The Green Man and the Goddess

It had been over a month since I had arrived at Hogwarts for my sixth year of school and, although Draco and I had been getting along considerably well, I knew there was still something he was hiding from me.

From time to time I would ask him what was wrong, but he just shook his head and said that it was nothing I had to worry about. This only made me worry more. I hated the way he had started to shut me out of his life. The less we talked, the less I felt we were no longer a team and the thought made me want to cry. We needed to be a team if we wanted to defeat Lord Voldemort and it didn't look like we would pull it together.

Weeks pasted and everyone started to worry. Everyone in Gryffindor tower wondered why Jade had been sorted into Gryffindor and Jade stayed separated from the other students. Ever since she had received the letter from Lucius Malfoy, breaking off her engagement with Draco, she had been terribly bitter and attacked people of every house, verbally and physically.

But that was not the only thing people were worrying about. Harry Potter was more often than not seen with the Leofric and Blaise Zabini. He very rarely entered Gryffindor Tower and he had started to fail all his classes. Students gossiped that the dark circles under his eyes were from long nights working the Dark Arts to his will... and that his plan was to become a great wizard, to rival the likes of Voldemort.

The teachers laughed it off, saying that Harry was just going through a phase but, deep down, even they knew that Harry Potter was no longer the innocent, young man he had once been. He had stopped playing Quidditch and Gryffindor had finally fallen out of the race for the Quidditch Cup. Those who remained on the team had a hard time finding new players, Gryffindor morality was down.

Finally, two days before Halloween, Draco told me his secret.

We had been in Hogsmeade, looking through stores for robes for the Halloween Banquet. Dumbledore had announced that it would be a formal affair with dancing after the feast and the students had gone wild. Hogsmeade had been full of excited students, running from shop to shop, trying everything in sight.

I had settled for long, emerald green robes, very similar to the Slytherin crest and Draco went for his traditional black. We were walking towards the Three Broomsticks, Draco with a ridiculous staff with crow shaped onto the handle, when Colin Creevey ran up to the two of us, begging for the time. Draco looked down his nose at the boy but rolled up his sleeve to check the time. It was then that I saw it, the dark mark that is. It blemished his light skin, a dark stain against his perfect flesh and I felt tears threatening to fall.

Then I ran.

And Draco ran after me, not quite sure what had happened.

Finally, he caught me.

He had chased me almost all the way back to Hogwarts. We stood on the side of the dusty road, his fingers gripped into my shoulders and I looked up into his eyes, and I saw that, like me, he was crying too. His grip started to loosen and his arms slipped around me. He started shaking me back and forth and I cried harder. "I'm so sorry, Ginny, I tried to stop him but I couldn't," he murmured repeatedly into my ears, his voice racked with guilt. "I wanted to tell you, but I just couldn't. I didn't want you to think I was a Deatheater like my Father."

I felt a tear slide down my face and I took a slight step back and looked into Draco's eyes. They were filled with sincerity, sadness and love and I knew that he hadn't joined the Deatheaters willingly. I felt mad, not at Draco, but at his father and Voldemort, the two people who had forced his hand and perhaps ruined his future.

Slowly, I leaned back in towards him, gently wiping a tear off his face before standing on my tiptoes and kissing him gently. He kissed me back, his arms coming around me and I felt safe. I haven't felt safe in a long time.

Finally he let go and we straightened up and just starred into each other's eyes. Finally Draco reluctantly broke contact, linking his arm through mine as we started to walk back towards the castle. It was getting dark and not far behind us we could hear the cries of the happy students coming back to Hogwarts. We walked quickly, wanting to stay alone, together in the blackening night and watch as the stars light up the sky.

Unfortunately that didn't happen, but late that night, Draco and I snuck up to the Astronomy Tower and looked up the sky, holding hands, watching the night go by. I felt as if we had re-connected again after so long and it made my heart sing.

Eventually we snuck back to his room and I stayed the night, safe in his arms, in his bed.

The next day we were woken up by screams. Someone was frantically knocking on the door to Draco's dorm, yelling at him to get up. He pulled himself out of bed, pulling on some clothes and went to answer the door, only pulling it open a crack.

The seventh year who greeted him had urgent news. During the night many students had disappeared. Draco raised an eyebrow and his hand flew to his left arm, holding the spot where he sported Voldemort's mark. "Who? Who has left?" he asked, his voice full of concern. There was a muffled reply which I couldn't make out and Draco stood back in shock, telling the boy he would be ready soon.

Turning back to me, Draco looked at me, horror expressed across his face.

"Potter's gone," he told me and I wished I could cry. Then he continued, "Potter's gone, the Leofric's are gone, Zabini is gone, Avery, Lestrange, Crabbe and Goyle are gone...," suddenly he paused before finally adding, "and Jade Grolloni is gone. They are all officially missing and no one knows where they have gone."

I shook. It had finally happened. Harry had run off the join the Deatheaters. The whole school would be devastated now, and I doubted there would be a feast, but that wasn't the thing that surprised me. Jade had been a Gryffindor and even though she hadn't seen eye to eye with her housemates there had to be a reason why she had been sorted into that particular house. The question haunted me as Draco and I threw on clean clothes and quickly exited his dorm and departed to the Great Hall.

We arrived in the Great Hall, hand in hand. It was full of Prefects, professors, as well as a lot of sixth and seventh year students. They all stood around Professor Dumbledore, who looked very grave. Draco squeezed my hand and we walked forward, to join Hermione, Ron and a few other seventh year Gryffindors who were all standing together.

Draco greeted Hermione and Ron hesitantly, ignoring most of the other Gryffindors and turning to listen to what Dumbledore had to say. He was listing off the names of those who had disappeared and Draco's face fell, most of those who were gone were Slytherins, as well as a few Ravenclaws and Harry Potter and Jade Grolloni of Gryffindor. I shuddered as Harry's name was mentioned and there were a few sniffs around the room but no one could have been surprised, everyone had seen it coming.

Dumbledore continued to speak, and soon he moved onto the improvements he wanted to make at Hogwarts. "Every student, second year and up, will be trained in defence against the dark arts. Yes," he said impatiently, "I know you take that class, but you will actually be learning to duel and produce counter curses against some of the stronger Dark Arts spells. I will be sending Fudge a request for body-wizards to patrol the groups and the castle and the entrance to each house will be guarded as well, the students will not be harmed if I have anything to do with it."

Those who heard the speech cheered half heartedly, they knew that Voldemort's rising would come, but now that it had arrived, no one was really prepared.

Dumbledore signaled the Head Professor of each house and they left the Great Hall, returning in 10 minutes with the rest of the student body. The Hall was filled with the murmur of voices, talking about the rumors that they had heard and speculating on whom exactly was gone. There were far less Slytherins then there usually were but there also people missing from every house.

Professor Dumbledore cleared his throat and all chattering stopped. Looking over his students, he smiled weakly, trying to give assurance before starting, "I know all of you have heard the rumors. Many students disappeared over night and we feared that they have joined Voldemort," some of the younger children started sniffling or crying but Dumbledore continued, "But there is no reason to be frightened. Although people have left in the past, they will not leave now without permission and I, myself, and all the staff will do our best, better than the best, to keep you safe. Hogwarts is the safest place in the Wizarding World right now, when writing to your parents, make sure they do not forget it."

There were murmurs from the crowd and younger children started to cry. Slowly the teachers started leading the students back to their respected houses while the Prefects stayed in the Great Hall with Dumbledore.

Dumbledore collapsed in his chair, looking exhausted and Draco and Hermione went up to stand with him, looking down at the old man in concern.

"Professor," Hermione asked, "are you going to be okay? You really don't look well."

Dumbledore smiled kindly at Hermione, "Thank you for your concern Miss Granger but I will be fine. It's just upsetting, all those students leaving. Every summer when the students leave for vacation I look at the school and hope that there is never a day when its halls will be permanantly quiet and there are no voices to fill it, but I fear that we are approaching that time. Nothing last forever Miss Granger," he said, when Hermione gave a desperate gasp of fear, "even Hogwarts cannot survive the turn of time."

A tear slide down Hermione's cheek, one of many that had been shed that day, and she walked back to Ron, taking his hand carefully and Ron gave it a quick squeeze.

"Is there anything we can do to help, Professor?" Draco asked, his eyes full of concern.

Dumbledore looked at Draco, his eyes full of hidden wisdom and replied, "Wait till tomorrow night, maybe you will end it then Mister Malfoy," and turning to me he nodded and added, "Miss Weasley."

Author's Notes

Thanks again for betaing Corks! The next chapter is the end and there are the thank yous there!