In Good Times And In Bad Times
Disclaimer: It’s not mine. It’s J.K.’s. Got it?
Chapter 2 - Voldemort
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"Welcome," Voldemort hissed, "Good job, Draco. I knew you had it in you. Ahhh, Miss Weasley." He rose from his chair and walked toward them. "Quite the little Auror now, aren’t we." He ran a long bony finger down her cheek. "Given us a lot of trouble, you have."
"Get your dirty fingers off me!" Ginny spat, disgusted, "You’re horrible. And now you don’t even do your own dirty work for yourself. You have to get people like him to do the work while you lie around and let them worship you."
"They have no brains for themselves, you brainwash them to do your each and every bidding. Sick, that’s what you are." She shot a look at Draco Malfoy, who was still holding on to her arm.
"Let. Me. Go!"
"You have spirit. I like that in a woman. Draco, let her go." Draco looked puzzled, but did as he was told.
"Don’t worry, Ginny. You remember me, don’t you. Your friend, Tom Riddle. You remember confiding in me, don’t you. You remember the diary, and the Chamber." They were not questions, they were facts. She remembered, and they both knew that. They both knew that she would never forget that time ... it was kept deep inside her, all the memories, all the terror, all the hate. But his haunting tone of voice brought it to surface, and she was once again Ginny Weasley, the eleven year old, the first year, the shy, scared, lonely girl. Ginny Weasley the Auror, brave, clever, spunky ... she was momentarily gone. But Ginny, in all her dread, managed to bring her mouth to open and words to emerge.
"What do you want with me?"
"I knew you’d ask that. Ginny, you are a powerful witch. I need you in my team. Join me."
"Never, in this life, nor the next. Ever."
"Ah, but think of the authority, the recognition, the power. You’ll be known forever as the Weasley who made it. You would be Ginny Weasley, strongest of the one and only Voldemort’s workers. The Light side can do nothing for you. Look around," he gestured with his arms, "and see. Open your eyes. This is power. We have the upper hand. We have the control. The Ministry send meagre forces to try to overpower us, but we are strong. We are the fortress, the stronghold, and we will never fall! This is power!" He screamed, waving his hands. He looked insane, but the Death Eaters clapped and bowed down.
But that had the opposite effect on Ginny. It woke her up from her stupor but her eyes did open. And they caught Draco Malfoy’s. In his cold gray eyes she looked. And deep, deep inside them she saw emotion. Fear, hatred, anger, it could have been any. But she couldn’t see any joy of what he was, had become. Eyes were the windows to the soul, so she heard. If that was so, then there was more to Draco Malfoy than she ever thought. In that one fleeting second, she felt she understood and knew more about him, than in all her six years in Hogwarts together with him. She wondered what he saw in her eyes. He looked away.
"You will fall," her words were soft, but strong. "Your time will come. Each of our lives are planned out by someone better than us all. Always in life there will be a better person than you, a stronger, a more powerful. A kinder, a cleverer, a worse evil. You can’t be the best, no one can. Your time will come, and you will be paid back for every person ...Muggle or magical ... you have ever hurt in any way. By death, by hurt, by pain. You will suffer a thousand, a million times over. And I will laugh, even if I am dead. Even in my grave I will rejoice, and I will laugh." There was silence. She could practically hear the thoughts of the Death Eaters around her. "Well," she thought, "even if I die, at least I’ll know that I made them think. Made them ponder a different life."
Suddenly there was a laugh. A loud, strong, evil laugh. Voldemort’s laugh. "He’s insane," Ginny thought wildly. "He’s mad, he’s power crazed. He’ll kill me." It then stopped suddenly.
"You don’t seem to understand words, Miss Weasley. Perhaps actions will better convey my message." His cutting voice sent shivers up her spine.
"Crucio."
She heard it before she felt any pain. In a daze, she waited for the pain she knew would come. But she felt nothing. "Why?" she wondered. But her train of thought was cut off suddenly. Pain. Finally. It hurt physically as well as emotionally. Tears surfaced, but she bit her tongue to keep from crying out. Knives were being driven into her heart, into her soul. She remembered nightmares, she was being scorned. She was being ripped apart; she was torn, leaving nothing but an empty shell. She was being cut part by part, then needles were used to mend her, causing more pain. She never, in all her wildest dreams and nightmares, imagined pain this bad. She was about to surrender to it, to cry out, when it stopped. She slumped to the ground.
"Understand?" She just stared blankly.
"Draco." His head snapped up in attention.
"Yes?"
"Take Miss Weasley to your home. Treat her as your guest. I will visit shortly. If she is hurt in anyway, I will hold you responsible. Make sure she is happy. Do you understand me?"
"Yes Master."
"Good. We go now." He nodded and Disapparated, prompting the other Death Eaters to follow. They all left, except for one.
"Draco? Are you all right?" So it was a woman. His girlfriend, perhaps.
"I’m fine, Pansy. You better go. Crabbe will be wondering about you."
"Keep well, Draco." Dhe rested a hand on his shoulder before Disapparating as well, leaving Draco and Ginny alone.
Draco held out a hand. Ginny looked cautiously at it and was about to push him away when she remembered the look in his eyes before. She put her hand in his. He looked somewhat surprised and smiled vaguely. Ginny felt a twist inside. "No," she told herself sternly. "Not now, and not Draco Malfoy." But she felt faintly better as he pulled her up gently.
"Hold on," he told her. Ginny grasped his hand tightly and they disappeared.
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A/N: Sorry about the long wait. I was rather busy. Please review, and thank you sincerely to all those who did. They really do help me write faster. Thanks also to Fiona, who kept on annoying me until I wrote! Much much thanks to you all!
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