Antithetical

LAST CHAPTER...

Draco glanced up in time to see Ginny hit the ground. "Weasley?" he queried. "Need help walking now?"

There was no response.

"Weasley?" he questioned again worriedly. "Ginny?" he whispered as he got down on his knees. He slid his hands under Ginny's back and slowly lifted her up into his arms. He looked down at her pale face. Her breathing was shallow and she lay dangerously still. Draco quickened his strides to reach the infirmary. He pushed open the door with his back and as he turned, an outraged voice boomed in his ears.

"What have you done to my sister!?"



CHAPTER TWO -

So I take my
Good fortune
And I fantasize
Of our leaving
Like some modern-day
Gypsy landslide
Like some modern day
Bonnie and Clyde

On the run again
On the run again

-PJ Harvey Good Fortune

It dawned on Draco how bad this looked. Ginny was covered with mud, grime, and sweat. His own normally immaculate appearance was tousled with mud that covered his knees, legs, and arms.

Draco took in the scene before him. He could see Potter's shocked eyes peering out from behind the hospital curtain. Hermione was sitting in a stool with blank confusion on her face. Draco would have smirked at her expressions because for once she was speechless, but he had greater concerns.

Abruptly, Ron stood, knocking over his stool. His face somehow managed to look furious, concerned and appalled simultaneously.

"Malfoy…" Ron shouted, lunging towards Draco, only to stop himself after realizing his sister was in the way.

Madame Pomfrey burst in. "Ron! You should know better by now," she scolded. "This is a place to rest, a place for peace and quiet! Out! Out!" she whispered angrily. Ron shuffled slowly towards the door glaring over his shoulder with every step he took. Hermione walked behind him, gently nudging him forward. She murmured whispers of comfort into his ear.

Draco envisioned Ron as an angry horse with Hermione purring comments to calm him. At the moment, he even looked like one. The thought brought out the infamous smirk that he had been holding down. The last thing Ron saw through the closing door was Draco Malfoy holding Ginny in his arms, a snide smile across his face.

Madame Pomfrey directed him to a bed. "What happened, Mr. Malfoy?" she asked, as she bustled about to gather brews and medicines.

Draco thought back to Ginny's detention. "Weasley was weeding a section of the lawn for detention. It was my job to supervise her. After a few hours, she sat down and announced she was finished. I then pointed out a few weeds she missed. When I turned, I saw her hit the ground." He said this all calmly and clearly without a hint of hesitation or guilt. "I carried her up here and you know the rest."

She nodded. Her enchanted wand was traveling up and down the length of Ginny's body. Suddenly, the wand began to spin furiously, coming to a stop at Draco's face. Bits of twinkling dust spritzed out of the end and evaporated into the air. Draco raised an eyebrow.

Madame Pomfrey looked up and blinked. "Draco, I think you should leave her with me."

There was a long pause. Draco stood. "Of course," he said, brushing off his robes. He seemed to walk a bit slower than usual. He shut the door gently behind him.

Madame Pomfrey sat, staring at the scintillating wand. With the absence of Draco, the wand had gone back to floating above Ginny's body. "How strange," she thought. The wand had been charmed to search for any signs of magical involvement with a patient. It would spin if a curse or potion were detected.

Never had the wand lit up or pointed at another individual. It was almost as if the same curse had affected both Draco Malfoy and Ginny Weasley. Madame Pomfrey sighed and opened another cabinet, rummaging for her old spell books.

* * * * *

Ron sat in a common room chair, glaring angrily at the chessboard. The fireplace crackled behind him, marching his hot rage. He muttered something about splitting Malfoy in half first thing in the morning. "I bet he caused this!" he grumbled. "When I get to him, I'll…I'll…"

"Umm…Ron. It's your turn," Hermione said with a mix of concern and annoyance. "Your king can't move four spaces!"

Ron gazed at the board and moved his castle. "Check-mate," he said.

"Ron, are you okay?"

"What do you mean am I okay? My little sister was put in the infirmary by Malfoy and you ask me if I'm alright?" he roared in response.

All the Gryffindors turned their heads toward the yelling at the end of the common room. When they saw the cause of commotion, they turned back around. It was just another one of Ron's frequent outbursts. A buzz of gossip began to travel quickly.

Hermione sighed. "Well, if that's how you're going to be, I guess there is no point talking to you." She swept out of her chair and started up the steps to the girl's chambers. Ron blinked and dropped wearily into his chair. He would have to apologize to Hermione in the morning. He returned to his thoughts of Ginny lying in the hospital bed unconscious. He pictured Malfoy beating her violently into the ground and his rage fired up once more.

* * * * *

Harry strolled down the corridors to the Gryffindor tower in a daze. Madame Pomfrey had wrapped his sprained wrist in a bandage with some magical ointment. Apparently he had sprained his wrist so many times, that he developed an immunity to the spell that could heal it. She sent him on his way with a worried look on her face. Harry sighed directed his thoughts to Draco Malfoy. He had a growing hope that Malfoy had changed this year. At least he had reduced the number of rude comments and immature pranks. Harry then visualized Ginny lying prone on a pure white bed, her fiery hair spread our around her. Over the years, Harry had begun to see Ginny as his own little sister. Harry quickened his paced, his angry thoughts still focused on Malfoy. He turned the corner sharply and ran straight into the one person that he did not want to see.

* * * * *

The dark Hogwarts halls resonated an eerieness similar to the Malfoy mansion. The endless, twisting corridors were empty except for the occasional mummers from ghosts and students out of bed. Draco placed one foot carefully in front of the other. As a child, he was denied many "normal" games and toys so he made up his own. One had been to walk as silently as possible, to seem as he was floating. Even now, he continued this practice. A Malfoy never shuffled or scampered and he may as well be as graceful as he could. He heard some clipped footsteps coming down the corridor. "Probably a lost first year," he thought smugly as he opened his mouth to give the student a piece of his mind. He decided against it when the familiar sight of tousled black hair and broken glasses clumsily crashed into him.

"Still getting lost, Potter?"

"Still being a git, Malfoy?" Harry retorted, pushing himself into Draco's face. "It's not enough to put fifth year girls in the hospital? Haven't filled out your daily quota of cruelty?" He shoved Draco back against a wall.

Draco's eyes narrowed as he grabbed Harry by the collar of his robes and shook him. Harry pulled his fist back for a punch when approaching footsteps were heard.

The unmistakable sound of Filch's shuffling feet echoed hauntingly in the empty hall. Draco immediately released Harry and headed swiftly towards the sound of Filch.

Harry grabbed his arm. "Where are you going?" he hissed. "We've got to hide."

"It's moments like these that prove the simplicity of Gryffindors," Draco scoffed, irritably. He brushed off Harry's hand and continued walking. Harry crept after him, waiting for Draco to be knocked off his pedestal.

"Mr. Malfoy, what are you doing in the halls at this hour?" Filch's unpleasant voice dripped with suspicion and astonishment.

Harry listened in amazement as Malfoy adopted a honeyed tone.

"I was returning to the dungeons from the infirmary when I heard you coming by and I thought I should come thank you for all your work around Hogwarts."

Filch looked thoroughly taken back. "Y-you-you're welcome," he answered awkwardly.

Draco continued in his most grateful tone. "You might find some students out of bed down the hall. I heard some noises."

Filch peered hopefully down the corridor. "I must be going, Mr. Malfoy. Go straight to your dormitory."

"Of course, sir," Draco replied. He turned slightly and winked smugly at Harry before sauntering sedately towards the dungeons.

Harry cursed silently and scampered off as Filch came towards him.

* * * * *

Ginny woke up the next morning, feeling calm and refreshed. She stretched lazily in bed and opened her eyes only to find herself in the hospital wing. The night before flooded back to her in a rushing stream. There was that one last patch of weeds. Her brow furrowed as she tried to remember more.

"Missed a spot," Draco had said in an every so irritating tone. At that moment, she had wanted to be very far from him, to never see him again. He was the reason she got detention. If only he would just go away… Then all of a sudden, dizziness had overcome her. It was as if all her thoughts were rushing into each other, causing an explosion into darkness. The last thing she heard before completely blacking out was his voice hoarsely whispering her name.

"Virginia," Madame Pomfrey entered the room. "Good morning."

"Good morning," she piped merrily. She wore a bright smile, but on the inside, the day had dimmed to a dreadful gray.

"You seem fine. You must have passed out from exhaustion."

"No kidding," she thought.

Madame Pomfrey continued. "If it were up to me, I would keep you here a day more, but your headmaster wishes to speak to you in his office."

"In his office?"

"Yes, dear. Now hurry along to your dormitory to change. He's expecting you in an hour."

"An hour? But what about class?"

"It's Saturday dear."

"Oh."

* * * * *



Ron stormed down towards the Slytherin dungeons with Harry and Hermione at his heels. He had vowed to himself that he would make Malfoy pay for whatever he did to Ginny.

"Ron, stop," Hermione pleaded. "This won't do any good."

Ron stopped and turned sharply to face Hermione.

"You think you know everything, don't you?" he snapped. "You may not care about my little sister, but I do!"

Harry was torn between his two best friends. Before he could do anything, Ron opened his mouth once more.

"What do you have against Ginny anyway? You're the one who got Harry."

Hermione glared at Ron. Both of them were oblivious to their dumbfounded friend beside them.

"Well, Ronniekins. If you think I don't care about Ginny, then go on! Go pound on Malfoy! Get sent to the infirmary again for all I care!"

"Fine!" He turned and resumed walking. Hermione ran in front of him.

"You stupid git!" she screamed. "What good would it do if you killed Malfoy? You don't even know what happened."

"Fine, then. Pray tell. What did happen?" Ron answered with a scowl.

"Ginny had detention last night."

"We all know that."

"I was supposed to supervise her, because I'm the top student. However, I wanted to watch Harry play at quidditch practice."

Ron rolled his eyes. Harry looked at him, then at Hermione. He resolved to remain silent.

"Professor McGonagall probably left her in the care of her second best student. I didn't realize it before, but that would probably be Malfoy."

Harry and Ron gaped at her incredulously. The thought of Malfoy being remotely near the top of the class was just too hard to believe.

"Yes it's Malfoy."

"So you left her with Malfoy?" Ron asked, practically shaking with fury.

"Well, I didn’t realize it would be him at the time. Ginny must have over-exerted herself in detention and Malfoy simply carried her to the infirmary."

Both Harry and Ron looked prepared to argue.

"Think about it," she continued. "Would he bring her to the infirmary if he was the one who hurt her?"

Ron and Harry closed their mouths. Hermione had a point. It was Harry who spoke first. "Why don't we go visit Ginny?"

"Yeah. And if you still want to bash Malfoy's head in after that, it won't be too late," Hermione pointed out.

"You're right," Ron said, brightening up a little. "Yvette might even be there.

Harry and Hermione looked at each other knowingly.

"What?" Ron said.

Ginny stood in anticipation before the entrance to the Headmaster's office. Ginny had only been in the office once in the past, after the chamber of secrets, but that instance had seemed like a foggy dream. Tapping her foot in impatience, she examined the gargoyle before the door. Was it laughing at her?

The sound of footsteps alerted her of an approaching figure. "Headmaster D…," she began before meeting the gray eyes of Draco Malfoy in surprise. What was he dong here? Ginny glared bitterly at him: after all the detention was all his fault.

"It seems Weasleys do rebound suspiciously quick," Draco teased.

Ginny opened her mouth and shut it. Was that even an insult? Anything Malfoy said appeared sarcastic.

"Ms. Weasley, Mr. Malfoy. I expected you later."

Both of them turned like cornered animals, as Dumbledore peered out of his office. Draco straightened and pretended to be not startled; no one caught a Malfoy by surprise.



Draco tried to keep his eyes open as the Headmaster rummaged about for something or another. Clusters of foreign looking objects lay scattered around the majestic, but comfortable office. A dish of muggle candies sat on the desk. Fawkes was preening on his perch by the fireplace.

"Aah, here it is," exclaimed Dumbledore. Draco and Ginny looked up. Their headmaster held a large tome that was falling apart at the seams. He opened the book gently. "This is a passage that I thought might be of concern to the two of you."

He cleared his throat before beginning to read. "In ancient times, natural selection and an excessive amount of duels reduced the number of weaklings and squibs. Any born were usually killed. Thus, even the most common wizards could cast awesome spells. Curses from even centuries before carry the same weight today. A perfect example is the case of Clarence Weatherby who, when caught in a clash between two warring families, cursed them to be united in marriage. An unlucky pair would be forced to wed. If they were not joined by age twenty, both would waste away slowly until the specific conditions were met. No reversal to this curse was ever found, despite numerous attempts from both families."

Dumbledore shut the book and looked at them expectantly. Silence greeted him. It was Ginny who spoke first.

"I'm sorry Headmaster, but how does that apply to me…us?"

Dumbledore sighed. "Ms. Weasley, perhaps I should speak with Mr. Malfoy alone. Could you please wait outside?"

The headmaster removed his reading glasses as Ginny left the room. "You know these few years have been the most problematic in all my teaching career?"

Draco sat still. How do you respond to a statement like that from Dumbledore? Draco never saw him as anything but a clever and cheerful old man, but now he seemed tired and frustrated.

The headmaster smiled. "You're not to blame, of course. I presume you understand the passage pertained to Virginia Weasley and yourself."

Draco nodded. "Is that why Weas- err… Virginia passed out?"

Dumbledore nodded solemnly. "You must realize the danger of your situation. You're nearing your seventeenth year. You and Ms. Weasley must be together as much as possible, so that's why I'm-" He paused. "It would be best for both of you to be present."

Ginny tapped her foot impatiently. She couldn't believe Malfoy was being trusted and not her. She looked up in time to see Dumbledore motion her back in.

"Now, as both of you probably know, the professors of Hogwarts have been quite busy this year. They've needed to assign detention supervision to some students. Mr. Malfoy, you've had this duty on several occasions." Dumbledore nodded towards Draco. "And as both of you are at the top of your classes, it is only natural that both of you have the privilege of supervising detention. Since this is a new program, the professors decided the supervisors will work in pairs. It has been requested for you two to work together. Please do not disappoint us."

Ginny, sat back halting an oncoming burst of rage. Malfoy, of all people! Her fingernails dug onto her palms within her clenched fists. She would not disappoint Dumbledore. She stole a glance at Malfoy. How does he always manage to look so smug? Can't he show any emotion? She suppressed another urge to scream.

Dumbledore smiled happily, appearing not to notice the tension in the room. "Your first session is two weeks from now. Your head professors will provide you with the details. Have a good day."

* * * * *

Ginny sat nervously on a bench by the south lawn. For the past few days, she had listlessly drifted from class to class, flooded with languor. She was at a breaking point, not in the mood to deal with Malfoy. They had agreed to meet here a half-hour ago and he was nowhere to be seen. The detention "counselors" would meet with the Hogwarts staff on a weekly basis. "We're not really detention counselors," Ginny reflected, smiling to herself. "More like…semi-professors." At least she was the first Weasley to be part of this. All her brothers had their own legacy at Hogwarts. She was buried in their shadow. Maybe, she too would get a chance to shine. The first meeting was in two days and each pair was assigned a paper to write together. Where was Malfoy?

* * * * *

Hermione groaned, cursing her fortune to be partnered with such an airhead. The four professors of each house had finally decided to have a formally organized student detention committee. The top students from each house, that were fifth years or above, were chosen to be part of this elite group. They were split into pairs and Hermione was with Yvette Delacour, the blondest blonde of Gryffindor house.

"Yvette, hello?" She waved her hands in front of Yvette's face. "Anyone home?"

Yvette was snapped out of her daydreams. "Oh yes, Hermione. Where were we?" she asked, pretending to have been listening.

Hermione groaned again. How did Yvette manage to become a part of this program?

"We have to write an essay, remember?"

"Oh, yes. That is right," Yvette answered, her English slightly tainted with a French accent. She stood up. "I truly am sorry, Hermione. But I really must go. Ginny and I have plans."

"But, the essay…" Hermione sputtered.

"Do not worry about the essay. I'll take care of it. Buhbye." And with that Yvette flounced out of the library.

Hermione stood to go after her but slumped back down into her seat. The essay was due in two days and they hadn't written a word. She grabbed a quill, prepared to start writing. Someone had to get it done, and she wasn't about to depend on Yvette.

She began to flip through the books she had collected. On the bottom of the pile she found "Curses and Me" by Gilderoy Lockhart. "The essay can wait," she though happily and opened the book. There were always interesting facts interwoven with Gilderoy's boasts.

"Hey," Harry slid into the seat beside her and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. Hermione slipped the book into her book bag, surprised the two hours had already passed since Yvette left. Normally, she would have been irritated by an interruption, but after an eternity of trying to pry Yvette out of daydreams, Harry was just the person she wanted to see.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing…just I have to work with Yvette on the detention committee essay and well…it's frustrating." She sighed. "So, how are you?"

"I'm fine, but Ron is…slightly...err... concerned about Ginny."

"Slightly? He's been ranting all day about how his baby sister has to work with a Malfoy snob."

"Did Ginny ever tell you what happened that night?"

"Well…nothing except for the fact she fainted. You know, Ginny and I aren't that close anymore. Especially after…"

"After this happened?" Harry drew Hermione in for a kiss.

"Yeah," she answered a moment later, giggling a little. She quickly became serious again. "I'm worried about her though. People don't faint without a reason. If it was from exhaustion, as Madame Pomfrey says, Ginny should still be resting."

"What else could have caused her to faint? Do you think Ginny's fainting from being with Malfoy?"

"Well…not exactly. She's been really tired lately too. Here, take a look at this." Hermione pulled out "Curses and Me" and flipped to where her bookmark lay.

"'Curses and me' by Gilderoy Lockhart," Harry read the title, raising an eyebrow. "I thought you were over this idiot." He said, eyeing the winking picture of Lockhart on the cover.

Hermione sniffed. "Of course I am…" she replied, looking away. "Anyway, here on page 48, there's a footnote about curses throughout history."

"'Similar to the spell I performed to save the Lucinda family from peril, a wizard performed a lesser one centuries ago to counteract the curse placed on his family by Clarence Weatherby. The wizard family was involved in a feud with revolting serfs. Weatherby was caught in the middle of the feud and was fatally harmed. Weatherby then placed a curse upon both families to ensure that the two would be united in the marriage of a noble male to a female from the serf family. To prevent a rustic from ruining the royal bloodline, a wizard of the noble family made a spell that prevented the serfs from having a daughter. The royal bloodline continued unsoiled. The family allied with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named in the early 19th century and has requested to be unnamed. An unusual characteristic about the noble family is their genetic tradition of icy blonde hair, while the serfs have a history of fiery red hair. It is unknown if this fact is related to the spell."

"Well?" Hermione asked.

"So, now you're saying that the two families are the Weasley's and the Malfoy's?" Harry asked, quizzically.

"Don't you get it?"

"No."

"The Weasley's have a history for having sons. You don't hear about Ginny or Ron having any aunts, great aunts, or even female cousins on her father's side."

"The serf family was the Weasleys?"

"Well…" Hermione glanced down at the desk. "I was thinking…."

"That all the Malfoy's and Weasley's will die if Malfoy and Ginny don't get married?" Harried said with a smile in his voice.

"Well…yes."

Harry laughed. "Hermione, I think this time your hypothesis is just a little too unrealistic."

Hermione glared at Harry. The old Harry would have just kept smiling, but boyfriend-Harry sealed his lips tightly though his eyes still danced with laughter.

"Why don't we go for a walk?" he suggested finally.

Hermione looked sadly at her books and opened her mouth to turn him down but then a though occurred to her.

Why could Yvette make plans and not her? Hermione smiled up at Harry.

"Why not?" she said, as she started to pack her books into her bag.

* * * * *

Draco picked up his pace as he glanced at his watch. The extremely expensive timepiece was extremely unhelpful. Flashing words proclaimed, "You're late!" Draco grumbled silently, but refused to scuttle. He threw open the side doors to the north lawn, panicking when he saw no sign of Ginny Weasley. He cursed under his breath. Didn't she know this was for her own good?

"Looking for me?" came a melodious female voice. Draco whirled around. Ginny was leaning against a tree with the sun highlighting her hair. She had a spark in her eyes Draco had never seen in Pansy or any of the other Slytherin girls.

"I hope you at least remembered to bring the recommended books on curses and their history," Ginny continued condescendingly.

Draco scoffed. "Of course, Weasley. You don't think I got to the top of my class just on my good looks."

"If your grades were based on your looks, you would have never passed first year," she shot back. Ginny was shocked with herself. She knew Malfoy was only joking, but the words seemed to just pop out of her mouth.



Draco gazed at Ginny Weasley. He was taken back but countered quickly. "At least I can get any girl I want. I don't have to follow one around like a pathetic dog," he sneered.

"Really. Well, you sure are following me around like one," she retorted, her anger flaring up. She looked into Malfoy's icy gray eyes, unable to guess his emotions. Was there a heart beneath his immaculate exterior? Before her mind could answer its own question, he spoke again.

"Is that what you think, Weasley? That you're worth following around?"

"I don't hear you denying it," she shot back.

Draco stayed silent. Ginny opened her mouth to respond, but closed it. Had she just won a verbal match with Malfoy?

"Look, we have to work together on this project," Draco said at last.

"So? Does that mean I have to like you?"

"No."

"Well, good. I doubt anyone besides those fawning Slytherin girls could ever be nice to scum like you," Ginny said, still in shock with both Malfoy and herself.

His face was devoid of expression. The sun was dipping into the horizon and she was beautiful standing before him, glaring bitterly. "My loving fiancé," he thought and mentally laughed to himself. He could answer with a slick insult, but what good would that do? He sighed.

Ginny stood, staring at him. She had stopped leaning against the tree and desperately wanted to lie on the ground to rest her legs. "But, I won't," she thought with determination. This was a challenge, like the one at the first banquet of the year. She wouldn't back down. She wasn't weak.

"Weasley," Draco broke the silence. "What do you hate most about me?"

"Just you in general," she retorted in a careless tone.

"You can see good in everyone. Why not me?"

Ginny looked away from him. Had she hurt him? Was that even possible? She closed her eyes and sighed. She suddenly felt very tired, over come with fatigue. She couldn't stand for much longer. A familiar sensation crawled back into her mind: a dizzy and dark feeling that seemed to push at her as if to knock her down. Ginny fought against it. She was strong. She wouldn't back down. She opened her eyes and looked into his cold, unmoving gaze.

"Tell me, Malfoy. Do you search for evil in me?"

"No, of course not." Draco replied, confused.

"Exactly," Ginny said harshly. "You don't search a good person for the small amount of cruelty in them. It's pointless. It's the same with you, Malfoy. It's just as useless to search for good in you." She stopped. That had gone far past their usual line of banter. She bit her lip, wanting to look down, but refusing to tear her eyes away from his.

His expression didn't waver. "The only problem with that, Weasley, is that you never tried to find which category I'm in," he replied, turning on his heel and walking back into the castle, not looking back, never seeing her hit the ground.

* * * * *

Yvette ducked into the empty classroom. She felt awful for lying to Hermione, but she had to leave. She scanned the dark classroom. Was he in here? She heard a noise behind her and turned in relief. "You scared me, Dean. You know I don't like the dark."

She started and began to scream at the horror before her, heedless of its desperate motioning for silence.