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Unexpected	By : draconisdemented Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Ginny Views: 26236 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 14
- 15
- 16
Disclaimer: I own nothing!

Author's Note: Once again, I do not speak French. I am using a
dictionary/translator on my computer, so I'm aware it won't be perfect. If you
do speak French, I would like to apologize now for any slaughtering of the
language I may have inadvertently caused. Otherwise, what do you care, right?

French translations: ((example))

Author's Note: Again, yes, I have
heard that Ginny's real cannon name is Ginevra or
whatever. Well, fuck that. In this
story, it's not. Fiction, people! lol

Responses to reviewers
of last chap: tkmoore, (kisses your feet and hands over little Draco and Blaise dolls for
you to goggle in-between chappies) cloaked, Blaise? Stay
out of mayhem? Surely you jest! Jan, Lauren and Harry? Hmmm� seri-chan, I
hope you like this chappie, my dear review goddess! Chaney, it was bloodlust, they gave her their hunger through the Marks, it'll just be more intense for her now. angelfire33, the Blood makes her
a vamp. Remember when they talked about it in Ch. 2? lol resentment, don't worry, I died of laughter while writing it! a.sam, huge
thank you! SamiJo06o ano anxiety attacks! Although you might have one sometime during this�oops! Shelby, this should clear it
up, and thanks! windpine, thanks! musiclover86, anything to help
you relax! lol Danni is Divine, James is Mine, check
the Author's Note on Ch. 8 for the Greek/Roman thing. Terin Kail, thank you! AnitaBlake/BuffyFan, (huge
kisses!) Thanks so much! animegirl-mika, I'm glad
someone gets it! little-munchkin-poo,
speechlessness is good. lol babykelyse, I
laughed when he said it, too! Iced
Faerie, damn skippy she is! Psi, thanks! short arse, yay! Alex Vossen, I just love you. :) xxbabysparklesxx,
I can't help it, humiliating Hermione is just too entertaining! Skotos//Enigma,
thank you! ShortyLisa,
I'm convinced that Hermione was born nosy�lol Tytianne, thankyouthankyouthankyou! amyza,
thanks! aoi-yuki-yume, a movie�(sighs wistfully) Can't give
you a movie, but I can give you this chapter�>

��

Virginia lay motionless on the
thick, black rug in her boyfriends' common room, utterly unable to take her
eyes away from the stars and ets ets swirling above her. She could see the
minutest detail, the subtlest change, and the scents from the bathroom had
lulled her into a strange almost-trance. The new power running through her had
not abated, and everything was�different. Colors were more vibrant, sounds were
sharper and clearer, and she could feel the strength just waiting for her to
call upon it. She could taste things on the air, feel the slightest shift of
pressure on her skin, and sense her surroundings constantly.

She found, to her delight, that she could control the new changes.
Her eyesight was adjustable, zooming in or out at a bare thought from her, and
the same went for her hearing. She could dampen it to a normal level, or expand
it and hear students all over the castle. All of her senses seemed to be
working the same way, and she'd gotten the hang of it quite easily. The hunger
was starting to gnaw at her though, and she reluctantly rose to her feet,
tearing her eyes away from the celestial enchantment. She padded across the
floor on feet that barely touched it, and stopped briefly in the archway to the
bedroom.

Her boyfriends lay wrapped around one another, their hair
streaming out around them and contrasting beautifully with the emerald sheets.
They'd only been asleep for an hour, since the process of changing her had
exhausted them, but she knew that they would awaken at any moment, as she could
feel the sun setting outside of the castle. Her body was still tingling from
their earlier assault, but she wasn't in the least bit tired. Quite the
opposite, actually. The process had lasted the entire day, as they'd taken her
blood until she was on the brink of death before giving it back time and time
again, mixed with their own and the power that came with it.

It hadn't been until the third time that they'd drained her and
returned the laced blood that she'd felt small, sharp fangs in her mouth, and a
fierce joy had filled her. By the twelfth time, there hadn't been a single drop
of blood in her body that hadn't been sweetened and strengthened by theirs. The
final bonds between them had solidified, the ties between the maker and the made
stitching the last of their souls together as much as they could without them
taking the binding oaths of marriage. She had her own link to Neithotep now, a distant, long-stretching thread that felt
of old, old power and a sense of satisfaction as the Ancient recognized the new
connection.

Blaise's eyes fluttered, a soft sigh escaping his lips as his arm
tightened around Draco's waist, pulling him closer subconsciously. Smirking,
she leaned against the archway as Draco responded, moving closer and burying
his face in Blaise's neck, raven hair obscuring his features. Their legs were
tangled underneath the thin sheets, their bodies pressed flush together, and it
was another minute before Blaise's still-onyx eyes drifted slowly open,
blinking twice before full awareness returned. The end of a silver braid was
looped across him, the end tickling his cheek, and he started to swipe it away
before he stopped, grinning, and grabbed it, turning the silky end on Draco.

"Mmph." Draco murmured, a second before his hand shot up, snatching Blaise's
wrist. "What'd you do that for?"

"It woke me up." Blaise replied simply, his eyes sliding
over to Virginia. "And how are
you, ma aim�?" ((my
love/beloved))

"Oh, I'm fine." She said, walking towards the far wall.
"You pretty much insured that, didn't you?"

"Damn right." Draco growled from somewhere underneath Blaise's
hair, and a single obsidian eye appeared moments later. She laughed and said a
quick password, opening the huge, walk-in closet. She rifled through their robes,
loving how much richer the fabric felt under her fingertips, and pulled out two
done in a dark purple that was almost black. She had already dressed, opting
for a robe made of blood-red velvet, since it seemed to match her thoughts. She
grabbed two pairs of dragonhide pants and left the closet, walking towards the
bed and depositing her load.

"Thank you, ma cher�. We could have
gotten these, though." Draco said, rising to a sitting position while
Blaise nodded. She sighed.

"You are the most stubborn people I know!" She huffed, leveling
a mild glare on them. "You're still tired."

"No, we're n-"

"Don't even go there." She cut in, her glare
intensifying a bit. "I can feel
it, remember?" They exchanged resigned looks.

"Gods, she's right." Draco murmured. "We won't be
able to get a parchment cut without her knowing."

"And she'll make us drink tea and rest and-"

"It'll be just like our mothers!" The two seemed to find
that extremely amusing, and she smiled sweetly as she approached them. Neither
took notice, as they were too busy laughing, but their
laughter died when her hands moved in a blur, wrapping around their lengths.
They both froze, their breath coming out in hisses, and she smirked
as they simultaneously got hard.

"Really? Can your mothers do that?" She asked haughtily, before letting her hands drop back
to her sides. Their eyes widened and it was her turn to laugh. "Come on,
Pansy will be barging in here before long wanting to know if we're
alright."

"That was wrong."
Blaise intoned as he slid from underneath the sheets and into a pair of the
dragonhide pants while Draco did the same. "And if I didn't know that you
were right about Pansy, I'd show you how horrible teasing can be."

"Ooooh, is that a promise?"
She taunted as they put their robes on, and immediately knew she should have
kept her mouth shut when their eyes turned hungry.

Cursing, she turned on a heel and bolted, barely making it out of
the portrait with them right on her heels. She streaked down the short hallway,
bursting into the common room and startling quite a few Slytherins before
spotting Pansy and Anton. She sped towards them, jumping over one of the
couches and twisting as Blaise made another grab for her. She landed on her
feet and immediately spun, throwing herself to the left as Draco flew right
over where she'd just been. Not wasting a second, she kept going, keeping as
low to the ground as possible as she went under one of the tables. When she
came out on the other side, she saw a miracle.

"Severus!" She called, making a desperate leap as both
of her lovers moved up behind her. She hit the ground at Severus's feet,
latching onto a handful of his robes and breathing a sigh of relief. Which she
should have known not to do, as they apparently couldn't have cared less and
crashed into them both, sending them to the ground in an ungainly heap. Fingers
began tickling her before she could even get her bearings, and she shrieked,
trying to throw Draco off of her.

"Don't you dare,
Blaise Zabini!" She heard Severus shout from
beside her, and moved just in time to see Severus getting the same treatment
from her other boyfriend. The Professor howled, trying to dislodge him, and she
would have helped had the circumstances been different. As it
was, however, she could barely draw a breath of her own thanks to the laughter
being forced from her throat, and she couldn't stop it long enough to try and
escape, so she decided that desperate times called for desperate measures.

"If you two don't stop I won't sleep with you for a
week!" She choked out between giggles, and that got them to quit, amid many laughs from their friends. Draco
smirked down at her knowingly, but she could see the strain behind it.

"You need to feed." She murmured as he helped her to her
feet, her sides still aching. He shrugged and gave her a slight nod before
kissing her and pulling away, his black eyes flashing with humor.

"So do you." He shot back, lifting a hand and calling
his and Blaise's boots into the room.

"And who shall be so lucky, hmm?" Blaise asked from
beside her, a heavily scowling and seriously disheveled Severus behind him. "Because
I'm starving."

"Tell me about it." Draco muttered as he caught their
boots, and then handed Blaise a pair. They both had them on in seconds, and
they ignored Severus's grumbling as the three of them walked over to Pansy and
Anton.

"It's not very nice to harass your girlfriend." Pansy
reprimanded as they made it to them, and Draco and Blaise rolled their eyes.

"Harass her?"
They asked in unison. "Right."

"Hey, I didn't do anything."
Virginia argued, and they rolled their eyes
again. Vincent, Gregory, Melody and Daphne were sitting around one of the
tables behind Pansy, and she noticed them trying to hide something. Her
boyfriends apparently noticed it too.

"What are you doing?" Draco asked,
his black eyes trained on them. They looked up hurriedly, paling, and Virginia got a queasy feeling.
No way, she thought to herse

"What is that?" Blaise questioned, moving closer.

"Oh, nothing really." Melody breathed out in a rush.
"It wouldn't interest you. Don't worry about it." That, of course,
only made Draco and Blaise more suspicious. They looked at each other, and then
sprung, knocking Gregory out of his chair and onto the floor. They gave him the
same treatment Virginia and Severus had just endured, and soon he was begging
them to stop as well, tears running down his face as he laughed uncontrollably.
Draco's hand shot r hir his robes, reappearing with a bunched up bundle of
parchment, and he howled in triumph, jumping off of Gregory. Blaise followed
him, onyx eyes gleaming, and they rejoined Virginia.

"Want to see our spoils?" Blaise asked as he snatched
the parchment from Draco, who growled and snatched it back. She took it from
both of them before it could be damaged beyond repair.

"Hey!" Draco said belligerently. "I got it!&q

"Only because I helped."
Blaise said, sticking his nose in the air.

"That is such a
lie!" Draco countered. "I could have gotten it on my own without your lousy help."

"Whatever! You couldn't so much as get a clue without my help!" Blaise shot back, and he was the one to
get pounced on that time. He was on the floor almost too quickly for even
Virginia's eyes to follow, with Draco straddling him and holding his hands down
as he half-way struggled to get free.

"Perhaps," Draco purred. "But I know something else
I need your help with." He ground his hips down into Blaise's, and the
other could barely stop from moaning. Loudly. A second la he he found their
positions reversed, and Virginia used their momentary
distraction to her advantage, un-crumpling the parchment she was holding. The
other Slytherins were looking at her warily, their attention flicking between
her and her boyfriends, and she sighed. Maybe it wouldn't be too horrible. The first thing she saw
made it clear that that was not to be the case. Because the headline of the Daily Prophet read:

'Malfoy
and Zabini Fight for the Light while a Weasley Turns Traitor!'

The newspaper fluttered from her fingers to the floor, and she
knew her mouth had to be hanging open. Fight for the Light? Since when? She'd been expecting the Percy
thing, but the first part of that headline was ludicrous. Realizing her error
in letting the parchment go, she almost got it back in time. Almost. Blaise had
it in hand, moving back to Draco's side, his eyes studying her face intently.
Draco was starting to sit down when Blaise handed the paper over, and he
actually fell over and out of his chair as he read the huge letters on the
front page. Blaise looked startled, his own eyes going to the newspaper, and
they widened impossibly before he joined Draco on the floor.

"WHAT!?"
They both exploded at once, and the darkfire that had stopped flickering over
their skin and hour or two ago came back full-force, while their expressions
stayed stunned and horrified. They rose to their feet again, in one smooth,
eerie movement, and spun on their friends, their blacker-than-black eyes
demanding answers.

"We, um, well�" Anton started, looking as if he'd much
rather be somewhere, anywhere, else.
"I guess you should just read it. And maybe floo
Satordi." They snarled in response, falling onto one of the couches and
looking up at Virginia inquiringly. She gave
a weak smile and went over to them, sliding down between them on the cushions.
Draco's hands were shaking with barely-suppressed rage as he smoothed the
parchment out and they began reading.

'Malfoy
and Zabini Fight for the Light while a Weasley Turns Traitor!'

by Noreen Flatoon

'Yes, devoted readers,
you read that right. This is no joke. Draco Malfoy and Blaise Zabini, both of
whom were the sole heirs to their late fathers' fortunes, are not, in fact, in league with You-Know-Who. We have finally been given the
full report on the pictures of them and Virginia Weasley that leaked to us last
week, and it is a shocking story. It seems that the two young men had taken her
to their Alexandria office before they were to go on a date, and while there,
were attacked by Death Eaters. It soon turned into a slaughter, as the young
billionaires' security crystals later showed, and the three teenagers left only
eleven out of over sixty alive.

They were found by
Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape and their mothers, Narcissa Malfoy and Silana
Zabini, and the three were taken to the Ministry for questioning. They were not
at fault, seeing as how they killed in defense and the culprits were Death
Eaters, and their infamous guards, the Ezut��l, more commonly known as the
Black Wraiths, weren't with them, because their offices had before been
impenetrable. It has been confirmed that the only reason the Death Eaters had
gained entrance in the first place is that You-Know-Who used demon magick. So,
as you can see just from that, the two young wizards are obviously not working
for him.

But that doesn't hold
true for everyone. While we mighve ave acquired much with the addition of two
such figures to the ranks of the Light, we also lost much that night. It had
been reported that during the fight, one Death Eater attempted to kill Virginia
Weasley with a poisoned knife, sneaking up from behind her. She was thankfully
able to get him first, thus escaping with her life, but the identity of that
Death Eater rocked her to the core. For it was none other than her older
brother, Percival Weasley, better known as Percy. Once a Head Boy at Hogwarts,
where Lords Malfoy and Zabini along with Virginia Weasley are currently
enrolled, he was said to be the next Junior Minister.

That's nothing more
than a broken dream now, however, and the world is a greyer place since we've
discovered that even Weasleys can go bad. And that brings up the hotly debated
question: What about Virginia herself? Her boyfriends are practically soaked
through with darkness even if they are on
our side, and who knows when they might abandon us or decide that
He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is worth following? Experts say that that is a likely
outcome, so where does that leave Ms. Weasley? Will she follow them and meet an
end like her lost brother? Will she try and stop them and make them see the
goodness in the simple things around them?

We can only hope that
should an event like that occur (which we should all prepare ourselves for),
that she will leave them to their inherent evil and take up robes of scarlet
once more. What does that mean, you ask? We have it on
good authority that the youngest Weasley has not slept a single night within
her own House, Gryffindor, in almost two months, opting instead to stay in the
dungeons of Slytherin. This does not bode well for her future choice or her
family, since it seems she is already developing a preference for their company
above all else. But another miraculous event occurred just this past night.

It has been told to us
by numerous witnesses that after the Quidditch game yesterday, Hogwarts was
attacked by a Deep Lord. Now, don't have a heart attack just yet! I know how
you feel, trust me. I'd never been more shocked in my entire life then I was
when we got word of it last night. The demon managed to break through the
castle's defenses, and when it seemed all hope was lost, Draco Malfoy, Blaise
Zabini and Virginia Weasley stepped forward. Lord Malfoy distracted the demon,
while Lord Zabini opened an Infedigus portal and Ms.
Weasley guarded him. What happened afterwards is something I'm sure no one will
forget for a very long time.

Lord Malfoy
acknowledged the Deep Lord by name, and defeated not only a yeti, but thirteen
werewolves, while another eleven had set out for Ms. Weasley. The Black Wraiths
had appeared from nowhere, and that pack was quickly taken care of as well.
Lorlfoylfoy had battled the demon itself, while Lord Zabini pulled off a spell
that someone twice his age shouldn't have been able to perform. The portal had
opened and Ms. Weasley and Lord Zabini had run out to help Lord Malfoy, who
managed to throw the demon into the portal after shifting into a basilisk. Yes,
you read that right, too.

It seems that the
three are more than just proclaimed Chosen and Elementals to boot, but shapeshifters as well. It is
unclear how Ms. Weasley acquired this ability, but it seems that the two young
Lords gained it through their illustrious bloodlines. One way or the other, the
Deep Lord was vanquished, but Lord Malfoy fell after it. This paper had
originally been printed speaking of his disappearance, but emergency revisions
were made early this morning. It turns out that Lord Zabini and Ms. Weasley
followed him down the portal some hours later, and all three returned this
morning. It has not been said, however, what transpired while they were down
there.

Alexandria, and yes, those three gory figures are who you think they
are. The others are from the battle on the Hogwarts Quidditch pitch, proof for
your own eyes that we are not fooling you about what you have just been
reading. The photographs may be disturbing for some, so we advise that younger
children do not view them expect with direct parental supervision and consent.
The Dark forces have suffered two major defeats at the hands of these three
young mages, so, for now, go ahead and celebrate. But don't forget, even for a
second, that serpents are slippery creatures.'

"Sweet gods," Virginia breathed out, her head spinning.
She didn't even want to see the pictures. Living it had been quite enough.

"Elles devoir �tre
foutu plaisanterie!"
Blaise exclaimed to no one in particular, his black eyes furious. ((They have
to be fucking joking!))

"Glissant?" Draco hissed.
"Glissant?
J'volont� montrer les glissant!" ((Slippery? Slippery? I'll show them slippery!))

"I'm wearing
scarlet robes!" Virginia pointed out
indignantly.

"Well, this is going about as well as we figured." Pansy
said dryly from behind them. Draco spun, growling.

" why why's that?" He asked, tossing the parchment to the
ground. "Maybe we have decided
to fight for all that's good and ethical." Pansy snorted.

"Right, Dray. Neither of you even knows what ethics are."

"We do so!" Blaise disagreed. "We know that you
don't hurt your friends or loved ones, we know that you�Hmm."

"What's wrong?" Pansy teased. "Can't think of any
more, can you?"

"Oh, fuck off, Pansy." Blaise sighed, falling back against
the cushions. "I'm too tired to argue with you." The girl looked at
him sharply then, as if noticing his fatigue for the first time, and her eyes
shot to Draco, who didn't seem much better off, his head lying on Virginia's
shoulder limply.

"And just what has exhausted you that badly?" She asked,
those hazel eyes narrowing. Blaise seemed to suddenly realize his slip, which
was testament enough on its own to just how worn out they still were. Her eyes
then moved to Virginia, and she crawled over
Blaise until she was on her best friend's lap. Virginia looked warily at the
face mere inches from hers, and stayed still when Pansy lifted her lip.

"I knew it!" The girl crowed when she glimpsed a
deceptively dainty fang, and a depraved smirk appeared on her face. "I'll
be your first." She half-offered, half-demanded,
and Virginia grinned, her anxiety melting away.

Her gaze drifted down to her friend's throat, and the hunger dug in
vicious claws when she spied the dark blue veins underneath that pale flesh. She
had a moment to see Anton kneeling before Blaise and Melody doing the same in
front of Draco, before she took Pansy at her word and struck. Her recently
acquired fangs sunk into the girl's skin easily, and pure, powerful blood
washed down her throat, throwing her senses into a jumble. Every ancestor that
Pansy's blood could claim back to the Awakening flashed through her mind, a
long, continuous line that had stayed unbroken throughout the millennia.

There was the tiniest taste of Blaise and Draco, signifying that
they shared blood, however little, from past marriages between their families.
Intense pleasure was racing through her as the blood acted as an intoxicant,
heightening the last of the power-high that they had experienced all day. She
could feel her strength solidifying, could feel the vampiric blood dig its
roots in, deep and irremovable. She could vaguely hear Pansy screaming in
ecstasy through the heartbeats pounding in her head like primal drums, and was
distantly aware of Anton and Melody's voices echoing hers. One of the
heartbeats began to slow and she pulled back instinctively, falling bonelessly
against the back of the couch.

"Fuck." She whispered as her body trembled and shook,
Pansy collapsing on top of her languidly. Her eyesight was zooming in and out
randomly, scents and sounds were attacking her senses deliciously, and she felt
as if she were floating. The other screams stopped, and she felt rather than
saw the pairs on either side of her fall into lethargic positions much like the
one she and Pansy were in.

"Well." Draco drawled. "I feel much better
now."

"Hmph." Pansy agreed, giggling
euphorically.

Something brushed against Virginia's cheek, and she
looked over listlessly to see one of the little dragons Draco and Blaise had
created sitting on her shoulder. She smiled as it rubbed its muzzle against her
face, and she could hear more of them settling on her friends and lovers. They
had created a little colony in the corner of the common room the first night
that they had come into existence, and they mostly stayed there, only coming
out occasionally or when summoned. After the first week, Severus had threatened
Draco and Blaise with bodily harm if they didn't call off the swarm that had
followed him around constantly, and they had laughingly agreed.

"Damn fluttery things." Draco murmured. "Oh no."

"What's wrong?" Blaise asked lazily, and Draco moaned in
frustration.

"My nose itches." He pouted verbally, and Blaise and
Virginia laughed. "Think its amusing, do you?" He asked, and opened
the Marks. Virginia's nose began itching
immediately, and she cursed, realizing why he had complained. She could barely
move.

"Oh, Seeeveruuuus." Blaise
called. "Would you be a darling godfather and scratch my nose?"

"After your assault on my person earlier?" Severus
scoffed. "Not bloody likely."

"Fine." Blaise groaned, and a shot of power lanced
through their Marks.

Her senses evened out once more and the energy from the feeding
opened up for her usage. Draco purred happily and helped Melody scoot over so
that she slumped against the arm of the couch. He grabbed one of the cushions
and put it gently under her head before calling in a blanket to drape over her.
Blaise did much the same with Anton, and he and Draco slid off the couch. Virginia lifted Pansy
smoothly, her weight feeling like practically nothing, and laid her down with
her head on Anton's chest. Melody moved over automatically, curling up against
Pansy before her eyes drifted shut once more.

"You always have taken care of them afterwards." Severus
commented, and they turned tce hce him.

"It's the least we can do." Draco said, his attention
going back to their friends. He knelt beside them, running healing fingers over
the wounds on their necks. They hadn't spilt so much as a drop of their blood,
and their saliva stopped the flow as soon as their fangs left the skin, so
there wasn't a mess, just dark bruises. They faded slightly under his skillful
touch, but he didn't get rid of them completely, since those three had a
tendency to bitch for hours when he did.

"Yes, well, you'd better hurry or you'll miss satisfying a
different hunger. Dinner's over in twenty minutes." Severus said, and
began walking for the exit.

"We'll be there." Draco mumbled distractedly, placing
his hand on each of their�victims' foreheads. Victims, she thought with a snicker. Yeah, right.

"What are you doing, love?" She asked him, and he turned
deep black eyes on her as the tiny dragons flew back to their nests.

"Giving them good dreams." He said softly as she kneeled
down beside him. "And Pansy needs them more than the others." He
added, and she stared.

"Why is that?" She asked, her protectiveness for her
friend shining through. His hand dropped from Anton's head and his fingers
intertwined with hers as he met her eyes.

"She's been having nightmares since we were Marked. She can't stop dreaming about the state our bodies were
in before Cocidius brought us back and healed us. She dreams of us either dying
completely, or coming back as nothing more than animate zombies. We've been
mixing dreamless sleep draughts for her ever since."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Virginia asked, feeling
guilty. Draco smirked.

"She asked us not to mention it. She said you'd feel guilty."
He looked at her knowingly.

"But we told her you wouldn't feel anything of the
sort." Blaise whispered from behind her, his hand snaking around her
waist. "And you're not going to go prove us wrong now, are you?"

"No." She said, leaning back against him. "I know
it's not my fault. It's not like I asked
to be sucked into the void."

"But�"

"But I can't help feeling a little bad." She sighed. "Come on, let's go to
dinner."

"Yes." Draco crooned. "Let's." She glanced at
him suspiciously.

"And just why do
you sound so pleased to have to face all of those gaping fools?" Virginia asked, knowing how
bad it was going to be after that trash in the paper.

"Because," he explained, "Severus left. Therefore,
I have no plans on creating a sight shield. It's the damnedest thing. I seem to
have forgotten how�" He trailed off and Blaise snickered while Virginia rolled her eyes.

"I suppose I don't get a shield either, then?"

"If you want one." Blaise replied, rising to his feet
and offering both her and Draco a hand. "But I know you don't." He
finished with a smirk as they got up as well. She couldn't help a small smile.

��

Hermione sank onto the bench tiredly, trying not to watch as Harry
and Ron shoveled food into their mouths like automatons stuck on fast-forward.
Their eating habits were appalling, but she'd had six and a half years to get
used to them. Even when they hadn't been friends at first in their first years,
she had stild tod to sit by them. She wasn't the least bit hungry, and doubted
she would have been even if they had
observed the slightest amount of eating etiquette. She had just left the
Hospital Wing, and she couldn't stop seeing Lauren's battered form framed
against the white sheets. Today had definitely not been pretty, to say the
least.

As if that morning's late Daily
Prophet hadn't stirred up enough of a mess, they'd barely been let out for
lunch when Pansy had approached the Gryffindors, a horde of Slytherins at her
back, and thrown a handful of black salt in Lauren's face. Hermione had tensed
immediately, as that's the way one witch or wizard formally challenges another,
although it didn't necessarily have to be tossed at their head. Lauren had
frozen before nodding stiffly, and they had foregone lunch to take it outside. None of the Professors tried to stop them after
seeing the black crystals littering Lauren's hair and robes, and the duel had
begun after ruling it a no-death fight and choosing their seconds.

It really hadn't taken as long as it had seemed. They were barely
there for five minutes. The circle had been cast by the two opponents, and the
curses flew. Watching Pansy's efficiency and prowess, she had once more
acknowledged how much they needed the Slytherins' help. Lauren hadn't gotten a
single curse past Pansy's well-constructed defenses, while Pansy had clobbered
the other girl into the ground. She had been unyielding and brutal, hitting
hard and quick with a mixture of spells and fists and feet. Besides having
agreed upon the no-death factor, they had also out-ruled blades, since Lauren
was one of the few purebloods who had never learned to wield one.

After it was over, Lauren had lain crumpled on the snow while
Pansy had spit at her and opened the circle, walking away without looking back
even once as her Housemates had congratulated her. Hermione had patched her
fellow Gryffindor up as much as she could before they had rushed her to Madam
Pompfrey. The healer had taken one look at the damage and the lingering stains that
the black salt had left on the girl's skin, and shaken her head disgustedly,
mumbling about what a barbaric custom dueling was and how it should be outlawed
immediately. They had only just left, having stayed until they knew Lauren
would be okay, and had then come to dinner.

"Where's my sister?" Ron demanded after he had cleared
three plates. He had very nearly come undone at the seams when he had read the
paper earlier, and she'd had to restrain him from storming down to Slytherin
all day. The memory of Blaise's eyes was still fresh in her mind.

"She might not come to dinner tonight." Hermione said
neutrally, and, of course, the Slytherins picked that time to enter.

She choked on her pumpkin juice when she saw that Draco, Blaise
and Ginny still had eyes blacker then the night sky and tiny wisps of darkfire
flickering over their skin. Ginny was wearing blood-colored robes, and Hermione
wondered if she'd done it purposely because of the article in the paper. The
whole Great Hall seemed to freeze as every eye in the place zeroed in on them,
but they didn't pay the other students the least bit of attention. Only Crabbe,
Goyle and Daphne were with them, and where the other half of
their innermost circle was, she had no idea. Maybe Pansy felt bad about
the fight she'd instigated earlier. Yeah, she could totally see that happening.

"Come on." Ron said suddenly, hauling her and Harry to
their feet.

"Wha-Where are we going?"
Harry asked, trying to get a last bite of mashed potatoes.

"To see my sister, what'd you think?" Ron replied,
dragging them down the aisle between their table and Hufflepuff's. Hermione was
simply wondering if there was any way to glue her eyelids shut within the next
thirty seconds.

She could feel the other students' eyes boring into them as they
crossed the end of the hall, passing the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws before
reaching the Slytherins. They walked to the center where the older students
held court, trying to ignore the venomous hisses that followed them down the
table. The only three people sitting there that didn't note their arrival were
the three they had come to see. Ginny was bent over their goblets, and she
thumped each one quickly, the pumpkin juice disappearing. Then Draco and Blaise
each tapped the stems twice, and a deep, red liquid filled the cups, causing
Ron to blanch.

"That's not�?"

"No, Ron." She whispered back. "It's not
blood." Shaking her head, she waved him silent as they stopped next to the
three that were currently draining their goblets dry and refilling them.

"Ginny." Ron said, and his sister turned slowly.
"What's wrong with your eyes?"

"There's nothing wrong with them." Ginny responded
evenly, and a small smile quirked her lips as she saw his relief. Apparently,
she could tell that he'd been worrying about her all day, and she rose in a flowing,
graceful movement, the darkfire that was tracing her skin dying out, and hugged
him. "I'm fine. Really." She whispered next to his ear, and he
visibly sagged with relief.

"Thank the gods." He mumbled, wrapping his arms around
her and hugging her back tightly. "Fuck, Ginny, why'd you have to go in
that thing?"

"You know why." She said softly, pulling back and
looking at him. He flinched slightly at the sight of her ebony eyes, but he
held himself together remarkably well, considering.

"Yeah, whatever." Ron said uncomfortably, obviously not
wanting to get into a discussion about her feelings for the two Slytherins.
"I bet mum's not taking that article very well."

"I was going to floo her later. You
can come with me if you want." Ginny offered, and Ron smiled for the first
time in days.

"Alright. That'd be cool, I guess." He agreed, releasing
her and taking a step back. "We can cheer her up for real when we get home
on Saturday."

"Umm, about that." Ginny said, suddenly looking a bit
nervous.

"What about it?" Ron asked, confused. So subtly that Hermione almost didn't notice, Draco and Blaise
slid up onto the tabletop, their booted feet resting on the bench. It looked
like a lazy, insolent sprawl, nothing more, but Hermione would have bet
everything she owned that they were both tense and coiled under their impassiveness,
ready to spring at a moment's notice.

"Well, you know how I stayed with Lauren last Yule,
right?" Ginny asked hesitantly.

"Yeah. But I'll doubt you'll be going there this year."
Ron said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I'm not." Ginny replied. "I'm staying at the Manor
with Draco and Blaise." There was a moment of complete stillness before
Ron freaked.

"WHAT!?"
He bellowed, causing heads all over the hall to turn. "You most certainly
are not!"

"Yes, I am, Ron." Ginny said, her voice becoming
agitated.

"No, you're not. You'll never come back if you go
inside that haunted crypt." Her
brother spat, and the darkfire came back, flickering over her porcelain flesh
as her anger rose.

"You don't even know what you're talking about!" Ginny
retorted hotly. "Mum came back, didn't she? And she told me I could since
their mothers will be there."

"Oh, that's a huge
reassurance, Gin." Ron snapped. "Look at the way those two turned
out!"

"Goddamnit, Ron!" Ginny
exclaimed, slamming her hand into the wall behind him.

Hermione watched, dazed, as the stone crumbled under her fingers,
a vague, yet deep, imprint of a hand remaining when she lowered her arm. She
drew in a long breath and turned to her boyfriends, whispering something to
them before turning and leaving, shooing her brother away with a dismissive gesture
when he tried to follow her. She waved a hand when she reached the heavy wooden
doors and they flew open, crashing into the walls. Then she was gone, and
Hermione saw Draco nod to Daphne, who jumped up and followed Ginny. Murmurs
broke out around the hall, and Ron was still staring at the doors in disbelief,
as if he couldn't believe she'd just blown him off.

"Are you happy now?" Blaise asked idly, refilling his
goblet once again. "She won't come to any harm there, you know. She'll be
safer at the Manor then she would be wherever it is that you live."

"The Burrow is perfectly safe." Ron argued, his eyes
flashing angrily.

"The Burrow?"
Draco questioned incredulously, lifting an eyebrow.

"Hasn't Ginny told you anything about our family?"

"Of course." Blaise intoned. "She just didn't
mention that your house was called the Burrow, is all." It was blatantly
obvious how hard it was for him to keep the mockery out of his voice.

"And just what has
she said?" Ron asked demandingly. Blaise's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"I won't betray her confidence."

"Why? Has she been talking shit about us?" Ron
questioned, his voice hard, and Hermione really wished he would shut up. Help,
if you could call it that, came from an unexpected source.

"Ron, just leave it, mate." Harry said evenly, before
turning to Draco, his eyes shimmering oddly. "I'm really sorry about
yesterday, I know that was a lousy way to start out our friendship and-"
He didn't get to finish as Blaise exploded off the bench, advancing so quickly
on Harry that he barely had time to scramble backwards. "Z-Zabini? What
are you-"

"Friendship,
Potter?" Blaise hissed. "Have you lost your fucking mind?"

"But�But he said�" Harry stammered,
thrown off at the utter fury he had evoked with a single word. Blaise never
took his eyes off Harry as he spoke over his shoulder to Draco.

"Are you friends with him?" He asked through gritted
teeth, and Draco gave Harry a look that clearly said 'You knocked me into a portal to Hell. Fuck you'.

"Non." Draco said silkily, and
Harry's eyes widened. ((No.))

"That's good enough for me." Blaise said furiously, and
threw his hand out. Tiny, black crystals rained down over Harry's head, and it
seemed as if everyone in the hall sucked in a collective gasp. Harry paled
while Ron's jaw dropped, and Hermione's hand flew to her mouth.

"No, no, you can't�" She mumbled through her fingers,
but no one paid her the least bit of attention.

"I challenge you, Harry Potter." Blaise said clearly,
his velvety voice traveling through the dead silence that had filled the room.
"No-death, since our Lord wishes you alive for the moment, and just to make
it interesting, no magic. You've pushed your luck too many fucking times, and
now that I think about it, I can get a bit of revenge on your little mudblooded
whore at the same time. She'll feel horrid knowing how much worse you got it
because of her. Come, we do this now."

"Blaise," Hermione said unthinkingly, "Blaise, you can't." She immediately regretted
it as those eyes latched onto her.

"I've only got one nerve left, bitch, and you're no longer
beneath my contempt." He snarled, and she was taking quick steps backwards
before she even knew it. "You just keep coming back to bother us, quite
like a bad case of low-class lice."

"If anyone's a bloodsucker it's you!" Harry exclaimed,
finding his courage. Blaise laughed, a sinister,
spectral sound that creeped over their skin and
scared Hermione almost as baas has his eyes had the day before.

"Well, I guess you're about to find out, hmm?" Blaise
taunted, and Harry's face settled into a determined mask. She'd seen it before
when he'd gone after the Sorcerer's stone, seen it before all of the Tri-Wizard
tasks�And she knew, then, that nothing was going to stop this insanity. "Are
you coming, Potter?" Blaise called out as he made for the doors, Draco at
his side and the other Slytherins rising to flank him, their faces pleased and
expectant. "Or are you scared?"

"You wish." Harry said, following him, but she could
have sworn she heard the tiniest waver in his voice.

She and Ron trailed after him dutifully, and the majority of the
other students followed them out into the deepening shadows as well. All
Hermione wanted was for this not to happen. She already knew what the outcome
would be, and knew that it wasn't going to be pretty. They trekked out through
the snow, everyone but Blaise and Draco floundering through it, sinking into
the cold, wet slush up to their calves. Quite thankful that she'd worn her
boots, she looked on with envious eyes as the two Slytherins glided over the
snow, barely even leaving indentions from their passage. They reached a section
of the lawn that was wedged between the forest and the castle wall, where the
snow was only an inch or two thick, and everyone stopped.

"Who do you name as your second?" Blaise asked, one of
the black swords she'd seen him wield the day before appearing in his hand. "Just
in case there's an�accident."

"Ron." Harry said, waving his wand and calling in his
own sword before giving Hermione the length of wood. "And you?" Harry
questioned, his eyes wandering over to Draco, that odd flash lighting up within
them once again. Blaise noticed, much to Hermione's dismay, and he growled.

"Who do you think? The one you can barely take your eyes off
of." Blaise replied acidlnd snd she knew Harry was thankful for the
darkness, since no one could see his blush. She knew how he felt.

"Alright." Draco drawled,
looking quite satisfied with the situation. "Cast the circle."

Both Blaise and Harry moved forward, one going towards the north,
the other towards the south. The watching students backed away several yards as
the two young men each dug a sword tip into the snow and spoke the ancient
words of sealing. No witch or wizard needed a wand to activate a dueling
circle, and no one had ever been able to figure out why. But regardless, the
circle sprung up, pushing the students back even farther as it spread to cover
a good part of the forest and the small clearing. Harry and Blaise turned back
around and faced each other, both giving the traditional bow and moving towards
one another.

Their swords met in a clash of metal that sounded absurdly loud as
it echoed off the stone around them, and Blaise sneered as he threw Harry
backwards with a fierce shove. His sword slashed out quickly, slicing Harry's
arm open almost to the bone before he moved agilely back, falling into a
defensive crouch. Harry took the bait, running towards him and swinging his
sword at Blaise's left side, but the Slytherin moved at the last second,
seeming to disappear and reappear right behind him. He pulled Harry close, his
sword going ts ths throat as he laughed again. He made a quick jerking motion
across the exposed neck, and Hermione thought he'd really slit Harry's throat
for a moment.

But it looked like Blaise had only done it to prove a point, and
fully intended to continue toying with him. Which is exactly what he was doing,
and it was blindingly obvious to all observing it from outside the circle. He
shoved Harry away once more hard enough to send him flying face-first into the
snow, but to Harry's credit, he did get up quickly. He advanced slower that time,
and metal met metal again with enough force to actually send
sparks flying from the blades. They kept it up for a good minute, Blaise
testing and judging Harry's skill while Harry looked for a way past Blaise's
defenses. By the end of that minute, Harry was bleeding from nine new cuts, all
of them deep.

Hermione's fondest wish had changed, and now all she wanted was to
sink into the snow and cover her eyes in despair. But she couldn't, she had to
stay strong for Harry, because it seemed as if he was going to need all of the help he could get when this�this farce was over. Blaise struck again, his blade meeting Harry's
while his foot shot out, kicking Harry hard in the back of the knee and sending
him to the ground once more. Again Blaise's sword went
to his throat, and again Blaise pulled it back. Oh yes, he was making his point
quite clear. Harry made to rise again
when the steel toe of Blaise's boot slammed into the side of his head.

"Had enough yet, Potter?" Blaise taunted, stalking back
up to him with the easy grace of a jungle cat. Harry slowly lifted his head,
pulling himself up with his good arm and meeting Blaise's eyes.

"It's not over yet."

"As you wish." Blaise replied nonchalantly, and Hermione
cursed male pride with everything in her.

Harry somehow got to his feet again, and Blaise approached him
leisurely, sheathing his sword once more. Harry threw a punch when Blaise drew
even with him, and the Slytherin caught his fist, spinning him around and
yanking his arm back harshly. A swift kick to Harry's kneecap and another yank
on his arm had them hearing the distinct, stomach-turning sound of bones
shattering once more, and Hermione felt bile rise in the back of her throat.
Blaise's face was inhumanly pitiless as he ignored the fresh screams torn from
Harry's throat, and he finished the fight by slamming Harry's face into his own
knee, the Gryffindor's nose bursting like a piece of over-ripe fruit.

"I win." Blaise said simply as Harry fell to the rapidly-turning-red snow a final time, unconscious. The
circle came down and Hermione and Ron rushed in with their other Housemates,
surrounding Harry and healing what they could before they could get him to
Madam Pompfrey. McGonagall appeared from nowhere, glaring pure death at the
Slytherins, and helped them stop the bleeding. Suddenly one of the Slytherins
shouted, and Hermione turned to see Draco and Blaise clutching their forearms,
bent double as they shook. Then their heads snapped up, enraged obsidian eyes
turning to the castle.

"What's wrong?" Crabbe asked, and they shouted a single
word back to him as they set off for the castle with all speed.

"Virginia!"

��

"What is it?" The Slytherin asked, looking around and
letting her eyes bleed to her Animagus form's, a glowing, golden, wolfish amber.

"I'm not sure." Virginia murmured, letting her
senses expand. "Do you smell anything strange? Something metallic�"

"I do." Daphne said after a moment. "I've smelt it
before, I'm sure. Something Draco and Blaise showed us once."

"Can you place it? It's unfamiliar to me."

"Gods, I should be able to, but I can't remember." Daphne said, her tone frustrated. Virginia didn't like their new
situation at all.

"Stay quiet and move quickly." Virginia whispered, and headed
off down the hall.

She'd barely made it another four steps when something crashed
down on top of her, knocking her to the floor. She screamed at Daphne to run,
but the girl ignored her and made her way to her side. Virginia soon realized that it was a huge metal net that had fallen on her, and she
discovered with a shock that it burned her exposed skin. Recognizing it for
what it was, she cursed. Davasca.
The only metal that could hold a shifter, let alone a
vampire. Beginning to panic, she was brought back to reality when Daphne
screamed. It was cut short, however, and she twisted in her bonds just in time
to see the girl fall.

Praying that her friend was still alive, she fought desperately
against the chains, ignoring the metal that could burn even her skin, but she couldn't get it to
budge, and knew the magickal qualities in the metal were taking their toll on
her strength. A shadowy figure dislodged itself from the surrounding dimness,
walking towards her with a black hood pulled over its face and something heavy
in each hand. It drew closer slowly, as if making sure
she couldn't get free, and she realized that the thing had no scent. It
squatted down in front of her and reached through the net, and she balked when
she discovered she didn't even have the strength to lift a hand to swat at it.

"You won't be escaping me, little fox." A raspy voice
informed her, lifting her lifeless wrists and clamping cuffs of the same
impairing metal on them, and then doing the same to her ankles. They were
chained together with more of the davascian steel,
and she felt the last of her energy being sucked up and eaten by the damned
things. The hooded figure lifted the net off of her, but it wasn't as if it did
her any good. Some confusion spell was at work on her as well, she could feel
it, but she couldn't find the power to fight it.

"I will break you, little fox." The voice harshly
intoned, throwing back its hood as it dragged her into an empty room. She was
able to lift her head enough to see her attacker, and gasped.

"Marcus Flint?"

"It touches me that you recognize me." He said nastily,
yanking her up and fastening her bonds to one of the walls. "And now the
fun begins, courtesy of my Lord."

"But you can't be him." She answered hazily. "You
don't have a scent." The man laughed sadistically.

"A gift from my Master. He knows what you are." Marcus
snapped, driving his meaty fist into her face repeatedly. She knew that she
should call for help, but she couldn't remember how, and her head slammed into
the wall over and over again as his knuckles smashed
the bones in her face. "Ready to be broken?"

"You cannot break me."
She managed to spit out, her own blood beginning to choke her.

"We'll see." He said cruelly, and to her horror, he
began tearing off her robes.

More blows landed all over her body, and she felt a blade slide
into her abdomen before she let loose her first scream. His disgusting lips and
tongue were moving over her skin as his nails and knives sliced her open, and
instinct took over when he tried to slids fis fingers inside her. She put
everything she had into a fierce kick, her knee colliding with his groin and
knocking him backwards as the confusion spell broke. She threw her Mark open
wide with the very last bit of her strength, and she the last thing she knew
before darkness took her was her lovers' rage and Marcus's sneering face and
hateful promise.

"You're going to pay for that."

��..

AHHH! It's horrid, I know. Please review!
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