Title: Blurred lines
A/U: Starting in Chamber of Secrets Making its way through Ginny's years at Hogwarts; Ginny and Draco's POV.
Rating: M for Violence, Grief and Sexually suggestive content.
Draco was on his way to his last lesson of the day when he heard it, a ruckus in the next corridor along. Rounding the corner took him upon a scene ripped straight from a fever dream. A collection of students from all years, roughly 20, all stood staring murmuring loudly in panic. Professor McGonagall was one of them, announcing her presence and asking the students to step aside so she could read the words that were drawn on the wall. Draco edged closer the tension palpable, heavier then could even be cut by a knife, mutilate-able was the only word that could come to his Draco's head he wasn't even sure it was a real word. "HER BODY WILL LIE IN THE CHAMBER FOREVER." He read it; something clicked in his head. McGonagall was calling him over.
"Mr Malfoy come over here please."
"Who is it Professor, whose body will lie in the chamber forever," Draco said, a hollow of what he once was before he approached. It wasn't a question… He already knew, McGonagall just drove the nail in deeper by confirming his suspicions
"We believe, its Ginny Weasley. Mr. Malfoy." and then they approached. The golden trio; The Weasel; the know it all Mud-blood Granger and Saint bloody Potter. Always them, and it just had to concern her. It had to be Ginny, who was supposedly never to return from 'The chamber'
The trio looked at the wall, gasped and looked at him all in unison as if they were marionette dolls all under 1 sick puppeteers' control, he could see them all putting two and two together and getting 20. All except Granger, too logical to jump to conclusions; too overpowered by the other two, especially by The Weasel, to vocalize any of her more intelligence-driven basis for what happened.
"What the hell did you do to her Malfoy," Ron spat, his trademark tomato red colour searing up his cheeks up to his ears, "We all know it was you."
"Yea Malfoy-" Parroted Harry, Granger stayed silent though, knowing it wasn't Draco, or at the very least didn't think it wasn't Draco but unable to speak up.
"It wasn't me you fools, of course, it wasn't me. If you weren't so busy being bitter and angry at her for not being in Gryffindor then you would have been quite captivated in seeing that she's been having quite a few walks around the school. Completely out of it." by time Malfoy finished he was panting. Pale white alabaster skin flushing with rare colour. "Granger you seem to have something to say, spit it out." Granger also went pink but finally spoke.
"Ginny has been acting a little strangely from what I saw, I thought she was just upset from having been sorted into Slytherin. But I guess Draco knows more." If the pungent metallic tang of blood from the wall scripture hadn't filled his nostrils and invaded his brain along with the shock of worry settling in the pit of his stomach wasn't there Draco would have expected this to all be a nightmare, especially talking and agreeing with a Mud-blood of Granger's calibre.
"She wrote that message on the wall, shes in The Chamber and she thought she was being possessed by some book…"
"This book?" Harry held out a dogeared black leather diary in front of him.
"Yes, that book, how the hell do you have it, Potter?"
"I swiped it from her bag when," but he froze opting to say nothing more than "its none of your business how I got it."
"Well standing here isn't going to help," another distraction in the form on Ingrid Carrow, the other Carrow twin. "What do you want Carrow." This one didn't say much but did hand Draco a note, scrawled along the parchment was:
' Diary gone, I can feel myself slipping. Get Draco. First-floor girls bathroom, in the pipes, it's hidden in '
The last few words were illegible, big black blotches of ink-covered them, but it was something. Draco took the paper, thanked Ingrid, and showed it reluctantly to the three of them. They instantly made a decision, call a temporary cease-fire and focus all their energy into finding Ginny.
"We should probably get a teacher, Professor Lockhart's the Defense against the dark arts teacher." Recommended Ron rather stupidly.
"Have you had your eyes glued shut completely Weasley, Lockhart is useless. I say we just go to where Ginny said she was going right now, not waste time with some useless fraud." Draco didn't give them any time to waste deliberating he headed straight for the first-floor girls bathroom, using resentment to hide worry. For the house, of course, nothing but selfish reasons… that's what he kept repeating to himself. This worry was purely for selfish reasons. Draco couldn't care less if the moody little blood traitor died… that's what he kept repeating to himself…
Insanity was breathtakingly close. She could feel him, standing over her. The person whom she trusted with every feeling she'd had whilst he was in her life. Helplessness, nothing but cold, helplessness. Insanity was a dream, what was awaiting her was much worse than that the voices she could hear approaching saw to that. Draco and Harry. Funny really, the two people who can't stand each other forgot everything and ran to her aid. She needn't have wallowed in a silly little book when her releases were right in front of her the whole time… Alas its too late now. The walls were closing in, the wet cold stone beneath her was slowly losing its edge as her nerves lost their focus. Insanity was breathtakingly close but it never came.
"Ah, Harry Potter and who's this? No matter, I shall kill the spare. Not long now…" Not long now indeed Tom, she thought. Time has meant so little as of recent, like a true figment of her imagination. One moment she was completely still and thoughtless, she opens her eyes. A choking cough. A laboured breath. Blackness once more. Another moment passes, she opened her eyes. A rasping breath; a pair of startled storm grey eyes were watching over her. There was another sensation leaking into her left arm… more water? No. It was the black ink from the book, signifying her feelings and her hardships and pain, all being pulled from the book. She was being lifted up slightly.
"Ginny, are you alright." A laboured breath. Blackness again. Insanity was close no more…
"You are an enigma, Ginny Weasley." It was nearly midnight, both had seen too much during the course of the previous 24 hours to sleep. For the first time in what felt like forever, actual laughter escaped her. It wasn't forced, faked, fabricated it was true unadulterated laughter.
"Why I haven't done anything that bad yet have I?." Ginny replied stifling her giggles as Draco wore a face of mock incredulity.
"That bad? Pansy Parkinson has been chewing my ear of ever since your little performance in the Great Hall." Ginny's laughter was too much to contain. Its been a long time since either of them had laughed like this. Ginny was laying on the black couch with the lower half of her legs resting on Draco's lap the arm of the chair nestled into the back of her neck. It was a little bit uncomfortable; Ginny didn't complain though. Today marked the first day that she could recall everything that happened since a specific point of time. She left the chamber, went to Dumbledore's office where her parents were supposed to be waiting… They never arrived. It was just her, Draco, his father and Harry. Dumbledore apologized, as did Harry, Draco stayed silent in front of his father. As did Ginny.
After that they went into the Great Hall, Ginny sat in her, now, usual seat with Blaise. Theo, an incredibly reluctant Pansy and Draco. Dinner was a comedic affair and Ginny didn't even have to force it, Theo was, well Theo- brash with 0 shame and a comparatively small mental filter. Blaise was incredibly kind despite the rough exterior as was Draco but it was a kindness that came with a cost. Two costs as a matter of fact. Draco's Father had a particular view on blood traitors that wouldn't be swayed by anything and the second cost hit closer to home. Ginny had written to her Mother and Father after everything had happened; their reply?
Ginny,
We will speak about this when you are home over the summer. Your Mother and I have done some talking and we will discuss this when you return.
Dad.
It felt like a punch in the guts, as did the sour looks he got off Ron whenever she would garner the strength to look up at the Gryffindor table at the other end of the hall. Daggers. That's all she got back. Harry and Hermionie didn't even look at her…
Back to the common room, the clock said 1 am and she felt it. Heavy lidded eyes saw Draco trying to finish reading the potions chapter he was reading.
"Hair raising potions sound riveting," Ginny said softly, sleep was tantalizingly close now.
Draco chuckled, "It's less about the potion more about the ingredients, this uses some harder ingredients that feature in more complex potions but don't have such disastrous effects should you get it wrong." Hearing him explain something benign without a sneer was pleasant, he was clearly intelligent but hid behind a mask of ignorant prejudiced. "Lacewing flies, for example, you add that to say Amortentia at the wrong stage; it blows up in your face and you end up looking like that mug Seamus." A humoured breath blew out of her nose as Draco finished reading the conclusion and set the book down on the lacquered mahogany coffee table and looked Ginny in the eyes.
"You're a fool you know that Weasley," Draco said right as Ginny was about to lose the battle with her eyes, "How you didn't realize my Father put that book in your cauldron in Diagon Alley I'll never know…" Ginny found that out the hard way. However, looking back at the course of the year so far, it was impossible for her to find time to think.
Now, there was all the time in the world- and she intended to use every bit of it…
A/N: This one is a little shorter I really just want to get out of the Chamber content and into the rest of the year and the next year, I think that would be a great turning point for Ginny especially. Lots more Golden trio encounters soon, I might need a lil break I wrote this and the last chapter pretty much at once. I hope you enjoy. This fic is more about relationships then it is action which is where there was no epic fight scene, and this is my first fic ever so cut me some slack ;)
-Asmo.