Disclaimer: not mine, but JK Rowling.
Hey to all. I've gone crazy about drawing Ginny so I decided to update. No one really commented on Herm's and Ron's engagement. I was like in a romantic mood. And if its not as long as you want it, I'm sorry.. things are crazy now. I'm trying. Stories are saving me. Well theres number 19! Woot woot!
"Oh my!" Ginny gasped. She looked around the large ballroom/ dining hall. It had dark red tapestries with golden rope tying them. Off to one side of the room was a long dark oak table, set for what it looked like hundreds of people. Butlers and maids lined the room with black and white masks on. A maid stepped forward and handed her a mask on a tray. Ginny thanked the girl and put on the green mask. She looked in one of the long mirrors around the room and looked at herself in the mask. It was a perfect fit for her and her outfit. She turned and looked back at the table. There was Gabriel. Better get this over with she thought as she walked towards that end of the table.
"Good evening, Ginny." Gabriel said, rising and bowing to greet her. He grabbed her hand and kissed it, showing her to her seat, next to his. "Did you find your room to be antiquate?"
"Yes, I am in love with Atreil. I must have her." Ginny said, looking at the chandelier on the ceiling.
"Well she is a pure breed, very costly. We'll work something out though," he said, grabbing her left hand on the table. His hands icy cold and she quickly pulled hers away, looking up the ceiling.
"Where did you find this magnificent chandelier?" Ginny asked, still looking at it.
"I bought it from an old friend a couple of centuries ago. It was in his opera house till it burned down. It was a scary place after that, with ghosts and phantoms said to be around so I bought the chandelier, saving it from sitting there forever." Gabriel explained, smiling at Ginny.
Madeliene entered and glared at Ginny. "Sir, dinner is served whenever you say. It is ready," she said, smiling at Gabriel.
"Thank you, love." Gabriel said, smiling back. 'Oh, I should have seen this. No wonder she hates me. She thinks I'm going to steal him from her. She must love him. I can see it in her eyes. They're grey crystal eyes…they look familiar. But I can't put my finger on it. Loving grey eyes. Draco! Draco has those same eyes.' She thought as she watched Madeliene move and set their dinner down in front of them on the long table. I miss him. I truly did like him…. No!' she thought as she shook her head. No, I like Cory, love Cory. I can't do that to him. He'd be crushed. No. No Malfoy for me. It's probably written in some prophesy. No Weasels with Malfoys. I'm with Cory. I love Cory Ginny thought as she put her napkin in her lap. She looked up to Gabriel and followed off him. He was staring at her. She looked back down and stared at her plate. The meal went by fast, she barely ate. Gabriel was watching her like a hawk. She was as proper as she could be. Finally dessert was taken away from them and she sighed, scooting her chair away from the table. She looked down and straightened her dress, trying not to look at Gabriel.
"Ginny, would you like to dance?" Gabriel asked, standing up and holding out his hand. She looked up and suddenly the music started, an elegant waltz. She looked to the door and Madeliene glared at her. 'Heh. That would make her really mad, wouldn't it?' she thought as she looked at the fluming girl. Ginny nodded, still not making eye contact with him. She stood up and took his hand and tried to remember the waltz steps her mother had made her learn when she was seven. They danced through the song and she lead him to the long table and sat back down.
Gabriel motioned Madeliene over and whispered something in her ear. Madeline smiled and looked at Ginny. "Yes, my lord. I will go myself," the girl said before leaving the room.
"Where is she going?" Ginny asked him, looking confused.
"She's going to fetch my wife from the dungeons." Gabriel said, looking calmly at Ginny. "Come, she will meet us in my chambers. Your boys are coming," he said, standing up and dragging Ginny out of the room.
Harry took another sandwich out the basket and left Draco snoring. He walked through the woods, looking around. He saw two squirrels bickering and got out his wand. He pointed it at a nut on the ground and made it float up to the branch they were sitting on. The look on their face's made him laugh as he kept walking, leaving the now content squirrels behind.
He came to a clearing and sat down, resting. He almost fell asleep but heard a rustle in the bushes. He sat on a fallen log perfectly still, waiting for whatever it was to come out. Suddenly he heard a crash and a deer stumbled into the clearing. Harry didn't breathe, watching the magnificent animal look around. The buck looked at him and sniffed the air. He looked back at Harry and looked through the bushes. Taking one last look at Harry, he leaped over the bushes and ran out of the forest. Harry got up and followed the buck through the forest. He heard the crashing and the rumbling of the hooves on the forest bed.
Finally he came to a clearing with a cliff on one side. He saw the buck on the other side of the clearing, near the cliff. The buck bounded off but Harry stayed, walking up to the cliff to look at the wall of stone. There were inscriptions of the side of the cliff. He couldn't read them. There were also designs around what looked like the outline of a door. He looked up the side of the cliff and at the top it looked more structured, like a castle's top. He looked back at the cliff's door and ran his hand over the inscriptions. He looked at the writing and tried to figure out the writing. 'I can't read it,' he thought as he tried to sound out the letters. 'They make no sense. I've seen this before.' He sat on a rock near it and studied the saying on the door. 'I've seen it before. It's Latin. It's all over Hogwarts. I knew I should have learned Latin when Hermione told me to for O.W.L.S. Draco can read Latin probably.' He turned back and went into the forest. He followed the little path the buck and he had made and eventually found Draco, still sleeping.
"Draco, I found something. Can you read Latin?" Harry asked, kicking Draco in the side.
"Ouch! What was that for?" Draco said, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. He stood up and brushed himself off and looked at Harry.
"I found some inscription in Latin. Can you read it?" Harry asked.
"Um... sure. Where is it anyway?" Draco said, yawning and looking at his watch. It was four o'clock. "And why do we need to translate it anyway. It almost time to get to the castle."
"I think this might help. Call it a gut feeling or something. Just come on." Harry said, dragging Draco through bushes and clearings. Harry finally found the cliff wall and pointed to the 'door' and the inscription. Draco walked up to it and read the words on the cliff's wall.
"It says Cave of Vamps, 1611. I wonder what it means by vamps?" Draco thought, looking at the inscription.
"Vamps as in vampires? It's a cave opening but I don't want to meet any vampires down there. I wonder how you open it." Harry said, looking confused at the door.
"Oh, well I doubt there are any vampires in the cave anyway. It's from 1611. It's old." Draco said, looking up the cliff. "Is that a castle's top up there? Maybe we're closer than we think."
"I told you it might help." Harry said, looking at Draco.
"You did. I bet I know how to open this thing too." Draco said, looking at the inscription. He read it out loud and stood there.
"It didn't work, Draco." Harry said, looking skeptical at the blonde. He was about to sit down when he heard a low rumbling. It grew louder and finally the door disappeared and Harry jumped up. "Good job, Draco," he said, patting him on the back.
"Yeah, let's go get out stuff. I'm pretty sure this leads to Gabriel's castle since it does say Cave of Vamps and Gabriel is a vampire." Draco said, heading back to the clearing to get their brooms. Harry followed them and kept on looking back, sure he had heard the buck following them. Finally they were back to the clearing and got their stuff together. They walked back to the cliff wall and got out their wands.
"Okay, let's go." Draco said, going inside first, wand ahead of him. Harry followed him in and ran into Draco, who was standing right inside the door, looking around.
"Ouch! Why'd did you stop?" Harry asked, looking around. The floor was dirt but the walls were covered with murals from what looked like centuries ago. "Never mind," he said, quietly.
"These are incredible but we need to keep moving. We have to save Ginny. Come on, Harry." Draco said, quickening his pace. Harry quickly followed and they climbed up path after path, jumping over huge cracks in the steep incline of the path. Finally after about two hours the floor changed from rough dirt to stones. The walls changed from rough cracks and edges to stones and bars.
"Are those cells?" Harry asked, looking inside one. There was a skeleton in the corner and quickly caught up with Draco.
"Yeah, I think they are. But they haven't been used in a while…. like a couple of centuries." Draco said, walking side by side with Harry. They walked further and heard moaning and someone screaming. "I think some of them are still in use though," he said, looking at Harry.
"Come on, it sounds like a girl." Harry said, walking quickly and quietly.
"You and your hero streak. I swear, Potter…." Draco trailed off as the screaming got louder and they came to the cell with a woman in it.
"Boys, they send boy to take me to him! What is he thinking? They can not handle me," the woman yelled, growing louder. Draco looked at her. She was obviously part vela with shining blonde hair. Her robes were a deep red.
"Us? Boys? We are not boys and we're not taking you anywhere." Harry said, stepping forward.
"Who are you then, if he didn't send you?" the woman asked, looking at him and Draco.
"We're here to get a friend of ours from Gabriel. Why are you in here? And what is your name?" Draco asked, looking suspiciously at the woman laying there against the bars.
"My name is Ginavera, Lady Ginavera. Who are you?" The lady asked, eyeing Draco.
"I am Draco and this is Harry," he said.
"Harry? The-Boy-Who-Lived?" she asks, gasping.
Draco rolled his eyes. Harry piped in, "Yes, that's me."
"Don't be so arrogant, young man. You might need to be frightened here, Potter. You can't go inside the castle with no knowledge of the lay-out." Ginavera said her voice cold.
"Why, he took Ginny. He wanted her, not me. I'm just here to save her." Harry said, looking confused. Draco elbowed him, "I mean we're here to save her."
"He doesn't want a girl. He has enough of them, trust me. You have someone he wants. Let me out and I will take you to him and you can get your girl." Ginavera said, pointing to the lock.
Draco pulled out his wand and pointed it towards the lock and paused. "Why should you know all this? What position do you have with Lord Gabriel?" Draco asked, looking at the woman.
"I'm his wife," she said simply.
"Oh, well I guess you would know." Draco said. "Why would he want Ginny? Is he still after the stone?"
"Yes, I suppose. I am as well. He put me down here because I got angry at him and almost hurt him." Ginavera explained. "But he wants the stone or else he will get impatient and kill your girlfriend."
"What is this stone you keep talking about?" Harry asked, looking confused.
Draco opened his mouth but before he could speak he heard a door creak and looked down the corridor and saw a girl coming this way. "Come on, Harry." Draco said quietly, dragging him behind a barrel full of some gunk.
"Lady Ginavera, your presence is asked by the Lord. Come this way. I'm surprised he still keeps you around. I would have killed you. You owe him." Madeliene said, unlocking the cell.
Ginavera stepped out of the cell and spat on Madeliene's robes before walking towards the door, Madeliene close behind. She caught up and got in front of Ginavera as if to lead her.
"Get behind me, servant. You have no authority over me," Ginavera said, pushing her softly behind her and walking out the door, up the stairwell with Madeliene following her.
"Do you think we can move now?" Harry whispered, about to fall over.
"Yeah, get off of me." Draco said, pushing the black haired boy off of him. Harry fell on the floor and rolled over, just laying there. "Get up, we have to follow them to get Ginny," he said, walking briskly towards the door and staircase. Harry jumped up and ran to catch up with Draco. They walked up the stairs quietly and listened for the two women ahead of them. They heard Ginavera and Madeliene arguing and followed the voices down one corridor after another one. Finally they caught up with them and Ginavera turned around and winked at Draco. Harry elbowed him and Draco glared at him so Harry followed Draco from behind. Finally the women went inside a door and Draco and Harry crept in a looked inside. It was a bedroom. Draco and Harry got out their wands and slowly sneaked inside, staying behind tapestries.
Ginny's eyes got wide and Gabriel heaved her up and basically drug her down corridor after corridor.
"Why is your wife in the dungeons?" Ginny asked, as they finally stopped at a door and he got out a key to unlock it.
"Because she left me for the stone and then after hearing that I have a plan to get it back, she comes and tries to steal it." Gabriel said, stepping inside the room and pulling Ginny in with him. "But my plan is in action. Your little heroes are coming and the stone will finally be mine and Ginavera will want me back now," he said, his voice growing colder with ever word.
"What is this stone that you keep talking about?" Ginny said, looking at Gabriel who was pacing the floor.
"You don't know?" Gabriel asked, looking at her with shock. "The stone is a power source greater than any this word has ever seen. And it's been passed out for generations as a simple ring given to the first born at birth. Last I heard it was in the Potter lineage. That, my dear, is why you are here, as bait. I have a daughter at your school, she knows Potter has some emotional connection and will come for you. Theres another with him, a blonde, but he'll be no matter. Ginavera will be here when they come bursting through the door and it'll be all over and I'll have the stone."
Ginny looked horrified by what he just said. 'A power source? Harry is coming to save me, but Gabriel's going to kill him. Why is Draco coming? He doesn't still like me, does he? He probably just came because he knew the way or something. Still, somehow they need to know not to come.' A knock at the door interrupted her thoughts.
"My lady, sit on the bed and do not move or I shall have to fetch Hades." Gabriel said, motioning her towards the huge silk blue bed. She quickly walked over and sat on the edge of the bed, watching as Gabriel opened the door. She saw Madeline first and then Ginavera entered. The lady had on elegant deep red robes and had bright blonde hair with crystal grey eyes staring at her. 'Why does everyone have to have grey eyes like Draco's? I'm being tortured.' she thought as the lady continued to look at her.
"My Lady Ginavera, this is Ginny. She will have brought Potter and with him, the stone." Gabriel explained, looking at Ginavera with a look of love in his eyes.
Ginny rose from the bed and curtsied, hoping that's why she was staring at her. Ginavera smiled and looked back from Gabriel to Ginny. Madeliene stepped out from behind her and smiled.
"Why is she here?" Madeliene asked, glaring at Ginny.
"She is needed for the two boys to come. Calm down, my dear," Gabriel said, smiling at Madeliene. Ginavera coughed and looked away and Gabriel quickly walked over to her and took her hand, leading her to a seat. Ginny wasn't paying attention, she was watching the door slowly open and two pairs of legs walk behind the tapestries. Ginny watched as Gabriel sat down in a main chair with each lady on either side, except for Ginny, who was told to sit on the bed. She could hardly contain her excitement as Draco and Harry sneaked around the corners ofthe room.
"Gabriel, my dear," Ginavera said, "could this young girl and I have a word, in private," she asked, looking at her husband.
"Why yes. Madeliene come. I need you to check on some things in the kitchen anyway." Gabriel said, escorting a fuming Madeliene out of the room.
"Ginny!" Harry said, waiting for a minute beforerunning out behind the tapestry and hugging Ginny. "Are you alright?"
"Harry, I'm sure she's quite fine, minus the fact she can't breathe." Draco said, smiling at Ginny. 'I've admitted it. I've fallen for her. I love her.' he thought as she stood back behind Ginavera.
"You must really like her," Ginavera said to him, "to rescue her from her. I know that you are educated in this and know what danger lies here."
"Yes, I think I love her," Draco said, looking coldly at Harry and Ginny.
"Go claim her then." Ginavera said, pushing him towards the two Gryffindors.
"Draco!" Ginny yelled. She ran up to him and jumped on him, causing them to fall over. "Draco, I'm glad you're here. Thank you for coming to get me," she said, kissing him on the check. "You too, Harry," she added, kissing Harry as well.
"I'm glad you're all right, Ginny. The dorms haven't been with same without you," Draco said, looking her in the eye and giving her a hug. Harry eyed Draco and Ginny and turned to look at Ginavera. She smiled and nodded and he looked back at the two of them standing there.
"Do you two boys know what to do when he gets back? He's gone to get Atriel and Hades, his dogs. They can be as deadly as they can be sweet." Ginavera said, looking from Draco to Harry.
"Draco, you can take the dogs and I'll work on Gabriel. After you're finished with them, you can help me." Harry suggested. Draco nodded and looked around the room. The huge bed was in the middle of the room with three chairs on one side near the fireplace. On the other side was a mirror as long as a wall with a door in the middle.
"Ginny and I can take care of Madeliene. I know she'll put up a fight for Gabriel so she'll need to be take care of." Ginavera said, smiling and now sitting on the bed with Ginny.
"Okay, that's the plan, I guess. Draco, Ginny, you okay with it?" Harry asked, looking at the blonde.
"I love Atriel. She's so sweet. Hades is mean and I don't like him but Atriel is so cute. Do you have to kill her?" Ginny asked, looking at Draco with her bold green eyes.
"Well if you can get to side with you over Gabriel, I won't hurt a hair on her head." Draco said, smiling at her and looking back at Harry. "That sounds like the best plan we've got. Ginny, which dog is which?"
"Atreil is white and Hades is black. Not confusing." Ginny said, smiling. 'I've fallen for him. It's over.' she thought as she watched Draco hiding in waiting with Harry. She blew them both kisses and started making up fake conversations with Ginavera, waiting for Gabriel to come.
Had loads of fun with it! Thanks for reviewing chapter 18. I didn't get as many reviews about Ron/ Hermione but I still want your input! Tell me what you think about Draco/ Ginny. I know, poor Cory, but we'll see Cory, Hermione, and Ron next chapter and then the showdown in the bedroom. Someone doesn't walk away.
REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW