Disclaimer: Anything you recognise belongs to JKR.
A/N: I apologise for the long wait. I've been ridiculously busy with university, and then I hit an absolute roadblock with this chapter. It's been frankly painful to write, but I hope you enjoy it all the same.
Suspicion
Lara let out a shuddering gasp, tears slipping down her cheeks as she clutched her arms around her aching body. Her knees were stinging from the impact of being crippled to the ground, but that was nothing to the pain that had forced her into the humbled position in the first place.
A harsh laugh echoed around the room, the malice held within the raspy chuckles gliding up and down her spine like the cool touch of a knife. Her eyes lifted, meeting the hooded obsidian staring back at her from a face ravaged of its once infamous beauty. It was the face of a madwoman, Bellatrix Lestrange's face, and in her dark eyes one could see the true form of insanity.
Bellatrix lowered her wand. She was panting, her eyes glowing with excitement, as if inflicting pain and watching another suffer was somehow erotically stimulating to her. Knowing Bellatrix, it probably was. It was obvious that the woman could barely contain the greedy delight she felt in being able to torture Lara.
Lara could see it, feel it all. The loathing that Bellatrix felt for her ran so deep that it would have painted the skies black with its dark intensity. The woman hated her; wanted nothing more than to peel her skin off with just her fingernails and then rip out her organs and bones one piece at a time. It was amazing that Bellatrix had not already attempted to kill her, but Lara knew that however insane Bellatrix might be, the woman was not stupid. Bellatrix would never openly defy the Dark Lord, but the itch to kill was still there.
That itch was always there.
It was jealousy that had done it. Bellatrix was jealous of Lara, jealous because for years it had been she, Bellatrix Lestrange, who had served as Voldemort's right-hand woman. There was no one more important to the Dark Lord than her-save her nephew-and Voldemort had given her the honour of training Draco. He had trusted her with all his most important tasks and secrets, and had given her the honour of being his personal torturer for those servants who had displeased him. He had needed her, but then Lara had come along with all her special powers and Bellatrix had found herself thrust to the side. No more did the Dark Lord call upon her, no more did he confide in her. She had become second best, almost unnecessary.
Bellatrix raised her wand to fire another curse, her expression oozing with years of pent up hate. Lara knew she would be lucky to make it out of this unscathed.
"That's enough, Bella," said Voldemort, stepping out from the shadows. "Her mind is far too precious for you to damage."
Bellatrix lowered her wand obediently, though her eyes continued to glare at Lara with sadistic promises of pain.
Voldemort moved forwards and stopped before the brunette kneeling on the ground. "You have failed me, Lara."
It was a speech that Lara had heard him give many times to his Death Eaters when they had displeased him. This was the first time it had been directed at her.
She had always thought herself as clever, far cleverer than him. It had been so easy to gain his favour, so easy to remain confident even under the face of his suspicions and paranoia. She had skirted and deferred his displeasure, using her powers to protect her own thoughts and plans, but she had not been prepared for this. She had never thought that she could actually fail.
"I am sorry, my lord," said Lara meekly. "It will not happen again."
There was nothing else she could say. She could already sense that he would not listen to her explanations.
"Being sorry does not change the fact that you almost caused Potter and the girl to be taken by Dissenters!" spat Bellatrix, her hooded eyes wild with hate. "Everything could have been lost because you failed to do your job!"
"Bella is right," said Voldemort, smiling rather nastily. "Your failure to recognise what was going to happen could have been catastrophic to our plans. To lose Potter is one thing, but to lose the girl is unforgivable. She holds the child that will give me the greatest power the world has ever seen. Because of you, I almost lost that."
Lara's eyes flashed. "What would you have me do? I told you it was dangerous to ask me to follow too many things at once. I can't sense everything; I'm not that powerful."
"Then what use are you?"
Her heart leapt in her chest as she felt the equilibrium of her own life begin to destabilise. Things had suddenly become desperate.
She stood up from her knees, head held high. "Was I not the one who told you who Ginevra was and what her powers had the potential to do? Did I not tell you that you had simply to force Ginevra to offer herself to Draco to ensure their having a child together? Was I not the one who helped you find the Order's base in the first place so that you could even get Potter and Ginevra to bring them here?"
Voldemort considered her through his crimson eyes. His expression was unreadable, even for her. She felt a moment of panic as the feeling of impending death became stronger, but then his lips curved ever so slightly into a smile.
"Indeed, you were."
Immediately, Lara felt the threat lift as the equilibrium surrounding her life fell back into place.
Voldemort's eyes flicked to Bellatrix. "I am sorry, my dear, it seems that you will not get to kill our friend Lara today, after all."
Bellatrix's disappointment could not have been any more obvious.
"That being said," continued Voldemort, turning his attention back to the brunette. "Another mistake like this, Lara, and I will have no further use for you. I'm sure you don't need your little powers to figure out what will happen then."
"I understand."
"Good."
His lips curved up briefly into a chilling smile, and then he strolled out of the room; Bellatrix trailing behind him like a fawning dog shadowing her master's footsteps.
Lara waited until the door had shut behind them before allowing a small frown to pass across her lips. She needed to think, and she needed to think fast. Tomorrow she would be going to the manor with the Dark Lord, and she knew that he was sure to discover through Draco that there was a traitor in his ranks and would wonder why she had not told him of this fact earlier.
Her eyes stared down at the dark mark burned onto her forearm. It was the brand of a Death Eater, the sign that proclaimed her allegiance to Voldemort, as well as his ownership over her body. Only those of the inner circle actually received the mark; the ones who had proved that they were worthy enough to be considered his most trusted servants.
Lara's lips curled into a twisted smile. She allowed her sleeve to cover the tattoo on her arm and then moved towards the bed. The candle flickered beside her, spluttering and crackling as it desperately tried to cling to life. One, soft breath extinguished the flame.
And then there was darkness.
OOOO
Draco opened his eyes slowly. He sat up, automatically stretching to ease the stiffness out of his neck and shoulders. The sun was streaming in through the closed curtains, giving enough light for him to see the young woman still sleeping soundly in the bed, her long, red hair surrounding her face like a burning halo.
He stood up from the couch and walked over to the bed. Ginny made a sleepy noise and rolled over towards him, a few strands of her hair slipping to caress her face.
There was something absurdly youthful about her appearance in that moment, something so open and innocent. She looked peaceful, and yet, at the same time, he had never seen her look so vulnerable. It made him feel strange.
Tearing his eyes away from the sleeping redhead, he frowned and ran an agitated hand through his hair. What was he even doing here? He was the most feared and ruthless Death Eater in all of Voldemort's army, and yet he had willingly slept on the couch to play watchdog for a silly girl so that she wouldn't be frightened of boogiemen. He had even kept his promise to stay with her the whole night. It was ridiculous.
Ginny shifted again in the bed. He turned to see her eyes slowly open, revealing the hidden brown beneath the closed lids. For a moment they just stared at each other, and then a slow smile began to spread across her features.
"You stayed," she said softly.
She looked so pleased, so warm and affectionate in that moment. It wasn't right. It wasn't normal.
Something snapped inside him.
"Don't get carried away with yourself, Ginevra," he spat harshly. "I only stayed to stop your whingeing so that I could actually get some sleep. I couldn't care less about your silly fears of being alone."
Ginny's smile faltered. Her eyes flashed with sudden frustration. "Why do you always have to be this way?" she demanded, slamming her hand down on the blankets.
Draco frowned at her outburst. What in Merlin's name was she going on about now?
"My gosh, you don't even realise that you do it, do you?"
"Do what?"
"What you're doing right now!" she exclaimed heatedly. "As soon as I feel like I'm making any progress with you, you suddenly turn into this heartless bastard and try to make me hate you again! Why can't you just be normal for once? Why can't you just drop the bastard act and let me see you?"
Draco's eyes hardened until they were like two chips of ice. "This isn't an act, Ginevra. This is who I am. I'm not secretly hiding a soft side under an icy exterior, or whatever nonsense it is that your romantic little brain has come up with. I am cruel, I am heartless, and you're right, I am a bastard."
Ginny shook her head. "But you're not. I know there's more to you than this."
He let out a harsh laugh. "Oh? Like what? Do enlighten me on this secret side of myself that only you seem to be able to see."
"You mock me now, but you must feel it. You must feel the change." She slid off the bed and walked towards him, her eyes staring searchingly up into his. "You can't honestly tell me that you stayed with me last night simply because you wanted me to stop pestering you."
"Can't I?" A sneer twisted his features. "Don't flatter yourself, Ginevra. I meant what I said."
"I don't believe you."
"That's because you want to delude yourself into thinking that I'm something that I'm not."
"That's not true."
"Isn't it?"
Ginny averted her face, unable to meet his eyes when they were staring so piercingly into her own. Draco closed the distance between them and reached out to take her chin lightly in his hand. He guided her face back up towards his so that she had no choice but to look at him.
"You wish to believe that I'm nice deep down so that it doesn't seem so wrong for you to want me," he answered for her, his voice lowering to the caressing tones of velvet. "But you do want me, Ginevra, and we both know that it has nothing to do with my being secretly good."
Her eyes widened, whether out of surprise that he had read her thoughts so easily, or from the simple fact that he had finally acknowledged her desire for him.
She licked her lips nervously, unsure now what to say or do. Draco had to repress a smile. She really was so very easy to read.
Letting his fingers trail slowly down her neck, he leaned in close and had the distinct satisfaction of hearing her breath hitch at his sudden proximity. His eyes stared deep into hers, his hand travelling lower, until he could feel the flutter of her heart under his fingertips.
"Don't," she whispered, her eyes torn between desire and panic.
Draco raised a mocking eyebrow at her plea, and slipped his hand underneath the silk of her nightdress to tease her swollen breast. "Don't what?" he taunted, even though his own body was racing with excitement at what he was doing.
She gasped, her breath quickening at his touch. "Don't do this."
He ignored her feeble protest and leaned in to place an open-mouthed kiss on her neck, revelling in the sweet taste of her skin.
"I thought this is what you wanted?" he whispered huskily, now trailing his lips up to her ear.
"I-" She swallowed, hard. "Not like this."
"Don't be coy," he murmured, bringing his face back around so that he could stare into her eyes. "If you really wanted me to stop, you would have pushed me away by now, but you don't want me to stop, do you, Ginevra?"
Crimson stained her cheeks.
He smiled at that-if a little cruelly-and leaned in so that his lips were hovering just inches from her own. There he paused, long enough to take satisfaction in the shaky breath that escaped her lips, and see the way her eyelashes fluttered with anticipation before lowering to veil the brown of her eyes.
Another smile, and then he closed the small gap between them.
Her lips were just as soft as he had remembered them, completely yielding to his own. He deepened the kiss, his hand moving up from her breast to tangle in her hair, and then he had her backed up against the wall, control fast slipping as the old desire ignited inside him.
Everything was fire; everything throbbing with an overwhelming, intoxicating heat. He gripped her hip with his free hand, fingers digging into her skin, his mouth moving with hers in a way that would have made any chaste-minded person blush. She was so warm; so soft. He had to immerse himself in her, but then a low moan escaped her lips, snapping him back to his senses, and he was suddenly reminded of why he had kissed her in the first place.
Draco abruptly pulled back, triumph and something far more malicious glinting in his eyes.
"Well," he observed, noting the way the strap of her nightdress had slipped down to reveal a bit more of her breast than was decent, as well as the flush blossoming on her cheeks. "I think that just answered my question."
Ginny's eyes flashed as she suddenly realised what he had done. "You're sick," she said in disgust, dragging her strap back up to cover herself, her cheeks now burning with a mixture of shame and anger.
Silver danced with wicked humour. "At least you're finally starting to get it into that pretty head of yours that I'm not your golden hero."
"Is that why you did this?" she demanded angrily. "To prove your point?"
Draco simply raised an eyebrow at her, as if to ask how she could have expected anything less from him. Her chin lifted, and then there was a loud slap as her hand collided with his cheek.
"How dare you!" she spat, breathing heavily now. "You-you bastard!"
His hand instinctively rose to touch his stinging cheek. For a moment he looked like he was going to lash out at her for daring to hit him, but then he just started to laugh.
Ginny glared at him, face red with anger, but this only succeeded in making him laugh even more. It was too precious seeing her so outraged at his having proved that he was nothing more than the bastard she had refused to believe he could be. The girl really was so naïve.
And yet, as he stared into her eyes, seeing the hurt reflected in those brown depths, he felt just the smallest prickle of guilt.
It had been a malicious action on his part, a way to punish her for even daring to suggest that he was not the man that he professed himself to be. Violence and cruel words would not have been enough to let the lesson sink in. He had needed to truly hurt her, to humiliate her in such a way as to make her loathe him entirely.
But looking into her eyes now, the laughter dying on his lips, he couldn't help but wonder if he had taken things too far. There was no denying that he didn't find the irony of her situation amusing, nor could he say that he did not glory in her humiliation. It was cruel of him, perhaps, but then that was the point, wasn't it?
Wasn't it?
Ginny continued to glower at him, still with that same guilt-inspiring quality to her eyes. Draco suddenly realised where he had seen that expression before. It was the same look his mother gave when she was disappointed with him; the same that had always made him feel like he was breaking her heart. Seeing it in Ginny's eyes made the expression take on a whole new meaning.
He folded his arms, feeling suddenly defensive. "What?" he snapped. "You know what I am, so don't look at me like I've somehow crushed your heart. You were the one who fooled yourself and let me take advantage of you."
She shook her head, disbelief and frustration etched into her face.
"You just don't get it, do you?"
"Get what?"
"Forget it," she muttered. "I can see that I'm wasting my time."
She made to leave, but his hand shot out and latched around her wrist, pulling her to an abrupt halt.
"Don't walk away from me when I'm talking to you, Ginevra. We're not finished here."
"Let me go!" she spat, trying to wrench her wrist free.
He was still struggling to restrain her when the door opened and Lara walked into the room.
"Am I interrupting something?" asked Lara in an amused voice, her eyes quick to take in their dishevelled appearances, as well as the hand still closed tight around Ginny's wrist.
"Lara," exclaimed Draco, quickly releasing Ginny's wrist. "I wasn't expecting you so early."
"Clearly."
He frowned. "Where's the Dark Lord? I thought he was supposed to be coming with you."
"He'll be here later. I have some things I want to discuss with you first. Alone," she added, giving a pointed glance at Ginny.
Ginny didn't need telling twice and stalked out of the room, making a point to slam the door shut behind her.
"She seems rather angry," observed Lara. "What did you do?"
"That's none of your business."
"Oh?" Lara stared at him for a moment, and then her lips curved up into a knowing smile. "I see."
Draco scowled. It was impossible to keep Lara out of his head, and not for lack of trying. No amount of skill at occluding could stop her powers from slipping under his barriers to sense what he was feeling. It was one of the things he hated most about her. He liked his privacy, thank you very much, and did not appreciate the way she ignored this fact.
"What do you want, Lara?" he asked warily.
"I need you to do something for me."
"What?"
"Don't tell the Dark Lord about the traitor in the inner circle."
A crease formed on his brow. "Why not?"
"Because the Dark Lord isn't feeling very charitable towards me right now after last night, and I don't think he would appreciate the fact that I didn't tell him of this traitor earlier."
"And why didn't you tell him of the traitor earlier? Isn't that your job, Lara? To sense all threats to the Dark Lord's plans and inform him of them?"
"I didn't know about the traitor until you told me. I must have missed it when the betrayal first happened."
"You seem to be missing a lot of things lately."
"It's not that easy, all right?" exclaimed Lara irritably. "Do you have any idea how many Death Eaters want the Dark Lord dead so that they can take his place? They all hate him, Draco-even you. Trying to single out one person amongst that is like trying to find a stone in muddy water. You can't see it just by glancing at the surface. You have to search deep, and with everything else going on, I haven't been able to focus enough to do that."
"Well, surely you must be able to find out who the traitor is now?"
Lara shook her head. "My powers work based on feelings. I can't just close my eyes and get a picture of the traitor. I have to feel their identity, and that takes time; time I won't have if you tell the Dark Lord that I failed to recognise a traitor in his ranks."
He stared at her suspiciously. "Why should I believe you? Because of your habit of 'missing things', Ginevra and Potter were almost taken last night. For all I know, you could be the traitor and are now just trying to protect yourself by asking for my silence."
She laughed. "Don't be absurd, Draco."
"Absurd? I'll tell you what's absurd. Last night two Dissenters, who had been planning their mission for weeks, managed to not only infiltrate the manor, but also very nearly succeeded in kidnapping my prisoners from right under my nose. It's by mere chance that Ginevra and Potter are still here." His eyes narrowed coldly. "Now you tell me how you, with all of your powers, failed to notice that something as major as this was coming."
"Believe me, I've been asking myself that same question, and I wish I could give a better explanation as to why I didn't, but I can't. I just didn't sense it. I'm human, Draco. I make mistakes."
"You expect me to believe that after you've just been telling me not to tell the Dark Lord that he has a traitor in his ranks?"
"I know it looks suspicious, but you just have to trust me with this."
Draco leaned forward, looking her straight in the eye. "Give me one good reason why I should do this for you."
Lara met his gaze unflinchingly. "When have I ever led you wrong before? Without me, you would be dead right now, and you know it." Her eyes took on a more earnest expression. "I need you to do this for me, Draco. I saved your life-the least you can do is return the favour."
Draco was torn. A part of him wanted to believe that she was telling the truth, but he couldn't ignore that niggling feeling which cautioned against trusting her too much. It was hard to trust a woman whose mind was completely impenetrable to all forms of legimency, and he didn't need to have sensing powers to know that there was far more to her than she let on.
He could still remember the day she had first came to them. He had been nineteen then, still fresh in his role as battle strategist for the Dark Lord, and had just been going to show his master a plan for their next attack. The door had opened before he could knock, and both Lara and Voldemort had exited the room. The Dark Lord hadn't paid any attention to him at first, too pleased with his newly acquired servant, but Lara had seen him. Her eyes had locked on him as soon as she had passed through the door, a knowing look creeping into the blue, as if he had been the one that she was looking for all along.
In that moment, as he had stared into those electric-blue eyes, Draco had known that this was a woman who just knew things. If Mona Lisa could claim to hold the secrets of the world in her smile, it was Lara who held the secrets of the world in her eyes. She knew too much and revealed too little, and in that she was dangerous.
But she had helped him-that he could not deny. She had warned him of danger countless times, and had just recently told him of the Dark Lord's change of feeling towards him to protect him from behaving too rashly and incurring his master's wrath. Then, too, there was the fact that she had become a sort of friend to him over the years, though he was not quite sure how that had happened...
And now here she was asking him to lie for her to the Dark Lord so that she could be protected. She wanted him to pretend that there was no traitor because she had failed to notice there was one; because she had already slipped up and was now in danger of losing her life as a consequence.
Lara closed her fingers over his. "Trust me, Draco."
He stared into her eyes, eyes that still held too many secrets for his comfort. Slowly, he let out a breath. "This had better be worth it, Lara".
A smile pulled at her lips. "It is."
OOOO
Ginny was sitting on the bed in her old room when Narcissa found her later that day. If it weren't for the telling red rimming the younger woman's eyes, one would never have known that she had been upset. She seemed perfectly calm, if a little listless.
"You've been crying," observed Narcissa. Her eyes took in the shards of glass scattering the floor. "And, it seems, throwing my vases."
Ginny averted her face, her eyes narrowing just a fraction. "What do you want?"
"The Dark Lord will be arriving shortly. He wants to speak to all of us, including you. We'll be greeting him in the parlour."
"Fine," huffed the younger girl, standing up to walk towards the door.
Narcissa placed a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong, Ginevra?"
"Nothing," snapped Ginny, shaking off Narcissa's hand. "Everything is perfectly fine."
She made to leave again.
"Was it my son?"
Ginny froze.
A sigh escaped the blonde. "Tell me."
Ginny closed her eyes, holding back the tears that threatened to escape. She didn't want to think about it anymore, though even trying not to think of it made everything that had happened that morning replay before her mind. She could not forget the way he had kissed her, the way he had touched her, but that was nothing to the hurt she felt in knowing that he had only done it so that he could prove his point.
She had thought he was finally softening towards her. She had thought that last night they had somehow breached the boundary of prisoner and captor and had closed the gulf between them. He had held her so protectively in his arms, had soothed her fears so easily, and he had stayed for her. It was more than what she could have ever expected from him, and she, in her foolishness, had thought that it meant something.
But he had thrown it all back in her face. He had mocked her; humiliated her; had cruelly used her own feelings for him against her. It hurt so much-much more than it should have, given the situation. It was only natural to feel angry at his vindictiveness, but she had never known that it would cause such a deep pain inside her, as if her heart was somehow being squeezed with invisible fingers that only tightened the more she protested that it was too much for her to bear.
She should have known better. She should have remembered what he was like and what he always had been, but she had caught those glimpses of kindness in him and had refused to believe that they could mean nothing. She had clung to those moments, clung to them with all her might, and now she had her reward: a punctured heart that refused to be healed.
And yet, perhaps the most hurtful thing of all, the one thing that truly crushed her, was that she knew it had been a lie. He had wanted to prove a point, but in the end he had only proven hers. There was no deceit in his kiss, no lie in his touch. No one could fake something like that, not even him. It had all been an act of retaliation, a defence mechanism to keep her out, and it hurt; hurt, because she realised now that he would never change. He would just keep on lashing out at her, and she would remain helpless to his power and cruelty; for nothing, not even the pain he had made her feel today, could stop the sick fascination she felt for him.
Arms suddenly closed around her. For the second time in her life, Ginny found herself being hugged by Narcissa Malfoy.
"I'm sorry," murmured Narcissa. "I'm sorry that he hurt you."
Tears stung at Ginny's eyes. She buried her face into the older woman's shoulder, wishing more than ever that she could just escape from this place and the man who had made her life so difficult. She just wished it would stop. She wished that she didn't have to feel this way about him. She hated him, hated him with every fibre of her being, but she also couldn't deny that there was a part of her that longed for him. It wasn't until today that she realised just how deep that attraction went.
Narcissa pulled Ginny closer, surrounding her in a cocoon of motherly protection and warmth. She didn't speak, but then there really was no need to. Her actions said all that was needed. No one knew more than Narcissa how cruel Draco could be to those who cared for him. It was enough just to show that she understood.
Ginny wasn't sure how long they stood like that, but after some time Narcissa gently pulled away.
"We should go. The Dark Lord will be here by now."
Ginny nodded, quickly wiping the tears off her cheeks, and followed Narcissa out of the room. They walked down the lonely corridors and then entered the parlour together. As expected, Voldemort and Lara were all ready there.
Voldemort broke off mid-conversation and turned to look at them. "Ah," he said smoothly, "so glad you could finally join us."
Narcissa said something in reply, but Ginny wasn't listening. She was staring at Draco, frustration and longing clawing at her chest. It wasn't fair that he should be so detached while she was forced to suffer like this. It wasn't fair that he was allowed to be so achingly beautiful when his heart was so ugly. It just wasn't fair...
His eyes locked on hers. She felt like someone had punctured a hole in her lungs. The air seemed to vanish inside her, the pain in her chest growing. She wanted to yell at him, scream at him, but her mouth remained shut. She could only stare, caught by the power of those cold grey eyes.
Draco turned his face back to his master, but Ginny continued to watch him long afterwards. She barely heard them discussing what they were going to do about the Dissenters and whether it would be safe to keep her and Harry still at the manor. She didn't care when Voldemort started probing her stomach, checking to make sure that the baby was still healthy and unharmed from last night's adventures. She was completely lost to her own thoughts.
"I believe that is all we needed to discuss?" said Lara, giving a questioning glance at her master.
"Yes, though there is something that has been bothering me." His eyes narrowed on Draco. "How did the Dissenters know that both Potter and Ginevra were at the manor?"
"I don't know, my lord," responded Draco smoothly, causing Ginny's eyes to snap up in surprise. "I'm afraid that they made it impossible for me to spare either of them so that we could get any information."
He'd lied. Why had he lied?
"Hrm," said Voldemort, twisting his lips in thought as he stared piercingly into Draco's grey eyes. "That's funny. Someone here doesn't agree with you."
Ginny saw the way Draco paled ever so slightly, saw the way Lara's eyes widened in open alarm, and then Voldemort was smiling at her; smiling in a way that made goosebumps shiver up and down her arms.
"Come here, Ginevra," he ordered gently.
Ginny obediently walked forward. There was nothing else that she could do.
Voldemort took her chin in his hands and tilted her face up towards his. She felt his crimson eyes searching her own, felt the faint prickles of his presence touching at her mind. He was using legimency on her. With that realisation came the sudden urge to hide whatever it was that he was looking for.
Ginny had never learnt occlumency before, but somehow she just knew what to do. She pushed all thoughts of the Dissenters to the back of her mind, covering them with thoughts of her family, and then set up a wall of emotion that allowed Voldemort to see only her fear and confusion. He tried to push through her barriers, sliding up along the wall she had created to search for any cracks or weak points, but there was nothing for him to find.
Voldemort left her mind, his eyes narrowing just a fraction. "I see you've learnt to block your mind. No matter, I saw enough to know that young Malfoy was lying to me."
He thrust her away from him, sending her straight into Lara's arms-who immediately caught her and steadied her-and then turned to the impassive blond.
"Well, Draco, it seems that there's something you're not wanting to tell me about the Dissenters. Now why would that be?"
Draco's jaw clenched.
Voldemort moved closer, calmly bringing out his wand from his robe. "Come now, Draco. You don't want to displease your lord."
The blond looked past his master, past Ginny's bewildered gaze, and met Lara's eyes. Ginny could feel Lara tense behind her. There was a moment where the two Death Eaters just stared at each other, as if having some kind of telepathic exchange, and then Draco turned his eyes back to his master. He gracefully knelt down on the ground and lowered his head into a subdued bow.
"Forgive me, my lord. You are right, I did lie, but it was only because I failed to get any information out of the Dissenter that I had caught." He raised his face, his expression one of complete contrition. "I was ashamed, my lord, and in my weakness I lied, hoping that you would not learn of my failure."
"Is that so?"
Draco nodded. Ginny was amazed at how genuine he appeared to be. If she didn't already know the truth, she herself would have been fooled by the sincerity he seemed to surround himself with.
Voldemort's lips curled up into a nasty smile. "A pity."
Everyone knew what was coming next, but that didn't stop Ginny from flinching when she heard the sharp gasp that escaped the blond's lips as he was struck by the cruciatus curse. She could see him struggling to contain himself, to not show his pain, but all too soon beads of sweat were gathering on his brow, and his face began to twitch in a horrible, sickening way.
It was unbearable to watch. She couldn't stand it. She couldn't stand seeing him like this.
Her eyes darted to Narcissa, but the woman seemed to have become like stone. Lara was still tense behind her, but she, too, seemed to have been struck frozen and made no effort to stop the sickening torture going on before them.
Ginny looked back at the man on the floor, watching the strength slowly sap away from his body. He was leaning forward now, gasping and groaning openly in his pain. Voldemort seemed irritated that Draco had not screamed yet and intensified the curse.
She couldn't take it anymore. Her eyes squeezed shut, trying to block out the torture going on before her, but that did nothing to block out his groans of agony. Tears slipped down her cheeks, her heart aching in her chest. It had to stop.
It had to stop now.
Ginny stepped forward. "Stop it! Please, just stop it!"
Draco's head snapped up at the sound of her voice. He stared at her incredulously, confusion and anger flashing in his eyes.
"Don't interfere, Ginevra," said Lara quickly, reaching out to pull her back.
"No, Lara," said Voldemort, red eyes gleaming unpleasantly. "I think our dear, little Ginevra is upset that I'm punishing young Malfoy here. By all means, child, go on."
Ginny licked her lips nervously. She hadn't meant to call out. It had just happened. She hadn't even known what she had been doing. All she had known was that she couldn't handle just standing there and watching him suffer like that.
"Don't be shy," taunted Voldemort. "I'm very interested to see what you have to say."
"I…"
"Yes?" he prompted.
She swallowed, her eyes falling back to Draco. He was glaring openly at her now. It was obvious that he wanted nothing more than to yell at her, but he didn't dare say anything with Voldemort right there.
"I just," she began again, hesitant now.
What was she supposed to say? She couldn't very well tell the Dark Lord that she wanted him to stop because she fancied her captor and didn't like to see him hurt, not to mention the fact that she knew it was an unjust punishment that he was receiving. She didn't understand why Draco had lied to his master about the Dissenters, but she did know that it was not his fault that he was being cursed now.
Lara caught her gaze and very slowly shook her head.
Ginny wasn't quite sure what Lara had meant by that, but she understood that telling the full truth was out of the question.
She turned her eyes back to the waxy-faced man before her. "I just…don't like watching people being tortured."
Voldemort's eyebrow-or what was left of it-lifted slightly. "You just don't like seeing people tortured?" he repeated, seeming to find this amusing. "How quaint."
Ginny felt her cheeks warm. She knew she would be blushing.
He considered her for a moment through his red eyes, a slight smile curling his lips. Then he turned to Draco, who was still kneeling on the floor.
"You're in luck, young Malfoy. It seems that your little prisoner is offended by my methods. She's even crying for you."
Ginny quickly wiped away the traitor tears on her cheeks. Voldemort just laughed.
"Oh, don't be ashamed, my dear. It does your Gryffindor heart great justice. You people always were too noble for your own good."
Ginny didn't know what to say to that and so said nothing.
Voldemort turned back to Draco, all smiles vanishing as his eyes took on their nightmare gleam. "I have shown you mercy tonight. Do not disappoint me again."
"Yes, my lord," Draco gritted out with forced respect.
Voldemort glanced at Lara. "Finish up here. I'm heading back to headquarters."
Lara bowed dutifully to show that she understood.
Ginny was pleased when Voldemort finally left the room, though it was a while before anyone spoke. She knew that they, just like her, were afraid he would somehow know if they said anything potentially treacherous while he was still on the premises.
Draco slowly got to his feet, wincing slightly from the lingering effects of the curse. Lara was immediately beside him.
"Are you all right?"
He gave a wry smile. "I'll live."
"I'm sorry, Draco. I didn't realise that this would happen," said Lara, looking truly remorseful. "I should have realised that he would be able to see the truth in Ginevra's mind."
"You should have, of course, but it makes no difference. He never discovered the full truth."
"You're right." Lara smiled, her eyes flicking towards Ginny. "Thank you for doing that for us, Ginevra."
"What I want to know," interposed Narcissa, speaking for the first time since her son had been cursed, "is why Draco had to lie in the first place."
Draco and Lara exchanged glances.
"That was my fault," confessed Lara. "Draco was only trying to protect me."
Ginny felt something hot surge through her blood. Was it jealousy? Jealousy of Lara?
She didn't pay much attention to the rest of the conversation, too absorbed in her own thoughts, and so didn't realise when Draco moved towards her.
"Why did you interfere?"
Ginny jumped, her eyes wildly searching for the source of his voice, and almost jumped again when she realised that he was standing right next to her.
"I-what?"
His eyes narrowed. "You heard me. Why did you tell the Dark Lord to stop?"
She flushed. "You heard my answer. I just don't like seeing people tortured."
And it was true. She really didn't, though she was not delusional enough to not know that there was far more to it than that.
Apparently, he wasn't as well.
"Never do that again, Ginevra," he ordered in a low, threatening voice. "Do you hear me? Never do that again."
"I'm sorry. I just didn't think."
"Of course, you didn't. You never think. That's your problem. You're too impulsive for your own good, and one of these days that impulsiveness is going to get you killed-that is if you don't kill us both with your stupidity before then. Do you have any idea what would have happened if the Dark Lord had realised why you really called out like that?"
Her eyes flashed with embarrassment and hurt, but there was anger too.
"What difference does it make?" she retorted. "Whether I'm killed now or three weeks later, I'm already dead, or have you forgotten about why I'm really here?"
Draco's expression changed so quickly that she wasn't sure it had happened at all, but she was almost certain that she had seen a flicker of distress pass over his face.
"Three weeks?"
"Maybe four. I don't know." She shrugged. "The baby is growing a lot faster than expected."
His eyes fell to her stomach. He absently ran a hand over the bump, an unreadable expression on his face. "It's really going to happen, then," he murmured more to himself.
Ginny wished he wouldn't touch her like that. She had almost forgotten everything that had occurred between them that morning in the excitement of what had happened, but everything was rushing back to her now.
She took a step back from him, breaking the contact. "Don't touch me."
Draco's eyes snapped back up to hers, a different kind of unreadable expression coming to his face now. They stared at each other, both knowing that there was still so much that had been left unsaid between them. Then he simply turned and walked away.
Ginny let out a breath as she stared at his retreating form. He did not look back.
A/N: Sorry for the typos, etc. Haven't had much sleep.
In any case, your feedback on this chapter would be much appreciated. As much as I dislike sounding like one of those authors who demand reviews, I do find it very helpful in terms of getting motivation and inspiration to read your thoughts and impressions. As this fic has been driving me nuts lately, you really would be making my day by taking the time to write a review.
Just think, it takes me over 24 hours to write a chapter. It takes you less than 5 minutes to write a review. I think you're getting the better end of the deal here. :P
Once again, you have my promise that I will try update the next chapter ASAP, but, as it is a busy time for me at university, I sadly cannot make any promises that it will be as soon as you all would hope.