To Be Cursed By Blood

ImmortalFlick

Warnings: Minor character Slash (Harry/Ron). Plus, Ginny Weasley/Severus Snape (if this squicks you, leave).

Summary: Occurs in Ginny's sixth year. OoTP never happened (I almost always ignore that book, mostly because of Sirius - I'm in denial). Ginny is a veela, the problem? She doesn't know it. But veela's have to find their mate, there are no exceptions here, so Ginny is searching for her mate, who turns out to be right there at Hogwarts.

A/N: This is an answer to a challenge (see below). I don't know how well it would turn out, but when I got this challenge in a review I couldn't resist. Oh, and I'm sorry if this has been done before, I haven't read anything similar but I could easily be mistaken in assuming my idea is even somewhat original (there are an awful lot of stories out there). And if this reminds you of another one of my fics, that's because I wrote it and some of it has a similar theme. So please read, and I hope you enjoy and leave a review.

Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine. However the plot (most of it - see challenge - is mine) does happen to belong to me (I think).

~

THE CHALLENGE

The following challenge has been issued to selected authors on Fanfiction.net:

The challenge:

You challenge is to write a Harry Potter fanfiction based on the "veela chooses his/her mate" concept. However unlike the previous challenge, this story cannot be slash. The following terms apply:

1) No slash (with the two leading roles, namely the veela and his/her mate, with minor characters slash is acceptable).

2)Love/Hate is a added perk, but not needed.(Relationships that are hard to accept make a better story)

3)The story can take place in any time period. (Harry's, the Marauders, and future)

4)PWP's are accepted (plots would be nice though)

5)Teacher/student relationships are accepted

The previous terms are the rules. If you accept this challenge you are agreeing to follow them.

The purpose:

There are many Draco/Harry slash fanfics (many of which are very entertaining, Frizzy I commend you), however many people object to slash fanfic, that, and Harry/Draco/ veela plot is becoming boring, because it has been copied so many times. With this challenge your choices are open a bit more, and you can create your own plot.

~

Sent to me by the 'hpfanficchallenger' (I'm selected? Ohhhh, do I feel special or was it just random?)

*

To Be Cursed By Blood- Chapter 1

*

If there was one thing the world did not know about the Weasleys, the muggle loving family of Arthur Weasley, it was that they had veela blood. Although, they weren't all veela. The gene skipped many generations at a time, landing usually in females, two generations after the last.

So it wasn't surprising when Arthur and Molly Weasley were worrying over their youngest daughter. It was very likely that she would be the veela. Very, very likely. They hadn't informed any of their children of the gene, and were not planning to should it not turn up. It was not something often talked about, Arthur had told his wife, reluctantly, about the gene a year after they'd had their daughter, Virginia Weasley. At first he was hoping that since they had male children that the gene would turn up in his sister's daughter, but when her daughter had reached the age at which the blood would become active, nothing had happened, it was at that point Genevieve had contacted Arthur, worried that his baby daughter had the gene, as at the time, Molly was pregnant.

Now Arthur and Molly were slowly beginning to realize that they had to tell their daughter about the gene. They had to tell her because her sixteenth birthday was coming up. And sixteen was the age when the blood became active. When she would become a veela. But they weren't telling her. She had no idea. They weren't telling her because they thought that maybe it wouldn't happen. They weren't telling her because they were foolish.

*

Ginny sighed. It was September 1st tomorrow and it was back to school. Not that she wasn't excited, just that she was nearing the end of her school days. Two years, then she was shoved into the real world, where she had to find a job. She had no idea what she wanted to be. Neville, her friend, was sure to become the next Herbology teacher, if not he would do something involved with plants, Colin would surely go into photography, Melissa would be the next Madame Malkin and Emma would surely be an Auror. There was no hope for her though. Virginia Weasley, the girl with a big family and no talents.

Ginny knew she wasn't that attractive or popular. She knew people still thought of her as the youngest Weasley who had a crush on Harry. That was four years ago. Why did people still remember it? She was not interested in the Boy-Who-Lived, he was untouchable, especially since Ginny knew something Harry, himself, did not. That he was not infact in love with Cho Chang and never would be in love with a woman. Ginny had seen the way he looked at Ron, and she wasn't sure if she was totally comfortable with it, but she had also seen the way her brother looked back. That was enough to keep her quiet. Let them figure it out for themselves.

But Ginny knew that she was very lucky. She had a loving family, six big brothers who would defend her, maybe a little too readily, at the slightest sign of danger, two parents who loved her more than anything, and many relatives who were very fond of the youngest Weasley. She had her friends too, Neville, Colin, Emma and Melissa were almost as protective as her brothers. Ginny could safely say that if anyone ever asked her out on a date she would be very secretive about it. Not that Hogwarts was much of a place to keep secrets, you were more likely to hide something if you weren't trying to.

Ron was the only Weasley boy still at school. She had to do something about him and Harry soon, before they left Hogwarts at any rate, then it would be out of her hands. She didn't like to see any of her brothers unhappy, Ron most of all, he was a pain when he was unhappy, sulked until they were all driven mad.

Ginny had never actually been on a date, so she didn't know exactly how Ron, or any of her brothers would react. She was hoping to have some sort of romantic endeavor before she left Hogwarts. If there was one thing Ginny didn't want to end up as, it was an old hag who died cold and alone.

*

"Ginny! Ginny, hold up!" The voice of a huffing Neville was heard on the Hogwarts express platform 9 3/4. Ginny stopped and turned around. Neville had grown at least a few inches taller. Once again Ginny felt the familiar sadness sweep over her at the thought of Neville leaving at the end of the year. It left at the memory that he had an offer from Professor Sprout that he would be her assistant and apprentice until she retired. To get an apprenticeship offer in his sixth year was admirable. Ginny felt somewhat jealous that Neville already knew what he was going to do with his life.

She hugged her friend warmly. She had missed the clumsy sweetness of him over the summer. She always did. Neville and Ginny had been close since she'd come to Hogwarts, overshadowed by her famous brothers and sheltered by their over-protective tendencies. She'd been meaning to invite him over this summer but Neville had been on holiday with his grandmother, who was obviously feeling her old age and had attempted to revive it by going on holiday in France. Ginny had always wanted to go to France. The country that was supposedly full of romance and love.

"Did you have fun?" She asked teasingly. "Did you meet any French girls?"

Neville blushed bright red. She hadn't lost her touch. "You know how I feel, Ginny."

"I know, I know, you're still holding a flame for Hermione."

"She's just so -"

Ginny cut him off. "Amazing, perfect, knowledgeable maybe?"

"All of those things -"

"And more?"

Neville gave her a look. "Am I really that boring?"

"No," She smiled fondly at the boy. "You're really that single-minded."

Nothing more was said.

*

"Camron, Erika." A moment passed before: "GRYFFINDOR!"

She clapped loudly with the rest of her house. The sorting was always something that fascinated Ginny. She could remember how scared and worried she'd been over her sorting. What tragedies would befall should the hat not put her in Gryffindor? Yes, she'd known about the hat before going to Hogwarts. The twins may have fooled Ron into believing they had to wrestle a troll, but she was not as easily fooled, or maybe she was. Bill had told her about the hat when she was seven. She'd squeaked and run away when Charlie had fed her a story about fighting a vampire, Bill had retrieved her from under the bed and told her the truth.

"Hobbs, Darren." Another moment. "RAVENCLAW!" The trembling but relieved boy made his way to the Ravenclaw table.

These children were all in the same boat. All felt the same nervousness, fear and anticipation, excitement in some, confusion and awe in others (namely muggle-borns). Ginny had loved the castle since she'd first set eyes on it. Ever since she was small and her brothers had set off for Hogwarts she'd always asked, no, begged her mother to let her go too. When she'd finally been able to go, the sight was not one to disappoint.

*

As she looked around the table, she saw many a familiar sight. Seamus once again flirting shamelessly with every female on the Gryffindor table, and a few in Hufflepuff. In Ginny's honest opinion, Seamus should just settle down with Susan Bones and get on with it, no point in wasting precious time on all this flirting. Dean sketching a picture of the chatting Lavender. Funny, Ginny thought, this was the first time she'd actually seen him drawing outside of the common room. Harry and Ron were exchanging those looks again. Ginny could honestly say that they should just be shoved together and be made to deal with it that way. Neville and Hermione were in a conversation about Herbology. Go Neville! Ginny thought enthusiastically. Finally he talks to the girl about something he's interested in! There was progress. Usually he only managed the weather or something equally tedious.

But even surrounded by all this laughter and feeling (and there was more than enough tension going on between Ron and Harry!), Ginny felt strangely alone. Like she should be with someone as they all were. Even those who didn't know it. That longing was there. For once, it was very strong, strong enough to reconsider talking to the ever chatty Parvati in hopes to distract herself. Melissa and Emma were on her left, both engrossed in a game of Exploding Snap.

This was another start to a another year. Except this start she felt different. Her birthday was tomorrow (1). Her parents had been unusually silent about it this year, as if they were anxious. About what? It was just a birthday. Nothing to be worried about on a birthday.

*

Ginny was in her bed in the Gryffindor dorm rooms. She shared a room with Melissa Oberon, Emma Jonas, Georgia Buckley and Lucia Parry, Georgia snored but denied it fervently, Emma talked in her sleep, Lucia occasionally sleepwalked, Melissa was the only one who didn't seem to have some sort of nocturnal problem. Ginny struggled to get to sleep. The snores of Georgie were louder tonight and Emma was muttering something along the lines of 'bloody monkey can't even speak'. It was two hours before Ginny was able to sleep, midnight, that was.

It was just three hours after that when Ginny seemed to glow. Not enough to wake anyone, but if one were to see they would not be able to deny the fact that Ginny Weasley was, in fact, glowing. It was then she became what she was meant to become. A veela.

*

(1) I have no idea when her birthday is, so it's September 2nd at 3:00 in the morning.

I'll fill the facts about veelas in this fic later on, they are slightly modified, some completely made up, some pretty obvious.

Sorry if it's short. I had to get this chapter out. Hope you enjoyed. Please review. No flames though. They're rather nasty and unpleasant.