War's End

Pansy Parkinson was mad. Scratch that, she was livid. Her expensive, black stilettos clicked angrily against the stone floor of the Slytherin Common Room and the younger years scattered, fearful of upsetting her even further. Draco was sprawled along the couch, watching the young brunette with smirking lips and eyes full of mischief. Endora shook her head at Pansy's antics and went back to fixing the minor cuts and bruises that marred Draco's otherwise flawlessly patrician features.

"The littlest Weasley's got one Hell of an aim, eh?" Blaise remarked from the leather armchair he occupied with his fiancé, Daphne Greengrass.

Draco rolled his eyes over to the couple and shook his head. Daphne, with her strawberry-blonde hair and soft green eyes, was a sharp contrast to her dark fiancé, which was all the more obvious when she sat atop of him, as was her current position. They were two of the lucky ones involved in an arranged marriage, since they actually got along quite splendidly. In fact, although Blaise and Daphne had only known about their engagement since the end of spring, they'd been dating for the past two years. And Daphne had been planning their wedding, which was to take place the summer after their seventh year, ever since. Sure, her grades had slipped a bit, except in Potions (what self-respecting Slytherin could fail that class?), but Blaise had casually dismissed this fact by claiming, "No Lady from the House of Zabini will ever have to work, so what does it matter?"

"Yeah? Well, I'll show her one hell of a curse the next time I see that sad excuse for a witch. Honestly, resorting to physical violence? She's just as bad as the Mudblood," Pansy seethed, still pacing in front of the fireplace.

A fully-healed and once again-unblemished Draco rose from the couch, thanked Endora, who merely smiled and nodded, and walked over to his fuming friend. "Come on, Pansy. Don't waste your energy on her. She's beneath you."

His porcelain hands ran down her arms and his lips kissed the side of her neck. Some of the tension immediately left Pansy's body and she released a small sigh, resisting the urge to sink back into Draco's embrace. If it were just the Les Dirigeants Sombres, she would not have been so careful. But in public, well, Pansy had to be on her guard. Draco could get away with such displays of affection with any women he pleased. He was, after all, a Malfoy and possibly the most powerful teenager in all of England, at least politically. No one would dare cross or reprimand him. Pansy, though from a powerful family as well, could not be so free, at least not anymore.

There'd been a time when she and Draco had done as they pleased, sharing quick kisses in the Common Room or lingering touches during meals. Though there was a significant amount of lust between the two, both took comfort in the fact that there was a mutual understanding that their relationship would go no farther than an experimental friendship. But now that Pansy's parents were in negotiations with the Puceys about a possible engagement for she and their son, Adrian, who had graduated the previous year, she had to exhibit a certain amount of control. Adrian, who was not quite the fastest broom on the pitch, would make a perfect husband for Pansy in her father's eyes. He was respectable enough for marriage, but easily manipulated by feminine charms and it would take next to nothing for Pansy to convince him to allow her to run the Parkinson companies, if only in secret. However, like most Slytherins, Pucey was extremely jealous and if he suspected Pansy to be romantically involved with Draco, all hope of a marriage alliance would be lost. That was something she could not afford.

"Someone needs to put her in her place," Pansy grumbled, crossing her arms under her voluptuous chest. "I still can't believe you let the little wench get away with that."

"Believe me, Pansy, she'll pay. But for now, no one is to confront her. The Weaslette is my toy and you know I don't like to share."

Pansy turned, her violet eyes locking onto his cool grey ones, studying him carefully. "And what exactly do you have planned for your newest plaything?"

"You'll see," Draco replied with a smirk.

"What he means is he doesn't know. Not yet at least."

Draco's head whipped around to glare at Dorian, who sat in another one of the many leather chairs, engrossed in his Arithmancy homework. Dorian's quill was moving at a rapid rate across his parchment, quickly filling up the required ten inches. He finished the sentence he was scrawling and looked up, mocha eyes gleaming. "Not that I'm doubting you, Oh Fearless One. Having a Weasley in your debt will undoubtedly come in handy, but be careful with that one."

"Why?" Draco scowled, his tone warning and, had Dorian been anyone but a Dirigeants Sombres, he would have never dared his next statement.

"Because there's more to her than meets the eye. She's different than her brother, foolish and reckless to be sure, but there's something else there too." He shot him a meaningful look.

"Surely you're not suggesting what I think you are?" Draco scoffed, eyes disbelieving.

Dorian merely shrugged. "I'm just saying it's a possibility. Unlikely, but possible all the same."

"I agree," said Endora from her place on the couch. "But I don't think this is the time to discuss such matters."

"You're right," Draco nodded. "Perhaps later, but not now. We have more important things to discuss than Ginny Weasley."

The grandfather clock signaled to them that it was midnight and a quick glance around the Common Room alerted the five to the fact that, save for Crabbe, Goyle, and Daphne, they were once again alone. After a quick kiss and promises to be up soon, Blaise sent Daphne to their room (they'd long since moved in together, seeing no point in separating themselves when they'd be married within a year anyway). Draco's eyes searched the shadows for the figure he knew was there, but could find no trace of his guard. Satisfied at her secrecy, he put up Impenetrable Charms around the room and returned to the couch as Pansy deafened the two ogres.

"So," Blaise began, leaning forward in his chair. "Did you speak to him last night? What did he say?"

Draco smirked and leaned back, closing his eyes as he regaled his friends with the news he'd learned, leaving out a few pieces of information that could not yet be disclosed, even to those he actually trusted. For if Lucius Malfoy's plans were revealed before the proper preparations had been made, things could go very wrong indeed and this was something Draco could not allow.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

He was in the main parlour of the Malfoy Manor, reclining easily and yet with the perfect posture his breeding dictated. The room was immaculate as always, with its marbled floors, white and gold-trimmed furniture, and a spectacular view of the immense grounds. Johannes, Draco's Aethonon, flew by the window-wall, and his master couldn't help but smile. It was good to be home, even if it was only a recreation of his consciousness.

"It's good to see you, Draco. How have things at school been progressing?"

Draco turned to his father, who was seated in the chair next to him, and gave him a brief update of all that been going on, including his encounters with the youngest member of the Weasley family. Lucius had not spoken the entire time, but snickered when Draco reiterated his latest encounter with the she-Weasel, causing Draco to blush slightly.

"And now you have one of the Weasleys in your debt. A welcome surprise, to be sure, but be careful of her, Draco. That family tends to cause more problems then they're worth."

"Of course, Father."

Taking a small sip of his tea, Draco reveled in the lemony taste as it coursed down his throat and wished that he could truly be sitting in the Parlour Room with his father, instead of merely Dream-walking. Hot anger ran through him at the thought of his father, a noble pureblood, imprisoned in Azkaban prison. Anger at himself for not being at the Ministry of Magic to help, anger at the Dark Lord for not being able to release him, but most of all, anger at Harry Potter. Everything in his life that had gone wrong could somehow be traced back to that bloody Scarhead and, to Draco, this was the most unforgivable of sins. Not only had Potter disgraced his family, but he'd brought pain to his mother.

Unknowingly, Draco's features softened at the thought of her. His beautiful mother, with her soft blue eyes and gentle touch, that cared more for her son and husband than anyone else in the world. Draco knew she'd been going through immense pain, being separated from them both, and his blood boiled because there was not a damn thing he could do to ease her pain.

"I miss you," he blurted out suddenly. And it was true.

Despite what 99% of the Wizarding population thought, Lucius Malfoy was a damned good father and Draco loved him. His father had always been there for him, a guiding hand, a firm teacher, a caring parent, and all that had been taken away, bringing sorrow as well as anger. And fear. Oh yes, fear was there as well. Fear that he would not be strong enough to complete the tasks his father had asked of him. Fear that he would prove a failure.

What they were planning was not some stupid Quidditch game. If they were to lose, the consequences would be worse than the look of disappointment on his father's face and Potter's gloating. If they lost, it could mean all of their lives.

Lucius reached out and placed a hand on his son's shoulder, squeezing slightly. He offered Draco a small smile that said more than words could have. "I miss you too, Draco."

Then they got down to business. Lucius told Draco all that Voldemort had relayed to him. There were attacks that were planned for Essex, a new Death Eater initiation scheduled for next Friday, and it had been confirmed that Hestia Jones was indeed a member of the Order of the Phoenix as had been suggested.

"And what about the ritual?" Draco asked somewhat impatiently, earning a slightly disapproving glance from his father.

"The preparations are being made. The Dark Lord has assigned specific members to collect the needed items and everything should be ready by the Vernal Equinox."

"Tell me Wormtail is not part of the team."

Lucius snorted. "Please, do you really think the Dark Lord is so foolish?" He pointedly ignored the look Draco sent him. "Dolohov and your Uncle Rodolphus are in charge of retrieving the necessary dark objects and Yaxley will be providing the Portkey."

"I'd forgotten that Yaxley worked with the Department of Transportation. How are Uncle Rodolphus and Aunt Bella doing?"

"Quite well, from what I hear from you mother. I believe your next package should contain something... special from your Aunt. A belated back-to-school gift, I suppose."

Draco and his father shared a knowing look. Aunt Bella's ideas of gifts were always interesting, to say the least. After his fourth year when Potter, Weasley, and Granger had humiliated him by turning him into a slug-like creature, his Aunt had sent him a portrait of the three of them as a fifteenth birthday gift. Of course, the portrait depicted them undergoing various means of torture, which Draco found over-the-top, albeit slightly amusing. Eventually, he had to silence their screams, which had echoed throughout the Manor, keeping all of its inhabitants from sleeping peacefully. The portrait now rested in one of the many unused hallways of Malfoy Manor and was brought out only when Bella paid a visit.

"I can hardly wait. Mother has checked it to ensure it won't get me expelled, hasn't she?"

"Of course." Here Lucius paused and studied his son carefully. "Draco, you have been practicing the spells for the ceremony, haven't you?"

"A few nights a week. I've been using the Forbidden Forest, like you suggested too."

"And you've taken the necessary precautions, I presume?"

Draco shot his father an annoyed look. "I haven't been followed, Father. I know how to cover my own tracks, you know. I'm not such a child anymore."

Lucius shook his head and smirked knowingly. "So obstinately independent, like your mother."

"Really? She says I get that from you."

"I'm sure she does," Lucius answered, his voice softening at the mere thought of his wife. "I know Hogwarts isn't nearly as far as Durmstrang, but she misses you more than you know, Draco."

"Could I... do you think it'd be possible for me to visit her sometime this week?"

"I doubt it'd be a wise idea," he answered with a sigh. "Your mother's not strong enough in Occlumency to keep Dumbledore unaware of your interactions."

Draco opened his mouth to respond, but Lucius held up a hand and continued. "I know you're a talented Occlumens, Draco, but it takes two of equal power to keep other wizards from stumbling upon this sort of communication, especially a wizard with Dumbledore's power." Draco did not miss the distaste in his father's tone and knew that Lucius Malfoy resented the old wizard for his power. Jealousy may have been a factor, but it was more that they'd had to be especially careful to prevent Dumbledore from becoming aware of their plans, which had most assuredly set them back farther than desired.

"You'll just have to stick to letters for now," he continued. "Your mother understands and I know she appreciates your efforts."

"I write to her every week, "Draco answered. "Sometimes more, depending on what's going on. I just wish I could be there for her."

"As do I, Draco, but we both must remember that your mother is a strong woman." A smile crept its way onto Lucius' face. "It's partly why I married her."

"And because you love her."

"Yes, there's always that." The two were silent for a moment, Lucius thinking of his beloved wife and Draco hoping one day he too would know what it was like to love someone so completely. "And speaking of marriage, how's your search coming along?"

"What search? My options are rather limited, if you don't remember. Daphne's engaged to Blaise, Pansy's in talks with the Puceys, Tracey's a half-blood, Mother doesn't like Selene, and Millicent's my guard. I could always look in Ravenclaw, but Morag's in talks with Montague, Lovegood is completely bonkers, and Sally-Anne... well, you've seen her. Which leaves Endora and Lucinda."

"What about Mandy Brocklehurst?"

"We tried dating," Draco replied with a shake of his head. "It'd never work. We're far too similar, plus she wants to work with animals. Could you imagine a Lady Malfoy working an actual job? And such a mundane one at that?"

"Well, how do you feel about Endora and Lucinda? The Vaisey and Hudgins families are both respectable enough."

He shrugged. "They're all right, I guess. Lucinda's a bit fragile and naïve. I don't know if she could handle the life of a Malfoy. And Endora, well, she's beautiful, everything a Slytherin should want."

"But you don't love her," Lucius finished.

"I know it's stupid. I know few people of our station are able to have what you and Mother do, but I don't want to give up looking for it, not yet anyway."

"I've worked hard enough to secure our position that you don't have to. Besides, both Nelson Baddock and Andrew Hudgins have been after a betrothal between you and their daughters since you were born. I have a feeling they'll probably hold off taking any other offers until you're engaged, or at least until Selene and Lucinda are 18 or 19. And I don't think you're being stupid. Marriage is difficult enough with someone you care about. It can be almost impossible with someone you don't."

Draco smirked and leaned back in his chair. "And they say that Slytherins can't feel love."

"Only those who don't really know us," Lucius replied. "It's getting late. My guards will be by soon. Send your council my regards. What do your classmates call them? Les Dirigeants Sombres?" Draco nodded. "Well, tell them what you must, but remember, never trust anyone completely Draco."

"Not even you?"

Lucius smiled. "If I told you not to, would it make a difference?"

"No."

"Ah, stubbornness. Now that is most assuredly a trait of the Malfoy line. All the same, be careful. Oh, and do tell Millicent to reassure her father that I'm fine. I appreciate that Thaddeus has continued to petition for my release, especially when your mother has become otherwise preoccupied, what with taking care of our numerous business ventures."

"How did you know he was so worried about you?"

"I've known Thaddeus for quite some time now and he's one of the few people I would call a friend. I would guess that I know him almost as well as he knows me and, as my guardian, it's his job to worry about me. I would expect nothing less. Au revoir, mon fils." And with that, the connection was broken, thrusting Draco back into his private room in Slytherin house and Lucius into his dank cell in Azkaban.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It was a typical Friday morning in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The teachers were preparing for their lessons, the students just waking up, and the house-elves bustling about in the kitchen to ensure breakfast would be ready by seven. And as the inhabitants of Gryffindor House herded down the steps for the last day of class before the weekend, none of them could have predicted what was about to happen.

Ginny Weasley was sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace with an odd sort of smile on her face. Now, there was nothing abnormal about that, nor was their anything strange about the way her face lit up when Dean Thomas came down the staircase and she bounded his way to accompany him to breakfast. But if one had been looking closely, it would have indeed been strange to note the evil glint in the youngest Weasley's brown orbs.

Dean chattered all the way to the Great Hall and Ginny felt herself nod at all the appropriate times, but her mind was on a very different subject matter than how her soon-to-be ex-boyfriend had scored twenty points for Gryffindor in Charms the previous day. It was only later, when the Great Hall was full of students, including her own brother, that Ginny turned her full attention to the attractive Gryffindor on her left.

And soon everyone else was looking their way too because Ginny had begun to kiss the edge of Dean's ear, as she knew he liked it, and trailed her tongue from the base of his ear to the outer rim of his collared shirt. Ron, Harry, and Hermione were enthralled in a serious conversation regarding an article in the Daily Prophet, and there was no angry redhead screaming at her yet, but everyone knew it would come, and soon if the fiery Gryffindor didn't stop her actions. For she'd begun to unbutton not only Dean's shirt, but her own as well, revealing a small amount of cleavage.

Dean, who was blushing enough to do a Weasley proud, turned to his girlfriend and barely managed to whisper, "Ginny, what are you doing?"

Ginny, however, was not so discreet and spoke loud enough that the entire Great Hall could hear. "Well, I'm finally ready to take that next step, Dean. And I wanted it to be in a place where everyone could witness my undying love for you."

This finally drew the trio's attention and while Harry and Hermione gaped at Ginny, who had begun undoing the buckle of Dean's pants while he unsuccessfully tried to stop her, Ron stomped over to his baby sister and yanked her hands away from Dean's pants.

"What the bloody hell is going on here?!"

Calmly removing her hands from her brother's grasp, Ginny pushed Dean against the table and straddled him. She held up one hand to hold off her brother for a second longer and used the other to knead Dean's chest, eliciting a groan from him in the process.

"As I just told Dean, I'm ready for sex and I want the whole school to know it." Here Ginny paused and kissed Dean on the lips with more passion than she ever had before. Her tongue slipped into his mouth and met his own and the whole school gasped at the display. Only one student, a smirking Slytherin, guessed at what Ginny really had in store for the unsuspecting Gryffindor. And he was quite sure sex was not on the agenda.

"Of course," Ginny continued when she came up for breath, "that assumes I receive fifty percent of the profit."

"Profit?" both Ron and Dean chorused, though Ron's voice held confusion and Dean's resonated dread.

"Yes, the profit from the bet you and a few other guys have going for who will be the first one to take my virginity. I believe the pool is up fifty Galleons now, right?"

Dean had a moment to look simultaneously terrified and apologetic before Ginny stood and kneed him in the crotch, causing him to double over and fall onto the floor. Her eyes were blazing as she finally showed her true emotions and it took all of her will not to kick the boy at her feet once more. No, she thought, Ron will take care of that for me.

"There aren't enough Galleons in the world to buy me," Ginny declared, turning and facing the rest of the school, doing a damned good job of not crying like she wanted to. She saw a few of the guys duck their heads and she tried to remember their faces and made a mental note to never speak to them. Sadly, there were a few others from Gryffindor, but most were in Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. Ginny was most surprised to note that only two were from Slytherin, and they were both younger than her.

She didn't say another word, but marched out of the Great Hall and towards her first class, Herbology, thankful once again that none of the teachers dined with the students in the morning. The last thing she heard before she was fully out of earshot was her brother shouting obscenities at Dean and Ginny smiled in satisfaction.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Malfoy, what are you doing here?" Ginny asked as she strolled into the Potions classroom for her detention with Snape.

Unfortunately for her, some well-meaning first year had run to fetch the nearest professor as soon as the fight between her brother and Dean had started. Well, Ginny thought with a smirk, it was actually more of a thrashing. I've never seen Ron so mad. Indeed, it had taken both Harry and Seamus to subdue him and keep him from causing permanent damage to his classmate. When Snape, who just so happened to be the nearest professor, had arrived on the scene, he immediately gave Ron a weeks worth of detention and Dean two weeks. And, of course, since she'd incited the whole thing, she'd gotten one as well, but only one and that slightly baffled her. She was a Gryffindor and a Weasley. Why had he gone soft on her?

"I asked Snape to let me preside over your detention."

"And he just let you?"

Draco looked at her as if she was an idiot and Ginny rolled her eyes. "Well, I didn't know professors were allowed to do that."

"They can, they just usually don't."

There was a heavy pause in which neither spoke. Ginny simply kept her gaze on the floor, not sure what to say, because she could definitely feel Draco's gaze on her. She thought he might eventually say something, tell her to clean the cauldrons or something, but he didn't and after a few minutes, the silence became too much.

"Why did he only give me one detention anyway?" she asked, raising her gaze to meet his own.

"Because he had to. Regulation requires any student who uses violence against another to receive at minimum one detention for their actions."

Ginny's eyebrows rose at that and she eyed the Slytherin with amusement. "You say that like it comes directly from the Hogwarts Handbook or something."

"It's outlined in the Hogwarts Code of Conduct for Students. I am a Prefect, if you remember, Weasley, and we have to know all the rules."

"Oh, right, but that still doesn't explain why he only gave me one. You said at minimum."

Draco rolled his eyes, exasperated. "Don't you get it? Snape may be Slytherin-biased, but he's not a complete arse. To be honest, if your brother was anyone else, he probably would have only gotten one detention too. But he's a triple-threat: a Gryffindor, a Weasley, and Potter's best friend. There's no way Snape could refuse the opportunity to cause him as much grief as possible."

"And you're saying he didn't do the same to me out of the kindness of his heart?"

"No, I'm saying that Thomas insulted your virtue with his little bet and that means you have the right to defend yourself by any means necessary." Here, Draco smirked, and it wasn't an entirely unfriendly smirk. "Honestly, I thought you went too easy on the Mudblood."

Ginny could feel her mouth drop but she didn't care. What Draco just said was dangerously close to sounding like some sort of moral and that clashed with everything Ginny had been raised believing. Slytherins, and especially Malfoys, didn't have a decent set of ethics, did they?

"Do all Slytherins feel that way?"

"If they're not a disgrace to the House, then yes."

Mouth hanging open, Ginny just stared at Draco in disbelief. Slytherins had morals? Snape had a heart? When had this all happened? Before she could even formulate a response, Draco closed her mouth with his hand and shook his head at her.

"That's a good way to catch flies, Weasley, but if you're really that hungry I'd be willing to give you a few Sickles to get some dinner. Athena knows your family's got enough mouths to feed."

And all was right in the world again. "Just shut it, Malfoy. Tell me what you want me to do because the sooner we get this over with the sooner I can leave."

"Follow me," Draco replied, sweeping past her and making his way out of classroom. He paused at the door when he realized she wasn't behind him. "Either come with me, Weasley, or you can spend the next four hours scrubbing this room clean without the aid of magic."

Without another moment of hesitation, Ginny followed Draco out of the empty room and up into the main part of the castle. They'd gone up eight flights of stairs before Draco finally turned down a familiar hallway and stopped in front of the portrait of Barnabas the Barmy.

"We're at the Room of Requirement."

"Thank you so much for that brilliant deduction, Weasley."

"Can the sarcasm, Malfoy. What are we doing here?"

Turning to face his companion, Draco Malfoy had a mischievous look in his eyes that made Ginny want to take a step back. She suddenly wished she'd taken him up on the other offer and had stayed to clean the Potions classroom. However, she hadn't and Draco's next words were so unexpected that her brown eyes widened so much that they nearly popped out of her head.

"We're going to make you an Animagus."