Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros., and etc.
Except for Cain. . . he's all mine!
Facing Fear
Chapter 11 Taking Care of Business
~*~*~*~*~
The bed she was lying in was much softer than she was used to. The linens were made from a fine silk, and she lay contently on top of them, not yet fully awake.
She didn't want to wake. Her dreams had been so pleasant and peaceful, her sleep deep and refreshing.
A soft groan escaped her lips, and she went to stretch her arms, slowly opening her eyes at the same time.
Everything was wrong.
Ginny Weasley wasn't at Hogwarts anymore.
The memory of what had happened hit her with full force. How long now had it been since she had taken a small sip of that deceiving drink? She sat up with a jolt, quickly taking in all her surroundings. She instinctively felt for her only weapon. She had no stakes with her, and her wand was gone as well.
Ginny was in a glamorous room. It had no windows, and the walls and floor were made of a hard stone, but the furniture and bed were magnificent and rich. The carpet was a midnight black, the canopy bed a deep maroon, the drapes matching perfectly. Three chairs sat around a small table, the chairs finely upholstered and rimmed in a gold paint, the table-top a gleaming marble.
There was only one door as far as she could tell. It was made of a thick- looking wood, and Ginny knew that it would be locked. But she had to know for sure.
She slid off the bed and saw that she was still in her evening dress; only her heels had been removed.
Padding softly across the carpet, and reaching the door, she tried the handle, and found it locked as she had expected.
Ginny leaned heavily against the door and willed herself to breathe, and to remain calm. She could handle herself. . . there was no need to be frightened and become unable to concentrate on her goal. That goal happened to be escaping. . . then she would deal with Malfoy, the slimy git.
She sunk down into one of the fine chairs, and sighed deeply. Never before had she felt so alone and deserted. Never before had she felt so betrayed. Malfoy's words still ran through her head.
i"So, I got up enough courage to approach Cain. I knew that you could defeat him, even if you didn't believe it yourself. He knew it too. And so I offered a trade. You for my immortality, and the end of fear."i/
He had told her that she was capable of defeating Cain right then. Although, he had told her many lies as well, leading her to believe for so long that maybe he could really be a good person. Her brother had been right all along. . . no Malfoy can be a moral person.
Was this Cain's hideaway? Or was it Draco's house? They were known for their ample money.
Suddenly a sound from somewhere outside her prison-room alerted Ginny. She could faintly hear an easy-going walk coming from outside her door, a pair of shoes slapping softly against the floor.
She watched, preparing herself as she heard locks unclick, and the handle gradually turn.
"Well good evening."
~*~*~*~*~
"At last!" Cain had said to Draco as he brought the Slayer to him in the cover of darkness. Draco could only refer to her as 'the Slayer' and not as a person. For she was not really a person to him. . . he could never have even thought for a moment that there was something between them. There had never been that spark; that thrill that he got when his fingers brushed hers, when his lips connected with her own. But even as he carried Ginny's sleeping figure and handed her rather reluctantly to Cain, he knew he was lying to himself. He had fallen for her; he was ruining his plans.
This can't happen! His brain screamed. This was his only chance for sanity. His only chance for what he wanted most in life. How had the chance for immortality suddenly been replaced by a miniscule spark that some lame girl gave him?
Cain turned and headed back up the long winding drive. Draco had wondered where the vampire hid during the day, and was surprised at the beauty and majesty of his home. It was built in the old fashion, very gothic and intense. As they reached the magnificent double front doors, Draco looked at Cain in awe.
"It was my ancestors." Cain said, reading Draco's mind. "They were quite wealthy." It wasn't a bragging tone, just a statement. "Not many people know that it's still back here."
The manor was situated in the middle of the Forbidden Forest. Draco sensed the presence of magic around it, and wondered if it was hidden by something other than the trees.
He followed Cain inside and through many lavish and dark corridors. Finally they stopped outside a plain door near the west-wing of the mansion. Cain opened the door to reveal a bedroom, and placed the sleeping Slayer gently on the silk laden bed.
Cain removed Ginny's heels and then walked quickly out, a startling smile on his face.
"Do you live alone?" Draco asked, trying to keep his voice steady as the full impact of what he had just done hit him, right as the door to the bedroom slammed closed, blocking Ginny from his view.
"Yes." Cain said. "I don't allow the others to stay here. They have no manners."
Draco knew he was referring to the other vampires, most of whom hadn't had a shower since they were sired. Cain seemed much more refined than that.
He motioned for Draco to follow. Soon they came to a study where Cain invited Draco to sit.
"I was beginning to worry if you would keep our deal." The vampire said, going to stand in front of the blazing fire, which served as the only light in the room.
"I was beginning to worry as well." Draco answered. "As a matter of fact I've been worried ever since you killed my mother." It was the first time he had ever brought it up to the demon. Draco wasn't even sure if Cain had made the connection yet.
But apparently he had. His eyes met Draco's, a burning hunger evident. "I was wondering if you realized that it was I who killed her." Cain began. "You are not so easily forgettable Malfoy, when you first approached me with your deal, I knew right away who you were."
Draco said nothing, a stony glaze coming over his face.
Cain continued, "So, I realized exactly what this was all about since the beginning. I killed your mother and you were suffering because of it. I immediately ruled out the chance that you may secretly be plotting how to destroy me, because of your obvious fear."
Fear. There was that word again; coming from the very mouth of a creature he feared most.
"I believed that you really wanted to become one of us."
"Yes," Draco interrupted. "And I've held through my end of the deal, so now it's your turn."
Cain's face twisted into that strange smile again. And he moved away from the fireplace.
"That's just it Malfoy." Cain's voice was amused and mocking. "Vampires are never to be trusted."
And like the speed of light he had turned and left the room, slamming the door behind him, the click of locks registering the hard truth in Draco's head. He reached for his wand.
It wasn't there.
~*~*~*~*~
"Well good evening."
Ginny's breath caught in her throat as Cain gracefully entered the room, turning his back to her for only an instant to close and lock the door.
He turned back around, the soft candlelight accenting his defined cheek- bones and gleaming blue eyes. He was dressed in black slacks and a gray oxford. The clothes were muggle, and if she hadn't been the Slayer, Ginny would have mistaken him for quite a good-looking muggle at that. But he wasn't a muggle, wasn't a wizard, wasn't even human.
Silence filled the room and Ginny stood slowly up, bracing herself for his wrath.
"You needn't stand, Ginny." The sound of her name rolling smoothly off his tongue startled her. How could something so evil look and act so good?
"I would rather stand, Cain." Ginny said, accenting his own name.
He smirked and sauntered easily toward her.
"I thought of a brilliant idea tonight Ginny." He said casually, like they were old friends.
That makes two then, Ginny thought sarcastically. She doubted his idea would be any more brilliant than Malfoy's had been.
"You see," Cain continued. "Your Watcher wants what I have. . . endless time on earth. I could give that to him, after all he did come through on his end of the deal, but I really don't want to."
He said that almost blissfully, grimacing in mock at Malfoy's stupidity.
"Instead, I've locked him up as well, planning for a later dinner."
Ginny looked up abruptly, clenching her fists. So Draco was still alive, and apparently still had a soul.
"What I'm offering you is eternal life." Cain said, coming around the table and stopping only a few inches away from Ginny. She felt her stomach twist in knots, felt his heavy breath on her neck. "You could live with me, here. We don't have many woman vampires; they are too easily killed. But you Ginny, you would be a survivor, and my companion."
Ginny stood still, her heart racing, propelling the quick-moving blood through her viens. She wondered briefly if Cain could hear her pumping heart, sense the rush of blood. And she caught herself wondering what life after death on earth would be like.
"Would you like that Ginny?" His hand slid sensuously up her back. "This manor, it's mine." He whispered. "I killed the owners about two hundred years ago, and have been looking for a wife to live with since then."
The word 'killed' brought Ginny's common sense back from the corner of her mind. This vampire had killed maybe hundreds of innocent people, including the little boy she had been unable to save that fateful night. A vampire's wife? The wife of an animal?
"I'd rather die." Ginny stated, her voice firm but quiet.
She saw the flash of anger in Cain's eyes, and he snatched her roughly to his chest. His grip was like one of steel, she could feel his muscles bulging.
"That's the other option." Cain said, his face dangerously close to hers. Ginny felt the flutter of her stomach again and mentally cursed. "Death can easily be arranged, so don't tempt me. I wouldn't mind having a double helping of dinner tonight."
Ginny's felt her jaw clench. "So you aren't even going to give Malfoy what he went through so much trouble to get?"
Cain laughed heartily, and stroked one hand slowly through Ginny's disheveled hair. "He is young and threatening. I don't want a vampire like him hanging around, he might take over my high position."
"What position?" Ginny's tone was hard and hateful.
"The position I hold among my kind. They all fear me, and would do anything for me. I fear young Malfoy would not if given the answer to his weakness and overcoming it. He's a likely choice for vampire, and the others are already getting sick of me after only a couple hundred of years, and are ready for a new leader."
"I don't blame them." She responded sarcastically.
Cain smirked, taking it as a compliment. "What can I say? I just play the part of an over-domineering leader too well." He smiled at his own humor.
Ginny was beginning to feel to unsure of herself in Cain's grasp and wanted out. His hand was still stroking lazily through her hair, the other clutching her waist tightly, his blue eyes burning with heat into her own.
"I'm sure you were once a good person, Cain." Ginny said. "But those days are over, and you are definitely too old for me. I might have been interested a couple of centuries ago, when you were still human."
"This is an offer of a lifetime." Cain whispered, ignoring Ginny's smart comments.
Ginny hesitated a moment, the closeness of their bodies giving her an idea. Cain must have locked the doors with a key or something. . . She replaced her feelings of disdain and masked it with desire.
"I know." She whispered back, her tone smooth and sexy. His face lit up and she leaned in, placing her lips softly on his lips, and wrapping her hands around his own waist, fingers instantly searching.
He responded to the kiss hungrily, and Ginny knew time was short. She had to push the thought out of her mind that she was actually kissing a demon, and let her hands wander farther down his back.
She was surprised when her fingers closed over a thin, hard object that he had tucked into the back pocket of his pants.
Suddenly Cain's face transformed as he pulled away from her, the same moment Ginny pulled the object out of his pocket.
It was a wand.
"Magic's no good against me!" Cain said, and Ginny saw the gleam of his white teeth, two of them longer than any humans. "You are a sneaky Slayer. I quite hoped you would realize your choices and wisely take my offer. But I can see that you are stubborn."
"My mum always told me that." Ginny said, and he bounded towards her.
She leaped up onto the table, and he slammed into her chair, knocking it to the floor. Ginny dived for the bed, and slipped, throwing her hands up and letting her fingers catch onto the drapes that covered the canopy. She regained her balance and watched as Cain moved angrily her way. She rolled forward on the large bed and tumbled to the floor on the other side, pointed the wand to the door and yelled, "Alohomora!"
Her sensitive hearing picked up the click of locks being unlocked, and she scrambled to her feet, picked up her skirts, silently cursing the fact that she had bought such a difficult dress to manuver in, and ran toward the door.
She felt his presence behind her, and he lunged at her, grabbing her around the ankle and yanking her back to the floor with a great amount of force. As she hit the floor he crawled forward, trying to desperately pin her to the ground.
Ginny rolled over and kicked, sending him flying towards the bed post. He hit it and crumpled over.
She ran.
She had to find Malfoy, as much as she was tempted to just leave him.
But the chase wasn't over yet.
~*~*~*~*~
A/N: Another small cliffy. Sorry bout that. Anyhoot, thanks again to all my wonderful, kind, and absolutely spiffing reviewers! There are so many, and I would love to mention you all by name, but if you want this chapter out now, I can't. I will be sure to next chapter! Thanks again!
Facing Fear
Chapter 11 Taking Care of Business
~*~*~*~*~
The bed she was lying in was much softer than she was used to. The linens were made from a fine silk, and she lay contently on top of them, not yet fully awake.
She didn't want to wake. Her dreams had been so pleasant and peaceful, her sleep deep and refreshing.
A soft groan escaped her lips, and she went to stretch her arms, slowly opening her eyes at the same time.
Everything was wrong.
Ginny Weasley wasn't at Hogwarts anymore.
The memory of what had happened hit her with full force. How long now had it been since she had taken a small sip of that deceiving drink? She sat up with a jolt, quickly taking in all her surroundings. She instinctively felt for her only weapon. She had no stakes with her, and her wand was gone as well.
Ginny was in a glamorous room. It had no windows, and the walls and floor were made of a hard stone, but the furniture and bed were magnificent and rich. The carpet was a midnight black, the canopy bed a deep maroon, the drapes matching perfectly. Three chairs sat around a small table, the chairs finely upholstered and rimmed in a gold paint, the table-top a gleaming marble.
There was only one door as far as she could tell. It was made of a thick- looking wood, and Ginny knew that it would be locked. But she had to know for sure.
She slid off the bed and saw that she was still in her evening dress; only her heels had been removed.
Padding softly across the carpet, and reaching the door, she tried the handle, and found it locked as she had expected.
Ginny leaned heavily against the door and willed herself to breathe, and to remain calm. She could handle herself. . . there was no need to be frightened and become unable to concentrate on her goal. That goal happened to be escaping. . . then she would deal with Malfoy, the slimy git.
She sunk down into one of the fine chairs, and sighed deeply. Never before had she felt so alone and deserted. Never before had she felt so betrayed. Malfoy's words still ran through her head.
i"So, I got up enough courage to approach Cain. I knew that you could defeat him, even if you didn't believe it yourself. He knew it too. And so I offered a trade. You for my immortality, and the end of fear."i/
He had told her that she was capable of defeating Cain right then. Although, he had told her many lies as well, leading her to believe for so long that maybe he could really be a good person. Her brother had been right all along. . . no Malfoy can be a moral person.
Was this Cain's hideaway? Or was it Draco's house? They were known for their ample money.
Suddenly a sound from somewhere outside her prison-room alerted Ginny. She could faintly hear an easy-going walk coming from outside her door, a pair of shoes slapping softly against the floor.
She watched, preparing herself as she heard locks unclick, and the handle gradually turn.
"Well good evening."
~*~*~*~*~
"At last!" Cain had said to Draco as he brought the Slayer to him in the cover of darkness. Draco could only refer to her as 'the Slayer' and not as a person. For she was not really a person to him. . . he could never have even thought for a moment that there was something between them. There had never been that spark; that thrill that he got when his fingers brushed hers, when his lips connected with her own. But even as he carried Ginny's sleeping figure and handed her rather reluctantly to Cain, he knew he was lying to himself. He had fallen for her; he was ruining his plans.
This can't happen! His brain screamed. This was his only chance for sanity. His only chance for what he wanted most in life. How had the chance for immortality suddenly been replaced by a miniscule spark that some lame girl gave him?
Cain turned and headed back up the long winding drive. Draco had wondered where the vampire hid during the day, and was surprised at the beauty and majesty of his home. It was built in the old fashion, very gothic and intense. As they reached the magnificent double front doors, Draco looked at Cain in awe.
"It was my ancestors." Cain said, reading Draco's mind. "They were quite wealthy." It wasn't a bragging tone, just a statement. "Not many people know that it's still back here."
The manor was situated in the middle of the Forbidden Forest. Draco sensed the presence of magic around it, and wondered if it was hidden by something other than the trees.
He followed Cain inside and through many lavish and dark corridors. Finally they stopped outside a plain door near the west-wing of the mansion. Cain opened the door to reveal a bedroom, and placed the sleeping Slayer gently on the silk laden bed.
Cain removed Ginny's heels and then walked quickly out, a startling smile on his face.
"Do you live alone?" Draco asked, trying to keep his voice steady as the full impact of what he had just done hit him, right as the door to the bedroom slammed closed, blocking Ginny from his view.
"Yes." Cain said. "I don't allow the others to stay here. They have no manners."
Draco knew he was referring to the other vampires, most of whom hadn't had a shower since they were sired. Cain seemed much more refined than that.
He motioned for Draco to follow. Soon they came to a study where Cain invited Draco to sit.
"I was beginning to worry if you would keep our deal." The vampire said, going to stand in front of the blazing fire, which served as the only light in the room.
"I was beginning to worry as well." Draco answered. "As a matter of fact I've been worried ever since you killed my mother." It was the first time he had ever brought it up to the demon. Draco wasn't even sure if Cain had made the connection yet.
But apparently he had. His eyes met Draco's, a burning hunger evident. "I was wondering if you realized that it was I who killed her." Cain began. "You are not so easily forgettable Malfoy, when you first approached me with your deal, I knew right away who you were."
Draco said nothing, a stony glaze coming over his face.
Cain continued, "So, I realized exactly what this was all about since the beginning. I killed your mother and you were suffering because of it. I immediately ruled out the chance that you may secretly be plotting how to destroy me, because of your obvious fear."
Fear. There was that word again; coming from the very mouth of a creature he feared most.
"I believed that you really wanted to become one of us."
"Yes," Draco interrupted. "And I've held through my end of the deal, so now it's your turn."
Cain's face twisted into that strange smile again. And he moved away from the fireplace.
"That's just it Malfoy." Cain's voice was amused and mocking. "Vampires are never to be trusted."
And like the speed of light he had turned and left the room, slamming the door behind him, the click of locks registering the hard truth in Draco's head. He reached for his wand.
It wasn't there.
~*~*~*~*~
"Well good evening."
Ginny's breath caught in her throat as Cain gracefully entered the room, turning his back to her for only an instant to close and lock the door.
He turned back around, the soft candlelight accenting his defined cheek- bones and gleaming blue eyes. He was dressed in black slacks and a gray oxford. The clothes were muggle, and if she hadn't been the Slayer, Ginny would have mistaken him for quite a good-looking muggle at that. But he wasn't a muggle, wasn't a wizard, wasn't even human.
Silence filled the room and Ginny stood slowly up, bracing herself for his wrath.
"You needn't stand, Ginny." The sound of her name rolling smoothly off his tongue startled her. How could something so evil look and act so good?
"I would rather stand, Cain." Ginny said, accenting his own name.
He smirked and sauntered easily toward her.
"I thought of a brilliant idea tonight Ginny." He said casually, like they were old friends.
That makes two then, Ginny thought sarcastically. She doubted his idea would be any more brilliant than Malfoy's had been.
"You see," Cain continued. "Your Watcher wants what I have. . . endless time on earth. I could give that to him, after all he did come through on his end of the deal, but I really don't want to."
He said that almost blissfully, grimacing in mock at Malfoy's stupidity.
"Instead, I've locked him up as well, planning for a later dinner."
Ginny looked up abruptly, clenching her fists. So Draco was still alive, and apparently still had a soul.
"What I'm offering you is eternal life." Cain said, coming around the table and stopping only a few inches away from Ginny. She felt her stomach twist in knots, felt his heavy breath on her neck. "You could live with me, here. We don't have many woman vampires; they are too easily killed. But you Ginny, you would be a survivor, and my companion."
Ginny stood still, her heart racing, propelling the quick-moving blood through her viens. She wondered briefly if Cain could hear her pumping heart, sense the rush of blood. And she caught herself wondering what life after death on earth would be like.
"Would you like that Ginny?" His hand slid sensuously up her back. "This manor, it's mine." He whispered. "I killed the owners about two hundred years ago, and have been looking for a wife to live with since then."
The word 'killed' brought Ginny's common sense back from the corner of her mind. This vampire had killed maybe hundreds of innocent people, including the little boy she had been unable to save that fateful night. A vampire's wife? The wife of an animal?
"I'd rather die." Ginny stated, her voice firm but quiet.
She saw the flash of anger in Cain's eyes, and he snatched her roughly to his chest. His grip was like one of steel, she could feel his muscles bulging.
"That's the other option." Cain said, his face dangerously close to hers. Ginny felt the flutter of her stomach again and mentally cursed. "Death can easily be arranged, so don't tempt me. I wouldn't mind having a double helping of dinner tonight."
Ginny's felt her jaw clench. "So you aren't even going to give Malfoy what he went through so much trouble to get?"
Cain laughed heartily, and stroked one hand slowly through Ginny's disheveled hair. "He is young and threatening. I don't want a vampire like him hanging around, he might take over my high position."
"What position?" Ginny's tone was hard and hateful.
"The position I hold among my kind. They all fear me, and would do anything for me. I fear young Malfoy would not if given the answer to his weakness and overcoming it. He's a likely choice for vampire, and the others are already getting sick of me after only a couple hundred of years, and are ready for a new leader."
"I don't blame them." She responded sarcastically.
Cain smirked, taking it as a compliment. "What can I say? I just play the part of an over-domineering leader too well." He smiled at his own humor.
Ginny was beginning to feel to unsure of herself in Cain's grasp and wanted out. His hand was still stroking lazily through her hair, the other clutching her waist tightly, his blue eyes burning with heat into her own.
"I'm sure you were once a good person, Cain." Ginny said. "But those days are over, and you are definitely too old for me. I might have been interested a couple of centuries ago, when you were still human."
"This is an offer of a lifetime." Cain whispered, ignoring Ginny's smart comments.
Ginny hesitated a moment, the closeness of their bodies giving her an idea. Cain must have locked the doors with a key or something. . . She replaced her feelings of disdain and masked it with desire.
"I know." She whispered back, her tone smooth and sexy. His face lit up and she leaned in, placing her lips softly on his lips, and wrapping her hands around his own waist, fingers instantly searching.
He responded to the kiss hungrily, and Ginny knew time was short. She had to push the thought out of her mind that she was actually kissing a demon, and let her hands wander farther down his back.
She was surprised when her fingers closed over a thin, hard object that he had tucked into the back pocket of his pants.
Suddenly Cain's face transformed as he pulled away from her, the same moment Ginny pulled the object out of his pocket.
It was a wand.
"Magic's no good against me!" Cain said, and Ginny saw the gleam of his white teeth, two of them longer than any humans. "You are a sneaky Slayer. I quite hoped you would realize your choices and wisely take my offer. But I can see that you are stubborn."
"My mum always told me that." Ginny said, and he bounded towards her.
She leaped up onto the table, and he slammed into her chair, knocking it to the floor. Ginny dived for the bed, and slipped, throwing her hands up and letting her fingers catch onto the drapes that covered the canopy. She regained her balance and watched as Cain moved angrily her way. She rolled forward on the large bed and tumbled to the floor on the other side, pointed the wand to the door and yelled, "Alohomora!"
Her sensitive hearing picked up the click of locks being unlocked, and she scrambled to her feet, picked up her skirts, silently cursing the fact that she had bought such a difficult dress to manuver in, and ran toward the door.
She felt his presence behind her, and he lunged at her, grabbing her around the ankle and yanking her back to the floor with a great amount of force. As she hit the floor he crawled forward, trying to desperately pin her to the ground.
Ginny rolled over and kicked, sending him flying towards the bed post. He hit it and crumpled over.
She ran.
She had to find Malfoy, as much as she was tempted to just leave him.
But the chase wasn't over yet.
~*~*~*~*~
A/N: Another small cliffy. Sorry bout that. Anyhoot, thanks again to all my wonderful, kind, and absolutely spiffing reviewers! There are so many, and I would love to mention you all by name, but if you want this chapter out now, I can't. I will be sure to next chapter! Thanks again!