A/N: I know, I know… I've taken like nine years to actually write this. I've been having troubles in school and have had a lot of homework, but I've written this as painstakingly as I can. Thanks for waiting, it means a lot to me. :-)
Draco couldn't believe his ears when he heard this. He looked back where Ginny had exited and was deciding whether or not to go after her.
"Don't," Blanc told him, and he sighed in frustration. He stared at her in wrath, almost growling.
"So you were in on this whole thing willingly?" he muttered. "What, just because I don't like you, you want to ruin my life instead by kidnapping the girl I love and trying to kill her?"
Blanc looked at the ground as she slowly sat down in one of the kitchen chairs, putting her hands in her hair.
"No…" she said. Draco whipped his head toward her. "Your fozzer blackmailed me saying zat if I did not join 'im and Heidi, zen my chances of living were completely extinct."
"What?" Draco said incredulously. "My father threatened to kill you?"
Draco sat down in the chair next to her, listening intently to what she had to say. Out of the corner of his eye he could see that his father's body had suddenly vanished, but he was not paying attention to that at the moment.
"I knew about your and Ginny's relationship ze entire time," Blanc told him in her heavy French accent, obviously not seeing what Draco saw. "In ze morning when I was walking to ze Owlery, I saw you and 'er in ze Charms room holding hands and hugging and kissing and all of zat."
Blanc sighed and, rather than looking at Draco, she spoke to her hands that were placed on the table.
"I was very jealous. After you refused me and went for her, I sought - thought – I thought it was after all a good idea to do what Lucius 'ad told me to do."
Draco closed his eyes and sighed furiously, banging the table with his hand.
"So this is all because of jealousy? Is that it, Blanc?" he said with almost gritted teeth, his fingernails digging into his palms.
Blanc put one of her hands on his and looked at him seriously.
"Draco… I am a veela."
&&&&&&&&&&
Draco's eyes widened.
"What -"
"Eight years ago, when I was nine, my muzzer taught me all about ze veela culture and 'ow I was special because I could fool anyone into sinking – thinking - I was a normal girl while actually I could persuade zem, make zem do sings for me… things, I mean things… while zey never knew what hit zem."
"Wait a minute…" Draco started, getting this all straightened out. "How could you be a veela? You have dark hair and green eyes and you are almost even dark-skinned –"
"Zat is my point, Draco," Blanc said exasperatedly. "I am special because even zough I am a veela, no one can know except for when I tell zem. Heidi… she is a veela as well."
"WHAT -"
"Now, Draco, let me finish," Blanc said over him. "Veela cannot die by magic, and zat is why she kept saying zat you could not kill 'er. She lured you into sinking zat you – thinking – thinking zat you loved her and not Ginny. A veela can also put someone to sleep by rubbing a sensitive part of ze skin, like Ginny's back. She told you zat she had a sleeping powder so zat she would not reveal 'erself."
Draco did not know what to say. This whole time he had been hoodwinked by none other than a veela, he had believed her, he had loved her last year… and it was all fake. He was enraged.
"Look, Blanc, I'm sorry… but I have to go find Ginny," he told her, and getting up so angrily that he knocked over his chair, he started running out of the kitchen.
"Giiiiiiny…" he said, calling out. At once, Ginny opened Draco's bedroom door, first poking her head out, then opening the door wide enough so that she was all the way out of the room.
"What do you want?" she snapped crossly, folding her arms and glaring at him. Draco noticed that she had been doing a lot of this lately, but didn't object.
"Listen… I need to tell you something, whether you like it or not," he told her. Ginny just looked at him, clearly confused. It was somehow still dark outside, but from the large window set in the hallway, you could see the sun steadily rising. Ginny sighed and watched the sun ascending into the pink sky, thinking. She turned back to Draco.
"What's so important?" she said softly. She leaned on the doorway, arms still folded across her chest. The sun rose higher.
Draco slowly let out a breath and told Ginny everything Blanc had told him. The blackmail, the veela, Heidi, this whole thing… Ginny looked as outraged as he did when he was told this just minutes before.
"I cannot believe this," she whispered, sinking more onto the doorway on which she leaning.
"Well, it's the truth," Draco said. Rather uncertainly, he muttered, "D'you… do you think we should go back now? To Hogwarts, I mean?"
"We can't just leave Blanc here," Ginny said at once.
"I know, I meant we can take her with us," said Draco. Ginny rolled her eyes at him in irritation.
"How are we supposed to fit three people on your broom?" she exclaimed.
"Maybe we can go there in a different way… we could owl Dumbledore… or… or ask Professor McGonagall to send transportation," Draco suggested hopefully.
"No…" Ginny said, scratching below her bottom lip. "We'll ask Harry."
Almost immediately, Draco let out a cry between a scowl and a snarl.
"Potter?" he spat loathingly. "Are you serious?"
"The only thing keeping us from becoming rumors once again is him," said Ginny in haste, her eyes now on Draco. "He's the only student in the school who knows about us, other than Taryn and them… but believe this, after what happened to me, I doubt they'll tell anyone."
"So…" Draco started. "What are we going to do? Wait for him?"
"No," Ginny repeated. "You'll take Blanc back to the castle. I'll send him an owl to come for me."
"My owl's in my room on my drawers, you can use him; I guess I forgot to bring him back when term started -"
"Alright," said Ginny.
Draco was thinking about what might Potter's reaction be once he got the Ginny's letter not yet written. Would he simply ignore it and throw it away? Would he not get it at all?
He attempted to voice his thoughts.
"Ginny, what if -"
"Draco," she interrupted him suddenly in a low voice, taking his arms calmly. "Don't worry. Everything will be fine." She almost made to kiss him, but instead reached down and handed Draco his broom and trunk that had been right beside her on the floor; he had not seen either of them before now.
"If anything weird happens when Potter gets here," Draco said in worry, "just run right away. Here, why don't we do some kind of charm so that you can call me if you're in danger or something…"
"Draco," Ginny interrupted once more, this time louder. She put his hands on his shoulders. "I'll be fine. It's not as if Harry's a mass murderer. Everything will be okay." She then circled her arms around his neck gently and hugged him. Draco wasn't expecting this. He thought she was mad at him, but he was obviously wrong. He kissed her lightly on the lips.
"I'd better go write the letter to Harry. You won't be able to make it back soon enough to tell him, so I'll tell him myself," Ginny said. "It'll be faster, I think."
She half-grinned sheepishly and set off toward the kitchen, her wand clutched in her hand. Draco followed her and found Blanc still sitting at the kitchen table with her head down. It seemed as if she was sleeping.
"Blanc," chanted Ginny, patting the girl on the shoulder. Blanc's head gradually stirred, and she looked up at Ginny and Draco standing over her with squinted eyes, her eyebrows furrowed.
"Oh, bonjour," she said tiredly, stretching out her arms with a huge yawn. Ginny smiled awkwardly at her, perhaps afraid that Blanc would start going mad again, but acted as if nothing had happened.
"Erm – Draco will be taking you back to Hogwarts," said Ginny swiftly. "Don't worry, he'll direct you where to go once you arrive." She turned to Draco, and he looked down on her. "You remember where Professor Dumbledore's office is, right? And the password as well?"
He nodded silently as Ginny smiled.
"Good," she said. Hesitantly, in front of Blanc, she kissed Draco once more. "Do be careful, will you?"
Draco nodded again, making Ginny's smile widen, and then turned to Blanc, who had just stood up from her chair abruptly.
"Are you ready? Did you bring anything?" he asked. Blanc's eyes wandered around, then she looked back at Draco.
"Just my wand, I sink – think." She scrunched her eyes together and made a frustrated sort of growl. "Just my wand, I think." She took it out of her robes and showed it to Ginny and Draco.
"We should be leaving now," Draco said. He gave Ginny one last hug before putting his hand on Blanc's back, directing her out of the kitchen.
"'Bye," Ginny called out, and Draco and Blanc disappeared. After about ten seconds she heard the front door open and then slam shut. She put her hands on her hips, clearly thinking about what to do next.
"Now, where's me some parchment?…"
&&&&&&&&&&
..::Dear Harry,
I bet you're wondering where I am… you'll never guess. The Malfoy Manor. Strange, isn't it? I promise that the next time I see you I'll tell you everything, but for now I'm afraid I can't. Could you – I know this is odd, but – fly here on your Firebolt and take me back to Hogwarts? Please do not ask me any questions until you come and get me, Harry, because I'm trying to get out of here as quickly as possible. Seeing as you are the only thread of hope that has committed me to ask you this dire favor, I can't think of anyone else. Not even Ron would understand what is going on, and I hope you will. Draco and Blanc du Gris are on their way to Hogwarts right now, you might see them, I am not sure. I know you don't know where the Malfoy Manor is, but neither do I, actually…I was thinking that perhaps you could perform a Tracking Spell to get directions… if you don't know it, all you have to do is say 'Lerufit Dormor Tarifico', then you say the place (just say 'The Malfoy Manor', I'm sure it will work) and some piece of parchment appears and tells you where it is and how to get there and everything… it's really not that complicated, I could tell you all about it if you like. They invented the spell in 1383 when a convict was on the loose and they knew where he was but they didn't know how to get there so they performed the spell and then caught him in – why the bloody hell am I babbling on about Tracking Spells? Anyway, please consider this as a plea of help, and I hope you have it in your heart to understand.
Yours truly,
Ginny::..
"No," Ginny said simply, and she crumpled the letter up and threw it in the trashcan beside her.
"'Scuse, madam…" she heard something squeak behind her. Ginny whipped around, frightened, to find that it was only the little house elf Kora. "Do ye need help gedding back to Hogwarts?"
"Yes," said Ginny, stunned. "How did you?…"
"Follow me, dear," Kora sighed, and started walking out of the kitchen where Ginny was in. Confusedly, Ginny got up from her chair and followed the house elf, which was leading her down the same hall in which last night Draco and Lucius had been fighting. The ashes of the vase Lucius had cursed were now a vase again.
"Keep on going dere, darling," said Kora. Ginny hustled to keep up, and suddenly, Kora turned right into a small door that Ginny stared at. It was about up to her waist.
"Er – I can't fit through that," she told the house elf, but Kora pulled her arm so that she had to get on her knees and crawl through the door.
What Ginny saw made her gasp.
She was looking into a small, cramped room filled with tiny little beds, small enough to hold babies in. They were all around, and different house elves were sleeping in them. Some beds were empty, and Ginny expected that those house elves were cleaning upstairs or around the Manor.
"Where we basically live," Kora said, smiling barely any teeth. She looked up at Ginny with a serious look. "I shall get the odders," she whispered, and she went to the back of the tiny room where a group of house elves were gathered around talking quietly to one another. When Kora tapped one of them on the shoulder, a small female about her size, she pointed to Ginny. The other house elf looked at Ginny, smiled, and then walked over with Kora.
"This is Jink," Kora told her. "My sitter."
"You're – what?"
"My sitter!" repeated Kora, louder this time, still smiling. "We was raised in the same family, mes and Jink."
"Oh… sister," Ginny said, grinning. "Sister."
Jink had a round, plump face with pointy ears like Kora's, and the same pointy nose. She was only about an inch taller than Kora and was wearing a shower curtain that was made like a dress of some sort. She actually had dark brown hair that was down to her small shoulders.
"How do," she said, her voice high and filled with glee. Jink curtsied low to the floor, holding out her shower curtain dress.
"Erm… hello," said Ginny rather awkwardly.
"My, what an honor 'tis to have such a guest," Jink beamed at Ginny, who shifted slightly. She was feeling very uncomfortable around so many house elves that were likely to be a little more than three feet shorter than her.
"We shall help you find a way out, miss," Kora told her, and the two elves started towards the short little door in which Ginny crawled through once again.
In the hallway, as they watched Jink climb out last, Kora took Ginny's hand and walked in the separate direction of the hall Draco's room was in. The hall they were in was lined with old pictures and several doors left and right.
"Now, where is dat closet…?" muttered Kora to herself, looking around. She spotted a door to her left that was embroidered with serpents and breathed in. "Ah, here we are…"
Kora opened the door to a broom closet. There was only one broom in there, however, an old Comet Two-Sixty that had apparently not been in use for ages. It had dust all over it, and when Kora took it out, she sneezed three times and sniffed as she wiped all of the dust off.
"There ye go," she said, handing it to Ginny. "Your way to Hogwarts."
Ginny beamed at the house elves with happiness. This was ingenious.
"Thanks," she said, and she hurriedly dashed to the front door, her wand in her right pocket.
&&&&&&&&&&
"How is Ginny getting back to 'Ogwarts?" Blanc asked as Draco and her were mounting his broom, and Draco sighed. It was now almost light outside, the sun fully in the sky. The trees surrounding them were blocking it, however, making the ground look dark and dead. There was a bitter chill sweeping around each of their bodies, making both of them shudder.
"She's writing Potter a letter to come and get her, and I don't expect he'll reject it," Draco said as his teeth chattered in the cold.
"Potter?" said Blanc perplexedly. "As in 'Arry Potter?"
"Yup," said Draco. "Apparently Ginny says he's the only person that'll come for her, but… ah, well, we'd better go. Hold on tight."
Just as Draco was about to kick off from the ground into the misty morning, Ginny came sprinting out of the house just in time.
"Wait!" she yelled to them. "Wait for me!"
Draco quickly turned around and smiled.
"What's that you've got?" he asked confusedly as he got off of his Nimbus 2000, striding over to her as Blanc sighed.
"Kora…" Ginny started. "She found it in a broom closet and supposedly it still works!"
Draco laughed slightly.
"So no Potter coming after all?" he asked.
"Obviously not," Ginny told him, smiling now more than ever. "Who's ready to fly?"
"I cannot fly," Blanc said at once, half-shrugging. "My muzzer said it was not lady-like."
Draco and Ginny laughed and looked at one another.
"I can't believe I never thought of that," Draco said. "Must've slipped my mind…"
"Well it doesn't matter now, we're going back, Draco," Ginny told him. She suddenly became quiet and excited. "We're going home."
"Yeah…" mumbled Draco, looking around and grinning to himself. "Home."
"Are we going or not?" called Blanc to them, and they turned to her.
"Let's ride," Draco said in a manly voice, and then muttered, "I've always wanted to say that."
Ginny rolled her eyes jokingly at this and hopped on her broom. Both Draco and Ginny kicked off from the grass and were flying into the periwinkle sky, yelling and laughing.
They had a reason to be happy. They were going home, after all.
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A/N: I know it's a tad short, but the last chapter was long, so oh well. This took forever, and I'm extremely sorry for those that have been waiting. But hey, cool, you waited.
THANKS, AND REVIEW!
-goob-