A/N: Finally a new chapter...I know some of you are mad at me, but PLEASE READ the A/N AT THE END OF THE STORY! For now though, I've got nothing to report, so enjoy chapter thirteen!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters, just the plot! There's one quote in there by William Feather and another from A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry.
Forgotten
Chapter Thirteen:
"Did you want to join us, Granger?" Draco asked with a smirk, not faltering in the slightest as Hermione threw him a cold glare that sent chills down Ginny's spine. Stomping over towards the bed, Hermione roughly placed the bowl of soup in her hand on the bedside table beside Draco.
"I…er…I tripped, yes that's it, I tripped…and Draco-I mean Malfoy conveniently caught me. Remind me to tell mum about that lose floorboard." Ginny said, trying desperately to think of more excuses. Hermione didn't seem to hear Ginny's pitiful cover-ups, however, as she gripped Ginny's wrist with a tight hold, pulling her out of the room, but not before once again sending Draco a deadly glare. Luckily for Hermione, Ginny's room was just across the hall, so the distance she had to travel pulling a loudly protesting Weasley girl wasn't that far.
That, however, was unfortunate for Ginny because, not only could she not call for help, she could also not even begin to have a grain of hope that the four steps they'd taken from Percy's bedroom to her own had helped Hermione to calm down a bit. Hermione finally released Ginny's wrist from her grip and closed the door, offhandedly whispering a silencing charm. She continued facing the door, taking deep breaths and tried to process everything that had just happened. Ginny saw and took in all these steps with wary eyes, slowly walking backwards until she felt her bed touching her thighs. Still not taking her eyes off the still frame of Hermione, she dropped and sat on her plush, yellow comforter and thought carefully about what to do next.
If she'd analyzed the scene correctly, that meant that Hermione would've needed a further two minutes of complete and utter silence before Ginny could even consider trying to explain. Nonetheless, this thought was immediately pushed aside as soon as Hermione turned around and Ginny saw her annoyed expression. Patience was never one of Ginny's virtues.
"I'll join S.P.E.W., give you my bed so you don't have to sleep on the cot, stop making fun of you for falling in love with Ron. I'll trade in all my chocolate frog cards, use the sickles to buy some Shampoo, give that Shampoo to Snape and tell him, 'It's because you're worth it.' I'll march for Elf rights, free owls from the Owlery – I'll even read Hogwarts a History with you, to you, for you…anything. But you have to promise not to say one word of what you saw to anyone." Ginny pleaded desperately in a rush, before finally inhaling, feeling confident that these offers would do the trick.
Hermione shook her head, her chestnut-brown eyes not focusing on Ginny but on the light green walls surrounding the two instead. Suddenly, she turned and rounded on Ginny.
"Why, why on earth would you do something so stupid?" She asked her expression both slightly angry and slightly confused. The redheaded girl remained quiet, knowing that what Hermione needed to do most was vent until the thoughts started making sense and finally she would come to some sort of a conclusion.
"Honestly, Ginny, were you even thinking at all? He's the enemy." Hermione continued in a tone that suggested she wasn't even near finished, but Ginny couldn't help but interject.
"Remember when we all considered Victor Krum the 'enemy' as well, and look how that turned out!" Ginny defended and Hermione couldn't help but see her point. "Plus," Ginny continued, seeing that she was making an impact on Hermione. "Draco needed someone. You saw all those scars, Mione." The older girl's steely expression faltered a bit and there was a moment of thoughtful silence before she finally answered.
"Ginny, the way his father treats him has nothing to do with the situation I'm talking about, and you know it." She said quietly. "You can't get involved with a boy you don't even know. It's just too risky, both for your life and for your heart. Draco Malfoy is notorious for the throng of girls he's dated and most likely will continue to date…and I know that you don't kiss unless you really feel something for the bloke. You told me that yourself when you wouldn't let Harry kiss you last summer. All I'm saying is, before you even think about falling in love with the git, give us some time to figure him out a bit. Why he's here, of all places, and what'll happen to him next."
Ginny sighed. "I'm not planning on falling in love with him, Mione. It just felt so wonderful, and he's a brilliant kisser." Here Hermione cringed and pretended to gag as Ginny rolled her eyes and continued.
"There's so much passion when we kiss, in the moments before our lips meet, in the connection our eyes make. Every time our eyes meet, the feeling inside of me is almost more than I can take." She trailed off, blissfully remembering their kiss in the snow. Hermione looked carefully at Ginny and raised her eyebrows.
"You've kissed him before?" She asked, not in a demanding or angry tone, but with a tone that barely let off just how curious she really was. Ginny didn't meet her eyes, but nodded. A couple more minutes of silence filled the room, but it wasn't awkward, for both the girls had much on their minds.
"Right, well, we'd better find your mum. There are some injuries he's got that I'm not sure about, and she will probably know what to do because she has more experience." Hermione said casually, and suddenly, there was a silent agreement between the two girls, and both knew that all that had been said in Ginny's room would stay in Ginny's room. All would be kept quiet for now.
xXxXx
Early the next morning found Molly already in the kitchen, making a cup of tea for herself. She'd always been an early riser and with seven kids to raise, she'd found that the earlier she woke up, the better chances she had at not becoming overwhelmed with all there was to do during the day. Leaning her back against the counter, she sipped her tea quite contently, reveling in those few moments of lulled sound, recalling both joyful and melancholy memories as she looked around the old kitchen.
Molly was one of those women of a certain grace and beauty who wore it so unobtrusively, that it took a while to notice, and being a woman who had adjusted to many things in life and had overcome many more, her face was full of strength, even at this early hour. Her curly hair, though it was turning slightly gray just beside her ears, was still a light red color that turned darker, almost brown at the tips. She was still plump, though not nearly as much as she used to be. Recent months of war had caused her body to thin with worry and grief, though her hazel eyes still maintained their youthful sparkle.
Placing her cup of tea on the counter beside her, she began setting the table and filling it with the breakfast foods she'd already made; eggs, bacon, sausages, toast, pancakes, porridge, and kippers. If she moved slightly to the right, she could just barely make out the furniture's frame in the dark shadows of the common room. She knew, even without looking, every nook and cranny that resided in that single room.
Its furnishings were typical and undistinguished, and their primary feature was that they had clearly had to accommodate the living of too many people for too many years – and they were tired. Still, you could see that at sometime, a time probably no longer remembered by the family (except for perhaps Molly), the furnishings of that room had actually been selected with care, love, and even hope – and had been brought to the Burrow and arranged with consideration and pride.
Hearing a stir from upstairs coming from Ron's room, she hurriedly finished her cup of tea and began walking up the stairs. With so many people staying at the Burrow, she figured Hermione and Ginny would appreciate getting a bit of breakfast before the boys ate it all, so she walked quietly down the hall that led to Ginny's room.
Looking behind her, she saw that Malfoy's door was slightly ajar. Taking a quick look inside the room that had once been Percy's, she saw that the teenage boy was sleeping peacefully, affected not only by the Sleeping Draught Molly had given him the night before, but also by pure exhaustion. Molly sighed as she thought sadly to herself that the boy had grown up much too quickly for his age.
Returning to Ginny's room, she lightly shook the two girls awake and quietly and suggested they hurry up if they wanted to eat a fresh breakfast. Hermione woke up obediently and slowly dragged herself out of her bed, almost blindly reaching for her robe. After several more shakes, Ginny finally sat straight up at last in a stupor of sleepiness.
"Best hurry up, dear. The boys have already started their breakfast." Molly prodded standing and wiping her hands on her flowered apron. Ginny nodded, though she hadn't comprehended a word her mother said. "I'll try and keep a plate for you, but do rush down there." She said kindly before lightly closing the door behind her.
Ginny shook her head and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes before standing. She swayed a little and almost lost her balance but finally made it to the door. Looking around in a daze, she saw that Percy's bedroom door was cracked open and remembered that Draco was sleeping in his room. Feeling an obligation to wake him up and lead him downstairs so he wouldn't get lost if he tried to do all that on his own, she quietly walked into the room and tip-toed her way over to the bed. Pulling out her wand, she smiled evilly and was just getting ready to mutter a spell to help him wake up when suddenly his eyes snapped open.
"What do you think you're doing?" He asked her calmly, his voice showing no indication that he'd just been dead asleep.
"Er, well, I was just…erm…" Ginny stuttered.
"I see the term 'beauty sleep' doesn't apply to you this early in the morning." He replied with a yawn as Ginny gave him a sour look, but nonetheless ran her fingers through her sleep-disheveled hair in a vain effort to make it look more presentable.
"I just wanted to help you down the stairs so you can have some breakfast. The quicker you go, the better our chances will be that we'll actually get some food. Will you hurry it up?" She snapped as he took his time sitting up, wincing every now and then.
"I don't need your help." He answered in the same tone and swatted at her offered hand. He stood too quickly, however, and immediately felt the blood rush to his head. Quickly, he sat back down on the blue bedspread and cradled his pounding head in his hands.
"Are you alright? Listen, how many fingers am I holding up?" Ginny asked him, lightly grabbing his chin and turning his head so he had a clear view of her hand.
"Er, eleventy-seven?" He replied uncertainly.
"Close enough." Ginny said shrugging and folding the four fingers she'd held up into her palm. "Right then, allow me." With this, she placed her hands under his left arm and slung it over her shoulder, careful to avoid applying pressure on any of his bandages. He rolled his eyes and muttered again that he didn't need her help but leaned his weight against her anyway as they both simultaneously stood. Draco turned his head and looked at her threateningly as they began their slow trek down the three flights of steps.
"If I pass out-" he started in a warning tone.
"Then I'll yell, 'TIMBER!'" Ginny bit out as she struggled under his weight. He scowled but said nothing else. The smell of food began drifting into each of their noses and Ginny inhaled deeply and started hobbling quicker down the steps to the kitchen. As soon as the two came into view, all chatter in the room stopped.
"All the food's almost gone!" Ginny groaned, looking around the table in distress as she hurriedly helped Draco to a seat at the head table. The thought that maybe it wouldn't be such a good idea to place him between Ron and Harry never even crossed her mind as she pulled up a chair next to a perky Fleur and tried to find a piece of toast that hadn't already been eaten or bitten.
"You should wake up earlier." Bill suggested kindly, idly taking a bite of his sausages.
"Really – would you suggest dawn?" She answered sharply, before placing her head in her hands, still fighting the urge to go back to bed, especially since now there was hardly any food left.
"How did you get here, someone leave your cage open?" Ron asked Draco with a scowl as he piled more pancakes onto his plate. Ginny's head snapped up as she realized her mistake and upon looking at where she'd helped Draco sit down, she was met with his murderous glare.
"Early morning cheerfulness can be extremely obnoxious." Draco replied, directing his comment towards Ron in particular and eyeing the eggs in front of him with disgust, though his façade was ruined when his stomach growled. Mrs. Weasley bustled into the kitchen just then, and seeing Draco sitting at the head of the table and between Ron and Harry, she smiled softly and came over to the table.
"You must be starving, you poor dear. Let me fix you something to eat, what would you like?" She asked in a friendly tone. Draco asked for pancakes and eggs, making sure to add a polite please and thank you, then, as soon as Mrs. Weasley had her back turned, sent Ron a triumphant smirk.
"Mum," Ron whined. "Why is he still here? I thought as soon as he woke up, we'd kick him out."
"Ronald Bilius (another smirk from Draco) Weasley, I will not allow you to speak like that in front of guests. We've already gone over why Draco is here, and also how you're to behave. Now I expect you to obey me, is that clear?" Mrs. Weasley demanded loudly, placing both her hands on her hips. Ginny snickered behind her hand, but wasn't quick enough to muffle it as Molly quickly came and smacked the back of her head.
"Oi, what did I do?" Ginny asked indignantly, rubbing her head.
"We're eating a lovely breakfast at the moment, and I won't stand here quietly and let you two run loose with your manners." Mrs. Weasley chastised, beginning to cook more quickly as was her custom whenever she became angry. Minutes later, she placed a plate of steaming hot rolls on the table in front of Ginny's longing eyes.
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to make a floo to someone at the Ministry." Mrs. Weasley said curtly and walked at a fast pace out of the room. Meanwhile, Bill had walked over to Draco.
"May I introduce myself?" He asked, politely offering his hand.
"Certainly, try those people over there." Draco replied pointing to Hermione and Fleur down the table and observing Bill's unfaltering hand with distaste. The eldest Weasley only chuckled however and clapped an uncomfortable looking Draco on the back.
"Bill, Bill Weasley." He said with a friendly smile before going back to his seat and nudging Fleur.
"Parlez-vous le français?" (Do you speak French?) Fleur asked him with earnest curiosity.
"Fluently," Draco quickly responded, immediately perking up as he finally noticed her.
"Comment vous sentez-vous?" (How do you feel?) Bill then asked with concern.
"I feel alright, just a bit sore. Sitting next to this one doesn't help much either." He said dryly, throwing his thumb over his shoulder indicating Ron, whose ears were becoming a light shade of red as he watched Draco and Fleur's conversation with envy. Fleur's laugh interrupted Ron's loathing thoughts of how to kill Draco Malfoy in the most painful way possible.
"Oui, il peut être un peu difficile quelquefois, et très fort." (Yes, he can be a bit difficult sometimes, and very loud.) She commented. Bill and Draco and even Hermione joined in her laughter as Ron's mouth dropped open in shock.
"What did she say?" He shouted harshly as Draco, Fleur, Bill and Hermione all shared similar knowing glances before proceeding to break up into laughter again. Harry shared a warning glance with Ginny and both discreetly shifted their chairs away from the table, that way, should a fight break out, they would get caught in the middle of it.
"Sorry, we were talking about you, not to you." Draco said, giving Ron a disinterested glance. Bill laughed heartily and stood, pulling out Fleur's chair and helping her to stand also.
"It's been a lovely breakfast, but Fleur and I have got to go to the bank for the day. Nice meeting you Malfoy." Bill said, and as he walked by where Draco was sitting, he slipped something into the blonde's hand under the table, unnoticed by all. Draco stared at him in bewilderment as he saw what the eldest Weasley had given him.
"Bye Gin-Gin, keep the others in line, will you?" Bill teased affectionately, ruffling Ginny's hair as she grimaced in embarrassment. Immediately after Bill and Fleur exited the kitchen, going into the common room to say goodbye to Molly, Ron jumped out of his chair and looked directly at Hermione.
"Why did everybody laugh? My own brother, my own friend, my own…well whatever it is that Fleur is to me. I feel betrayed." He said with an over-exaggerated hurt expression.
"You don't even know what she said." Hermione said rolling her eyes in aggravation.
"Well, what did she say, then?" He demanded in a thundering tone, triggering another snicker from Draco and an attempted smother of laughter from Hermione.
"Right and since when could you speak French?" Harry added, looking with both awe and confusion at the now blushing Hermione. While this little confrontation was going on between the trio, Draco turned to Ginny.
"Gin-Gin?" He questioned with his ever-present smirk.
"Oh, shove off, Malfoy." Ginny muttered tiredly, knowing that this one would take a while to live down.
"I AM NOT DIFFICULT OR LOUD! WHERE DID SHE GET THAT IDEA?" Ron roared angrily.
xXxXx
An hour later found the four Gryffindors and single Slytherin in the garden. Mrs. Weasley was inside frantically cleaning up the house for the Headmaster's unexpected arrival, whereas the others had been ordered outside, so as not to make a mess. Ginny, Ron and Harry were playing a small gave of Quidditch, while Draco watched with a scowl, waiting impatiently for Dumbledore to come in through floo. Earlier, Hermione had taken it upon herself to give Draco the grand tour of the Burrow, but as they had been interrupted in the middle of it, all that she could now show him was a few things outside that were already in plain view. Nonetheless, she decided that now was as good of a time as ever for her to try and strengthen Harry's relationship with Draco.
"Harry, how about you show Malfoy around the backyard a bit?" She said as contingently as possible. Harry, still playing Quidditch using the few equipment pieces the Weasleys had, stopped mid-swing to give Hermione an incredulous look.
"Er…alright." Harry replied uncertainly, absently running a hand through his messy black hair. "Did you want to see the pond?" He asked, this time addressing Draco, who in reply, raised an eyebrow and looked about one and a half meters (five feet) behind the Gryffindor.
"Stuff it, Scarface." Malfoy answered dryly, leaning against one of the gnarled trees that lined the boundaries of the yard. Restraining the urge to wince outwardly, he bit the inside of his cheek as bits of bark pressed through his navy-blue jumper and pricked against the wounds on his back and mentally cursed himself for being so careless.
"I didn't want to talk to you anyway, Mal-Ferret." Harry bit out shooting a furious glare at Hermione, who carefully avoided his gaze.
"It's my lucky day." Draco retorted with an impassive expression.
"Stop antagonizing him, Malfoy." Hermione snapped in annoyance as she began picking up the abandoned Quidditch equipment and sending Ron an irritated look as he continued to ignore what she was trying to do and kept passing a quaffle with Ginny.
"Excuse me, we were talking here." Draco replied in a haughty tone. Ron stopped short and turned to glare at the Slytherin who only eyed him coolly.
"And does insulting him really count as conversation?" Ron spat.
"If it doesn't, then we've never spoken." Harry muttered quietly with a smirk to Ginny as she came over to stand next to him. Ron and Draco stared at each other mutinously before Hermione, who had finish cleaning and organizing the Quidditch supplies, walked in between them.
"Honestly, can't you two tolerate each other for just one minute?" She cried in exasperation, feeling frustrated at having to constantly keep the two apart.
"No!" Ginny answered for them, laughing disbelievingly.
"Was that supposed to be rhetorical?" Ron whispered to Harry, who only shrugged in response before promptly ducking as Hermione quickly walked over to slap Ron on the head. Draco rolled his eyes, becoming thoroughly fed up with the situation.
"Draco, dear, Professor Dumbledore is here now. Would you like to speak with him?" Molly called cheerfully out into the garden.
"I'll be doing a little more than speaking to him," Draco growled, placing a hand on his wand as he stormed inside while Ron, Harry, Hermione and Ginny all exchanged worried looks. Hurriedly, they followed him inside, intending on going with him in the common room before suddenly their path was blocked by Mrs. Weasley's body. Knowing her mum couldn't hold them all back, Ginny easily slipped past while her mum chastised Ron.
"…of all places, you thought the Weasley's was where I would be safest? When I activated that port-key, I was expecting something absurd, but this idea is completely batty!" Ginny heard Draco shout heatedly while pacing as she quietly crept further into the room, hiding behind the couch so as not to be caught.
"Mister Malfoy, I think it would be wise to realize the genuine value of my placing you here. Can you honestly say that this is the first place your father and his…associates would look for you?" Professor Dumbledore asked calmly. Draco's pacing showed only the slightest signs of hesitation, but he quickly continued, remaining unfazed.
"Well no, but-"
"Could you also truthfully tell me that the Burrow has become a danger to your life, or that the family here has treated you with any amount of cruelty?" The Headmaster proceeded, ignoring Draco's complaints.
"No, but if you would just listen-"
"Then frankly, Draco, I don't see a problem with your staying here for the rest of the holidays." Dumbledore said easily with the ever-present twinkle residing in his blue eyes.
"The-the…the rest of the holidays? That means I'll be stuck here for almost a fortnight!" He shouted indignantly, quickly losing his calm façade. "You, sir, are an idiot." He finally ground out, facing Dumbledore with fury burning in his silver eyes.
"Yes, I do believe that's correct." The old man said with a small smile, ignoring Draco's last insult, before walking quietly towards the kitchen. Ginny hurriedly scrambled between the couch and the wall, but she had a feeling that her Headmaster had seen her anyway, as he seemingly accidentally dropped a lemon drop candy directly in front of her.
"You can come out now, Red." Draco called tiredly in her direction, startling her. Was she really that bad at eavesdropping? As she climbed out from behind the couch, she was expecting to find a frustrated and worn out Draco standing in front of her, but instead, she was met with his usual composed stance, with no indication of the earlier argument whatsoever.
"I should really learn how to be more discreet." Ginny said with a grim expression, shaking her head at her own stupidity before slipping the lemon drop into her mouth.
"You tried your best and failed miserably. The lesson is never to try." Draco replied with a smirk before walking into the kitchen to join the others. Ginny paused a moment to send his back a rude gesture before following with a scowl.
xXxXx
Later that evening, after Dumbledore had left and they'd all had their fill of food, Draco had gone directly outside and had put Bill's present to good use. He'd been surprised when the eldest Weasley had handed him a box of cigarettes, mostly because he'd always assumed that every Weasley was a do-gooder half wit. And although Draco had never been a smoker previously, the logo, 'Got stress; then these are the smokes you should always possess,' had intrigued him.
The sun was beginning to set however, and although the scene before him of vivid, light colors was slowly darkening into a serene view that calmed him more than the cigarettes did, he would have to go inside before it became completely dark, as he'd promised Mrs. Weasley he would. Hearing someone coming outside, he didn't even have to look over his shoulder to realize that it was Ginny. In seconds she was standing next to him looking across the landscape as he was.
"You know, second-hand smoke will kill me just as quickly as those cancer sticks are going to kill you." She said lightly, turning to look at him.
"Well, in that case…"Draco returned and moved his head towards her just as he was exhaling, purposely blowing the smoke in her face. She closed her eyes as they began to water when the smoke made contact and coughed harshly, all the while slapping a laughing Slytherin anywhere she could reach.
"Ha. Ha. Very funny," Ginny grumbled, sticking her tongue out at Draco who merely smirked in response before turning his attention back to the landscape. "Mum sent me out here to tell you it's time to go inside." She said softly after a moment, still watching him. He nodded but said nothing, so Ginny took this as her cue to depart, and went inside, leaving him alone for a few minutes.
Inhaling deep one last time on the cigarette, he took his time exhaling, feeling the last bit of stress fade away. With a resigned sigh, he flicked the cigarette to the ground, watching it in short fascination as the red embers steadily burned out, before walking inside.
"You smell like smoke," was the first thing Harry said to him the minute he stepped in through the kitchen door, and suddenly, all the stress that had slowly drained away from him in the moments he was smoking abruptly filled his body again. Draco avoided eye contact with everyone in the room, not because he felt any guilt for smoking, but because he felt that if he stared at one of the four Gryffindors for too long, they would explode from the fire in his eyes.
"Right…let's go play a game of Wizard's Chess." Ginny suggested in a desperate attempt to ease the tension on the room. Ron's eyes immediately lit up as he hurried into the common room to set up the game, while Harry's remained carefully trained on Draco. Hermione walked over to him and grabbed his wrist, pulling him behind her into the common room and throwing Ginny a wink over her shoulder.
"Is this the Weasleys' idea of some pleasant, family fun?" The Slytherin asked, finally raising his silver eyes to meet Ginny's chocolate brown ones.
"I guess you could say that, but if anything, it'll keep Ron off your back. Harry though, I'm not so sure about him," Ginny trailed off, glancing into the common room briefly to see all three of them arguing over where to put the chairs.
"I'll just have to do my best to piss him off then, won't I?" Draco said with a smirk before walking into the common room and, once again, avoiding eye contact, though this time for a completely different reason.
Since there was an odd number of people and only one chess set, as Harry had left his at Hogwarts, two people played with the rule that whomever won would play the next game's winner and it would continue like that until the game was over. Ginny and Hermione both decided to eschew the game, but instead wanted to watch the boys try to not kill each other. Harry and Draco went first. This game moved a bit slower than a regular game, both being equal chess players, but Draco easily pulled out a victory, causing Harry to become more furious with the blonde than ever.
"Keep your knickers on, Potter. It's just a game," Draco called a few moments later with a smirk, though he kept his eyes on the chess pieces as Ron called out an order for his knight.
"I'm surprised the pieces even move for him," Harry whispered to Ginny and Hermione. "They have to trust their player, you know." Ron hurriedly hushed him into silence, getting into the atmosphere of the game and holding a concentrated expression on his face.
"Just give him a chance, Harry." Hermione whispered soothingly, watching the game with open curiosity.
"Do you not know what, 'SHH' means?" Ron snapped, hesitating in one of his moves, which allowed Draco to capture one of his guards.
"He wouldn't even look at me after he'd won the match, just kept staring at the chess board." Harry grumbled under his breath.
"You're not much to look at Potter." Draco replied without a sour expression on his face as Ron's Bishop lurked near his King. Ron snickered at the insult, not realizing that it was Malfoy who had said it.
"I also noticed you couldn't keep your eyes off of Ginny the whole dinner." Harry said, his voice gradually getting louder.
"Pardon?" Ron's head snapped up from the game and his eyes narrowed as he looked venomously between Malfoy and his sister.
"She's an eyeful, that one," Draco smirked. "And Granger's not all that bad either."
And suddenly, as if all lights had been turned out, Draco's vision went dark and his hearing became silent.
xXxXx
A/N: I realize that it's been two weeks since I promised I would have this out, but fortunately, I've got good news. I have a new beta! He's a friend from school and an excellent writer. He's also very serious about this 'job,' and has asked me to tell you that he promises to keep me on track with my writing. This way, the length between chapters will be much shorter, which is better for everyone, yes? He does, however, have some rules for me. One of them is that I'm not supposed to give anyone a guarantee of when my next chapter will be out because, as he says, you never know when life will suddenly become more complicated.
I think that this story will finally gain momentum, especially because these chapters coming up are crucial to the plot, so I hope this pleases everyone.
Thanks to my faithful reviewers, who've stuck by me even when my updates were slow! I'll continue thanking you all individually on here, unless any of you prefer that I respond through mail instead. Let me know!
Alexandria J. Malfoy: Thanks for the good luck wish, I could definitely use it!
Jade Summers: THANK YOU so much for pointing out the first person error in the last chapter, I hadn't even realized! It's all fixed now (hopefully). By the way…how did you know the mailman was involved? You're too good.
padfootedmoony: For now, Hermione is going to keep it a secret…did you catch that slight foreshadow ;)
moony's number 1: I'm sooo sorry for the slow update, I feel horribly guilty, but I hope you enjoyed this chapter just as much as the last!
.spitxfire.: I can be more evil…and I think this chapter's cliff hanger proved it. I honestly thought about starting this chapter with another scene, but found that it just didn't fit with the way I wanted it all to go. I'm hoping you wanted to read the rest of the chapter anyway?
Until next time (which will be much sooner than this time, though I can't say exactly when),
Sunflour
