In The Absence of Light
by Inkblot-Crisis
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-Chapter Six-
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It was well past midnight when tiny foot steps made the loose floorboards of the Orphanage's hallway creak. In vain they tried to silence their steps by moving even slower...but that only caused the creaking to lengthen.
"Oi!" a little boy whispered to those behind him "Keep it down back there." He let out a restrained hiss as a hand...a small fist rather, made contact with the back of his head "You're the one making such a racket with your boots, honestly why won't you take them off?" a girl of the same age whispered angrily at the young boy at the front, the two younger boys behind them nodded in agreement to her words.
"Do you want to see a real Serpent up-close or not?" the boy asked in his strained whisper, all the while rubbing the back of his head..
The girl finally let out a sigh of defeat and nodded.
They knew that the Serpent would be sleeping alone since Ms. Ginny asked to stay at her usual room across the hallway...and from what Timothy overheard from the Pastor thanking Lav for something after dinner, the Serpent would still be sleeping soundly "Good, now..." he said as he they tip-toed towards the door of the room where the said sleeping Serpent was being kept. He grinned as he reached into his back pocket and took out a pair of lock-picks...carefully he placed the picks into the keyhole, he twisted and turned them for a bit "..careful..." he whispered. He gave it a bit of a jiggle "Almost...there!" he whispered as he finally heard the faint click of the door unlocking.
He looked back at the anxious faces of his little group "Ready?" he asked with his hand on the door handle. He received apprehensive nods...but nods nonetheless.
Timothy, the boy in the boots took one last look at his group. He knew Racheline wanted very badly to see a real Serpent...though she never did give him a reason as why she wanted such a thing to happen...and the Eidle twins...well, he knew they'd follow their 'big-sis' anywhere.
With a determined breath he turned the door handle and slowly pushed the door open.
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They entered the room to find it just as cold as the other rooms, if not, a bit colder even. He heard Racheline give a gasp as she saw the bed. His eyes were still adjusting to the even darker room (at least the hallway had a single candle lighting it) when his eyesight finally took in the lumps that formed from the covers of a blanket.
The Serpent seemed to have slept on his side, facing away from the room and into the wall directly beside the bed.
"There he is." Luise whispered to his twin.
"..." His twin nodded.
"You wanna give him a bit of a shake to find out if he's still alive?" Luise grinned at the slight shudder his twin made at the notion of waking a Serpent "Just kidding Brienne." he whispered apologetically with a smile.
Racheline silently shushed them with a look and took a step forward.
She was about to go much more nearer when a hand tugged slightly on her coat's sleeve "You'll wake him." Timothy warned. She shook her head and motioned that the Serpent was still very much sound asleep, Timothy seemed to think this over and let go of her sleeve. Now, she was standing so close that she could hear the Serpent's breathing. Her hands balled into fists and tears slowly formed in her unblinking eyes...oh how she hated Serpents.
Timothy's ears suddenly twitched, his eyes darting toward the door "Rache..." he tugged on her sleeve again, but this time the girl pulled away "...Rache, we have to go." he stated his voice slightly above a whisper this time.
"No!" She seethed.
"Rache, I hear the Pastor coming up." Timothy urged, he turned and saw that the twins had already left "Let's...go..." he grunted as he dragged the girl.
She truly hated Serpents. Just as the two of them left, Racheline took one last look at the slumbering Serpent. She gave it one last scowl before she ran back to their room.
They never knew that a pair of Steel-blue eyes was wide open the entire time.
.-.
Morning came eventually, as it did everyday since time began. It brought with it a sense of new hope to those who had lost it in the night, making those blinded by darkness...
...see into a new brilliance.
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Ginny walked up the stairs, careful to avoid the rush of children running down for some breakfast in the kitchen "Oi! No running down the stairs." she reprimanded in a motherly tone as she balanced a tray filled with small covered plates, a chorus of ''Yes Miss Ginny's'' were heard as the stomping of eight pairs of feet became more orderly. She gave them a smile and rubbed the head of the last one coming down the stairs in a trudge "Good morning, Tim." she greeted brightly as she ruffled the already ruffled bed-head of the orphanage's most troublesome ward.
"Gmmrrrning..." Timothy grumbled with eyes almost shut from lack of sleep.
"Didn't sleep well I take it?" she asked, she then gave him a slight shove towards the kitchen "Nothing a bit of bacon and bangers can't cure."
At the sound of the word 'Bacon', the young lad seemed to fully awaken "GoodmorningMissGinny.Breakfastnowhungry..." he sped past her and into the corridor leading to the kitchen.
She gave one last smile in the children's direction before continuing on with her task...
...that would be waking her patient for a bit of breakfast.
They had managed to keep him nourished with a hearty soup and some water whenever he was somewhat awake to swallow. Hopefully today was the day he would wake up. He had been at his most delirious the past night thus meaning the peak of the fever had also passed and he was finally cooling down and healing. All this had been noted by the Pastor, whose past years of Healing gave him much insight on her patient.
''My patient?'' she thought in her head with a slight frown ''Since when did he become my patient?" She shook that thought away as soon as she reached his room's door. She opened it with care and a dull expression on her face "Waiting for him to drift faintly into consciousness so that I could feed him, having to put up with his deliriums and nightmares for the past two nights, his strange words and even stranger tones of voice...all this was getting to be a bit..."
She let out a gasp as she saw someone standing in the morning's light that entered through the room's lone window.
"...bothersome." or so she thought.
The figure turned and was bathed in the rare winter sun's healing light. Though his hair was much shorter (all thanks to her actions, she recalled), it didn't stop the fact that he looked much more refined with it, even with a bit of disarray from laying on the bed too long. His eyes, now fully healed, seemed as just as cold as they ever were. His face was passive as was his stance...it was as if...as if he was expecting her. Her eyes trailed down to his left arm...where it had been bandaged from the wrist to his shoulders from the wounds he had sustained a few days ago...and finally his garb: "How could someone make tatters look so... words failed her at that point. That was when she also took in the most important piece of information of all:
Draco Malfoy was awake.
"How...?" she started, but her words were lost in her amazement.
The pause was lengthened by their awkward realization of the other's presence. A low gurgle broke the awkward silence. It was unmistakably coming from Malfoy's abdominal area, and at this, his calm face broke into a slight blush and turned his head away a bit in embarrassment.
The growl was the trigger that made her snap back into reality, she shook her head lightly and slightly smiled "You must be hungry." she stated in the calmest voice she could muster.
"I-..." he began "...thirsty." he managed to rasp out, slightly wincing at the dryness of his own parched throat.
Ginny walked over towards the table...not noticing how close she actually was from him and placed the tray on the bedside table "You must be...to have healed from such a fever so quickly." she took the glass of water and raised it to him...only then did she realize their proximity "Oh." she whispered as she took a step back and lowered her head.
A few seconds later she heard the sound of the now half-empty glass of water being placed back on top of the small table. Ginny was shocked when a cold finger gently raised her head, which made her look up and see a pair of steel-blue orbs that studied her face with rapt attention. She saw his brow furrow slightly, as if deep in thought.
"What is he..." her train of thought was halted as she fully took in the color of his eyes. Her heart immediately began racing at the display of blue and steel-gray, swirling and meshing into each other like an ocean storm...it was at that moment that she had been enchanted by his eyes...it was at that precise incident that made her forget, even for a split-second, that he was an Officer, a Malfoy...
"...doing?" she whispered as her eyes seemed to droop.
...the enemy.
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"Her face seems familiar...and this hair color..." he slightly shook his head as he studied her lucid expression "...couldn't be a Weasley." he reasoned with his own thought "Must be one of their relatives." his eyes seemed to droop slightly as well and lost himself in her eyes.
A sudden wave of dread and flashes of images burned into his eyes, the immense pain made him clench his jaw tightly in an effort to stop him from screaming. His eyes widened at the sudden shock.
-A sudden blast of green light-
-A book, tattered and worn-
-Shadows melding into a human form-
-Pieces of shattered glass-
-Fire, an endless sea of flames-
-A bleak and frozen wasteland.-
Something was stopping him from blinking away; something was drawing his attention into these dark, mocha orbs that stared just as intensely as he. He could sense his mind's walls, those he had put up through years of Occulomancy, being slowly chipped away...as if there was someone, or something rather, trying to pry into his mind.
He was snapped out of it just as suddenly as it occurred, and from the looks of it as was she.
"Ginny, Pastor Cross asked me to give-" a voice belonging to the blonde woman who had just entered. Almost immediately the woman before him gave a shrill shriek.
.-.
"I'm sorry; it was just that I wasn't expecting him to be awake so soon." Lavender apologized for what seemed to be the eighth time, not that Ginny was counting or anything "And both of you were standing so close...I thought..." her cheeks turned red.
"You thought whatexactly, Lav?" Ginny's eyebrow twitched slightly as she narrowed her eyes at her friend. She was sitting in the middle of Malfoy's bed with Lavender sitting at the edge.
Lavender stole a glance at the person sitting across the room, eating a bowl of delicious mushroom soup and a bit of bread with a somewhat content look on his face "I thought he was going to kill you." she whispered.
A clattering of a spoon made them turn their heads.
"..." Malfoy looked away "...it slipped." he stated before he continued with his meal in complete silence again.
"Lav!" Ginny whispered warningly "He saved me not a few days ago...why in Merlin's name would he want to kill me?"
Lavender picked at the ends of a lock of her hair "I-I'm sorry..." she apologized again and gave a sad chuckle "Here I am, claiming to be the one following Merlin's teachings." she shook her head "I'm a hypocrite." she finished.
"I'm finished." they heard Malfoy from across the room, he held the tray and walked towards them in a limp "Where do I put these away?" he asked apprehensively. Though they all knew he was more used to being catered for, it seemed that he did learn a bit of normalcy during his career as a grunt before he rose up the ranks...unfortunately, both women didn't know that particular fact and were dumbfounded at his rather 'normal' action.
"Don't you worry about this..." Lavender said as she stood up and took the tray and everything on it "...I'll just add this to the rest." she looked at Ginny "Which reminds me, it is your turn to do the dishes."
"What! B-but I'm not on the chore-schedule." Ginny whined.
"Oh you visit often enough; besides, the Pastor gave the children the day away from their studies...it's not everyday that the sun gets past the clouds these days." Lavender stated in her motherly fashion before disappearing into the corridor with a smile.
Ginny hung her head with a sigh and shook it "Great..."
She was startled when she heard his voice so suddenly "I can help." he stated before he made to limp back to the table and chair at the far corner of the room, he stopped mid-way only to clutch his left arm and winced at what probably was the lasting effects of the manticore poison in his system "With the dishes, if you want."
"Oh!" Ginny gasped as she immediately went to his side and helped him lean on her for support "Does it still hurt?" she asked purely out of concern...her eyes trained on the part of the arm he was clutching that she didn't see Malfoy's eyes widening in slight shock as he studied her face once again.
He pulled his arm from her touch and nodded slowly "It...It's just a bit of discomfort..." he said to her "...probably from the bandages."
Ginny heaved a sigh "You do know that I've been looking after you for the past few days now..." she stated as she looked him in the eyes "...and from the looks of things you'll only need a day or two of healing before you can go back to you precious Serpent Corp." she stopped as she saw his eyes narrow...and from where she stood his blue-gray eyes seemed to turn a shade lighter as well.
"They expect me dead..." he stated before he sat down on the rickety chair "...so no worries about my precious Serpent Corp." he stated those last words in a mock falsetto "For now at least." he had a ghost of his smirk on his lips as he eased and relaxed somewhat as his right arm began to massage his left shoulder.
Ginny went back to the bed and sat down with a resounding 'flump', she stuck out her bottom lip playfully at him before she caught herself. He was supposed to be angry by the mere fact that he had been cared for by a Slum-rat, yet here he was...looking straight at her with a peculiar look on his face- "What?" she asked "Do I have a threstal on my head?"
He softly shook his head "No, you just...you remind me of someone." and there it was again, that ghost of a smirk she saw earlier...it was, as with the previous one, short-lived. His face became passive again and began to look around "Where are we?" he looked at her with a raised eyebrow "Is this your home? It seems a bit different from what I had mapped out in my head."
"Why are you behaving like that?" Ginny asked in utmost curiosity. He hadn't spoken a word out of line yet, no tirades of how he was a mighty soldier and such. He looked as if he felt at home.
"A vague question, an elaboration would be nice..." he trailed as his eyes began to droop.
"Like as if you didn't care if you were cared for by a Slum-rat, as if you don't even notice that you're wearing rags..." she counted off, she gingerly bit her lip before she continued "...it is as if you didn't care you were cared for by a Weasley."
She heard him give off a weak chuckle "So...it's true then..." she saw him raise himself up to a better sitting position on the battered armchair "...you really are Ginerva Weasley...should have known." he gave off another weak chuckle.
"Are you going to go on about my family, Malfoy?" her courage was building up, as was her irritation as the little chit-chat went on "If you must, please remember that you are in a similar position yourself, Malfoy." she stated in an icy tone.
She saw his face turn cold at her remark. He was the same, he had no family. They were the last of each other's respective Lines. She didn't know how much it hurt him to hear that, however. He took a deep breath before letting out a heavy sigh, he kept his face cool and unemotional, which was driving her insane trying to figure out what he was really thinking. It was a good and dragging minute before she heard his voice again "Do you have my armor?" he asked, calm...cool...collected...overall his best neutral tone of voice.
"No, it's back at home." she answered "The straps were useless on your breastplate, not to mention it's unreliable in its present state of wear." she began "The gauntlets are still usable, but I will need to check on the right gauntlet's steel plating, not to mention the durability of the metal..." she paused as she saw his look "...what?" she asked again in a much more irritated manner.
"How do you know so much about armor?"
Ginny smirked proudly "I know a thing or two about metal, owning a silver-works and crystal shop can do that."
He took a few seconds "You own 'Shards'?" he asked in a rather surprised manner.
She was taken aback at his question "You've heard of my shop then?"
He gave a weak chuckle before he began "Heard of it? My secretary wouldn't stop talking about that shop, it's the same thing every time I get to my office 'Oh Sire, tell me what are your thoughts about this necklace'." he stated in a mock falsetto "Oh Sire, you must simply go to this shop." he continued "If she wasn't the daughter of a friend of the family I would have told her off." he sighed.
"You don't talk much with the other Serpents do you?" she noted that he had visibly relaxed after spilling out an opinionated statement.
Malfoy finally noted what he had just done "I tend not to converse plainly...or in such a friendly manner with other people." he confessed "Might never know when they might use your very words as blackmail."
Ginny took this to consideration "I see..." she perked up when she thought about something "How do you find it?" she asked in an eager fashion.
He cocked his head slightly to one side "'How do I find' what?" he asked dumbly.
"My pieces, the ones that your secretary shows you with such passion." she saw his face grimace a bit at the memories "Your opinion on my work." she explained.
He raised an eyebrow "You made them yourself? With your bare hands?" though his tone was deadpan, there was a hint of surprise hidden in his question.
"No, I had help from Saint Nicolas' Helper Elves from the Netherlands..." she answered sarcastically "...yes, I make them from scratch, with my bare hands, in candlelight if I must."
"Impressive..." he said as his eyes began to droop "...how did you find the time to learn all that during the war?" he asked in a tired but curious tone.
Ginny huffed at his meaning; that if she found the time to learn a craft, then she must not have done much for her cause. She turned away from him in her squatting position on the bed "I don't see why I should tell you, of all people." she said as she crossed her arms "But if you must know I was one of the healers and found myself with a lot of free-time after treating my patient's wounds, it was either reading or counting how many cracks were on the wall...not much to choose from when-" she abruptly stopped as she heard him sigh. She turned around and saw that he had fallen asleep with his head leaning to the side and his arms hugging his form.
She let out a heavy-hearted sigh and stood up and without looking picked up the thick (but very worn-out) blanket that Lavender had bought yesterday. She took a couple of strides toward where Malfoy was and gently placed the blanket over his sleeping form. She was careful to make sure that the blanket was secure and won't slide off, she tucked both sides into his form...but again, failed to notice her proximity a bit too late.
His breath was warm against her cheek...thankfully not as scalding as the last time she felt it against her hand. His face held such an innocent demeanor that it was utterly difficult not to ogle at him.
"Weasley..." he whispered, his eyes fully closed and his breathing was that of a peaceful slumber "...Red."
She told herself not to react at his calling out for her and made her way towards her room. She planned to stay there for a while until Lav would yell for her from the Kitchens, the dishes can wait, she reasoned. She pulled a drawer open and took out a faded rubber duck, a favorite little trifling from her father, whom of which still hadn't found the purpose of the said item from what she could remember. She gave it a squeeze and smiled as it gave a wheezing squeek.
He was dreaming about her.
She couldn't help but smile at this as well.
.-.
-Chapter Six End-
-Winter Sunshine-
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-/-.-/-.-/-
AN
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Go ahead, Adeva me all you want people. I deserve it...look, I won't even flinch.
The next Chapter is already written and will wait for the New Year to be released (got to keep you people wanting for more, yeah? Like a dealer...lol) All I can say is be prepared for action...yup, that kind of action...if you're thinking swordfights and a couple of other fight scenes that is. Fluff and whatnot will be added for "awww..."-inspiring purposes.
-Post Script Section-
Dranius -Yes, life is cruel...but only at times and never forever. I have a saying that goes "In the deepest darkness, the faintest light shines brightest." I've had that since as long as I could remember...it's my "Today is the beginning of the rest of your life." mantra...it's less...spider-manish...nvm.
Violet-Spark -(does happy dance as well) I finally updated. And I do hope you like this chapter as well, and forgive me for not leaving reviews in your story...I had trouble writing this as it is...lol.
pigwidgeon385 -Thank you, thank you, I try.
maliaphire -Thank you. And as for the Dark General's identity...I will have to keep it hidden for a few more chapters, but rest assured he will be revealed in no little as five chapters...not that much reassuring but hey...
Wizzabee -Thank you. I may have drawn inspiration from other fanfics that I have read (too numerous to mention) so I can't really say that this is a 'unique' concept. But I thank you for your praise nonetheless. Ego is the fan-author's air supply, the bigger it gets the better the chances of a story surviving...lol.
jackhea -I'm attached to the Canon Main Character as well. Thank you for your praise, and as for Harry's role (or should he have any)...not telling...yet. The books are getting up in sophistication as the readers mature along with Harry, it's a nice notion of actually seeing a character grow up as each year passes and I commend Ms. Rowling for it. As for the war in the series...it is unfortunately a sad reality all tales (even fairy-tales have duels against good and evil) must face...if one wants a touch of realism that is. Thank you for the long review.
lumos -Thank you, I have been working on my chapter length and have happily maintained my lengthy style. Unfortunately it drains me of my skills quicker and makes updating a bit harder to go each and every time...oh well...
CoolMilena -Thank you, and sorry if this wasn't soon enough...heck, even I'm mad at myself for the delay.
Annam -Really? I'm not much into mystery books though I do read one occasionally, I'm more of a sci-fi and mythos kinda guy. And I've read the story you recommended, it was interesting. Thank you for the review,
HarryPotter'sgirl17 -Hehe...you seem to know a lot about this fic...I shall unleash upon you the rabid Moo-bunnies until you reveal your source...or not...lol. Thank you for the review and I hope you didn't fall out of your seat...(shakes head) nvm.
Kapricia -Homework...ahh...so many memories...most of them bitter...meh, my classmates used to copy off of mine...nvm. Hehe...sorry about the short length (for one of my chapters) I was chipping through my Writer's Block (still am) but thankfully I managed a bit of crawl space between the rock and the block...did I just rhyme? And please...proceed to glare, I'd rather have someone angry at me than someone begging at my feet...I'm easily embarrassed by it in RL.
Moonyk -Unfortunately, darkness is the overall theme in the fic, what with the Dark Lord's side having won the war, but as the saying goes in my Profile "...faintest light..." and all that. The Weasley family's individual statuses are still unknown at this point of the fic...but a little tidbit: Even Draco didn't realize that Ginny was still alive until now...and he's in the same city as her. Hint, hint.
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Moo-bunnies are little creatures that I will be drawing as soon as possible. If you want to see them, you'll have to check my deviantarts page (under the name: Inkblot-Crisis) some time in the next few days for more details.
Last Note: Belated Happy/Merry Christmas everyone, whether you want it to be or not. See you at New Year's!
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Read, Review, ummm...hug?