Stolen Memories
Disclaimer; I do not own, nor will I ever own, Harry Potter or anything HP related, that all belongs to J.K Rowling. The plot is mine though.
A/N – Please read the authors note at the end of this chapter, I need your options! Thanks! Enjoy the chapter.
Chapter 6
I paced in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady waiting for Blaise. It had been weeks since that day in the library where I finally admitted to cutting and since then Blaise has made a point to hang out with me for no reason at all. Or so he says, I know it's because he just wants to make sure I'm not alone and to see if I'm cutting. Today we're going to Hogsmeade; it's the last Hogsmeade trip before the Christmas holidays. I rubbed my arms in an attempt to ward off the chill. I must look insane, standing here in a t-shirt when it's near the end of November. At least I remembered to grab a jumper as well as my cloak, although there is no point in putting either on until Blaise gets here.
I hear footsteps and my head snaps up. Thank Merlin! Blaise was walking up now, only a few feet away. I wouldn't have to stand here and freeze for much longer.
"Hey." He says out of breath.
"Hey, ready to go?" I greet with a smile.
He looks at my bare arms and a small smile crosses his features, guilt washes over me as I think of the healing cuts on my thighs. "Yup, come on."
I pull my jumper over my head and place my cloak around my shoulders before linking my arm with Blaise's and walking down to the entrance hall.
Once outside I pull the cloak a little tighter around my shoulders; it's a chilly day.
"You need a new cloak." Blaise observes.
He's right. The one I have now is worn thin and the seams are beginning to fray. "I know." I say with a heavy sigh. I don't elaborate further, and Blaise doesn't push me. He knows I don't have the money for a new cloak, or a new anything, but he's never said anything about it, and he never tried to supply me with everything I needed either. Not like Harry always did.
It's a silent ride in the carriages to Hogsmeade. I stare out the window, while Blaise stares at me. It's creepy, and it makes me a little more than uncomfortable, but I don't say anything. After a while the carriage comes to a bumpy stop and Blaise hops out. I smile as he offers me his hand, for a Slytherin he really is a gentleman.
"Where do you want to go first princess?"
I shudder at the little pet name, it's the same name the man in my dreams has been calling me.
At the thought of my nightmares, and the horrifying man my vision starts to blur, everything begins to go black. Closing my eyes I take a deep breath and count to five, thinking of the cuts on my legs, of the way the blade feels as it prances across my pale flesh. I can almost feel the sting of the sharpened steel as I imagine it cutting into my delicate flesh. As soon as I imagined the pleasant burning sensation of cutting my mind began to clear, slowly I opened my eyes, I expected to see blackness, but instead I found that everything was normal.
"Are you alright?" Blaise looked at me concerned.
I blushed slightly; I could only imagine what that must have looked like to him. "Uh... Yeah, just got a little dizzy for a moment." I half-lied.
Blaise raised an eyebrow. "Do you want to sit down for a minute?"
"I'm fine now, but I wouldn't mind stopping for a butterbeer, I'm a little cold."
Blaise smiled and nodded before leading us in the direction of the Three Broomsticks. The pub was packed with Hogwarts students and professors. A few heads turned when Blaise and I walked in, but it wasn't as bad as I had imagined. I suppose people have gotten used to the idea of Blaise and I hanging out.
Blaise and I took our seats at the last available table and waited for Madam Rosemerta to come and take our order. Within seconds I could hear the clicking of her sparkly pumps.
"What can I get you kids?" Madam Rosemerta asked with a pleasant smile.
"Just bring us a bottle of firewhiskey." Blaise said seriously.
I snorted.
Madam Rosemerta gave Blaise an I'm-not-playing-any-games look. "Try again." She said a little more sternly.
Blaise sighed dramatically.
I rolled my eyes.
"Fine then, just two butterbeers, I guess." He pouted.
Madam Rosemerta nodded and walked away.
"Seriously?" I asked rolling my eyes again.
Blaise winked.
I laughed and looked around. The pub was packed with people, as usual. I looked closely at the tables around Blaise and I. There were Gryffindor students, Hufflepuff students, Ravenclaw students, Slytherin students, and a few tables full of almost every professor in Hogwarts. The one thing that stood out in plain sight was that the Gryffindors sat with the Gryffindors, the Slytherins with the Slytherins, and so on. Blaise and I were the only ones who were from different houses yet sitting together.
"What's up?" I snapped my eyes back to Blaise, he was looking at me curiously with his head cocked slightly.
"Just observing everyone." I shrugged.
"And what have you observed?" He asked playfully.
"Every house sticks together." I said looking around once more.
"Except us." Blaise's eyes never left my face.
I smiled slightly. "Right." Feeling slightly uncomfortable I looked back down at the table and pretended to be highly interested in the wood engravings.
"Does it bother you?" Blaise asked a moment later.
I snapped my eyes up to Blaise to tell him that it didn't bother me at all. As I looked up at his face I caught movement just behind his head, my eyes shifted in the direction and landed on Harry and Hermione, sitting side by side with their back to me and Blaise only a few tables away, Ron was seated across from them. My eyes flicked back down to the wooden table.
"Ginny?" Blaise asked concerned.
I looked up again.
"What's wrong?"
My eyes shifted back to where the trio was sitting, Harry had his arm around Hermione's shoulders.
Blaise didn't miss a beat, he saw my eyes flick to just behind his head, slowly he turned his body and followed my line of vision. He must have spotted them because as soon as he fully turned his mouth turned down into a scowl, I almost expected him to growl.
"Oh." Blaise turned back to me with an understanding smile. "Do you want to move to another table?" He asked.
"What other table?" I gestured around the packed pub with my hand.
"Someone would move for us, I always get what I want." Blaise winked.
I laughed and shook my head. "No, I'll be fine." I said.
"You sure?"
"Yeah," I nodded. "as long as they don't come over here." As if acting on cue Ron stood up and started walking over to Blaise and I.
"Oh no." I groaned as I watched Ron make his way over.
"What?" Blaise began to turn.
"Stay." I grabbed Blaise's arm to stop him from looking back. "We have company coming."
"Really?" Blaise seemed intrigued.
"Yes." I said through gritted teeth. I lowered my eyes back to the table hoping that Ron was just headed to the bathroom or something.
I wasn't that lucky.
"Hey Gin." Ron said from only a few paces away.
I reluctantly looked up. "Hey Ron." I tried to sound pleasant.
"Uh..." Ron shifted his gaze between myself and Blaise, who was being surprisingly quiet. "Can I talk to you for a minute?" Ron asked.
"Sure." I sighed. "I'll be back soon." I said to Blaise.
"Uh huh." Blaise never took his eyes off Ron.
Ron and I walked towards the back of the pub, we found the most secluded area we could, unfortunately there were still a lot of students around us.
"What is it Ron?" I asked when we were alone... in a way at least.
"Is that Blaise Zabini you're sitting with?" Ron asked.
"Yes, what's it to you?"
"Why?"
"I like Blaise, he's my potions partner."
"I thought Hermio-" Ron stopped mid sentence. "I didn't know he was your partner."
I glared. "Snape switched our partners." I explained.
"Oh."
Everything was silent for a minute.
"I don't like you sitting with him." Ron said, the overprotective brother in him was coming out again.
"I don't like you sitting with my cheating ex-boyfriend." I snapped back. It was a low blow and I immediately felt guilty for saying it.
"Look, Gin, I don't know what happened between you and Harry but-"
"He's been your best mate for years and you just can't throw that out the window." I finished for him. "I know Ron."
"Right, well..." Ron stuttered.
"Blaise really isn't that bad." I tried reasoning, knowing that it wouldn't work.
"How can you say that Gin?!"
I knew it wouldn't work, not with Ronald anyway.
"He's a Slytherin! Of course he's bad! There all bad!"
"And Harry's a Gryffindor!" I nearly shouted.
Ron looked confused.
"But that didn't stop him from also being a cheating asshole!" I hissed.
Ron was speechless.
"Who we are isn't defined by what house we're in." I sighed.
Ron opened his mouth to say something.
"I don't care what that stupid hat said," I added knowing that Ron was going to quote the song that the Sorting Hat sings. "just because Blaise is a Slytherin does not mean he does not have the ability to be nice. And just because Harry is a Gryffindor that didn't mean he would never cheat on his girlfriend." I said tiredly. "Do you see what I mean?"
"Yes, but I still don't like you sitting with a Slytherin." Ron was stubborn.
"And I still don't like you sitting with my cheating ex." I didn't want to say it again, but I couldn't stop myself, and it was the only way this conversation was going to end.
"Ginny if you don't want me to sit with Harry I won't. You're my baby sister; I just want what's best for you and what will make you happy." I could tell Ron meant every word of it, but I could also tell that if I told him not to hang out with Harry that he would be miserable because of it.
"I don't want you to stop being friends with Harry." I sighed. "But I want you to understand that I like Blaise, I'm happy hanging out with him."
"I don't know." Ron said slowly.
"I can accept you hanging out with Harry, who I now hate. Can't you grant me the same courtesy and accept me hanging out with Blaise, who you hate?" I pleaded.
Ron was silent for a while, it made me nervous.
"I guess so." He sighed.
My eyes snapped up to his. "Really?!" I asked smiling brightly.
Ron nodded.
"Thank you!" I flung my arms around his neck.
"Yeah yeah." He said smiling as he lightly pushed me away. "But if anything-"
"Yeah yeah." I replied smirking.
I said goodbye to Ron and walked back to the table Blaise and I shared smiling brightly. Our butterbeers were already there and Blaise was nearly done his.
"Everything okay?" He asked when I sat down.
"Yup." I said happily.
Blaise looked at me curiously for a moment. "Good. Now drink up." He nodded to my unopened butterbeer. "You're two behind me; you've got to catch up." He winked
~*~*~*~*~*~
After we left The Three Broomsticks Blaise and I decided to head to Honey Dukes; it was a bad idea. As always Honey Dukes was packed with students. I've never been claustrophobic but today I just didn't seem to be able to deal with the huge crowd of students all around me. I was literally elbow to elbow with almost everyone in here; honestly the owners of Honey Dukes should buy a bigger shop. They know how many customers they get, they should be able to accommodate everyone.
Right now Blaise looked like he was nearly finished picking out his treats. Hopefully we would be out of here soon.
"Are you alright?" Blaise asked me suddenly.
I was trying to breath steadily to calm down; I guess I was louder than I thought. "Yeah," I said almost breathlessly. Blaise gave me a sceptical look. "It's just all the people." I explained.
"Do you want to go?" He seemed a little disappointed at the thought.
"No, I'll be fine." I assured him. I wasn't going to make Blaise sit out on something he wanted to do just because I was having problems dealing with people.
Blaise didn't look convinced.
"Seriously, it's okay."
"I'll be quick." Blaise smiled.
I tried to smile a convincing smile, if Blaise was paying attention he would have been able to see right through it, but luckily he was still too busy examining the shelves of goodies. I turned to the nearest shelf and began looking at the colourful sweets, trying to distract myself from the closing in feeling I was having at the moment. It helped a little, until some fourth year bumped into me and nearly knocked me to the ground. Deciding that I must be near some of the more popular sweets, (I wasn't really paying attention to what I was looking at) I moved over about a foot and started to look at some of the sweets there.
It was no use, no matter how much I moved, or how much I stayed in one spot, someone was always there to nearly knock me down, or to get to close and I felt like I couldn't breathe. Luckily Blaise and I never separated.
"Blaise?" I raised my voice so he could hear me over the crowd.
"Yeah?" He looked at me with concern filled eyes, it was touching. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." I said quickly. "I just don't feel too well."
"Let's go then." Blaise said.
"No, you get what you want and meet me outside; I think the cold air will help." I wasn't about to make Blaise leave.
"Are you sure?" He asked with a raised brow.
"Yeah, I'll be fine," I answered quickly. "I'll just be outside the shop, meet me when you're done."
"Alright." Blaise said slowly. "If you're sure."
"I am." I had already started heading for the exit.
I was right, the cold air did help. As soon as I stepped outside, and got away from the crowd of pushy students, I started to feel much better. I spotted a comfortable looking bench that sat just below the shop window. Perfect, Blaise wouldn't be able to miss me when he walked out.
I sat and tried to keep my mind blank. I didn't want to think about my nightmares, or what I was going to do about Harry, or Ron, and I didn't want to think about how odd my relationship with Blaise was. The school might see it as awkward, or different, or even wrong, but they didn't know how confusing it actually was. The problem wasn't that it was awkward; the problem was that it was too easy. No friendship just sparked out of nowhere, no friends never had a fight, no friends knew exactly what the other was thinking without having to say a word, no friends were friends like and I were.
My peaceful silence didn't last very long though. Only moments after I had gotten comfortable on the bench I heard faint footsteps coming closer. My head snapped up and I locked eyes with Draco Malfoy. Great.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the Weaselette." Malfoy drawled.
"Bugger off Malfoy." I snapped back.
"Aren't we frosty today?" Came Malfoy's brilliant reply.
Not in the mood for an argument I rolled my eyes and stood from the bench, intending to walk away.
"Amazing." Draco muttered as I walked away. "I never would have thought the littlest Weasley would jump from one man to the next."
I stopped dead in my tracks. Did Malfoy just say what I think he just said? Is that what the entire school thought about me now? I break up with Harry and immediately start dating Blaise?
Slowly I turned and faced Malfoy, he was standing there smirking, and looking more pleased with himself than I have ever seen.
"Excuse me?" I hissed.
"You heard me." Malfoy called a little louder than necessary, obviously trying to attract attention.
"Fuck you Malfoy." I spat.
"Nah," Malfoy shook his head slowly and examined his nails with a bored expression. "I'd rather not get your filth on my perfect body." Malfoy looked up at me and smirked wider.
Knowing that he was just trying to cause a scene with me I spun on my heel and began walking away again. I groaned as I heard Malfoy's swift footsteps behind mine. Refusing to play his game anymore I quickened my pace.
I nearly smiled in triumph when I heard Malfoy's footsteps cease. I should have known it was too good to be true.
"I'll leave that to Blaise anyway." He called loudly.
That was it. My temper flared and before I knew it I was in front of Malfoy, he looked shocked for a moment but I didn't allow him to recover. Bringing my hand up I only had a second to register Malfoy's horrified expression before...
SMACK.
My hand was numb from the impact it just had with Malfoy's face. I smiled brightly when I saw the bright red welt marring Malfoy's perfectly white skin. Malfoy looked up at me with utter disdain clear on his features. I smirked and turned to walk away yet again.
"That's all he wants from you, all he cares about. You'll see." Malfoy hissed.
For some reason those words hit me harder than anything else Malfoy had said. Tears welled up in my eyes and fell down my cheek. I did the only thing I could think of at that moment.
I ran.
I didn't realize how many people had crowded around Malfoy and I until I was desperately trying to push through them. I faintly heard someone call my name but I didn't stop for anything.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Ginny started crying as she was roughly pushed to the hard cement floor. Hearing footsteps coming closer Ginny scrambled to get to the corner of the room; it was the one spot in this dank place that she felt at least a little safe.
"Don't cry love." The man said in a calm tone. "This is your own fault after all." He added smirking.
Ginny shook her head; she had done nothing to deserve this.
"Oh yes it is." The man's tone became venomous. "If you hadn't tried to run away then I wouldn't have had to drag you back here." Of course, she was being punished for trying to leave. This man was sick.
Ginny didn't say a word; she stayed huddled in her corner crying silent tears. It was no use, no arguments would work, crying wouldn't work, trying to leave wouldn't work, nothing was going to work. She was stuck here. Ginny wasn't about to let the man win though, no way. He wanted certain things from her, he wanted her to be comfortable, yeah right, he wanted her to talk to him as if nothing was wrong, not a chance, he wanted her to do everything she was told, keep dreaming. If she was stuck here, if she was going to die here, then she would do it in silence, she wouldn't let him control her till her death.
"Don't move." The man muttered as he stepped out of the room.
Ginny didn't move, not because she was told not to, not because she was afraid to, not because she didn't want to be punished again, but because there was no point. She couldn't go anywhere, there was no one to talk to, no way to leave, no, she would just stay put.
Time passed slowly, but without a clock, and with no natural light to come through the windows Ginny couldn't be sure what time of day it was at all. She didn't know if it was early morning, afternoon, late evening, or the middle of the night. So when the man stepped back into the same room Ginny didn't know if he had been gone for ten minutes, an hour, or longer.
His eyes flashed to her and his hard face softened slightly. "You didn't move." Ginny cringed at his falsely sweet tone. "Good." The man nodded.
He turned his back on her and began looking through what must have been a desk drawer, Ginny, getting curious, tilted her head and moved her body slightly to the side in an attempt to see what he was doing.
Moments later the man turned his eyes back on Ginny, he had something in his hands but it was too dark to make out what it was.
The man smiled evilly and Ginny felt her stomach twist nervously; this couldn't be good. "Time for your punishment." The object in his hands began to drop, Ginny's eyes widened in horror when she saw what it was. Fresh tears streamed down her face as the man began laughing.
"Stand up." He commanded.
Ginny shook her head. This was not happening.
"Do as I say or I will make it worse." He hissed angrily.
Ginny swallowed the lump in her throat and tried to speak.
"Now!" He shouted. His boots clicked on the cement floors as he began walking closer.
"No." Came Ginny's meek tone.
He stopped suddenly. "What did you just say to me?" His eyes flashed dangerously.
"No." Ginny repeated with a little more confidence.
The man scowled and swiftly bent down. Ginny didn't realize what was happening until his hand wrapped around her red hair and began to pull. She tried to fight back, tried to keep her bottom firmly planted on the floor, tried to hold onto the wall to prevent him from pulling her upwards, but it was no use. He tugged harder and Ginny let out a squeal of pain as she was wrenched upwards.
As soon as she was on her feet the man grabbed her arm and spun her around so Ginny's back was to his front. He pushed her into the wall roughly and began to back up a few paces. Ginny was too terrified to look back to see what he was doing, not that she needed to look, she saw the rope in his hands, she knew what was coming.
More tears escaped as Ginny heard the rope smack against the floor, he was messing with her, purposely drawing it out so she wouldn't know when it was coming, so she couldn't prepare herself. Ginny heard the rope begin to whiz threw the air, she tried to tense her muscles, to prepare for what she knew was coming, but it was no use. The rope moved faster than her brain was able to tell her body what she wanted it to do.
"AHHHH!"
~*~*~*~*~*~
I paced around the dungeons. Absentmindedly rubbing my lower back as I searched through the darkness. Blaise always said that I was a hard one to find, but he was turning out to be impossible to find.
It's nearly three in the morning, I've looked everywhere other than the Slytherin common room, mainly because I don't know where it is. I figured he'd be in the kitchens, he was there the last time I was wandering around at night, but I knew it was hopeless. Everyone needed to sleep, obviously Blaise was no different. I don't know what caused me to come search for him anyway, I had a nightmare, and I woke up screaming, all I could think of after that was that I needed Blaise.
Now, after searching for what felt like hours I was ready to give up. It could wait till morning.
"Weasley?"
I groaned, I only knew one person with that tone of voice, and I really didn't want to see him right now. Slowly I turned, and just as I expected I came face to face with Draco Bloody Malfoy.
"What are you doing down here so late?" He asked curiously.
It was the first time I had seen him without his arrogant smirk, or his angry scowl. He did look good when his face wasn't contorted in rage... wait... did I just say Draco Malfoy looked good? Ah! I need sleep.
"Uh..." I stuttered, realizing I had taken too long to answer.
"Are you lost?" He smirked and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his pale chest, which I just noticed, was bare.
Eyes back to his face Ginny!
"Uh..." I shook my head and tried to focus, Malfoy's smirk got wider. "I'm looking for Blaise." I winced as soon as I admitted that. After what Malfoy said the other day in Hogsmeade being in the dungeons late at night looking for Blaise didn't seem like such a great idea anymore.
"I bet you are." Malfoy muttered. I glared but he didn't continue his comments.
"Don't you know where the common room is?" He asked titling his head to the side slightly.
I was caught off guard. No remarks, well, not really anyway. No making fun of me for being down here, no telling me to go back to the tower where I belong. Wow. Malfoy is a completely different person when he's half asleep.
"Look Weasley," Malfoy sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "it's late, Blaise is probably passed out, like I should be, so why don't you go back to bed and have your sweet little dreams, you'll see him tomorrow."
Something in my face must have changed because when Malfoy looked back at me he gave me a curious look.
"Are you okay?" He asked taking a step closer.
It was then I noticed my eyes were stinging with tears. Great, just that small comment about dreams and I'm breaking down in front of Malfoy again. I blinked back my tears and held my chin up.
"I'm fine." I said in a cracked voice.
Malfoy cocked an eyebrow.
"Never mind." I muttered and began walking away.
The hall was eerily quiet for a few seconds until I heard padded footsteps behind me.
"Weasley." Malfoy caught up to me and grabbed my arm.
My eyes widened as flashbacks from my nightmare invaded my mind. Malfoy looked down at my face for a moment, obviously thinking about something, before he sighed again.
"Come on." He tugged lightly on my arm. "I'll take you to him." He said gently.
I was too surprised by Malfoy's uncharacteristic manner that I couldn't speak. Malfoy directed me towards the common room in silence. The silence was almost unbearable, I looked up at his face a few times, but said nothing. What do you say to someone who you hate, but is doing something nice?
"What are you looking at Weasley?" Malfoy smirked without looking down at me.
"Nothing." I said quickly. Too quickly. Malfoy's smirk widened. I rolled my eyes and looked away.
I actually wasn't as far away from the common room as I had thought. The walk was a quick one, maybe five minutes maximum. Malfoy muttered the password, and directed me into the common room. It was different from the Gryffindor common room. Darker, sleeker, and yet, just as comfortable looking.
I was surprised to see Blaise passed out on one of the couches by the fire with a book open in his lap. Malfoy led me down the stairs and once we were a few feet away from Blaise he quickly dropped my arm. I hadn't even realized he had been holding onto it this entire time.
"Blaise!" Malfoy called sharply. I jumped at the sudden noise, so did Blaise.
"What's going on?" Blaise asked looking around the room.
Malfoy smirked. "You have a visitor."
Blaise's eyes finally landed on me. "Ginny?" I smiled awkwardly. "What are you doing here?"
"I-"
"Next time you want to someone for a midnight shag actually tell them where the common room is." Malfoy interrupted me. "I don't want to have to direct them down here again." He sneered down at me.
Blaise glared at Malfoy. "Come on Ginny." He stood and grabbed my hand.
Malfoy began to walk away, and Blaise began to tug on my arm. I stood rooted on the spot; I was crazy for thinking what I was thinking.
"Ginny?" Blaise looked at me concerned.
"One second." I pulled out of Blaise's grasp and ran to catch up with Malfoy.
"What now Weasley?" Malfoy stopped but didn't turn.
I walked around him so I wasn't talking to his back. "I just wanted to thank you." I said in a small voice.
"For what?" He scoffed.
"For bringing me down here."
Malfoy stood silent for a moment. I thought about walking away, but I wanted some response.
"Well, I couldn't have just left you there now could I?" He replied.
I decided not to point out that he could have, and that it was what I had expected him to do, instead I nodded and walked back to Blaise.
Blaise led me up to his private room, apparently seventh year Slytherins get their own rooms. Lucky bastards. I was nervous to be alone with Blaise, especially in his bedroom, after what Malfoy had said, but this is what I wanted so I fought the urge to run.
"Okay Ginny, what's up?" He asked sitting down on his bed.
I paced around the room for a few minutes.
"I have to talk to you about something." I decided to say at last.
~*~*~*~*~*~
A/N; Ooooh! What is she going to tell him? I'm not too proud of this chapter either, but I do think it is a little more interesting than the last. I was thinking about changing the pace of the next chapter, what would you all think if I added in someone else's POV? Like Blaise or Draco? Please let me know! Thank you all who reviewed! Sorry but I don't have the time to list you all here, but thank you all so much!Remember, it's your reviews that determine when I get the next chapter out. So review!
