Disclaimer; Don't own Harry Potter or his friends or his enemies
"Has anyone else noticed that it's been getting cold?" Harry asked one day over lunch. "We came here in…October and we've been here for…" Malfoy said trailing off because he couldn't remember exactly how long they had been here.
"Almost two months, I think. It was the first Saturday of October when we got here and I remember seeing a full moon twice so two month-ish." Ginny reasoned out loud.
"Two months." Malfoy repeated as if testing the phrase in his tongue.
"I wonder how our friends and families are doing." Harry said.
"Daddy's probably very worried. I hope he hasn't let it affect him very much." Luna said.
"Your his daughter, Luna, of course it's going to affect him a lot." Ginny said.
"Yes, but Daddy will do many things for me and I hope he doesn't try anything rash." Luna said. Malfoy had started to look more and more withdrawn as the conversation went on.
"Mum is probably worried sick and Daddy is probably trying to be strong for everyone else. Bill and Charlie are probably working the hardest to try and find me and you guys. Fred and George are probably trying to keep everyone's sprits and hopes up. Ron is likely going off on anyone that says one wrong thing and trying to figure out what happened. Hermione's probably devoting all her spare time to try and figure out what happened and what she could've done to stop it and how to bring us back." Ginny to herself but loud enough that the other three could heard her.
Malfoy said the first thing he could think of to get them off the subject of family, "Don't you have another brother or two?" Not the best thing to say to get off the subject of family but good enough to get them to stop talking about what they're doing now.
"I have one more brother, Percy. He decided that the Minsisty of Magic was better and smarter than his own family." Ginny said bitterly and angrily. The four of them lapsed into silence after that, no one sure what to say about that.
"I'm going to go fishing." Harry muttered once he finished his lunch. He got up and grabbed a fishing pole and started walking down to the lake. The other three sat in awkward silence for a minute before Malfoy got up, grabbed a fishing pole, and tossed a "See you later." Over his shoulder as he walked down to the lake.
"If I had been told three months or so ago that I would be fishing with Draco Malfoy, I would put who told me in St. Mungos." Harry said. He was saying next to Malfoy on a large rock with a fishing pole in his hands and a small pile of worms between them.
"Because they told you you would be fishing or because they told you you would be fishing with me?" Malfoy asked with slightly amused tone.
"Hmm, good question. I think maybe the fishing part would be more shocking." Harry said jokingly with a smile playing around her lips. The smile started fading and he asked with a somber tone, "Did you think anyone actually misses us?"
Malfoy shot him a slightly shocked look. "Are you really asking that? You're Harry Potter, of course they miss you." He said ruefully.
"Yes, they miss Harry Potter The-Boy-Who-Lived or The Chosen One whatever they're calling me nowadays but does anyone miss me? Just Harry?" Harry asked.
Malfoy rolled his eyes and said, "Are you serious? Weasley, the in our year, and Granger are probably like Weasley, the female one, said, worried. And if I'm right, then the other Weasleys are worried too. You seriously need to stop being such a baby."
"A baby? Me? And who's the one that washes their hands every time they touch a worm?" Harry said outraged.
"You're whining all about no one missing you when you're probably the sole reason that there is a search party if one exists looking for us. Honestly, use your head."
"Who's the one the figured out how to get a working fishing pole built? Oh that's right, me."
"Who's the one that figured out how make a lid for the well? That would be me."
"And that was so hard to do. You had to find sticks and then tie them together with grass. Oh yes, that's true workmanship." Harry's word practity had sarcasm dripping from them.
"And figuring out that you had to get a long stick and tie one of Weasley's braid grass things on it and carve a hook from some wood and put it on it was so hard."
"Well, you didn't think of it."
"Brilliant come back, Potter. Truly brilliant." Malfoy said sarcastically.
"Like yours was so much better."
"You should- wait I think I got a fish." Malfoy said pulling his fishing line back up. Caught on the hook was a small, smaller than his hand, fish.
"Well, that's one." Harry said as Malfoy deattached the fish from the hook with a disgusted look on his face.
"Yeah." Malfoy mumbled putting the fish in the water in a smallish clay pot they had found near the well with it's top half broken off. Malfoy grabbed one of the worms with a disgusted look on his face and put it on the finishing hook. He threw the fishing line back out into the water and then wiped his hand off on his pants.
"You're such a girl, Malfoy." Harry said.
"What about you, Potter? 'No, you don't put ginger on a fish. No see here let me do it." Malfoy said in a poor imation of Harry's voice.
"It's not my fault that Ginny doesn't know how to season a fish. I was going to have to eat it too and I wanted it to taste as good as possible. And it's also not my fault that my aunt always made me help with cooking for as long as I can remember." Harry said defensively. Malfoy just laughed and shook his head.
"What?" Harry asked. "What?" Harry asked again when Malfoy didn't reply and just kept laughing. Harry groaned annoyed at Malfoy.
"You're a prat." Harry said without any really feeling behind it.
"You're just upset that I won't tell you why I'm laughing." Malfoy said finally stopping laughing. Harry didn't reply to his remark.
They fished until it was almost dark, trading insults and sarcasm with each other for half of the time and sitting in silence for the other half. When the sun started setting they set the worms they hadn't used free, carefully picked up the broken clay pot filled with water and two small fish, and picked up the two fishing poles and walked back to Carpe Diem.
Ginny was turning one of the two small fish on the makeshift rake above hot coals and Luna was watching the small fire when they entered the clearing.
"Catch any fish?" Ginny asked with a sense of forbidding. She had to skin them after all.
"Two fishes today." Harry said setting the broken clay pot with water and two small fishes down by the door of the middle hut. Ginny sighed and contuined flipping the cooking fish onto their other side.
"Did you have a good afternoon?" Luna asked still not looking away from the fire. She always asked that, everyday, for some reason. The respond was second nature to them now.
Harry said, "Yeah." Ginny said, "Sure." And Malfoy grunted.
Ginny sometimes added a complaint about having to skin fish and Malfoy sometimes complained about all the work he supposedly did but Harry and Luna knew how to block out their complaints by now.
"The fish will be done soon." Ginny said sitting down on one of the logs they used as sits.
"Cool." Harry said. The four teenagers fell into silence for a while except for the cracking of the fire.
"I think we should try and make blankets or something. It's gettin' colder and our clothes aren't that warm." Ginny said breaking the silence.
"Toughen up, Weasley." Malfoy said without looking at her.
"I am tough, Malfoy. If I wasn't I would have cracked ages ago." Ginny said outraged.
"It is getting colder." Harry said carefully from his spot on the ground near the fire.
"Yeah of course. Gang up on the poor lone Slytherin." Malfoy said under his breath causing Ginny and Harry to laugh softly and Luna to smile amused.
"What are we supposed to make blankets out of, Weasley? Grass? We would be twenty before those finished. And we've used or burned all the fabric scraps we found." Malfoy said louder ignoring their amusement from his early remark.
"I don't know. I was just pointing out that we'll probably need blankets of some sort." Ginny said frustrated. She got up and used a bent fork to lift up the fish and check to see if they were done.
"I think the fish are done now." She said as she got a plate and carefully used the fork to push the fish onto the plate.
"Great, I am so hungary." Malfoy said getting up to stand behind Ginny and look over her shoulder at the fish.
"Do you mind?" Ginny asked annoyed.
"No, not at all." Malfoy said with a easy smirk and purposeful charm in his voice.
"Well, I do. So move." Ginny ordered as she used a knife to cut both fish in half.
"Now that wasn't very nice." Malfoy said with a fake wounded expression.
"Malfoy just move already. I'm not in the mood to listen to you and Ginny argue." Harry said tiredly.
"Yes, Malfoy move or I'll make sure you get a quarter of a fish instead of a half." Ginny said.
"You can't do that." Malfoy said confidently.
"Says who? I do the all the cooking except when Harry decides I'm not doing it right. No one's going to stop me." Ginny said even more confidently than Malfoy.
"Hey, I do not decide you're not doing it right. I just think it can be done better." Harry protested.
"So you can do the cooking better than me? You'll stay here all afternoon and skin and cook fish and soup and everything else?" Ginny cried angrily.
"No, thats not-"
"Well, fine. You can do it and you," Ginny said hotly turning towards Malfoy with tears burning in her eyes,
"You can get all the fish and firewood and fix all the stuff. I'm leaving since you can clearly do it all without me. Goodbye." Ginny yelled with tears threatening to fall from her eyes. She ran off into the woods before anyone could stop her.
Harry's "Ginny, wait. Come on." Fell on deaf ears. Harry, Luna, and Malfoy stood in stunned silence for a minute and a half before Malfoy said, "This is all your fault, Potter. You do know that right?"
"My fault? Why is it my fault?" Harry asked outraged.
"We need to go after her." Luna said stopping Harry and Malfoy from contuining their argument.
"Why should we? She's the one who ran off into the woods when it's almost completely dark." Malfoy said stubbornly.
"Because you and Harry were the ones to upset her and we're her friends." Luna said calmly.
"I am not Weasley's friend, Lovegood." Malfoy denied.
"Well, then because you helped upset her and you have no choice." Luna said picking up a long stick and setting the top end in the fire.
"I have no choice? What makes you think I have no choice?" Malfoy asked.
"The fact you are a decent person under all your pretenses and you feel a little guilty." Luna said very calmly as she removed the long stick that was now on fire from the fire. Harry snorted and took the flaming stick from Luna when she held it out to him.
"I am not your idea of a decent person, Lovegood. I don't hug kittens or defend muggleborns or praise muggles or anything close to that." Malfoy said.
"I know but Ginny isn't a muggle or muggleborn or a kitten. She is the girl who you have been living with for the last two or so months and she is hurting." Luna said looking right at Malfoy.
"I say we leave him and go looking for Ginny by ourselves, Luna. We're wasting time." Harry said impatiently. Luna nodded but was stilling looking unnerving at Malfoy.
"Are you coming, Draco?" She asked softly.
Malfoy sighed and said, "If I die, tell Pansy to sue Weasley for me." Luna smiled at him and then turned so she was smiling at Harry.
"Let's go." She said walking proposely towards the woods. Harry and Malfoy walked after her as they entered the woods where Ginny had.
____________
"GINNY." Harry yelled.
They had been yelling for her ever since they had entered the woods several minutes ago.
"WEASLEY, STOP BEING A DRAMA QUEEN AND COME HERE." Malfoy yelled clearly annoyed.
"Malfoy." Harry said warningly.
"What?" Malfoy asked. Harry shook his head and sighed.
"Ginny, please come here." Luna called.
They kept on walking in the woods calling Ginny's name every minute or so. Finally they heard someone yell, "Go away."
Harry and Luna started jogging in the direction her voice cam from with Malfoy walking quickly behind them.
"Ginny, we've been looking for you." Harry said relieved when he caught sight of her.
Ginny was sitting on the ground a few feet away with her knees pulled up to her chest and her arms wrapped around them.
"Why? So you can make me feel worse? Well, guess what it's not possible." Ginny said bitterly putting her head on her knees.
"Weasley, stop this. Get up and come back with us to Carpe Diem." Malfoy said walking over to her and pulling her arm to try and get her to stand up.
"Leave me alone, Malfoy." Ginny said yanking her arm out of Malfoy's hands.
"Ginny, what if something like that wolf thing comes here? Come on, let's go back to the huts." Harry said trying to reason with her. He walked over to her and put a hand on her arm. Ginny shook him off of her and said, "I don't care. Now go away."
Luna walked over to her and sat beside her without saying anything.
"Isn't letting yourself get kill a bit extreme for Potter and I making you feel bad?" Malfoy asked.
"My family's no where near me. I've always had one or two of my brothers or two. I'm on this stupid island with no way off and I've got to do so much and I never have to work this hard for anything in my life. And I miss my parents and Ron and Fred and George and-"
"Whoa. Whoa, slow down, Weasley I can't understand a single thing you are saying through the tears." Malfoy said interrupting Ginny who had tears running down her face over the tear tracks that were already there. Harry glared at him but Malfoy didn't even blink at Harry's glare.
"We know you miss your family, Ginny. We miss our families too." Luna said putting a arm around Ginny' shoulders.
"You don't understand. I'm always around someone from my family at school or at home. You're close to your dad but you spend months away from him anyway and you don't have any siblings. And Malfoy's dad been in pri- had been gone for the whole summer anyway and he spends the school months away from his mum and he doesn't have any brothers or sisters. And Harry doesn't even like his family. I'm always around someone from my family but you're not." Ginny said trying to explain to them why she was so upset and, in Malfoy's and Harry's case, failing.
Malfoy sighed and sat down slightly in front of Ginny apparently deciding he was going to have to wait a while before they went back to Carpe Diem.
"I miss Ron too, Ginny. And Hermione and all my other friends." Harry said after he had sat down in front of Luna facing Ginny.
"It's don't the same, Harry. You guys can't understand." Ginny said.
"Because you're not trying to let us understand. I can see you confusing me just to be spiteful but not Potter and Lovegood." Malfoy said.
"I am not spiteful." Ginny said hotly bring her head up from it's resting place on her knees.
"Is that really the most important thing in what I just said?" Malfoy asked raising a eyebrow.
"Yes. Well, no. But it's the one I want to talk about." Ginny replied.
"Ginny, just try and explain why we can't understand the reason why you'll risk one of those wolf things coming around." Harry said annoyed by Ginny and Malfoy's ability to get in an argument over anything.
"Because you're all only children. You've never have a older brother or sister to boss you around and tell you what to do and play games with you or cover for you if you break one of Mum's favorite vases or let you crawl into their bed when you have a nightmare and are too afraid to make it your parents' room or tell you bedtime stories or anything like that." Ginny said quietly.
"I grew up with my cousin, I think that counts." Harry said.
"Not from what you've told me about your life before Hogwarts." Ginny replied.
"What about his life before Hogwarts? No one knows anything about that other than he grew up with muggles." Malfoy asked a little too eagerly.
"Seriously, Malfoy?" Ginny asked.
"You were explaining why we won't understand. I spent most of my childhood days with Pansy Parkinson, Crabbe, and Goyle." Malfoy said trying to bring the conversation subject from his question back to Ginny's crying fit.
"That's not the same. You didn't have to spend all of your time before one of you went to Hogwarts with them except for a few hours where you or they went to friends houses. It's different having siblings, it's not like having friends unless you're like my brothers Fred and George." Ginny said trying to find words to explain having a brother or sister to only children.
"It's like…like well. Well, you always know no matter what that if you ever really needed someone to help you then they'll be there. A older sibling picks on you and teases you and generally tries to mess with you but they are always there to help you stand up again when you fall and need the, they tell you what to do but they do it because they care and don't want you to go through any hardships. They annoy you and sometimes you want to punch them in the face but they also let you play in the mud with them and dress them up as princesses so you can have a tea party. You feel like you hate them sometimes but deep down you really honestly love them and no matter what they or you do, you always know you love each other by the end of it. You can't get rid of them no matter what and sometimes you don't want to and sometimes you do. You know someday your parents will die but your siblings have always been there so you can't ever see them not with you and…I'm rambling." Ginny finished awkwardly and a faint blush coloring her cheeks under the tear tracks.
"It's fine. I've never had a brother or sister but sometimes I do wish knew what it was like." Luna said.
"It kinda sounds nice to have a sibling…except for the letting them dress you up as a princess." Malfoy said slowly at first but quickly tacting on the last part.
"Yeah, what he said." Harry said.
"I have a idea." Ginny said after a dew minutes in silence. The look on Harry's face clearly said 'oh no'.
"What?" Malfoy asked warily.
"Nothing said here or done here leaves this island whenever we get back right?" Ginny asked at their nods she continued, "Well, if you guys help me more and let me get away from came for a while. I'll be in a much better mood."
"That's the idea?" Malfoy asked.
"That can't be the idea, Ginny's ideas always sound like they'd be at home in a drama novel." Harry mumble under his breath.
"Well, what if until we leave this island, we agree to try and act like siblings?" Ginny suggested. When she saw the ludicrous looks on Malfoy's and Harry's faces, she explained, "Well, none of you have ever been a brother or a sister and you said it sounded nice. And nothing leaves this island so it doesn't really mean anything other than you get the chance to be a brother or sister. I can tell you how my older brothers act and you can kinda act like them and-"
"Oh, so this is so you can pretend you're surrounded by a loving family with two brothers and a sister and you're not a lone like you really are." Malfoy said harshly.
"No, that's-"
"Well, guess what, Weasley? You're not surrounded by a loving family. If we can even be called a family, it would be one of the most disfunical families out there. Just because you're feeling sorry for yourself because you don't have any family around here doesn't mean you can use us like puppets playing a part. I have no family, no friends, no allies here and you don't see me breaking down. If anyone deserves to be breaking down it's me." Malfoy said angrily.
"Oh, yeah?" Ginny asked standing up.
"Guys-" Harry started to say but he was cut off by Malfoy standing up and saying, "Yeah."
Ginny stood up on her toes so she was almost eye to eye to Malfoy.
"You're nothing but a two faced lying-" Ginny said inly to be cut off but Malfoy saying, "I'm two faced and lying? If that isn't the pot calling the kettle black then I don't know what is."
"I hate you." Ginny whispered dangerously.
"I hate you too, Weasley." Malfoy replied easily with a smirk.
"Malfoy. Ginny. Come one, let's go back to Carpe Diem." Harry said before they could start arguing again.
"You can't tell me what to do, Potter. You're just a weak boy who tricks and lies so he can make the world believe you're some hero, some Chosen One that's going to save us all. Well, just what? I don't want you to save me, I don't need anyone to save me." Malfoy yelled at Harry.
Harry stood up and yelled right back, "I lie and trick the world? You're the one that pretends to be the perfect Death Eater's son. The Chosen One for the dark side, that's what you want them to believe."
"I don't pretend about anything, Potter. I am the perfect Death Eater not the perfect Death Eater's son." Malfoy screamed right in Harry's face.
"You a Death Eater?" Ginny asked shocked.
"I knew it," Harry said smugly at the same as Ginny's question, "I knew you were a Death Eater. Following in Daddy's footsteps? Look were it end him up at, prison."
Malfoy's face started turing red with anger. "Well, let's hope you follow in your Daddy's and Mummy's and Godfather's footsteps, Potter. Won't that be wonderful?" Malfoy asked mockingly.
"Are you going to kill, Malfoy? Are you going to kill me, Malfoy? Are you going to take the life of another human being, Malfoy? Because you're going to have to kill to be the perfect Death Eater you clearly want to be." Harry said with dark humor tainting his words.
"Yes, I will kill you, Potter. I will stand over you and end your life with two words. I will be the one who finally stops you from being the Boy-Who-Lived. And I will enjoy it." Malfoy answered completely seriously.
"You can't kill him." Ginny cried lunging for Malfoy. She knocking into him and bounced back and landed on the ground.
"And why can't I?" Malfoy asked not at all pased by being pushed back a few steps by a redhead girl currently on the ground.
"You just need hate and power to cast the killing curse, I have both. I can also use a knife, and I know where one is, or strangle him, that only needs my two hands, or drowned him, harder but I think I can do. I can kill him. And I can kill you. And I can kill Lovegood." Malfoy finished saying with a dark presense in his words. Ginny couldn't bring herself to move from where she had landed on the ground.
"But you won't. Not here. You need us." Luna said slowly.
"And why would I need you, Potter?" Malfoy asked turning to face Luna.
"Because you can't live here without us. You don't know how to skin or cook fish. You would lose your mind if you didn't have someone with you to insult and argue with. You might kill us if you can when we get back to England but you won't here." Harry replied starting slowly but gaining confidentence as he went on.
"How can you be sure?" Malfoy asked dangerously.
"You won't. I trust you." Luna said standing up and putting her hand on his arm.
"How?" Malfoy asked softly his voice breaking.
"Because you're not a killer, Draco Malfoy. Just like Harry isn't a warrior and Ginny isn't a pacifist. You're not a killer." Luna replied.
"How can you be so sure of that?" Malfoy asked shaking off Luna's hand.
"Because killers' don't try and make other believe they are killers. Killers' don't care about others. You cared enough about Ginny to try and help find her tonight." Luna said.
"I don't care about Weasley." Malfoy denied hotly.
"Then why are you here?" Ginny asked harshly.
"I don't care about you. I don't care about anyone." Malfoy yelled backing away from Harry, Luna, and Ginny. Ginny got up off the ground and walked towards him angerly. He backed away but she kept coming towards him.
"You don't care about anyone? No one? Then you don't care about me. And if you don't care about me then you have no problem with hitting me." Ginny said challengingly.
"Ginny-" Harry said trying to warn her to stop.
"I won't hit a girl." Malfoy said with a slight deer-in-headlights look.
"But I'm not a girl, right? I'm a blood traitor. Filth. A Weasley." Ginny said seemingly trying to get him to hit her.
"Fine, if you what to have me hit you, I will." Malfoy said walking to her. Ginny still seemed confident and unconcerned.
"Malfoy, don't you dare hit her." Harry said taking a step forward.
"She asked me to, Potter. And it's polite to do what's asked of you." Malfoy said reaching Ginny who had stopped walking sometime ago.
"Well, are you going to do it or not?" Ginny asked impaticently after Malfoy had stood looking at her for a long minute.
"Of course, Weasley. Why wouldn't I?" Malfoy said. He raised his hand to strike her in the face.
"Malfoy, don't you dare." Harry said looking at Luna as if for help. Luna shrugged and watched Malfoy and Ginny. Malfoy brought his hand down and it landed on Ginny shoulder, gripping her shoulder hard. Malfoy brought his other hand up and gripped her other shoulder with it.
"Weasley, who do you think you are?" Malfoy asked quietly shaking her.
"I think I'm me, Malfoy." Ginny replied softly with a slight wince from Malfoy's grip on her shoulders.
"I think you're a stupid little girl asking for trouble." Malfoy said as one would ask how someone's day was.
"I was. You can't hit me. You won't hurt us here. I trust you here. If you had hit me I wouldn't of but you didn't so I do trust you." Ginny told him.
"It was a test?" Malfoy asked in shock letting go of Ginny's shoulders.
"Yeah, I guess so." Ginny replied.
"Let's go back to camp." Harry said quietly. Ginny, Malfoy, and Luna nodded and mumbled their agreement. And Ginny, Luna, Malfoy, and Harry walked back to Carpe Diem side by side in silence.