Author's Note:

'This is a contest entry for the Dracolov challenge! If you would like to enter you must e-mail Dracolov, her e-mail is in her profile. The last day to enter is 12/1/04. Please R R (read and review) and thank you for reading my story.

Disclaimer:

I don't own any of the original Harry Potter character because I am not that creative...but I wish i was...I only own the plot and my characters.

Chapter 19: Reversal of the Dog

In between raised eyebrows and dropped jaws, Draco's proposal of sterilization was unexpected to say the least but it was Hermione who seemed most offended by the prospect of it. Harry, of course, was pleased with the development despite the fact that it didn't seem permanent enough, yet it was Dumbledore's response that actually put out the fire.

"You should know from personal experience that a simple spell can reverse that whether voluntary or not. Although a noble suggestion, I believe that other options are available to you." The wise Headmaster stated.

"Why be so dramatic? The purpose of this whole escape was to find out who was behind this and stop it, not maim yourself." Hermione began methodically.

"The consequences are too high to leave it you to him anyway." Harry interjected vehemently.

"Look, I don't relish the idea of…altering myself, so to speak, but we can't take the chance that my child will end the world. I have worked far too long and hard to just throw it all away. If we can't find another solution, then Potter is right and I should be dead." Draco replied devoid of any emotion.

Tears were welling up in her eyes and her head began to swim in the memories of the past few days, the world, as she knew it, was falling to pieces along with the promise of a new life. A life filled with new and exciting adventures that didn't surround themselves in the opportunity for death or dismemberment. There was much truth in what he said and still she couldn't accept it. God, at least the one she knew, would not give such hope and then take it away so viciously. Actually, not hope but something else, something stronger and deeper, and something better.

"Glamour potions!" She cried out suddenly.

A smiling Dumbledore waited in anticipation as the other did the questioning knowing she would come up with something. She had to, as she was the only one, other than Draco himself that had anything to lose if he died. Less obvious to the other but not lost on the Headmaster, was that she had just proclaimed her true feeling for the young man, even if he was the only one to hear it.

After what seemed like an eternity but was in reality more like five or so minutes, Marcus laid back on the bed in the motel completely satisfied with himself and his clever little game. He was so lost in his own thoughts that he paid no attention to Ginny and her silent shivers and sobs next to him on the bed. All the promises and dreams that had comforted for the last year were now gone and replaced by the horror of her impending and inescapable future with demon to her side. She was becoming consumed by the question of where things had gone so wrong when Marcus finally acknowledged her again.

"Exhausted by me, eh?" He boasted disgustingly.

"Sure."

"Don't sound so grateful. Are you still upset about losing good old Scarhead?"

"No." Her sigh rebounded around the room like the echo in the Grand Canyon but that only added to the triumph that he was feeling.

"Oh what a web we weave when first we practice to deceive. Remember this always, never underestimate the abilities of your enemies." He taunted her further as punishment for her betrayal and deception of him.

"Go to hell, Marcus."

"Been there, done that. Wasn't all it was advertised to be."

"Why continue this, you don't really want me. It's her that you want or at least her power." She made one last attempt to rectify her predicament and set herself free if he would just take the bait.

"Nope, don't get me wrong, this little tryst was fun but I prefer the real you and the joy of seeing you squirm under weight of knowing that you failed in every way. Until you came along, I thought everything was lost but look at how fast the tables have turned."

As he spoke each word, Ginny felt herself feeling sicker and sicker in the pit of her belly. The day had started out so promisingly and now she was residing in a new kind of hell on earth. If only she get away from him and find her family, they would protect and help her. Wouldn't they?

Another white haired man sat alone in a room surrounded by countless priceless antiques and poured over ancient looking documents trying to find the one that he had long since pushed from his memory. The story in the Daily Prophet had shaken him from his usual boredom and tedious activities that made up the largest portions of his days. The reported disappearance had of the Headmaster of Hogwarts erupted flashes of brilliance and the need for a new plan.

There were stacks upon stacks of research; newspaper and messages piled one on top of the other to aid him in his ultimate goal and purpose for his life. No stone would be left unturned or lead ignored so long as the threat remained to the world's population. The irony of all this was that after all this time and research, the answer to everything that he'd been looking for was right in front of him the entire time. A single blog hidden within the ancient text that he'd found more than a century ago but its importance had eluded until just this moment.

"Ignacio, get me some of your strongest elixir."

"But sir, the side effects could be disastrous. The dangers for man of you age and importance, are you sure this is wise?" The faithful servant asked as if duty bound to protect this icon.

"I must be ready and I have a long journey ahead of me." Came the sharp reply.

"Then I must go with you to monitor your condition."

"Useless my dear boy, this the final leg of my journey and at its completion I will go to meet my maker. Now go and gather my essentials, time is short and there is much for me to do." With that final phrase the young man looked sadly upon his charge wishing that what he heard was merely an exaggeration but knowing that it wasn't.

Finally, out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the famous painting and knew he'd found what he was looking for. The Birth of Venus was painted by Botticelli and was always believe by art historians to have been a depiction of the birth of Venus, the goddess of love, and noted for its beauty and artistic flare but this man was also captivated by its subtle references to a historical birth. Botticelli was known to have painted many religious scenes that have been in the Vatican's possession for centuries but secretly he was purist for the scientific and magical communities and that's what originally caught his eye. He knew that this painting meant more than all the experts believed and now he saw the riddle. Worse, he also saw the answer, a premonition of sorts, to the end of everything he'd been assigned to protect.

In the deepest recesses of his mind, Dumbledore could hear the muffled cries of the Weasley family for him but what worried him was the blood-curdling screen of a young woman that was unfamiliar to him. Why would he be able to hear the cry of a stranger at a time like this, he wondered. Though the voice was foreign to him, he had a sense that she was pivotal to this whole mystery and that worried him even more.

"Is there anyone else missing related to the Priory or the Ministry of Magic?" He posed the question to Harry in a sudden departure from the matter at hand.

"What?" Harry asked in lieu of the off-handed question.

"I'm sensing a young woman in great torment right now and I believe that is somehow related to the Priory and this plan that is being hatched for Mr. Malfoy."

"Everyone that we know of is accounted for except for Parisa and Ginny."

"Madame Maxine, does the ritual have to take place in a certain time frame?" Dumbledore inquired.

"That I do not know. The specifics of the ritual have never been published but I would guess that the ovulating cycle would be the best bet."

"And if this young woman is ovulating and cannot find Mr. Malfoy here, would that possibly create pain?"

"Not unless the union had already been blessed, why?"

"We need to find Miss Weasley and convince her to lead us to other girl but there's just one more thing that I need to do first." He announced to the group and excused himself to talk to someone unknown to them.

"What if Madam Maxine is wrong and she is in pain looking for you Draco? She could be getting mighty desperate by now." Hermione whispered to him.

"Things are getting out of hand and I feel like as long as we are all together, that we are sitting ducks. I need to get away before they capture us all."

"But you can't go alone, what if they find you? You won't be able to defend yourself against them all."

"I have a feeling that the numbers won't matter with these people. For now you're all safer without me and I've got a gigantic bull's-eye plastered across me."

"If you go, I go. Understand?" She proposed to him to understand that she was going to be the next closest thing to his shadow until this was over, whether he liked it or not. And deep inside, he did like it and that scared him more than anything else.

"Fine, are you ready?" He asked as he held out his hand for her to take it.

"Whenever you are." She replied and took hold without hesitation, silently praying that he would take her some place far away and completely deserted if at all possible. With a resounding "pop" they were gone before anyone else could stop them and Harry was looking like a man who could kill as Dumbledore returned to the irate group, missing a couple of crucial components.

"Where are they?" The stern voice of the Headmaster demanded.

Author's Notes:

Sorry for the delay but I couldn't get anything to transfer so I had to rewrite everything from my laptop to my desktop and then download…now before you all say anything…I know that this chapter is a little confusing but the next couple of chapters will clear some of that up as we get closer to heart of the story and ultimate climax. If you have any specific questions…please ask and I will answer them as best as I can without giving anything away before its written.

The reviews for the last chapter were wonderful and I loved them all but I do need to explain one thing…I haven't gotten a response from my beta since the 8th chapter so any grammatical errors I try to catch on my own but I need another beta desperately…anyone out there who would like to do it, please email me and I would be ever so greatful for it.

Welcome to my new readers: jezebellard15, Blair A., Jemma452, innocenteen, and CocoaFlavourPunk. Thanks to the return readers: Dragons-Fires, red-e-party, slyswn28, wounded-angel, Blood-Red-Pen-Tip, dracolov, sugar n spice522, Harrena Potter, mysticalpurple, Felicity2, and dark twisted poet.

Dragons-Fires…I wouldn't really do that…for now….

Red-e-party…I think she does but we'll have to see…

Slyswn28…thank you.

Jezebellard15….thank you very much for the compliments and you'll see more of Snape in the next chapter but it's basically a woman trapped in a man's body and willingly to do whatever it takes to be the person he wants to be.

Blair A….no sequel will be needed in the traditional sense when this is done…it will have run it's course and then I'll be off to a new theory.

Wounded-angel…I'm glad you liked the shopping list…my grammar sucks sometimes…that's why I need a beta….

Blood-Red-pen-Tip…my trip was awesome but tiring.

Dracolov…Ginny's getting what she deserves…and a little more.

Sugar n spice…sorry for the wait.

Harrena…Valentine's Day was ok, hope everyone's elses was good.

Jemma…I try to keep to the British dialect but I can't find a good slang sight so please forgive the slips and I'll try to fix them.

Innocenteen…thank you coming to see…I admit that sometimes I go a little to far in the description but the later chapters are better in that area…but that's another reason for the need of a good beta.

Felicity2 and darktwistedpoet…welcome back both of you.

CocoaFlavourPunk…thanks for the vote and hope you enjoy the rest of it.

And a special thanks as always to dracolov for sponsoring the contest…enjoy everyone and the next chapter will be up Sat or Sun…see you all soon and don't forget to review.