[ES] The Confrontation

(Final part of the Enemy series)

Draco sat in his room in a big, leather chair by the fireplace. One would assume the manor was a very cold place considering the number of fireplaces in the manor -“ less than in the abandoned Malfoy Manor, but a considerable amount more than an average house. His bedroom was dark and although he stared into the fireplace, it was empty. The only thing granting some light upon the room were the moonbeams leaking through the ceiling-high, curtained windows. In one hand, he held a small glass of Fire Whiskey. In the other, he held an empty decanter which once housed the Fire Whiskey.

All his thoughts were centered around her. He hadn't seen her since he left Hogwarts five years prior. However, that didn't mean he stopped thinking about her. He thought about her everyday and every night he lived. He cursed himself a fool every night before going to bed because he allowed his thoughts to focus on her constantly. He knew he was being pathetic, he knew he was acting like a fool -“ he hated himself for it.

He threw the decanter towards the mantle of the fireplace and it smashed to thousands of shards. He downed the rest of his glass and threw that as well, following the same course as the decanter. He felt the liquid burn his throat and stomach, before settling and warming him. He leaned back in his chair and let the breeze in the room surround his naked torso and cool him. He paused.

He didn't move and didn't make a sound. The windows were all closed, he was sure. He had closed them all and drew the curtains before settling down with his flask of Fire Whiskey. The manor was fairly new as well, so the windows couldn't be loose on their joints. There was only one possibility left: someone was in the room with him. He still didn't move, hoping the other person hadn't realized that he realized that they were there.

Think I'm sleeping. Think that I've fallen asleep' he forced the thought upon the other being.

It was in that instant he wasn't all that sure when he first felt the breeze. If he was so content and comfortable to relax in his chair and allow himself to be embraced by the breeze, then it must have been there for some time. The question was: how long?

Subtly, he moved his right arm from the arm of the chair, to his side. Slowly, quietly, he slipped his wand out of his pants' pocket and gripped it just a slight tighter than normal. If it was a Death Eater, he'd be fine. If it was an Auror, that could provide some challenge for him. But he was at a disadvantage considering the intruder knew his whereabouts but he didn't know the whereabouts of the intruder.

What a time for me to forget Identifying Spells and Location Spells' he thought bitterly as began to rack his brain for spells he had learned thoroughly but never used.

He quickly went through all the Spells he could remember on the spot, Levitation Charm, Freezing Charm, Light Spell, Fire Spell, Locking Spelling, Opening-' he froze again as he returned to the previous spell, Locking Spell. So that's who it is.'

Draco being Draco, he never trusted fully upon the common Locking Spell known to all of Wizard Kind and who's opposite spell was just as common, if not even more common. So, in his Sixth Year, he developed another Spell. A more complex Locking Spell and its opposite accompaniment. It took him months to develop and perfect it for annunciation was key. He told no one else of these two spells. No one, except for one other person and just one other. Her.

Without realizing it, he gripped even harder on his wand. Why was she here? Did she know her brother had been here just hours ago? Or maybe she came back for him? Maybe her brother was wearing a blasted muggle wire and she heard his confession of working for Voldemort? Suddenly, his thoughts cleared and only one came to mind. He knew the Ministry was monitoring him, what if they found out her brother was there that night. Even worse, what if they knew he entered the manor, but never left?

"Stop pretending you're asleep." Her soft, feminine voice came in a solid command.

"Why don't you come and say that to my face, Weasley?" He questioned tartly as he stayed seated. By the volume of her voice, she was either loud, or very near.

His silent question was answered when she appeared in front of him in just a few seconds. He stared up at her and she stared down at him. He could see the moonlight reflecting off her face, the few freckles which sprinkled the top of her cheek bones and the bridge of her nose, her chocolate, almond-shaped eyes. Unconsciously, his eyes traveled up and down her body and he realized she was clenching her fists in an attempt to hide her slight shaking. But he saw it - the slight sway of her body and the way her knuckles turned a slight white from the strain. He knew, he had her.

Standing up, he came just a foot away from her and towered a good six inches above her. Now staring down at her, he felt he was in control of the situation and took advantage of it.

"Well, are you going to say it again?" He challenged.

She opened her mouth slightly and it remained like that for a few minutes. In those slow, crucial minutes, he thought of nothing more than pulling her to him and kissing that mouth. Snapping him back to reality, she spoke,

"Obviously there's no need to if you're standing there, obviously awake," she forced out, straining to achieve what she hoped was a stern voice. However, the slight smirk that broke his once apathetic face, told her that her voice was anything but stern.

Then, it was her turn to look at him. Slowly, her eyes raked his body, up and down, then twice more. Finally, her gaze came to rest upon his silvery eyes. She loved his eyes and although everyone described them as grey, she could tell all the different shades of his eyes and which emotion which shade represented. This shade of silver startled her and scared her. The emotion itself and her acknowledgement of which emotion it was, scared her even more. Passion. However, his smirk was gone, he just stared down at her. Hard and hypnotically as if daring her to attempt to look away or blink. His face was unreadable, but she could still tell what he was feeling.

Unconsciously, she reached out a hand to his cheek. He didn't pull back, didn't move, didn't say a word. She took it as a good sign. Gently, tenderly, lovingly she stroked his cheek with her thumb. It trailed down to his neck, to his chest, back to his neck and to his shoulder. Her eyes followed the trail her hand made and both stopped to his left arm. She moved her hand to look at the skin beneath it and the Dark Mark made its appearance.

Looking up to him, she was slightly startled to see him looking down at her already. He had been watching her intently the entire time. Her eyes looked up at him in askance and he looked down at her, begging her to let him be free of answering. Sighing in what appeared to be defeat, she retracted her hand.

"Why are you here, Weasley?" He asked quietly but sternly as he looked to the side, avoiding her eyes.

"So I'm back to being Weasley', huh?" She asked in barely a whisper. "Last time we spoke, I was still Gin'." -

-----

Her fist came into contact with the stone wall of the Quidditch Pitch in anger. She turned her head to look at him as he stood calmly, leaning back against the Pitch's surrounding wall.

"What the hell Drae? Why are you being so stubborn!?" She demanded, "I thought you left the Dark already!"

"I never said I did." He said evenly, not meeting her gaze.

"But you're with me!" She reminded him,

"Just because we got together, I never said it changed anything. I never said that being with you meant I left the Dark." Draco replied,

"Well you must've known you'd have to switch sides eventually! You must've known you'd have to do that to be with me! Damn it, Drae you KNOW where I stand! You KNOW what I believe in and what's important to me!" She yelled,

"And you know the same about me," he agreed, still in the calm voice.

She turned, so her back faced the wall, leaned against it and slid down until she was sitting. Face in her hands, she forced back the tears,

"What now?" She demanded,

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, what now Drae? I leave you for Christmas holidays and when I come back, and I hear that you're the newest Death Eater," she spat out as she still held her face. "You must've known that getting named a Death Eater meant changes between us, even if you don't have a Dark Mark! Only a fool would think otherwise!"

"I suppose I'm a fool then."

She looked up at him in disbelief and, by her expression, he could tell she wanted an explanation.

"I suppose I thought this wouldn't change how things are between us. I wasn't aware that an insignificant title would make or break us. I wasn't aware our relationship was so superficial." He replied coolly,

"SUPERFICIAL!?" She shrieked as she jumped to her feet, standing directly in front of him, "How dare you say that! This has been anything BUT superficial! This has nothing to do with that stupid title! This has to do with the fact that you never told me you were still with the Dark!"

"You shouldn't have assumed otherwise Gin," Draco countered calmly,

"How was I supposed to know? It's not everyday the great Draco Malfoy, Slytherin's prince comes up to innocent Ginevra Weasley, Gryffindor's angel! I thought that you coming up to me last year meant you'd switched sides!" She defended,

"You still shouldn't have assumed things," Draco said,

"You should have told me Drae! You should have fucking told me that I was fucking the enemy!" She yelled as she began to pound her clenched fists into robe-clad, muscular chest.

"So that's what I am now?" He demanded suddenly and she ceased her attacking fists. She glared up at him as he glared down coldly at her, "You suddenly realize I'm with the Dark and I'm automatically the enemy? Are you that quick a judge, Gin? That just because these lines are drawn between us, I'm no longer an ally?"

"What else can you be, Drae? I'm for the Light and you're for the Dark! Obviously, we're enemies! But I'd fancy to know what you thought of me while we were together, since you knew who stood where," She stated,

"Were together?" His eyebrows narrowed at her obvious use of the past tense for their relationship, "When we are together, I think of you as Gin. Mine. Nothing more, nothing less. I didn't realize that I had to categorize you as either friend or enemy. So, as you just lovingly said you were fucking the enemy, I was making love to the one person who made me happy!"

His words hit her in a rush of sudden sadness and sudden happiness. She never knew how much she meant to him. Hearing him say those words were like heaven, but the tone in which he said them just brought her down to hell. The tears she had been fighting back, finally spilled and she began to attacking him weakly again, as she began to cry.

"Damn it Drae-" she sobbed and suddenly, he stilled her fists, pulled her to him, and crushed her against his chest as he kissed the crown of her head. She continued to cry words of damnation at him as he continued to whisper words of love to her.

-----

"Yes, and last time we spoke I wasn't the enemy. Oh, no - wait, you clearly stated I was the enemy the last time we spoke as well," Draco said bluntly.

That last comment was a slap in the face, but she knew she deserved it.

"Why are you here, Weasley?" He repeated again, refusing to make eye contact.

"She's here looking for that pathetic excuse of a brother!"

Draco's head snapped in the direction of the fireplace. Both their attention gathered to a single being who stepped out of the shadowed corner. He internally cursed himself for not sensing there being more than two people in the room.

"Zabini," Draco drawled as his old school mate and now fellow Death Eater, approached them.

She turned to face Blaise, and, as Draco realized, slightly pressed against Draco using him as a shield.

"I'm surprised you realized who I was Draco, you wouldn't have realized I was there unless I spoke," Blaise said in a mocking tone,

Draco, his face now schooled to show apathy, stared at him, "Why are you here? Better yet, how did you get here?"

"Surely you didn't think your silly wards would hold up against me?" Blaise laughed as if it were the most absurd idea in the world,

"They would have against you, even against a fully trained Auror," Draco commented which immediately stopped Blaise's laughter, "Meaning you told your brother the spell's counterpart." He glanced slightly at Ginny before turning back to Blaise.

"So Ron was here?" she gasped as she looked up at Draco in askance,

"Oh, he was here alright," Blaise suddenly smirked at her. She noted with distaste that his smirk was crooked and that it contorted his face into a goblin of an expression. "I was scouting the area for any mudblood lovers and came across the weasel. Followed him to Draco's manor. I thought he couldn't get through with all the wards, but he broke through them. Draco answered the door himself, actually. They talked and the weasel entered, but never left."

"He- he never left? How are you so sure!? How do I know you're not lying!?" she demanded,

"Weasley, he's not," Draco said quietly, but sternly.

She bit back a gasp as her eyes darted to Draco. He still refused to look at her and it broke her heart.

"You- you cannot be serious! He has to be -"

"First off, Zabini wouldn't have been able to break through my wards on his own. When Weasley came, he dismantled the wards and when I let him in, I forgot to replace the wards," Draco said stiffly, now cursing himself internally for making that mistake, "That's the only way Zabini could've gotten in. Second," He finally looked down at her, "Weasley was here. We talked. Zabini isn't lying."

"Where- sure he wasn't lying of Ron coming here, but Ron left. Right?" She questioned, her heart pounding rapidly within her rib cage. "Tell me he left! Where is Ron? Where-where is-" Her gaze darted between Draco and Blaise. She saw the ugly smirk on Blaise's face and her eyes finally rested on Draco's silent face, "What did you do?" The words were barely audible, but he heard. They both did.

"Yes, Draco, do tell what you did with the dirty weasel," Blaise snickered as his brows narrowed, knotting his face into an even more ugly expression,

"He's feeding the river fish now," Draco said in a solid voice as he directed the answer to her, blocking Blaise out of it.

Her hand immediately went to her mouth as she bit back a gasp.

Blaise let out a snicker, "You actually did it Draco! You did the weasel in!" His eyes narrowed at Ginny as he grinned viciously, "Never thought your precious Draco would do such a think, did you!?"

Ginny removed her hand from her mouth as she forced herself to stop shaking. She glanced at Draco before glaring darkly at Blaise, "No, he's exactly how I assumed he would be."

Blaise continued to grin and she desperately wanted to wipe the grin off his face; at least, hex it off. She lunged towards Blaise, wand in hand but was stopped. She looked down and saw that Draco had caught her at the waist with his arm and held her back from Blaise,

"What, you're going to team up on me?" She demanded as she looked up loathingly,

"Zabini would love to do that if that's what you wish. However," Draco explained in a flat tone, his face expressionless, "You're brother's already gone, do you really want to die while dueling with Zabini?"

"He can't beat -"

"He can. What is it you don't understand? Zabini's a fully fledged Death Eater. He will hex you three times to next Wednesday before you even pronounce the first syllable of whatever feeble spell you can think of," Draco warned then suddenly his eyes narrowed, "Or is that what you want? You want to die?"

"And what if I do!?" She spat back at him.

"Then allow me the pleasure!" Blaise smirked as he pointed his wand. "Avada Ke-"

Before Blaise was able to finish the incantation, Draco's wand was at his throat. In the span of just milliseconds, Draco had let go of Ginny and gotten to Blaise. Draco probed Blaise's jugular vein, "Give me one reason why I shouldn't kill you right now."

"Malfoy," Blaise's expression grew dark, "What the fuck do you think you're doing!? She's a muggle-lover! I said I'd kill her if she wanted to be dead and she said that!"

"I didn't mean-"

Draco interrupted Ginny's protest as he pressed the tip of his wand harder against Blaise's neck, "And I said give me one reason why I shouldn't kill you right now. I'm still waiting for it Zabini."

"You're bluffing. You'd never have the balls to -"

At that moment, Blaise was sent flying towards the wall. He hit it with such force he thought he felt his teeth rattle. He collapsed to the floor. As he managed to get strength to look up, he saw Draco approaching him like an animal stalking its prey. Draco grabbed his collar and hoisted him up and pushed him against the wall. He placed his left forearm against Blaise's neck, supporting him from collapsing again. With his right hand, he pointed the wand at Blaise's left temple,

"I could kill you right now with my wand, or kill you with my bare hands. Decide, because either way you're going to be dead pretty soon." Draco threatened as he glared at Blaise.

Ginny's scream broke the moment. Draco's head whipped in her direction and saw her backing up towards him while three Death Eaters advanced on her. Draco returned his attention to Blaise,

"What the fuck did you do, Zabini?" He demanded,

Blaise managed a twisted smile that contorted his facial features, "I knew the moment that Weaslette came around your manor that you'd turn coat. Even though you did kill her brother, I knew around her you couldn't be trusted. I bet if I stayed out of your meeting you'd be joining the Light by now."

Draco pressed considerably more pressure against Blaise's throat and immediately Blaise began to gasp for air. He pressed his wand slightly harder on Blaise's temple, "You son of a bitch. I'm going to kill you and then," His attention turned towards the other Death Eaters, "I'm gonna kill you bastards."

He then realized that Ginny's back was already pressed against his own back. He glanced slightly at her and felt her shaking.

"Don't even try Malfoy, there's four of us and only one of you," one of the Death Eaters hissed.

Draco glanced once more at Ginny and was slightly taken back when she didn't defend herself after being disregarded by the Death Eater.

"Avada Kedavra."

Suddenly, Blaise's body became limp and the only thing holding him up was Draco's arm. Finally pulling away from Blaise, Draco faced the other Death Eaters fully. Cringing slightly at the corpse lying at her feet, Ginny absent-mindedly clutched onto her wand even tighter and glowered at the Death Eaters.

"Now there's only three of you and two of us," Draco accented the fact that him and Ginny would fight them.

"So you've chosen to go against your allies, Malfoy," another Death Eater stated. At once, all three raised their wands at them, "So be it."

"Get out of here Weasley," Draco said as he stepped in front of her,

"Draco they could -"

"They don't have enough power to do that," He interrupted, never turning his gaze away from the Death Eaters.

"But-"

"Weasley, don't make me repeat myself!" Draco argued as he began strategizing what to do. There was only one thing to do. He pointed to the far right Death Eater, "Avada -"

"Crucio!" was chanted in unison by all three,

"KEDAVRA!" Draco screamed as his balance faltered and nearly toppled to his knees. His target immediately dropped to the floor with a loud thud - dead.

Too shocked to think properly, Ginny remained motionless for minutes on end. Finally, she cast the first spell that came to her mind, "Expelliarmus!" The spell only hit two of the Death Eaters. "Accio wands!" Clasping the Death Eaters' wands in her left hand, she pointed her own towards them.

"Don't be foolish Weasley, there's still three of us and one of you." The still-equipped Death Eater scowled,

Ginny glanced towards Draco, but he was on one knee struggling to stand up with no avail. "Well-" She paused trying to think of something - anything - to stall them, "I have three wands and you only have one! I'll kill you right now!"

"You think a pitiful witch like you can kill us?" One of the wand-less Death Eaters shrieked in what was assumed to be a laugh,

"Avada Kedavra!"

The Death Eater who was laughing dropped like a rock. Ginny turned to Draco to find him on his feet again and attempting to regain balance. Having three Death Eaters crucio' him at the same time was taking its toll on his body and he could barely feel what little strength was still in him.

"Draco are -"

"I'm fine," he growled as he pointed his wand at the final Death Eater. His arm shook violently as he glowered at the final intruder of his home, "Insult her again and you'll be joining those three."

The Death Eater stood still, wand pointing at Draco now, "You can barely stand, Malfoy."

"Didn't stop me from killing that one," Draco retorted with a gesture of his head towards the freshly dead Death Eater.

"Crucio!" the Death Eater cast towards Ginny with a flick of his wrist.

Draco knocked her aside, "AVADA KEDAVRA!" he screamed as he was hit dead on by the Cruciatus Curse. As the final Death Eater fell to the ground, Draco's legs gave way and he fell. Breaking his fall with his hands, his arms shook violently underneath his weight.

"Draco," Ginny said softly as she dropped to her knees beside him. He collapsed finally and struggled to roll onto his back. She reached out for his arm, "Draco- are -"

Pulling away from her reach, Draco closed his eyes as he tried to conserve his strength, "Get out of here."

"But -"

"Voldemort will know that I killed four of his Death Eaters. If you stay here, you'll get attacked," Draco said as his grip loosened on his wand without his accord. "So, just get out of here. Get lost."

"I don't care-" Ginny said in a low tone,

Draco finally opened his eyes, "Oh yes, because if you died, you'll be hailed as the warrior for the Light who died with honour after killing the enemy."

In an instant, Ginny's palm made contact with the left side of his jaw.

"How could you think that? After everything we've been through!" She demanded as tears sprinkled themselves amongst her eyelashes,

"It's been over five years since we've been through anything together, Weasley," Draco corrected as he didn't even bother to nurse his reddened jaw. "Get lost before more Death Eaters come."

"And what about you?" She questioned, "I'm supposed to leave you behind?"

"What other choice is there for me? Stay here and wait for Death Eaters, or go with you to the enemy and die there. I'll take my chances with the Death Eaters than having Potter Avada me into a fresh grave."

"You still think I'm the enemy, don't you?" She asked,

"You thought of me as one first, so don't you turn this on me Weasley!" He glared up at her,

"You stubborn git, you let it break us up!" She accused as her eyes narrowed through the stilled tears,

"Me!? Don't you dare play the victim Weasley! You're the one who left me at the Quidditch Pitch that day over five years ago!" He countered,

"Yeah, and you never once tried to come after me!" She defended,

"You expected me to come after you? You expected me to come after you after you left me!?" He said in disbelief, "You're unbelievable! If anything it should've been YOU to return to ME and apologize!"

"APOLOGIZE!? You conceited bastard!" She shrieked, "You deceived me all that time we've been together!"

"I never once deceived you! It's your fault that you assumed immediately that I had switched sides!" He countered angrily as he finally was able to sit up and look at her on eye level, "And then it's your fault that you let this come between us! You left me and don't you dare try to pin this on me Weasley because you'll get no pity from me. You hear me? You won't get a single shred of pity from me nor an apology if you expect me to apologize for something I didn't even do! You left me." He accented heavily on his final three words.

"I don't even know why we're still arguing about this. Obviously I didn't matter much to you if you didn't try to reason with me," she looked down at her lap as she clenched her fists tightly, "I know I was being stubborn. I know I was being idiotic, but I at least expected my boyfriend to at least try to settle things between us!"

"And what? You were too good to come and settle things yourself?" He questioned as he finally calmed down,

"I would've if I'd known that you would've wanted me to!" Her head shot up and she glared back at him,

"And what gave you the idea that I didn't want you to?" He inquired as he schooled his expression back to apathy.

"The fact that you didn't try to stop me that night from walking away!" She accused,

He stood up as fast as physically possible with his condition and raked his hand through his hair, "You're unbelievable! You're STILL trying to put the blame of ending our relationship on me! You're the one who thought I was the enemy!"

"YOU ARE THE ENEMY!" She countered as she jumped to her feet and glared up at him,

"Oh, I'm STILL the enemy? After I risked my neck a few moments ago trying to protect your ungrateful life!? After what just occurred here in MY house because Zabini saw YOU come here, I'm STILL the enemy!?" He recalled in disbelief, "There's no reasoning with you!" He walked about his room, fixing what furniture had been disrupted in the previous duel before plopping himself down back on his chair before the fireplace.

"Oh, so NOW you attempt to reason," She replied sardonically.

"What are you still doing here?" He finally asked as he looked over at her, "Death Eaters are probably being deployed as we speak. Do you really want to die THAT badly? I guess you did mean it when you said you wanted to die."

"And I assume that you don't want to stop me on obtaining that goal, hmm?" She inquired as she went over to him and stood in front of him.

"Well there's no way I could possibly reason with a stubborn, narrow-minded witch like you, so I might as well let you do as you please," he countered

"First you kill my brother, and now you'll let me die too?" She said in a low tone, "I guess you have moved on- Ferret."

"OBVIOUSLY I DON'T WANT YOU TO DIE IF I'M TELLING YOU TO GET THE HELL OUT OF MY HOUSE, WEASLEY!" He defended angrily as he clenched his hands which lay on the arms of his chair. He had planned to remain calm as she continued ranting at him, but mention of his most hated nickname of hers for him just sparked his anger.

"FINE! I'LL LEAVE FERRET!" She began to head towards the door,

"Gin."

She froze immediately when she heard him call her by her nickname for the first time in five years. Without turning back, she waited impatiently for him to continue, hoping his next few words would be the ones she had hoped to hear for five years. She was wrong.

"You're brother's still alive."

-----

In silence, Ginny and Draco made their way carefully down the hill behind his manor. The moon was the only light they had to guide them. Draco forced himself not to steal a glance of her in the moonlight, but Ginny was less controlled. Ever once in awhile, she absent-mindedly glanced sideways at his profile and she realized, with a slight blush, that he was still only dressed in his pajama pants.

Once on flat ground again, Ginny hurried her step. She paused when she realized she was ahead of Draco and didn't know where to go. Looking down so he wouldn't see the slight blush that was sure to appear of her embarrassing impatience, she waited for him to catch up. Slowly because he still hadn't regained all his strength, Draco brushed past her as if he hadn't known she was standing there waiting for him.

After ten minutes of walking straight, Draco paused. "There."

Ginny looked up finally and saw Draco staring straight ahead. Before them, just meters away was a river which cut through the land. Appearing from one side of the ring of trees which surrounded Draco's manor it disappeared into the opposite side of the trees. There, in plain view, sitting with his back to them, was Ron Weasley.

Realizing that she was frozen to the spot, Draco took the initiative to start walking towards Ron. As they got closer, they heard him talking,

"It's been hours, hasn't it Chep?" He said, "I wonder what Malfoy's thinking up there. How long does he expect me to stay here? He better come up with a plan or I'll strangle that -"

Draco cleared his throat.

"I didn't mean it Malfoy. Just talking to the river fish here since I ran out of bread. Hope you don't mind I named some of them," Sheepishly, Ron looked over his shoulder towards Draco.
He was stunned to see Ginny standing beside him. Running past Draco, she tackled Ron, arms around his neck in a strong embrace.
"Whoa! Careful Gin!" Ron commented as he got his balance and sat back up with Ginny still hugging onto him tightly,

"You stupid prat! Leading me on to think you were dead!" She cried into his shoulder, "I thought back in Draco's manor that he'd really killed you! Were you really going to let us think you were dead!?"

Ron managed to stand up and pull Ginny up with him as he finally wrapped his arms around her comfortingly, "C'mon, stop crying. Obviously I'm not dead."

"Yeah, but it was down right mean of you to make me believe that even for a moment!" She began to pound her fists profusely into his chest.

He chuckled slightly as he still hugged her, "I'm sorry, okay? Besides, it was only to ensure that you'd be safe from Voldemort, but I guess now we can apparate to Grimmauld Order Headquarters. But, if anything you should be scolding Malfoy, it was his idea."


--ENDING ONE--

She ceased her attack as she froze. Standing up straight, she looked over her shoulder at Draco. He stood there casually, hands in his pockets as he saw the exchange. Slowly, she walked up to him.

"I'm sorry..." She whispered as she couldn't bare to look up at him. "I should've trusted you more... I should've never thought of you as the enemy..."

"Yeah, well you did," Draco turned to leave, but instinctively, Ginny took a hold of his arm. He turned back to face her, "What?"

"Is it too late for me to come and settle things?" She asked in a quiet tone. She nervously smiled at him, "Truce?"

He smirked down at her as he pulled her to him, "Truce."

-----

IF YOU'RE HAPPY GO AWAY AND REPLY! NO MORE READING! BUT, if you prefer, READ THE SECOND ENDING! ^___^

-----

She ceased her attack as she froze. Standing up straight, she looked over her shoulder at Draco. However, when she turned to look at him, he was already halfway back to the hill up to his manor.

"Aren't you going to go after -"

"It's better this way," she interrupted as she turned back to face Ron.

He finally stepped back away from her and regarded her slightly, "Gin-"

"He's the enemy Ron," she stated firmly, "He's the enemy. He's still the enemy."

Before apparating, Ron crossed his arms as he looked at her questioningly, "Are trying to convince me, Gin? Or yourself?"

-----

Two Days Later-

-----

Ginny entered the Grimmauld Order Headquarters, quickly shutting the door behind her so to shut away the fierce wind outside. Taking off her scarf and light jacket, she hung them up and proceeded towards where the Order Members regularly met - The kitchen.

"Morning!" She greeted in a sing-song voice as she bustled in. She froze on the spot as she immediately noticed the somber atmosphere within the usually busy room.

All situated around the kitchen table, she approached carefully and looked at the five Order members who were already there. The fact that there were six members there - including herself - to being with, was enough to make her worry. There wasn't a meeting taking place, she was sure, so that meant only two or at the most, three members would be present. Instead, there was double the normal amount.

She looked around the table, "Harry- Ron- Lupin- Moody- Neville, what's going on?" Before she reached the table, they immediately moved about, blocking her from reaching the table,

"Okay guys- you lot are scaring me now, what's going on?" She asked apprehensively, "Is something wrong? Did something happen? Is it Voldemort?"

Anxiously, the five males before her looked amongst themselves before looking back at her with faces she knew they tried to mask as unreadable. They failed horribly.

"Something is wrong- what happened?" She questioned, her voice a bit shaky,

"Did you lot hear!?" A voice boomed as someone was running towards the kitchen, "I can't believe it happened to-" Hermione paused as the kitchen door swung shut behind her. Quick as mercury, she shuffled her arms behind her, "Oh- hi Ginny."

"What happened Hermione? And to who?" She demanded as she faced Hermione head on,

She looked past her at the males before looking back at Ginny. Opening and closing her mouth silently a number of times, she looked past her again, "She has to know!"

"No! She doesn't!" Ron argued,

"You can't protect her forever Ronald!" Hermione countered,

"For as long as I can, I will!" He replied,

"Over-protective, stubborn git," Hermione sighed as she threw her arms in the air in exasperation. It was a moment too late when Hermione realized that she had also thrown what she was so keen on hiding behind her back when she entered the kitchen.

Snatching the item in the air, Ginny looked down, "The Daily Prophet?"

"Accio Daily Prophet!"

Ginny attempted to grasp on longer to it, but the paper went flying out of her hands and into Ron's. She turned on Ron,

"PRAT! GIVE THAT BACK!" Ginny demanded,

"It's for your sake I don't," Ron assured,

"Ronald! She deserves to know!" Hermione shrieked,

"Hermione has a point," Harry confessed as he leaned back against the table, arms crossed.

"She'll find out eventually," Lupin added,

"Might as well tell her now, Weasley," Moody insisted gruffly as he turned away to get a cup of coffee.

"Besides- it's best she hears it from those closest to her, don't you think?" Neville suggested as he placed a hand on Ron's shoulder, "Perhaps you should."

Ron sighed in defeat, "You lot are right- Okay, Gin. Sit down."

Taking a seat in the chair the ex-professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts held out for her, Ginny's gaze darted back and forth between her brother and the others present in the kitchen. Ron looked intently at the others and they immediately knew what he wanted. Silently and -unbelievably quickly- they left the kitchen, but the remaining Weasley siblings knew that their companions stood just on the other side of the door, listening.

After casting a silencing spell, Ron faced Ginny, "He's dead."

Ginny's eyes went as wide as saucers, "WHAT!?"

"He was killed. Yesterday at his manor. Report says he fought off four Death Eaters before a fifth one came and Avada-ed him on the spot," Ron said in a low tone. Hesitantly, he unfolded the Prophet and pushed it on the table in front of her.

Her hand went to her mouth as she looked at the cover story. There in the picture which took up half the page was Draco's body lay sprawled on his bedroom floor whilst Aurors combed the area.

Ginny felt a pull at her heart and as she read the passage below the photograph, she felt the pulling increase and eventually, felt a great ache in her heart.

"He died an honourable death." Ron muttered what he thought would bring some comfort to her. He was wrong.

"What honour is there in death!?" She demanded as tears began to flow down her reddened cheeks.

"At least Voldemort's not after him now?" Ron offered as he knelt before his sister,

"Only because he got Draco killed!" Ginny countered as she buried her face in her hands. "Damnation, this is all because of me. Because of that night when he protected me from the Death Eaters."

Ron instinctively gathered Ginny in an embrace, "C'mon, don't say things like that."

"Why not if they're true?" She cried, "Damn it Ron, I should have gone after him. I should have gone back to him that night. You'd think after the first time I would've learned. You'd think after the first time I would've just gotten over my pride and gone back to him."

Ron pulled back and wiped away her tears as he looked at her, "There are always second chances."

"What are you talking about? How can there be if he's de-" She trailed off as she saw a small smile appear on Ron's face. Quickly, he glanced at the paper then back at her. She took the paper in her shaking hands and sniffed back the tears in attempt to preserve the Prophet from becoming tear-stained. She looked over the article once more and the photograph carefully, "Ron you scheming prat-" She looked up at him, "Where?"

"Feeding the river fish."

-----

"So- Chep was it? Wonder when the Aurors finally clear out of my manor so I can place wards up and live in peace. At least now Voldemort thinks I'm dead. Wow, I must be out of my mind to be talking to a bunch of fish-"

"No, but you're sure as hell a stubborn arse git!"

Looking over his shoulder, Draco found Ginny standing there, face still red and tear-stained. He slowly stood up and regarded her peculiarly,

"Weasley told you then? Thought I could trust -"

"I saw him in the cover photograph," Ginny interrupted as she threw it at his chest.

Catching it, Draco scanned the photo, "I forgot he was one of the Aurors assigned to comb the area after the attack."

"You two are a bunch of lying, insensitive jerks, you know?" Ginny accused, "In the span of three days you lot have made me believe that two of the people I love the most were dead!"

"Oh, so you love the enemy now?" Draco inquired sarcastically as he crossed his arms over his chest,

"Can we not get into this? Please?" She asked in a pleading tone. She approached him slowly, "Can we just put behind us what I did?"

"If you do one thing," Draco said as he towered over her, leaning close to her face; so close she could feel his breath on her. "Answer me this. Can you trust me?"

She looked at him and then looked down at the ground.

"Thought so." He pulled away and brushed past her, he stopped once they were back to back, "Goodbye."

"Wait!" She spun around to face his back, "Where are you going?"

"Away. There's nothing holding me back here, so I might as well do some traveling," his words stung her and she felt the tears coming to her,

"Where-?" She inquired in a whisper,

"When you learn to trust me; when you think of me as other than your enemy, then you'll know where to find me. Au revoir mon cheri," and he apparated without another word.

-----

Five days later-

-----

"Alouette- gentile alouette-" The man tugged the collar of his trench coat closer around his neck as he walked the streets of Paris down by the Seine river. The wind bustled about him, as did the people.

After a few more seconds of walking, he paused and looked down at the river, "Bonjour mes amis, les poisons!" He laughed bitterly at himself, "Now I really must be mad!"

"Un peu."

The man looked up, at the source of the voice to find a woman standing just two feet away.

"So you've found me," He turned to face her fully, "Gin."

"Well the last words you said to me were in French, and knowing your ego-spoiled side couldn't keep you from Paris, I came here... Then I remembered your odd fondness for pet river fish, so I came to the Seine," Gin explained before stepping closer to him,

"So does this mean you trust me now?" Draco asked as he looked down at her,

"Ye..." She looked away,

"Why'd you bother following me here if nothing's changed?" Draco demanded bitterly,

"Because I thought we could get by without this between us," She admitted in a defeated tone,

"Now, either I've had it wrong this entire time, Gin, or I'm going soft, but I thought that without trust one can't have love," Draco countered scornfully. With that, he turned on his heel to leave,

"Draco, wait," She called to him and, hesitantly, he stopped. She sprinted towards him, "Please, just give me another chance."

He turned around, "I've given you more than enough chances to make amends Gin. MORE than enough." He raked a hand through his wind-blown hair, "I'm through with you." He turned and began to leave once more,

"I love you!"

He paused and remained silent before looking over his shoulder. Forcing the words that broke his own heart, he retorted, "Then how unfortunate that we were, are and always will be enemies."

He turned back around, disappeared into the crowd of Parisians and disappeared from her life. Forever.

-----
Fin
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