Disclaimer: Everything but the plot is J.K. Rowling's. If I really were J.K. Rowling, why would I be writing fan fiction?
Author's Note: I am so sorry for the long update, but you know how life gets in the way. I wasn't able to use the computer at my mom's house for a week, and Microsoft Word doesn't work on the computer at my dad's. I was at my dad's house for about a week, so I couldn't write. I'm an idiot! I just realized that I spelled Ginny's name Ginerva instead of Ginevra. I will fix that in the last chapter as soon as I get this up. I would like to thank those of you who have added this to your alerts and favorites. I am so flattered! However, I have not received any reviews yet and I would love it if someone reviewed. Please, please tell me what you think. It will help me out greatly. Oh, and so no one gets confused, this chapter takes place before the prologue. Well, back to the story…!
Chapter 1: Curiosity Killed the Cat
The early morning rays of sunlight streamed through the window of Ginny Weasley and Harry Potter's bedroom, and hit the couple that was sleeping soundly in their bed. Ginny eventually began to stir as the sun rose higher in the sky, and she cracked one eye open, only to find a mass of untidy jet-black hair right in front of her face.
'Harry…,' Ginny thought sleepily.
She sat up and stared lovingly at the peaceful face of the slumbering Harry Potter. Ginny toyed with the gorgeous diamond engagement ring on her left hand while she did this. Ever since she was eleven-years-old, Ginny fantasized about being engaged and eventually being married to Harry Potter. She often fantasized about what her wedding would look like, and even what she would name her children, but she never thought in a million years that it would ever happen.
Harry had proposed to her the night before in a very expensive, high-end, hoity-toity muggle restaurant. It wasn't exactly as romantic as it was in her childhood fantasies, but it was probably as romantic as Harry could get.
Ginny then got out of the bed very carefully, lest she disturb Harry. She headed for the bathroom, took a quick shower, got dressed, and went to the kitchen to make breakfast for Harry and her.
Just as she finished setting the table, Harry came lumbering into the kitchen somewhat groggily. He walked up to his fiancé, placed a chaste kiss on her lips, and then muttered, "Good morning" after said kiss.
"Well, good morning to you too," Ginny replied. "Breakfast is almost ready and I made coffee if you would like some."
"Thank you. I think that I'll have a cup," Harry said, and then promptly poured himself some coffee.
Ginny, who had finished cooking, put some eggs, a few strips of bacon, and a couple of pieces of toast on each of the two plates that she had grabbed from the cupboard earlier.
She set one plate down in front of Harry, who was sipping his coffee and reading that morning's edition of the Daily Prophet. She then sat down across from him and picked up piece of toast, which she buttered and slathered some marmalade on it.
"I was thinking about going to Diagon Alley to do some shopping today. I think that I need some new robes, and we need owl treats for Athena. I also need to go by the apothecary to pick up some potion ingredients," Ginny said while munching on her toast.
Athena was Harry's new owl, who he shared with Ginny. He had gotten Athena a few months ago; he had felt that he wasn't ready to replace Hedwig before, but Harry had eventually realized that he needed another owl.
"Okay. That sounds good. I think that you should probably go to Gringotts first, though, since we are slightly low on pocket money right now. I would go with you, but I have to work," Harry responded a little wistfully.
Harry was a full-time Auror at the Ministry of Magic, and Ginny was an Obliviator, but she had the day off. Hermione Granger had become an Unspeakable in the Department of Mysteries and her brother, Ron, worked for the Department of Magical Games and Sports.
"So is there anything interesting in there?" she asked, gesturing to the Daily Prophet.
"Not really, but that cow Rita Skeeter is still writing for it. Today's article is about Gwenog Jones' 'relationship' with Viktor Krum," Harry replied with obvious disgust.
After that, they both ate in relative silence. When they both were finished eating, Ginny set the plates in the sink and charmed them to wash themselves.
"Well, I have go to work now," Harry said as he fastened his cloak.
"I'll see you when you get back then. I love you," Ginny said.
"I love you too, Ginny. Please be careful while your shopping; it's the ideal time for someone to attack you. Remember: constant vigilance," Harry warned.
"Merlin, you're starting to sound like Mad-Eye. I'll be fine," Ginny replied, slightly annoyed by Harry's paranoia.
"Ginny, I don't know what I would do if I were to lose you. Even though all of the Death Eaters are either dead or in Azkaban, there are still people who would harm you. Promise me that you'll be on your guard, if not for my sake or yours, then for your family's," Harry pleaded fiercely.
"Alright, alright. I will be careful," Ginny promised.
"Well, bye," Harry said, bending down to kiss Ginny goodbye.
When the kiss had ended, Ginny responded slightly out of breath, "Goodbye, Harry."
With that, Harry turned and strode out the door, leaving an unsettling silence in his wake. Ginny decided to leave as well, so she walked over to the fireplace, grabbed some Floo powder, and threw it into the fire. She then stood in the emerald flames and said clearly and firmly, "The Leaky Cauldron."
Ginny felt the usual spinning sensation that was usually associated with traveling by Floo powder. She had her eyes shut tightly, even though she was definitely used to traveling this way. A few seconds later, the spinning sensation ceased and she made contact with solid ground again. Ginny got up and brushed off the soot on her robes.
She greeted Tom, the barman, and made her way to the brick wall that served as the entrance to Diagon Alley. Ginny found the right brick, and tapped it with her wand thrice.
Automatically, the brick began to wriggle, and soon all of the bricks wriggled out of the way to form an archway. She stepped into Diagon Alley quickly before the entrance could seal itself back up again.
Ginny visited Gringotts first, just as Harry had suggested she should do. A goblin named Eldric led her through the dark and seemingly endless tunnels and passageways in a cart until they reached Harry's vault. When they reached the vault, Eldric opened it with the key that she had previously given to him. Ginny put money into the bag that she had brought until she thought she had enough. The goblin closed the vault, handed the key back to Ginny, and led them back to the lobby of the bank.
After Ginny had left Gringotts, she decided to go by Madame Malkin's to purchase some new robes. About an hour later, she came out of the store with three new sets of robes and two new dresses.
She then went to Eeylop's Owl Emporium and bought some owl treats. Next, she went to the Apothecary and purchased some potion ingredients for miscellaneous potions that she happened to be out of (like the Headache Potion).
When she had finished shopping for everything that she needed to get, she discovered that she had some time to kill, so she headed in the direction of Flourish and Blotts to mill around and browse.
Before she could reach her destination, however, she spotted a head of familiar platinum blonde hair in the crowd. Draco Malfoy was walking rather quickly (or as quickly as one could when one was in a crowd) and suspiciously, so Ginny followed him, breaking her promise to Harry. As difficult as it was to maneuver through a horde of witches and wizards, Ginny never lost sight of him because of his trademark Malfoy hair, which happened to stick out like a sore thumb.
It did not take her long to realize that he was heading in the direction of Knockturn Alley, and sure enough, he turned into the way that led to it. Ginny swiftly shrunk all of her shopping bags and placed them in the pockets of her robes. She looked around to see if anyone was watching her, and cast a Disillusionment Charm on herself since she didn't think to bring Harry's Invisibility Cloak with her. Then she ran after Malfoy.
She had a hard time finding him, but she found him after a few minutes of searching. Ginny was very careful to keep her distance lest she alert him of her presence; it would be catastrophic if she was found out. After about ten minutes of walking, Malfoy walked into a bar named The Basilisk's Fang, and Ginny followed him in before the door could close.
'This place is highly reminiscent of the Hog's Head. I wonder if another relative of Dumbledore's owns this- a long-lost cousin, perhaps,' Ginny thought when she observed the dusty tables and grimy floor.
Malfoy strode up to the bar, and managed to get the bartender's attention. The bartender was a rather rotund man with ebony hair, slicked back with grease. He also had a black handlebar mustache that was peppered with gray, and was wearing a gigantic apron, that probably used to be white, but was now gray and had a collection of stains of various colors, shapes, and sizes. To Ginny, the man was just downright repulsive and looked like he had an unpleasant personality.
"What do yeh wanna drink?" the bartender asked Malfoy in a wheezy, nasally voice.
"Nothing from this dump, thank you very much. I am here on official business, if you catch my drift," Malfoy stated arrogantly, hinting darkly at something.
"Through the door on the right in back," the bartender said quietly, clearly affronted by Malfoy's rude demeanor.
"And yeh be'er knock if yeh knows what's best fer yeh," the bartender added curtly.
"Thanks for the advice," Malfoy said sarcastically, and then walked to the only door on the other side of the Basilisk's Fang.
He opened the door and it revealed a short hallway with three other doors in it, one at the end, one to the left, and one to the right. Malfoy walked up to the door on the right and knocked hesitantly, if not a little nervously.
A deep male voice thundered, "Who dares disturb my work?"
"It is I, Draco Malfoy. I've a favor to ask of you," Malfoy declared with false bravado.
"Pray tell, why I should oblige?" the mysterious voice asked imperiously.
"Because I just might have something that should be of great interest to you."
"Oh, fine, boy. C'mon in before I change my mind," the voice relented.
Malfoy opened the door swiftly, stepped in the room, and shut the door just as quickly, almost too fast for Ginny to slip inside. Almost. The room was relatively big compared to what Ginny had been expecting, but it was still small if one thought about it. It was an office with a tiny window on the opposite wall from the door, and a roaring fire in the surprisingly spacious stone fireplace. Ginny would have found the office to be comfortable if it were not for the figure sitting in a chair in front of a desk in the center of the room and all of the Dark Arts items and books on display around the room.
The man had clearly been involved in whatever he had been doing before Malfoy arrived, because he was hunched over a large amount of paperwork that was scattered helter-skelter on his desk. He was middle-aged and thin with short dark brown hair and an intimidating, commanding air that obviously demanded respect.
"Sit," he ordered Malfoy, indicating to the empty armchair opposite of him with a dismissive wave of his hand, without looking up from his work.
Malfoy hastily obeyed the intimidating older man. After a minute or two, the man looked up and studied Malfoy with keen, intelligent, stormy, gray eyes.
"Well, what is it? I am clearly a very busy man, and I don't like to be bothered, so you had better have a very good reason for bothering me," he said in an annoyed tone.
"I do, sir. I think that I have found a way to resurrect the Dark Lord," Malfoy states anxiously.
The man, who had previously been twiddling his thumbs with a bored expression on his face, stared at Draco Malfoy with wide, shocked eyes. Ginny tried to stifle a gasp, but did not succeed. She did not dare to breathe; for fear that she had been heard, but the two men had not heard her, fortunately.
"H-how? I thought he was gone forever," the man said, when he could speak again.
"Through this," Malfoy said, reaching into his robes and pulling out a gold necklace with a huge red ruby in the center.
"Merlin, the Amulet of Akhman-Ra! How in the hell did you get it? It is supposed to be impossible to obtain since it has been missing for two-thousand years!" the man exclaimed.
"With all due respect, you should probably calm down before I divulge anymore, because it is quite a lot to absorb at one time, Thierry," Malfoy said.
"Yes, yes. You are quite right, lad," Thierry said a little more calmly, shaking his head.
"It took a while to track down; after all, I only had books and old myths and legends to go by. But after a couple grueling years of tedious research and traveling, I knew where it was: in a pyramid in Egypt. I traveled to Egypt and broke into the pyramid. I also stole the infamous Book of the Dead right under a muggle archeologist's nose," Draco said proudly.
"Where are you going to hide this? Surely, you are not going to leave it lying around your house for some Mudblood- loving Ministry fool to find the next time they decide to raid your house?" Thierry asked Malfoy.
"No, actually. I was wondering if you would be kind enough to keep it safe for me, and if you would assist me with the resurrection ceremony since it requires two people to summon and control that much Dark magic," replied Malfoy.
"I will hide the Amulet, but I am not sure if I want to participate in the ceremony just yet. You are definitely going to need to wait until Samhain, or Halloween, when the veil between the two worlds is the thinnest, to successfully resurrect the Dark Lord. You are also going to need a human sacrifice. Who are you planning on sacrificing?" Thierry said.
"Oh, just a random Muggle who won't be missed," Malfoy said nonchalantly, and then smirked at his own sick little joke, at which Thierry chuckled darkly.
Ginny felt sick to her stomach. They were going to raise Voldemort from the dead, and they were going to kill a poor, defenseless, ignorant Muggle to do it. She had to do something to stop them, but what? Taking matters into her own hands was too dangerous, so she would just warn Harry since he was an Auror.
After a while, Thierry said thoughtfully, "I think that I will assist you. Although you have proven yourself adept at the Dark Arts, you will need someone with more experience than yourself. However, I need you to leave now so I can resume working," Thierry said.
With that, Malfoy rose from his chair, and strode out the door without another word, not even to thank Thierry for his time and assistance.
Ginny followed him out onto the street, her head spinning. She had always detested Draco Malfoy, but she never thought that he was truly evil. Ginny also didn't understand why he would want Voldemort to rise again, because she had been sure that Malfoy never wanted to be a Death Eater, although he was forced to be one during her fifth and sixth years at Hogwarts.
Ginny was so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she wasn't paying any attention to how much noise she was making by walking and the fact that the subject of her thoughts had stopped walking, so she was nearer to him than she had originally intended to be. She also didn't notice that he had led them to a dark, secluded alley, which was right off of Knockturn Alley, until it was too late.
Suddenly, Malfoy whipped around and aimed his wand in the general direction of where Ginny happened to be.
"Petrificus Totalus!" he cried.
Ginny went as rigid as a board and promptly fell onto her back with a surprisingly loud thump. Malfoy walked over to where Ginny was and made her become visible again with a simple flick of his wand.
"Well, well, well. If it isn't Weaslette. Long time, no see," he said, an irksome, Slytherin-like smirk plastered on his aristocratic face.
He reached into her robes and withdrew her wand, and then he unfroze her and tied her up with a simple 'Incarcerous'.
"You obviously won't need this," he said, waving her wand mockingly.
"Now, why were you following me?" he continued.
"Why do you think, you bastard?" Ginny cried rhetorically and defiantly.
"Language, Weaslette. I'm warning you: if you do not cooperate, I will not hesitate to torture you. Is that clear?" Malfoy warned.
"Crystal."
"Good. How much did you hear?" he asked, his wand pointed at her chest.
"Everything. You will not get away with it. Someone will stop you," she answered bravely.
"Who? Saint I-Am-So-Special-Because-I-Saved-The-World- Potter? Ha! Like that's likely. How are you planning on warning him when you can't even move?" Malfoy asked Ginny rhetorically. "Also, I am already getting away with it, in case that has escaped your notice."
"Why do you want to bring Voldemort back? I thought you hated being a Death Eater," Ginny asked.
"You are right. I used to despise it, but I realized that it would be preferable to everyone fawning over Potter, and people whispering and staring every time I go out in public, because they think that I am going to kill them at any second. Things like that irk me greatly. So, I figured with the Dark Lord back he would kill Potter and eradicate all of the Muggles, Mudbloods, and blood-traitors," Malfoy said.
"You are such an evil, bigoted, git, Malfoy! You truly are! You hypocritical son of a-"
"Crucio!" he cried.
Ginny writhed in agony on the ground as she screamed at the top of her lungs. He lifted the curse after a moment. Ginny lay shuddering on the ground, her throat raw.
"What did I tell you about language?"
"Coward! Will you hex me only if I'm wandless and tied up? What, are you so afraid that you'll lose to a girl, a blood-traitor at that, if we actually duel?" Ginny said with as much force as she could muster.
"Apparently, the Cruciatus Curse isn't enough. I guess I'll have to try something a little more drastic," Malfoy stated in an almost academic fashion, ignoring Ginny.
He then chanted something in a foreign language, and Ginny's vision started to blur. After Malfoy had chanted the curse, it felt like every bone in her body was breaking, and she was covered in her own blood. Ginny could only see black blurry shapes now.
Malfoy chanted another dark curse in the same language, and everything went black.
Author's Note: Please tell me if you love it or hate it. Is anyone OCC? I really am sorry that it took a whole month, so I wrote an extra-long chapter to make up for the long wait. The last curse Malfoy cast will be explained later on in the story. Also, Tom will be in the next chapter.