OOO
"Something to tell us about Dragon?" Ginny poured herself a glass of lemonade and took a sip. "What do you mean?"
"First things first," Draco replied as he took a wrapped package out of his cloak. As he unwrapped it, the others saw that it contained a raw liver which he fed to Tywyll. While the Thestral munched, Draco wiped his hands off on the grass then took a glass of lemonade that Ginny poured and handed him. "You have to promise that you won't tell anybody what we're about to tell you. Don't worry – it isn't anything bad. It's a big secret though. We made Fred and George promise the same if it makes you feel any better."
"Well, if you could tell Fred and George and they kept quiet about it, I can too."
"I will keep silent on the matter," Luna replied, "since you do not wish it known."
"Alright then." He gave one last glance towards Theo and Harry. "Dragon is actually an Animagus – and not just any Animagus. He's Sirius Black." Ginny's eyes widened. "You can ask Harry and Nott if you like – but this isn't a prank and I'm not joking."
"I believe you," Luna interrupted softly, reaching for a cookie.
"It's how he's been hiding all these years," Draco went on. "He came to our house when I was really little disguised as a big black dog and he's been hiding ever since."
"You mean it?" Ginny looked shocked. "I mean, you really mean it?" Harry and Nott nodded a confirmation and her expression darkened. "And you didn't tell me?" She punched him in the arm. "How long have I known you? Luna too! You're just getting around to telling us this now? And you mentioned Fred and George – you'd tell them before you'd tell me?! I can't believe you!"
"I was at school!" Draco protested. "This isn't exactly something I'd be comfortable sending in a letter! Besides – I had to tell Fred and George! Didn't I, guys?"
"There were mitigating circumstances," Theo affirmed.
"I don't care what there were!" Ginny huffed. "You can trust me – could have trusted me!"
"I didn't want to get either of you into trouble." He was apologetic. "With Peter still on the loose – which was, by the by, partially your brother's fault as we'll get to – Sirius would be in Azkaban, maybe would have gotten kissed if anything had gotten out. Not that I think you would have told," he added hastily, seeing the look on her face. "But you live in a crowded house. And the fewer who know a secret the better it's kept."
Luna smiled serenely at him and took out a small wrapped package of her own.
"I brought some food for your Thestral too." She peeled the butcher's paper away from a raw steak, briefly interrupting the story. "Can I feed him now?"
"Go right ahead. It looks like he finished off the liver anyway."
Tywyll tore into the fresh piece of meat while the Abraxan grazed and the boys related to the girls all that had transpired during the school year, particularly towards the end. If it were at all possible, they made an even better audience than the one in the hospital room after their final adventure had. Their looks of admiration were such that Theo noticed Harry and Draco blushing from time to time, laughing nervously and assuring them that they were good but maybe not that fantastic – or maybe, on second thought, perhaps they were.
While the girls broke out into a spate of light clapping, Draco grabbed a clump of grapes and popped a few into his mouth with a smirk.
"So you've been doing this for years?" Ginny threw her hair back with a laugh and reached for a sandwich.
"Oh yeah," he nodded. "And what we've been talking about here – that's just a fraction of the adventures I had with Sirius. The thing of it is, though – my parents can't know. Even though he's probably going to be cleared of his crimes, if my mum and dad find out that my dog is Sirius Black… well, it won't be pretty to say the least. So do you think you can keep this secret?"
"Don't worry – we can," Ginny reassured him. "I mean, I wouldn't want anything like what happened to Theo to happen to you."
"Hey! My parents aren't like that!" Draco frowned. "I mean, they'd be mad, but I don't ever think they'd throw me out or something."
A bit abashed, Ginny blushed and nodded. "Well, regardless, we don't want you getting in any sort of trouble. Nobody will find out from me, promise. And especially not Ron."
"I'll never tell either," Luna chimed in. "And even if I did, I'm not sure that anybody except maybe my father would believe me. Adults think I'm a bit off, you know."
"Well most adults, from what I've seen, haven't any good sense at all." Draco began ripping the peel off of an orange. "If they did, then surely they would have seen what Quirrell was up to long before we did, it seems to me."
Luna nodded in commiseration. "I find them to be quite limited in the scope of their imagination."
"I know what you mean." Harry swallowed the chicken he was gnawing. "I'm still not sure my Uncle Vernon has wrapped his head around the idea of magic."
"Speaking of imagination…" Theo wiped his hands off on a napkin and lifted his book. "Now that we've all had something to eat, shall I read a poem or two?"
"Go right ahead," Ginny encouraged. "It's part of why we invited people, isn't it?"
"Then if I could have you attention," Theo went on as he cleared his throat and stood up, "I shall begin.
"Mistah Kurtz – he dead. A penny for the old guy. We are the hollow men, we are the stuffed men…"
The poem was not long and Theodore's voice was low and rhythmic, keeping their attention focuses solely on him. Even Tywyll seemed to perk his ears and twist his head towards the boy. As he went on, Draco shifted uncomfortably and cast a glance at Harry who was similarly frowning. Luna's wide-eyed focus never wavered and Ginny watched him with a studied expression.
"… not with a bang, but a whimper."
He finished and closed the book shut softly, then looked up at the group. "Well, how was it? What do you think?"
Nobody said anything for a long moment, the only sounds being the twitter of birds and the sounds of the horses. Then Draco looked at Theo with a pained expression.
"That was… that was really weird Theo, I mean… It… well… It wasn't bad, not exactly, it's just that…"
"I feel odd. Twisted, like," Harry replied. "I didn't really understand all of it, but parts of it – I don't know!"
"All that stuff about dying stars and kingdoms and everything…" Draco shrugged. "It's… bizarre, like looking into a pitch black night when you don't think morning will ever come."
"I feel strange too," Ginny added quietly. "And I'm not sure why…"
"That poem had a very sad soul, I think." Luna spoke softly. "I wonder that you chose it – do you have a sad soul too, Theo?"
He blushed. "Well, I guess you could say so. But this is what good poetry does – makes you think, makes you feel. Even if it's a bit upsetting – I think it's good to be upset once in a while. There's so much to life and not all of it is beautiful, at least not in any conventional sense of the word." He gave them a rueful smile. "But since it seems to have upset you so much, I won't read anymore."
"No, no!" Draco protested. "It's not that. It's only… I don't think I've ever read anything like that before. It was different, more than anything I've ever heard."
"I agree," Harry chimed in. "It was strange but not really a bad kind of strange. I mean, I'm not angry you read it or anything. Maybe you shouldn't read something like that every time, but once it awhile, that shouldn't be too much."
"It was pretty even," Ginny added. "But like you said – in a different way than you would normally think."
"Perhaps we shall get to The Waste Land eventually then," Theo conceded. "For today, however, perhaps I shall finish with something a little more exciting and a little less disturbing." He picked up a second book that he'd left by his plate and opened it. "I'll warn you beforehand that this one is a little bit sad too, but not really in the same way.
"It's called The Highwayman by Alfred Noyes."
His second recitation more closely resembled the story telling that the boy had done earlier. The absorption that his listeners felt was not a disturbed entrancement, but rather excitement to hear what would happen next in the narrative. They cried out when Bess killed herself and again when the highwayman was shot at the end, exhaled and inhaled with the rise and fall of the story and clapped with enthusiasm at the end.
"I liked that one," Ginny grinned. "It was really romantic."
"And a bit spooky," Draco added.
"I liked the suspense. And the fighting," Harry interjected while he grabbed a few cookies.
"The imagery was quite lovely. I think I should like to imagine the moon as a ghostly galleon from now on," Luna added. "It's a very beautiful thought, don't you think?"
Theo grinned and sat down. "I like this one too – for all the reasons you guys said. It's not as weighty as other poems, but it's certainly fun to read. And if you guys think you'd care to have a few more picnics in the future, maybe I can read something longer over the span of a few days or weeks."
"I think that sounds like a fantastic idea," Draco declared.
"Besides," Luna smiled at Draco, "don't you have a birthday coming up? June fifth, right? If we have a picnic for anything it should be that."
"Yeah… I do. How'd you remember?"
"You mean you don't? We met on your birthday. The day you made all the snakes escape. We visited the dragons and the birds and talked to the Snidget."
"Oh yeah… that." He blushed and laughed. "I'd nearly forgotten about the zoo."
"Well if we're having a birthday party my mum will be sure to make a cake," Ginny grinned. "A huge one, probably, with tons of frosting. Dad will be livid if he finds out who it's for, but what do we care about that? And you have a birthday coming up too, don't you Harry?"
"July 31st," he affirmed. "Not that it's a big deal or anything. I don't want you to go to any trouble."
"It's no trouble," Ginny rolled her eyes. "Mum loves to cook, especially for friends. If we tell her it's for you she'll probably make it bigger than you are. Not that she would like you any less," she told Draco, "but I think she feels bad for Harry because of his aunt and uncle and all that."
"Yeah, thanks to my parents I'll probably have to have an 'official' birthday," Draco groaned. "Hopefully I can talk them out of it, but since I'm getting older they might want to insist on a big to-do. If nothing else there will probably be a private one with them – I can't exactly see them stretching out with us on the grass for lemonade and cake."
"Well just tell us what day around the fifth is best and what kind of cake you want and we'll take care of the rest," Ginny winked.
"I'll let you know soon. I n the meanwhile – when should we have our next picnic? And just so you don't have to do all the work," he said with a look at Ginny and Theo, "I'll bring the food this time."
"Two or three days from now, maybe?" Ginny suggested.
"Lets make it two," Harry added. "I don't have much else to do otherwise."
"We can do things besides have a picnic, you know," Theo smiled.
"Like go to the movies?" Draco broke in. "We haven't gone to the theater in a while. Or had a movie night. We should do that too."
"Maybe we could have the picnic in the afternoon and then in the evening go to my house and watch movies," Luna suggested.
"That sounds good to me," Harry nodded.
"Me too," Ginny added.
"We're agreed then?" Theo looked around and everybody nodded. "Excellent. Two days then, Draco will bring food and we'll retire to Luna's afterwards to watch movies."
"Now that that's settled and we've all had food and dessert, who wants to go horse riding?" Draco jumped up and brushed the crumbs off. "They're both really gentle, I promise, and if you like I can lead them with the bridle so that they won't gallop if you don't want to go that fast."
"I'd love to ride Tywyll!" Luna clasped her hands together.
"And I'll take a turn on the Abraxan," Ginny grinned.
"I'm good for now, thanks," Harry replied. "Maybe after the girls take their turns."
"Same here," Theo responded. "I might lose my lunch if I go cantering about on the back of one of those creatures."
"Your loss," Draco shrugged and smiled.
He helped the girls to mount and they both spurred the horses into action, with Draco running alongside as they cantered. Their blonde and red locks spread out behind them, blown by the wind and the speed at which they were moving, and Draco clapped as they each executed little leaps and even flew around for a bit. After about thirty minutes, they made their way back and Draco held the reins out to the two boys.
"Come on," he urged. "It will be fun."
"I'll be riding the Abraxan back, so I think I'm good." Harry waved him off.
"Oh, I suppose," Nott relented with a sigh.
Theo took the Abraxan and Draco remounted Tywyll himself, galloping side by side over the nearby hills. Ginny and Luna drank more lemonade and watched them both in action, Nott a bit more awkward and Draco skilled but much more reckless.
"He's quite good isn't he?" Ginny observed.
"Who, Draco?" Harry spoke up. "He loves that Thestral. The first time we ever met he was riding it, when he went to kidnap me so that I could meet Sirius. And I've seen how he treats it at home. There are a few more that roam the woods that he's familiar with, but Tywyll is far and away his favorite."
"He's always been good with animals," Luna mentioned. "And he will be better still. Draco is fond of horses and they're very fond of him."
"Broke my heart when he told us about that unicorn," Ginny sighed.
"Broke your heart? You should have heard how he went on about it, right after it happened. I don't think I'd ever seen somebody so upset over something like that. I mean, maybe Hagrid might be. But Draco was still worked up over it days later."
"I'm not surprised," Luna nibbled a madeleine with a look of sympathy. "It must have been very hard to see a unicorn dead, to feel like he had failed to protect her."
"Protect her?" Ginny raised an eyebrow. "I hardly think it's his job to single-handedly guard the forest. Unicorns are fast and strong; I don't know what Draco could do for them that they couldn't do for themselves."
At that point, Draco returned with Theo trotting behind, as the sun was beginning to slide below the hills and casting an orange glow over the picnicking group. They packed up, bid each other farewell, Draco and Harry trotting slowly home with Dragon joining them along the way, sharing a look that indicated they would fill each other in later on.
Luna flounced off to her home, spreading the remains of her flowers along the way, and Theo walked along with Ginny back towards the Burrow.
"I think that went rather well," he smiled.
"Yeah," Ginny sighed. "It did. I liked you poems – even if they were a bit odd – and the food was really good too."
"Thanks to you and your mother."
"You helped too!"
He laughed. "I suppose so."
"Really, Theo, you should give yourself some credit."
When they neared the Burrow, Theo frowned. Most of the lights seemed to be off and there was no noise coming from inside. Usually, even when it was evening, they could at least hear Fred and George getting up to something. He glanced towards Ginny, worried.
"It's quiet," he whispered. "Do you think something's wrong?"
"Dunno," she whispered back.
They approached the door and knocked softly. Mr. Weasley opened it to reveal the dimly lit kitchen with Mrs. Weasley sitting hunched at the table.
"Come on in kids," he murmured.
"What happened?" Theo looked at Mrs. Weasley who, upon closer inspection, had tears streaming down her face. "Did somebody get hurt?"
Looking up to see Ginny and Theo, Mrs. Weasley bowed her head again and broke into a fresh burst of tears, sobbing into a kitchen towel she had crumpled in her hand.
"Mum?" Ginny dropped the nearly-empty basket and ran to her side, Theo following suit a moment later. "Mum, what is it?"
"It's… it's… oh!" Her shoulders shook. "It's worse than the Sorting!"
Ginny looked up towards her father and mouthed the word 'Ron?' to which he nodded.
Patting her on the arm, Ginny and Theo reluctantly left her and followed Mr. Weasley into the nearby pantry.
"It's Ron," he whispered. "He left this afternoon. Apparently he ran away to the Parkinson's."
"To Pansy's?" Theo looked outraged and mortified. "That git!" He hissed. "That idiot! Doesn't he understand how much this is hurting her? Doesn't he understand what he has here? What a bloody fool," he spat.
Ginny was so livid she could barely speak, only nod in furious agreement. "Come on, Theo," she muttered at last. "Let's get the picnic stuff cleaned up and see if there isn't anything we can do for Mum."
Theo nodded and they went back out to comfort Mrs. Weasley as best they could.
OOO
Next time: A flashback in which we find out how things have gone with Sirius. And perhaps a bit with Ron. Hope that everybody had a happy new year and that you enjoyed the first new chapter of 2008. :)