Draco Malfoy, Boy Who Turned Against His Own Father

Chapter 7: Exposed

The world was dark. It was cold, and there was an eerie silence in the air. He stayed there, the darkness so overpowering that he felt as if he was being swallowed by the dark. Then, he heard a voice. A voice so cold and sinister that he knew he could not have imagined it.

'You are my puppet now. You will obey my every command, I will control your every move.'

'No! I won't let you control me!' he shouted as he struggled to escape from the grasp of the dark.

He succeeded. He ran blindly, not knowing which direction he was taking. He did not care. He just wanted to get away from the voice. He ran as fast as he could, running and running until his legs gave up on him. He stopped, trying not to breathe loudly. He listened, and the silence gave him a feeling of relief and comfort. It was not for long. The voice returned, and this time, it laughed.

'You think you can run away from me? You can't!'

He got up quickly and ran, ignoring the pain he felt at his sides. He wanted so much to stop, but he wanted even more to run. He was slowing down... he knew that. Am I going to die? The thought crossed his mind as he gasped for breath. Suddenly, he glimpsed a shimmer of light. A flicker of hope flowed into him. He rushed towards the light, knowing that he was going to escape from the maniacal voice.

'You can't escape from me... You can never escape from me!'

Oh yes, I can! He thought triumphantly as he approached the light, which became stronger and brighter as he got nearer. He felt a door and a latch. Within a few seconds, the door was unlatched. Pushing open the door, he jumped forward. And fell.

'No!' he cried out, closing his eyes, awaiting his death.

*

Ginny stood in her doorway, and stared at the door across the hallway. Biting her lower lip, she took a few quick steps towards Draco's room, but paused when she reached his door. Her hand lifted to knock on the wooden door, but her mind hesitated.

'What are you doing there?' said a voice.

Ginny looked to her left, and dropped her hand by her side at the sight of Ron, who was looking at her suspiciously.

'Nothing, nothing,' she said quickly, blushing.

'Right... And why are you standing in front of Malfoy's bedroom?'

Ginny blushed again at this, although she tried not to. 'I'm just... passing by. Is that wrong?'

'No. I'm just curious, is all,' said Ron, the look of suspicion still on his face.

He turned towards the stairs, and was about to go down the stairs when he heard a loud sound. He turned around. The look on Ginny's face told him they both heard it. Without saying a word, the siblings rushed towards Draco's room. The door was locked.

'Alohomora!'

The door sprung open. Ginny let out a gasp as she watched Draco Malfoy jumped from the window ledge. She ran towards him, her hands extended as she tried to pull him back. But it was too late. Helplessly, she watched as Draco dropped onto the grass with a loud, sickening thud. Ron stood beside her, his eyes widened at the sight. Ginny turned around and ran out of the room. She fled down the stairs, almost tripping over twice. The front door was already wide open. As Ginny approached the door, she could see that Bill and the twins were outside, all huddled together in a small semi-circle. She was panting, slowing down, when her bare feet touched the soft, ticklish grass. Slowly, she walked towards her brothers. Her heartbeat jumped rapidly at the sight of Draco, his face pale and cold with sweat. Ginny knelt down before Draco, and tears flowed from her eyes as she watched his chest heaved slowly up and down. She bent down, and held his upper body tightly in her arms, unaware of her brothers' presence.

Fred and George watched silently, feeling slightly embarrassed at their sister's open, intimate emotions. They have never seen their little sister so exposed, so vulnerable before, not since...

'Tom Riddle,' said Ron quietly, echoing their thoughts.

Fred and George looked at their brother, who had quietly followed Ginny as she ran out of the house. He stood beside them, his eyes on Ginny. The twins looked at their younger brother, and both realized with a start that their little brother had grown. Not just physically, but mentally. The brothers turned to look at each other, both knowing what each other thought. They were losing him, their Ron, but Fred and George both felt a sense of pride at the sight of Ron's maturing self. Smiling lightly to themselves, the twins watched as Bill coaxed Ginny to let go of Draco so he could carry him into the house. The Weasley brothers watched their sobbing sister let go of the unconscious boy and fell down onto the grass with a soft 'thud'. As Bill walked into the house carrying Draco Malfoy, Ron and the twins walked towards their sister, pulling her in a warm embrace, comforting her as she cried on the shoulders of her brothers.

*

Ginny stood behind Bill, watching him silently, as Bill muttered some healing spells over Draco. It was lucky that Bill was around the house. Otherwise, with Mrs Weasley out on an errand, and with the boys' and Ginny's lack of knowledge of medical spells, they would not have been able to do a thing to help Draco.

'He should be all right. Fortunately, it wasn't that great a fall,' said Bill, turning around to face his siblings. 'Still, just to be cautious, I'm going to go to Diagon Alley for some potions. Look after him while I'm gone.'

'We probably should go too,' said Fred, looking rather apologetic. 'We've got a new shipment coming in for the joke shop today.'

'But we won't be long, we promise,' added George with a guilty look on his face.

Ron smiled at his brothers, who all looked rather guilty and uncomfortable. 'That's all right. Ginny and I will look after Malfoy.'

Bill and the twins gave Ron an apologetic look as they left the room. Ron watched the door closed slowly and quietly, and let out a small sigh as he turned to his sister. Ginny was sitting beside the bed, her small, porcelain hands stroking Draco's cold, pale hands. Ron pulled a chair to sit next to his sister, and for a while, they watched in silence. Ron watched Ginny, who in turn, watched Draco.

'Ginny...'

'Don't,' said Ginny, her voice hard. 'Don't, Ron.'

'Ginny, I understand.' What he understood, he was not really sure.

'No, you don't!' She turned to look at her brother, her eyes flashing. 'You don't understand a thing! You don't understand how I feel, and you never will!'

'Yes, you're right, I don't understand!' Ron yelled, his temper rising. 'How could anyone, when you refuse to open up? You don't let anyone in, Ginny.'

The two siblings stared at each other for a while, both fuming with anger. Ginny turned her head away, her eyes away from her brother. Ron sighed. He only wanted to help her, to comfort her, to take away all her sorrows. If only she let him. They used to be so close. How did it come to this? Then, Ron remembered. The diary. The diary that ruined her life and childhood. The diary that had taken his sister away from him, when he had been unaware of what was happening to his sister.

'You know, I used to really, really hate him,' said Ginny suddenly, her voice quiet but clear. 'For what his father did.' Tom Riddle.

Ron kept quiet. He merely looked at his sister, and listened.

'It wasn't his fault, I know. But I couldn't help it,' she continued in the same quiet tone. 'I couldn't help but hate him. I hated him so much that I felt almost as if I would one day, finally, kill him. I really could have, Ron.'

'You can't help it, Ginny,' said Ron quietly.

'But I don't hate him anymore. I don't know why. I just can't help it, just the way I can't help hating him back then for something he didn't do. And ever since he came to our house, I started to feel something for him. I don't know why,' said Ginny. She turned to look at her brother. 'I tried not to feel the way I did, Ron. Honest, I swear.'

'But you can't help it.'

'Don't hate me, Ron, please don't,' she sobbed. 'I really tried not to feel for him. But I... I just... Oh, Ron...'

'I would never hate you, Ginny!' Ron leaned over to hug his sister. 'I love you, Ginny. You're my sister, and I will never stop loving you, even if you have bad taste in boys.'

Ginny laughed. Ron was glad to finally see his sister laugh. It has been a while.

'Just out of interest,' said Ron. 'What do you see in Malfoy, anyway?'

Ginny thought for a while. 'I don't know. He just seems different, somehow. Don't you think so?'

'Yes, he does seem different,' Ron said, although he did not want to admit it.

There was something different about Draco Malfoy. Ron just hoped that it were for the better, and not the opposite.