Chapter Fourteen: The Larks, Still Bravely Singing, Fly

"So Friday, then?" Molly asked. Her voice echoed off the stone floors and wall.

Ginny nodded slowly. "It makes the most sense."

"Well, Friday!" Molly said, her voice artificially bright as she turned to the third person in the room. "That should be enough time, right, George?"

George appeared not to have heard her at all. Not even his eyes moved from the object in his hands. The silence stretched unrelentingly.

Molly looked like she might start crying again. "Are Dad and Charlie back?" she asked Ginny instead.

"Not yet."

"I should've talked to them last time they popped in, I just…didn't want to leave the room."

For the first time, Ginny realized how old her mother looked. "I know, Mum." She hated this silent room, so cavernous, with only the tiny window, three stiff chairs, Mum crying, George catatonic beside the awful linen-covered bed….

The door flew open and clattered against the wall. The sound was so jarring against the quiet that adrenaline pulsed through Ginny as she whirled around. "Draco!" she cried, in surprise and delight. He was wan-looking but awake, and moving towards her quickly. She opened her arms in welcome. "How do you-"

Draco wound himself around her and planted a searing kiss on her lips.

It was like being engulfed in fire. His lips were hot and dry, and she realized that he was dangerously feverish. His arms burned against her torso. He'd taken advantage of accosting her mid-sentence and his tongue was so hot against hers that it actually hurt. Dimly, she could hear her mother's outraged gasp. Ginny braced herself against his chest and pushed. "Gerroff me, Malfoy," she groaned. She must have hit a wound, because he pulled away with a grunt and retreated to a distance, his eyes focused on her all the while. The expression on his face was utterly inhuman, and he stalked her like a tiger stalks prey. Then his legs collapsed and he fell to the ground with a startled cry.

"That's what you get for saving my sister's life," George said as he pocketed his wand. "I vowed to kill you once." Calmly, he straightened his shoulders and regained hold of his twin's charred hand. It was the most he'd moved all day.

Ginny removed the Jelly-Legs Jinx from a stunned Draco and helped him struggle to his feet. Molly was focused on the blond and looked like she had just sucked on a lemon. "Now see here, young man," she threatened, "I don't know how you've been raised, but-"

"Mum, he's delirious," Ginny explained hastily. "Fever. He needs to go back to the hospital wing." She grabbed Draco by his upper arm, pinching him hard in the shoulder. He winced and finally lost his predatory look. "I'll be right back," she said to her mother, who still appeared unconvinced. She practically shoved Draco out the door. "What were you thinking?" she hissed.

Draco wasn't even listening. His eyes were focused behind her with an incredulous look on his face.

"What is it?" she snapped, turning to look over her shoulder and joining Draco in shock. Percy was in the hallway, looking just as he always had, with a wistful expression on his face.

Brother and sister appraised each other for a moment, and then Ginny's face broke into a wide grin. "Welcome back," she said warmly.

Percy strode up and gave her an awkward one-armed hug, looking relieved. "It's good to be back," he said. He pulled away and recognized Draco. "You," he said in surprise.

"You," Draco returned, looking a bit confused himself.

"Mum's in there," Ginny interrupted, jerking her thumb at the door she'd just come out of.

"I'll talk to you in a bit, then." Percy said. Ginny was looking forward to it.

"Let's get you back to the hospital wing," Ginny said to Draco after she heard Molly's delighted shriek.

"I'm not going anywhere," Draco insisted, swaying unsteadily. "I want to know what's happened."

"You can barely stand."

"I'll sit, then."

Ginny threw open the nearest classroom and steered Draco onto a bench. "Voldemort's dead," she said, taking a seat beside him. She produced two Peppermint Toads from her pocket and handed them to him.

"Did Potter kill him?" Draco asked, popping the sweets in his mouth.

"Yeah."

There was silence until he swallowed the candies. "And I suppose he's scheduled to be in parades until the end of the century?"

"No. A spell hit him after he killed Voldemort. He's at St. Mungo's. It…well, we don't know exactly what happened. He seems to have some sort of amnesia, and…he doesn't remember magic. Keeps insisting it doesn't exist, even when it's done in front of him, and every time the Healers come near him with wands he starts shouting at them to leave before his uncle sees. He doesn't remember any of us. It's awful. We hope it can be reversed, but…."

To Ginny's surprise, Draco had no smart comment on Harry's situation. Instead, he inched closer to her and draped his arm over her shoulders. It burned like a brand.

"Ron has to be kept sedated for now. He's so furious every time he awakes…Hermione is always in his room, she blames herself for his wand arm. Fleur might not wake up, and Bill's beside himself….Fred got burned…it took him three hours to…." She took a strangled breath and didn't try to continue.

"But you're okay," he said, as if that was all that mattered.

"Yeah," she admitted, the tears finally welling up and spilling over her cheeks. "But I wish I wasn't. It's not fair," she choked, "that I'm fine when other people-"

"Don't you dare," he said fiercely, crushing her to his chest. "No idiotic Gryffindor nobility."

This only made her cry harder, but he held onto her quietly through the worst of it, waiting patiently until she could speak again. "I don't deserve this from you," she wept bitterly. "I left you when you fell. I didn't spare you a second thought until the whole thing was over."

"You did what you had to to stay alive."

"You could've died!"

"I didn't."

"Madam Pomfrey said that the hypothermia probably saved your life."

"All I felt was pain, and then everything went black. All I could think was that I had failed you and I'd never see you again." She felt his lips brush against her forehead. "Merlin, I thought I'd never see you again."

That was the second time he'd kissed her. Ginny extricated herself from his grasp, brushing her tears away. "You're delirious."

"I'm not delirious!" he snapped, his face still flushed unnaturally with fever.

"You kissed me."

"Yes," he said, matter-of-fact, daring her to make something more of it.

"Draco," she began, as kindly as she could, "you've gone sort of mad since your mum-"

"I'm not crazy and I'm not delirious!" he insisted angrily. "I am in full possession of my wits. I'm not in prison anymore, but you're still my friend. I went out on that battlefield because I care about you, Ginny. My manor is always open to you. Everything I have is at your disposal."

"Don't say that."

"I'll say what I want. Why can't you understand that all I've wanted is keep you safe?"

"You saved me," she said. Draco nodded, looking proud not of his own actions, but of her for accepting this fact. Then he swayed alarmingly against her. "You've got to get back to the infirmary."

"Yeah. Visit me," he whispered, but this time it wasn't a threat.

"Of course. And I'll even bring Peppermint Toads."

A/N: Thanks to my readers for…well, reading! I'd especially like to thank my reviewers for providing great motivation, and I'd love to hear from anyone else via review or PM. Happy Book 7, everyone!