The Dragon's Rose ...
chapter eight :: because the helium balloon didn't fly
...
Hermione, Ron, Dumbledore, McGonagall and Snape were gathered outside the door to Salazar's study again. Hermione was thumbing through a fat book, while the others waited patiently.
"It says it will open again in less than a minute. Get ready, Ron." She said, and Ron, in his wheelchair, nodded.
McGonagall sighed, her hands in tight fists at her sides. Her knuckles were white with tension.
"Do you still have the key Minerva gave you, Ronald?" Dumbledore asked, quietly, and Ron nodded. "It never left my pocket." He assured him, and showed him the little silver key.
Dumbledore nodded. "Good. Now listen up. Be prepared for whatever awaits you. The scene that welcomes you may not be pleasant, but you cannot freeze. Be prepared, Hermione, Ron."
The two nodded, and Hermione whispered to herself.
"Constant vigilance."
...
Inside of Salazar's dungeon, Voldemort was laughing at the forlorn Ginny, who had cast herself at his feet, crying for him to take her instead of Draco.
"Foolish girl!" He shouted, "I need a body, and I am not going to be you, worthless wench!"
Ginny sobbed onto the cold stone floor, and Harry went to her side.
"Why are you wearing a sheet?" He asked, puzzled, as he helped her up. Ginny gathered the sheet closer to her as they stood up.
"Long story." She whispered.
Draco writhed in his bonds. "God, could I at least get a loincloth or something? I really don't enjoy being tied to a table naked."
Lucius snorted, but pulled the napkin that was covering the crystal ball off, and placed it carefully over his son.
Draco looked at the orb with unveiled interest, and when he saw a vision of himself tied to the table in it, he gasped.
"You've been spying on me!!" He exclaimed, anger boiling his blood.
Ginny and Harry raised eyebrows, and Voldemort rolled his eyes as everyone stared at Lucius; who sneered and crossed his arms.
"What do you expect? How can I help it, I must be sure you aren't fucking trash like her, or plotting with goody-two-shoe-hero's like him. You're a Malfoy, damn it, I was hoping you'd carry on our name honorably."
Draco's eyes went wide. "Honorably?! The way you act is honorable now? You bastard!! How is sacrificing your only son to a devious, evil, dark wizard who only inflicts pain and suffering upon everyone, honorable?" He shouted, his voice getting hoarse.
Harry stepped forward, his wand and sword ready. "Voldemort, give it up. There's no way I'll allow you to get away with this." He said, emerald eyes burning.
Voldemort looked at his fingernails. "You're kidding me, right? Are you blind, Potter? I all ready have him tied down, and Lucius is completely prepared to murder him --" Voldemort stopped, because the door had opened, and Ron and Hermione had come in.
The dark lord blinked in surprise. "What are you doing here?" He asked, confused.
Hermione raced to Harry, who welcomed her eagerly with a warm hug, and Ron wheeled over to his sister, who was clad in a sheet.
"Why are you wearing a sheet?" Hermione and Ron both asked at the same time.
Ginny turned bright red, and started stuttering.
Ron looked over at the table where Draco was tied down, covered only by a small napkin, then at the Slytherin bed, with it's sheet missing. Things were beginning to click.
"You were shagging when Voldemort took Draco???" He asked, in horror.
Ginny mumbled something that sounded like "Yes." Ron shook his head in disapproval.
Voldemort huffed. "Right, lovely, quite lovely. Lucius!" He barked. Lucius raised a sword over his son.
"Kill him." Voldemort instructed, and Draco instantly began yelling. "No, no, I'm your fucking son damnit!"
Lucius brought down the sword, and Ginny watched as it went by in slow motion. It was about to pierce Draco's skin, when Harry darted over, and blocked the sword with his own.
He pushed Lucius back with the parry, and Lucius stumbled a bit, falling to his knees. Harry rushed to stand above him, holding the sword at his chin.
"I'm going to count to five. And when I reach it, I'm going to kill you." Harry said, his arm trembling slightly.
Lucius' sword fell to the ground with a clank. Lucius shivered in horror.
Draco watched with gleaming eyes as Harry held his father at swordpoint.
"One. Two. Three.." Harry began counting.
Voldemort stood up. "You can't do it. You're too good, aren't you, Potter?" He hissed, mocking Harry.
Harry didn't take his eyes from Lucius' trembling body. "Four..." He said, hoarsely.
He held the sword steady, allowing it to gently flutter against Lucius' neck.
"Five." Draco yelled, and Harry, startled, jumped, and accidently made a deep gash in Lucius' chest, near his heart.
Lucius screamed in pain. Voldemort's eyes flashed red, and Harry began cursing. "Shit, shit, what the bloody hell have I done?" He exclaimed, holding the sword away from himself.
He turned to Draco, glaring. "What'd you go and do that for?" He hollered.
"Well five comes directly after four." Draco hissed.
Harry glared. "What do you mean?"
"I thought perhaps you'd forgotten. It's nothing to be ashamed of, what without a proper upbringing. Look, we'll make a deal. We'll try again, and this time I'll count, and you'll chop off his head like you meant to." Draco said, his grey eyes flashing silver.
Ron chuckled softly, but Ginny punched his shoulder. She scolded Draco. "This is no time for joking, your father has just been mortally wounded." She said, her brown eyes warm as she looked at him.
Draco sighed. "Yes he could have died, too, if Harry hadn't jumped five feet. Get me out of these bonds, and let me do it. The bastard deserves it." He said, angrily.
Hermione gasped. "You actually wanted him to die?" She asked, in shock.
Draco huffed. "If you understood all the hell I've gone through because of the son of a bitch, you'd want him dead too." He explained, straining against his shackles.
In the mean time, Voldemort had gone to Lucius' side, who lay gasping on the ground, about to pass out because of the mortal wound and the great loss of blood.
"You stupid fool." Voldemort said, shaking his head.
Lucius died.
Everyone was silent for a moment, Harry holding the bloodstained sword in shock, Hermione, Ron, & Ginny looking at the floor, Voldemort glaring at Lucius; and Draco staring at his father's limp, cold body.
A flicker of sadness flew across his face, it lasted a moment, and then was gone. The only thing that remained was one lone tear, which traced it's way across his face and fell to the floor.
Draco may have been a Malfoy, but he was human.
Ginny rushed to his side, and put her hands on his arm gently. "Oh, Draco..." She cooed, stroking his hair.
Draco inhaled.
Voldemort stood up slowly, his black robes swishing gently.
"Well that didn't work out as planned." He stated, angrily looking at the corpse.
Draco exhaled.
Harry dropped Godric's sword with a clang, and instead raised his wand, pointing it at Voldemort.
"Come on, duel me." Harry's words echoed throughout the dungeon.
Voldemort glared at him. "No." He hissed.
Harry blinked in shock. "No? What do you mean, no? You've been after me for God knows how long, and now, when you get the chance to kill me, you decline? Why?" He asked.
Voldemort didn't speak, but instead took out his magical chalk and began to draw a small circle.
"I just won't." Voldemort said, simply, and closed the circle. A bright light filled the room, and he was gone.
Everyone was silent, and Ginny began sobbing into Draco's chest.
"Hush, love, please, get me out of these, will you?" He whispered into her hair, and Hermione came over and tried tapping his shackles with her wand. "Alohomora." She said, and it didn't work. She frowned.
Ron snapped his fingers, and wheeled over. He pulled out the little silver key McGonagall had given him, and unlocked Draco.
Draco rolled off the table, and Ginny picked him up, wrapping the sheet around both of them.
The two started for the door, with Ron wheeling behind them.
Harry was still standing where he'd last been, confused.
Hermione walked over to him, and touched his arm. He jumped, startled, but when he recognized Hermione, he smiled softly.
"What's wrong?" Hermione asked, as he held her hand, and they walked a ways behind the others.
"I don't know. Nothing, I suppose. I just wish I hadn't let him get away, is all." He said, and Hermione shook her head. "It wasn't your fault, Harry." She said, and his arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her close to him.
"I know." He admitted, as the group made their way through the white marble riddle room.
"I guess I'm just a little disappointed. But I'm glad we're all safe, and that Voldemort's gone for now. I love you." He said, kissing her forehead. Hermione smiled, and the group passed the stone dragon, and stepped out into the hall.
The professors were there waiting. Dumbledore lit up. "Children! You've made it out! Is everyone all right?" He asked, putting a hand on Harry and Draco's shoulders.
Everyone nodded, and Minerva gave Draco and Ginny a stern look. "Madame Pomfrey will fit you with hospital robes. Go to her office immediately." She said, and Draco and Ginny set off.
Serverus looked at Hermione. "Did you use the cure-all?" He asked, and she shook her head, handing it to him.
"I don't think we needed it, really." She said.
Dumbledore sighed. "It's late, and we've had a long night. You should all get to bed." He said, and Hermione began wheeling Ron back to Gryffindor Tower.
After they'd turned the corner, Harry turned to Dumbledore. "Dumbledore, I don't understand. Voldemort wouldn't duel me. Why?" He asked.
"Did he not give you a reason?" Dumbledore asked, and Harry nodded. "Well, I don't know, Harry. He has a reason, I'm sure, but what's important is that everyone is safe for now. I'm having the dungeon emptied and then destroyed. We can't risk this again." He said.
Harry nodded. "I understand. I suppose we've won this battle..." He said, thoughtfully, and trailed off, looking at his wand.
Dumbledore nodded. "Yes, but the war rages on. Good night, Harry. Rest well."
...
After receiving hospital robes and free treatment from Mme. Pomfrey, Ginny and Draco strolled through Hogwart's.
"I'm so happy." Ginny said, absolutely beaming.
Draco nudged her gently. "You're glowing, you know." He said, and Ginny looked down, blushing slightly.
She looked at him again. "Draco, are you sad at all about your father?" She asked, and Draco looked away, his grey eyes unreadable, clouded and stormy looking.
"I don't know. I suppose it will set in eventually, I mean there's no way I could get off without some kind of traumatic shit, but.. you know." He said, scuffing the toe of his shoe against the cobblestone floor.
Ginny sighed. "I suppose you haven't had a very lovely life?" She asked, raising her eyebrows.
"Well, it was lovely in that any bloody thing I wanted I received, but no, the beatings and the yellings weren't all that lovely. But I've learned alot recently, and there's no way I'm going to make it that way for my family..." He trailed off, looking at her thoughtfully.
Ginny smiled at him timidly. "Draco.. you want to have a family of your own, then?" She asked, and he smiled.
"Of course I do. There's not a chance in hell I'm passing up marrying you and having little redheaded manic children." He said, grinning.
"You want to marry me? You're sure?" She asked, her brow wrinkling. The two stopped walking, and faced each other in the hallway.
"Why wouldn't I?" He asked, concerned.
She looked at him pensively.
"Well, it's not that I thought you wouldn't... I just wanted to make sure." She said.
Draco frowned. "You don't have to question my love, if that's what this is about." He said.
Ginny shook her head. "No, it's nothing like that. I just wanted to be sure... because..." She paused, and looked at her hands.
"I.. I don't know how to say this, Draco. Well, when Madame Pomfrey gave me that examination just then.. she, Draco she discovered something." She said.
Draco raised an eyebrow. "What?" He asked.
"Draco... I wanted to be sure you want a family with me.. because.. we've started one." She said, biting her lip.
It took a moment for her words to sink in.
And even when he'd thought he'd fully understood it, his mouth dropped open. "You're... we..." He stuttered.
"Yes, Draco. I'm pregnant."
...
In Gryffindor Tower, Ron, Hermione, and Harry were telling the eager first years about what had happened. Some of the older years were scattered about, trying not to look scared or wrapped up in the tale.
Ron was animatedly talking with his hands, explaining about when Harry blocked Lucius' sword.
Harry whispered in Hermione's ear. "You want to get out of here as much as I do?" He asked, and she blushed, but nodded.
The two slipped out of the room and into the hallways.
They began walking, holding hands.
"So much is happening to us, Hermione." Harry mused, and Hermione squeezed his hand reassuringly.
"I know, but we can deal with this. I know we can." She said.
Harry nodded. "No, I know. I'm just saying, that.. I'm glad I've got you beside me. Fighting this with me. I don't know what I'd do without you." He explained, and she smiled.
"I'm glad too, Harry. I love you." She said, and Harry smiled, kissing her.
"Love you too."
They walked a bit in silence, and as they rounded a corner, heard voices.
Harry and Hermione came to a stop when they saw Draco and Ginny speaking.
"You're... we.." Draco was saying. He looked like he'd just seen a ghost, pale and shocked.
Ginny nodded. "Yes Draco. I'm pregnant."
"What?!" Harry and Hermione exclaimed in unision.
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a/n: yeah, yeah, bad place to stop it, huh? heheh. im evil. im also working on the next chap so dont get all worked up... unless getting worked up means more reviews. in which case, by all means, please, be my guest and get worked up. hell, can i help you get worked up in anyway?
all right, anyways. nice turn of events...yeah. well, maybe 2 more chaps and itll be over, i dunno.
review, my padawan. only then, a jedi shall you be. (well, ya' know, i cant promise anything, so dont quote me or take me to court when it doesnt happen, but who knows?)
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Draco and Ginny belong to JK Rowling, Bloomsbury, Scholastic, Warner Bros and various other corporations. They are being used here without permission and/or affiliation with the above. None of the authors listed here make any profit from these stories.