Title: Draco Requital
Chapter: 2 – The Mercy That Matters
Author: GoddessOfMars2
Updated: July 27th 2005 00:40
Rated: R for violence and mature theme
Featuring: Draco Malfoy/Ginny Weasley/Harry Potter + Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Disclaimer: I own nothing but old socks and a worn-out Asimov collection
Summary: After killing Dumbledore, Draco and the Death Eaters flee Hogwarts
Chapter Two
The Mercy That Matters
'Your thoughts are far from correct Draco'
He looked up through his tear-soaked eyes, Snape. That was the last person he felt like seeing right now, the one who stole his glory, the one who was responsible for his soon-to-come death by the Dark Lord's wand.
Get out of my head he thought
'No' replied Snape
'Who are you to even be here? How can you set foot in this house? How dare you walk upon my father's floor when you'll be responsible for the death of his only heir!' Draco was fighting a voice that longed to crack with tears
Snape sighed and walked over to Draco's desk, the aged wood was draped with a velvety table-cover, the Malfoy family crest sewn into the fabric, a small pile of Draco's past schoolbooks were neatly arranged upon it. He picked up a copy of Hogwarts A History, opening it to what Draco assumed were the few folded down pages he'd used to track down the possible uses of The Room of Requirements… he remembered how frustrating it was looking for hints of the room's existence among the pages that so dearly held on to it's secret.
'You put a lot of energy into that plan, didn't you?' the Potions master retorted
Draco wiped his wet hands on the sides of his school robes and pushed himself off the floor
'I need to get ready for my execution, if you don't mind' Draco muttered in between gritting teeth.
'now, now, Draco, why such a muggy attitude?' were Draco's ears betraying him? Was his former teacher smiling at him!
Draco walked to his cupboard on the other side of the bedroom and yanked it open, it wasn't as full as he was used to seeing it, after all most of his clothes and belongings would still be sitting comfortably in his school dorms fuck!
Snape was proceeding towards him, Draco watching from the corner of his eye, he turned his attention back to searching for his funeral-clothes… white… he though I don't look good in white… I wonder if mother kept my christening clothes…
'Try this' Snape leaned over him and grabbed a pair of light-green robes and a black travel cloak
Draco didn't look his way 'I was told by Alectro to wear white, that that's what the Dark Lord wants' he hissed
'That's ridiculous! Your mother would have a heart attack just listening to you boy!' Snape slammed the doors of the cupboard shut and then Draco into the middle of the room, he threw the chosen clothes onto the boy's bed and paused, looking at a face he knew so well 'How can you have so little hope in the greatest Dark wizard to ever walk among us?'
'Because he's going to kill me, just a though.' Draco added, his voice had adopted a certain rasp to it
Snape shook his head 'with an attitude like that of course he will you idiot child!'
Draco thought this man was bonkers, this idiot thought that he had a chance of surviving when he'd failed to fulfill the wishes of the Dark Lord? He'd heard that in the past Voldemort had killed Death Eaters for less… this was hopeless… he might as well swallow some poison now…
'Listen Draco' Snape inhaled sharply 'what happened at the castle was a mess, that's for sure-'
Draco snorted
'But listen here' he continued 'if Dumbledore is dead, then the final mission was accomplished, was it not? And the Lord is a very reasonable man, he'll admire how much effort you put into getting the others in, you're constant dedication and-'
'He wants to kill me because of what father did, I don't think he'll care much for my efforts in fixing some stupid cupboard when now he has the perfect excuse to kill me' Draco felt a stab in his chest, he never wanted to die at 17.
The two of them stood there, looking at each other, nether knowing what else there was to say
'Get dressed boy' Snape ordered finally 'Your mother wants to see you before we go'
Great Draco though, maybe she's found a way out of this mess for me.
'Tough chance' were Snape's final words before he popped into thin air.
Pfft, Dissaparating in Malfoy Manor… father would soil himself if he knew…
Minerva McGonagall was in Dumbledore's office… she was pacing, an activity that had ensued ever since the Head's meeting and the ministry-representative's visit had ended hours previous
Was it true? Was it Draco Malfoy who had let in the Death Eaters? What were Harry and Dumbledore up to before he died? How was she going to tell the students tomorrow morning? How was the order going to continue now that their leader was gone? What stopped He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named from simply marching into Hogwarts at any time now?
A million questions, and each led to 100 more
'Minerva, you shouldn't pace so harshly on that floor, it shall do you no good'
The woman whirled around to the source. Dumbledore's portrait looking at her playfully
'Albus…' she whispered
'Minerva, you're Headmistress now… there are some decision you must make, regarding the school… and those within it, I doubt you could make them in this state'
McGonagall stared at him, this was the leader whom was gone mere hours ago, she'd forgotten that his memory would be preserved within a portrait
'Albus, I don't know what to do! There is so much to worry about, I just…' she exhaled 'Just cant keep a straight face for much longer'
There was silence in the room; the other headmaster's portraits were listening in on the conversation
'I would close the wretched place down' said a stubby man with beady eyes. McGonagall stared at him
'There will be time for thoughts on that' Dumbledore's portrait said to the other 'meanwhile', he turned back to McGonagall 'you must get some sleep, in a couple of hours, there will be hundreds of students out there looking for answers.'
There was a pause, and then
'You're right' she said, and she stole a look at Dumbledore's portrait one more time before heading for the exit
'Oh, and Minerva' he spoke once more
'Yes?' she turned back to the wall of alert Headmasters
'Have mercy on young Malfoy, I believe there's more to it than just good and evil'
And with that his eyes closed, and Dumbledore's portrait pretended to sleep.
The door clicked quietly behind him
'Mother?'
The weeping had stopped, and the woman with silk blond hair rose from a seat by the mirror of her dresser, her black Death Eater robes thrown on the bed, pressed and ready. She turned to her son
'Draco?'
'Yes' he asked, noting that her face was red with tears, he had long ago calmed down, he couldn't appear before the Dark Lord crying like a newborn baby
She rose from her seat and walked to him, he was 17, he was not a baby, he would not appear weak, he needed to be strong.
'Draco' She said his name in sort of a sob, and hugged him. She'd pulled away from him long minuets later, hissing, her right arm reached for her left
'He wants me there mom, we need to go'
Narcissa looked up at her son 'you've grown so tall…' she said, chocking on the words, still holding her arm
'Mom…' Draco whispered
A knock was heard at the door, and it opened
'Dawn has broken' it was Alectro, his mother hissed again as the woman's face in the door twitched in what he knew was pain from her mark 'Amycus, and Snape have already left, the Dark Lord will be expecting both of you there soon' she turned her attention to the frail figure of his mother, the woman's voice softened 'Cissa, please make the right choice' and with that, she Disapparated
Draco's feet came in contact with the soft ground, softened by the morning mist. It had been days since he'd last slept, but that doesn't matter when you're dead, does it? He though smuggishly, and began walking towards the noise arising from the cluster of Death Eaters, which appeared to be coming from a clearing not so far away
'So Dumbledore's dead you say?'
'I cannot believe it!'
'Will we take Hogwarts?'
'I'm sure Grayback will have a field day'
A group of them laughed
Draco on the other hand had leaned himself up against one of the old trees close to the clearing, watching the celebrations and laughter of the gathering crowd, all awaiting their leader Where's mother? He wondered, she said she would be right behind me
'That boy takes after his father'
'Accept he's got a better head on his shoulders'
'Yup… it'll be a shame to loose him'
Chuckles
'I wonder if it'll be Crucio or the clean cut Avada Kadavra'
Laughter, and then a silent pause
The air had all of a sudden grown cold, almost unbreathable, this was supposed to be a beautiful time of day, the sun just breaking beyond the horizon, birds tweeting in the forest, but all that didn't matter, the cold that had fallen upon them could mean one thing only. Draco looked up, and there he was, the Dark Lord.
All present scattered into a circle around him, pulling on their hoods but leaving off their masks, Voldemort stood in the middle of a well-organized circle, and Draco continued just watching, his vision somewhat obscured by the few taller Death Eaters standing in a circle ahead of his leaning place by the clearance.
'Welcome' the Dark Lord spoke, and then paused, Draco knew he was looking beyond the Death Eaters that blocked him out of vision, and straight at his being
'Well, well, little Malfoy, what makes you hide in the shadows like a packrat? Why don't you join us' That wasn't a question, at that moment Draco lost his poise and was hurled into the air, slammed into the center of the circle at the feet of the Dark Lord
He hoped it was just him imagination, but a cry escaped his mouth as the crack of what he felt were at least three ribs breaking beneath him, his breath uneven, he continued looking at the earth his face was so close to
The Dark Lord laughed, his followers laughed with him, then stopped
'You failed to fulfill your mission little Malfoy' the Dark Lord passed around him, towards the other side of the circle 'Bellatrix, beauty' Voldemort ran his long fingers along the woman's cheek 'you're his aunt, what do you think I should do with the boy' the smile that had appeared on the woman's face disappeared 'well…' the wizard pressed, and then, with the faintest hint of feeling 'you… you should kill him sir' and Draco, still sprawled on the ground, heard the wizard's cape whirl around as he proceeded back in Draco's direction, the boy felt himself being lifted into the air, his abdomen aching like he'd never felt before
'Did you hear that boy?' the Dark Lord spoke, 'your own Aunt feels it'll only be appropriate if I kill you'
Draco tried to stop himself, but he coughed, sending a spasm of pain into his chest
He felt himself being dropped through the air, and before he could inhale his front came colliding with earth once more
'Pathetic' Voldemort spat 'your father's boy'
And with this the Dark Lord's voice turned from him to his servants 'because I am quite bored with this situation, I am going to cut off a little bit of the execution protocol, and skip right to the end' Voldemort was now pacing, holding a very bored and sarcastic tone of speech 'will anyone present at this meeting, present a line of defense as to the boy living?' there was quiet for a brief moment, even the birds did not chirp.
And then,
'I will' a slow oily voice spoke
'Well, well, well, Severus' the powerful wizard wheeled on his follower 'and please,' he smiled 'tell us why this… this pure-blood dirt' the Dark Lord stepped on Draco's spread fingers as he walked towards Snape 'should be allowed to walk my world?' there was another pause
Snape bowed his head, Draco closed his eyes, focusing on not feeling the pain that now swelled in both his chest and left hand, praying that Snape had a plan, that his mother would show up, that the world would spare him, that the Dark Lord would kill him already, anything, to stop this pain.
'Sir, now that Dumbledore is gone by my wand, I shall not be able to return to Hogwarts'
'So?' the Dark Lord was getting impatient
'Well, oh magical one, you no longer have a spy within its walls'
'And again Severus, I ask you why the fuck that matters' Draco thought that if Snape opened him mouth one more time Voldemort would find it appropriate to brake the greasy man's bones as well
Snape bowed his head to his master 'Sir, seeing as the boy did not kill anyone, he is the perfect candidate to be sent back to Hogwats as a spy'
The Dark Lord paused; he seemed to be taking this suggestion into consideration, because he began pacing. No one said a word, Draco couldn't tell if it had been one minuet, or ten, since Snape had spoken
'LEAVE' Voldemort finally barked, no one moved 'get the fuck out of here, all of you!'
And just as he had ordered, Draco began to hear popping sounds all around him, as the men and woman of the Death Eater clan, began Dissaparating, and once the sounds had died down, Draco began feeling a tingle at the back of his neck. The Dark Lord was watching him
'Get up' the wizard ordered, and Draco tried to do as he instructed, allowing no whimpers to escape him as he painfully pushed himself into a seating position on the ground, and then attempted to stand in, though failed, sitting there, panting heavily
'Pathetic.' The Dark Lord hissed again
'So there you go prettyboy, your ass has been spared by Severus' utter lack of incompetence of keep his loyalty to me hidden '
Draco's heart began to pound I'm not going to die? A floating feeling began to swell in his belly
'Now see here boy' the Dark Lord spat, and Draco felt himself being lifted onto his feet, his broken ribs screaming with pain from the weight and effort of maintaining a standing position 'You,' he continued 'are to return to Hogwats, I don't care how you do it, but convince them that you had nothing to do with the events of tonight! Then, you are to make sure you keep an eye on whatever the fuck is going on over there, -including potter, get into the staff meetings, knock teachers unconscious and use Polijuice potion to impersonate them for all I care, just get into those bloody meetings. And every Friday you are to come here, and await me, so to deliver the reports.' Voldemort's face was inches away from Draco now, he could do nothing but control shivering, staring at those snake-like slits of a nose – unable to look into the man's eyes, the white face that made him look like a corpse 'I warn you boy, If you screw up this time, even in the slightest of letting a first year get a glimpse of what you're doing, you can count on your mother being Nagini's next feast!' spit-flakes came in contact with his face at those last words
'Dismissed' Voldemort Proclaimed finally, and Dissaparated, Draco collapsed on the forest ground, the world went black.
The end of July rolled around, and the summer could have not been more beautiful, it was as if the world was trying to tell Ginny that everything would be alright, that there was still hope in the world, that Voldemort could still be defeated, even if Dumbledore was gone…
There were four weeks left until she was due back in school for her sixth year, and to tell the truth, no one knew if there would be a school next year at all
Shrills were heard from overhead, her mother no doubt. Ginny dried her hands of the dish-soap and walked into the living room. There, in all her white glory, stood Phlegm, dressed in the most amazing white dress she could possibly imagine
'Wow' Ginny exhaled
'Du you like eet?' the woman asked 'I bought eet in zee most expenziv deezigner shop een France' Fleur gave a little twirl, the dragging fabric dancing around in her circles, glowing even in the already well-lit living room
'I think it's beautiful' whimpered Molly
'Vot do you tink Ginny?' the bride turned to her, the girl in rags standing there gaping, a dishtowel in hand
'I… I… I think its-'
'Ginny! Ginny! Come quick!' a panicked male voice came from upstairs 'shit! Shit! Ginny!'
Ron she thought
Up the stairs and into his room she went, there, the sight was one to bawl over! Her brother, was curled up, ontop of his cupboard, staring petrified down at the ground, shaking and shivering
'Ron?' Ginny asked
'Gi… Gin…' his teeth rattled violently against each other
'Ron?' she was smiling 'what the hell is wrong with you?'
'CANT YOU SEE THEM!' he was now pointing at the floor by her feet 'THEY'RE CRAWLING ALL OVER YOUR SANDALS!'
'Who's "them"'? she asked, he was starting to worry her
'THE FUCKING SPIDERS GINNY!' he yelped, and started shivering at the ones he thought to be the ones crawling up the cupboard drawers
Uncontrollable laughing had at that moment burst out from the corridor what the hell? Ginny thought
And as an answer to her unmuttered thought, George came into the room his eyes screwed tight and holding his stomach, still, laughing.
Ron's panic changed to hyperventilation
'George…' Ginny asked inquisitively 'What's going on here'
George laughed
'I gave him Boggart juice! Hahahha, he thought it was Firewhisky' he coughed on his laugh, then collapsed onto Ron's bed, letting the laughs bellow out it waves
'Fuck… Fuck you George!' Ron managed to whisper, still letting his gaze dart to the many corners of the rooms, undoubtedly following the imaginary spiders
'George! How the hell do I fix this now?' Ginny asked, and when George just continued laughing, she kicked his dangling leg as hard as she could
'OWWW! Crap Gin! What was that for?' George asked, a huge smile still plastered over his face, now rubbing his injured shin
Ginny held out her hand for what she hoped would be the antidote, and just as she did George fished around in his robes and pulled out a small clear bottle with what seemed to be cloudy stuff floating around inside it
She walked over to Ron, whom was flinching with every step of hers; she assumed she was stepping on his spiders
'Drink up' she said, holding the now open bottle out to Ron
If I knew that there would be this much planning involved in the wedding I would have taken Hermione up on the offer of crashing at her place for the summer Ginny though, she'd been slowly letting her temper slip
At the cake shop
At the caterer
At the French designer Phlegm brought in to do the rehearsal dinner decors
At the idiot florist whom seemed to not understand that the wedding theme was light blue
'Umph!' she made a frustrated noise
'Something wrong Gin?' was that…no…
Ginny turned around
'HARRY!' she dropped the potato she was pealing (more like massacring) and ran to the entrance, flinging herself at the boy, he caught her by surprise
She could feel his arms tight around her, and pressed herself into the hug she'd longed for since… she couldn't remember, a large smile practically tattooed on her face, her nose lost in his T-shirt, she closed her eyes and inhaled his scent, he always seemed to smell of freshly-cut lawn, hospitals, and that indescribable smell of boys
'Ginny…' he whispered into her hair
She drew back and looked at him, honey meeting green, and they paused there for a moment, just lost, holding on to each other. It was as if time had frozen in the kitchen of the Burrow.
'Hey Harr- umm…' Fred walked into the kitchen with Ron
Harry snapped into consciousness and broke away from Ginny, lightly glazing the front of her shirt
'Umm… we, could come back… later?' Fred said, Ron was just blushing a light shade of Pink, he wasn't used to seeing his sister look at people like that
'Nah,' Harry said, readjusting his glasses 'what's been up guys?'
'Well…' Ron started, and the two boys walked out of the room, Harry sending a final look at Ginny asking for forgiveness, leaving her in the company of the only one who could never take anything seriously; Fred.
'So Harry-boy still has a puppy?' the brother smiled, seating himself at the kitchen table, grabbing an apple from the basket Molly had placed there earlier, taking in a mouthful
'You.' Ginny grumbled 'are soooo tactless'
'Well?' Fred asked, his mouth still full, he reminded her of Ron
'I would like to think,' Ginny said angrily, returning to the massacring of her potatoes, just this time she had a different motive for slashing at their skins 'that I am more than a simple puppy'
'Like wha'? A hound dog?' Fred, still speaking through a mouthful retorted
Ginny sighed loudly what was up with her and Harry?
The boys walked out the front door, and out around the house, Hary thought they could get some peace and quiet there, and he could finally tell Ron he was going to visit his parents that Tuesday, he'd just forgotten that the wedding was to be held in that same back yard, mere day away.
Busstling around the place, Harry could see a woman standing with Fleur at the altar, looking out onto the rows of chairs (there seemed to be hundreds of them), casting a different arrangement of chair decors and looking over at Fleur for the OK, receiving a nod every time
'Oh,' Ron retorted 'They have the chairs out again' he said, he sounded as if he were just about to vomit his breakfast
Harry pulled Ron away from the chairs and into the shade of a tree a little off from the center-aisle
'Listen Ron, I was thinking of going to visit the parents on Tuesday-' he began
'But Harry! That's the wedding date!' Ron whined
'So?'
'well! You can't very well leave me here for the entire ceremony with nothing to do but Hermione'
Harry grinned at his friend 'Ron, did you really want it to come out that way?'
Ron scrunched his face up, rethinking the words that just exited his mouth, the he gaped at Harry 'shit, I mean, NO, I mean…' Ron hung his head
'It's ok mate, I get it…' Harry pet his friend teasingly on the shoulder
'So you'll stay for the whole thing?' Ron asked
'I'll stay until "I Do" after that I'm off'
'And when will you be back?' Ron asked
'You mean to get you?'
'Yeah… I thought you had a great lead on those Hufflepuff Goblets'
'I did… we could go check them out when I get back'
'Which is?' Ron was getting impatient
'Well, I dunno… I don't know how long I'll be'
'Have you ever been there before?' Ron asked, Harry loved his friend for his almost utter lack of tact
'No…' he said, after a short pause
There was a short but awekward silence that fell upon the two, Harry thought about this trip with no rest for the past few weeks, deciding to put it off for awhile, hiding out at Privit Drive, knowing he had protection there, incase the Death Eaters were out looking for him now that Dumbledore was gone… Dumbledore was gone…
'So…' Rob began 'are you staying for dinner? Ginny's cooking because mom is out with Bill getting his tux done, they had to Floo all the way to France on Fleur's orders, she wants all the outfits for the wedding made by the same pricey designer' Ron shrugged 'go figure eh? Women'
Ginny Harry thought, and then it hurt, he couldn't get that burning feeling out of the pit of his stomach, and if he wanted to hide her from Voldemort, he needed to be able to control it, he had to…
'I'll think about it, tell Gin to set an extra plate for me…' Harry said slowly
'Why? Where are you going this time?'
'The Dursley's' he answered, but he hoped that Ron couldn't tell that that was such an obviously blatant lie.
'Hide it! But that's ridiculous! Children need sunlight'
'And Quidditch'
'And proper schooling!'
'She has a point though'
They all looked at him
'I mean,' He continued 'How would they live to enjoy all those things in the future if we don't provide them with protection first?'
A silence fell, suggesting all were turning the idea over in their heads
'But…' a drowning voice came 'If, hypothetically we follow through with this, where would we do it?'
'Underground'
'But they'll know that area better than most of the children'
'And don't forget Severus Snape'
Another pondering silence
'What if we use a secret keeper?'
'That's ridiculous! Those never work'
'It worked on the Order's headquarters!'
Again, consideration ensued
'I can see a grim future to this idea…'
'Oh shut it Sibil!'
A huff, and then
'But who could we use?'
'We need someone invisible'
'Someone they would never think we would entrust with such responsibility'
'But yet still someone responsible'
'And of age!'
'And skilled'
'And-'
A knock on the door brought the many stuffed in the room and around the table to an abrupt pause
The door slid open
'Professor McGonagall, I have a message from Harr-' but Hermione stopped in her tracks staring around at the many staff in the Headmistress' office 'Oh… I'm sorry, I didn't realize that-' she started
'Perfect!' exclaimed Horace Slughorn
When Harry Potter popped into the Disapparating entrance of the Ministry of Magic, many heads of comers and goers turned, I wonder how many of them know I'm not 17 yet He smiled at himself at this knowledge of rebellion, and right infront of god-knows-how-many ministry officials.
He walked to the guest check in (come on, he wasn't that cocky) and signed in, the new guard on watch giving him a friendly nod and sending him on his way
Harry founds himself, mere minutes later infront of Percy Weasley's desk
'Hullo' he said with fake cheer, he knew exactly what ticked the weird Weasley off
'Oh. It's you Harry' the redhead said half-heartedly
'I'm here to see Scimgeour'
'He's busy' Percy lied
'Oh Percyboy, now do you think the Minister will be very happy when he finds out you'd turned away the Chosen One' Harry muttered the last three words with gleeful mocking
Percy gave Harry the weirdest hate-look he ever remembered getting, and then stood up from his desk infront of the Minister's office knocking on the door
'Enter' was heard in a dull yet rushed tone from beyond the door
'Why thank you Percy' Harry said and pushed passed the Weasley, walking straight into Rufus Scrimgeour office uninvited and unexpected, closing the door lightly behind him.
The Minister scribbled a few words, then 'Yes Percy?' and looked up, to see Harry standing before his desk, dumbfounded, he asked 'Harry Potter… to what do I owe this pleasure?' the minister got up and gestured to a chair by his paper-stacked desk, re-poising himself
'I want access to the Department of Mysteries' Harry cut straight to the chaise
'You don't waste any time do you Harry?' the minister had taken on an amused tone with the boy, as if he were speaking to a 5-year-old
Harry looked at the Auror 'I'm serious'
'So am I Harry, in telling you, that unfortunately, no such department exists' the minister poured himself a drink and sat down at his desk again
'Don't play that game with me! I was in there last year, I want access and escort to the room containing the veil' Harry's blood-pressure was rising, he hated being treated like a child
'Now now Harry, I couldn't possibly do that. It's not allowed…'
'Don't. Minister, I'm warning you! I want to visit the veil, now!' Harry was stern and demanding
'No one is allowed into that non-existent department Harry, for the soul factor that, well, it doesn't exist' the minister was inhaling his drink
Harry hated being played 'Then I'm going down there by my self, and when the one whom all are looking to to save all from Voldemort mysteriously disappears after a ministry visit, not even signing out, you can have fun explaining it to the public' and Harry turned to open the door
'Wait' he had him.
'Yes?' Harry didn't turn around
He heard scribbling, then the flutter of a memo, the door opened, and Harry looked up just in time to see a red memo zoom faster than the wind out of the office
'I've summoned Shacklebot, he'll take you to this imaginary place, but I warn you boy, if you spread word that I'm letting teenagers into a department they don't belong in, I'll-'
'You'll what?' Harry asked, wanting to know what the fuck the minister was playing at
No answer came
'Thought so' said Harry
As a knock on the door signaled the arrival of his escort, and he left the minister, alone in his office, overpowered and outwitted by a 16-year-old
A/N: (o: did anyone notice the title reference?
P.S. a HUGE shout-out to my Betas Sony and Lauren, whom did an amazing job covering my ass from embarrassing spelling mistakes to horrid sentence structure!
Lt. Jaina Solo Thanks for the heads up on the spoiler alert, as you may have noticed, I placed one in the description of the fic as soon as I read your comment. Too Removed am I and Dark Angels I appreciate the support! Really, I personally think my writing sucks.
Until next time,
-GoddessOfMars2