Disclaimer: I own none of the characters you might recognize in this story.
They all belong to J.K Rowling. As for the legend of the slayer, I am not
sure who owns that. It has been around for quite a long time according to
the very little knowledge I have on the subject. Most are familiar with it
because of the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. You will not find any
Buffy characters in here. It is strictly a HP fic, with my own little
twists. :o)
~*~
Now roaming through this darkness
I'm alive but I'm alone
Part of me is fighting this
But part of me is gone. . .
~*~
Facing Fear
Chapter 4 Trouble in Hogsmeade
"Looks like the Slayer's in town boys."
Cain watched the faces of the other vampires light up with glee and greed.
A rather brave vampire took a step forward, indicating that he was ready. "Just say the word and we'll have the most delicious blood for dinner..Slayer's blood." He said with relish.
"Be patient Matthew." Cain answered. The others moved closer, waiting to hear his plan. Cain was the oldest vampire there, although he didn't look a day over twenty. He was also the most powerful, the toughest, and the smartest. His name, Cain, sent trembling through any vampire; he didn't need a last name. In fact, he couldn't remember his last name. He was the ringleader, and the others respected him.
"The Slayer is young and restless, but she is tough and stubborn also. I saw her in the woods, training with her Watcher. Hogwarts is too well protected with witchcraft and wizardry; it would be suicide to run in there after her. Instead, we'll draw her to us."
Cain's evil smile deepened the pale and menacing features of his face. His hair was a deep brown, short and wavy, accenting his ruling look. His eyes were a flashing blue that seemed to stand out against his pale skin, which hadn't seen sunlight in many years.
The others whooped and hollered, spooking the birds and creatures of the forest.
"The sun will be up soon. Get rest, for we will be moving into Hogsmeade soon."
~*~*~*~
Draco found himself in the Slayer's training room, flipping through books about vampires, demons, and any other nasty creature imaginable. Ginny's success with the balmo had been surprising. They were powerful and menacing creatures, but she had sent it running in a matter of minutes.
Her strength and agility was amazing, he had watched her every move from behind the trees while she fought the balmo, and marveled at the way she moved her body in graceful strides, like she was picking dandelions in a sunlit field rather than fighting a dark creature.
But her stubbornness and temper would be a problem. Their personalities clashed..Draco had grown up hating the Weasley's, and she him. When he had realized that she was the Slayer, Draco had sent pleading letters to the council, asking if there was any other watcher available to train her..it was a hopeless plight. The Council of course had said no. He was in a perfect position as Watcher. The Council told him that he had extroadinary talent, and that the training should go smoothly for him. They apparently didn't realize that the trainer and student despised one another.
Draco asked himself why he was doing this. Why was he fighting for good when he had only known evil? The answer lay obvious on his conscience, but he ignored it.
He would start Ginny on her daily work-out process in the morning. He wasn't looking forward to it at all..she would definitely argue about it.
He was right.
The next morning Ginny stormed into the training room. She was wearing gray sweatpants, and a tee, her hair swept back into a tight bun on her head. She appeared as if she had just fallen out of bed, but she looked just as good.
"I can not believe you sent a house-elf to wake me up at 5:30 in the morning!" She raged, motioning her anger with her hands, which were flying around.
"Fine. I'll come wake you up myself tomorrow. Will that be better?" He asked, throwing a penetrating gaze her way.
"No!" she shouted across the room. "I need my sleep! Why the heck do you need me at this time in the morning!? I thought vampires only came out at night!"
"They do." He answered calmly, thoroughly enjoying her pointless argument. He would win in the end.
She let the door fall with a bang, crossed her hands over her chest, and waited for his excuse.
He wasn't going to give her one.
"Start stretching."
She didn't move.
Draco walked around the long table that he had been standing behind, and came to a halt in front of her. He let his gaze meet hers, daring her to look away. They stood in silence, staring each other down, Draco noticing the brilliant shade of green her eyes were. She finally looked away, and he smirked. She might have more physical strength in comparison to himself, but he could beat her when it came to obstinacy.
When she finally brought her face up to his again, he could see her flinch at his smirk.
"You better get used to early rising, because you're going to be here this time every morning."
She searched him for a moment, taking in his expression, her eyes lingering on his emotionless ones.
"Fine." She muttered, obviously unhappy that she had lost the mental battle.
He then went on to show her the training routine she would use. Guiding her through the instructions of how to use the equipment and everything.
"By the way," He spoke up as she concentrated on her pull ups. "You haven't mentioned that you're the Chosen One to anyone have you?"
Ginny looked up, startled. "No, but I'm going to have to tell my brother and family at one point aren't I? I mean, this is what I'm going to be doing for the rest of my-"
She faded off with a kind of sad expression.
"I had wanted to be a writer for the Daily Prophet, or Witch Weekly. Journalism has always fascinated me."
Draco ignored her, although he couldn't help but feel a bit guilty. She wouldn't be able to live like a normal teenager any longer. She would be the Slayer until she died, and then another would be summoned, just as she was when the previous Slayer passed away. And the Chosen One didn't normally live a very long life. 'Oh well, it's not my problem. I still can't believe I got stuck with her anyway.' He thought, conceitedly.
"I don't suggest telling anyone about your identity."
Ginny looked up in horror.
"So I'm just supposed to lie to all my friends and family about everything?"
Draco sighed, and pushed the hair that had fallen in his face out of the way. "If you must tell someone, then I cannot stop you. But only those who you're closest too." He paused for a minute before nastily adding, "If you even have any close friends."
"Bugger off Malfoy. I don't see you very high on the social charts."
He straightened his robes importantly. "Why do I need friends when I have you?" He asked sarcastically.
"That's very true," She said, smirking back at him. "You couldn't possibly need anyone else."
She spun around on her heel. "I've got to get ready for class."
"Be here tonight!"
He watched her leave with loathing. He wondered if she would show.
~*~*~*~
Ginny sunk into one of the chairs in the Gryffindor Common Room. She had been training under Draco for a week now, and her body could feel the difference. Their arguments had increased in scale, because she couldn't stand his arrogant attitude towards her.
She looked up as Ron, Harry, and Hermione entered the Common Room. Ginny hadn't told anyone about her newfound abilities, and really wasn't sure how her brother would react.
"Hi Ginny." Hermione said, as the three of them took seats around her. Harry and Ron brought out the chessboard and began to arrange the pieces.
"Hey." Ginny answered.
"What are you still doing up?" Ron asked accusingly. "You've been coming in late recently."
Ginny rolled her eyes. When was her brother going to realize that she was sixteen and could take care of herself?
"Just out..." She answered, eyeing the three of them. "What about you? Where've you been?"
"Oh, well," Ron started, a blush creeping into his face. "We were in the library, doing homework."
Ginny looked over at Hermione who had suddenly found a lot of interest in the chess game.
"Some of us were doing homework." Harry muttered. "Others were flirting."
Ginny suppressed a giggle, and stood, leaving the three of them to work out their romantic differences. She just couldn't bring herself to break the slaying news to Ron just yet.
She entered her dorm and was about to change into her pajamas, when an owl tapped on her window. Ginny let it in, and it dropped a letter on her bed and flew out again.
Puzzled, Ginny picked up the letter, which only had her first name on the outside. She ripped it open and read:
Ginny,
Trouble in Hogsmeade. Meet me outside the library.
-Draco
The letter had been hastily written, so Ginny grabbed her cloak and swung the door back open, before she realized that her brother, Harry, and Hermione were all still downstairs.
She couldn't think of what to do to avoid being seen by the three of them. So, she crept silently down the girl's stairway, and was relieved to see their backs turned to her. They were focusing on the chess game, and didn't even notice as she crept towards the Portrait Hole. Others in the room, looked up at her, some with quizzical glances, but most just ignored her.
She ran toward the library, and seconds later came to a halt. Draco was there; his expression seemed a bit more worried than usual.
"What is it?" Ginny asked.
Draco glanced up finally realizing that she was there, he hadn't heard her approach. "There is a vampire roaming the streets of Hogsmeade, and I've been told that he's taken a young boy."
Ginny didn't stop to ask him where he had gotten this information. They didn't have time. "Let's go."
To her surprise Draco went and opened the secret passage that led into Hogsmeade. The one Harry had shown her, that lay behind a statue of a witch.
At her startled expression Draco spoke. "Did you think that Potter and his little friends were the only ones that knew about this?"
"How did you find it?" She asked, as they began to make their way quickly through the tunnel.
"I know where every room, passage, tunnel, and corridor is located in this castle.. an advantage of being Head Boy."
After what seemed like hours, but was really only minutes, they reached the end of the passage. Ginny was about to open the door that led into Honeydukes, but Draco pulled her back.
"Something isn't right." He said, searching her eyes as if they held the answer.
"What do you mean?" She was becoming impatient..that boy could already be dead.
"I received that information through an anonymous letter...it could be a trap." He finished, watching her expression carefully.
All Ginny could think about, was finding that vampire, staking him, and saving the boy. Draco had shown her the way to kill a vampire (which is really an oxi-moron, because vampires are already dead.) But to send the vampire to it's final death, she either had to stake it with a sharpened piece of wood in the heart, chop it's head off, or break it's neck. All meaning that she would have to get very close to the vampire to do so. Ginny again found herself asking questions like, was Malfoy really to be trusted? Or, Is this whole Slayer thing a big joke? The latter was the easiest to answer. Ginny had never before been capable of the things she was able to do now, so she pretty much accepted that she was the real Slayer.
Ginny suddenly realized that she was wasting precious time.
"Come on." She hissed at Draco. "I'm going to find that boy."
Draco watched as she discreetly pushed open the door, and headed up into the store. She motioned impatiently to him, demanding that he hurry up. He sighed and finally followed her up.
Ginny moved through the tables and all the people pushing through. This was her first real chance to prove that she could take on a vampire, and it was nerve-racking to say the least. She was vaguely aware of Malfoy following her as she moved out into the dark street.
She briskly walked down the sidewalk, checking down streets and alleyways, hoping to catch sight of the vampire and his hostage.
Suddenly she heard a cry, the cry of a young boy, and she rushed toward the sound.
"Weasley!" Draco had grabbed her by the arm with surprising strength and whirled her around.
"Let go of me! That boy's in trouble!" She breathed.
"I think it's a trap." Draco said, giving her that funny stare again.
"Don't be ridiculous. I can take on one stupid vampire." Ginny brushed his hand away, and began jogging. She heard the cry again, and turned down a damp, dark alley.
She caught a whiff of something, and immediately knew that it was the smell of a vampire...the smell of blood. She threw off her cloak, because it was too heavy to fight in.
There was a tall lamppost on the right side of the alley. It gave off a bit of light, although it was very dim, as it was slowly extinguishing.
But in the small amount of yellowish light that it did cast, a leering vampire stepped into, from out of the shadows, dragging a boy that looked to be about nine or ten years old. The vampire had the boy in a tight grip around the neck. His face was deformed looking, and his long fangs protruded from his mouth, just like the pictures that Draco had shown her in all of his books. Ginny glared, thinking only of killing that vampire, as she pulled out one of her pointed stakes.
Maybe that's why she didn't sense the other vampires at first.
But when she did, it was too late.
Her distinct eyesight caught movement around her, and suddenly she was surrounded..by many vampires.
She stood her ground, her eyes glancing fleetingly around, taking in every one of the beast's positions. She wasn't going to make the first move.
A tall vampire at her right moved forward, into the small circle of light. Ginny rounded on him, but he didn't make any move to start fighting. Unlike all of the other vampires, his face was normal, and hadn't changed to its true ugliness. He wore a derisive grin as he sauntered forward, and, Ginny realized, he had her cloak draped over his arm.
"My, my, aren't you a pretty little thing." He lifted one eyebrow and examined her, while circling slowly around her. The pale light made his effulgent blue eyes stand out against his colorless skin, and every strand of his rich brown hair seemed to be positioned perfectly.
Ginny only glared, too angry to say anything to him. She assumed that he was the leader of the pack, for all the other vampires watched his every move, as though waiting for a signal.
He finally stopped circling her, and brought his cobalt eyes up to meet her face, at the same time bringing her cloak forward.
"I believe you dropped this." He said with a smile, as though he were the most polite gentleman there.
Ginny looked at her former cloak as if it were a pile of rags. "Keep it." She kept her voice low and threatening. "It will never be clean again."
The vampire stepped back, as if truly shocked by her harsh comment. "Why pet, I'm only trying to be nice!"
The other vampires chuckled, and Ginny scowled.
"If you want to be nice, release that boy." All the vampires stopped laughing, and looked to their leader.
He only stared at Ginny, the evil smile never leaving his face. It sent cold shivers through her blood, and she suddenly felt very alone.
The vampire leaned toward another that had just approached. "Where is her Watcher?" And Ginny suddenly realized that Draco was nowhere to be seen.
"He disappeared, Cain." The other answered. Ginny made a mental note of the leader's name. "Would you like me to take some help and find him?"
"No." Cain drawled, lifting a finger to stroke Ginny's face. She pulled away, and lifted the hand that held the stake. "After all, our business is not with the Watcher, but with the Slayer."
The other vampire nodded, and crept back into the shadows.
Without even thinking about it, Ginny pulled out her wand and pointed it at Cain, saying the one spell she had never even dreamed of uttering.
"Avada Kedavra!" She shouted. A blast of sparks shot out of her wand and hit Cain. He didn't even flinch.
"The killing curse isn't going to do you any good." Cain said calmly. "How can you kill someone who's already dead?"
Ginny felt the anger surge through her as she pocketed her wand, and gripped her stake even harder.
"If you ever want to see the moon again," She said, hissing at Cain through gritted teeth. "I demand that you let that boy go..if you came here for me, then there's no reason to harm him."
Cain glanced at the vampire that held the boy, and gave some sort of signal with the wave of his hand.
"Oh, but Slayer, we do not think with reason."
And to Ginny's horror, the vampire quickly twisted the crying boy's neck until a crack was heard and he went limp. The vampire threw the boy to the others who caught him hungrily, as Ginny pushed Cain out of her way and jumped the vampire who had killed the boy.
It was surprised, and barely had time to react when Ginny had staked him in the heart and all that was left of him was a neat pile of dust. That kind of power gave Ginny new strength and she turned to face the others, who had stopped feeding and were menacingly moving forward.
The first one to reach her was thrown against another, causing three or four of them to fall over. Ginny scrambled on top of them and just began staking like a crazed person, watching pile after pile of dust form underneath her.
Two pairs of strong arms lifted her away form her victims, and she wrenched and jerked, trying to free herself from their grasp.
She looked up from her captured position to see Cain leaning nonchalantly against the lamppost, watching the excitement with little care but much amusement.
Ginny spit onto Cain's shoes as the others brought her forward to meet him. Cain didn't even glance down, instead he ripped Ginny away from her holders, and she felt his arm tighten unrelentingly against her waist. She hatefully brought her eyes up to meet his, and was almost lost in the cold, blue depth of them.
"No Slayer that has had the privilege to meet me, has ever won." He whispered softly in her ear.
Ginny only shivered as he placed his surprisingly warm hand against her face, and then moved it down to her neck, where he pushed all of her crimson curls to one side. He slowly brought his mouth down to her neck, never moving his eyes away from hers. And just as his lips brushed her delicate skin, Ginny spoke dazedly.
"Then meet Ginny Weasley."
And using all her built up adrenaline, Ginny twisted around in Cain's grip, and rolled forward, flipping him over with her. He landed hard on his back, and Ginny wriggled herself away from his grip while he was recovering, and stood up.
She ran faster than she ever had before, breaking through the crowd of vampires that had angrily stomped forward, and staking several at the end of the alley.
She turned down the street and ran towards the Honeydukes, tears blurring her eyesight. She crashed right into Draco as she rounded a corner, and he looked just as bewildered as she.
"Keep running!" Draco said as she slowed. She looked over her shoulder to see a few vampires a little ways behind her.
"Where did you go!?" She asked, as they reached the doors to the restraunt.
"Throw this on." Draco said, tossing her his own cloak and ignoring her question. "I don't want you seen like that." Ginny looked down to see that parts of her black pants where ripped, and blood trickled down many places on her body. Some of the vampires had clawed her pretty good.
Ginny did as he said, and they pushed through the room and made it unnoticed into the secret tunnel. Draco slammed the door, and waited quietly for a moment, listening for the sounds of followers.
Finally he came down, and sighed as he reached Ginny, who had his cloak wrapped around herself and was shivering.
"Did you save the boy?" He asked wearily.
This brought forward many sobs from Ginny. "You were right! It was a trap! And they killed the boy right in front of me Draco!"
"What!?" He yelled, seemingly looming over her. "They killed the boy!?"
"Yes! Before I had a chance to do anything!" Ginny yelled back, suddenly angry at him. "Where were you? You should have been there to help me!" She turned the blame over onto him. Accusing him of not being there, to help her save the boy's life.
Draco became suddenly quiet and turned abruptly around and started down the passage.
"Don't turn your back on me Malfoy!" Ginny yelled, hurriedly following him. "Tell me where you went!"
She was suddenly struck with an unpleasant thought. 'Had Draco been in on the trap? He had certainly seemed to know that it was going to happen!'
Ginny grabbed Draco by the shoulder, and swung him against the wall, pressing her body into him. He gave her the same kind of stare that she had seen Cain give her. Like he wasn't surprised, and he really didn't care if Ginny were to beat him up or not.
"Tell me Draco." Ginny whispered, almost scared to hear his answer. "Tell me the truth."
With a slight smirk he lifted his hand to brush a strand of Ginny's hair out of her face. She suddenly felt very uncomfortable to have Draco in a position like this, but she ignored the tingling sensation coursing through her and pushed harder against his shoulders.
"A vampire dragged me off down a different street." He finally answered. "Seems that he didn't want to share dinner with any of his other friends. I had to fight him off, but he was tough and I didn't get away until you came running."
Ginny pondered over his words for a moment. His story seemed very believable to her. After all, she hadn't really been paying much attention to him as she went after the vampire with the boy. He could have easily been caught and dragged away without her ever noticing.
"As much as I like this position," Draco's words brought her out of her thoughts. "I'm finding it kind of difficult to breathe."
Ginny was glad that Draco wasn't able to see her deep blush in the dark.
She was about to move off of him when he suddenly twirled her around, so that this time he was pressing her into the wall.
"This is much better." He whispered.
Ginny didn't even have time to think, as she suddenly found his lips on hers. She instinctively ran her hands through his slick blonde hair. The sensation of his lips against hers, his tongue begging for entry, which she wouldn't allow, and his hands pressing into her back as he moved them away from the wall and pressed her closer to him was enough to make her thoughts become scattered, and send shivers through her body. She sighed as he gave up on her mouth and began a trail of kisses down her face, and then onto her neck. She couldn't ever remember feeling this way with any boy..but suddenly visions of Cain's face jumped into her mind, and her eyes flew open as Draco moved his lips covetously over the delicate part of her neck.
She pushed him away, terror fleeing through her blood. The remembrance of Cain's deadly mouth on her neck was too much to bear.
"I'm sorry." She whispered to Draco, as she turned and ran down the passage, leaving him with feelings of confusion, anger, and lust.
A/N: Finally, a longer chapter! And a taste of the d/g action too! ;o) I tried to keep the characters as much in character as possible. Let me know if you found anything wrong in this or other chapters.
Thanks to:
The Dragon's Angel: That was really encouraging! Thank you!
Some dude: I'm glad you like it!
Eclipse2003: I know, sometimes I just want to have Ginny kick Malfoy's ass, since she is the Slayer and everything, but I'm trying to keep her temper at a certain level, and Ginny knows that she's going to need her watcher (even if it is Malfoy hehe) to help her train and understand the creatures. Thanks for the review! It gave me a good laugh!
Crystal: Yep, Cain was watching. Thanks for the review!
GinnyYvette, Baby, and Celena
Thank you all!
Please Review!! It's what keeps my writing going!
~*~
Now roaming through this darkness
I'm alive but I'm alone
Part of me is fighting this
But part of me is gone. . .
~*~
Facing Fear
Chapter 4 Trouble in Hogsmeade
"Looks like the Slayer's in town boys."
Cain watched the faces of the other vampires light up with glee and greed.
A rather brave vampire took a step forward, indicating that he was ready. "Just say the word and we'll have the most delicious blood for dinner..Slayer's blood." He said with relish.
"Be patient Matthew." Cain answered. The others moved closer, waiting to hear his plan. Cain was the oldest vampire there, although he didn't look a day over twenty. He was also the most powerful, the toughest, and the smartest. His name, Cain, sent trembling through any vampire; he didn't need a last name. In fact, he couldn't remember his last name. He was the ringleader, and the others respected him.
"The Slayer is young and restless, but she is tough and stubborn also. I saw her in the woods, training with her Watcher. Hogwarts is too well protected with witchcraft and wizardry; it would be suicide to run in there after her. Instead, we'll draw her to us."
Cain's evil smile deepened the pale and menacing features of his face. His hair was a deep brown, short and wavy, accenting his ruling look. His eyes were a flashing blue that seemed to stand out against his pale skin, which hadn't seen sunlight in many years.
The others whooped and hollered, spooking the birds and creatures of the forest.
"The sun will be up soon. Get rest, for we will be moving into Hogsmeade soon."
~*~*~*~
Draco found himself in the Slayer's training room, flipping through books about vampires, demons, and any other nasty creature imaginable. Ginny's success with the balmo had been surprising. They were powerful and menacing creatures, but she had sent it running in a matter of minutes.
Her strength and agility was amazing, he had watched her every move from behind the trees while she fought the balmo, and marveled at the way she moved her body in graceful strides, like she was picking dandelions in a sunlit field rather than fighting a dark creature.
But her stubbornness and temper would be a problem. Their personalities clashed..Draco had grown up hating the Weasley's, and she him. When he had realized that she was the Slayer, Draco had sent pleading letters to the council, asking if there was any other watcher available to train her..it was a hopeless plight. The Council of course had said no. He was in a perfect position as Watcher. The Council told him that he had extroadinary talent, and that the training should go smoothly for him. They apparently didn't realize that the trainer and student despised one another.
Draco asked himself why he was doing this. Why was he fighting for good when he had only known evil? The answer lay obvious on his conscience, but he ignored it.
He would start Ginny on her daily work-out process in the morning. He wasn't looking forward to it at all..she would definitely argue about it.
He was right.
The next morning Ginny stormed into the training room. She was wearing gray sweatpants, and a tee, her hair swept back into a tight bun on her head. She appeared as if she had just fallen out of bed, but she looked just as good.
"I can not believe you sent a house-elf to wake me up at 5:30 in the morning!" She raged, motioning her anger with her hands, which were flying around.
"Fine. I'll come wake you up myself tomorrow. Will that be better?" He asked, throwing a penetrating gaze her way.
"No!" she shouted across the room. "I need my sleep! Why the heck do you need me at this time in the morning!? I thought vampires only came out at night!"
"They do." He answered calmly, thoroughly enjoying her pointless argument. He would win in the end.
She let the door fall with a bang, crossed her hands over her chest, and waited for his excuse.
He wasn't going to give her one.
"Start stretching."
She didn't move.
Draco walked around the long table that he had been standing behind, and came to a halt in front of her. He let his gaze meet hers, daring her to look away. They stood in silence, staring each other down, Draco noticing the brilliant shade of green her eyes were. She finally looked away, and he smirked. She might have more physical strength in comparison to himself, but he could beat her when it came to obstinacy.
When she finally brought her face up to his again, he could see her flinch at his smirk.
"You better get used to early rising, because you're going to be here this time every morning."
She searched him for a moment, taking in his expression, her eyes lingering on his emotionless ones.
"Fine." She muttered, obviously unhappy that she had lost the mental battle.
He then went on to show her the training routine she would use. Guiding her through the instructions of how to use the equipment and everything.
"By the way," He spoke up as she concentrated on her pull ups. "You haven't mentioned that you're the Chosen One to anyone have you?"
Ginny looked up, startled. "No, but I'm going to have to tell my brother and family at one point aren't I? I mean, this is what I'm going to be doing for the rest of my-"
She faded off with a kind of sad expression.
"I had wanted to be a writer for the Daily Prophet, or Witch Weekly. Journalism has always fascinated me."
Draco ignored her, although he couldn't help but feel a bit guilty. She wouldn't be able to live like a normal teenager any longer. She would be the Slayer until she died, and then another would be summoned, just as she was when the previous Slayer passed away. And the Chosen One didn't normally live a very long life. 'Oh well, it's not my problem. I still can't believe I got stuck with her anyway.' He thought, conceitedly.
"I don't suggest telling anyone about your identity."
Ginny looked up in horror.
"So I'm just supposed to lie to all my friends and family about everything?"
Draco sighed, and pushed the hair that had fallen in his face out of the way. "If you must tell someone, then I cannot stop you. But only those who you're closest too." He paused for a minute before nastily adding, "If you even have any close friends."
"Bugger off Malfoy. I don't see you very high on the social charts."
He straightened his robes importantly. "Why do I need friends when I have you?" He asked sarcastically.
"That's very true," She said, smirking back at him. "You couldn't possibly need anyone else."
She spun around on her heel. "I've got to get ready for class."
"Be here tonight!"
He watched her leave with loathing. He wondered if she would show.
~*~*~*~
Ginny sunk into one of the chairs in the Gryffindor Common Room. She had been training under Draco for a week now, and her body could feel the difference. Their arguments had increased in scale, because she couldn't stand his arrogant attitude towards her.
She looked up as Ron, Harry, and Hermione entered the Common Room. Ginny hadn't told anyone about her newfound abilities, and really wasn't sure how her brother would react.
"Hi Ginny." Hermione said, as the three of them took seats around her. Harry and Ron brought out the chessboard and began to arrange the pieces.
"Hey." Ginny answered.
"What are you still doing up?" Ron asked accusingly. "You've been coming in late recently."
Ginny rolled her eyes. When was her brother going to realize that she was sixteen and could take care of herself?
"Just out..." She answered, eyeing the three of them. "What about you? Where've you been?"
"Oh, well," Ron started, a blush creeping into his face. "We were in the library, doing homework."
Ginny looked over at Hermione who had suddenly found a lot of interest in the chess game.
"Some of us were doing homework." Harry muttered. "Others were flirting."
Ginny suppressed a giggle, and stood, leaving the three of them to work out their romantic differences. She just couldn't bring herself to break the slaying news to Ron just yet.
She entered her dorm and was about to change into her pajamas, when an owl tapped on her window. Ginny let it in, and it dropped a letter on her bed and flew out again.
Puzzled, Ginny picked up the letter, which only had her first name on the outside. She ripped it open and read:
Ginny,
Trouble in Hogsmeade. Meet me outside the library.
-Draco
The letter had been hastily written, so Ginny grabbed her cloak and swung the door back open, before she realized that her brother, Harry, and Hermione were all still downstairs.
She couldn't think of what to do to avoid being seen by the three of them. So, she crept silently down the girl's stairway, and was relieved to see their backs turned to her. They were focusing on the chess game, and didn't even notice as she crept towards the Portrait Hole. Others in the room, looked up at her, some with quizzical glances, but most just ignored her.
She ran toward the library, and seconds later came to a halt. Draco was there; his expression seemed a bit more worried than usual.
"What is it?" Ginny asked.
Draco glanced up finally realizing that she was there, he hadn't heard her approach. "There is a vampire roaming the streets of Hogsmeade, and I've been told that he's taken a young boy."
Ginny didn't stop to ask him where he had gotten this information. They didn't have time. "Let's go."
To her surprise Draco went and opened the secret passage that led into Hogsmeade. The one Harry had shown her, that lay behind a statue of a witch.
At her startled expression Draco spoke. "Did you think that Potter and his little friends were the only ones that knew about this?"
"How did you find it?" She asked, as they began to make their way quickly through the tunnel.
"I know where every room, passage, tunnel, and corridor is located in this castle.. an advantage of being Head Boy."
After what seemed like hours, but was really only minutes, they reached the end of the passage. Ginny was about to open the door that led into Honeydukes, but Draco pulled her back.
"Something isn't right." He said, searching her eyes as if they held the answer.
"What do you mean?" She was becoming impatient..that boy could already be dead.
"I received that information through an anonymous letter...it could be a trap." He finished, watching her expression carefully.
All Ginny could think about, was finding that vampire, staking him, and saving the boy. Draco had shown her the way to kill a vampire (which is really an oxi-moron, because vampires are already dead.) But to send the vampire to it's final death, she either had to stake it with a sharpened piece of wood in the heart, chop it's head off, or break it's neck. All meaning that she would have to get very close to the vampire to do so. Ginny again found herself asking questions like, was Malfoy really to be trusted? Or, Is this whole Slayer thing a big joke? The latter was the easiest to answer. Ginny had never before been capable of the things she was able to do now, so she pretty much accepted that she was the real Slayer.
Ginny suddenly realized that she was wasting precious time.
"Come on." She hissed at Draco. "I'm going to find that boy."
Draco watched as she discreetly pushed open the door, and headed up into the store. She motioned impatiently to him, demanding that he hurry up. He sighed and finally followed her up.
Ginny moved through the tables and all the people pushing through. This was her first real chance to prove that she could take on a vampire, and it was nerve-racking to say the least. She was vaguely aware of Malfoy following her as she moved out into the dark street.
She briskly walked down the sidewalk, checking down streets and alleyways, hoping to catch sight of the vampire and his hostage.
Suddenly she heard a cry, the cry of a young boy, and she rushed toward the sound.
"Weasley!" Draco had grabbed her by the arm with surprising strength and whirled her around.
"Let go of me! That boy's in trouble!" She breathed.
"I think it's a trap." Draco said, giving her that funny stare again.
"Don't be ridiculous. I can take on one stupid vampire." Ginny brushed his hand away, and began jogging. She heard the cry again, and turned down a damp, dark alley.
She caught a whiff of something, and immediately knew that it was the smell of a vampire...the smell of blood. She threw off her cloak, because it was too heavy to fight in.
There was a tall lamppost on the right side of the alley. It gave off a bit of light, although it was very dim, as it was slowly extinguishing.
But in the small amount of yellowish light that it did cast, a leering vampire stepped into, from out of the shadows, dragging a boy that looked to be about nine or ten years old. The vampire had the boy in a tight grip around the neck. His face was deformed looking, and his long fangs protruded from his mouth, just like the pictures that Draco had shown her in all of his books. Ginny glared, thinking only of killing that vampire, as she pulled out one of her pointed stakes.
Maybe that's why she didn't sense the other vampires at first.
But when she did, it was too late.
Her distinct eyesight caught movement around her, and suddenly she was surrounded..by many vampires.
She stood her ground, her eyes glancing fleetingly around, taking in every one of the beast's positions. She wasn't going to make the first move.
A tall vampire at her right moved forward, into the small circle of light. Ginny rounded on him, but he didn't make any move to start fighting. Unlike all of the other vampires, his face was normal, and hadn't changed to its true ugliness. He wore a derisive grin as he sauntered forward, and, Ginny realized, he had her cloak draped over his arm.
"My, my, aren't you a pretty little thing." He lifted one eyebrow and examined her, while circling slowly around her. The pale light made his effulgent blue eyes stand out against his colorless skin, and every strand of his rich brown hair seemed to be positioned perfectly.
Ginny only glared, too angry to say anything to him. She assumed that he was the leader of the pack, for all the other vampires watched his every move, as though waiting for a signal.
He finally stopped circling her, and brought his cobalt eyes up to meet her face, at the same time bringing her cloak forward.
"I believe you dropped this." He said with a smile, as though he were the most polite gentleman there.
Ginny looked at her former cloak as if it were a pile of rags. "Keep it." She kept her voice low and threatening. "It will never be clean again."
The vampire stepped back, as if truly shocked by her harsh comment. "Why pet, I'm only trying to be nice!"
The other vampires chuckled, and Ginny scowled.
"If you want to be nice, release that boy." All the vampires stopped laughing, and looked to their leader.
He only stared at Ginny, the evil smile never leaving his face. It sent cold shivers through her blood, and she suddenly felt very alone.
The vampire leaned toward another that had just approached. "Where is her Watcher?" And Ginny suddenly realized that Draco was nowhere to be seen.
"He disappeared, Cain." The other answered. Ginny made a mental note of the leader's name. "Would you like me to take some help and find him?"
"No." Cain drawled, lifting a finger to stroke Ginny's face. She pulled away, and lifted the hand that held the stake. "After all, our business is not with the Watcher, but with the Slayer."
The other vampire nodded, and crept back into the shadows.
Without even thinking about it, Ginny pulled out her wand and pointed it at Cain, saying the one spell she had never even dreamed of uttering.
"Avada Kedavra!" She shouted. A blast of sparks shot out of her wand and hit Cain. He didn't even flinch.
"The killing curse isn't going to do you any good." Cain said calmly. "How can you kill someone who's already dead?"
Ginny felt the anger surge through her as she pocketed her wand, and gripped her stake even harder.
"If you ever want to see the moon again," She said, hissing at Cain through gritted teeth. "I demand that you let that boy go..if you came here for me, then there's no reason to harm him."
Cain glanced at the vampire that held the boy, and gave some sort of signal with the wave of his hand.
"Oh, but Slayer, we do not think with reason."
And to Ginny's horror, the vampire quickly twisted the crying boy's neck until a crack was heard and he went limp. The vampire threw the boy to the others who caught him hungrily, as Ginny pushed Cain out of her way and jumped the vampire who had killed the boy.
It was surprised, and barely had time to react when Ginny had staked him in the heart and all that was left of him was a neat pile of dust. That kind of power gave Ginny new strength and she turned to face the others, who had stopped feeding and were menacingly moving forward.
The first one to reach her was thrown against another, causing three or four of them to fall over. Ginny scrambled on top of them and just began staking like a crazed person, watching pile after pile of dust form underneath her.
Two pairs of strong arms lifted her away form her victims, and she wrenched and jerked, trying to free herself from their grasp.
She looked up from her captured position to see Cain leaning nonchalantly against the lamppost, watching the excitement with little care but much amusement.
Ginny spit onto Cain's shoes as the others brought her forward to meet him. Cain didn't even glance down, instead he ripped Ginny away from her holders, and she felt his arm tighten unrelentingly against her waist. She hatefully brought her eyes up to meet his, and was almost lost in the cold, blue depth of them.
"No Slayer that has had the privilege to meet me, has ever won." He whispered softly in her ear.
Ginny only shivered as he placed his surprisingly warm hand against her face, and then moved it down to her neck, where he pushed all of her crimson curls to one side. He slowly brought his mouth down to her neck, never moving his eyes away from hers. And just as his lips brushed her delicate skin, Ginny spoke dazedly.
"Then meet Ginny Weasley."
And using all her built up adrenaline, Ginny twisted around in Cain's grip, and rolled forward, flipping him over with her. He landed hard on his back, and Ginny wriggled herself away from his grip while he was recovering, and stood up.
She ran faster than she ever had before, breaking through the crowd of vampires that had angrily stomped forward, and staking several at the end of the alley.
She turned down the street and ran towards the Honeydukes, tears blurring her eyesight. She crashed right into Draco as she rounded a corner, and he looked just as bewildered as she.
"Keep running!" Draco said as she slowed. She looked over her shoulder to see a few vampires a little ways behind her.
"Where did you go!?" She asked, as they reached the doors to the restraunt.
"Throw this on." Draco said, tossing her his own cloak and ignoring her question. "I don't want you seen like that." Ginny looked down to see that parts of her black pants where ripped, and blood trickled down many places on her body. Some of the vampires had clawed her pretty good.
Ginny did as he said, and they pushed through the room and made it unnoticed into the secret tunnel. Draco slammed the door, and waited quietly for a moment, listening for the sounds of followers.
Finally he came down, and sighed as he reached Ginny, who had his cloak wrapped around herself and was shivering.
"Did you save the boy?" He asked wearily.
This brought forward many sobs from Ginny. "You were right! It was a trap! And they killed the boy right in front of me Draco!"
"What!?" He yelled, seemingly looming over her. "They killed the boy!?"
"Yes! Before I had a chance to do anything!" Ginny yelled back, suddenly angry at him. "Where were you? You should have been there to help me!" She turned the blame over onto him. Accusing him of not being there, to help her save the boy's life.
Draco became suddenly quiet and turned abruptly around and started down the passage.
"Don't turn your back on me Malfoy!" Ginny yelled, hurriedly following him. "Tell me where you went!"
She was suddenly struck with an unpleasant thought. 'Had Draco been in on the trap? He had certainly seemed to know that it was going to happen!'
Ginny grabbed Draco by the shoulder, and swung him against the wall, pressing her body into him. He gave her the same kind of stare that she had seen Cain give her. Like he wasn't surprised, and he really didn't care if Ginny were to beat him up or not.
"Tell me Draco." Ginny whispered, almost scared to hear his answer. "Tell me the truth."
With a slight smirk he lifted his hand to brush a strand of Ginny's hair out of her face. She suddenly felt very uncomfortable to have Draco in a position like this, but she ignored the tingling sensation coursing through her and pushed harder against his shoulders.
"A vampire dragged me off down a different street." He finally answered. "Seems that he didn't want to share dinner with any of his other friends. I had to fight him off, but he was tough and I didn't get away until you came running."
Ginny pondered over his words for a moment. His story seemed very believable to her. After all, she hadn't really been paying much attention to him as she went after the vampire with the boy. He could have easily been caught and dragged away without her ever noticing.
"As much as I like this position," Draco's words brought her out of her thoughts. "I'm finding it kind of difficult to breathe."
Ginny was glad that Draco wasn't able to see her deep blush in the dark.
She was about to move off of him when he suddenly twirled her around, so that this time he was pressing her into the wall.
"This is much better." He whispered.
Ginny didn't even have time to think, as she suddenly found his lips on hers. She instinctively ran her hands through his slick blonde hair. The sensation of his lips against hers, his tongue begging for entry, which she wouldn't allow, and his hands pressing into her back as he moved them away from the wall and pressed her closer to him was enough to make her thoughts become scattered, and send shivers through her body. She sighed as he gave up on her mouth and began a trail of kisses down her face, and then onto her neck. She couldn't ever remember feeling this way with any boy..but suddenly visions of Cain's face jumped into her mind, and her eyes flew open as Draco moved his lips covetously over the delicate part of her neck.
She pushed him away, terror fleeing through her blood. The remembrance of Cain's deadly mouth on her neck was too much to bear.
"I'm sorry." She whispered to Draco, as she turned and ran down the passage, leaving him with feelings of confusion, anger, and lust.
A/N: Finally, a longer chapter! And a taste of the d/g action too! ;o) I tried to keep the characters as much in character as possible. Let me know if you found anything wrong in this or other chapters.
Thanks to:
The Dragon's Angel: That was really encouraging! Thank you!
Some dude: I'm glad you like it!
Eclipse2003: I know, sometimes I just want to have Ginny kick Malfoy's ass, since she is the Slayer and everything, but I'm trying to keep her temper at a certain level, and Ginny knows that she's going to need her watcher (even if it is Malfoy hehe) to help her train and understand the creatures. Thanks for the review! It gave me a good laugh!
Crystal: Yep, Cain was watching. Thanks for the review!
GinnyYvette, Baby, and Celena
Thank you all!
Please Review!! It's what keeps my writing going!