I own NOTHING! ^_^ Anyway, sorry for the long wait between chapters! All I can say is that college is HARD! I know.. I know..it's been about 1 ½ semesters since my last chapter, not 1 month… but, I TRIED! Gomen Nasai!!!
~Caliko
Compulsion - Chapter 8
By Caliko
I entered the pub and sat down with my back against the wall and my eyes facing forward. Catching the barkeeps glance, I nodded, grabbing the tall mug as it floated in the air towards me. I had to blend in, after all, and to do that, I needed the ale.
Not that I was about to drink it, of course. The dark brown liquid stank of strange herbs and had a thin oily film over the top. Knowing my luck, it was poisoned in an attempt to keep Knockturn Alley's population down.
:::Which would be an improvement.::: I thought, smirking.
So far, I couldn't find anyone worth recruiting for my little uprising. Not one of any talent, powerful enough to be of use, but weak enough to dominate, crossed my path this day. I needed someone like my father, only trust worthier. My father would only try to take over.
Running my eyes over the dingy room, I noticed this girl watching me. She was petite, like Gin, only better endowed on top. Her jet-black hair was cut short and sleek over her head, making her appear waif-like in the short wispy tunic that floated over her thighs. Suspicion creased her face, sparking my interest.
:::Obviously some intelligence.::: I brought my mug up to my lips, pretending to sip. ::::But not enough.:::
She had turned away, content to believe whatever story her mind invented to explain my presence. Either she lacked the nerve to investigate, or she didn't have the imagination to suspect a person could decide to replace Voldemort as the next dread overlord of evil.
:::This is tedious.:::
The rest of the blank faces in the room gave me little encouragement. If she was the best the pub had to offer, then I had no choice but to start with her. After all, I can always replace her later on when I ran across someone better. Until then… The girl did have a great ass. What Ginny didn't know, and all that.
I got up, leaving my drink on the table. Then, walking up to my choice, I rested my arms on the bar, trapping her between them. Pouting, I looked up at her through my silvery hair, and gave her my most sensuous smile.
"Hello." The warmth never reached my eyes. "Do you believe in sin?"
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"Gin, you stay here." I said to my sister, watching her pout. Rolling my eyes, I pointed to the steep stone stairway that descended into the dark ground. "We don't need you falling." I reminded her.
"It's only a set of stairs, Ron." She moved to step around me, growling when I refused to let her pass.
"Yeah. And it probably leads to another dead end."
So far, we had found three empty stone basements, and none of them had a secret passageway.
"At this rate, we would never find Luthor Malfoy's workroom." Fred groaned, holding his torch high as he went first.
We had discovered early on that Luthor's dungeon didn't allow wizard lights. The wands would stay lit for a moment, then fade away as if they had lost power. In desperate annoyance, we finally lit one of the torches that lined the hallway.
"I hope not. This is the last dungeon that the locating spell found." Ginny said, finally slipping past me.
I sighed, defeated. She did have more right than I to be there.
"This is creepy." George muttered, his eyes following the darting shadows that creeped over the walls.
"No…" Fred returned. "Creepy is our Gin trying to get the old Malfoy back. This dungeon is just morbid."
"Hey, what's that?" I had seen something flicker in the shadows that didn't quite match the flickering of the torches. "Over there." I pointed, as the twins looked everywhere but where I was referring to. Ginny, however, must have seen it, as well, since she walked quickly in the right direction.
"It looks like some kind of latch." She said, holding her hand out to brush against the dank wall. "It's hot!"
She snatched her hand back and cradled it against her breast.
"Hot?" That's weird….
"Weird!" George echoed my thoughts out loud. "Everything else down here is cold and wet, but that's hot?"
"Maybe we're getting close. Luthor must have had some sort of protection spells on his workroom. This may be one of them!"
"You're right, Gin. Stand back and give me a crack at it!"
Ron moved to grab the latch, only to fall back as a crackling of magic flew off of the metal handle to attack his hand. Undaunted, he tried again, only to dodge an even bigger bolt of power. The defense got stronger each time he made a move towards the door.
"This is why Mum warns us about messing with things we don't understand." I said. "I think we had better speak to Dumbledore, see if Luthor had any friends he might have consulted."
"Maybe one of them knows how to get past the defenses. Until then, we can look in the library. Maybe some of the family spell books have a clue." George pointed out.
His twin nodded, equally unwilling to become the next target. "You know who we need?" Fred asked, his eyes serious for once. "We need Hermione and Percy. With those two working on it, we're sure to find something."
The group retreated to the stairs and started up. "You're right, but do we want even more people hanging around? Won't Draco the Evil figure out that something's up?" I asked, wanting to see Hermione, but unwilling to put her into any danger.
"I was missing for the last five months, of course my family would come to visit!" Gin pointed out. "And at a time like this, a girl needs her friends, too."
"We can always invite Harry. Really keep him too pissed to think straight."
I choked, then let it out as we came to the main floor off the decrepit castle. "Why not?" I finally said, sputtering. "The more the merrier, and all that."
"Just in time for Draco-baby's little ball." Gin grinned, appreciating the torment that her evil quarter would be going through.
"Then, my lady," I bowed, sweeping her out of the main hall, "by all means, let's send the invites!"
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I stopped, staring at the brightly lit town, unconvinced that my eyes were telling me true. I knew this place. I don't know how, but I did! I wandered down the now cobbled road, my eyes darting into each window that I passed. Deep familiarity settled into my chest. Somehow, I had the sense of being home… or at least somewhere that I knew as well as home. Well, if I knew where my home was, that is.
I shook my head, smiling. I didn't even mind my mind rambling as it was. All I cared about was getting food into my belly, and finding someone that might know me. I stopped at a place called the 'Three Broomsticks' and went in. Maybe someone would take pity on me and allow me to earn enough money for a meal or two. As for finding a friend - well, I could always hope.
There was a Christmas tree in the corner, and a long ancient bar in the back. A number of scarred wooden tables were scattered around the room, filled by kids of all ages wearing black robes. I Blinked, then slowly inched my way forward until I stood in front of the bar, coughing slightly to get the barmaid's attention.
"Mr. Malfoy!"
:::Malfoy? Was.. Was that my name? :::::
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"Gin! I'm home!" Draco's voice rang out as he walked towards me. He was wearing a coarsely woven robe that reached his thighs with dark green slacks beneath. I had never seen them on him before, but I recognized the type as those worn in the poorer sections of Wizards London.
He was calm, jovial even, and for a moment, I wondered if everything had been in my head. He seemed so normal, not like the creepy Draco that had fought his father that morning. I had a stray thought that maybe that wretched crystal had been nothing but a figment of my imagination. Then, he came closer, and I sensed the stone nearby. He still had it on him.
"I thought that you were going to lock that up in the safe?" I asked, pulling away as he leaned down to kiss me.
"I haven't gotten around to it. I will after dinner." He shrugged then sat down on the couch. "Your brothers gone?"
"For now. They went to get some clothes. They decided to help you pull guard duty, at least until we figure out what your father is going to do next." I kept my voice steady when he turned to look at me. His eyes were cold and mocking, and his lips twisted in a strange smirk. "My father wouldn't dare come here again, not without an invitation from me."
"You don't know that, Draco. Anyway, they can help me plan for the ball."
"Virginia, my father knows that the next time he comes here, I'll kill him. As for the ball, I have servants to do that."
"Draco, please. I want my family close to me right now. I'm scared, and I'm due any day now, and I..I. Dammit! I want my Mum!"
He sighed, rolling his eyes. "Whatever. You don't have to overact, Love. Just keep them away from me, alright?" He bounced up, "I'm going to take a soak. Wanna scrub my back?"
:::Er.. Sexy evil Draco… Naked.. Get a hold of yourself! It's not like you can seduce him with your sex appeal right now!::: "Later, alright? I'm feeling a bit tired."
He looked closely at me, noticing the dark circles under my eyes. "What were you doing all day?"
"Just walking, Draco. Go.. take your bath. I think I'll take a nap before dinner."
Draco nodded, then walked away, looking back once to see if I had moved. Then, stopping at the door, he stopped. "Don't let your brothers drag you all over the place tomorrow. You need your sleep if your going to keep my son healthy." Then, without another word, he was gone.
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