Floating Face Down

Title: Floating Face Down
Author:

xalexandriam

Rating: R (Sorta Naughty)
Possible Spoilers/Warnings: lots of language, some violence
Summary (if fic): Ginny’s an Auror with a new case on her hands. The only person competent enough to help her is also a man she helped lock up in Azkaban.
A/N: I wrote this particular fic for the D/G Fic Exchange over at LJ.com for neojas. I was incredibly excited to recieve the prompt below; I had so much fun writing it! Thanks to my friend, Lisa, for the deluge of ideas that eventually went into this fic, as well as my beta, ginnygie, for probably the fastest beta job I have ever witnessed.

Original Prompt:
BRIEFLY describe what you'd like to receive if you were to get a fic by describing... A fic where Ginny and Draco must put aside past grievances in order to solve a case.
The tone/mood of the fic: Drama and romance…with elements of a good crime novel if possible.
An element/line of dialogue/object you would like in your fic: Element: misunderstandings in their past relationship. ‘He thought she betrayed him. She thought she had no choice’- that sort of thing.
Preferred rating of the fic you want: Whatever the author wants
Canon or AU? Either but nothing too wacky
Deal Breakers (what don't you want?): No songfic or crossovers please. H/G (unless really necessary). A very dark fic or something overly fluffy…something ‘real’ in tone would be fantastic.



Floating Face Down


They were a paradox of a pairing – the then newly appointed Minister’s daughter and the son of a Death Eater with a shady past.

And yet, their paradoxical pairing turned out to make the most sense out of any other pairing in the Ministry’s Auror division.

He was cold, ruthless, and efficient, and he balanced out her warm, precise, and somewhat deadly nature. Both could wield a fatal hex or spell, using their combined knowledge to get the job done in the quickest means possible.

But that had been two years ago.

Before the case that tore them apart and before his brief stay in Azkaban.

He thought she betrayed him.

She thought she had no choice.

* * * * * * * * * *

January 2004

Ginny’s life couldn’t have been any more perfect than it was at that exact moment.

She and Draco had been working for months trying to find Antonin Dolohov, an old Death Eater and currently one of the top crime bosses in all of wizarding Europe.

They had finally traced him back to Lithuania, near the Russian border. The Ministry, in their desperation to put an end to his black market practices with not only dangerous magical creatures, but Dark artefacts and potions, had sent out Draco and Ginny to capture him.

Before leaving, though, their superior informed the team of the latest setback on the Ministry’s part: a mole, sent by Dolohov himself had wormed his way throughout the Ministry. No department had the slightest idea of where the mole could be. The entire bureaucracy was in a panic; the Minister had instituted background checks for every Ministry employee and, if necessary, a private investigation for any suspicious actions found.

Yet even though Ginny was in the process of a background check during her mission, life still could not be any more perfect.

After three years of having Draco as a partner, both he and Ginny came to the conclusion that their near-daily arguments were fuelled by something other than centuries of mutual family bickering and was explored by a synchronous release of tension and frustration (both sexual and other in nature) the night previous. Their cover as a married couple only added to Ginny’s glee.

So there she was, crouched beside her partner-cum-lover, fighting against the urge to say to hell with the mission and professional decorum just so she could spend the rest of the day in bed with Draco. But, unfortunately, there was a mission to be completed and a Ministry mole to be unearthed.

Draco turned to give Ginny a brief smile before grabbing her hand and guiding her through the maze of hallways in Dolohov’s spacious Lithuanian abode.

They came to a halt in front a large oak door; the wood was pockmarked and scarred, the iron handle and its hinges tinted a burnt copper by the fading sun’s glow on the slight film of rust. All signs of age.

Ginny felt a sharp gust of wind blow through the already chilly corridor, a low whistle that caused a shiver to reach her all the way down in her bones. As Draco reached for the door, Ginny heard the shifting and grinding of stone against stone. Instinctively she turned, expecting to see the large, slithering form of a basilisk or a horde of burly men, grinning at their new prey. She let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. Nothing.

Every since she and Draco entered the estate, Ginny had the strangest sense of movement from the house. As if it was linked to the very well-being of its owner. She shook it off as nerves, squeezing Draco’s hand in hopes of boosting his morale.

He squeezed back, sending a flurry of nervous energy through Ginny, sucking in a breath as she watched Draco push the door open with ease. Normally, Ginny wasn’t one to be so cautious when on a mission. Draco said she still had the Gryffindor mentality of running blindly into a fray. But then again, now that she and Draco were involved with one another, there was more for her to lose.

Draco let go of her hand, slowly walking into what was supposed to be Dolohov’s meeting room. He motioned with a hand to circle the room, the two walking around the vast space in opposite directions, searching for any clue as to Dolohov’s whereabouts. Each sub-consciously felt for their wands hidden in their robes, grasping on to the handle in case Dolohov decided to make an appearance.

The massive door in the entranceway slammed shut, Draco and Ginny whipping their heads in reaction to the sudden sound and movement. Ginny turned away, her ears keying in on the familiar sound of stone grinding against itself. At the very back of the room, a passageway began to open beside a high-backed chair, a figure stepping out from the shadows.

“My, my. What are two Aurors doing here so far away from home?”

Before her partner had time to react to the voice, Ginny yelled out “Stupefy!”, her target easily dodging the hex.

Draco stole a glance at her, trying his hardest not to glare in response to Ginny’s failed decision.

He noticed her eyes widen slightly, but she refused to address her adversary.

Dolohov turned to Draco. “What? No response?” He clucked his tongue in annoyance. “And I had thought your dear mother taught you better, Draco.”

“It’s over, Dolohov,” Draco replied with an air of cold indifference.

“Really? On the contrary, good friend, I believe this little game has just started.”

Dolohov waved a hand, eyes shining in amusement as Draco and Ginny began to struggle against the stone shackles the house created with Dolohov’s signal.

Bound to the walls at opposite sides of the great room, Dolohov took the opportunity to relieve Draco and Ginny of their wands, shouting an “Expelliarmus!” and catching the wands as they flew to his open hand.

Pocketing the two Aurors’ wands, their foreign adversary strolled to the chair near the passageway he initially came out of, swinging his sinewy legs over the dark wood of the chair’s arms.

He glanced at Draco, smirking as he addressed him. “Weasley, Draco? I didn’t think that you could do it, but I suppose a congratulations is in order. I did have my doubts; I mean, let’s face it, you’re not one of my top men, but I figure that if you could make into the Auror Academy and still work for me, well, you can do just about anything, can’t you?”

Dolohov snapped his fingers, releasing Draco from the stone shackles. The blond man began rubbing his wrists, pressing a panel on the inside of his robe sleeve unbeknownst to Dolohov.

“Oh, ye of little faith you have in me, Dolohov. I told you from the beginning that the job would be nothing short of easy. Getting Weasley as my partner and having to find you as a case were just sheer dumb luck.”

“And I thank you for bringing her to me. She poses the biggest threat to my business, making headway in sending most of my clients and suppliers to prison. The fact that she’s the Minister’s daughter will only make my getting rid of her that much sweeter.”

Ginny watched the two men’s exchange from her place against the wall, rendered helpless and speechless not only by what Dolohov said but Draco’s friendly candour with him. She blinked rapidly several times, willing herself to not cry. Her time with Draco was so wonderful, so amazing, and she could slowly feel every moment with him slip away into the area of her sub-conscious where Tom was kept; a place were lies and deception ran rampant.

She could see Draco convince Dolohov of returning both of their wands, but she could not hear the interaction. Her vision blurred as her pent-up tears threatened to spill over, her hearing was muffled as if cotton was stuffed into her ears.

Time slowed down for Ginny as she saw Dolohov snap his fingers, releasing her from her place against the wall before she felt her body go rigid from a Body-Bind. She barely felt the cold stone floor beneath her, could barely recognize the familiar popping sound of dozens of Aurors Apparating into the room she was currently in, and didn’t even notice Dolohov snap his fingers once more, releasing her of her bind, before pulling a strange object out of his robe, aiming it at Ginny as he dodged curses and hexes cast by the Aurors.

Then suddenly, she was slammed with a sensory overload -- the shouting of names and spells; the sharp, acrid smell of smoke; the tang of iron and copper, dripping onto and into the cross sections of the stone brick beneath her. She felt a pain in her lower abdomen and slowly laid a rapidly paling hand over the area. Ginny drew it back to see the stark contrast of blood on her lily-white hand.

She was being shaken like a rag doll. Her name repeated over and over as she struggled to not give in to the darkness itching to take hold of her like a vice.

A flash of grey and then Ginny’s world fell apart.

* * * *

Ginny woke up some two weeks later, abdomen bandaged and slowly healing as she laid in St. Mungo’s.

She later learned that her wound was caused by a Muggle toy that Dolohov had recently taken to playing around with: a pistol.

The last person she had seen was Draco, who Apparated the two of them to the wizarding hospital, throwing the place into hysteria as he tried to get Ginny help.

He wasn’t there when she woke up, though. In fact, no one was.

As she slept, her body mending itself for the damage done, Dolohov confessed to everything during his highly publicized trial -- including Draco being the “Ministry Mole”. Ginny testifying to confirm what Dolohov revealed upon her waking was like putting salt in a wound for Draco.

By the time Ginny left the wizarding hospital, Draco had already spent three days in Azkaban for his crime of conspiring against the national wizarding government.

* * * * * * * * * *

Ginny’s eyes flew open, the night’s dream still fresh in her head.

For a week now, she kept dreaming about the night when she was shot; her sub-conscious reminding her that it was also the night she learned of Draco’s deception.

She sat up, rubbing the left side of her abdomen as though the wound were still fresh.

Some instances during the week she even went as far as lifting her nightshirt upon waking, expecting to see the harsh white glow of the bandages, but each time she only saw a small horizontal scar.

Walking to her bathroom, Ginny thought about the day ahead, grateful for the distraction that allowed her to focus on something other than bad memories.

The tepid water of the shower rained down on her, soaking her from the roots of her hair to the nails on her toes, washing away the residue of the past day. Ginny laid her forehead against the cool tile of one of the walls, trying to convince herself that the day’s task really was for the best.

She had received her latest mission the day previous, and really, it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary for her – find and protect someone from the various nefarious forces out there in the wizarding world. Nothing new.

Well, not exactly.

This time around, the subject in question was a Muggle woman around Ginny’s age with blue-black hair, who just below the nape of her neck, had a tattoo of a black key with an orange-tipped yellow rose winding around it. The Aurors knew nothing about her, only that her key tattoo, when paired with a certain incantation unlocked the door to the underworld, allowing the globe to be overrun with demons and other such malevolent spirits.

Besides the fact that Ginny had no other information regarding the woman she was supposed to find, she also learned of the others searching for this Muggle – Dolohov’s son, Rodion, took it upon himself to follow in his father’s footsteps and the first item on his checklist was to search for the same Muggle Ginny had to search for.

She stepped out of the shower, running a towel through her sopping curls, wrapping another around her body.

Once dry, she rummaged through her closet, looking for a pair of black slacks, a white shirt, and her favourite crimson-coloured trench. Ginny laid the day’s chosen ensemble on her bed, grabbing her wand off of her nightstand to dry her hair.

She glanced at the clock, rushing through the rest of her routine in order to avoid being late for her appointment.

Ginny ran to her fireplace, grabbing a fistful of Floo powder before shouting “British Ministry of Magic!” quickly disappearing in a flurry of green flames.

She arrived at the Auror Deparment some five minutes later, exchanging polite glances and hellos with her fellow co-workers, weaving through the many cubicles before reaching her own.

On her desk was a small envelope, the words “Your Portkey” written in Kingsley’s familiar handwriting on the front. Encased in the envelope was a golden Snitch replica. Ginny couldn’t help but laugh at the irony.

She stole a look at her wrist-watch, touching the Snitch as the device indicated nine o’clock.

Ginny landed feet-first in front of the black wrought iron gates to Azkaban prison.

A young guard met her at the gate, immediately guiding her to the appropriate sector.

They came to an abrupt halt in front of a cell at the very end of a corridor. The guard opened the cell door, motioning for Ginny to enter. The barred door slammed shut, causing the red-head to jump as she tried to calm her nerves. She did an about-face to see the guard staring at her from the other side of the door.

Ginny turned once more to face him.

Her heart, red and pulsating, leapt into her throat, while her stomach did a back tuck, causing her body to tense up in nervous anticipation.

He sat in a corner, mercurial eyes peeking out of slits in his platinum hair. The slate grey Azkaban standard robes were ill-fitting and the slenderness of his wrists and ankles showed how much weight he- had lost in just two years.

“Hello, Draco.”

“What the fuck do you want?”

Ginny swallowed a lump in her throat before speaking, Draco’s eyes never leaving her face.

“I –- I came here with a proposition for you.”

“Oh, really? And what the bloody hell do you think I could want from a traitorous bint like you?”

“I only came here because I needed your help with my latest mission, and frankly, you are the only person that I can think of who is competent enough to assist me.”

“That’s all well and good, but as you can see, I’m otherwise obligated to the lovely institution that is Azkaban. Besides, I don’t enjoy consorting with the likes of you.”

“Look, just hear me out – if you agree to working with me, my father promises your release.”

“Oh, boy! The Minister’s offering me my freedom if I say yes to his precious daughter!” Draco exclaimed, feigning excitement. “No, thanks, but I’ll pass, Weasley.”

Ginny turned to leave, then stopped, turning around to face her ex. “Please, Draco. I really do --”

Draco leapt up from his spot on the floor, running so he was nose to nose with Ginny.

“What? What the fuck do you expect me to say? Expect me to do? Do you expect me to welcome you with open arms? Hold you close and tell you that I forgive you for helping the Ministry lock me up in this hellhole? Well, I hate to break it to you, Ginny, but I can’t. I put my fucking heart on a fucking platter for you and what do I get in return? A one-way ticket to Azkaban.”

Draco stepped away, returning to the corner he came from.

Ginny remained frozen in her spot, mouth agog, tears flowing freely down her freckled face.

“I – I’m sorry, Draco.”

“Sorry, dear, but your apology is two years too late. Get out.”

Ginny sighed in resignation, but walked over to where Draco sat, determined to not leave without him.

“I had no choice, Draco.”

“Yes you did.”

“You were a spy in the Ministry. And I witnessed everything that night. Did you expect me to lie to the Wizengamot? They made Dolohov take Veritaserum. And to tell the truth, I don’t fancy Azkaban all that much. If anything, you can only blame yourself.” Ginny sat down beside him, taking a hold of one of his hands. “I know you may not like me very much right now, but if it’s any consolation, you’re the only person I can think about these days. I often wonder if there was a way that I could have lied, if only to keep you by my side.”

Ginny laughed bitterly, tears threatening to break free once more, cursing Draco’s stubbornness.

She wiped away a single tear with her free hand, before using it to turn Draco’s head to face hers.

“Please,” Ginny whispered, eyes imploring and glassy as she begged Draco a final time.

His face was impassive, immune to her tearful charms.

Her eyes scanned his face for any sign of a breakthrough, but there was still nothing, the reddened orbs finally landing on his lips.

Temptation got the better of Ginny and she leaned in to place a soft, chaste kiss on his chapped lips.

She pulled away, relinquishing her grasp on his hand, using both of hers to help her stand.

“I should be going,” Ginny mumbled, heading for the barred door.

As the guard opened said door for her, she was stopped by Draco wrapping a slender hand around her right wrist. He whipped her around so she was facing him.

“I had forgotten what you tasted like,” he uttered, a wry smile curling his lips.

“So will you help me?” Ginny asked tentatively.

“Yes.”

Floating Face Down


Part Two


“Of all the places we had to go in the world, it had to be Blackpool.”

A mere week after Ginny’s return from Azkaban with Draco in tow and the two were shipped off to Blackpool, the Aurors all aflutter at Draco’s arrival and the rumours regarding the Muggle woman’s whereabouts.

So rumours in mind, Draco and Ginny packed their bags, chose aliases, cast glamours and headed out to one of Britain’s biggest tourist destinations.

“One more complaint, Draco, and it’s back to Azkaban,” Ginny quipped, the teasing tone in her voice lessening the sting of the barb.

“Oi! That was a low blow, Gin.”

“I’ve heard worse from you,” Ginny replied with a beatific grin aimed at Draco.

The pair was currently strolling toward Pleasure Beach, Ginny begging Draco to see what a “rollercoaster” was, trunks safely stowed in their hotel room.

Draco shivered slightly, attracting Ginny’s attention. “This place is so congested. I’ve never seen so many tourists.”

“You never been to America before then, have you?”

The look on Draco’s face made Ginny believe he was going to retch right then and there.

“I’ll take that as a ‘no’ then,” Ginny replied with a smile.

The pair continued walking in amicable silence, until Draco decided to break it some five minutes later.

“I’m hungry,” he muttered to no one in particular, his stomach gurgling in agreement.

Ginny squinted, spying a shop a block away. “Do you have Muggle money with you?” she asked, turning her head to Draco.

“Of course I do.”

“Then you are in luck, Draco darling. Just a few more minutes and food will be in your grasp.”

They stopped outside the glass door to a small bakery, the name of the shop, Dora’s Bakery, painted on its surface in flowing script.

Ginny pushed the door open, a bell overhead signalling their entrance to the young woman behind the counter.

“Just take a seat anywhere; I’ll be with you in a moment,” the woman stated, accepting a plastic card from a customer.

The two wizards weaved their way through the shop, trying to avoid the melee and find a quiet place to sit.

“A bakery, Weasley? I’m ravenous and you take me to a fucking bakery?” Draco hissed as soon as he and Ginny were seated.

“I’m sorry, Malfoy, if this does not suit your tastes, but it was the closest thing I spotted.”

“Are you two alright?” the same young woman asked, approaching Draco and Ginny.

“Oh, yes, just a little lovers’ quarrel. Nothing of consequence,” Ginny replied airily with a wave of her hand.

The woman nodded sagely, pulling out a seat next to Draco and sat down, reaching for her notepad and pen shortly after. “What can I get you?” she asked, her question directed at Draco.

“What do you recommend?” he replied icily, slowly inching away from the already enamoured baker.

“How about I surprise you, love,” she stated, earning a snort from Ginny.

Draco shrugged, the woman taking the gesture in the affirmative as she walked off into the crowd amidst Ginny snickering behind a hand over Draco’s apparent discomfort.

The now brown-haired, blue-eyed man glared at a blonde Ginny, growing even more enraged when he noticed that his glare was rendered useless as she continued to giggle.

The baker returned shortly, with a generous helping of what seemed to be an amalgamation of various pastry parts, setting it down before Draco.

With a lascivious wink aimed at Draco, she slinked away to another customer, leaving him with his pastry and a near-hysterical Ginny.

* * * * * * * * *

Contrary to his prior protests, Draco became an addict to the pastries found in that constantly over-crowded shop, dragging Ginny along to have breakfast there each morning before scouting the city for their Muggle.

After a while, Ginny began to relish in watching the interactions between Draco and the bakery’s owner, a woman named Dora. Ginny could have hexed herself for not making the connection after seeing the shop’s name so many times.

Yet even with this daily reprieve, the team had no luck after about two weeks in Blackpool. Draco suggested owling Kingsley for any possible updates or to inquire as to the matter of their coming home. Ginny took Draco’s suggestion and the response was less than satisfactory – no new information was found and no, they could not come home.

Both Draco and Ginny were frustrated with their mission by the time they received Kingsley’s letter; neither could see the point in continuing on if they had no leads. But they carried on, eventually resorting to questioning arbitrary Muggles.

* * * * * * * * *

Draco stormed into the shop, sans Ginny, completely ignoring Dora’s breathy “hello”, something that he would now play to, shamelessly flirting with the shopkeeper as Ginny decided if she wanted to be furious with Draco or laugh at how outrageous his antics became.

Dora immediately dropped what she was doing, leaving a customer in mid-sentence to cater to the enraged wizard’s needs.

She plopped down in the seat next to Draco’s with an, “Is something the matter, Darien?” Draco didn’t respond at first, not realizing that the name Dora used to address him was the name that he and Ginny chose as his alias, Ginny choosing Gwen.

“Did you and Gwen have a falling out?” she inquired, eyes lighting up in hopes that the man sitting in front of her was finally available.

“Something to that extent,” he mumbled, somewhat annoyed by Dora’s intrusion, but also thankful for the company.

Dora pulled her hair back, tying her blue-black hair up into a high ponytail. Satisfied with the result, she took one of Draco’s hands into her own, scooting her chair closer to his. “Do you need some company right now? I could of great help,” she whispered, leaning closer still to Draco.

“I just want to get away from here,” Draco sighed, looking down at the floor.

Dora lifted Draco’s face, her eyes locking with his. “I think I can help you with that,” she replied with a smirk, her eyes flicking down to his lips.

Her eyes fluttered shut as she leaned in further, Draco closing his eyes out of habit.

Just as Dora’s lips pressed against his, Ginny walked into the shop, watching, mouth agog as Draco kissed a woman with a very strange design on the back of her neck. It looked like a black key with an orange-tipped yellow rose winding around it…

“Oh, bloody everlasting fuck!” she nearly screamed, exiting the shop as quickly as possible before she attracted any more unwanted attention.

Ginny stood outside for several moments, replaying the scene she just saw in her head. Whomever it was that she watched Draco kiss had to be the woman they were looking for. There was no other possible explanation.

Once she had collected herself, she re-entered, finally seeing who the woman was: Dora. Ginny made a beeline for the table, pulling Draco out of his seat, much to Dora’s annoyance.

As soon as the pair was out of Dora’s line of vision, Ginny landed a slap on Draco’s face, the force of it leaving a bright red mark on his pale skin.

Draco reacted about five seconds later, holding the right side of his face in pain, crouching down as he got over the tingling sensation Ginny’s hand left.

“Bleeding fuck, woman! What was that for?”

“That was trying to examine another woman’s tonsils with your tongue,” Ginny hissed, sticking her nose up in defiance.

Draco looked at Ginny as though she’d gone mental, slowly standing in front of her before a thought revealed itself.

“You were jealous, weren’t you?” Draco asked with a sly smirk.

Ginny fidgeted with the hem of her long-sleeved shirt. “Maybe,” she replied, eyes now downcast.

“Oh, come on, Gin! It’s not like we’re an actual couple. All of the lovey-dovey shite we spit out is just to keep up appearances. You didn’t actually think…” Draco trailed off when he noticed that Ginny was blushing something awful.

“I guess I wrongly assumed so upon my fetching you from Azkaban,” she mumbled, growing redder with each uttered syllable.

“I think we should go back to the hotel in order to discuss this in a more private setting,” he muttered, looking around at the ever-growing crowd.

Ginny nodded in acquiescence, following Draco out of the shop and toward their hotel.

* * * * * * * * *

“Look, Gin, I’m sorry if you think that just because you kissed me in my cell constitutes a renewed relationship,” Draco stated once they were in their room.

“But I thought I made it perfectly clear to you when I was in your cell that I thought about you every single day. I told you I would have lied to those I hold dear if it meant preventing your imprisonment!” she shouted.

“Well, it didn’t, did it?” Draco spat, glaring at Ginny.

“You can’t fucking go and blame me for all the shit you had to deal with in prison! It was your fault that you decided to work for a criminal and be an Auror. Because I don’t know about you Draco, but when you inform the criminal that you considered a boss what was going on in the Ministry, then you’re considered a criminal, too.”

“If you loved me so fucking much then you could have figured something out, Ginny. You could have talked to your precious father and I could have stayed with you; I could have avoided prison altogether.”

“I loved you, Draco, with every inch of my being, and I still do, but I refuse to betray my principles because you screwed yourself over!”

Ginny’s last statement knocked the wind out of Draco’s argument, forcing him to flop down rather gracelessly onto the sofa in the small sitting room. He cradled his head in his hands, remaining silent for a few minutes before speaking.

“Do you want to hear something crazy?” he began, his voice barely above a whisper. “I’d think about you to prevent myself from going insane. As much as I hated what happened when you testified, a part of me still loved you. And that part kept me going, kept me from ending up like any of the other nutters at that place.” He looked up into Ginny’s amber eyes. “I want to love you, Ginny, but I don’t want to risk the betrayal again.”

Ginny dropped down to her knees in front of Draco, wrapping him in her arms, laying her head against his chest.

“Do you want to hear something else?” he whispered, Ginny sighing in contentment at the rumble the sound of his voice made in his chest.

Ginny nodded.

“I agreed to help you because I thought that I might have a chance to fall in love with you once more.”

Ginny lifted her head, reaching a hand out to stroke his cheek. “I would be more than happy to help you fulfil that goal,” she stated, angling her head so her lips brushed against his.

Draco grabbed a handful of Ginny’s hair, pressing her to him with a bruising force. She gasped at the sudden burst of energy, Draco using the opportunity to snake his tongue into her mouth, coaxing her to do the same. Ginny readily complied as she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling herself closer to him, wilfully believing that Draco was the only source of oxygen in her life now.

He wound his arms around her waist, his hands resting just above the base of her spine. Ginny raked her nails down his chest, doing the same to his back, prompting a low growl from her partner.

Draco was the first to pull away, breathing heavily, planting the lightest of kisses all over Ginny’s face.

They allowed for their breathing to slow, eventually becoming in sync with the other’s. Ginny smiled, remembering the act as being something so natural, so right.

Ginny cleared her throat, warranting Draco’s attention. “I hate to break up this lovely moment, but I thought you might want to hear this.”

“Hear what?” Draco asked, reclining back onto the sofa.

“I think I know who the Muggle woman is.”

Draco leaned forward, grabbing Ginny’s shoulders. “Please tell me you know for certain. If not, I will be very upset with you for such a cruel prank, considering you know how much I want to leave this place.”

Ginny smiled nervously. “I think it’s Dora.”

“And you know this how?”

“Funny thing that,” she began, now laughing nervously. “She had her hair pulled back when you two were, you know, kissing, and her back was toward me and well, she had a tattoo on her neck that fit the description.”

Draco kissed Ginny once more, much to the redhead’s surprise, not that she didn’t mind, though. He stood up, using his grip on Ginny’s shoulders to lift her up as well. “What are we doing here, then? Let’s go get her.”

Ginny nodded mutely, taking Draco’s proffered hand, allowing herself to be dragged out of the hotel room.

* * * * * * * * *

The couple ran to Dora’s bakery, skidding to a halt when they noticed that the shop was uncharacteristically empty for mid-afternoon.

They opened the door, hearing the familiar jingle of the bell overhead, separating to find any sign of the young woman.

There was no sign of any sort of struggle – no chairs or tables upturned, no broken objects.

Ginny headed toward the back of the shop, noting the slightest traces of magic in the area. She motioned to Draco, opening the ‘Employees Only’ door, wincing at the creaking noise it created.

Her hand snaked for her wand, wrapping a hand around its handle. Her eyes scanned the room, coming to rest on Dora’s frightened ones as a man Apparated them away.

* * * * * * * * *

Ginny sunk to the ground in defeat just as Draco came by her side.

“Gin? Ginny? What happened?” he asked, crouching down beside her.

“They took her. I saw her being taken and I did nothing,” she whispered.

“They took Dora? But how? There was no possible way that they could have realized who she was before we did. Unless…” he trailed off, fearing the worst.

“Unless they were trailing us the entire time,” Ginny finished for him.

“But that’s impossible!” Draco shouted, pounding a fist on the ground.

Ginny lifted her head, taking a deep breath before standing. “Well, there’s nothing we can do about it now. Our new focus is to make sure that we get Dora back. Any ideas on where we should start?”

Draco raised an eyebrow in thought. “Rodion’s not as crafty as his father. He may have followed us, but I have a pretty good feeling as to where he took her.”

* * * * * * * * *

Draco Apparated he and Ginny in front of Dolohov’s Lithuanian mansion, thanking the gods that Dolohov’s son was too incompetent to remember to change the wards.

Ginny involuntarily shivered at the thought of the memories held within the imposing building.

Draco caught her shiver out of the corner of his eye and enveloped one of her gloved hands into his, squeezing it in reassurance.

They both cast Disillusionment charms on themselves, scaling the grounds for a possible entrance.

Ginny found one purely by accident, as she placed a hand against the stone wall, the cement giving way to an arched gateway. Soon both Draco and Ginny were inside the mansion, making their way through its labyrinthine corridors to the age-worn door of Dolohov’s meeting room.

At its centre was Dora, tied to the familiar high-backed chair.

They ran to her, Ginny pulling down the gag at Dora’s mouth, Draco beginning to untie the ropes that bound her.

“Who the hell are you people?” the raven-hair woman asked, her voice raspy from its lack of use.

“That’s none of your concern,” Draco replied quickly.

Dora looked at him with narrowed eyes, the voice and the features all vaguely familiar. Her gaze flicked between the now crimson-haired Ginny and a blond Draco. Ginny began to blush under Dora’s inquisitive gaze, stepping away to allow Draco to finish untying the woman.

“‘Darien and Gwen’, I presume, if those are your real names,” Dora stated once she was freed.

Ginny smiled sheepishly as Draco came to her side. “Surprise?”

“I’ll ask this again: who are you people? And what the hell is going on?” Dora asked, becoming increasing irritated.

“There’s no time for that,” Ginny replied. “We have to get you out of here.”

“If someone could inform me as to what was going on, then maybe I might be more willing to comply.” Dora stated, refusing to budge from her spot.

Draco groaned in annoyance. “We are in a highly dangerous situation and you choose to act like a petulant three year-old.” He turned his attention to Ginny. “It is just me, or were people always grateful that you had just saved them from possible death?”

Ginny shrugged nonchalantly. “I find that victims nowadays tend to be more mouthy and demanding than from years previous.”

“Body-Bind?” Draco asked.

“Agreed,” Ginny yawned, stretching her arms over her head languidly.

As Draco lifted his wand to cast the hex, both he and Ginny were pulled back by the walls, trapped, yet again.

Rodion Dolohov entered, a slight bounce in his step, as he approached the high-backed chair Dora currently sat in.

“Tsk, tsk, Malfoy. I can’t have you running off with my latest prize,” Rodion stated, grabbing a hold of Dora’s wrist.

Draco rolled his eyes, affecting the bored manner many had become accustomed to when dealing with the Malfoys. “You’ll never learn, will you, Rodion? The more you act like your father, the higher the chances of you joining him in Azkaban.”

“Very unlikely, I’m afraid. For you see, your precious Muggle has decided to cater to my needs.”

“What the fuck? Do you even know what you’re dealing with, Dolohov? Does she know what you’re dealing with?” Draco spat, his last statement toward Dora.

Rodion shrugged. “She’s going to be dead in a matter of minutes, so why bother even telling her?”

Dora turned to face Rodion, eyes wide in fear. “You told me that I would be safe. That all you needed was to perform the ceremony and I was free to go, just so long as I stalled these two long enough for you.”

Dolohov yanked Dora to him, brushing his lips against her ear. “You know, darling, you should never trust a criminal. That’s your first lesson.”

She pushed away from him, struggling as he pulled her out of the room.

“Well, this is just fan-bloody-tastic,” Ginny muttered as soon as Dolohov and Dora left the room.

“I’d have to agree with you on that one,” Draco huffed.

“Please tell me that you at least called for reinforcements?”

“Of course I did…they’re just taking longer than usual, is all.”

“Damn Auror division taking their damn time when we’re in actual danger,” Ginny growled.

“Any ideas of what we can do?”

“Do you still have your wand?”

“I think so.”

“Summon it with wandless magic, and then get me the hell out of here,” Ginny demanded.

Not five minutes later, Draco and Ginny bolted out of the room, searching the corridors once again for any signs of Dora.

They stopped in front of an open door, revealing a circle of hooded figures, Dora, crouching, chained down to the floor.

The figured had their backs to the pair, concentrating on the ceremony Dolohov was initiating.

Ginny’s ears began to hone in on a burst of sound down the hall they just came from, turning to see a group of Aurors rushing toward her and Draco.

She motioned for them to be quiet, hoping that their coming wouldn’t alert Dolohov or his followers to their presence.

Kingsley was at the lead followed by Harry, Ron and about seven others, all wands at the ready to take on the group inside the ceremonial chamber.

Ginny prodded Draco in the ribs, calling his attention to the Aurors behind her.

“Finally,” he mouthed, earning a cheeky grin from Harry and a shrug from Ron.

Draco nodded forward with his head, signalling for the Aurors’ entrance. They blocked the door way; a dozen shouts of “Expelliarmus!” echoing throughout the cavernous area. Dolohov turned, his shoulders slumped in near defeat as he saw the troop of Aurors overtake his own small band of wizards. Fearing the worst, he released Dora from her shackles, dragging her through the chaos toward a side door at the back of the room.

Ginny spotted him, disarming her current opponent and ran toward him, much to the ignorance of the other Aurors in the room. She chased him down a darkened hallway, coming to a stop in the middle of the meeting room she and Draco initially found Dora in.

Dolohov stood in the middle, a dagger pressed against Dora’s rapid pulse, threatening Ginny with a glare. “One false move and she’s dead. The incantation’s already been recited. All that’s left for me to do is sacrifice her and it’ll be too late.”

Ginny stepped closer, wand at the ready, as Dolohov dug the knife deeper into Dora’s throat.

“Can’t you follow simple directions, Weasley?” Rodion asked, using the magic of the house to rid Ginny of her wand.

“As a Gryffindor, following the rules has never really been part of my M.O,” she replied with a shrug, smirking, as she reached for something in her robes.

She stepped closer still, pulling out a pistol similar to the one Rodion’s father nearly killed her with.

“Let the girl go,” Ginny spat, aiming the weapon at Dolohov.

“What are you going to do?” Dolohov queried, his tone a bit too arrogant for Ginny’s liking.

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” Ginny replied, noticing Draco’s platinum blond head appear out of the door at the very back of the room.

Rodion opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by the Body-Bind Draco cast, falling to the stone floor with a resounding thud.

Dora rushed to Ginny, wrapping her arms around the heavily-breathing redhead, sobbing into her shoulder.

The rest of the Aurors ran to where Ginny and Dora stood, hoping to get any information out of the hysterical woman.

Draco came up behind Ginny, wrapping an arm around her shoulder, pressing her toward him. He turned her to him, resting his forehead against hers. “Are you alright?”

“I’m okay,” she sighed, putting the pistol back into a robe pocket.

He lifted her chin, pressing his lips down to hers, and then pulled away. “Don’t you ever go off on your own again. Do you understand me?”

Ginny laughed, giving Draco a wry smile before responding. “Yes, Mum.”

Draco scowled at her response, causing Ginny to laugh even harder in his arms.

Harry approached them, handing Ginny back her wand. “Where’d you get a gun from, Gin?” he asked as Ginny pocketed her wand.

“Once I realized what it was that Dolohov injured me with, I told myself that I would never be unprepared when on assignment again. While having a wand is great, too much rests on our use of it alone. It’s rare that I’ll use my gun, but I feel somewhat safer in the knowledge that it’s there if I need it.”

Harry nodded, turning away from the couple.

“Harry, wait!” Ginny shouted, waiting for him to turn before continuing. “Did you find out if Dolohov actually recited the incantation?”

“The Muggle woman said they were about to when we stormed in. Why?”
“Oh, just wondering,” Ginny replied, allowing Harry to walk back to where Dora was.

She turned to Draco, sighing once more. “Finally, we’re done.”

Draco smiled, taking one of her hands. “Do you think you can help me out with something, Gin?”

“Sure.”

“You see, there’s this stunning redhead that I was considering whisking away from here. Do you know of her?” he asked with a playful grin.

“I’m afraid not, but I’d be more than willing to fill that position,” Ginny replied with an equally cheeky grin.

“I was hoping you’d say that.”



A/N- Thanks for reading! Please review! =D