Charmed

Chapter 11

By Terra Rose

Ginny asked Harry to meet with her the next day during their free period. While she stood waiting for him she noticed there was a soft hum on the breeze, the kind that causes you to imagine a poor spirit lost on the lull of the wind. The wind was having a good time blowing about the treetops and whisking the newly colored leaves about on a whirlwind ride. It made Ginny remember happier times at the Burrow when she would sit outside her lovely home and daydream as the wind danced about, playing with her red locks and beckoning her to dance about with the leaves. She envied the wind and how it was always carefree and never tied down. As she waited in the open corridor outside the great hall, watching nothing in particular, she let her thoughts shift about like the parts in a clock.

Be strong. Protect Draco at all cost. Do whatever it takes.

She knew that she would have to sleep eventually, for it was becoming evident that she was quite sleep deprived; there were dark circles under her eyes, her skin had taken on a pale wax like hue, and she was ill more than usual. It had been several days since she had gotten a goodnights rest for every time she began dreaming, she would erupt from her sleep absolutely terrified that she would be visited by you-know-who. She was certain that she could not go on much longer.

"Ginny?" Came a faint masculine voice, awaking Ginny from her revere. Before her stood Harry, except he looked entirely different from that last time she had seen him a few days ago. He had on a dark blue designer cloak along with a creamy button down shirt. His usually messy hair was neatly combed and parted to the side. And it seemed that he had bathed in expensive cologne for the entire hall reeked of it. She wanted to giggle very badly at his strange appearance but she held it in out of courtesy.

"H-Harry…you look…different." She managed to say before a tiny giggle escaped. He didn't seem to notice her efforts to stifle a batch of giggles, instead he blushed at her comment.

"You like it? I bought a few new things last weekend on the Hogsmeade trip. Anyways, you wanted to talk to me?" He asked, leaning against the railing of the corridor in an attempt to look casual. It was obvious to Ginny that he felt ridiculous wearing that getup.

"Oh, yes. I wanted to ask you about something." She explained, digging through her rucksack for that bag of licorice wands she usually snacked on during potions, "Why don't we go outside for a bit of a walk, eh?"

They walked out into the autumn sunlight, birds twittering about them along with a few students walking the grounds.

"So, what is it that you wanted to ask me?" Harry asked as they neared the lake, breaking the awkward silence.

"Well, I wanted to ask you about this." She said, taking out a crumpled issue of Witches Weekly from within her bag and handing it to him. He looked at the magazine for a moment and instantly blushed.

"I was hoping that you hadn't read this."

"Oh, I read it. Hermione showed it to me about a month ago. I wanted to ask you if what you said about me is true." Ginny seated herself by a large oak tree and looked at him in question. Harry's blush continued to grow brighter as red as her hair. He coughed uncomfortably and sat down a few feet away from her.

"Ginny…I do like you. I think that it is quite obvious. But that article was completely made up. All that I told them was that I happened to be thinking of becoming an auror and that my friends at Hogwarts were Ron and Hermione. They asked who I thought had the most talent on the Quidditch team and I told them that it was you. I am really sorry if that article upset you."

"It didn't upset me, Harry. I just wondered why you never…you know, pursued me." She inquired in a nervous whisper, fidgeting with her cloak pocket.

"It is complicated. I wanted to tell you that I fancied you, but I had so many doubts about it. And then when you were ill during that Hogsmeade trip and I acted like an idiot. I didn't think that you would ever talk to me again." He explained, his voice becoming somewhat husky. Ginny wrinkled her nose, thinking about a great many things.

"Harry, I want to date you."

He had always wondered why History of Magic had to be so boring. It didn't matter what the lecture was about; the moment Professor Binns opened his translucent mouth, Draco ceased to pay attention. While he sat at the back of the classroom , he pulled his sleeve up and glanced down at the bare skin on his forearm. If he did not do something soon, that patch of flesh would bare the mark of the most evil wizard ever known. The idea of anyone being branded like an animal made him feel nauseous, yet he felt a pang in his heart for his mother. She had not always been there for him, but she had always loved him in her own way.

The second that class was over, Draco darted for the door and swiftly pushed past a few first years busy in discussion. He noticed that Peeves was flying like an airplane singing at the top of his lungs in the corridor ahead. He smirked, always somewhat amused with Peeves and his discourtesy for everyone. He approached the group surrounding the spectacle, hoping to hear what the Poltergeist was singing.

"Potter and Weasley, sitting in a tree, K.I.S.S.I.N.G! First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Ginny with a baby carriage…that's not all, that's not all.. see there's Harry drinking alcohol!"

Draco stood for a moment, his mind racing with a million thoughts. He quickly backed up from the group in disgust, only to bump into a cluster of Hufflepuff girls who were crying. Once Peeves disappeared into the ceiling, people began gossiping: "I saw them together!", "They were holding hands in the corridor!", " I heard that they have been engaged since last year!", "That's not true, they just got together today!".

Draco pawed his way through the crowd of girls, feeling hot tears forming in his eyes. He could not believe what they were saying. It just wasn't true. It had to just be a bit of gossip. If he were to ask Ginny about it, she would laugh at the ridiculousness and kiss him as a reminder of their love. He found himself racing towards the library with a prayer that she would be in her normal spot. She was notorious for skipping dinner, too engrossed in a book to notice the time. When he reached the library, he nearly ripped the door the off the hinges, frightening a few Gryffindor girls on their way out. Madame Pince came out of the back room with a scowl painted on her face but Draco ignored all of them. He made his way towards Ginny's spot at top speed, wondering what he was going to say if he found her. From yards away, he recognized her red curls; she was curled up in a chair close to the Restricted section with her face buried in her hands. When she heard his approaching footsteps, she looked up, revealing that she had been crying. Draco warily approached, her name a whisper on his lips.

"Draco…" She started before a sob overtook her and she covered her face once again. She felt somewhat foolish for coming to a place that he would know to find her. Kneeling beside her, he took out a handkerchief and began to wipe her tears.

"Why are you crying, love?" He asked softly, pushing a few curls out of her eyes.

"I should have listened to you…we shouldn't be together." She said in a whisper, trying not to look into his deep eyes. She feared that he would look into her eyes and see all the truths that she harbored within.

"You can't mean that. I will protect you, Ginny. It doesn't matter what happens, you will be safe." He said, tenderly cupping her face.

"It isn't that…Things between us just aren't working. I should have agreed with you when you had wanted to separate."

"What are you talking about?" He asked sharply, his expression suddenly unreadable.

"Draco…I want to break up. Your mother was right about us. We don't belong together." She pulled away from him, her face becoming cold. He had never seen her eyes harden the way they did at that moment, almost as though all emotion was absent from them. He shook his head in disbelief.

"You can't be serious…Ginny, I am in love with you. What my mother thinks is obsolete." He took her hand desperately, feeling tears forming in his usually cold and emotionless eyes.

"It is more than your mother's opinion. I-I…have feelings for someone else." She stated, yanking her hand away from him. He stood up and backed away from her in disgust.

"Potter." He growled, banging a fist on a nearby bookshelf aggressively, "So I heard correct…About you and Potter, that is."

"I'm sorry if I led you on. I hope you understand." She got up from her chair and held out her hand to reveal the pendant he had given her. It sparkled in the sunlight streaming in from the nearby window. Draco looked at it for a moment, finally realizing that he was losing Ginny.

"Keep it. I'm sure that you can sell for a pretty penny. I should have know not to get involved with a blood-traitor like you, anyways." He said this before departing as quickly as he had entered.

He cursed himself for allowing this; to actually let himself believe he was in love. How often had he thought that it was Ginny who had saved him from a dark fate. He had decided that he would never give in to You-know-who as long as he had Ginny's love. But it turned out that he had never possessed her love, but had pledged his heart to someone that could not reciprocate. He knew that it was immature that he blamed himself but it was impossible to stifle the anger boiling within him toward his stupid heart. He was angry at his heart for loving Ginny without waiver and disregarding his pleas to abandon this hopeless love. It would be far easier to forget about his unhappy love and live a life without any love at all. He was reminded of his childhood when he would cry at night, wondering why he was never good enough for his father. The feeling of rejection was something he could never get over. It stabbed at his heart like a thousand angry daggers and never ceased in tormenting him. He looked down at his forearm once more and decided that he would bare the dark mark if it would make him forget. Make him forget about anything that he used to be and anything that he had loved. He would torture and murder if it would make him numb. It didn't matter if it was the easy way out. It just didn't matter anymore.

The word that Harry Potter was finally taken reached everyone's ears, including the Senior Editor of Witches Weekly. She immediately posted the news in the gossip column and the rest of the wizarding community was soon informed that the famous boy- who -lived now had a girlfriend, including You-Know- Who. The odd thing about it was that when Narcissa told him, he erupted into laughter. When someone says the word laughter, you might imagine children giggling in glee or friends joking with each other. But the laughter that echoed throughout the Malfoy Manor was far from any sound you could imagine. It was the laugh of someone who would never understand anything beautiful, never cry for another's pain, never feel that warm ambiance when surrounded by friends and family, nor love another more than oneself. Never.

A/N: A special thanks to My Beta, Ari ( Even though she told me she hated me after reading this chapter.) I am sorry it took so long for me to update. The latest installment of Harry Potter left me a bit depressed and discombobulated in regards to my fan fiction. Obviously this fic is completely AU now but that is ok. Thank you to all my reviewers! I write more when I get reviews!

Lacy1: Thank you for being so supportive! Reviews inspire me to write more.

Laina3: You are so sweet! I really appreciate your review!

GoldenFawkes: Your constructive criticism was wonderful and absolutely refreshing. I really appreciate you taking the time to leave me such an in depth review.

FirePrincessofSlytherin16: Thank you so much for leaving me a review! They encourage me to keep writing.

swimfan: I am glad you liked the necklace. It was hard to find the name of it.