Notes at the bottom. Enjoy!
*Please note: My editor is very busy this week, so I tried to edit this myself. Please forgive me for any silly errors - I wanted to put this up as soon as possible since I've made everyone wait forever!
Chapter Seventeen
Ginny had seen the killing curse many times throughout the war. There was always the same flash of green light, followed by a rushing noise. Enemies and friends would both fall, their lives stolen in the blink of an eye. Up until being in Flint's manor, Ginny had seen these killings from a distance; Harry and her brothers would never let her fight, but they couldn't stop her from seeing the truth of war. Something she could never get over was the sight of a dead person - that a second ago they were fighting, breathing, trying to survive like the rest, and then they were gone. Murder was something that forever changed a person, whether it was through committing the act or witnessing it.
She couldn't look at Pansy's body on the floor a foot away from her. Ginny had seen the shocked look on Pansy's face that would forever be frozen. It was the look of betrayal; that in Pansy's last second of life, she saw the horrible irony of being murdered by the one person she always stood by and risked everything for - all to save an enemy.
That was why Ginny couldn't look at the body. She was too busy staring at Draco doing just that. Draco's chest was no longer heaving; he was still. His hand continued to clutch his wand, and his eyes didn't blink. It occurred to Ginny that Pansy was possibly the closest person to Draco to die since his mother. And he was responsible for both their ends.
How did you comfort a murderer?
A sound in the hallway made Ginny and Draco jump. Draco swung around and pointed his wand at the doorway, waited a moment, then checked the clearing. When he waved Ginny over with his free hand, she knew it was safe.
"We need to get out of here," Draco said. His eyes continued to search the hallway.
Ginny stared at Draco. She knew he was a murderer. He was responsible for so many of her loved ones' deaths. She had killed before as well. If all she had known for the past few years was death, why was she having a hard time accepting what happened?
Draco was about to take a step forward, but paused and looked back at her. He turned around and walked to her, and for a moment, Ginny was afraid. While he walked towards her, she saw a man who knew only hatred and death; a man who felt no regret or guilt, who did whatever he wanted for his own benefit. She saw a man who had killed his lifelong friend and showed no remorse.
But when Draco cupped her cheek with his free hand, she felt her body calm a little. In the second she looked into his eyes, the fear was gone. He had the face and body of a murderer, but she saw something in his eyes that was so much more.
"Are you all right?" Draco asked as he scanned her face and body for injuries.
Ginny paused. Of course she was fine, she thought. Draco had saved her once again, despite what it cost him. How far would this go until Draco sacrificed everything for her? She wrapped her hand around his. "Are you?"
In a moment, his look gazed over as it did while staring at Pansy's body. It was a mask Ginny had seen often during the war, one many people wore in an attempt to numb out any emotions or thoughts. Ginny knew then not to ask such questions; people fought but they didn't want to remember. Draco was still fighting after his side already won. How much could one man take?
So many things were running through Ginny's mind. How did Draco know she was here? What had happened to him? Was he all right? Was Flint -
"Flint is still here," Ginny said, her wand out. "He was waiting for Pansy to be done."
"Let's go," he said in response. Draco took her hand and, after Ginny was behind his back, they started to walk down the hallway with their wands out. Every time they passed a door, Draco muttered a spell under his breath, waited, than preceded onto the next one. Each step and each door hiked the anxiety in Ginny. She wanted to grab Draco and run to the front door, to escape danger, but she knew why he was searching every room. It was Draco's intent to find Flint and to kill him.
"Are the wards back up?" Ginny whispered as she checked behind them.
"Yes," he said. He paused to check another room. "Pansy knew what she was doing."
Ginny stared at the back of Draco's head at the mention of Pansy's name and how it rolled off his tongue as if he didn't end her life. "She knew everything," Ginny said. "About us. She knew everything."
Draco stopped walking. They stood in the dark hallway, with only the tip of their wands giving off light. Ginny could hear her heart beating. Why did she tell him that? When Pansy told Ginny she knew the whole truth of the secret relationship, Ginny questioned if Draco should know as well. Half of her knew he should, to show him that he wasn't invincible and despite his precautions and sacrifices, people could still find out about them. They were never truly safe. But that was the second half of her reasoning - to have him learn everything he worked for may one day be destroyed. Wasn't his plan already falling apart? How many people had died that weren't supposed to? Had he messed up the curse? How long did Draco plan for Ginny to fall back in love with him?
Draco was silent. Ginny could see enough of him to know he was tensed up. "Then it's a good thing she's dead."
His words sent shivers down her body. The tone matched the looks in his eyes earlier - cold and heartless. Ginny slid her hand out of his; Draco didn't stop her. She knew he saved her life, dozens of times, and she was thankful. But how could she stand there, hear his words and see his actions, and just sit there and take it? She tried to rack her brain of memories of Draco before the war, for proof that he wasn't always a heartless murderer; that there was something in him much deeper and greater that would make her love him above all things. She knew she was with him during the war, when he had killed Lupin and others on her side. What did she see in him to make her look past his sins? What did she think of herself for falling in love with someone that went against everything she stood for?
Without Draco's touch, Ginny was aware of how dark and terrifying the hallway was. Not of the shadows and creeks, but what could be waiting for her. She hated herself at that moment for judging Draco but needing him at the same time. Didn't that make her worse than him?
"We're wasting time," Draco muttered before he continued on his way.
Ginny followed; it was no time to be stubborn, despite the mixed emotions running through her. Each door they passed, Ginny would be relieved and anxious. She didn't want to see Flint again; she couldn't see Draco murder another person. But if Flint didn't die, her and Draco's lives would be at risk. Ginny's thoughts paused. She knew that was Draco's motivation for everything - risk whoever and whatever, as long as she was alive in the end.
Should she hate him for all he's done, or be thankful?
They checked all the rooms to the stairs, and then stopped. "What if he left?" Ginny whispered. "Maybe he saw you and -"
Draco shook his head. "If he saw me he would have attacked," he said. He looked at Ginny. "Flint's life is about getting what he wants, and at that moment, it's you."
Ginny shuddered. "How did you know I was here?" She paused. She wanted to thank him, but couldn't.
"Luna," he said, making Ginny gasp. "She owled me, telling me she overheard their plan and you were in danger."
"Luna," Ginny said. "Is she all right then? Where is she?" Ginny could hear the panic in her voice. The moment she knew she was set up, that Luna was not dying, she had forgotten about her. But now that death didn't face Ginny, Luna was all she could think about. She wouldn't put it past Flint and Pansy to hurt Luna. What if they caught her listening? What if Luna risked her life to save Ginny?
"She said that if I succeed and saved you and killed Flint, to find her."
Ginny didn't need to hear anymore. "We need to go find her," she said as she took a step away from Draco. "We need to -"
Draco grabbed her arm and stopped her. "Didn't you hear me?" Draco said, squeezing her arm tighter when Ginny tried to pull away. "I can only find her if I kill Flint. He put a curse on her, Ginny. Flint knows you want to save her, so he made sure you could never go near her while he was still alive."
Ginny shook her head. "I don't -"
"It's old magic ," Draco said. He dropped Ginny's arm. "It's like a property charm - a way to keep what's yours out of the hands of others."
Ginny knew of such charms, but for items. Percy had put one on his belongings one summer - he had finally grown tired of the twins confiscating his books and hiding them or using them as props for their pranks. All that happened to Fred and George when they tried to grab Percy's stuff was a shock of pain - nothing bad, but it made them keep away. But that was for a book; what would the result be if it were on a human?
"What does that mean for us?" Ginny asked.
Draco stared at her and grabbed her arm again. "It means if we find her, Ginny, you must not go near her. Do you understand?"
The sound in Draco's voice scared Ginny. His eyes were cold and his face was stern, but the desperation in his tone is what frightened her above everything. It was no longer about her mixed feelings for Draco, or confusion about their past. It was the war again; it was watching every step you took, knowing that if you weren't careful, it could be your last.
Draco hesitated. "I want you to leave," he said. "I cleared the path and we'll walk down those stairs together, but the second you're out of this house, you Apparate back to the manor and wait for me."
Ginny shook her head. "I'm not leaving now. Luna's here."
"I said nothing can be done with her until Flint is dead," Draco said. "This isn't safe, Ginny. I'm not leaving here until I find that bastard and you're not going to be here when that happens."
Anger rose higher in Ginny with every word that was spoken. "I'm in this fight, too," Ginny said. "I'm the reason we're here, Draco. This is my fight. I'm going to finish what I started with Flint and save Luna."
Draco's grip tightened as Ginny's words sunk in. "You will do no such thing. You'll go home and wait for me."
Ginny had enough. She pulled her arm out of Draco's grip and pointed her wand at him. He stared at the wand, then her, stunned for a second before he could mask his face.
"You can't protect me forever, Draco," Ginny said. Her hand and voice were steady. "I know I've only made it this far because of you, but you can't always be there to save me."
Draco's face was clear, but Ginny could see the pain in his eyes. "You won't hurt me," he said.
It was more of a demand than a statement; a reminder of what he had done for her, and she owed him. Or maybe it was hope for whatever feelings she had for him; that the part of her that loved him in the past lingered through to the present.
"Would I have before?" she asked, her wand rising to his face. "Would I have hurt you to help someone I loved?"
Draco's face didn't change, but Ginny saw his wand hand, which was pointed to the ground, twitch.
"You wouldn't," Draco said. "That's not the kind of person I fell in love with."
Ginny stared at him, her face slackened. Despite all she knew up to that point of their past, hearing those words hit her harder than anything so far. He had said it before - that he loved her - but she told herself it was in a moment of passion. If it wasn't the words that unloosed her, it was Draco's tone. He was so certain with his words; he had no hesitation about them as she did. But he also had no reason to doubt.
Ginny shook her head. "That's not fair," she said. There were tears in her eyes at her frustration. "What was your plan, Draco? Did you expect me to just magically fall in love with you and be OK with everything? Did you think that I would wake up one day and remember?"
Draco finally reacted. In a second, his serious face changed to being worried, and his mouth dropped open. "Ginny -"
He tried to reach for her, but Ginny stopped him with her wand. "No, Draco," she said. "Did it ever occur to you that I might never remember? That after the war and everyone I lost, that I might be a different person? That I may see you for who you are now, not as someone I had a schoolgirl crush on, but as a murderer and a Death Eater? That you may have sacrificed everything for nothing?"
Draco's face tightened. "Every damn day. But I knew you then, and I know you now. You've had plenty of chances to hurt me, to even kill me. It doesn't matter if you love or hate me. It's about who you are, Ginny. You have too big of a heart to truly hurt someone. That's the Ginny I fell in love with."
Ginny's wand quivered. "I've killed someone before."
"It was an accident," Draco said. "And you were a wreck when you told me."
"That's because I thought I lost you."
The words were out before Ginny knew what she was saying. Draco's eyes widened. "Did you just remember -"
Ginny shook her head slowly. No, she didn't remember her past, or not in the way she had before. There was no jolt of pain or sudden visions that caused her to pass out. It was of her own memory, something that Draco couldn't touch. She remembered the day when she had killed a man, remembered thinking about it when she contemplated poisoning Draco when he was ill. She was out shopping with Harry, and suddenly they were under attack by Draco and his men. She remembered, by detail, Harry and Draco fighting, and her accidentally crushing a Death Eater's skull with a pot. That had been the focus of her memory when Ginny thought of what it took to kill a human, but now, with Draco in front of her, she saw the other side of her memory. She remembered seeing Draco fall to the ground, dead. She remembered the fear and the anguish that filled her at the sight of seeing him fall, not of the Death Eater who lay at her feet. And then she blacked out.
"I thought Harry had killed you," she said. Ginny lowered her wand. "That memory was about Harry - you couldn't take that. But … if I reacted like I did, that means you didn't tell me your plans that Zabini would pretend to be you to trick Harry. So I just put it together."
They stared at each other in silence, their argument slipping past. Draco seemed amazed, almost happy, that she had a connection to their past, minus the pain in trying to remember. But Ginny was starting to realize that after awhile, the memories wouldn't mean anything. It was her gut instinct - her heart - that spoke for her before she could rationalize it with her mind, the place that stored memories.
All this time she wanted the missing pieces of the puzzle, when the entire puzzle stood before her.
A noise from down the hall caused Ginny to jump and Draco to raise his wand. He pushed her behind him, and pointed his wand toward the darkness before them. "We've wasted too much time," Draco said, his voice low. "Flint should have found Pansy's body by now."
Ginny could hear footsteps walking towards them. She squeezed her wand, prepared to fight, even though Draco was in her way. He was so close to her that she could feel his rapid heartbeat against her chest, but his body was still. She knew he was ready to fight; that Flint was no different from all the other people who got in his way.
The figure emerged so suddenly from the darkness, that Draco and Ginny both paused. Ginny reacted a moment before Draco could, and she was able to break through the cocoon of his body and run past him to Luna standing before them.
It was as if time slowed down. Ginny could feel every muscle moving as she ran to Luna; she could hear her heartbeat, and Draco yelling at her. Each step closer to saving her friend felt like an eternity, and it wasn't until Ginny reached her hand out to grab Luna did she see the look of terror on her friend's face.
The moment Ginny touched Luna's arm, a blast erupted, and Ginny was thrown across the room. Her back hit the wall next to the stairs where Draco still stood, and she crumbled to the ground onto her side.
The room was spinning, making it hard to focus on Draco who was leaning over her, his face white and his eyes huge. He kept on opening his mouth and saying something, but Ginny couldn't hear anything but a buzzing in her ears and the quickened beat of her heart. Ginny tried to wiggle her fingers but she couldn't move - it was as if her body was in shock and shut down.
A red light flashed by them, catching Ginny's eyes and making Draco jump back. The room spun as Ginny looked down the hallway and saw Flint push Luna to the side with his wand. Ginny forced her eyes onto Draco, who resumed his position before her, as he shot a spell back at Flint.
Spells and curses were thrown between the men, each blocking one after another. Several of Flint's came close to Ginny. She was in a daze. She could see what was going on, but it was as if she was watching a show on a muggle television. Slowly, the buzzing in her ears stopped and she was able to focus, but she still couldn't move.
All she could do was keep her eyes on Draco, praying that he would win and save them all. His face was fierce; his hair hung in his sweaty face as he threw curses and blocked every one that came close to them. Chunks of plaster from the walls went flying; one spell was reflected off a chandelier, causing sparks to shower down on them.
Ginny willed her body to move, for something to work so she could help Draco. Her eyes darted to her wand, which lay several feet from her underneath a pile of plaster, and then to Luna who was watching the scene from behind Flint.
A spell knocked Flint off his feet. Before he could recover, Draco turned to her. "Are you OK?" he yelled as he reached out to her. Ginny tried to move her arm to reach out to him, and was able to wiggle her fingers.
Draco waited a moment too long for her. A red light erupted, hitting Draco in his side. His body was thrown into the air, spinning several times before he hit the back wall, his head cracking against it. Ginny cried out as Draco's limp body fell to the ground. Then there was silence.
"Draco!" Ginny gasped, her voice hoarse.
Blood trickled down Draco's forehead and mouth; he didn't move or open his eyes. Ginny grunted as she forced her body to move towards him, and just as it was starting to respond, something sharp hit her stomach and she was on the ground in pain. Ginny coughed and groaned as she held her stomach, and only when she opened her eyes did she see Flint standing next to her.
He kicked her again and knocked the wind out of her. Ginny struggled for her breath as Flint laughed.
"I told you I'd get you," Flint snarled and pointed his wand at her. When Ginny tried to move, Flint put his shoe on her chest, pushing her to the ground.
"Now now," he said, waving his wand in her face. "You are quite the struggle, aren't you Weasley? Makes me wonder what Malfoy saw in it all."
Ginny paused at Draco's name. Pansy had said that though she knew the truth about Draco and Ginny, she didn't tell anyone. But if Pansy found out, there was a chance other people did as well. And the more people who knew, the more Draco and her were in danger.
"Everyone knew Malfoy hated you, and that he thought you were filth," Flint said. "Yet he had your prison guarded, and took you home the second the Dark Lord allowed it. And there were rumors, naturally, of what he did to you in that manor, of how he showed you exactly what it means to be the enemy. And I believed every word of it until he attacked me at Pansy's ball. I know what's it like to be possessive, but there's a thin line between possession and obsession."
Ginny turned her gaze to Luna, who still stood in the hall behind Flint, unharmed. She watched the two, but with a still face. She made no recognition towards Ginny, or that Flint had his wand on her.
"What did you do to her?" Ginny hissed.
Flint looked at Luna and grinned. "She did that to herself," Flint said. He looked back at Ginny. "I know it was her that wrote Malfoy - I figured it out only a moment too late for Pansy's good. She risked her life trying to save yours, and the only reason why I haven't killed her yet is because she's bearing my son. But I can still break her, Weasley. Just like I'm going to do to you."
Ginny clenched her teeth when she tried to move underneath Flint's foot, but he only pressed down harder. "I should have killed you when I had the chance," she spat.
Flint laughed again, as if it was all a game. "What, with that steak knife?" Flint said. "You can't kill me, Weasley. You can fight, but all it comes down to is I'm the one with the wand, and you're the one who lost long ago when yours was taken away."
Ginny caught herself before she reacted to Flint's words. He didn't know she had her wand - no one really knew except for Draco and Snape, and Pansy only saw it before she died. Ginny could almost feel her wand pulsating with magic a few feet away, hidden from Flint.
"You should be thanking me," Flint continued. "I went to Pansy after Malfoy attacked me instead of going to the Dark Lord." Flint stopped and looked at Draco, who was still motionless. "Do you have any idea what the Dark Lord would have done to Malfoy if I turned him in? Pansy said she had her own business to take care of with you, so she convinced me to leave Malfoy out of it and just attack you. But now she's dead. Any idea what that business was?"
Ginny paused, thinking quickly. She nodded and opened her mouth to speak, but coughed and started to struggle under Flint's boot, showing him that she couldn't breathe. For a split second, Ginny was terrified of the trick she was trying to pull on the devil himself - her suffocating may just be what Flint wanted, and he'd only press down harder on her chest. Flint didn't move, and when real panic started to set in, he took his foot off her chest.
"Tell me," Flint said, the smile wiped off his face. His wand pointed between her eyes. "What did Pansy want with you?"
Ginny took several exaggerated breaths before she spoke. "She … she told me she was jealous. She said she wanted Draco all this time, and she couldn't stand that he would have me as his prisoner."
For a moment, Ginny thought Flint believed her. His face relaxed in deep thought, and his wand hand slackened. Ginny dared a glance at her wand and was about to lunge for it when she was suddenly lifted in the air and slammed against the wall.
Ginny screamed at the impact but she didn't fall to the floor - she hung in midair, pinned against the wall. Flint stood before her, his wand on her, holding her there.
He cocked his head to she side. "Do you really take me for a fool?" he said. "I don't doubt that Pansy still has a thing for Malfoy after all these years, but she would never admit to someone- to filth like you - that she was jealous. She would rather die than put you above her."
Flint flicked his wand to the left, and Ginny's left cheek was cut open. Ginny yelled in pain as she felt her skin tearing apart and blood dripping out.
"That's what you get for lying," Flint said. "Now, tell me what Pansy really said to you, Weasley, or I won't be so nice this time."
Ginny fought back painful tears. She looked behind Flint at Draco, who still lay motionless. How long had it been since he was knocked out? Why wasn't he waking up? What if he was -?
Ginny looked below her and saw her wand beneath the plaster. There was nothing she could do, though. She had failed. Draco had saved her so many times; the one chance she got to repay the favor, she couldn't do it. She could question his motives and judge his character, but it came down to Draco coming through and saving her, and being the hero in the end.
Her right cheek sliced open, and Ginny screamed again, louder, her pain echoing down the hallway. She prayed that she would wake Draco up - she prayed that he would save her because she didn't know how to save herself. She was nothing without him.
"Not going to talk?" Flint said. Flint moved his wand a bit lower, and Ginny could feel pressure against her neck. "What about now? Don't think I still won't use you while your body is cold, Weasley."
Ginny's breath caught in her throat as she stared at the malice in Flint's eyes. It was no longer a joke to him. Ginny knew she could tell Flint the truth - she could tell him all about her secret past with Draco, and that he took her memories. She could tell Flint all the people Draco had betrayed and murdered, and that he was the real traitor. She could hand Draco in for herself, and maybe live through it all.
Ginny looked at Draco. She would rather face death than betray him, even if it meant saving her own, because a life without him in it seemed pointless.
It was then that Ginny knew she loved Draco.
Ginny looked Flint in the eyes. "Go to hell," she said, and spat in his face.
Fury flashed through Flint's face. He squeezed his wand. Ginny looked at Draco one last time and closed her eyes. She felt the pressure increase against her throat, and just as she took her last breath, she heard a noise and she dropped to the ground.
Ginny opened her eyes to Luna and Flint on the ground - Luna had knocked Flint over, and his wand was at their feet. Luna grabbed for the wand, but Flint kicked her in her stomach, making her scream in pain and fall limp.
"No!" Ginny screamed. She dug her hand into the plaster next to her and grabbed her wand. Before Flint could grab his, Ginny pointed her wand at him and yelled, "Sectumsempra!"
Ginny saw a glimpse of Flint's shocked face before it, along with the rest of his body, was slashed open thousands of times. Each slice in his body poured out more blood, and each time Ginny felt more hatred. She didn't blink until Flint's body was still on the ground in a pool of blood.
Ginny rushed to Luna, pointed her wand, and said, "Rennervate." Luna stirred slightly and opened her eyes, blinking at Ginny. Ginny almost laughed with joy at seeing Luna's clear blue eyes and expression - whatever curse Flint had put on her died with him. She finally had her friend back.
But then Luna grabbed her pregnant belly and moaned loudly. Ginny's face paled at the image of Flint kicking Luna in the stomach. "We need to get you to Snape," Ginny said.
"No," Luna gasped. "No, don't take me to him." She struggled to breathe.
Ginny shook her head. "No, Luna, he's good. He's on our side." She looked at Draco. "Draco needs him also. I need to get you two back at Malfoy Manor now and -"
"No!" Luna cried and clutched onto Ginny's arm, making her stop. "I don't want it," she gasped, tears rolling down her face. "I don't want to bring a baby into this kind of world."
Ginny stared at Luna, watching in silence as Luna cried out and grabbed at her stomach. But Ginny couldn't think then - while Luna was moving, Draco wasn't. "We need to go," Ginny said. "Can you walk? Just to the gates."
Luna glanced at Draco, and then nodded. With Ginny holding onto her arm, Luna was able to stand with a small struggle. Ginny conjured a stretcher for Draco, and used her wand to lift him onto it. She gasped aloud when she saw the stain of blood against the wallpaper where his head was.
They hurried to the gates as fast as they could, Luna panting and crying as she moved, and Ginny trailing Draco on the stretcher behind her. The second they were outside of Flint's manor, Ginny apparated them to Malfoy Manor.
Within fifteen minutes of her owl, Snape was there with a potions bag. The whole fifteen minutes she had to wait for him, though, Ginny was torn on who should be helped first - Luna or Draco. Luna's face was sweating and she was pale, but when she caught Ginny kneeling over Draco's stretcher and brushing back his hair, Luna made her swear that Draco would be helped first.
"He's the reason we're both here, Ginny," Luna said, panting. "He may be a Malfoy, but we owe him our lives."
So when Snape arrived, Ginny directed him to Draco. It pained her to watch her friend get worse, but it hurt even more that Ginny was thankful that Luna had a bigger heart than she if it meant saving Draco.
Ginny was thankful Snape didn't ask questions and got right to work. He rolled Draco over and examined the wounds, then dug through his potion bag and took out a vial. He had Ginny hold Draco up as Snape poured one of the vials down his mouth. "To close and clean the wounds," Snape said. "A bit longer and he could have bled to death."
"Will he be all right?" Ginny asked as she laid Draco back down. Even though all she had known her whole life was magic, it still amazed her how a near-disaster could be fixed in a second.
Snape scanned Draco's body and whispered "Reparo" a few times. "A few broken ribs and a concussion." Once everything was stiched up and fixed, Snape pointed his wand at Draco and said, "Rennervate."
Draco didn't react as quickly as Luna did, but before too much dread could fill Ginny's body, he groaned and opened his eyes. Ginny leaned over him and grabbed his hand. She could see the confusion in his face, and was expecting him to ask where they were or what happened. But when the first thing Draco asked was if she was OK, all Ginny could do was cry. After everything he had been through, she was still the first thing on his mind.
Ginny just helped Draco sit up when Luna's screams broke out. She rushed over to the couch where Luna lay with Snape at the end. Ginny let out a cry when she saw the bloody stains on Luna's dress, and grabbed her friend's hand tightly. It was when Luna squeezed back did Ginny realize she was pushing.
Draco had snapped for the house elves to get water and towels, but before they could do anything, Luna gave one more exasperated yell and then grew limp. Ginny held her breath in the deafening silence, waiting for a cry from the small baby that Snape caught in his hands. Was it all right? Was it born too soon? What if -
A small cry rang through the air. Relief rushed through Ginny, but she paused and looked at Luna's tearful face. The baby had survived, but Luna had said herself she didn't want to bring a child into such a world.
"It's a girl," Snape said.
Only then did Ginny realize the tears Luna was crying were of joy. Everything that Flint had done to her was for his want of a son as his heir. But now Flint was dead, and there was no son that Luna would fear would grow into his father one day. She had a healthy, beautiful girl that Ginny prayed would be like her mother in everyway.
Snape wrapped the baby in a towel a house elf provided, and handed the infant to Luna, who couldn't take her wide eyes off the baby. "I think it's best that I take them under my care for awhile," Snape said. "With premature births, it's best to keep an eye on the mother and baby."
Snape must have seen the hesitance in Ginny's face. "I assure you, Miss Weasley, my place is perfectly safe. I have several hidden rooms that Miss Lovegood and her child will go unnoticed."
Ginny glanced at Luna and her baby, and then at Snape. She had no choice but to nod. If something happened to either of them, only Snape had the knowledge to help.
Snape nodded back and went to gather his potion bag. After he took out a vial for Luna to regain her strength, he said, "Draco, may I have a word with you?"
Ginny froze at Snape's tone. It brought her back to years of being his student - it had the same authority and fierceness that someone was in trouble and about to be punished.
Draco glanced at Ginny, but she quickly busied herself with Luna and pretended to not notice. After she helped Luna take her medicine, she glanced over her shoulder at Snape and Draco, who were across the room, head to head and whispering. She couldn't hear a word they said, but she didn't need to. Ginny knew that even though Luna and her baby were safe, terrible things were to come. There were two Death Eaters murdered tonight, and someone was bound to find out.
"I think I'm going to name her after my mother," Luna said, breaking Ginny from her thoughts. "She died when I was 9, but I think she'd really like that."
Ginny looked at Luna, and then the baby. It was hard to think of what was to come while looking at something so small and innocent. It was even harder to think that despite how happy Luna looked, Ginny feared for her and her baby. Luna may have been right on not bringing a child into the world.
Ginny forced a smile on her face and squeezed Luna's shoulder. "I think so, too," she said. She looked over to Draco, who was staring at her with the same look of worry and fear.
Their fate was catching up to them, and Ginny didn't know how much longer they could fight it off.
~*~
Aaaaaahhhhh.
This was, by far, the hardest chapter I've ever written. As you can tell, it took months. And hours upon hours of me staring at the screen and just being stuck. Lots of things have happened since I stared this chapter: I was busy baking a tiered wedding cake in September (first time ever, and holy crap is it a lot of work!). In October my grandpa died. In November, I was stuck in the overwhelming stress that journalism provides (and horrible bosses who don't know what a deadline is).
But December is my month - I can feel it! Let's put it this way - it took from August to November to write 8 pages. I just wrote the remaining 6 in three hours. Woot!
There are three chapters left (that's the plan, anyways). It would be ideal to get another chapter in before the holidays, but of course, no promises. But I know I will NEVER make you guys wait this long again.
Thank you so, so much to all my faithful readers. I can't express how much you guys mean to me. I read your comments so many times as motivation and inspiration. I know that when this story is done, I'm printing out every comment and saving it for future stories. You guys are the reason I'm writing this.
Much love,
Liz21
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