Misconception

Disclaimer: It's too bad that I don't own Harry Potter, or I'd be filthy rich. It'd make me happy.

Author's Note: Sorry for the delay. Sorry for any mistakes; I don't really like betas because I don't like someone know before-hand what's going to happen, which is selfish of me. Reviews are the nicest things ever. Please do so.

Chapter 7: The Cost of Loyalty

Draco checked his watch: it was one o'clock in the morning. He felt the snitch struggling in his hand, as his broom slowly descended to the ground of the Quidditch pitch. After dismounting his broom, he put the golden snitch back inside the trunk; with the trunk levitating behind him, he slowly walked to the broom shed.

The cold December wind blew against him, and he felt a chill run through his bones. Besides the soft footsteps on the grass, the night was completely silent. From a distance, Draco could hear a very soft rustling of trees in the forest; he found the serene night somewhat calming.

It had been months since the last time he slept well; people noticed dark shadows under his eyes, which did not suit his pale skin at all. Quidditch didn't seem to help him get his mind off things anymore, but it was good practice nonetheless. He quitted smoking weeks ago, but the insomnia kept running high in his mind; every now and then, he'd have a strong urge for cigarettes but thought the better of it. The only person that possessed cigarettes in Hogwarts was Blaise, and he was never in a mood to ask Zabini a favor.

Draco unlocked the broom shed and the trunk levitated inside. It fell to the floor with a soft thud, and Draco locked the door. With a sigh, he turned around and started walking toward the castle. Overhead, he saw dark gray clouds devouring the night and its stars. Seemingly, the temperature began to drop, which made Draco quicken his footsteps.

Finally, he reached the warmth of the castle. The doors shut with a slight creak; otherwise, the entrance hall was silent as well. He walked down the corridor, keeping in mind that he was going to the Slytherin dungeons. However, he did not feel like it and absentmindedly wandered somewhere else.

His thoughts wandered on to the war and the letter he had just received, technically, yesterday morning. Lucius Malfoy, his father and high ranked Death Eater, had written to him about coming home for Christmas. The letter was vague and brief, but Draco knew it held many secrets. His hand wandered to his robe pocket, where the letter still remained. He had not bothered to really read it yet, but perhaps he should now.

Stopping, Draco took out the letter and his wand. He tapped the parchment and muttered, " Apercium"

Instantly, the words were replaced with new words:

The Order is on the rise again; we need more information about what the Order is planning next. I would not expect you to get any information from Hogwarts; you are only there to finish your education. Otherwise, I would not have let you go back to school this term. However, I was quite disappointed to find that Zabini's son has gotten more information; I was also shocked to hear that some of it was concerning you.

Fortunately, the Dark Lord has trust in you and has become oblivious to Zabini's claims. I should also hope that these claims are not true. The consequences would be fatal.

On the 24th of December, your mother has planned a ball. Of course, it is only for a disguise as a gathering of all the Death Eaters and the Dark Lord's army. Since you are placed in a top rank, you are to be present at this formal occasion. The Dark Lord has especially requested you to be there; this is a great honor, Draco.

After the meeting, the Order should be expecting an attack some time soon. This war is in our hands. Never forget that. Although the Order is rising in its power, the Dark Lord's power is still greater. In time, this war will be won.

-Lucius

Draco crumpled the parchment angrily; that god damn Blaise. He could not believe that nerve of him actually reporting it to the Death Eaters. Surely, he would have to pay for this. However, another voice told him not to act rashly; there will be a time when revenge can take place. Letting out a breath, he tried to calm down.

"Midnight stroll, young Malfoy?"

Dumbledore stood beside him with a warm smile. Draco put the crumpled parchment in his pocket and muttered, "Sorry."

"No need to be sorry," said Dumbledore, "I understand that sleep does not come easy for you these days."

Draco nodded. Dumbledore beckoned him and said, "Come to my office." Draco obeyed and followed Dumbledore to his office. When they arrived, Draco took his regular seat on the wooden chair, and Dumbledore took his on the comfortable armchair. For a minute, both of them did not speak.

"Christmas is fast approaching," said Dumbledore brightly.

"Yeah…" said Draco, trailing off.

"I expect you'll be getting a letter from your father soon." continued Dumbledore.

Draco reached into his pocket and tossed it to Dumbledore, who caught it in his hands. He unwrinkled the parchment and studied it silently. After he completed reading the letter, he looked up at Draco with a slight frown.

"Why didn't you inform me that Blaise Zabini interrogated you?" asked Dumbledore.

Draco shrugged and said honestly, "I really didn't think it was a big deal. Besides, it was two months ago…"

Dumbledore shook his head and said, "Draco, this could be serious. If Blaise is suspicious of your actions, he could cause great harm to the Order and to you."

Draco did not say anything. His thoughts began to race to the dream. Could the Death Eater that killed him in the dream be Blaise? But no—it couldn't have been. He vaguely remembered the Death Eater looked much older than Blaise; it couldn't have been Blaise. Was his dream some sort of prophecy or just a recurring dream that he seemed to have every week? In the background, he heard Dumbledore's voice, and he slowly came back to the present.

"After the interrogation, have you had any more confrontations with Blaise?" asked Dumbledore seriously.

"Just Quidditch practice," answered Draco. "I try to avoid that bloody git…"

"Never give away your position, Draco." said Dumbledore earnestly. "No matter what."

"I know." said Draco.

"It does not matter how much you trust them or how bad the situation may be," continued Dumbledore, emphasizing his serious tone.

"I know." repeated Draco.

Dumbledore folded the parchment neatly and handed it back to Draco. With a sigh, Draco took the letter and threw it in the nearby fireplace. Dumbledore got up from his seat and walked toward the little window next to his desk. From what Draco could see, the clouds were still out there, and the stars were little in numbers. The moon serenely shone over the lake with a cloud threatening to devour it.

Dumbledore sighed and said quietly, "I must ask you to be patient, young Malfoy. This war is not going to end any time soon."

Draco did not say anything. To be honest, he wasn't sure what to say, so he remained quiet.

"The Muggles are suspecting things now; this war is getting out of hand."said the old headmaster wearily.

"Are they?" asked Draco with little concern in his voice. He couldn't help it; he was raised that way.

"Oh yes," responded Dumbledore. "It's all over their news: unexplained deaths, destruction of towns…" he trailed off and shook his head.

Again, Draco didn't say anything. Dumbledore continued gazing out the window, as if deep in thought. For a while, neither of them spoke. Draco checked his watch: it was almost two thirty in the morning.

"I fear you will hate me for the position I've put you in." said Dumbledore suddenly.

Draco frowned and wondered what this was about. It was strange that Dumbledore was suddenly showing concern for Draco; he wasn't really used to it. His parents never really cared if he was in danger or not; as long as he was part of the Death Eaters, everything was okay.

"I don't think you'll need to worry about that, sir," said Draco slowly. "If anything goes wrong, it will be my fault, my mistake. I chose this path."

"Mistake," echoed Dumbledore quietly. "I've made quite a few myself."

For the third time, Draco did not know what to say. He shifted uncomfortably in his wooden seat and did not utter a word. Dumbledore snapped out of his strange reverie and restored the twinkle in his eye that had been gone for a while. He smiled at Draco and walked toward him.

Draco stood up, as Dumbledore put a comforting hand on his shoulder. They walked toward the door, as Dumbledore said, "Patience, Draco. I will see you tomorrow morning, and we will discuss that you should do over break. Get some rest; you surely need it."

Draco nodded and walked out the door, shutting it behind him.

Within the next few hours, it was daylight; seven o'clock in the morning to be precise. Naturally, Draco did not sleep until three in the morning, for he couldn't seem to fall asleep until then. The Great Hall was filled with a fair amount of people by the time he got there. Pansy was sitting with Blaise; Crabbe and Goyle sat on the far end of the table. Glaring at Blaise, he sat down near Crabbe and Goyle, who both grunted a morning greeting.

He found that he no appetite to eat, and he could really do with a cigarette about now. It irritated him that he did not have anymore, and they didn't sell them anywhere near Hogwarts. Again, he was not asking Blaise. Taking two bites from a toast, he left the Great Hall quickly.

"Oh, hello, Draco!" came a cheery voice.

Draco turned around and saw Luna Lovegood, beaming at him. She rushed up to him with a copy of The Quibbler in her hands. Draco eyed it uneasily, wondering if there was some article about him in there, which is why she was exceptionally happy to see him today.

"What do you want, Lovegood?" asked Draco, slightly disgruntled. He continued walking out the Great Hall, while Luna followed. They both walked outside, where the clouds had completely gathered overhead.

"How are you?" asked Luna.

"Great." said Draco sarcastically and curtly.

"That's good," said Luna casually. "The game between Gryffindor and Slytherin is coming up soon."

"Why are you talking to me?" asked Draco coldly.

"I'm waiting for Ginny, actually," said Luna brightly. "She's still eating, and I saw you coming out so I thought I'd talk to you. Aren't you glad it's Friday?"

"Sure."

Turning around, Draco simply walked away from her. Her cheery mood was slightly nerve racking, and it didn't suit him to be around cheery people. Luna did not seem to mind the sudden departure of Draco, for she was probably used to it.

The day dragged on; Draco hated it. He wasn't looking forward to Quidditch practice either, but he knew he had to go because he was captain. By five in the afternoon, he was in his Quidditch robes and ready to practice with his team members. They played a small game and made opposite teams for each other. Draco maintained his position as seeker, and Blaise was made the opposing seeker, much to his annoyance.

The snitch was let loose and they both kicked off.

Draco hovered in the air, searching for the snitch, determined to get it before Blaise could. A few minutes passed and his team scored. Another few and the two teams were tied. A full fifteen minutes passed until Draco finally saw a golden glare in the sky. Blaise, apparently seeing it too, raced toward it with Draco. They were now elbow to elbow, and Draco violently shoved him away. Blaise, coming back to his side, did the very same thing. Annoyed and angry at what Blaise did, Draco shoved him harder to the side, almost causing him to fall off his broom.

Blaise came back and violently kicked Draco on his side. The anger that Draco felt for Blaise ignited…reporting him to Death Eaters…telling Voldemort he was in the Order….Draco flew right into Blaise and pushed him off the broom. However, Blaise held on to the broom with one hand and instantly got back up.

It became a shoving contest, more than a Quidditch game. Soon, both of them forgot about the snitch and they were both trying to get the other off the broom. Finally, one of the chasers noticed this and stopped the game.

"What the bloody hell are you two doing?" he asked.

The other team members descended to the ground, looking up quizzically at Blaise and Draco. Panting and out of breath, Draco descended to the ground as well and dismounted.

"What the hell was that all about?" exclaimed the chaser, again.

"Quidditch practice is over." said Draco through clenched teeth, glaring at Blaise. "Zabini, you're staying behind."

The Slytherin team shuffled back to the locker rooms, leaving Blaise and Draco behind. They were both glaring at each other.

"What the fuck were you doing?" asked Blaise angrily.

Draco shook his head and took out his wand. Angrily, he pointed it at Blaise and said, "I've just about had enough of your shit, Blaise."

Blaise looked carelessly at the wand, which was now jabbing into his chest. Almost in a mocking way, he rolled his eyes. A smirk became plastered on his face, as he drawled, "You're going to kill me in the middle of the Quidditch stadium because of a little shoving?"

"I don't need to explain myself for what you did, Zabini." said Draco.

"And what did I do?"

Draco shook his head and smirked as well. He laughed hollowly and said, "Don't act innocent or I'll hex you."

"That doesn't scare me, Malfoy."said Blaise in a low, dangerous tone. Before Draco could blink, Blaise had his wand out and pointed it at Draco.

However, Draco acted quickly and shouted, "Expelliarmus!"

At the exact same time, Blaise shouted, "Stupefy!"

The two spells clashed and made them both shoot backwards and fall to the hard ground. Wincing slightly at the pain in his back, Draco stumbled up and pointed the wand at Blaise. From the ground, Blaise had his wand at the ready and slowly stood up. Draco sensed that they were on dangerous grounds right now. His jaw clenched as he tightened his grip on the wand, getting ready for Blaise's next curse.

"Are you going to tell me what you did?" asked Draco, quietly.

"It's obvious you already know, Draco, so what's the point of telling you what I did," said Blaise, "even if I did anything."

"Why don't you refresh my memory?" said Draco, raising his wand. However, it was too late.

"CRUCIO!"

Draco was on the ground again, but he was writhing with pain. He let out a scream of agony and felt that there were a million knives stabbing at him continuously. The spell stopped, and he felt limp. It was not the first time the Cruciatus curse was used on him, but it never ceased to cause pain. Gasping for breath, Draco tried to get up from the ground. However, Blaise put his foot over Draco's chest and leaned in.

"Does that refresh your memory?" asked Blaise quietly, with a smirk.

"Fuck you, Zabini." spat Draco weakly.

"The Dark Lord may not believe me now, but he will," said Blaise, stilling leaning on his leg. "In the meantime, Malfoy, you need to think about where your god damn loyalty lies."

"I know where my loyalty lies, Zabini," said Draco through clenched teeth.

"Do you?" asked Blaise.

"Do you have any idea what you're doing," threatened Draco "torturing a high ranked Death Eater?"

Draco, with a newfound strength, pushed Blaise off of him and managed to get his wand back. He pointed it at Blaise and muttered the Cruciatus curse. He gladly watched Blaise scream in pain and stopped the curse when he felt satisfied.

"What did you do, Blaise?" said Draco. It was a rhetorical question because Draco answered him, "You reported me to the Dark Lord, telling him I was under the suspicion of working for the Order."

Blaise got up and staggered a bit. He had his wand at the ready, but he did not curse Draco just yet. His breath became shaky as he tried to get over the pain of the Cruciatus curse.

With a shuddering breath, Blaise said, "I know you are."

"Whatever, you son of a bitch." said Draco.

Catching Draco off his guard, Blaise shouted, "Crucio!"

The pain came back to Draco, and he fell to the ground in agony. This time he tried not to scream; he did not want to give in to Zabini. However, the pain was so unbearable that he had to let it out. Suddenly, it stopped and he heard Blaise chuckling.

Again, Blaise stepped on his chest, and his breath began to feel constricted. Draco desperately groped the ground for his wand. However, Blaise got to it first and began twirling it between his fingers.

"I can't believe you have the higher rank," said Blaise quietly, "You can't even defend yourself from a simple Cruciatus…" He sighed mockingly and said, "Well, the only reason you got in was because of your father, anyway, so I shouldn't have to feel too bad…"

With Draco's wand, he pointed it at Draco again and said, almost in a lazy tone, "Crucio!"

Again, Draco writhed in pain and he heard Blaise laugh. However, it was followed by a familiar voice, who sounded fearful.

"STOP IT! LEAVE HIM ALONE! GET AWAY FROM HIM!"

Draco felt a whish of Blaise's robe, and he knew that he ran away. He heard footsteps running toward him, but he could not open his eyes to see who it was ground vibrate with. Although the Cruciatus curse was gone, the pain continued to throb all over his body. He opened his eyes and saw that his vision was blurry. He closed it again and moaned with pain. He felt the person next to him, trembling, "Oh my God….Oh my God…please don't be dead."

From the sound of the voice, it was a girl. She grasped his hand and shook him, but he felt that his body had given up the will to move. He tried to say something, but no sound came to his lips. The girl whimpered and choked back a sob; he knew she was getting frantic.

"Oh no…please don't be dead," she whispered frantically.

Swallowing hard, he whispered hoarsely, "I'll live."

A sigh of relief came from the girl, and he felt her hand loosen its grasp on his. He felt a soft hand on his cheek and his eyes slowly opened. He could see a lot of red, but he wasn't sure if that was the sun set or something else. Groggily he sat up; his head immediately felt dizzy, and he almost fell back down. However, she caught him just before he hit the hard ground.

"I'll get help…" she assured.

Immediately Draco shook his head and weakly grasped the sleeve of her robe. She tried to say something, but he cut her off.

"No, don't get help…I'll be fine…don't…just don't…" he said weakly.

"You need to go to the hospital wing now." she said urgently.

"No, no, I don't." muttered Draco, blinking furiously, trying to get his vision back.

"You've just been hit with the Cruciatus curse!" she said, "If you don't go…"

"I'll be fine," muttered Draco weakly. His vision was slowly coming back now.

"No, you won't…" said the girl, fearfully.

He could see that this girl had red hair, but the only girl who had red hair was--

"Weasley…" he said weakly.

"Yeah?" she responded.

He did not reply. Blinking several times, he tried to clear his vision completely. However, he began seeing random dots, and his head pounded with pain. He groaned, and he put his hand to his temple and began massaging. It did not ease away the pain.

"Malfoy," said Ginny softly and almost in a desperate tone, "As much as you think I hate you, I don't hate you enough to leave you here after you've been hit by the Cruciatus curse by…Merlin knows who."

Ginny began wringing her hands worriedly, and if Draco wasn't hurt, he would've thought it was rather amusing. His head felt dizzy again, and he just wanted to lie back down. He didn't want to go to the hospital wing or the dormitories. He just wanted to stay out here, where no one could bother him. Perhaps he could sink into the ground and just sleep forever.

"You really have to go to the hospital wing…" urged Ginny.

Draco closed his eyes and tried to not think about his headache. He opened them again and asked, "Why did you come out here?"

"I was going to practice some Quidditch right after your team, so I was waiting in the stands…" explained Ginny in a quiet tone.

It seemed like she feared if she talked in a loud voice, Draco would faint again. Draco smirked a little bit at this, but it instantly faded away. In a worried way, Ginny bit her lip and opened her mouth to say something.

However, Draco shook his head and said quietly, "I'm not going to the hospital wing, Weasley…"

"Who did this to you?" she asked quietly. "Why don't you report him?"

He shook his head and grasped Ginny's wrist. Firmly, he told her, "Whatever you do, Weasley, don't tell anyone--anyone about this."

Her eyes widened and she protested, "But…he used an Unforgivable—"

"I don't care." said Draco firmly. "Swear that you won't tell anyone…don't even mention anything…You didn't see anything…and you didn't hear anything either. Understand?"

She bit her lip and looked at the ground. Frowning with reluctance, she nodded and said she wouldn't tell anyone. Sighing, she reached behind her and got Draco's wand. She handed it to him; he took it and put it in his pocket.

"Thanks," he muttered.

Ginny continued to look at him worriedly and she said, "If you don't want to go to the hospital wing, then do you want to go back to the dormitories and get rest?"

"No," he said, "I'd rather stay here…"

"Malfoy," she began exasperatedly.

"Ginny," he said. The name was rather foreign on his tongue, and he didn't really feel comfortable saying it, but he felt it was the least he could do to make her listen.

From the look on her face, Ginny thought the name sounded strange coming from him as well. She blinked once and did not say anything. Quietly, she mumbled that the stands would be more comfortable, if he preferred to stay out here. Quickly, Draco got up from the ground, and he really wish he hadn't. Immediately, his head felt dizzy and light; he staggered. Ginny caught him by the arm.

She smiled, obviously reminiscing about the first day of school, and said quietly, "That's what you get for standing up too fast…"

Draco and Ginny walked up to the stands and sat down on the wooden benches. For some reason, Draco felt rather comforted by Ginny's presence and how she was quiet but caring at the same time. They sat a good distance from each other, and they did not speak. Draco sighed and looked at the sky, wondering how Zabini managed to use the curse on him twice.

He had wanted to use the curse, as well. However, something was holding him back…

"How are you feeling?" asked Ginny tentatively.

"I'm better," said Draco.

Ginny flushed and said, "D-Draco, I think you should really go to the hospital wing. Please…"

Draco wanted to say, "Since when did you care?", but the sound of his first name coming from her made him realize that she was sincere. She honestly cared about him right now, and she was deadly terrified that he might be hurt.

Softening a bit, he said, "I'm fine—this isn't the first time I've been hit with the Cruciatus curse."

"No," she said firmly, "Please go…I'll go with you, if you want…I promise I won't tell anyone, and Madam Pomfrey wouldn't ask anyway."

"Yes, she would," said Draco, somewhat bemused, "She'd ask me what was wrong."

Ginny sighed, giving up on Draco. She continued looking at Draco in such a worried way, he began getting uncomfortable. He shifted in his seat and looked away from her.

"You can leave me now," he muttered, "I'll be fine."

He looked back at her, and she flushed. She hesitated, and it was obvious she did not want to go, in fear that he would die if she left. Draco wondered why she cared so much.

"Or you can stay, Weasley," said Draco. "Either way…I don't really care right now…I'm too tired to care right now…"

Ginny sighed and the conversation ended. The daylight began to fade away, and the night came. Once again, there was this space between them that Draco did not feel very comfortable with. He was too busy thinking about Blaise and the Death Eaters to wonder why Ginny was sitting there with him. It crossed his mind a few times, but he ignored it.

Again, Ginny sighed. Draco looked away from the lake, from a distance, and looked at her. She laid down on the bench behind Draco and gazed up at the sky.

"Do you come here often?" asked Draco.

"Yeah…I've seen you out here too." said Ginny quietly, not taking her eyes off the sky. "You're a pretty good seeker."

"You don't have to be nice to me just because I was hit with the Cruciatus Curse," said Draco with a slight sneer. "I'm still the same Malfoy you hate. Besides, it's not even a big deal, so I don't know why you're still here."

Ginny sighed and said in a sharp tone, "Don't take it so carelessly, Malfoy…it really scared me today."

Draco raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why?"

Ginny turned her head and faced Draco. The worry in her eyes still did not fully fade. It was probably because it was her first time witnessing someone being agonized by the Cruciatus curse. No doubt, it traumatized her a bit. Draco saw her shudder a bit at a cold wind that blew by and probably at the thought of the Cruciatus curse.

"I thought you died…" said Ginny quietly.

Draco laughed hollowly and said in a quiet, amused tone, "Wouldn't that have been a good thing?"

Ginny frowned and looked back at the sky. After a pause she said in an angry tone, "I don't wish death for anyone because I don't hate anyone that much."

"Except Voldemort."

Ginny flinched at the name, but it was not out of fear. It was out of something entirely different, but Draco could not tell what it was. He
laid down on his bench as well. He found it surprisingly comfortable, and there were no threats of him falling off to the ground. It seemed to fit perfectly fine. He turned on his side to face Ginny, and she did the same.

"So, even if I was a Death Eater, you wouldn't want me dead?" he asked in a mocking tone.

Ginny sighed and said, "I know you're not a Death Eater, and I'm sorry I said so the other day…"

Draco stiffened slightly and was almost speechless. He pulled at his sleeve uneasily, but Ginny did not notice. She laid on her back and gazed at the stars once again. Draco did the same, finally feeling solace by gazing at the beautiful night sky. Secretly, he was glad that Ginny came. If it weren't for her, he probably would have died from the pain because he knew Blaise was about to torture him to death. However, the other and stronger side of him did not want to admit this and was actually annoyed that Weasley was still with him, beside him, trying to make the best of their civilized conversation.

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