Fly With Me

Ginny slipped out of her bed to get dressed, careful not to make enough noise to wake her dorm mates. She navigated the inky blackness easily, avoiding silvery patches of moonlight instinctively. Opening her trunk, Ginny pulled out the clothes she had prepared earlier. The clothes were black, trousers and blouse, though not robes since those made distinctive swishing noises every time you moved, and Ginny did not want to be caught.

Once she had clothed herself with said items, Ginny opened the door to the fifth year girls' dorm softly and stole down to the common room. She noted with relief that there was no one there, leaving her free to make her way out of the portrait hole unnoticed.

Making sure to keep to the shadows, Ginny made her way though the darkened corridors of Hogwarts. As she passed numerous paintings, listening carefully to make sure each one slept, Ginny thought about why she lived a lie.

"My life has been a lie since before my first year here," she reflected to herself. "Ever since I started writing in that stupid diary. I have half a mind to retrieve it from Lucius Malfoy for the sheer pleasure of watching it burn. Everyone assumed that it all ended when Harry stuck the Basilisk fang into it. Little did they know, or at least think, that when you have been poisoned as deeply as I have that a simple removal of the toxin won't fix everything. It is a pity that Harry almost had to die in order to only delay the inevitable. Tom did a thorough job; I'll give him that. The poison may be gone from my soul now, but the damage done has never healed, nor will it ever. I hate life sometimes. I loathe it with every fiber of my being."

Ginny halted as she heard footsteps. She crept behind a statue, checking to make sure she hadn't left even a single fold of fabric visible to those passing by. A faint golden glow announced the approach of someone bearing a lamp. The minutes ticked slowly by as Ginny patiently waited for Filch to pass her hiding place. She held her breath as he inspected nooks and crannies carefully, only releasing it when he was on his way.

After there wasn't even a trace of lamplight left, Ginny left her hiding place, continuing towards her destination. She knew that there wasn't far to go before she reached the final staircase. Hopefully there wouldn't be any couples there, enjoying a bit of stargazing. That would ruin her plans entirely. "Well, not entirely," she thought. "I would simply have to go to the next tallest tower. There would also be more chance to be caught since I would have to sneak there too. Nevertheless, I still want there to be no one there. Especially no one that I know."

Ginny reached the door that opened to the stairs that led to the top of the Astronomy Tower. She was careful not to let the hinges squeak when the door moved. Ginny's nostrils flared as she noticed the difference in smell immediately. While the rest of Hogwarts smelled ever so slightly musty, the towers, even at their bases, smelled of fresh air and growing things.

"One of the better reasons to live in one of the Houses that had dormitories in towers. It must really suck for the Slytherins since they have dorms in the dungeons." Ginny began to climb the stairs, placing her feet cautiously so as not to make any noise whatsoever, seeing as it echoed even more in the stairwell than in the halls.

Up and up she traveled, making her way slowly to the top. Ginny stopped abruptly about two-thirds of the way up when she thought she heard a door latch, pressing herself tightly in to the wall for quite some time before convincing herself that it was just her imagination.

Going on, she found herself at the door opening into he night soon enough. She paused again, this time listening for any sounds that might betray the presence of another. As she heard no muffled noises of talking, kissing, or other activities, Ginny opened the door silently. She listened for another moment, just in case, before slipping out and closing the door behind her.

Unfortunately, she had neglected to search the shadows thoroughly before shutting her exit route. Someone, a lone mysterious figure that was unmistakably masculine, jumped to attention in the darkness as he heard the door click closed. "Who's there?" he called, just loud enough for Ginny to hear.

Ginny spun around, staying in the shadows herself, as she heard the boy speak. "None of your business," she stated, also in a low voice, turning again to go back down the tower.

As her hand touched the handle though, the boy spoke once more. "No wait, whoever you are." Since it had the desired effect, he went on, "Why are you here alone? Are you meeting someone here?" His voice was familiar, but Ginny couldn't place it. It was as if it wasn't used to being used in such a polite manner.

Ginny answered guardedly, "No, I'm not meeting anyone here. I merely came to watch the stars." Ginny noticed that the boy's shoulders slumped in what she assumed was relief.

"Then perhaps we can watch them together," he said. "I'm not meeting anyone either." When Ginny didn't answer, he turned and went to the edge of the tower, revealing who he was as he stepped into the moonlight.

"Malfoy," Ginny hissed.

He turned around when he heard her. "Yes, that does happen to be my last name. May I know yours?"

"What are you playing at?" The venom in her voice was undisguised and she was glaring at him as if he was Voldemort himself.

He simply smiled and looked back at the sky beyond the tower. "I'm not as much of a git as I act like you know. How I act in public is merely a charade designed to please my father."

"Why should I believe you?" Ginny questioned sharply. She moved slowly through the shadows, hoping to be able to surprise him if she needed to attack.

Draco spoke again, "It doesn't matter whether you do or not. Nothing really matters anymore. My father, if you could call him that, wants me to become a death eater. It's really too bad that I don't want to become one. Never have. I know that I cannot win against him, so I'm taking the next best option." When he was done talking, he climbed onto the edge of the tower and looked calmly over the ledge. "Death."

Ginny watched him for a couple of seconds before walking over next to him and saying, "You're right, perhaps we can watch the stars together."

Draco looked up at her and blinked in surprise. "Weasley? Why would you want to die?"

Ginny looked first up at the twinkling stars in the ebony sky, then she turned her gaze down to the black abyss that hung below them, cloaking the ground. "You cannot share your soul with Voldemort without being poisoned. Merely eliminating the toxin does not mend the harm already done," she whispered, echoing her thoughts from before.

"Ah, I understand."

Ginny could tell that he truly did understand. He wasn't just saying the words like so many others; he actually knew what it was like. She realized that she also understood completely why he wanted to die. She took his hand and murmured, "Fly with me, Draco?"

Draco's silver eyes met her brown ones, both seeking and finding understanding. "Yes, I will fly with you, Ginny."

Together they lept from the tower, never letting go of the hand of the other.