Uninvited

Chapter 7: All Over Again

"It was a Monday when my lover told me

"Never pay the reaper with love only

What could I say to you, except 'I love you'

And 'I'd give my life for yours'"-Bif Naked

***

"Would you like to take a walk with me?" Draco asked her softly.

"Alright," she replied, standing up and following him. He reached for her hand and she let him take it, surprised at her own willingness. After a long, comfortably silent walk, they reached the lake. Draco pulled her over to a little arbor, which Ginny had not noticed before, and looked at her very seriously.

"You're a Weasley."

"Noticed, did you?"

"What I mean is, you're brothers would hurt me if I were to, say, make a move on you, wouldn't they?"

"Draco, the only brother of mine who still goes to this school is Ron, and I've been able to maintain an illicit affair without him knowing so...you get the picture?"

"An illicit affair? With whom?"

"Nobody you know. Anyway, what I do is my business, not my brother's."

"So, would you like to go out with me sometime?"

"Yes," she smiled, imagining the faces of her fellow Gryffindors. Despite what she said, she did care what they thought. She loved making them angry. "I would love to."

***

"Hermione," Harry said as he neared her. She was in her room, getting some well-deserved sleep. "Hermione, wake up."

"What? Who are you?" She said loudly, sitting up far too fast. "Oh head rush-"

"Nice to see you too."

"Oh Harry, you scared me."

"Really?"

"Yes, now what did you want? Any updates?"

"I have a vacation."

"What are you talking about Harry?"

"I've worked long enough to earn a two-week vacation. Starting tomorrow, I'm using the first week of it. I'm going to go loiter in America."

"Why America?"

"It's the last place anybody would expect. Anyway, I came to tell you because I want you to come with me."

"Wh-what?"

"I want you, Hermione Leah Granger, to come with me to America. We'll take a plane over, part of the whole "less magic" act Fudge put into action. Come on, you used to tell me you'd like to see Salem Academy. It'll be great! We'll go to New York and Los Angeles...we could go see that muggle show you used to like so much..."

"David Letterman? You'd go with me to see David Letterman?"

"Of course, if you want to. How did you hear of that show, anyway?"

"I have an aunt who lives in America. She sends...she used to send me tapes of it. There's no point for her to anymore, as I can't watch it here."

"You know, just the other day I was in Hogsmeade, and I saw a magical version of a television. Apparently it's a new invention. No VCRs yet, but there's hope..."

"You've lost your point."

"Oh yeah. Come with me, Hermione. It would be fun."

"Alright."

"What's that?"

"I said 'alright.' I'll go with you Harry James Potter. As long as you promise never to call me by my full name again."

"Why? Don't you find it romantic?"

"No, I find it weird...and kind of tacky. But I'm willing to overlook it."

"Right, you should start packing then. We have to be at the airport tomorrow by six o'clock. I'll tell Dumbledore where you'll be."

***

Ginny heard them leave. She didn't mind; she had seen that Hermione had left a note. Crawling out of bed, she read it quickly before throwing it out. Draco had said he would come for her by night and that she should wait in the common room. Though how he would get in, she had yet to find out...

She pulled on a tight green sweater and black pants, putting her hair on top of her head. So much for looking nice, she thought as she glimpsed her reflection. Her hair was a mess, her eyes had dark circles under them...If he minds, just dump him and have Fred and George give him a little "present"...she surprised herself and actually laughed. Not the hollow laugh she'd had since Lux had left, but a real laugh. A happy laugh. Here I am, starting over. I'm being sought after again. I might actually fall in love, all over again. Maybe life does go on...

After about five minutes of waiting, Draco arrived in the common room. He looked perfect, as usual. His fine, silver hair was in place, his clothes were stunningly fashionable, and the bluish-purple under his eyes merely made him sexier.

"How did you get in?" She asked suspiciously.

"I paid Longbottom for the password before he left. He whimpers a lot, doesn't he?"

"Um, not around me," she paused, wondering briefly what threats Draco had used. "So why did you want to meet me so late?"

"Oh," he said, smiling sheepishly. First time I've ever seen him do that, she thought. "The stars. I like to look at the stars. Come with me."

Several minutes later [the author is too lazy to write about them walking anymore]

They reached an abandoned classroom that was relatively clean, as Draco explained to her that he came to it often, to be alone with his thoughts. There was a cushioned bay window seat on the far side of the room; Ginny went to it and sat down.

"I see why you like it here. It's a perfect view of the lake and the horizon. It's beautiful."

"Yes," he said without looking away from her, "It is." Ginny turned to him. She blushed, seeing that he had been talking about her. So he is capable of romance.

"I...I think this is a very nice first date, regardless of the fact that it's about 2:00 in the morning. Thank you." Oh good lord Ginny, is that the best you can think of? She thought to herself. Just shut up while you're ahead.

"Glad you like it. Listen Ginny," he moved closer to her, reached out his hand to brush a stray hair from her face, "I wanted to tell you that no matter what, I won't let you down."

"What are you-oh...that. You know, my brother doesn't really pose that much of a threat, he's just a little-"

"No, not that. There are other things in the world that I worry about. But Ginny, you should know that I'll try to keep you safe."

"Okay, well I'm a little scared. Draco, is there something you should tell me?" In response he leaned closer to her, brushing his lips softly against her skin. "Draco?"

"Shh," he whispered in her ear as he pulled her closer. "Not now."

***

She scanned her surroundings warily. He was nowhere to be seen, but she could feel him near. Come on you weird sadist, she urged him mentally, laughing at herself as she did so. The restraints that bound her were titanium steel, compounded with thousands of powerful containment spells. It actually pleased her; it meant he feared her. He had put more restraints on her than on Jor, Snake, and Octavia put together. Of course, it was impossible to restrain Annalise until she had found a human body to live in, and Voldemort had no idea about the others. Few ever had...

A sound from across the room attracted her attention. She looked up quickly and, seeing only shadows, whispered Lumos. If she hadn't been bound, she could have merely looked toward the spot and thought about it, but as it was, she was still more magically inclined than most witches or wizards ever were. She smiled at the thought. Years of such power had made her love the possession of it.

Across the room she saw a woman, or at least something that at first glance would appear to be a woman. She walked closer, revealing her waist-length black hair, deathly pale skin, blood-red mouth, and long fingernail. Her eyes soon came into focus, making evident that she was not human. They were entirely black, no white to be seen.

"Ah. Morrigan," Lux said with sarcastic cheeriness, "How lovely to see you again."

"Do you really hate me that much?" Morrigan replied, obviously hurt. "We used to be such good friends. We were the best of our race Lux. You were the dark, I was the light. Do you remember that time? You were the seductress, while I had my constantly unrequited love. You were so happy then. You loved me once, don't you remember?"

"Then you betrayed me." Lux smiled painfully. "I gave my freedom for you Morrigan. Rowena would have killed you, but I saved your pathetic life. I gave of myself for you, and in return, you betrayed me again and again. I do not keep traitors in my company."

"Rowena made you love. She didn't take your freedom. She gave you life."

"I could love before she came near me. You know what she did. And you sold the secret for your own benefit. You disgust me."

"I just saved my own ass, Sita dear," Morrigan spat at her, "Not my fault it was at your expense. Besides, the following I told are all dead or in insane. You know that. Get over it."

"What's to stop you from doing it all over again? Besides Morrigan, you changed everything. You became the dark, the seductress. Look at yourself. You're not a shadow of what you once were."

"I'm no where near as bad as you."

"I never said you were," she replied, leaning back into her chains and muttering counter-curses, all the while trying to feel exactly which curses there were. "There," she said as she got through the last one. All that was left was to break the chains themselves...

"Oh God!" Morrigan shot across the room. "Sita-did you just break through titanium?"

"Yeah," she stretched her wings and smiled, "Feels good. So tell me Mor, do you think you can take me?"

"I-I just...Sita, could we just...talk it out...you know..."

"No, I don't think I do. Oh, and you were right, you know. You're no where near as bad as me."

***

"She walks," came the low voice, "She walks so warily through this wasteland, looking around her at the bodies of those she loves. She watches as her lover dies-she has a destiny. She must fulfill it. She-"

"Annalise! Stop," Lux called over to the phantom, "Or she might wake up." She gestured to Morrigan, whose body seemed to be bent at an unnatural angle.

"Did you kill her, Sita?" Annalise floated over and hovered above the body of the demon.

"No. I would have, but it would have been like killing a sick, fearful little puppy. She doesn't really deserve to have me as her murderer, anyway. So, what's Ginny dreaming about now?"

"Oh, she's defeated her opponent, but she was too late, and while the rest of the world lives on, everything and everyone she knows is dead. It's just the same as when you were watching over her. She has a destiny, Sita-"

"Oh shut up already! I get it, okay? You're into talking about people's destiny and crap. Just tell me what I have to do."

"She has to drink from you."

"What?" Lux nearly screamed.

"Well, the only other person I can think of who exhibited those kind of powers was the one who drank from you. Oh, and slayers. But they are different."

"Salazar? In these Sights, you see her with powers like Salazar had?"

"Yes."

"Then...she will die for them, won't she?"

"I don't know. But I do know that she will die without them."

***

Ginny crashed into her bed, glad she would have the room to herself for a few weeks. Not that Hermione spent much time in there, but there had always been the chance of her intrusion.

She wondered briefly what she was doing with Draco. She wondered when she had started calling him Draco, when she had stopped hating him, when she had begun hating her brother. It seemed she wasn't able to decipher herself anymore. The fact scared her, but at the same time, she enjoyed it. She remembered how he touched her, so soft he seemed afraid. He hadn't pushed her to do anything; he had barely even kissed her. They had talked; she had realized how much she had missed having a good conversation. Lux had been an amazing conversationalist. Ginny sighed slightly, pushing away her memories that threatened to overwhelm her.

She needed a distraction, and she saw Hermione's Latin translation book. She looked up a mew words, but she could only think of dark things. She did, however, discover that the word sinistra meant left, of left-handed. She was left-handed and so was Draco.

She eventually fell off into an empty, unsettling sleep.

***

"Sleep Ginny," Lux whispered as she entered the girl's room, "Don't be angry with me, please." She knelt near Ginny's head and pulled a blade out of her pocket. "I am sorry. But I had to leave. And don't worry, love, you won't feel a thing." She moved her wrist over the redhead's partly opened mouth and swiftly cut deeply into her skin, letting her blood flow into the other's mouth. "Bye, love."