Destiny Unknown
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters but I wish I did.
Chapter 4: Uncovering the Truth
Draco woke early the next morning before anyone else would be awake. Even though he was excused from classes and would have loved to stay by her side, he realized that his absence might stir trouble in the Slytherin house, and with the raid on Voldemort only two days away he couldn't risk anyone writing or starting trouble with his father. Any hint and all would be lost. He silently slipped out of bed and put his cloak back on, looking down at Ginny. He felt the love for her swell in his heart, and, before he left, he kissed her lightly on the lips and tucked her back in. She was still worn out and sleeping peacefully from the night before. He thought again and left a note on her nightstand where he knew she would find it. Then he left Gryffindor tower for Slytherin house, all the while thinking of what to do with the day. The first thing he thought of, and he was pretty sure Ginny would agree to, was finding out the story behind the legend and her newly discovered powers of the dragon.
Ginny woke later in the day. She blinked a few times before the room focused and noticed that sunlight was streaming through the windows. She slowly rolled over and looked at her clock. It read "Herbology class." Wow she thought. I've slept through lunch and most of my classes. She looked just under the clock and saw a folded piece of parchment. She recognized Draco's handwriting and suddenly the events of the night before flooded back into her mind. The last thing she remembered was getting angry at Ron for attacking Draco, then passing out and feeling him lift her up. She unfolded the parchment and read on, the smile on her face growing wider and wider.
Dearest Ginny,
How I wished I could have woken up beside you, but I was afraid, both for you and this mission. I did not want to wake suspicion in either house of something going on so I slipped out early this morning. I hope that you can forgive me for this. I will be in the library eagerly awaiting you to come. I am going to search for the legend of the dragon. It may help in our quest to end the reign of Voldemort. Goodbye for now my dearest, and know that I love you.
Forever yours,
Draco
Ginny could barely finish reading the letter before she let the tears of happiness fall. Never before had she have someone love her like this and feel the same in return. Her family was a different kind of love. The love she felt and the connection she had with Draco was completely different, like two lost parts of a whole coming together. She smiled and wiped her tears away. Saving the letter in her drawer, she put a locking charm on it, not willing to share the letter with anyone just yet. She went and showered quickly, dressed, and hurried out of Gryffindor tower towards the library, hurrying towards her love.
Draco sat musing over volumes and volumes of books and still he had not yet found anything to help. He had spent most of the day in there and yet nothing. He was about to go try to get into the Restricted Section when he heard footsteps approaching. He looked up to see his red haired beauty standing before him, and smile on her face and tears in her eyes. He stood up to meet her but barely took a step before she ran up to him and linked her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply. She pulled back and blushed. "Draco, that letter………….you have no idea what it means to me. Do you really love me," she asked, the hope evident in her eyes.
Draco looked her directly in her eyes and took her hands in his. "Yes, Virginia Weasley, I do love you, more than you will ever know, but do you love me? How could you? I've been nothing but horrid to your family since I arrived here," he said, looking down at his feet, the sadness evident in his eyes.
Ginny gave a genuine smile and lifted his head with her hands so that he was now looking at her. She kissed him on the nose before saying "Draco, in all my life I have never met anyone like you. You make me laugh, you hold me when I cry, you risked your life to make sure I was alright. I remember back in the common room last night. My brother would have put you in the Infirmary, and I think you knew it, yet you risked it. Risked you being discovered in Gryffindor, risked everything, for me. Yes Draco, I do love you," she said, and with that he put his arms around her and brought her into a great hug. She slipped her arms around his waist as well, and the pair stood there for a long while just content to be in each other's arms.
Draco kissed her forehead and rested his chin on her head. "Well, love, I've been searching all morning and nothing has turned up. I think we should go see Dumbledore and ask if he knows where we can find anything on the legend or the legend itself." She nodded and with that they left the library and headed straight to Dumbledore's office. The guardians sprang apart and let them in once the password was spoken, and silently they went up the staircase into Dumbledore's office. Ginny knocked lightly and they heard "Come in" from inside the door. They entered, seeing Dumbledore seated behind his desk, and sleek grey wolf on one side, a large black dog on the other, and a red and gold Phoenix on it's perch.
"Hello Professor Lupin, Mr. Black," Ginny said, looking at each canine respectively. They quickly transformed into their human forms. Sirius and Remus both looked at her quizzically, assessing her to see if she was really alright. She smiled a reassuring smile, one that let them know she was okay. The two of them sat down just then as Draco turned to Dumbledore. "Professor Dumbledore, sir, I've been searching all day until just now when we came for more information on the legend but I can't find anything printed on it anywhere. Not a paragraph, not the legend itself, nothing. Do you know where we could find more on it? You know about it, of course, but we'd like to know more."
Dumbledore smiled back at Draco. He turned around and whispered some words that only he could hear. Suddenly the wall opened up and a passageway was seen. He turned back to Draco. "There is a book in there written by Merlin. In it you will find the legend of the Silver Dragon. He himself was the first. When the world was being systematically destroyed by Mordrid he discovered the power of the Dragon inside and saved the world and Camelot from it. His descendants hold this power too. Go now, both of you. Find what you seek. As for me, I think a pot of tea sounds nice. Sirius, Remus, how about it?"
The three men sat enjoying their tea while a dazed Ginny and Draco went through the passageway. It was ornately decorated, precious gems lining the walls, pictures of past Dragons leading down the way. The last painting just before the room was one of her, her hair blowing in the wind, a smile on her face, with Draco standing behind her, his arms encircling her waist, a smile on his face as well. Underneath a plaque appeared with the inscription "Fire and Ice: The Dragons." This confused both Ginny and Draco. The Dragons? As in two? She looked at him. He looked just as confused as she felt. They turned a bit and entered a room that took their breath away.
The room had hand woven silk draperies with scenes from the Dragons lives playing through them. It showed the sequence of events as they played out as each dragon slew the Dark One terrorizing the land. The floor had a beautifully hand woven red and gold rug on it, the cushions to sit on being red with gold trim and tassels. There was a beautiful bookcase with hundreds of volumes of books reaching up to the ceiling. Ginny heard Draco give a slight groan. "We'll never be able to get up there to see where the volume is should we not find in within reach." As if someone heard their dilemma, a faint pop was heard behind them.
Where once there had been an empty space a pedestal appeared with an old worn book on it. Ginny approached it, Draco behind her, and they saw on the cover that an inscription was here as well.
Look in these pages Dragon. Here you will find what you seek.
Ginny opened the book and saw a table of contents appear. She looked through until she found something that looked promising: The Dragon of Merlin. She noticed the page and volume number and sighed. "How am I supposed to get to volume one? It's all the way at the top."
Draco chuckled a bit. "Well," he laughed, "you could just transform and fly up there."
Ginny began laughing at this as well. When they looked up again, they saw a book falling towards them. Ginny ducked out of the way, Draco catching her, and the book came to a halt a few feet off the floor, floating in the air, waiting for someone to grab it. Draco went and took the volume and sat on the cushions, Ginny leaning against him holding the volume, flipping through the pages. He rested his chin on her shoulder as she found the page and began to read aloud:
Long ago Mordrid began ravishing the land, killing and pillaging. No one was safe. Merlin was doing all he could to protect Camelot from siege. It was the last wizarding stronghold left in England. He became fatigued, worried that he would not be able to hold off Mordrid much longer. That night he had a dream that a large Silver Dragon took flight from the castle, seeking out those loyal to Mordrid and Mordrid himself. In one night all the terror was put to an end. When he awoke he found the pendant around his neck and a note with what looked to be a spell. Not one to ignore dreams, he staved off Mordrid during the day and at nightfall read the spell aloud. A brilliant light flashed from the necklace and when it dimmed a Silver Dragon stood where once Merlin had been. Taking flight, this dragon ended the reign of terror and the stranglehold that Mordrid had on the world, just as the dream had forseen. Arriving back at the castle, he decided to make this a permanent spell, that the dragon should be awakened when needed to save.
Mordrid, though a fearsome Dark Lord, was not the worse to graze the earth. That title belonged to Hades, Mordrid's son. Hades began his reign of terror not long after Mordrid's ended. The ransacking and murder was worse. Soon the earth was red with blood and the Silver Dragon knew it could not stop them alone. Merlin fell in love around this time with a beautiful witch named Cerridwen. She was as clever as they came and one meeting between the two sealed their bond forever. When Merlin woke one morning, he found that Cerridwen was there, standing above him. She was wearing an amulet almost identical to his, and in her hand was a spell. When asked where she found this, she replied that she had dreamt that a great Red Dragon was flying in a team with a great Silver Dragon. Together the two put a stop to Hades. Merlin then recounted his dream and his story of his amulet. That night the two went to the same spot where Merlin had originally awakened the dragon. The dream and thus the prophecy turned out to be true. Hades was stopped and peace reigned once again. It shall reign until a Dark Lord arises once again. Then will the sleeping dragons awaken to stop the Dark Lord from taking over. They shall be the descendants of Merlin and Cerridwen and their love shall bring them together. Together there is no dark force that they cannot end.
Ginny and Draco leaned back open mouthed as the volume flew back to it's place on the shelf. Ginny had been fumbling with the amulet around her neck the whole time, the one she recognized as being on Merlin's neck in the illustrations. Draco reached up to his neck and was shocked to find that he had an amulet there as well, identical to Ginny's, the only difference being the color of the stone, his being fire red instead of blue. Ginny slowly turned around to look at Draco and noticed the look of shock on his face as he looked at the amulet around his neck. She was shocked as well to find that he was wearing the amulet that had been on Cerridwen in the volume.
An eerie, far off voice came to them then. "Fire and Ice, you are as one. Be not apart, for your time for need draws near. Together you will conquer. Apart you will be defeated. Let love guide you through this, for that is the bond which the darkness shall not break."
Sighing, she snuggled into Draco's chest. A sudden laugh broke through. "What," asked Draco, almost laughing himself.
"I do NOT envy you the first time we get tonight. The first time you transform is gonna feel horrible."
"Then you shall have to care for me," he replied, laughing himself. Neither could find what was so funny in all of this, the danger that was involved, yet at that point the world seemed to hold nothing but laughter, and Fire and Ice lay there, laughing at a joke only they could hear.
Meanwhile, Dumbledore, Sirius, and Remus had been sharing tea and chatting when Ginny and Draco exited the passageway. The three grown men noticed the pair laughing, tears steaming down their faces. "What's so funny," asked Sirius.
"Draco....," Ginny replied, trying to speak through the laughter. She calmed herself long enough to get out the rest. "Draco is the other half of the puzzle. Professors Dumbledore and Lupin, Mr. Black, meet the Red Dragon." With that she collapsed onto the floor in a fit of laughter, Draco joining her. Dumbledore, seeing the irony in it all, began chuckling as well. It took a while, but Sirius and Remus caught on as well and soon the room was filled with howling laughter. Once calmed down enough, the five of them sat there. Dumbledore turned first to Draco. "I assume we'll need to test it out on the Quidditch Pitch tonight then shall we?"
"Yes," he replied, wiping the tears from his eyes. "With only two days remaining, I need to be able to do this before it comes time." Dumbledore nodded, the understanding in his eyes evident to Ginny and Draco.
"I will call the rest of the Order back to Hogwarts. In the mean time, I suggest you and Miss Weasley go to the Great Hall to eat. Remember, keep up appearances. I don't want any word of this getting out." Nodding, the two of them left his office in the direction of the Great Hall.
They couldn't walk into the hall together. What would everyone think? One their way there they rehearsed a little show for everyone. They both knew that they had that what they were about to do was to show that they hated each other, something far from the truth, but in order to keep the mission safe, they had to. They stopped on a landing before the hall and stared into each others eyes, sharing a passionate kiss, and leaving, their demeanors back to what the school knew them to be.
Ginny stormed into the hall first, letting the door slam against the wall for added effect. She smiled slightly to herself at this as Draco followed through the door, smirking. "So, little Weasel, a bit sensitive are you?"
"Malfoy, you inconsiderate git, get the hell away from me," she snarled, a remarkably good scowl on her face.
"Aw," Malfoy said, feigning a pout, "it seems I've hurt Red's feelings." He laughed cruelly as he headed back to the Slytherin table and sat down. The table immediately asked how he'd made her mad today. Weasley hunting appeared to be their favorite sport. Ginny sat down at the Gryffindor table acting extremely pissed off. Her face was flushed and she was silent. It was all that Harry, Ron, and Hermoine could do not to go after Malfoy. How dare he do this to her after he'd been so nice the day before! Ginny must have sensed this cause just then she looked up at the three of them and started giggling. They understood then. It was just a show.
They had worked out what would happen next with Dumbledore. As the school came out of the Great Hall after eating, Ginny and Draco "accidentally" bumped into each other.
"Watch where you're going Weasel. I don't want your Mudblood loving filth on me," said Draco, his voice dripping with contempt.
Ginny growled and became flushed. She said nothing at first. She lunged at Draco, surprising him, knocking him to the ground, one hand around his neck. "Take it back Malfoy! Apologize you son-of-a-----" she said. She did not get to finish her sentence, for striding forward came Professor McGonagall.
"Miss Weasley! Mister Malfoy! To Dumbledore's office….NOW!" They both looked horrified and immediately broke apart, Ginny getting off Draco allowing him to get up. Heads down, they both said "Yes Professor McGonagall" and headed to his office, the Professor on their heels. Minerva said the password to the office and they sprang apart, allowing the three of them entry to the staircase leading up to Dumbledore's office. Once inside Ginny and Draco immediately apologized for everything and started laughing.
"You two can be very convincing about fighting you know," she said, a hint of laughter in her eyes. They both saw another rare occurance that day: Minerva McGonagall, stone faced professor that did not tolerate such nonsense, burst into laughter. Ginny and Draco stopped and looked at each other, a look of amazement on their faces, before laughing again. The laughter continued into the office and as they sat down, they finally quieted enough to hear Dumbledore speak.
"The Order has been called again to show that another Dragon has arisen. Draco has been called by the Red Dragon. Ginny, you and Draco shall transform tonight in the Quidditch Pitch so we shall all see your dragon forms. As I'm sure Voldemort will still be taking precautions, and may have a few dragons there operating under an Imperius Curse, we need to know what their forms look like. Tonight will be the final night we meet until two days from now. Draco will have the time for meeting from his father tomorrow."
With that they apparated to the Quidditch Pitch. Ginny immediately said the incantation for her dragon form and vanished, the Silver Dragon appearing in her place. She lay quietly as she stared at Draco, giving him a soft nudge of encouragement with her nose before moving off to the side a bit to allow him enough room.
Draco said his spell, same as Ginny's had been but Red had replaced Silver. He felt the same sensations, the bending and stretching and breaking of his bones, until a magnificent Red Dragon stood where he once had. It lay down once transformation had been completed. Ginny, the Silver Dragon, approached Draco, the Red Dragon. She nuzzled him with her nose. His eyes fluttered open, a look of surprise and a bit of pain in them. She sidled up next to him and let him lean on her as he came to his feet, giving him some support. They both took flight then, just a short one, but it was most liberating for the two of them. The feel of the wings came quickly and soon they were soaring, a magnificent silhouette against the moon as they passed it. They landed in the Quidditch Pitch once again and transformed back.
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters but I wish I did.
Chapter 4: Uncovering the Truth
Draco woke early the next morning before anyone else would be awake. Even though he was excused from classes and would have loved to stay by her side, he realized that his absence might stir trouble in the Slytherin house, and with the raid on Voldemort only two days away he couldn't risk anyone writing or starting trouble with his father. Any hint and all would be lost. He silently slipped out of bed and put his cloak back on, looking down at Ginny. He felt the love for her swell in his heart, and, before he left, he kissed her lightly on the lips and tucked her back in. She was still worn out and sleeping peacefully from the night before. He thought again and left a note on her nightstand where he knew she would find it. Then he left Gryffindor tower for Slytherin house, all the while thinking of what to do with the day. The first thing he thought of, and he was pretty sure Ginny would agree to, was finding out the story behind the legend and her newly discovered powers of the dragon.
Ginny woke later in the day. She blinked a few times before the room focused and noticed that sunlight was streaming through the windows. She slowly rolled over and looked at her clock. It read "Herbology class." Wow she thought. I've slept through lunch and most of my classes. She looked just under the clock and saw a folded piece of parchment. She recognized Draco's handwriting and suddenly the events of the night before flooded back into her mind. The last thing she remembered was getting angry at Ron for attacking Draco, then passing out and feeling him lift her up. She unfolded the parchment and read on, the smile on her face growing wider and wider.
Dearest Ginny,
How I wished I could have woken up beside you, but I was afraid, both for you and this mission. I did not want to wake suspicion in either house of something going on so I slipped out early this morning. I hope that you can forgive me for this. I will be in the library eagerly awaiting you to come. I am going to search for the legend of the dragon. It may help in our quest to end the reign of Voldemort. Goodbye for now my dearest, and know that I love you.
Forever yours,
Draco
Ginny could barely finish reading the letter before she let the tears of happiness fall. Never before had she have someone love her like this and feel the same in return. Her family was a different kind of love. The love she felt and the connection she had with Draco was completely different, like two lost parts of a whole coming together. She smiled and wiped her tears away. Saving the letter in her drawer, she put a locking charm on it, not willing to share the letter with anyone just yet. She went and showered quickly, dressed, and hurried out of Gryffindor tower towards the library, hurrying towards her love.
Draco sat musing over volumes and volumes of books and still he had not yet found anything to help. He had spent most of the day in there and yet nothing. He was about to go try to get into the Restricted Section when he heard footsteps approaching. He looked up to see his red haired beauty standing before him, and smile on her face and tears in her eyes. He stood up to meet her but barely took a step before she ran up to him and linked her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply. She pulled back and blushed. "Draco, that letter………….you have no idea what it means to me. Do you really love me," she asked, the hope evident in her eyes.
Draco looked her directly in her eyes and took her hands in his. "Yes, Virginia Weasley, I do love you, more than you will ever know, but do you love me? How could you? I've been nothing but horrid to your family since I arrived here," he said, looking down at his feet, the sadness evident in his eyes.
Ginny gave a genuine smile and lifted his head with her hands so that he was now looking at her. She kissed him on the nose before saying "Draco, in all my life I have never met anyone like you. You make me laugh, you hold me when I cry, you risked your life to make sure I was alright. I remember back in the common room last night. My brother would have put you in the Infirmary, and I think you knew it, yet you risked it. Risked you being discovered in Gryffindor, risked everything, for me. Yes Draco, I do love you," she said, and with that he put his arms around her and brought her into a great hug. She slipped her arms around his waist as well, and the pair stood there for a long while just content to be in each other's arms.
Draco kissed her forehead and rested his chin on her head. "Well, love, I've been searching all morning and nothing has turned up. I think we should go see Dumbledore and ask if he knows where we can find anything on the legend or the legend itself." She nodded and with that they left the library and headed straight to Dumbledore's office. The guardians sprang apart and let them in once the password was spoken, and silently they went up the staircase into Dumbledore's office. Ginny knocked lightly and they heard "Come in" from inside the door. They entered, seeing Dumbledore seated behind his desk, and sleek grey wolf on one side, a large black dog on the other, and a red and gold Phoenix on it's perch.
"Hello Professor Lupin, Mr. Black," Ginny said, looking at each canine respectively. They quickly transformed into their human forms. Sirius and Remus both looked at her quizzically, assessing her to see if she was really alright. She smiled a reassuring smile, one that let them know she was okay. The two of them sat down just then as Draco turned to Dumbledore. "Professor Dumbledore, sir, I've been searching all day until just now when we came for more information on the legend but I can't find anything printed on it anywhere. Not a paragraph, not the legend itself, nothing. Do you know where we could find more on it? You know about it, of course, but we'd like to know more."
Dumbledore smiled back at Draco. He turned around and whispered some words that only he could hear. Suddenly the wall opened up and a passageway was seen. He turned back to Draco. "There is a book in there written by Merlin. In it you will find the legend of the Silver Dragon. He himself was the first. When the world was being systematically destroyed by Mordrid he discovered the power of the Dragon inside and saved the world and Camelot from it. His descendants hold this power too. Go now, both of you. Find what you seek. As for me, I think a pot of tea sounds nice. Sirius, Remus, how about it?"
The three men sat enjoying their tea while a dazed Ginny and Draco went through the passageway. It was ornately decorated, precious gems lining the walls, pictures of past Dragons leading down the way. The last painting just before the room was one of her, her hair blowing in the wind, a smile on her face, with Draco standing behind her, his arms encircling her waist, a smile on his face as well. Underneath a plaque appeared with the inscription "Fire and Ice: The Dragons." This confused both Ginny and Draco. The Dragons? As in two? She looked at him. He looked just as confused as she felt. They turned a bit and entered a room that took their breath away.
The room had hand woven silk draperies with scenes from the Dragons lives playing through them. It showed the sequence of events as they played out as each dragon slew the Dark One terrorizing the land. The floor had a beautifully hand woven red and gold rug on it, the cushions to sit on being red with gold trim and tassels. There was a beautiful bookcase with hundreds of volumes of books reaching up to the ceiling. Ginny heard Draco give a slight groan. "We'll never be able to get up there to see where the volume is should we not find in within reach." As if someone heard their dilemma, a faint pop was heard behind them.
Where once there had been an empty space a pedestal appeared with an old worn book on it. Ginny approached it, Draco behind her, and they saw on the cover that an inscription was here as well.
Look in these pages Dragon. Here you will find what you seek.
Ginny opened the book and saw a table of contents appear. She looked through until she found something that looked promising: The Dragon of Merlin. She noticed the page and volume number and sighed. "How am I supposed to get to volume one? It's all the way at the top."
Draco chuckled a bit. "Well," he laughed, "you could just transform and fly up there."
Ginny began laughing at this as well. When they looked up again, they saw a book falling towards them. Ginny ducked out of the way, Draco catching her, and the book came to a halt a few feet off the floor, floating in the air, waiting for someone to grab it. Draco went and took the volume and sat on the cushions, Ginny leaning against him holding the volume, flipping through the pages. He rested his chin on her shoulder as she found the page and began to read aloud:
Long ago Mordrid began ravishing the land, killing and pillaging. No one was safe. Merlin was doing all he could to protect Camelot from siege. It was the last wizarding stronghold left in England. He became fatigued, worried that he would not be able to hold off Mordrid much longer. That night he had a dream that a large Silver Dragon took flight from the castle, seeking out those loyal to Mordrid and Mordrid himself. In one night all the terror was put to an end. When he awoke he found the pendant around his neck and a note with what looked to be a spell. Not one to ignore dreams, he staved off Mordrid during the day and at nightfall read the spell aloud. A brilliant light flashed from the necklace and when it dimmed a Silver Dragon stood where once Merlin had been. Taking flight, this dragon ended the reign of terror and the stranglehold that Mordrid had on the world, just as the dream had forseen. Arriving back at the castle, he decided to make this a permanent spell, that the dragon should be awakened when needed to save.
Mordrid, though a fearsome Dark Lord, was not the worse to graze the earth. That title belonged to Hades, Mordrid's son. Hades began his reign of terror not long after Mordrid's ended. The ransacking and murder was worse. Soon the earth was red with blood and the Silver Dragon knew it could not stop them alone. Merlin fell in love around this time with a beautiful witch named Cerridwen. She was as clever as they came and one meeting between the two sealed their bond forever. When Merlin woke one morning, he found that Cerridwen was there, standing above him. She was wearing an amulet almost identical to his, and in her hand was a spell. When asked where she found this, she replied that she had dreamt that a great Red Dragon was flying in a team with a great Silver Dragon. Together the two put a stop to Hades. Merlin then recounted his dream and his story of his amulet. That night the two went to the same spot where Merlin had originally awakened the dragon. The dream and thus the prophecy turned out to be true. Hades was stopped and peace reigned once again. It shall reign until a Dark Lord arises once again. Then will the sleeping dragons awaken to stop the Dark Lord from taking over. They shall be the descendants of Merlin and Cerridwen and their love shall bring them together. Together there is no dark force that they cannot end.
Ginny and Draco leaned back open mouthed as the volume flew back to it's place on the shelf. Ginny had been fumbling with the amulet around her neck the whole time, the one she recognized as being on Merlin's neck in the illustrations. Draco reached up to his neck and was shocked to find that he had an amulet there as well, identical to Ginny's, the only difference being the color of the stone, his being fire red instead of blue. Ginny slowly turned around to look at Draco and noticed the look of shock on his face as he looked at the amulet around his neck. She was shocked as well to find that he was wearing the amulet that had been on Cerridwen in the volume.
An eerie, far off voice came to them then. "Fire and Ice, you are as one. Be not apart, for your time for need draws near. Together you will conquer. Apart you will be defeated. Let love guide you through this, for that is the bond which the darkness shall not break."
Sighing, she snuggled into Draco's chest. A sudden laugh broke through. "What," asked Draco, almost laughing himself.
"I do NOT envy you the first time we get tonight. The first time you transform is gonna feel horrible."
"Then you shall have to care for me," he replied, laughing himself. Neither could find what was so funny in all of this, the danger that was involved, yet at that point the world seemed to hold nothing but laughter, and Fire and Ice lay there, laughing at a joke only they could hear.
Meanwhile, Dumbledore, Sirius, and Remus had been sharing tea and chatting when Ginny and Draco exited the passageway. The three grown men noticed the pair laughing, tears steaming down their faces. "What's so funny," asked Sirius.
"Draco....," Ginny replied, trying to speak through the laughter. She calmed herself long enough to get out the rest. "Draco is the other half of the puzzle. Professors Dumbledore and Lupin, Mr. Black, meet the Red Dragon." With that she collapsed onto the floor in a fit of laughter, Draco joining her. Dumbledore, seeing the irony in it all, began chuckling as well. It took a while, but Sirius and Remus caught on as well and soon the room was filled with howling laughter. Once calmed down enough, the five of them sat there. Dumbledore turned first to Draco. "I assume we'll need to test it out on the Quidditch Pitch tonight then shall we?"
"Yes," he replied, wiping the tears from his eyes. "With only two days remaining, I need to be able to do this before it comes time." Dumbledore nodded, the understanding in his eyes evident to Ginny and Draco.
"I will call the rest of the Order back to Hogwarts. In the mean time, I suggest you and Miss Weasley go to the Great Hall to eat. Remember, keep up appearances. I don't want any word of this getting out." Nodding, the two of them left his office in the direction of the Great Hall.
They couldn't walk into the hall together. What would everyone think? One their way there they rehearsed a little show for everyone. They both knew that they had that what they were about to do was to show that they hated each other, something far from the truth, but in order to keep the mission safe, they had to. They stopped on a landing before the hall and stared into each others eyes, sharing a passionate kiss, and leaving, their demeanors back to what the school knew them to be.
Ginny stormed into the hall first, letting the door slam against the wall for added effect. She smiled slightly to herself at this as Draco followed through the door, smirking. "So, little Weasel, a bit sensitive are you?"
"Malfoy, you inconsiderate git, get the hell away from me," she snarled, a remarkably good scowl on her face.
"Aw," Malfoy said, feigning a pout, "it seems I've hurt Red's feelings." He laughed cruelly as he headed back to the Slytherin table and sat down. The table immediately asked how he'd made her mad today. Weasley hunting appeared to be their favorite sport. Ginny sat down at the Gryffindor table acting extremely pissed off. Her face was flushed and she was silent. It was all that Harry, Ron, and Hermoine could do not to go after Malfoy. How dare he do this to her after he'd been so nice the day before! Ginny must have sensed this cause just then she looked up at the three of them and started giggling. They understood then. It was just a show.
They had worked out what would happen next with Dumbledore. As the school came out of the Great Hall after eating, Ginny and Draco "accidentally" bumped into each other.
"Watch where you're going Weasel. I don't want your Mudblood loving filth on me," said Draco, his voice dripping with contempt.
Ginny growled and became flushed. She said nothing at first. She lunged at Draco, surprising him, knocking him to the ground, one hand around his neck. "Take it back Malfoy! Apologize you son-of-a-----" she said. She did not get to finish her sentence, for striding forward came Professor McGonagall.
"Miss Weasley! Mister Malfoy! To Dumbledore's office….NOW!" They both looked horrified and immediately broke apart, Ginny getting off Draco allowing him to get up. Heads down, they both said "Yes Professor McGonagall" and headed to his office, the Professor on their heels. Minerva said the password to the office and they sprang apart, allowing the three of them entry to the staircase leading up to Dumbledore's office. Once inside Ginny and Draco immediately apologized for everything and started laughing.
"You two can be very convincing about fighting you know," she said, a hint of laughter in her eyes. They both saw another rare occurance that day: Minerva McGonagall, stone faced professor that did not tolerate such nonsense, burst into laughter. Ginny and Draco stopped and looked at each other, a look of amazement on their faces, before laughing again. The laughter continued into the office and as they sat down, they finally quieted enough to hear Dumbledore speak.
"The Order has been called again to show that another Dragon has arisen. Draco has been called by the Red Dragon. Ginny, you and Draco shall transform tonight in the Quidditch Pitch so we shall all see your dragon forms. As I'm sure Voldemort will still be taking precautions, and may have a few dragons there operating under an Imperius Curse, we need to know what their forms look like. Tonight will be the final night we meet until two days from now. Draco will have the time for meeting from his father tomorrow."
With that they apparated to the Quidditch Pitch. Ginny immediately said the incantation for her dragon form and vanished, the Silver Dragon appearing in her place. She lay quietly as she stared at Draco, giving him a soft nudge of encouragement with her nose before moving off to the side a bit to allow him enough room.
Draco said his spell, same as Ginny's had been but Red had replaced Silver. He felt the same sensations, the bending and stretching and breaking of his bones, until a magnificent Red Dragon stood where he once had. It lay down once transformation had been completed. Ginny, the Silver Dragon, approached Draco, the Red Dragon. She nuzzled him with her nose. His eyes fluttered open, a look of surprise and a bit of pain in them. She sidled up next to him and let him lean on her as he came to his feet, giving him some support. They both took flight then, just a short one, but it was most liberating for the two of them. The feel of the wings came quickly and soon they were soaring, a magnificent silhouette against the moon as they passed it. They landed in the Quidditch Pitch once again and transformed back.