grabbing his broken wrist in her hand, making him yell and turn a nasty green. She released his wrist and swung her fist up and punching him hard. He fell to the floor and Ginny grabbed her wand and turned back to face him, and stopped short.

He was sprawled on the floor, his wand was pointing straight at her face, and hers was pointing as his. They glared at each other, neither blinking, neither moving. A movement by her feet caught Ginny’s eye and she glanced down to see Malfoy’s foot appear again. The same foot that caught her in the stomach seconds later. She fell to her knees, winded, as Malfoy struggled to his. He grabbed a shard of the broken pot from the ground and threw it spinning at Ginny, catching her cheek. She felt blood begin to trickle down her cheek and caught her breath back. “Rictusempra!” she shouted, making a jet of silvery light shoot out of her wand and hit Malfoy in the chest, just as he yelled “Stupefy!”, the stunning spell hitting Ginny in the face. They both flew backwards with the force of the spells, instantly unconscious.