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Meetings

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Chapter 4 - Crimson Sky

The owl hooted dutifully and hopped forward on one leg, reaching forth the other towards Mr. Weasley. His brow furrowed as he took the letter that the animal held out for him, and quickly opened it. Everyone watched on baited breath as they watched his eyes dart back and forth across the page. His chin went slack and he sat back heavily into his chair.

"Arthur, dear? What is it?"

He held the letter in front of him, inviting someone else to read it. When no one else moved Ginny snatched it out of his hands, and quickly looked to see who it was from. She gasped and looked up.

"It's from Percy."

----

The sun was setting and the sky was turning orange. A light rain was falling around the house. A small trail of smoke drifted out from a red brick chimney and was swept away from a soft wind. If people had been able to see the house they would have thought that everyone inside was happy. That a happy family lived there, and that at that moment they were all laughing and having a good time together; That nothing could have happened that would change that... But they couldn't see the house or the people who lived there.

Three hours had passed since the owl had arrived with Percy's letter - it had been two since anyone had spoken. They were all waiting.

Ginny was sitting in the corner of her room on the hard wood floor. Her legs were drawn up and her arms hugged them close. Her eyes were closed and her head rested in the crook of the room. She had turned the lights off, but had left her door open, letting the brightness from the hall spill in across her floor.

It wasn't a very comfortable position that she was in, but she wasn't looking for that. She was just listening and waiting. There wasn't much to listen to. The house was silent except for the occasional squeaking of the floorboards of someone moving around downstairs. Someone had sneezed twice. She knew that no one knew what to say. There really was nothing. She couldn't even think of anything. The events of the evening had left everyone speechless. Her mind kept replaying it, from the moment the letter arrived, to the present.

"It's from Percy," she said in hushed voice. There was not the dreadful silence like she supposed would come, but neither was there the rush of voices.

Ron had jumped up, his face flushing with anger. "What does that idiot want?" he demanded.

Mrs. Weasley quietly sat down with a calm composer that surprised Ginny. Harry was still, as was Hermione. Professor Lupin had gotten up slowly and came over to read the letter of her shoulder, while Kingsley sat in his chair with all the likeness of a king, his eyes trained at her. Malfoy had sat there, a confused expression on his face.

"Who's Percy?" He asked immediately after Ron had spoken. No one answered him.

"Oh my," was all Lupin said before taking his seat once more. He ran his hand through his hair.

"Ginny dear," Mrs. Weasley finally spoke. "What does it say?"

"What does that idiot want?" Ron repeated in a steady, angered voice.

She quickly read the letter again, to make sure she had read it right the first time. Yes, she had. She glanced quickly at Lupin, as if to get encouragement from him before she read it for all to hear. Her father stayed silent, his face resting in his hands, unmoving.

She took a deep breath before starting, her eyes scanning over the letter once again. "He's leaving the ministry," she read. "He admits that he's wrong."

Ron opened his mouth, probably to shout out something triumphant, but Hermione shot him a glance that told him that now was not the time.

Ginny continued, "He going to go the Burrow." She paused and scanned over some more words. "If we are willing to welcome him back, then one of us are to meet him there."

Ron and Harry snorted in sync. The former muttered something under his breath.

Mrs. Weasley sat forward, tears starting to prick her eyes. "Percy's coming home?" she whispered. Ginny handed the letter over to her promptly.

Shacklebolt sat forward. "When does he plan to leave?"

"As soon as possible. He plans to be at the Burrow in less than an hour," Lupin answered, in a tired voice. "Arthur, we'll go with you--" he stopped short and looked around at everyone else. "That is, if you choose to forgive him."

Mrs. Weasley sniffed and looked up from the letter. "Of course we will forgive him Remus. He is our son."

He gave a curt nod, but before he could continue, Ron interrupted.

"Yeah, a son who disowned his family."

"Ronald!" Hermione admonished. He glared at her.

"Who's Percy?" Draco asked again, annoyed. Again he was disregarded.

Harry leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. "Isn't he in danger? Could someone have seen and read the letter?" Everyone glanced quickly at Harry, then the letter.

Lupin, Kingsley and Mr. Weasley jumped up from their chairs and headed for the door. Everyone else rushed after them.

"Percy doesn't know anything, does he, Dad?" Ginny asked nervously.

"Molly, send for other Order members - some to help us and others to come here. We're going to head to the Ministry and try to stop Percy. Send others to the Burrow to wait." He wrapped his cloak around him and looked at Ginny. "He doesn't know anything that would put us in any real danger, but they don't know that."

Ginny didn't need to ask who they were. She knew, and the weight of it seemed to fall upon her shoulders.

"Ginny, I want you to get a hold of your brothers. Send owls to Charlie and Bill. Floo to the shop. We don't want any more owls flying around then needed." Ginny gave a curt nod to her father.

"We'll help Mr. Weasley." Ginny looked over her shoulder to see Hermione, Harry and Ron with unwavering faces. Lupin and Kingsley were already out the door. Mr. Weasley paused long enough to give them a curt nod and give them the order to go to the Burrow.

"Be on your guard." And he was gone, Hermione, Harry and Ron running after

Mrs. Weasley grabbed her cloak and swirled it around her shoulders. Pulling on a hat, she looked hard at Ginny. "Remember Ginny - only two owls, then straight to the shop. I want Fred and George to Apperate back here with you. Be careful deary. I'll be back before you know it." And suddenly Ginny was alone in the house, watching the back of her mother disappeared in the distance.

"What am I going to do while all of you go off and play heroes?"

Ginny screamed and whirled around.

Draco was standing in the hallway behind her. He was staring at her, a slightly stunned expression on his face. "Bloody hell," he cried. "What in the hell are you screaming about, woman?"

"Don't do that!" Ginny looked fiercely at him.

"Don't do what? Ask questions?"

Ginny tried to calm herself. "I just forgot you were here. Damn." They all had.

"I figured as much, from the state that my ears are now in." He pretended to wince in pain. "Thanks."

She flashed him a dazzling smile, and unexpectedly found that she was happy that he was there. She wouldn't have to do this alone. She marched past him and up the stairs. He followed closely behind her.

"So what am I going to do while all of you are gallivanting around?"

"You, Mr. Malfoy, are coming with me."

This was apparently not what he expected. "You would allow me to go out into the world?"

"The twins shop is hardly considered the world, and since I can't leave you here by yourself, then yes, you are coming with me." She entered her room and looked around. "Damn. I forgot I don't have a desk. Do you have a writing table?" He nodded yes and she briskly led the way down the hall further to his room.

She found the paper and quill and started to dictate a letter to her brothers, but paused, turning towards Draco who had taken a seat on his bed.

"Also, when you consider the fact that all the followers of Voldemort would kill you on sight, there's not to much I have to worry about letting you outside the house." She smiled at him brightly while he glared at her.

A noise shook Ginny from her thoughts. Someone was walking up the stairs. She listened intently and wished that whoever it was wouldn't stop and try to talk to her. She didn't want to have a conversation filled with uncomfortable silences and pauses. She just wanted to be silent.

The footsteps came closer to her door and finally stopped. A shadow lay across her floor, blocking out the light from the hall. She couldn't see who it was, but she shrank further into her corner, willing them to leave. It was probably just Tonks, or her mother. A leg came into view all of a sudden, as the figure stepped into her room.

It was Malfoy. She didn't want to have to deal with him, or his insistent questions either. He looked straight towards her, without even a glance around the room. Like he knew she was going to be there. Their eyes met. Ginny didn't move. He finally had to break it, and he walked over to her and slid down the wall to sit next to her. Neither spoke. They ignored each other.

Ginny was relieved that he didn't feel like talking and her thoughts turned back to earlier.

"What do you mean Percy's coming home. Mum and Dad aren't going to welcome him, are they?" George asked.

"And what is this slimly bugger doing here?" Fred added, pointing his finger at Draco.

They were all standing in a small store room at their shop. It was crowded, to say the least. Ginny had managed to get her brothers to come with her into the back room, and let Angelina Johnson, Fred's trusty girlfriend take control of the store while she talked with him.

She glared at Fred, but made no comment to him. "I wouldn't quite say that we are welcoming Percy back, but just allowing him to come down off of that stupid, imaginary throne that he put himself in. I personally wouldn't mind seeing him shed a few tears."

"I'll make sure he sheds more than just a few," George threatened passionately. Fred gave a curt nod to show his full agreement.

Ginny just shrugged. Merlin knows he deserved it, and all that Fred and George did to him didn't matter to her.

"Mum wants you guys to go to the house just in case they need you."

"We can't leave the shop."

"I believe it's called an order, Fred; Not a request." He groaned. She smiled. "Mum wants you to apperate back with me."

Fred pointed his finger at Draco once again. "What about him?"

"Well, he doesn't have a wand, so one of you will have to apperate with him." Draco glowered. Her brothers glared at him.

"They are not touching me," Draco said with decisiveness in his voice.

"Well, then, I guess you'll have to die here," Ginny retorted back.

"Why can't I just floo back?"

"It's too dangerous, and you know it."

"Go to hell."

Ginny glared at him, and he shrunk under the gaze, but held it. Fred and George glanced silently at each other. She reached into her robes and pulled out her wand. Everyone in the small room started when they saw it. Draco's demeanor started to fall apart, and his skin seemed to lose color.

"Ginny, I don't think--" George received a glair from her and he fell silent.

She lifted her arm and pointed the wand at Draco. Everyone froze when they saw her lips move silently, and a trail of light exited from the tip of it. The spell flew past Draco's head and hit the door behind him. Nobody moved. Draco's eyes were wide and his mouth was open in shock. She had a look of triumph in her eyes and she gave a pleased smile to herself before putting the wand away.

"You missed," Draco finally was able to sputter out.

"No, I didn't," she replied. "I just put a spell on the door. Now you can't leave this room, unless Fred or George allow you to - or in other words, you can't leave unless you apperate out of here with one of them."

"Oh." He glowered at her in defeat.

"Right then." She smiled brightly as she looked around at her brothers. "Shall we be off?"

Draco shifted and broke Ginny's thoughts.

"Percy's your brother right?" He asked faintly. Ginny just nodded, her eyes closed. "Older, right?"

"Of course. All of my brothers are older than me. He's the third."

Silence. Someone downstairs coughed. A bird chirped outside her window. The sun was no longer shining through around her drawn curtains. Her room was cold and she shivered. Draco noticed and stood. He went over to closet, apparently to find her a cloak or sweater.

He glanced back at her. "Where are all of your jumpers?"

She didn't answer.

He sighed and left the room. But presently he returned with a sweater that she distantly remembered seeing him wear. He offered it to her and she took it, slipping it over her head. He sat down next to her again.

"Thanks," she whispered.

"Why do you all hate your brother so much to the point of wanting him to die?" He said.

She gave a low laugh. "None of us wish that he would die. He's still our brother, if we like it or not."

"But you still hate him, right?"

"With a vengeance," she replied. She shifted, her right leg was starting to become numb. "Right before my fourth year, Voldemort made his appearance, as you probably know. We knew he was back, but Percy, working for the Ministry, didn't believe us. He told us we were all crazy."

"What did he do?"

"He gave up his family for the Ministry. He became Fudge's assistant. He broke off all contact with us."

"Some brother."

"That's not all," she continued. "He even wrote letters to Ron and me, telling us to - what did he say?" She paused and thought. "Oh yes. 'Break off all association with Potter.' He was a joke."

"If he was my brother, I wish he were dead," Draco said.

"Like I said, he's our brother. We could never fully wish for his death. You wouldn't wish for your father to die, with a whole heart, would you?"

Draco didn't answer, and Ginny knew the answer.

"But he is your father," she whispered. "Even if he was the devil himself, you could never wish for him to die."

"That man," he said in a forceful voice, "is not my father. I do not have a father."

Ginny remained silent. She looked over and met his eyes. She held them. She suddenly felt sorry him. She couldn't imagine hating her father so much.

"I was thinking about changing my name," he said after a long silence. Ginny was surprised.

"Why?" she asked.

"The Malfoy's have always been know for their evil doings. I don't want to be associated with it anymore."

Ginny pondered this before she spoke. "You should keep the name Malfoy, and start a new standard for what the name stands for."

"That would kill my father," Draco replied with a hoarse laugh, a small grin on his face.

"And that would bother you?" Ginny replied with a smile. His smile slowly disappeared from his face and he looked at her intently.

She turned again, staring at the far wall. Her smile faded as well. The room was again silent.

"How long has it been?" she said.

"Almost four hours," He replied softly.

"They should have been back by now." Draco remained silent. Ginny shivered again, despite the warmth of his sweater. "I'm scared."

Agad!! Sorry I didn't update sooner!

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