Durmstrang Three

Flowers.

Ron stayed by Ginny's side day and night, not wanting to leave her. He'd missed tons of classes already.

Footsteps out in the corridor made him open his weary eyes, but it was only a moment before he fell asleep again.

"Ron?" he heard someone whisper. "RON!"

A pair of hands reached out for his shoulders. Ron jumped when they touched him.

"What in bloody hell was that?" he said unsure as he could only see the hands of the attacker. Slowly Ron gathered his senses and put two and two together.

"Harry?" he said.

"Yeah! It's me," Harry said as he flung the invisibility cloak into a chair. "How is she?"

Ron looked at Harry, seemingly on the verge of bursting into tears.

"I don't know!" he said, obviously distressed. "She hasn't woken up once! I keep hoping she will, and she's just..."

He hung his head in the shame he was feeling for acting that way, but Harry put a hand on his shoulder.

"Its all right. She's lucky to have brother like you - one that cares so much about her," he said sympathetically, looking a bit misty himself.

"I've never had someone to call a family - Dursleys don't qualify. Never even a brother or a sister, you know. That is, until I came to Hogwarts. Then I met you and Hermione. We're a virtual family," he said, a smile creeping across his face.

"Harry, you can always think of me as your brother," Ron said. "Where's Hermione?"

"She's..."

"How touching," someone interrupted, "a family reunion."

Slowly a figure with a bouquet of flowers emerged from the dark of the corridor. Draco Malfoy had brought Ginny flowers.

He walked around to the other side of the bed, promptly took the old and wilting poppies out of the vase, and threw them in a waste bin. He replaced them with the mixture of poppies, sunflowers, daisies and roses.

Ron was horror-struck; Harry was still trying to figure it out.

"Ma-Ma-Malfoy?? MALFOY???" Ron was stuttering. "I wouldn't have minded if Neville fancied my sister, but YOU? Out of all people, YOU? A Malfoy fancies my...my little sister! Argh! Oh bloody hell!"

"Yes, Weasley, I fancy your sister. Why is it so hard to believe? Oh, wait. That rivalry between our families could be a factor."

Draco said coolly, "Raven would have come, but Matt and Dilandou stopped her. Not really sure why, but when she actually said ' May I go?' they both got this glint in their eyes and stood in front of her and whispered."

Malfoy, seeing the look of disgust on Ron's face, bent over and kissed Ginny on the forehead. He had done it; he had reached the all time high of angering Ron.

Ron watched in horror and went red from ear to ear, his eyes blazing. Ron took a swing at Draco's grinning face, wanting to wipe that smirk right off. When he felt the contact between his fist and Malfoy's mouth, his hand began to burn. His arm went back for another blow when Hermione burst in, looking very distressed.

"Harry, oh my god, you have to help me..." Hermione paused to look at Ron and Malfoy, both hanging on to each other's shirt.

Hermione went red and covered her face, and promptly turned around.

"Harry," came her muffled voice, "Can we go out in the hallway? I didn't want to interrupt Ron and Draco's 'meeting'."

Harry burst out laughing at what Hermione had said. She thought they were queer! And...together!

Ron and Malfoy both tore apart, each savagely hollering at Hermione.

"Hermione! How could you say or even think of something that horrific?"

"Granger! You sick, twisted, perverted little girl! I would never in my life fancy a Weasley! I mean...a Weasley boy."

"I mean, Hermione! How could you?! I would rather be locked in a closet with Fluffy for hours on end than sit there and snog a-a MALFOY!" Ron literally screamed, tugging his hair insanely.

Malfoy was gingerly feeling his mouth during Ron's tirade, and let out a horrified gasp when he found one of his perfect teeth had been knocked completely out.

Ron walked over to the chair holding the cloak, picked it up, and walked by Harry. Harry followed him quietly.

When Ron passed Hermione, he cuffed her head with his hand.

"HEY!" Hermione said tearing after him, still laughing to herself.

When the three of them got into the corridor, Ron flung the invisibility cloak around them and began to walk.

"I'm sorry, Ron, just from my angle it looked rather strange..." Hermione apologized.

Ron didn't reply.

When they got to the top of the stairs in the Gryffindor tower, ran into a confused Mrs. Norris, hopping around on her paws trying to figure out where they were.

"Meow?" she said.

Ron walked quickly towards her, nearly pulling the cloak of Hermione and Harry, and kicked Mrs. Norris down the stairs. The cat 'Meowed' down the steps, skidding to a halt at the bottom and skulked away.

"Why did you do that, Ron?" Hermione hissed.

"Either you or the cat. Take your pick Hermione," Ron replied.

"Oh," she said. "Good point."

They continued to walk to the portrait of the fat lady.

"Slugs!" Ron hissed.

~

Malfoy gingerly rubbed his head while he looked at Ginny. He sighed. He never knew it was so hard to like somebody and avoid being tarred and feathered for it at the same time.

"Well, well, well, did you have a nice encounter with Ronald?" a voice called from a high corner.

Malfoy squinted, searching for the cause of the voice. It sounded female. And evil.

"Who's there?" He called out into the dark.

"I am," the voice replied.

Malfoy sighed. "I meant what's your name!"

"I know what you meant," they said, interrupting him. "I know more than you would think."

Malfoy heard a rustling sound.

Then the figure jumped down. Its back was to Malfoy. Then it turned around.

"RAVEN!" Malfoy exclaimed at her presence.

But something was different.

He looked her up and down and stopped at her hair. It wasn't golden brown anymore. It was going red.

A dark, bloody red. And her eyes, the pupils were red, not black. Her eyes caught his and held them. They were piercing into his mind's eye, his soul, and his heart. Consuming every thought in his head.

"You would think mortals would learn a thing or two," she said. But it had sounded like two people were talking, not just her.

His eyes wandered. Madame Pomfrey was in her office, fast asleep. The only other person other then Raven was him...and Ginny.

Ginny.

His eyes stopped cold on her body. She was sitting in an upright position, her eyes were blank and she was speaking in union with Raven.

Raven looked at Ginny. Ginny slowly got out of bed, stopping to let her feet dangle over the side first.

"The sea will be red, the sky will be black, the moon will be blue, all will be lost, all except you, you and you alone are to bear this torture. Unable to see anyone, unable to speak to anyone, unable to hear anyone," they said simultaneously as both of them approached him.

Ginny grabbed his arm and held it, then quickly grabbed the other one. She twisted them behind his back. He gasped in pain.

Raven slowly bent over him, her eyes level with his, then she lunged at him and bit his neck. His pupils dilated, then contracted. He screamed.

Malfoy sat up in his bed, panting heavily, unsure what had happened. He felt desperately around his neck. Then, satisfied that he didn't find a bite mark, he looked at his wristwatch. It read 7:00.

Slowly he turned out of his bed and stood up. He went to get dressed but found he was already dressed in what he'd to the hospital wing to give Ginny her flowers. But when did he come back? He wasn't sure, and it made him feel uneasy.

Scratching his head he grabbed his book bag and set off for the great hall.

When he entered the Slytherin common room he found Raven, Dilandou, and Matt all sitting around a book. Reading and whispering, Crabbe and Goyle were on the other side of them eating savagely. Malfoy walked to Crabbe and Goyle, and sat down rubbing his chin.

"Hey Crabbe, Goyle," he said to them.

They both grunted to acknowledge that he was there.

"Good morning, Draco." Raven said to him.

"Hi."

Matt and Dilandou looked at him. The three of them smiled.

"What's wrong? You look so tired," Raven said. "Here, have an orange."

She lightly tossed him a plump orange.

Draco looked at her. Why was she so... so...happy?

~

Ron awoke with a start at 7:15, and rolled over to find he had fallen asleep on the couch. Unfortunately, this discovery happened when he met the cold floor.

He turned over to see Hermione and Harry both sitting across from him.

"Well, that was certainly funny. Have a nice trip?" Hermione said, helping Ron up.

"Oh yeah, it was so fun! I fell in love with one of the native dust bunnies," Ron replied sarcastically.

Harry laughed.

"You hungry? We're all dressed now. We got your book bag in case you didn't get up in time."

Ron looked at Harry. "What do we have first?"

"We have," Harry said pulling out his timetable, "Transfiguration."

Hermione looked towards Ron.

"We have a test first as well," she said as she swept out of the common room to head down to the great hall.

Ron looked at Harry, terrified.

"Relax - it's a review from last year," Harry said, chuckling at Ron.

"Let's go," said Ron, standing up and stretching.

Harry yawned.

"Right behind you."

The both of them left the common room, chattering happily about the upcoming Quidditch tryouts.

~

Ron, Harry, and Hermione walked out of Charms, beginning to make their merry way to the great hall for lunch.

When they reached the great hall, Harry groaned.

"Malfoy."

Draco Malfoy was doing impressions of Harry fainting in his third year for a rather amused Raven.

She laughed, and glanced at Harry.

Ron looked at her oddly, and then turned to join Harry and Hermione at the Gryffindor table.

"Pass me the stew, Hermione?" Ron asked.

"Here," Hermione said lightly, doing her best to hold on to the stew pot and a copy of Hogwarts: A History at the same time.

"Here, let me get that," Harry said, lunging for the slipping stew pot.

They ate and chattered (or in Hermione's case, read) obliviously until about halfway through lunch when the great hall's doors burst open.

Madame Pomfrey walked through, guiding a weak Ginny into the Hall.

Ginny was unmistakably holding a bouquet of flowers.

Madame Pomfrey took her straight to Ron, and commanded Ginny in that better-do-it voice to sit down.

Ron was speechless.

"Ginny! You're awake!" he said ecstatically, throwing his arms around her.

"Hey, nice to see you too," she said, sounding tired as well as muffled through Ron's robes.

"Where did you get the flowers?" Hermione asked as Ron released Ginny.

"I don't know," Ginny said. "No one told me."

Ron looked across the sea of students to the Slytherin table and straight into the eyes of Malfoy. He was watching Ginny with obvious interest. Ron looked at Raven. She was watching Ginny as well, but not the way Malfoy was. It was just a pure, cold stare.

Ron turned back to Ginny.

"Malfoy gave you the flowers."

Both Ginny and Hermione looked at Ron incredulously.

"Yeah, right," Ginny scoffed.

"Yes, really."

~

It was midnight and Ginny couldn't fall asleep. Her face was pale and pasty, and sweat was dripping down into her eyes.

Rocking back and forth, she kneaded her knees.

Ginny turned and looked into a mirror, then slowly walked towards it. When she was close enough to fog up the glass, she looked at her own face. Her eyes were reflecting the light of the moon, barely visible though it was.

Ginny was thirsty. She'd already drank three pitchers of water, but they hadn't done anything but give a strong desire to use the bathroom.

Ginny looked around, her fiery hair falling into her eyes. She smelled blood. But how could she smell blood?

Ginny crawled drowsily back into her bed. She curled up into a ball and started to sing.

"Ring around the rosey,

Pocket full of poseys,

Hush-a, Hush-a, we all fall down."

Ginny sang it over and over till the smell of blood was unbearably intoxicating.

She looked at Marrie, one of the fifth year girls. Her nose was bleeding from the dry weather.

She couldn't take it anymore. She quietly walked forward to Marrie, her footsteps quiet. She bent over the other girl, her breath stirring Marrie's hair.

Ginny slowly bit Marrie's neck. The taste of the blood quieted her thirst. She let go of Marrie's lifeless body.

Ginny had killed her.

Ginny went back to her bed, her face still pasty. She laid back down, and the moment her head touched the cool pillow she fell smoothly to sleep, dreaming of Harry.

How little did she know about what Malfoy was going through. The same as her, yes, yet more painful...because the blood burned him.

~

"Raven, do you find amusement in this? Why are you biting everyone?" Matt asked Raven agitatedly.

"I didn't bite everyone. I only bit two people," she said calmly as she swung the rope.

"So, how do you make a hangman's noose again? I know there are thirteen loops, no more, no less."

Matt looked at her.

"But it's a cheap Muggle trick they use on mortals! It chokes them. Why do you want to learn?"

Raven looked at him, then whipped him across the face with the rope.

"Why did you do that?" he asked angrily, feeling the welt.

"I don't know, got bored I guess," she said, scratching her hair. "So, when do we try out for Quidditch?"

"Tomorrow, where's Dilandou?" Matt replied absently, carving a wooden snake in the branch of the tree they were sitting in.

"He's catching something to eat," Raven said, sighing.

"So why are we true vampires? How come I had to be born a bloody vampire? Why couldn't we be born something else, like a full blood witch or wizard?"

"I don't know," replied Raven. "It really could be worse. We could be related." She chuckled." So who was the pure vampire on your side of the family? Mine was my mother. She loved my father so bloody much that she didn't bite him. He was a wizard, I don't know who."

Matt looked at her.

"I'm going. I'll see you later, I have a Potions essay to do," Matt said, turning away.

"Bye," Raven called, "I'll see you later." She turned her head to the sky and stared, wondering, waiting, knowing, and hoping.