THC: Round 3
House: Ravenclaw
Class subject: Herbology
Story Category: drabble
Prompt(s): [location] an old manor
Word count: 938
Notes: Domestic abuse warning (it's not explained in great detail, but it happens). Also, talk about not being able to get pregnant but the language could also imply miscarriages so please be mindful of that. I would say Ginny's around 18 to 19ish here (she's called a child in a demeaning way). It's not really based on the actual witch trials or anything I would say this is like an alternate reality that encompasses a lot of real-world things if that makes sense.
Helpless, but Powerful
Pink and orange hues flit across the sky as the sun begins to set behind the looming manor. The brick is engulfed in moss and lichen. Splintered wood threatens to snag at Ginny's clothes as she makes her way inside the building. A blanket of dirt, dust, and decay covers every surface. She coughs lightly, using the lantern to guide her footsteps. Carefully, she glides across the floor, feeling for any holes or weak spots.
It's silent except for the creaking of the floorboards. She can hear the wind rustling through the trees just beyond the pseudo safety of the walls. Large portions of wallpaper bend and peel around her.
She lets out a scream.
Her high-pitch wail bounces off the furniture. Tears cascade down her face as she lets out one scream after the other. It's completely dark outside now, yet her screams continue.
"When I asked for this to be all over I didn't mean like this," She gasps in between screams. "You were supposed to fix it, not make it worse."
"But, child, I did fix it," A wicked looking woman descends the staircase in front of Ginny. Her hair is long enough to sweep the floor, collecting dust as it goes. There are clear tangles and twigs snagged in the woman's hair. Long, jagged fingernails scrape at the banister.
"He's gone because of you," Ginny bites back. "He left because of what you did to me."
"Dear, I only gave you power," she cackles, her yellowed teeth on display. "Anything else that happened was because of you."
"They're after me." Ginny glances back out the door in fear.
"If you're on the run then it wasn't smart for you to scream like a banshee," The woman steps in front of Ginny, wrapping one of her fingers around the girl's hair.
"Help me." Her voice is low, and Ginny is ashamed she's even asking for this woman's help again.
"I've already helped you."
"There has to be more you can do."
"You're on your own now, darling." And the woman vanishes.
Ginny falls to the ground, banging her fists into the rotten wood. It kicks up dust, causing her eyes to sting, and she begins to choke on the sullied air. How pathetic would she be if she let them capture her here? Everyone would know for sure then, and Ginny wouldn't be able to worm her way out of her sentence. They would probably label her as a demon woman.
Harry had called her just as much as he left their home. The bruise on her cheek was still evident from where he hit her. It was so unlike the Harry she had fallen in love with, but at this point was she even the same as she was before?
The first time she stumbled upon the old manor was last spring. The forest surrounding the house was thick, and Ginny liked to forage through it collecting flowers, herbs, and mushrooms. Everyone knew of the manor's existence, and children were warned from a young age not to enter it. But, no one knew exactly where it was, or why they couldn't enter the grounds. Ginny was curious. She had always been curious. It was as if something called her there, but she didn't know what it was.
The woman had introduced herself as Meeradoth, and claimed she could give Ginny insurmountable power. Last spring, Ginny had rushed from the manor in terror. Several months later she had returned with the same amount of fear in her heart, but something pushed her to seek the woman out.
Like any other young woman who had just married, Ginny was expected to bear a child for her husband. But no matter how hard they tried; a baby never came. Harry was growing frustrated and cold, and even her own parents were beginning to question her. Only a demon woman couldn't get pregnant, they would whisper behind her back. And so, she decided the only choice she had was to seek out the strange woman in the manor for help.
The rush of power the woman put in her veins felt magnificent, but it didn't solve any of her problems. She could do unspeakable things now. Bend people to her will, send shockwaves through a person, vanish and reappear, but a child still did not come to her. She begged and begged with the universe to give her a child, and she only got pain.
Harry had caught her a few nights ago in the kitchen talking to her herbs. Whispering incantations to them before putting them in her own food. For some reason, he assumed she was trying to poison him, and he hit her. Before she could even pick herself up off the floor he was out the door. She had raced to grab a few things before she ran outside as well. Her clothes were ripped from hiding in the forest the past few days and she finally had enough.
Now she sits in the old manor, waiting for them to find her. If the demon woman cannot help her then there isn't a point in running. The cold air clings to her wet face as she stares into the dark. Sounds of people finally reach her ears and she presses her fingers firmly into the ground. Splinters dig themselves into her skin as she awaits her punishment.
With all this power, she is still helpless, because the universe decided it. Ginny wasn't meant for anything more. Her body had one job, and she hadn't accomplished it. Now, she'd pay with her life.