Flipside

Chapter Fourteen

She could feel a sweaty hand tightly gripping hers. Ginny's nose wrinkled as the stale, sterilized scent from the room filled her nostrils. Her eyes softly fluttered but remained closed and she could hear his breath hitch as he noticed her movements. Finally fighting off all remnants of sleep, her eyes flew open.

"Where am I?" she moaned groggily, trying to focus on the blonde blob beside her.

"You're in the hospital wing, Gin," Draco said slowly.

Squinting at him, she tried to pull herself upright in the bed. Slumping hopelessly against the pillows, Ginny gave up her efforts. "How long have I been here?" she squeaked.

"Almost a week," he replied. "Oh, Gin," he said weakly, visibly trying to fight back showing her his emotions. "What have you done to yourself? You're barely anything anymore. Madam Pomfrey said you're incredibly underweight and she seemed surprised you didn't passed out before."

Ginny rested her head back against the pillows. "I guess I have had too much on my mind to worry about what I was - or wasn't - eating. Have you been here to see me often?" she asked changing the subject, a slight smile gracing her pale face.

"As much as possible," Draco admitted sighing. "But I was made to go to class."

She giggled. "Well of course you had to go to class! I wouldn't have you failing your final year just because of me."

He smiled down at her. "Yeah, that is surprisingly similar to what Granger said to me," he told her with a grimace.

Laughing, Ginny finally felt some strength come back into her, and pulled herself up so she was level with him. Suddenly, Madam Pomfrey bustled into the room.

"You're awake, Miss Weasley!" she exclaimed in surprise. "I'll alert your Head of House and the Head Girl straight away. And no more visitors, you're under enough stress as it is!" she said making shooing motions at Draco as she bustled back out of the room.

Leaning back against the bed, Ginny closed her eyes. Slowly, she drifted off into a quiet slumber.

***

Ginny awoke sometime later, and could tell without opening her eyes that the room had grown darker. It was eerily quiet, and off somewhere she could hear the faint grumbling of a bubbling potion. Opening her eyes, Ginny was momentarily uneasy; the white sheets and hangings of the Hospital Wing look ethereal in the moonlight. The curtains to her right fluttered slightly as an early spring breeze eased into the room. She could still feel Draco's hand in hers, and a steady pressure on her leg told her he had fallen asleep as well. Stirring slightly to sit up, she watched in amusement as he woke up too, surprised at his surroundings.

"Hello," he said warmly, "You missed Hermione coming in. She said everyone knows you're awake now, but she would tell them not to come until the morning."

"Mmm, that's good, but I thought you were ordered to leave" she murmured sleepily with a smile. "Draco?" she questioned, a thought entering her mind. "If I was asleep for a week, then that means today is..."

"The second Friday of April, the twelfth," he confirmed for her.

Ginny had to choke back a sob. "What is it?" he asked in alarm.

"It was exactly a year ago today that Harry first told me he loved me," she said quietly, tears welling up in her eyes.

He moved onto the bed with her, and pulled her into a tight embrace. "Don't think about him anymore, Ginny," he comforted. "He is just part of your past that should not be dwelled upon."

"Your right," she agreed, wiping away the tears, "I just can't believe I once loved him."

"Oh, but that doesn't matter anymore," remarked a third voice from the shadows.

Ginny gasped as she saw his green eyes glittering in the moonlight, his wand pointed at the pair of them.

"What do you want, Potter?" Draco growled from beside her, clutching her tiny, bony body protectively in his arms.

Harry let out a haunting laugh. "If only you knew, Malfoy," he said softly. "But I know Ginny really only has love for me."

"I could never love a monster like you, Harry," Ginny spat angrily.

"But yet you say you love him, Ginny," Harry remarked with a sad shake of his head. "He's nothing but a runaway Death Eater hoping for redemption."

"You say that as if choosing the Light side was the wrong thing to do, Potter," Draco said slowly.

"That's precisely what I'm saying!" Harry snapped, suddenly irritable. "You could've been great as a Death Eater, Malfoy. You're future is not with the Order, but with your kinsmen in black."

"Harry, what are you saying?" Ginny exclaimed.

"Don't bother, Ginny. It's obvious Potter is off his rocker," Draco bit nastily.

"That's where you're wrong, Malfoy," Harry said, a sadistic smile widening on his face. "I know exactly what I am doing."

"Harry," Ginny pleaded. "Please, just stop this. Whatever you are planning to do, it isn't worth it."

"But it is worth it, Gin," Harry remarked, an insane glimmer in his eyes. "For I shall rid the world of another disappointment and then we can be together again."

Ginny's eyes widened in comprehension of what Harry was about to do. Out of the corner of her eye, Ginny could see Draco beside her, his eyes flitting between Harry's wand and his own, which lay out of reach on the bed next to them.

"Killing Draco won't make me love you, Harry," Ginny said quietly. "I think you should go."

Harry ignored her comments. "Say your final goodbye to him, Ginny," he ordered, stabbing his wand viciously at them.

"Harry, stop it!" Ginny cried desperately, trying to pull herself out of the bed and approach the boy. Draco clung to her, pushing her back against the pillows.

'Oh Gods,' Ginny thought in fear as she fought with Draco. 'Harry can't be doing this; this has to be a bad dream. What happened to the sweet Harry I use to know?'

Harry began to laugh maniacally. "It's useless, Malfoy. She wants to be with me."

Ginny began to struggle harder against Draco's grasp. If only she could get to Harry and calm him down.

Harry held his wand steady, pointing it at the struggling duo. Ginny finally succeeded in getting out of Draco's grasp and began to scamper across his lap towards the end to the bed and Harry. She felt triumphant as she moved closer to Harry and knew she could make him see some sense.

"Har -" she began.

'Avada Kedavra'

Her world faded away.

As the blinding flash of green light died down, Draco could feel the weight of her crumpled body on his lap. He was frozen in shock, staring down at her lifeless form. He missed the look of fear and horror cross the other boy's face. He did not see Harry stare down at his hands in surprise and disbelief. Draco paid no attention to the way Harry ran out the room in panic, as a realization of what he had done dawned on him.

Instead, Draco could only see the white of the sheets, walls, curtains, all blending together. Fireworks exploded in his head, and the silence of the room deafened him, as if it were screaming. He clutched at her body, looking in at the lifeless white of her eyes. Her hair was the only colour in his now black-and-white world. Fisting the red masses in his hands, he felt anger coursing through his body. The only thing Draco Malfoy could think about was revenge; revenge for why he was now holding the lifeless body of Ginny Weasley in his arms.

-The End-