A Lifting Love
A ring came on the door. Ginny Weasley, still clad in her robe and half asleep, clutched her morning coffee in one hand, and reached to turn the handle with the other.
"Yes?"
"Your morning paper, ma'am," the man standing on her doorstep promptly rapped out, and handed her a bundle that was the Daily Prophet.
"Oh, thanks. Have a nice day," Ginny replied tiredly.
The man returned her parting greeting. He turned away, and walked briskly down the street.
The Prophet had adopted a new campaign of using people as carriers, after a number of complaints had come from their subscribers about owls breaking windows and leaving droppings on kitchen tables after they left. As it happened, Ginny was a part of the public, which was chosen as a testing ground for the new initiative.
Ginny walked back in the kitchen, and sat on one of the stools. She unraveled the bundle, and settled down to read the front page. Nothing unexpected had happened, and she flipped over the next pages; until she reached the section dedicated to wizard politics. Only, she did not expect the blaring headline to declare what it said, and on top of that, it was effective in awakening her fully immediately.
Ginevra Weasley - an aspiring Auror, creating mysterious love intrigues within our beloved Ministry?
Intrigues? No, it had to be a mistake. She was only predictable, regular old, Ginny, just working her job, and intrigues were distant from her mind. She read on.
With each passing word, Ginny's infuriation grew. According to the truthful account of the reporter, she had been shagging Draco Malfoy in secret, and cheating on him with Harry Potter. Yes, she was a friend with the latter, but he was happily married to Hermione, with two children, and about to be promoted in the Auror department. And why was Malfoy mentioned at all? The bloody bastard was an Auror, but their ignorance was mutual, as she was always haughty towards him, and he always remained true to his character - that of an insufferable bastard. In fact, the thought only added to her indignation.
This reporter has acquired photographic proof from a confidential and reliable source, but because of the nature of the images, they will be, regrettably, not published…
What! Photographs? How? Ginny was simply furious. She had never shagged anyone at work, nor had she any intention to do so. Oh, she was going to strangle that reporter…
Angrily stamping out of the kitchen, she proceeded up the stairs, and into her bedroom. Contrary to her typical mornings, the usual routine of showering and dressing for work only took twenty minutes, where usually an hour went by…
Ginny fumbled with the keys as she locked the door to her house. Nearly running out onto the street, she squeezed into a red phone cabin, and departed beneath the ground, towards her offices.
Or more precisely, to the office Draco Malfoy was working in, which was on the way to her own. Impatiently, she tapped her foot, as the lift descended with all the haste a snail could manage. Her irritation grew, when the lift stopped at last, and the doors opened really slowly.
Darting out as soon as she was able to squeeze through the crack, Ginny's indignation carried her straight through the corridor. Her anger redoubled when she saw Malfoy's door, and forgetting magic, she raised a heeled foot; with a powerful kick, the door was thrown wide open.
The noise must have startled him, because Draco Malfoy jumped in alarm, and the cup of coffee he was holding, spilled its hot contents down his front.
"Weasley! What in the hell do you think you're doing?"
"What is the meaning of this?" Ginny positively shouted, and she threw the copy of the Daily Prophet at him.
Draco took the "offered" page, and glanced down at it. Seeing the headline, he smirked, but reading the actual contents of the article caused an expression of astonishment to come over his pale face. Finally, a sarcastic laugh issued from him.
"Really, do you believe this tripe?" he asked.
"No, it's obviously false. And you tipped the reporter off!" Ginny replied accusingly.
"Do you have proof?" Draco inquired calmly.
"No! But I know it's something you would do," she said sharply.
"Then please enlighten me, Ginevra, why would I want to shag you," he mocked her sarcastically.
"Because you're a low-life, heartless bastard, who cares for nothing, but himself!" Ginny exploded once again.
The object of her accusations only raised an eyebrow, as if she was merely offering tea and crumpets.
"Really?" he asked sarcastically.
Realizing what she had said, Ginny's face quickly became a shade of deep magenta.
"N-no," she mumbled under her breath. "I'm sorry. Let's go sort this out," Ginny added quickly, and turning on her heel, she walked out of the office.
Feeling compelled to follow her, and also curious to find out the reason for his name to be mentioned in the offending article, Draco Malfoy grabbed his coat, and followed Ginny outside in the corridor.
"Wait!" Draco called after her, and ran to catch up to the closing door of the lift. He managed to squeeze in just before the door slid shut.
"What took you so long?" Ginny remarked with a devious smirk of her own.
"Be quiet," Draco sneered.
An awkward silence followed those words. Ginny gave her companion a contemptuous glance. He rolled his eyes and swallowed loudly. The lift kept creaking upwards.
Suddenly, the whole cabin shook. The squelching noise of metal scraping against metal sounded for two long seconds, and the lift ground to a halt.
Ginny looked around wildly, trembling with fear. The elevator unexpectedly jerked and squelched a fraction downward and became stuck again. A terrified shriek issued from Ginny, and she grabbed the rails so tightly, her knuckles became white.
Draco's jaw was set, and as always, the bloody bastard had retained his cool head, as Ginny's panicked mind vaguely observed. He tapped against the walls and the ceiling, listening for something. Eerie echoes sounded where his knuckles struck the thin metal walls.
Ginny stopped shrieking, and instead, sat, whimpering in a corner of the elevator. She hugged her knees to her chest, and shook as silent tears streamed down her face.
The lift jerked again. The sound of a rope snapping sounded from somewhere overhead.
"What in the bloody hell are you knocking the walls for?" she hissed, terrified and angry at the same time - an emotion, not possible in any other circumstances.
"Trying to see where I can punch it out so we can get out," Draco answered absently.
He took a step backward to test a spot beside the overhead lamp, whose dim light was beginning to flicker. The moment his foot moved, the lift gave another violent jerk, and Draco fell backwards with a loud thud.
The light was quickly extinguished in the next second, and the cabin was plunged in darkness. Ginny's fear increased, as she could feel the darkness pressing against her body, constricting her breath…
Beside her, she felt Draco slowly moving into a sitting position, and he carefully slid next to her and leaned against the cold wall.
"Well, I suppose we aren't going to be punching our way out of here," he said shakily with a nervous laugh.
"It really isn't the time or the place to be making jokes, Malfoy!" Ginny snapped at him.
"Only trying to lighten up the mood a bit," he protested.
"What mood! We're going to die," Ginny shouted at him.
"No we aren't, Weasley," Draco attempted to placate her, for the sake of staying alive. "No sudden movements, and we could survive," he added.
"Oh, and you think that comforts me?" Ginny continued steaming. "God knows what floor we're at, and this is the back-up lift! The one nobody ever uses!"
"Ah…that's a problem," Draco acknowledged.
"Well, no shit! And based on the time we fell, we should be around the Department of Mysteries. And of course, we do know how lively it is down there!"
"Do you know how deep the shaft goes?" he asked her quickly.
"No," she said sharply. "Why?"
"I have an idea."
"Oh, yeah, you certainly do. One that will get us both killed, no doubt!" Ginny raised her voice again.
She made to rise to her feet, but Draco grabbed her by the hand, and pulled her down again.
"Unless you stop moving, you'll be the reason for both our deaths," he sneered, close to her face.
Ginny shivered, and was at once humbled.
"Well then, what do you propose?" she asked, in a completely different voice.
"I found a crack between the floor and the wall here. I can get my finger through it, and I think I can rip up the tiles, and kick through the floor," he said thoughtfully.
"We don't know how deep the shaft is! Do you want to jump to your death?" Ginny said.
Yet, she was no longer trembling. She was afraid, but at least now she had control over herself and could think rationally. Something about her hateful companion exhumed confidence and calmness that had an effect on her.
"No, I believe we can climb down the walls of the shaft," Draco explained quietly. "Do you have any better ideas, perhaps?" he asked her in a sarcastic tone.
"I…I don't," Ginny admitted, and lowered her gaze in the dark.
"Then don't move, and let me work," Draco snapped.
Minutes of uncomfortable silence followed those words. Ginny could hear him straining in the dark, as the sound of rotten floorboards and tiles being ripped away also permeated the quiet.
Stale, chilly air entered the cabin as the hole grew in size. Ginny could feel the temperature dropping quickly. She shivered.
"Are…are you cold?" she asked her loathsome, but helpful, companion.
"Here, take my jacket," Draco said, and without turning, he passed it carelessly to her. She placed it tightly around her, and felt slightly better.
By the light of her watch, she could see an hour had nearly passed, and Draco was still wrestling with the rotten floor.
At last, he spoke.
"I think I have a decent opening."
Ginny peered over his shoulder. She could not see very well, but as her eyes had adjusted to the dark, she could make out the faint outline of a rather large hole.
"I'll descend first," Draco said.
"Wait!"
"What?"
Ginny stretched her hand and took one of the floorboards that had been flung aside, and threw it through the opening.
"What are you…" he started.
"Shhh!"
Ginny listened carefully in the still silence, but the sound of a thud never reached her ears.
"It's really deep," she said shakily.
"Don't worry," Draco said. "We'll climb down, and the first opening we find, we'll take it out of here."
"Are you sure?" Ginny said timidly.
"Positive. Now come on."
He sat on the edge of the opening, and the lift swayed dangerously. Ignoring it, and using his hands, Draco slowly descended, until he was hanging by his fingertips.
"Be careful," Ginny whispered.
"There's a ledge on here," came a muffled reply. "Let me get a good footing…"
"Are you alright?"
"Yes, yes, I am. It's your turn. Slowly sit on the edge, and let your feet hang," Draco instructed.
Ginny, petrified, performed what was asked of her, rather mechanically.
"Give me your hand," Draco told her.
She stretched her hand slowly, until her fingertips met his. Quickly grabbing a tight hold, Ginny felt herself being tugged away, and she quickly left the relative safety of her seat. She shrieked in terror, seeing her life flash before her eyes, but suddenly, an arm closed tightly around her middle.
"Bit scared, are we?"
"Yes," she replied meekly.
"Alright. Now take a hold of the ledge, and find a good grabbing spot on the walls. They are fairly jagged," Draco's further instructions came.
Slowly, Ginny disengaged herself from him, and took hold of a promising rock with one hand. Only, she felt it part company with the wall once she had applied pressure. She heard it tumble in the darkness below, and immediately clung back to Draco.
"My arm is getting really tired," he said through clenched teeth. "I don't want to let you go."
Hastily, and unable to determine how, Ginny found herself, standing on the ledge and grasping two other jutting rocks for support.
"Good. Now we climb down. Be careful," Draco said, and unless Ginny was hearing falsely, his last words had a hint of tenderness to them.
"I will, and you do so too," she replied.
No answer came from the dark. With effort and shaking limbs, they breathed deeply and laboriously, as they descended deeper and deeper with a snail's pace.
Another hour must have passed. Above them, ominous creaks could be heard, as the disabled elevator could come hurtling down at any second. The thought kept running through Ginny's mind. Fear, sweaty palms and a muddled thought process made her pay less attention to her descending activities. Without expecting it, her foot suddenly slipped, and a rather large chunk of earth gave way under her.
"Is everything well?" asked Draco from somewhere below her.
"I can't go on!" Ginny replied.
"Hang on, I'm coming," his voice came from beneath her again.
For a few terrifying seconds, Ginny gripped her remaining supports, feeling herself grow weaker and weaker.
Just as she was ready to let go, and fall in the depths of the endless shaft, a strong hand closed around her.
"Climb onto my back, and put your hands around my neck," Draco said in her ear.
With a final effort, Ginny performed the task. She fought to stay conscious and not pass out - that would condemn both of them to death.
Time slowly passed by, as Ginny hung on to Draco, afraid of letting go, and he descended slowly, carefully selecting grasps and footholds along the way. No words were exchanged between them, and the tension of the situation grew with each passing second.
"I can feel an opening down there," said Draco. "The draft is picking up."
"W-well, what do you propose?" Ginny asked him.
"We jump"
"Are you crazy? Ginny was outraged.
"No, I think there's a pool of water, if I judge by that dripping noise," he explained.
"And if there isn't?"
"We have no other choice, but to take that risk," Draco answered calmly.
Suddenly, a very loud sound of snapping rope was heard far above them, and was quickly followed by a second one.
One second of indecision was all that was needed. Guided by instinct, rather than thought, Draco Malfoy released his grip of the wall, and jumped. Ginny hung on tight to him, pale white, and not able to utter a sound from the terror she was experiencing.
What seemed like an endless fall did end up in a rather deep pool of icy water. As soon as they surfaced, Ginny saw the faint outline of the disabled elevator hurtling past the tunnel entrance they had only come through seconds before.
"You saved my life," she said with a breaking voice.
"Yeah, just get out of that water before you freeze to death…" Draco said, his face averted to one side. He was having trouble comprehending their luck too.
"Come on, let's go," he said.
Ginny stood on the uneven floor, and picking her steps, she followed her insufferable savior along. She reminded herself how much of a terrible person he was, but inexplicably, she could not muster the force to be fully convinced of it. A small doubt had appeared in the depths of her soul.
They walked in silence for a long time. The tunnel twisted and turned, and frequently, the uneven floor presented ample opportunity for bringing either of the adventurers in this story down, unless they watched their step.
A sudden exclamation of pain issued from Draco, who was ahead of Ginny. She heard him collapse on the ground, and in the dark, she could see his face contorted with the pain he was experiencing.
"Are you alright?" she asked once she caught up to him.
"No," he said through clenched teeth. "I think I broke my ankle."
"Let me see," she answered softly.
Amazed for a second that Draco did not offer resistance; she slowly removed his hand that was covering his ankle. He gave a gasp of pain.
"Don't worry, I'll help you," Ginny told him.
"I can do it myself," he told her defiantly, and immediately attempted to stand on his one good foot.
Unfortunately, he collapsed straight into Ginny.
"Mhhm, you certainly can," she said. "Now come on, we have to find a way out of here."
He placed an arm around her shoulder, and she grasped his waist. Progress was much slower than before, and the jagged floor of the tunnel did not make the endeavor any easier.
"I see a light up ahead," Draco said at one point.
"Oh, that's good," she replied, her tone relieved at his declaration. "You aren't trying to lie to me, are you?" she added suspiciously.
"No, no, definitely not," he answered seriously.
They turned around another bend, and sure enough, Ginny saw the glimmer of daylight in the distance.
"Can we relax for a minute?" she asked. "You're bloody heavy to carry around."
"Agreed. And you aren't particularly sturdy to hang on to either."
With those words, both of them sat down against the cold rock wall. Draco breathed heavily, and Ginny closed her eyes, reveling in the light feeling sitting down created after her strenuous task of helping Draco move along the tunnel.
"Thanks," she said in the silence.
"For what?" he replied incredulously.
"Saving me. You know you could have left me behind and described it as a tragic accident how I died." Ginny explained.
"I know I'm a prick," Draco said sarcastically, `but I don't go to such lengths."
"Why did you save me? I know how you despise my family, after all."
He did not reply immediately, but turned his gaze towards the light in thought.
"I have an image to keep up, Weasley," he said at last. "My family has always hated the Weasleys, and it has been an expectation of me. That's all my life has been - expectations. I don't hate your family personally."
"What are you saying?" Ginny asked confusedly; towards her, Draco Malfoy was usually much more arrogant and sarcastic.
"I don't hate you, Ginny, or your family," he spoke quietly.
Feeling elated for no apparent reason, Ginny raised herself to her feet.
"Come on, we don't have a long way to go now," she said, and helped her not-so-hateful companion stand on his one able foot.
Painstakingly, the duo continued selecting their way around the rocks. Eventually, the outline at the mouth of the tunnel began to grow bigger and acquire a more defined shape.
"Almost there," Ginny said hopefully.
Yet, the feeling of elations was not to be for long. Unexpectedly, a loud hissing echoed behind them. An animal of huge proportions could be heard slithering their way. The sound of rocks being crushed beneath it became louder very quickly.
"Come on, move!" Draco pushed Ginny in an effort to snap her out of her transfixion.
It took a very long second for her to become aware of her surroundings again. Suddenly realizing something, she grabbed Draco by the hand, and dragged him behind a rock near the wall, all the while ignoring his protests of pain, as the injured ankle signaled its predicament once again.
"What are you…" he started, but Ginny quickly put a hand over his mouth.
"Basilisk," she said, quietly and shakily.
They lay, hidden behind the rock, not daring to make a single sound. A minute later, the gigantic snake did slither past them. Holding their breath even, Ginny and Draco waited impatiently for the snake to pass completely.
It paused. Raising its head, the snake smelled the air noisily. Our two unfortunate adventurers pressed themselves even closer to the rock. Any movement now could be fatal.
The Basilisk seemed to make up its tiny mind. With a deftness that could not be expected of a snake, as huge as it was, it turned around, and raising dust and debris, it returned back in the depths of the tunnel.
A sigh of relief escaped Draco and Ginny simultaneously.
"That…that was close," he said.
"Let's go before it comes back," Ginny replied. Slightly vaguely, and with joint effort they walked the last stretch out of the tunnel.
The sun was shining, and they had come out on a street, in some village, that looked it had been long abandoned. Dismissing the rather unnerving nature of their surroundings, they walked in the shade of a nearby tree. A ramshackle wooden house imposed its ghastly presence not too far off behind them.
"Aren't we too close," asked Draco, throwing an uneasy glance at the mouth of the tunnel.
"Basilisks don't fare well in sunlight," she explained. "So we're safe."
"For now," Draco muttered, casting a wary look around him. He needn't have done so- the hamlet was as dead as it looked.
"How far away do you think we are from London?" Ginny asked him directly.
"Not very," he replied after a minute's contemplation. "I reckon we can apparate back."
"Good."
"Well then," he affirmed.
An unexpected silence filled the space between them. The only sound was the rustle of the leaves in the slight wind, and the occasional squawk of a raven from somewhere towards the houses.
"Can I ask you a question?" Draco asked, rather quietly - completely at odds with his otherwise boisterous and suave attitude.
"Hm?" Ginny indicated she was prepared to listen.
"You asked my why I helped you out of the lift, and I did. Now I ask you the same - why did you help me? That Basilisk may as well have finished me of…"
"Because I like you," Ginny replied, without thinking.
It was as if a thunderbolt had fallen on top of Draco Malfoy.
"You like me?" he repeated faintly.
"No - yes! Yes, maybe! Yes, yes, yes I do," came her flustered reply. "Stupid, stupid, stupid…" she kept muttering quickly under her breath.
Only, she did fail to notice the movement of that likeable blond bastard, as he closed the distance between them, and with a jolt of surprise, she realized a pair of lips had descended upon hers. The desire to pull away was quickly extinguished, as her knees felt weak, and she melted further into the kiss…
An indeterminate amount of time had passed, but at one point, their lips parted company.
"Wow…" Ginny's mind was completely failing to comprehend and articulate any other intelligible thought.
"I know," he simply said.
"What were we going to do again?" she asked, dazed.
"It had something to do with the Prophet," Draco answered vaguely.
"Oh, it's all dribble, but we do have to thank them," she said.
"For what?" he asked, confused.
Instead of answering, Ginny gave him another mind-blowing kiss.
"Oh," comprehension dawned on him. `Right."
The sound of two loud cracks momentarily filled the dead silence, as Ginny and Draco apparated back to London.
**
Hand in hand, or rather, Ginny supporting Draco as he couldn't walk on a single foot, they made their way inside the large entrance hall of St. Mungo's.
A nurse immediately rushed up to meet them.
"Hello," she said hurriedly. "How can I help you? Is his injury severe?"
"It's just a broken ankle," Draco said dismissively.
"Please come with me," the nurse said very professionally, and without further hesitation, she levitated the injured man ahead of her.
Ginny, slightly affronted, sat down on one of the chairs, and decided to wait for Draco.
The minutes passed, and she occupied the time by re-reading the article in the Daily Prophet, which she found sitting on the coffee table next to her chair.
Eventually, she heard the familiar voice of Draco Malfoy snap something at the nurse, who was showing him out. They parted ways, and he came up to her looking highly annoyed.
"What did they do now?"
"Bloody muggle methods she wanted to try on me," he replied. "It hurts!"
"Well then, let's go," she said, smirking. "Thought you were a man…"
Draco only gave her a cold glare, and kept quiet to avoid his pride being wounded any further.
In silence, the duo reached the imposing building in Diagon Alley, which served as the headquarters of the wizarding world's most popular paper. Unimpressed, they walked inside.
As if to make a statement, Draco placed an arm around Ginny's waist. Together, they walked up to the receptionist - a lively girl of one and twenty.
"Hello," she smiled pleasantly at them. "What can I do you for today?"
"Can we see the editor-in-chief?" Ginny asked.
"About what?" she inquired further.
"An article about us," Draco put in, somewhat forcefully.
"One minute," replied the girl, and getting up from the chair, she disappeared down a long corridor.
Ten minutes later, the profile of a rather well rounded man came towards them. His quick steps echoed, as he finally came in full view, and stopped in front of the two visitors.
"Good evening," he began. "You have a complaint, I hear?"
"Well, not exactly," Ginny said, "but in a way, yes."
The editor-in-chief raised an eyebrow.
"I'm a very busy man, miss," he said pointedly.
"We don't like you to insult us as much as you did with this article," Draco said sternly, and handed the bulky man in front of him the offending article.
His eyes skimmed over the contents.
"I never approved this article!" he was outraged. "Accept my apologies, I will ensure nothing of the sort happens again," he stammered out.
"Better not," Draco continued in his stern tone.
He and Ginny turned to leave, as the editor scratched his head in confusion behind them.
"Oh, and thanks!" Ginny shouted when they had reached the front doors.
Laughing, they walked out into the street.
"Thanks," Ginny said.
"You're welcome," Draco replied a bit stiffly.
"Well…what now?" Ginny went on to try to fill the sudden awkward pause.
"I'll see you around," Draco answered in a rush. "I have somewhere to be, but I will see you tomorrow at work."
Before she could say anything, he gave her a kiss.
Ginny smiled, when they parted.
"Yeah, till tomorrow," she said. "I'll catch you in the lift."
"Definitely," he replied.
With that last exchange, the two turned in opposite directions, and walked away. Draco was deep in thought, Ginny couldn't wipe the smile off her face, and the author - he merely adjusted his hat, saw the two heroes of the story off, and with a knowing smirk walked down Diagon Alley towards the newly opened pub. And he bids you, cheers!
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