The Draught of Living Death Chapter 11: Promises Made, a harry potter fanfic

The Draught of Living Death

A/N: If anyone out there is still reading this story, I am impressed and a big thanks goes out to you. I guess I got in a slump for a long time. I believe some people call it writers block… the one evil demon no one can slay. (Slaps herself for making a Buffy reference in a Harry Potter story) Anyways, I do not intend to drone on for irreversible periods… just of finishing the story as it was meant to be finished. No, we are not there yet, but with any luck, we will be.

Lourdes: Yes, more very soon. I will not keep people hanging any more. Thanks for sticking with me.

Lordanhur: Funny story about GT.net. Everything that is posted there has to be beta read, and I cannot just post it myself, which is not a bad thing. I was a having a very good experience there and getting very good beta returns until they changed my beta reader. I sent her a chapter and have not heard from her since. I will probably try to contact her again, but until then, I will be posting all further continuations here.

Without further babbling on my part… Chapter Eleven.

Chapter Eleven: Promises Made

Harry swept the invisibility cloak around Ginny and himself.

"Are you sure you want to come?" He asked for the hundredth time.

Ginny sighed. "I'm not letting you leave this room alone. Wands out?"

A memory flashed in Harry's head. He shook it off, as he had grown used to doing. "No, I don't think it will be necessary. We won't need them unless someone figures out we're there."

Harry and Ginny made there way down the staircase and through the endless halls of Hogwarts. They finally came to the statue that would lead into Dumbledore's office.

"Do you think he's even awake right now?" Ginny asked in a whisper.

"Something I've learned about Dumbledore," Harry said taking the cloak off, "Is that he is always there when I have the intention of coming to see him. I don't know how he does it, but I would swear he knows about some of these things even before I do sometimes. The only trouble is the other thing I never seem to take into account until I get here… guessing the password. It's always candy."

"Chocolate Frogs?" Ginny guessed.

"Apparently not," Harry said as nothing happened. "Lemon Drops." Nothing.

About 10 candies later, Ginny sighed. "Just a far fetched attempt, Tongue Loppers?"

To both Harry and Ginny's surprise, the statue moved aside and revealed the stairway. "I guess he's more a fan of Fred and George than either of us thought."

Harry grabbed Ginny's hand and they started up the stairs. They knocked on the second door.

"Enter," Dumbledore's voice said.

Harry opened the door, and to his surprise, saw Snape sitting in a chair, head in hands.

"I'm sorry," Harry said. "I didn't mean to interrupt."

"What are you doing here," Snape sneered. "I told you not to leave the tower."

Harry ignored Snape's irritated tone. "Pain, in my scar, sir."

"Yes," Dumbledore said. "I expected you might have some. There has been an incident tonight."

"Anything serious?"

"Yes, in a sense. No one has been seriously injured, but Voldemort has made progress in his plan."

"The Draught?"

"Yes. He has obtained Asphodel. Three men guarding the mine were stunned; the rest ran in terror. Perhaps the only good part of this plan is that it has forced Minister Fudge to admit that Death Eater's are a threat, while he has still not admitted Voldemort has returned."

Harry nodded. "Does the minister understand what direction this is going in?"

"He refuses to admit it's possible."

"Someone needs to get the Wormwood before he does."

Dumbledore nodded. "It would definitely place a stop gap in his plan. Harry… I must ask you not to involve yourself. You may already be a target, due to your mother's involvement."

"Sir, not to be rude, but when have I ever deliberately involved myself in anything?"

Snape raised an eyebrow and Dumbledore chuckled. "It is true, young Potter, you don't seem to welcome danger, indeed, it seems to welcome you."

* ~ *

"Harry," Ginny whispered, trying to keep up with him before he pulled the cloak off her. "Harry, slow down!"

"Don't talk so loud," Harry whispered back.

Ginny jerked the cloak off them and threw it in the floor. "Dumbledore and Snape already know we're out here. It's not as if we have anything to be afraid of. Besides, what are they going to do, give us detention? In case you've forgotten, school is not in session."

"What are you spitting feathers about?"

"Harry, will you stop for a minute. I just want you to promise me something."

"What?"

"If you decide you have to go after it… don't go alone."

"I know the danger, Virginia." Ginny cringed at his use of her given name. "I know that if I go to France with the intention of digging up a tree around a thousand years old, there will be death eaters waiting for me. I'm not entirely stupid."

"And you're accusing me of spitting feathers Harry?" Ginny's face started to take on a red tinge. "Excuse me for being concerned about your safety, but the last thing I want is to see you walk into a situation like that, knowing it's a trap, and getting yourself blown up."

"Voldemort won't kill me," Harry said turning back towards the common room. "I'm far too useful."

"You're really full of yourself aren't you, Potter?" Harry barely glanced in her direction as he continued in a fast pace towards the common room. Ginny grabbed him by the wrist, trying to stop him, but he was too strong for her and ended up just dragging her behind him. "If you think, even for a moment, he won't kill you just because you're useful, you really are thick headed." Ginny let go of him and planted her feet, letting him start up the stairs. As intent as she was on continuing this discussion, she did not intend on being dragged up the stairs. "Harry, this is what I meant when you said you had to start caring about yourself." She watched him hesitate and continue. "I'm not joking, Harry. Every time you feel like your life is in danger, you shut everyone out!" She had to start shouting once he got up the first flight.

"I don't mean to, Gin," he said softly so that she had to strain to hear him. There was something odd about looking all those stairs up at him. Suddenly she realized that all the stairs to get to him were exactly the way it always was. You couldn't just walk straight to him. There were always the steps, stretching between them. Ginny took a deep breath and stepped up a few of them.

"You do, Harry. You close yourself off and you let the world believe you'd rather not know any of it. I don't want to lose you Harry…."

"You won't lose me," his face went soft.

Ginny went up a few more steps. "Let me finish," she implored, "I don't want to lose you. But if I have to lose you, I don't want it to be because you shut me out."

Ginny was up most of the steps by now; she forced herself to stop moving.

"Come here, Ginny."

"I can't Harry," Ginny said, trying to smile. "I can only go so far for you, Harry Potter. You have to at least meet me halfway."

"So we bargain," he said.

"We're not bargaining," she responded, leaning up against the railing. "This is going to be give and take, you make me some promises, and I'll make you some."

"All right, but you go first."

Ginny laughed, in spite of herself. "Just like a man, never wants to take the first step on his own." Ginny sighed. "Fine. I promise that I'll try not to worry about you too much."

Harry nodded. "That's a good start." He thought. "I promise to let you know if I make any decisions about going after the wormwood."

"Not good enough," Ginny said. "You promise that you'll let me know if you make any dangerous decisions… period."

"Ok, fine."

"Say it, Harry."

Harry sighed. She knew him too well already. He went down two steps. "I promise to let you, Ron or Hermione know if I make any dangerous decision," he smiled, "period."

Ginny looked up, only six steps between them now.

"Good. I promise to come to you first whenever I have a dream about Tom."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Not good enough. Everytime you have a bad dream."

"Fine. I promise to come to you first whenever I have a bad dream."

Harry nodded and went down another two steps. "I promise to set aside ten minutes every morning to talk to you about my dreams."

"That works," Ginny replied looking at the remaining four steps. "I promise to take time out for you, any time you need to talk, even aside from those ten minutes."

"That would help a lot," Harry considered out loud. "I can't promise you that I'll always be able to come to you, but I promise that I'll do my best to try." Harry took another two steps.

"I promise to love you," Ginny ventured, keeping her eyes directly on his. "To forgive you, and hold you, even when I want to hate you and love you at the same time."

Harry blinked away a few tears that were welling up dangerously close to his eyes. Harry took a deep breath. "I'm not ready…."

Ginny shook her head and smiled. "It's ok if you're not ready to return love, Harry."

Harry nodded. "But I need to say it out loud." Ginny nodded again. "I'm not ready to promise to love you, but I am ready to promise that I'll trust you, and hold you, and be honest with you, even when I feel like lying. Ginny, at this point, I need you."

Ginny sniffled slightly. Not I love you, not even I want I you… just I need you. She didn't respond, instead she watched him as he descended the last two stairs.

"That wasn't so difficult, was it?" she asked.

"No, it wasn't, but then again, you met me halfway."

"I love you, Harry Potter," she still didn't touch him and he didn't make a movement to touch her. "I've waited years to tell you that."

Harry only smiled and the awkward silence extended the few inches between them to miles. "Come here, Ginny," he whispered. Ginny stepped up into his arms and they stood like that, for what felt like hours, her giving her love to him, as only he could ever understand, and he giving her the most he had ever given anyone.

It's still not enough, Ginny's mind told her.

I'll make it enough, Ginny replied.

But what if you can't?

Ginny didn't respond, she already knew the answer, for now, she only gloried in the fact that Harry needed her. It wasn't love, but it was a start.

* ~ *

Ron reached up and traced Hermione's cheek. "No… it's just you."

Hermione just sat there. "I don't know how to respond to that Ron."

"I didn't think you would," he told her. "It's just nice to hear you speechless. Or rather not hear you as the case would be."

"Was that the whole point then?" Hermione was on the verge of fuming.

"No, of course not!" Ron held up his hands in protest.

"You know, Ron, I'm glad you said that, because for a second, I was really starting to believe you could be a nice guy underneath all your bull headed rubbish, I'm just glad you snapped me out of it!"

"Hermione, stop it, you know that's not what I meant."

"Oh, really? Then what did you mean, Ron?"

"I didn't mean anything, Hermione. I was trying to lighten the mood. You seemed uncomfortable. I hate it when you're angry with me."

"You better get used to it, then." Hermione lay down and snapped the covers over her head. She knew she was being irrational, but something in her was telling her to protest, to push. She didn't know why she listened to it, she just did.

"Hermione," Ron said. "I don't know how to say this. It just seems easier to crack jokes."

Hermione remained silent.

"I know you didn't fall asleep that fast, so you can stop pretending." Hermione remained silent. "You know how I am, 'Mione. When things get serious, I go into the attitude where everything's a joke. It's how I deal."

"Life's not a joke, Ron. You have to face it."

"I know, but of all the things I can't face, I can't face not having you around."

"Then why are you pushing away?"

"Because, if I let things get serious with you, and we break up, what happens? I've lost a girlfriend and a best friend. I couldn't deal with that."

Hermione sat up. "So, where do we go?"

"I dunno," he replied. "It seemed so much easier when I was saying it to you in my imagination. I figured everything would be okay. You think it was funny, and we'd laugh about how it would never work and I'd get over you."

"So you think you can just get over it then?" There was no anger in her voice now, just sadness.

"See, that's the problem. I can't get over it. I just want you happy, and if being happy means being with someone else…" Ron sighed, "I'll kill him."

Hermione laughed.

"I wasn't joking," Ron said, but gave in to a chuckle.

"Let's just see what happens," Hermione said. "If we realize we can't live without each other, so be it."

"So be it," Ron replied. "So, what do you think is taking the love birds so long?"

Hermione chuckled. "You knew?"

"How could I not know, they're practically all over each other. And that look Ginny gave Harry when she said she didn't want to be alone. I nearly tossed my dinner in disgust."

"You're so romantic, Ron Weasley. You know Harry's tearing himself apart trying to find a way to tell you?"

"I know," Ron said. "That's half the fun now isn't it?"