Author's Note: A NEW CHAPTER! YUH NIGGA! And do you know what made me want to write it? Muthafuckin' Twilight. And if you muthafuckas can read muthafuckin' Twilight, you can read & review this. I'm pretty sure it doesn't suck as bad.
The vapor hung high in the Great Hall, giving a sickly green glow to the incandescent walls. Ginny felt the pigment drain from her face as she gazed upon the smoky skull. She couldn't believe it was happening again. They hadn't really defeated him.
People were apparating away left and right. Ginny gripped her wand tightly in her hand. She prepared to use it in a way she'd hoped she never would have to again. Soon, the bystanders and the press had cleared out. No one was left but a few ministry aurors, and Dumbledore's Army.
"We've got to find them!" Ginny cried out.
The very real possibility that the Death Eaters had become a legitimate threat once again hovered on everyone's consciousness collectively. "SEARCH THE CASTLE!" an auror's voice boomed. Ginny clutched onto Harry's arm. She couldn't bear leaving his side again. She wouldn't let him disappear after he just came back into her life.
A din exploded through the castle as they searched. The odds were the perpetrator had already fled the scene, but that didn't stop Ginny's feverish efforts. Her hands jittered badly as she ripped open cabinet doors. Her heels pounded the stone floors as she sprinted around. The atmosphere was, understandably, hectic, but even with that said, she received quite a few concerned looks from the hunting party.
"Ginny…" Hermione wrapped an arm around Ginny's shoulders. "It probably isn't anything to worry about at all. Someone's just trying to get attention." Hermione said hopefully, as if by speaking the words she made it so.
Ginny laid her head on Hermione's shoulder. She tried to stifle her tears. She hated whoever did this. If it was just some fool playing a prank, it made it worse. If that was the case, her evening would be ruined in vain.
"Come on," Harry's determined voice broke the silence. "We haven't checked any of the upper floors! Stay together!"
Ginny smiled despite her tears. Leader, she thought. That one word summed up Harry to her. Without his bravery, Voldemort's reign of evil would be oppressing the wizarding community, and her & the entire Weasley family would be dead. He was more than her boyfriend. He was her savior.
Her will strengthened, she followed Harry out to the stairwell, the others trailing behind her. The stairwell was still beautifully illuminated for the evening's festivities. No evidence of anything sinister was present. In fact, it looked downright angelic.
Her eyes scanned the marvelous décor. The portraits were all vacant. Their occupants had fled from the commotion. It was so peaceful in the pale, golden light, like Heaven. The radiance beamed on their faces. Despite the celestial aura, Ginny didn't let herself forget it was all a façade. A demon lurked somewhere among these angels.
As they walked, Ginny continued searching. She noticed that the stair railing was covered with a fur of some sort, the color of a snow leopard. All this decoration. For nothing. She thought bitterly. Even though Voldemort's supporters could be on the rise once more, the idea central to her mind was that she had been robbed of what was supposed to be a wonderful evening. No matter how she tried to smooth out her life, this damned war would always jut out and ruin everything.
Speaking of jutting out, Ginny noticed the furs on the staircase segued off into another color. Another texture. The gentle, fluffy gray had segued into smooth, pale blonde. A material that set off a spark in Ginny's memory.
She seized this fabric in her fist and yanked upwards hard, like she was uprooting a writhing little mandrake. What she pulled up was a writhing little man named Draco Malfoy.
"YOU ABSOLUTE BASTARD!" Ginny screamed in his ear. No sooner had she uttered these words as bony white hands squeezed her little neck. Draco tackled her to the ground. She easily rolled him underneath her.
"Ahhhhh!" Ginny released a strangled war cry from her throat as she grabbed handfuls of his hair. She used them like reins to drive his skull into the stone floors repeatedly. Draco squirmed and squirmed, but was unable to throw her off.
His vision flickered as his head slammed to and fro. Ginny began punching him in the face, studding his visage with pink indentations from her knuckles. She struck his nose, and he felt his own blood drain down his throat before he blacked out.
Regrettably (in Ginny's opinion) the orgy of violence was stopped abruptly when two large aurors lifted her off bloody, crumpled Draco. "That…that was fucking brilliant. I've wanted to do that for so many years." Ron said as he grinned ear to ear. Ginny swore she saw a tear drop down his cheek.
"W-why didn't anyone help me?" Ginny struggled to speak as she regained her breath.
"It looked like you had a firm grip on things. We didn't want to stand in the way of your heroism." George flashed her a cheeky grin. She grinned back at him; she hadn't seen that bright smile in what felt like a decade.
"So what do we plan to do with this wanker?" A gruff auror spoke up.
"Azkaban," Ron immediately said. A broken giggle erupted through the crowd, but it stopped when Ron shot a look that communicated he was quite serious.
"It's tempting," Harry interjected. "But I think it would be better if we kept him for a little while, let him know that he won't be doing this again." Harry smirked wickedly.
"I really don't know," said Luna, seemingly out of nowhere. "His parents are still alive, and so are some other Death Eaters. We might be killed." She stated in her unwaveringly calm manner.
"It's not likely anything's going to happen. If the Malfoys try to retaliate in any way, they'll be put in Azkaban." remarked Hermione. Ginny had never heard Hermione advocate any kind of mischief in her life. Truly, this was a cause for celebration.
"Well, that settles it. Boy's yours." An auror said.
Ginny couldn't believe their luck. They practically had LEGAL rights to torture Malfoy. The evening did turn out to be something special after all. She was proud of herself. She had brought joy to her family, if only temporarily. She was sure Harry was more than pleased with her performance tonight. Above all, she felt invigorated. Silvery, blonde hairs were stuck all over her. Sticky, fragrant blood was smeared on her fingers. Suddenly, she got an impulse.
Nonchalantly, she brushed her red locks back, making sure she passed a finger below her nostrils. She inhaled the deep, dirty aroma. She felt so crazy…yet so fulfilled, so electrified, so excited all over her body. It was like she had vanquished her worries with those blows on Draco. She had brought back old schoolyard memories of their rivalry. He was simply an arrogant Slytherin, swaggering amongst honest Gryffyndors. He was no longer working for the side of evil, and she was no longer a hero fighting for the righteous cause. It was just like old times. She relished the thoughts of what other comforts the night had in store.
In retrospect, maybe she bit off a little bit more than she could chew.