A Life Less Ordinary

God of Fire

Rating: PG13
Genres: Drama, Romance
Relationships: Draco & Ginny
Book: Draco & Ginny, Books 1 - 4
Published: 22/05/2003
Last Updated: 04/06/2003
Status: in_progress

Ginny was found on the streets one night with no memory of anything but her name. The people that took her in know a secret about a life she doesn't remember and a pale haired man she's having visions of. That secret could mean the difference bewtween life and death. Or is it already too late? *complete*

Chapters

1. Lost and Found

2. Midnight Teatime Visions

3. Life Discoveries

1. Lost and Found

Heaven Normal Heaven 1 1 2003-05-22T02:52:00Z 2003-05-22T02:53:00Z 1 2674 15248 127 35 17887 10.2625 MicrosoftInternetExplorer4

a/n: This fic is my baby, so pamper it. I really do hope you enjoy it since I worked long and hard on it, so let me know what you think, as your opinions really do make my day.

~~--~~*~~--~~ Chapter One: Lost and Found ~~--~~*~~--~~

The rain and cold cement woke Ginny up from her unsettling slumber as she came to realize that she was indeed not in her bed at home. The sky was dark and the streets were noisy with the sounds of people chatting excitedly as they walked by. No one paid attention to the red haired woman that stood to the entrance of an alleyway in clothes that she didn't even remember wearing to bed.

One step took her out into the light of the sidewalk and a large man brushed past her, nearly knocking her down. She stood up and rubbed at her shoulder where his arm had hit and she continued walking down the sidewalk among the other people.

Where was she? She didn't know the answer to that. Why was she there? She didn't know that either.

Ginny sat down on a bench in front of a bakery and began to cry among the clouds of flour that wafted in the air above her from a delivery truck. A man with sandy blonde hair came and sat down on the bench next to her and lit a cigarette. He was an older man, maybe fifty with grey hair and bushy eyebrows. He had a mustace that was as thick as his english accent and wore clothes common from sometime around the forties rather than the time they were in.

"Care for one, Ma'am?" The man reached over and offered her a cigarette from the pack, but she refused. It was not right to trust anyone she did not know.

"No thank you," Ginny replied soflty. She wiped the tears away from her eyes with a tissue she found in the pocket of a wool jacket she wore.

"It's getting to be late," the man commented. "Why are you out so late by yourself?"

Ginny looked over at him through her red, puffy eyes. She could not give this man an answer that she was not sure of herself, so she shrugged and gave a wistful look.

"Miss, you don't look well," the man said. "Do you have anyplace to go tonight?"

Ginny closed her eyes and tried to think of home, but she could not picture an image. Blackness and fewar consumed her thoughts.

"I don't know," Ginny said almost inaudibly.

"I live just around the corner here and across the street," the man said as he pointed. Ginny followed his finger to a large building with several storeys and flowering baskets hanging out the window. It was a lovely place.

"I'm sure my wife wouldn't mind if I brought in a stranger to stay. You look like you could use some cleaning up, too," the man said as an afterthought.

Ginny felt herslf nod as she stood with the man after he had finished his cigarette. He threw it to the ground and stomped on it to make sure it was out before turning and facing Ginny. He stuck out his hand.

"My name is Peter, and you are?"

Ginny stood there looking dumbfounded as she shook the man's hand lightly. The man's smile faded from his face when she did not answer. It was replaced with a look of concern.

"Are you alright? We'd better get you inside and rested up before we start with formalities."

Ginny nodded and walked with the man down the street and into the apartment building where he lived. They walked up one flight of stairs before Peter stopped in front of a large mahogany door and pulled out a key to unlock it. The door opened and a delicious smell of peppermints and cinnamon rushed at Ginny's senses. She smiled and walked inside after Peter.

"Honey!" Peter called through the apartment, looking for his wife. "Honey, were are you? I have someone I want you to come see!"

A large woman about Peter's age came walking out of the bedroom. Her clothes were nothing more than a nightgown since it was so late and she looked as if she may have just woken up.. Her hair was pulled in a bun and it was just as grey as her eyes. She came over to her husband and smiled at Ginny as if she knew that she would be coming.

"Who is this?" The woman looked Ginny up and down with concern of her tattered appearance.

"I'm Virginia," Ginny said in a distant voice. She shook hands with the old woman and then listened in as Peter told his wife Marge about how he had come across Ginny on a bench in front of the the old bakery when he was just coming out of work.

"You poor thing!" Marge exclaimed as she took Ginny by the hands. Marge look Ginny right in the eyes and smiled. "We'll get you all cleaned and rested up!"

Ginny smiled and nodded morosely as she was led into a room near the back of the apartment. It was a beautiful room filled with purple flowers and decorations. The walls were a pale shade of lavender and hung on the wall were pictures of landscapes from different parts of the world. The bed was large with a purple and yellow colored bedspread and two pillows to match.

"You can stay here in this room," Marge said as she moved her hand to indicate the room. "It used to belong to my daughter, but she's, well..." Marge's voice trailed off.

"It's beautiful," Ginny found herself saying as she felt the material of the comforter on the bed.

"I'll get you something to wear and you can make yourself comfortable," Marge said as she left the room.

Ginny walked over to the window and looked outside. The streets that were scarcely inhabited a half hour before were now completely empty of all life. They were as dead as the memories were of how she came to be where she was. If only she could remember anything.

"Virginia, I have some clothes for you," Marge said as she walked in and handed a pair of blue pajama pants and a white shirt to Ginny. "It's all I have right now, but I can find something more suiting later. It's getting late, you know."

Ginny nodded and looked back out the window.

"I'll start you a bath if you'll follow me," Marge said as she turned and began to walk out of the room. Ginny followed closely behind with the clothes still in her hands. They walked down a short hallway and came into a large bathroom with with walls and blue floral decor everywhere. Wonderful scented bath oils and perfumes sat on a counter with the sink and Ginny laid her clothes there.

Marge turned on the water for Ginny and made sure it was a warm temperature and not scalding hot. She turned around and smiled at Ginny.

"I guess I'll leave you to your own, Dear. If you need anything, our room is just down the hall from yours. Sleep well."

Ginny nodded and watched as Marge closed the door tight and her shadow was gone from under the door. Ginny looke dup at herself in the large mirror that she stood in front of. Shock was the first thing she felt upon seeing her image in the mirror. She was tattered and torn. Her face was smudged ith dirt and her once red hair was almost brown with the filth in it. Her creamy white skin was grey and her lively eyes were shadowed.

The clothes she wore were something she felt would be uncharacteristic of her even if she had known what she was like anywhere else. A grey woolen jacket with a red shirt and baggy black slacks. Everything clashed and she looked horrible. The only thing she retained that gave her peace of mind was a simple gold chain around her neck with a pendent of a dragon on the end.

Ginny shed the clothing, leaving on the dragon pendant and stepped into the water, letting it sooth her aching bones.

Down the hallway Marge entered the bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed. Peter was already laid down, his eyes closed, but he was not asleep. He looked at his wife when she sat down. A smile crossed his face and he reached out to take her hand in his own.

"She needs to know what she is," Marge said distantly. "It isn't right to keep it from her."

Peter furrowed his brow at his wife and tightened the grip on her hand. "You know we can't say anything. She has to know on her own. It's only right that way."

"I know, but I feel so sorry for the poor dear." Marge pulled back the covers and laid down beside Peter in the bed. She closed her eyes and let out a tiresome sigh.

"I know you do, Marge. I know."

Ginny laid in her bed that night with the sheets around her waist. It was too hot to be comfortable, and dreams kept plaguing her mind. She tossed and twitched, her voice crying out not in passion but in fear of what she was seeing. Horrible beasts that flew and dark creatures that wore robes of black and stole the soul right out of your body. A calmness came over her after a while and for only a short second of bliss she saw a face in her dreams that soothed her senses. But she did not know this man, and she was not sure if she wanted to.

Ginny's eyes came open and she looked at the clock over on the left side of the wall. It was almost three in the morning and she felt as though she would never sleep again in her life. The calmness that she felt for those seconds toward the end of her dream were conveyed to the rest of her body as she stood from the bed and walked to the window. The streets outside were still empty as they had been at dusk.

Ginny looked skyward at the stars as they shined dully through the lights of the city below. The stars that shined now had never seemed quite as bright to her before. Not even when she had paid attention to them had they shined like this. One of them drew her attention and she felt herself making a wish.

A yawn rose up in her throat and she stifled it with her fist. Not wanting to admit to herself she was exhausted, she walked back to the bed and crawled in it, pulling the covers to her chin. A cold chill had entered the room all of a sudden and she it took her back into the world of the unconscious, this time without the nightmares to haunt her.

Outside of Ginny's window, across the street, a man came into the light of a streetlamp. He was dressed in a black robe that touched the ground and dragged as he walked. His hair shimmered in the light and he had a slight bit of arrogance in his step. He stood looking up at the window where Ginny had just paused at and a tear fell from his smiling eyes.

The light poured in the room and bathed everything in its soft glow. The curtains that shielded the window blew in the breeze that wafted in. In skidded across Ginny's skin and blew in her hair, moving the soft red curls only slightly. They tickled her face and she opened her eyes a little to see what sight would behold her.

The purple of the room was what she saw and a frown came to her face. She should not have been upset by what Peter and Marge had given her, but it wasn't that. It was something different and unusual. Hard to point out. Maybe it was just the fact that she didn't know how she ended up in this kind of situation. She was a bit alarmed by the lack of anything that she knew about herself.

The door to the bedroom opened and Marge stood in the doorway wearing an apron that was tainted with flour. Streaks of the same powdery white substance were smudged on her cheeks and nose and a smile lit up her face when she saw that Ginny was indeed awake.

"Good morning, Dear," Marge said as she walked up to the side of Ginny's bed. "Did you sleep well?"

Ginny looked up at her through tired, worn eyes and nodded slightly. Marge bought the lie and clapped her hands together. Flour flew up in the air and lit up Marge's eyes once again. She was a very happy person.

"I was just in the kitchen fixing breakfast. Perhaps you would like to come and help? Or maybe you'll just lay there all day sleeping."

Ginny smiled and sat up in the bed, her hair falling limply on her shoulders. She shook her head and swung her feet out of the bed, letting them touch the floor. She stretched and yawned once and covered her mouth.

"Do you maybe have a spare toothbrush I can use?" Ginny asked hopefully.

"Of course we do," Marge said. "It's sitting in the drawer just below the sink with the others."

Ginny smiled her thanks and stood up, leaving the room to go and clean up. Marge walked over to the window and peered outside to the street below. People from all walks of life were strolling down the street going about their daily business. On a bench not far away a man sat on a bench unnoticed by the people passing by. He stared up at the window at Marge with a relaxed look about his body. His pale hair shimmered in the sunlight and Marge smiled.

Ginny came walking back in the room wearing new clothes and looking refreshed. She grinned happily and walked over to the window to Marge.

"Let's go and make breakfast," Marge said as she took Ginny by the arm. The two women walked merrily ino the kitchen.

That afternoon Ginny decided to take a walk in the park with Marge. They strolled along with the wind in their hair and a skip in their step. It was almost like Ginny hadn't been found on the street that previous night, or that she hadn't dreamt about evil things the previous night. Everything was normal.

Children skipped playfully along the path in front of them playing with their peers. Ginny watched with longing on her face. She wished that she were completely worry free like these children. But she was full of distress at what may come for her in the absense of the memories of a life she knew she had once had.

"You look upset, Dear. Is everything alright?" Marge directed them to a bench where they sat down and enjoyed the feel of the sun against their faces.

"I dont know, Marge. I mean, I'm pleased that you're taking me in for the time, but I'm just unhappy that I don't know how I ended up here. I mean, there has to be some explanation for everything. Doesn't there?"

Marge pursed her lips together and thought out her words carefully. "There is an explanation for everything, Dear. But I'm afraid I can't give you one for your situatuion."

Ginny nodded sadly and wiped at her eyes where the tears once again threatened to fall.

Clouds came over the sun and the park became cooler and darker all of a sudden. Thunder rumbled softly somewhere near and Ginny knew that there would be a storm. All of the children that had been playing happily were escorted away by their mothers with sad looks upon their faces. Ginny knew just how that felt.

The two women left the park not long after the rain began to softly drip from the clouds and they walked solemnly back to the apartment which was no more than two blocks away. On the way there, Marge was kindly pleased to see the same pale haired man from the bench standing in the doorway of a shop, watching as Ginny and herself walked by. She smiled at him and he did nothing more than stare at Ginny wistfully.

The apartment was filled with the wonderful smells of baking cookies when Peter got home that night from the bakery. His hair was dusted with flour and he sneezed upon walking in the door.

"Something sure smells good!" he shouted from the doorway as he hung up his coat and hat.

Ginny came walking out of the kitchen wearing an apron much like Marge had on and carried a plate of chocolate chip cookies with her. She walked up and gave the plate to Peter.

"We baked for you," Ginny said before trodding back to the kitchen. She resumed her place mixing the ingredients, and just as she was about to reach for the eggs, she began to daydream.

The grass felt great as she tromped around on it, holding her dress up so she wouldn't get any stains on it. She had always loved the feeling of warm grass on a summer's day. A shout from a few feet away made her look up and she saw a man in a black piece of clothing that looked almost like a dress. Some type of robe.

The man walked up and embraced her, kissing her softly on the cheek. "I can't believe you're finally going to do it. The last of the family to tie the knot. I suppose your brothers are ready to ring the groom's neck?"

Ginny laughed and batted at the man playfully. "Harry, you know my brothers. They won't kill him until after they get some nieces and nephews. After all, Draco isn't the same git that we all knew in school."

"I know. You're completely and totally-"

"-in love with him. And I will be for a long time. Until the day I die."

A woman in a light blue dress poked her head around the corner that she and Harry stood at talking. The woman smiled and her face shined. "It's time to start, Ginny."

Ginny nodded and waved goodbye to Harry as he ran around the corner and after the woman in the dress. Ginny let out a sigh and thought happily to herself. She was going to get married. It felt great.

Ginny walked around the corner and met up with the rest of the wedding procession. They all looked at her expectantly as she gathered up her wits about her. It took a lot of guts to walk down the aisle in front of the two largest families in the wizarding world. She took in a deep breath and walked slowly to the front of the crowd of people gathered for her wedding and stood next to her groom at the altar.

Ginny turned and looked at hr groom when everything was said and done. She looked at him for the first time since the ceremony had begun and was overwhelmed with what she saw. It was like looking at Draco through new eyes. He seemed different to her in a good way. His eyes had a new sparkle to them and his face had a new glow. The two met together in a hungry kiss as the priest announced them as man and wife to the two families....

Ginny jerked up suddenly and looked around. She was still standing in the kitchen and not on that grassy place where it was warm and the sun shined. No, it was dark and sullen outside where the rain fell against the lonely pavement.

"Are you alright, Dear?" Marge asked as she set a pan of cookies down on the stove, hot from the oven.

Ginny nodded a quick yes and went back to reaching for the eggs that she had been holding her hand out for. She thought back on the vision. Was it a flashback or a dream? Who was the man and was she really married? Her thoughts stayed on him until she went to bed that night.

~~--~~*~~--~~ End Chapter One ~~--~~*~~--~~

2. Midnight Teatime Visions

Heaven Normal Heaven 1 0 2003-06-01T05:52:00Z 2003-06-01T05:52:00Z 1 2059 11738 97 27 13770 10.2625 MicrosoftInternetExplorer4

~~--~~*~~--~~Chapter Two: Midnight Teatime Visions ~~--~~*~~--~~

Sleep was not in the least bit comfortable to Ginny's screaming mind. She felt like the world was crashing down and she was at the end of a burning rope. Her soul screamed for release, but it was something that she could not give it. Not until her eyes closed and she let her mind do the thinking for itself. Just as the nightmares had consumed her the previous night, a sweet dream came through this time.

She could see the pale haired man that she heard called Draco smiling as he walked into the darkened room. His sharp features curved up to show an inner happiness that radiated from him like the light radiated from the sun. The sheets were no obstacle as he found himself in between them with Ginny who was already waiting for him.

A subtle kiss between lovers was shared for the first time after their union as man and wife and everything was different. Ginny felt nervous, but Draco felt nothing but peace since this all came natural to him. He had lovers before Ginny and she knew this, but she couldn't help but be envious of his advantage over her.

Draco tilted her face over to meet his as he lay on his side watching her. She grinned like a cheshire cat and leaned up to kiss him gently and fully. Draco responded in kind with a light massage of her stomach. He knew that she loved it when he did small things like that. Ginny grabbed at him, willing him to cover her with his body. He did so.

Passion flared in the night and the cries of lover in the throes of something wonderful could be heard in the room. Then it was silent and only when you listened closely could you hear the harsh breathing of those that had recieved just what they wanted.

"I never believed in love growing up, but you have a way of making a daft git such as myself understand," Draco said as he rolled onto his back and cradled Ginny against his chest.

"You don't understand love, Draco. You just live it," Ginny said in a voice erroded by sleep.

"Is that what it is? I think I'm the luckiest son of a bitch alive," Draco said with a yawn. Ginny did not hear this statement because she had preceeded him into sleep.

Ginny sat up and felt her heart beating in her chest like it was trying to jump out and make its presense known. She wiped at her forehead and was amazed to see beads of sweat had formed. She wiped them off on the comforter and stood up, walking to the window that gave her comfort on nights such as these. At least it had given her comfort the night before. Something told her that she enjoyed the night in her old life too. If only she could find a way to get back to it.

Ginny looked down at the empty street and sighed as there was once again no one there. She didn't know who she expected to see, but whoever it was was apparently not there. With sleep once again tugging at her eyelids, she made a quick wish to the clouded moon behind the sheets of rain that fell and went back to her bed.

On the street across from the building the pale hair man known as Draco stood with his hands in the pockets of his muggle slacks. The rain beat down on his face and fell from his chin, drenching his grey sweater. It was the same outfit he had worn for days. His hair was weighty and he took a hand out of his pocket, running it through the almost white locks. Rain fell in his eyes and they made due for the tears that he had cried the past nights. It was hard wanting something that you knew you couldn't have. Not yet anyway.

Ginny woke up on her own the next morning with the wonderful smells of bacon and coffee filling her nostrils. Coffee was one thing she needed more than anything. Without it she would surely die.

"Morning, Dear," Marge said as she set a mug of steaming coffee down in front of Ginny.

Peter looked over the top of his paper, grunting his good morning to Ginny who only smiled and began to drink the black liquid. It rolled down her throat and warmed her soul like nothing else would in her life. This new life anyway.

"I thought we could go and have afternoon tea with some of my friends today, Dear," Marge said as she took her own seat at the table.

Ginny looked up and nodded at the idea of going somewhere that wasn't the apartment. Maybe she would see one of the people from her dreams. The whole idea brightened her outlook on everything and she sat back in hr chair with her coffee, smiling.

The afternoon came more quickly than Ginny would have thought, but of course she had found herself wrapped up in a box of old picture albums and memoires that belonged to Marge. Learning about this woman was an interesting thing to do since there was so much to learn. She had grown up in Ireland and moved to London after marrying Peter. They had only one daughter but not much was spoken about her. Ginny wasn't sure if she was dead or not, but she didn't want to go and ask Marge and Peter about it.

Their daughter's old clothes had contributed to Ginny's wardrobe, and she was lucky that they wore the same size. The clothes were lovely, really. Lots of pastel colors mixed with darker shades or purple and blue. It was all complementing to Ginny's figure and she couldn't help but think that she looked good.

For the afternoon tea she decided to wear a green dress that was loosely comfortable and fell to her calves. It was made of thin material and so Ginny wore a slip underneath it to make sure nothing unwanted as shown. She found a pair of sandals that were a little too small for her and made sure her appearance was perfect before leaving with Marge.

The two women didn't feel the need to take a taxi or any other means of transportation to get to where they were going. It was a short mile walk that was rather enjoyable to Ginny and her senses. With the clear blue skies and the light breeze blowing, she almost felt complete enjoyment of her surroundings.

The two women stepped into a neighborhood lined with houses on both sides of the street that looked exactly like the one across and next to it. It was a quaint little place that Ginny felt some odd connection to. Kind of like she had been there before. If not in her old life then in her dreams. A street sign said Privet Drive.

"It's just over here," Marge said as she pointed to a house near the end of the street with blooming yellow flowers and a perfectly cut lawn to match.

"Who are these people again?" Ginny asked as they walked up to the front door.

"Oh, just some old friends of mine. You wouldn't know them."

The door opened and a woman much like Marge stepped into the light, embracing her friend in a tight hug and asking her how she was. The woman turned to Ginny and shook her hand lightly, introducing herself as Tully Markins. Ginny nodded politely and the three women stepped inside the house. They joined three other women in a garden room near the back of the house with a small patio set and hanging baskets and paintings all over the room.

Ginny took her seat next to Marge at the small table as introductions were made and tea was poured. The women all chatted lightly and happily as Ginny sat back and listened to their quiet conversations about unimportant things.

Ginny's mind began to drift into thinking about her dreams from the night before. She thought about the pale haired man and their heated lovemaking. Had it just been a dream or had it been real? If only she could in some way find out. And then once again she thought more about the pale haired man. His face was so familiar to her.

Ginny looked up at the sound of someone calling out her name. A male voice so fluid like his, so deep and intense though his words were soft to her ears. And there he was standing over her, gripping her hand tightly in his own, concern lines driven into his brow. He smoothed back a few strands of damp hair on her head and leaned down, kissing her forehead softly.

"You're almost there, Darling. Just a bit more and we'll have a baby to share the world with," Draco said as he looked at the wizard doctor who was looking back at him with apprehension.

"I don't think I can push anymore, Draco. I can't do it," Ginny laid her head back on the pillow and closed her eyes. She just needed to rest.

"Ginny!" Draco shouted her name and she opened her eyes just as another wave of pain shot through her belly. She tightened up and yelled out at the pain. Draco put a hand on her back and rubbed gently.

Ginny gave one final resigned push and was rewarded with the wonderful sound of a crying child just out of the mother's womb. The tears couldn't help but fall out of her eyes as they mixed with Draco's. He had wanted this child more than anything.

The doctor smiled and wrapped the baby in a blanket of brilliant blue before laying it down on Ginny's chest. Immediately her hands went up around the child and she held it close. Draco leaned down and caught her lips in a jovial kiss as he lifted the child out of its mother's arms and into his own. Already he could tell that this boy would have his mother's firey red hair, but it was turning out to have his own facial structure. Yes, this was his son.....

Ginny sat up sharply and looked at the other women around the table who were still chatting on, apparently not noticing the fact that Ginny wasn't playing any part in the conversation. She stood up and excused herself for some fresh air and left the room for a few minutes.

"Does she know yet?" Tully asked in a whisper across the table to Marge.

"I'm afraid not," Marge said as she sipped her tea. "The poor dear is starting to pick up, I would suspect. Just now she had a vision."

"Yes, I saw her daze out. I hope she catches on more quickly than some of the others," Tully said with a morose sigh.

"Yes. We all know what happens if you don't figure it out."

There was a murmer and nodding of heads around the table as the other women all agreed.

Ginny stood on the grass outside, her feet bare as she trodded around in it such as she ha doen in her dream. Still wet from the rain the previous day, the grass clung to her feet in limp shards. It was of no matter, though. She was just happy being outside in the open. Outside away from all of the tension that seemed to stress the room she had just left.

The sky that had been clear now had a few breezy clouds in it that seemed to pass over her head more rapidly than anything she had seen before in her life. It was strange, the weather.

The door to the house clicked open and Ginny turned to see Marge walk outside with her purse in hand and a content smile on her face. She walked over to Ginny and waited as she put her shoes on before they made their way back down the street toward home.

While walking through the park Ginny once again watched the children that were playing and thought about the vision she had seen when in the tea room. Perhaps Marge would know something about it. But should she ask her? It was a hard decision to make. Marge might think she was dillusional. Hell, she even thought herself dillusional now. It was better thought in the longrun to keep it to herself.

Back at the apartment things were quiet. Marge had been in her bedroom ever since they had come home, and she had been working on a quilt. 'You can never have enough quilts to keep you warm,' she had said. Ginny immediately went to her room and laid down on the bed for a nap. She felt so weak.

The breeze blew in through the window and lulled her into a soft and gentle sleep for the afternoon. The clouds had once come back in to cover up the sky as they had the day before when the rains came. But these clouds did not bring rain. They brought comfort.

The clicking of a pair of shoes was heard in the bedroom as a stranger entered the bedroom. Marge had not heard him come, and Peter was not home to hear him either. The stranger stood by the window, facing the bed and watching as Ginny slept peacefully.

The pale haired man, Draco, had a lovestruck smile on his face as he watched Ginny with her eyes closed and her chest rising and falling with each breath. She slept on her side as she often had done when in her own bed at home. Back before.

Draco took a few long, quiet strides over to the bed and bent down to be at eye level with Ginny. He reached out and touched a finger to her cheek, then the back of his hand, feeling how soft and smooth her skin was. He remembered it always being like that.

"I love you, Virginia," Draco said softly.

Ginny felt a warm sensation against her cheek. She opened her eyes just a slight bit and thought she saw the pale haired man from her dreams standing there. But he was nowhere to be seen. A strange scent lingered in the air. A musky smell of wind and rain and something altogether different. It was so familiar, so masculine.

Ginny sat up in he bed and looked around catiously. She was so sure of it, he had been there. But where had he gone?

Slumping back on the pillow, Ginny let an angry tear slip out of her eye and onto the pillow beneath her head. She really wanted answers more than anything in her confused life.

The front door opened and Peter came walking in with a newspaper under his arm. He set it down on the coffee table and walked into his bedroom, shutting the door firmly behind him. Behind those closed doors he walked over to Marge and sat down on the bed next to her. Marge put down her quilt and turned to her husband.

"She's having more visions, Peter. And he's been here. I'm sure of it. I could feel him in this apartment," Marge said with concern.

"He knows what he's doing, Dear. Just leave him be."

"Peter, what if she sees him! What happens then?"

"Just don't worry about it, Margaret! I think she's picking up on everything anyway. It shouldn't be long now before everything is done."

"I hope so, Peter. I hope so."

3. Life Discoveries

Heaven Normal Heaven 1 0 2003-06-01T05:54:00Z 2003-06-01T05:54:00Z 1 2869 16355 136 38 19186 10.2625 MicrosoftInternetExplorer4

~~--~~*~~--~~ Chapter Three: Life Discoveries ~~--~~*~~--~~

The thought of the pale haired man still clung to Ginny later on in the night after she had seen Marge and Peter's light go off, and long after the noise from the crowded street below wear off. Now, as she looked up at the ceiling, she thought only of the visions she had been seeing and what they meant. She was sure that they were her life. But why couldn't she remember anything else?

The old fashioned clock on the wall next to her bed ticked softly in the darkness. One, two, three seconds of her life gone by meaninglessly as she stared at the ceiling like there would be no tomorrow. Oh, how she wished for death. She would rather have death than this. Rather than not knowing.

Ginny listened to the clock as the time ticked by slowly and solemly. Each time the clock ticked it got louder until the sound deafened out her ears and threatened to make her crazy. She was sure that she couldn't take anymore, and jsut when she thought her heart would explode, she sat up in bed to discover that she was not in her room at Pete and Marge's house.

Ginny looked around the room and saw a warming sight. Pictures of herself and the pale haired man, a child that had hair as robust as her own and a pale face with freckles to match. A large framed portrait on the opposing wall showed herself ten years younger in her black Hogwarts robe with a rolled up piece of parchment in her hand. Her seventh year graduation picture. But she did not this place called Hogwarts. She did not remember it.

The bed stirred and she found herself looking down at the pale haired man as he laid face down with his arms wrapped around his pillow. He had a small grin on his face as he slept on peacefully. Ginny found herself laying back down and running her hands through his soft, gentle hair. A happy sigh escaped his lips and she thought back to a time when his life was nothing more than terror. It had been hard times for him then, but she didn't know him as well back then.

"Happy Christmas, Love," Draco said as he opened his eyes to look up at her.

"Happy Christmas, Draco," Ginny said as she leaned over and kissed his forehead.

"Where is the little terror? He's late this year."

Ginny laughed quietly as she laid there, studying his face and all aspects of anyhting she could see. This was her favorite part of the mornings. She always loved laying there and just watching him. Sometimes he was awake when this happened, and sometimes he was asleep, but it made no matter. As long as he was there, she would watch.

The loud padding of small feet echoed from down the hallway and began to gradually get louder until the door to the bedroom opened and crashed against the wall. A small child flung himself on the bed and in the middle of his parents. He stood up and jumped up and down, yelling about opening presents.

Draco laughed and sat up. He grabbed the bouncing child and sat him down on the floor to keep from hurting himself. Draco ran a hand through the child's hair. It was much like his own, limp and parted in the middle. It hung down on the sides, but like Ginny's, it was red. The boy had his father's eyes though. Steely grey with flecks of blue.

"Come on already!" The boy yelled and began to tug on Draco's hand, trying his hardest to pull him out of bed.

"Oh, go on, Draco. Humor him. I'll go get the baby."

Ginny stood up and stretched as Draco found himself being pulled down the hallway by a vivacious four year old. The sight made Ginny laugh, and even though Draco wouldn't willingly admit to it, he loved these times with his son.

Ginny put on a silver robe and walked out of the room and to the nearest door down the hallway. She opened it gently becasue she knew that it would creak, and a cranky baby on Christmas morning was not what she wanted to deal with. The quiet steps that she ook to the crib were worth the time it took to take them when she saw that her baby girl was still asleep.

Ginny smiled and reached down, stroking the soft whisps of red hair that were growing on the child's head. This child was a miracle child. Born prematurely, the doctors told Ginny and Draco that the child wouldn't live through the night of its birth. But the baby proved the doctors wrong. That had been the Thanksgiving miracle. Now she was a little over a month old and still going strong.

"Hey baby girl," Ginny cooed softly as the little girl stretched in her mother's arms. They had named her Serenity because that was what she brought to them. Serenity in the chaos of their everyday lives. And the baby lived up to her name.

"That's my girl," Ginny said as Serenity opened her eyes into tiny slits, revealing the eyes that were already turning out to be steely grey like her father's. "How about some presents?"

Draco sat in the middle of the living room as Ginny came out holding the tiny infant in her arms securely. Having already found his set of magic miniature dragons that flew and moved around, Gavin, their son, was playing wildly near the Christmas tree. Draco watched with amusement as one of the dragons burnt a branch off of the tree.

Ginny sat down on the couch near where Draco sat on the floor. She held the baby in her lap and rubbed her back as she watched in amusement, her son and husband going through their presents ravenously. It was a joyous sight to behold. One of her favorites. She could watch the two of them like that for hours at a time, just her guys as they spent quality time together. And often she did find herself watching silently in the background.

Draco turned around and smiled lovingly at his wife. He stood and brushed some tinsel off of his pajama bottoms and leaned down to kiss Ginny softly on the lips, a lingering kiss that she did not willfully break free of. Draco picked up his daughter and held her close to his chest, whispering sweet nothings into her ear.

"Mum," Gavin said as he stood from his pile of wrapping paper. "Will Christmas always be like this?"

Ginny pulled the small child onto her lap and looked down into his eyes with a serious gaze. "Yes. As long as we're together, Christmas will be just like this...."

Ginny sat up in her bed with a very violent jerk. Her heart beat wildly once again in her chest as it had the many nights before this one. Dreams were one thing, but these visions were causing her mind to burn up with longing and worry. What if the pale haired man and their children were looking for her? Maybe she had been taken from her home.

Ginny laid down and clutched the sheets tight to her chest. A few tears trickled out of her eyes and landed soundlessly on the pillow below. She hated the way things had to be. Wishing on the moon was worthless to her. Instead of going to the window, she stayed in her bed and cried herself to sleep while the pale haired man stood on the street below, all hope of reunion lost to him. And then he cried.

Marge decided that the house needed to be cleaned. When the house got dirty, she became the authority on homecare. 'There's nothing worse than a dirty house with two women who have nothing better than to clean it,' she had said after breakfast that morning. Ginny, who had been unwanting to clean it, did so anyway just to please Marge.

Upon rumaging through the bottom of Marge's closet she found more pictures of Marge's daughter and some more articles of clothing that looked like baby clothes from an earlier time era. It was all strange looking, but Ginny had no room to complain about anything or ask questions since she was being provided with a home and hot meals.

Just as she was putting the boxes back in the closet she realized that she left something out of a box. It was a piece of paper, document style that was laying face down on the wooden floor. Ginny reached over with effort and picked the paper up, turning it over to make sure it was something important and not just trash to be thrown away.

Sudden cold swept over Ginny as she read the words on the paper that was in fact a document. A death certificate to be exact. Ginny scanned over the paper and read the words to herself. The color began to drain out of her face slowly as she read over the words 'date of death' and 'cause of death', but her heart seemed to stop dead in her chest when she scanned over the name 'Peter Sullivan'.

A force harder than anything she had ever felt came over her and she saw herself lost in another vision. This was not like any vision she had felt before in her life. This was utter torture and she could feel the tension and fear radiating from her very being. Ginny was shocked to see Draco running into the bedroom with the two children in his arms, Gavin who looked about six and Serenity who looked about two.

A worried look crossed Draco's face and hegrabbed Ginny by the arm roughly and pulled her close to him. He leaned over by her ear and whispered roughly, 'He's coming. I can feel it.'

Ginny's eyes went wide and she grabbed her daughter out of Draco's arms and rushed to the other side of the room. She grabbed her wand from off of the nightstand and muttered a spell at the wall revealing a secret hideaway that not even Draco had known about. Ginny put her daughter in the hole and then put her soon in there as well. They were both cramped and Serenity had to sit on Gavin's lap to save space.

Ginny muttered another spell at the wall and it closed up enough to conceal the hideaway, but not cut out all light and air completely. Draco leaned down to the hideaway where it had been and told Gavin to keep his sister quiet and not make a sound, no matter what happened. The boy agreed through his nervous tears just as the door to the house burst open with a loud crack.

Ginny found herself pulled to Draco's chest, his arms around her as a protective shield from whatever or whoever was coming. Footsteps rang loudly in the dead silence of the room and Ginny wanted nothing more than to be anywhere but there. Anywhere. She cried into Draco's chest softly.

"Father," Draco said as he put himself in front of Ginny. He stood up straighter to look a bit more intimidating than he felt.

"Son, your time has come. Join us, or die."

Ginny let out a small sob at the word 'die' and felt her legs go weak beneath her. She laid her head against Draco's back and laid her palms flat on his shoulders. Her shaking was becoming uncontrollable.

"I would rather die a thousand deaths than live my life in the servitude of the Devil."

Lucius sneered at his son. Where down the line had he gone wrong? It just wasn't right to hear his own son talk to him in such a disrespectful manner. But some of them just couldn't be taught, and so it would stand.

"You're being a fool, Boy."

"I am being sensible. There is no such thing as true power. True power is nothing in the end. Nothing to me, anyway."

Lucius stepped up another step and took out his wand from inside the dark folds of his pocket. He held it gracefully in between his long, bony fingers just as he had done hundreds of thousands of times before. But never had he held it knowing that he held the life of his own son before him, in his hands.

"This is your last chance, Son."

Draco cringed at the word, but stood his ground, his steely eyes turning to an icy glare as he realized what everything meant. He didnt have his wand with him, it was no use of trying to go get it. He couldn't duck out of the way because whatever would come to him would jsut hit Ginny, and he couldn't leave because his children were still in the room.

Lucius smirked and held the wand up, pointing it at Draco's chest.

"Avada Kedavra," Lucius said forcefully as the blinding green light shot from the tip of the wand and into the boy that he had so many years ago poured his soul into.

Draco fell limply to the ground at Ginny's feet.

Ginny found herself stumbling through the hallway of Marge's apartment, the death certificate crushed between the tight fist of her hand. She fell to the floor and let out a harsh cry as she thought of the pale haired man's body laying dead at her feet.

Ginny stood in the middle of her bedroom, Draco still laying on the ground looking limp. The color had drained out of his face as it had drained out of her own and she felt nothing more than a complete emptiness inside her chest at the sudden loss of the one person that meant the world to her.

Lucius looked at Ginny with a cruel smile gracing his age-hardened features. He didn't think it would have ever been possible that his son could have loved anyone that wasn't of a noble wizard bloodline. The Weasleys were nothing more than commonfolk to him and it was disgraceful to even think of touching one. The killing of a Weasley should have been no matter.

Lucius held up his wand as the Killing Curse left his lips, and Ginny saw nothing but a blinding flash of light as the pain errupted through her body, the searing force of the curse taking away the life that had been so meaningful to everyone she had loved. But somehow she knew it was better that way. She could be with her Draco....

Ginny sat up in the hallway, leaning against the wall and rocking back and forth with the painful thoughts of her vision still ringing throughout her head. Marge came walking around the corner and saw the death certificate in Ginny's hand. She put a hand over her mouth and walked over, sitting down on the floor next to Ginny.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Ginny asked through her tears. "Why couldn't you have told me?"

"It doesn't work like that, Dear. You have to find out on your own." Marge grabbed the death certificate and opened it up, scanning over the words written on the paper.

"So my visions?"

"They are of the life you once had."

"How do you know?" Ginny stopped rocking and put her head in her hands.

"I went through the same thing that you have just done. I had the visions and the learning process. I know it's hard to accept it."

"Hard? It's more than that. I just don't want to believe it. I can't."

"Dear, you're going to have to believe it."

"How can I believe that I'm dead? It just doesn't seem logical enough. I mean, when we die, we aren't supposed to come back. We're supposed to go to Heaven." Ginny began to sob again uncontrollably.

"Some of them do go to Heaven. But the ones who never got their chance to finish life and left it while in the middle of a love so pure and true get to come back. Not forever, but for a while. Those who never understand their death are sent to a middle place. Not Heaven, but not Hell. It's mundane and you stay there as long as you need to understand that you shouldn't have taken love for granted."

Ginny looked up at Marge in shock and disgust at the thought of what might have happened to her if the vision of her own death had not completely registered. It was almost unbearable to think about.

"What about Draco? Where is he?" Ginny asked, her voice filled with hope.

"He's waiting for you. He's been waiting for you ever since he crossed over. He sits on the bench just outside your window and across the street. I've watched him for days now."

Ginny looked at Marge with all of the love that she could ever want to show a person. She threw her arms around Marge's neck and hugged her tight.

"Thank you for everything, Marge. Thank you."

Ginny stood up and rushed to the front door, yanking it open and rushing past Peter without even noticing who he was. Peter smiled brightly as he saw Marge standing in the doorway of the apartment from which Ginny had just come, a smile equal to his own gracing her features.

Ginny rushed outside and stood in the middle of the sidewalk in front of her home for the past weeks. She looked across the street and saw Draco standing there with his hands in his pockets, a silly grin on his face, and his hair hanging in front of his eyes. It always hung in front of his eyes. She remembered that just as she remembered everything from her previous life all in one second of still time as she stood there, looking at Draco.

The people on the streets didn't notice as Ginny ran through traffic and into Draco's arms, knocking him down as they came in contact. Ginny kissed Draco as hard as she could, making up for lost time that they hadn't spent together since she had crossed over. Draco was just as anxious to kiss her back as he pulled her tighter against him until they melded into one person, the people on the street not even knowing that they were there as they walked right through the couple.

"I almost thought that you weren' going to figure it out," Draco said as he helped Ginny to stand ten minutes later. They brushed off their cltohing and straightened themselves out.

"I'm so happy that I did."

The two strolled along hand in hand as Marge and Peter watched from inside Ginny's bedroom in the apartment.

Draco and Ginny made their way into the park and were silent as they walked through the masses of children that were spending their afternoon playing outside in the sunshine. Ginny stopped in the middle of the path and Draco turned around, jerking himself back to her.

"What is it, Love?" he asked as Ginny looked longingly at the children.

"Whatever happened to Serenity and Gavin?"

Draco smiled a bright smile that lit up his face and reached his eyes. He took ahold of both of Ginny's hands and the world faded to black, only to be lightened up again as they found themselves in another house. Draco pulled Ginny around until they found themselves standing in the den.

At a table near the window Gavin sat with a pencil in one hand and a piece of paper on the table. A letter rested on the table next to him and it was broken open, the Hogwart's seal visible from where Ginny and Draco stood. Serenity was at the other end of the room watching a muggle television as cartoons flashed brightly and quickly across the screen.

Harry walked inside the den and over to the table where Gavin sat. Harry took a seat and drank a cup of coffee as he watched Gavin draw and write on the paper.

"We'll go to Diagon Alley tomorrow and get your things for school." Harry paused and looked thoughtfully at Gavin as he smiled back. "It's hard to believe that you'll be starting this year. I don't want you to grow up so quickly."

Hermione leaned against the doorframe and rested a hand on her stomach. She smiled at her husband and the two children that they had so greatfully taken in five years before after the death of two great wizards had shocked the wizarding world.

"Harry, let the boy grow up. We all have to. And there'll be another one along soon, so you have nothing to worry about," Hermione said with a silly grin.

From the other side of the room Serenity looked up and straight at the spot where Ginny and Draco stood. She gave the air a weird look and nodded gently. Hemione saw this and walked over to Serenity.

"What was that weird look you gave, Serenity?"

"Oh, Mum and Dad are there. I was just saying hello."

Hermione gasped and turned around to meet a grinning Gavin and an equally shocked Harry. Ginny and Draco laughed softly and nodded back at their knowing children before disappearing away to their new life. A life that if nothing else, was better than none at all.