. . . . . .
This story was started several years ago and first posted at Fiction Alley earlier this year, before book six came out and changed . . . well, everything, really. So please excuse any discrepancies; it definitely is not HBP canon. Well, on with the show. Enjoy!
. . . . . .
My Anything
. . . . . .
I am peremptory as she proud-minded;
And where two raging fires meet together,
They do consume the thing that feeds their fury:
Though little fire grows great with little wind,
Yet extreme gusts will blow out fire and all:
So I to her, and so she yields to me.
Taming of the Shrew, act II, scene I
. . . . . .
THE PEACE AND quiet of the ground-floor staff room at St. Mungo's was interrupted suddenly by the yelling of a middle-aged orderly out in the hall. "Miss Weasley!" Corbin shouted, running in the door. "Miss Weasley, where are you?"
The young woman in question looked up from her lunch with a slight scowl, annoyed at having her break interrupted but not wanting to offend the orderly. The man, despite being very high-strung and having a tendency to exaggerate, was fairly nice, and Ginny didn't want him to think she was angry at him. "What is it, Corbin?" she asked. "I'm right here."
Corbin, finally seeing her at the table in the corner, looked relieved and straightened up. "Emergency call," he said briskly, obviously enjoying the importance of the words. "Glennis seemed to think you should go."
Ginny sighed. Glennis knew she was on break; the only reason the head healer would want Ginny to go was if it was a non-urgent call that, for whatever reason, Glennis saw as a nuisance and not worth her own time. Still, Ginny was required to interrupt her breaks for the sake of emergency calls, so with a final sigh she packed up the rest of her food and followed Corbin upstairs.
When she reached the call room, she found Glennis sitting at the desk, grinning warmly. Ginny returned the grin; despite the difference in their ages, Glennis was one of her best friends at St. Mungo's.
"So, what's the problem?" Ginny asked.
Glennis gestured toward a map of England which hung on the wall. On it were several glowing dots, each one indicating the spot where someone had used their wand to send for help. Glennis pointed to a dot in northern Wiltshire. "Fellow called through the Floo Network to say a friend had been bitten by a badger. They gave the man a potion, but they wanted a healer to come and make sure that nothing was wrong."
"All right," Ginny said slowly. The situation sounded normal enough, so why was Glennis grinning like that? "What else is there? What's so amusing?" she asked.
The older woman simply gestured toward the map. "You'll see when you get there," she grinned.
With a shrug, Ginny decided to go and see what was so funny. Picking up a medical bag, she placed the tip of her wand on the dot Glennis had indicated and Apparated.
She landed on soft grass next to a long, dirt driveway. Taking a moment to dust herself off, she looked around, wondering what about this spot had amused Glennis so much. There was a house a little ways away, but it was difficult to see through the fog around her, which was remarkably cold despite the fact that it was summer. Suddenly, a ray of sunlight burst through the clouds and lit up the huge house. Ginny peered at it a moment, then groaned as recognition hit her. The house that Glennis had found so amusing was none other than Malfoy Manor.
. . . . . .
Deep within the stone walls of the Manor, two men reclined on sofas and waited for the Medi-witch to arrive. "Late, as usual," complained one, older and black haired, who had one foot propped up on a stool. "Why did you even call St. Mungo's?"
His companion, a slender young man with perfectly slicked-back blonde hair, shrugged lazily. "To exasperate you. To give me something to do." He raised a smooth eyebrow. "And it's only good manners to make sure you're all right. If I didn't show good manners, Severus, you would undoubtedly go tattling back to Zabini and the rest of them, and we certainly wouldn't want that."
The Hogwarts potions master shook his head. "Draco, we've known each other for years. Do you really think I'm going to go telling stories to Zabini?"
Draco Malfoy, lord of Malfoy Manor, shrugged. "You never can tell, Snape," he drawled, causing his companion to shake his head in annoyance.
"If you hadn't insisted on taking that shortcut through the woods," Severus said, gingerly moving his sore ankle, "you wouldn't have this problem."
"I said I was sorry."
"Yes, but you say a lot of things," Severus muttered. "How many of them do you really mean?"
Draco grinned back in genuine delight. "I knew I liked you," he said. "One of the few people I know with real sense."
Severus shook his head, but before he could respond, there was a discrete tap on the door. "Yes?" Draco called.
The door opened to reveal Bernard, the head house elf. Bowing respectfully, he said, "If you please, masters, there is someone at the door from St. Mungo's."
Draco shooed the elf back out. "We will be up presently," he said, managing to sound arrogant in those few words. He rose gracefully to his feet, his companion clumsily following suit on his swollen ankle. "Shall we?" Draco asked, and Severus followed him out of the room.
The pair moved through the corridors in silence, Severus occasionally stealing glances at his young companion. How had such an arrogant, irresponsible person become one of the most powerful men in Britain? The question was, he knew, in the minds of the other noblemen and political leaders in Severus and Draco's social circle, which was comprised of nearly every powerful figure to come out of Slytherin house in the last fifty years. They all worried about the idea of the over-confident, careless Draco being a prominent member of society. Despite what many people thought of the former Slytherins, they were not wholly without senses of duty or concern for social niceties, and the reckless and sometimes embarrassing behavior exhibited by Lucius Malfoy's only son was beginning to become a concern.
At this thought Severus' thin lips twisted into a slight smile. This is all your fault, Lucius, he thought, directing his words toward wherever Lucius was now. Even two years after the man's death, Severus felt a bond with the former Lord Malfoy. They all did. Underneath Lucius' cold, unfeeling exterior and unfortunate fascination with the Dark Arts had been a man with a strong sense of duty toward his family and an unwavering loyalty toward those lucky enough to be his friends.
It was that same devotion that had caused Lucius to spoil his only child, Draco, and turn him into the terror that he now was. Lucius, Severus thought with a resigned sigh, if you're watching, I hope you're feeling heartily ashamed for how you spoiled the boy. Merlin knew it was going to difficult to convince Draco to be the Malfoy lord he was meant to be.
. . . . . .
Ginny stood in the front hall with her arms crossed, bristling at being kept waiting. It was bad enough to be in this place again, to be seeing him, but to have her time wasted in the process . . . She felt ready to throttle Glennis for thinking that sending her here would be funny. The woman had never met Draco Malfoy, but thought that the young lord of Malfoy Manor was very attractive and had hinted to Ginny several times that she should catch up with her old school chum. If Glennis had ever known the git, Ginny thought, she wouldn't be nearly as enthusiastic about him.
As she waited, she looked around the high ceilinged room, feeling the memories creeping up on her. It had been five years ago that she'd joined up with the Order of the Pheonix, back when the war with Voldemort was in full swing. She'd gone to be trained as a Medi-witch by the Ministry the week after graduating from Hogwarts, and after a mere month of training had been shipped out to the front lines. Most other trainees her age had been sent to refugee camps, but since her entire family was already members of the Order, she was allowed to become a member herself and work with the small cadre of healers reserved for the central circle of the Order.
It was there that she came once again into contact with Draco Malfoy. The dictator of Slytherin House, the tormentor of her childhood, the one person she didn't want to see again after leaving school, had joined the Order a few months before she had. He claimed to have turned to good, but it was generally suspected that he simply hadn't wanted his family's estate, money and good name destroyed if Voldemort lost.
And with Draco helping the Order, Voldemort did lose, unable to fight an enemy who was assisted by one who knew the workings of the Dark intimately. It was well known that Draco's assistance was pivotal in winning the war.
This, Ginny reflected, was lucky for him, or else the rest of the Order might have killed him with their bare hands. The entire time he'd been a member, he'd been a holy terror, putting on airs of nobility and ordering the rest of the members around, reminding those who tried to refuse that if he decided to leave, the Order would lose a source of valuable information and probably lose the war.
Ginny remembered numerous occasions on which he'd made her shine his shoes, make him coffee, and even give him a back massage. The worst of it, though, had been the time he'd made her come on an errand with him to this very house, Malfoy Manor, forcing her to miss one of the Order's few days of real rest in the entire war. The very memory still made her furious.
At that moment, footsteps sounded in the hall, and Ginny pushed the memories into the back of her mind, though mentally reminding herself to give Glennis a piece of her mind when she went back to St. Mungo's. One of the several doors in the entryway opened, and through it stepped a house elf, followed by her old Potions teacher Severus Snape. After them, the man himself, Draco Malfoy, swept dramatically into the front hall. He was as handsome as ever, Ginny noted, and based on the expression on his face, as arrogant as ever.
Professor Snape nodded to her. "Miss Weasley," he said by way of greeting.
At the sound Draco stopped his impressive entrance and stared at the Medi-witch in his entryway, a scowl marring his handsome features. "Oh, it's you, is it?"
. . . . . .
She hadn't changed much, Draco noticed. Her hair was still shoulder length and bright red, too straight to be called curly and too wavy to be called straight. She still barely reached his shoulder, and she still glared at him as though she'd like to do him bodily harm. Beyond asking exactly what the medical problem was, though, she didn't say a word to him. She simply knelt on the floor and pulled out her wand to heal Severus' ankle, then stood and began to examine his hand.
As she worked, Severus briefly explained the situation- while the two were going out into the manor's park to check on repairs needed for a shed, Draco had insisted on taking a shortcut through the woods, and the potions master had stepped in a badger's hole, angering the badger enough to bite him. Draco detected a hint of amusement in the Weasel's eyes, but she didn't say a word.
After a few minutes and a healing spell, Ginny looked up. "You're fine, Professor," she said, packing up her bag. "But if it's all right, I'd like to go out to where you were bitten to see if the badger was rabid or magical at all, to see if I should prescribe any potions for you."
Draco nodded and opened a door. "This way, Weasel," he said, smirking, and was rewarded by a dark look from the short witch in front of him. Severus simply rolled his eyes and followed her out the door.
They moved through the house and out a side door wordlessly, both Draco and Severus perfectly comfortable with not speaking. Before long, though, the chatty Weasley started talking to fill the silence. "So, what are you doing here, Professor Snape?" she asked.
Draco didn't have to look at him to know the potions master was rolling his eyes. "Just visiting Draco," he replied, ducking through the short side door. "I do try to keep an eye on him."
There was more to that statement, Draco knew, than would seem. The Slytherin Horde, as he liked to call the group of influential former Slytherins that he and Severus moved in, had been watching him ever since the end of the war. They were not worried because he had been in the Order- many of them had never joined Voldemort, and some had openly defied him- but because they felt that he might not be a suitable replacement for his father. Ian Zabini, especially, had taken it upon himself to keep Draco in line, and when the Slytherin Horde started in on Draco about some aspect of his life that they didn't feel was quite up to snuff, he knew that Zabini was behind it. His "friends," as they claimed to be, hadn't managed to persuade him to do much yet, but it wasn't for their lack of trying. They sent Severus to check on him often, frequently gave him unwanted advice on how to manage the estate and his business and political affairs, and generally tried to run his life. They had even gone so far as to start discusing potential wives for him, to keep him out of trouble. They didn't tell him this, of course, but he had his ways of finding things out, and he knew that at present they had settled on Pansy Parkinson as a suitable match for him.
As if I would ever marry that overbearing wench, he thought snidely. The woman was a loud and portly gold digger, and based on what he'd seen of her lately, she spent most of her days completely sloshed. Worst of all was not that she was notoriously unfaithful to boyfriends, but that she first gained that reputation while dating him. Nobody cheated on Draco Malfoy. She may have had the looks, the bearing, the experience and the Slytherin breeding, but no amount of persuasion could ever induce Draco to marry Pansy Parkinson.
Unfortunately for Draco, though, his father Lucius Malfoy had made Severus Snape the steward of the estate until Draco turned twenty-five. As such, the potions teacher controlled the monetary affairs of the estate, though he usually deferred to Draco on the decisions that had to be made. What this meant, though, was that if the Slytherin Horde ever convinced Severus that Draco should marry Pansy, Severus could use the power he had over Draco to force him into the marriage. If Draco refused, he would be denied access to the family's vast fortune.
This wouldn't have been terrible, as Draco made enough to live on in his job at the Ministry's Department of International Cooperation. He, however, was a Malfoy, and "enough to live on" simply wouldn't cut it. He enjoyed his lifestyle, his vacations on the Continent, his fancy clothes and food, his home at the Manor. He didn't want to lose that. If Severus decided to exercise his authority and withhold money from Draco, there was a very good chance that Draco would finally crack and agree to marry Pansy. The Slytherin Horde was pushing hard for this. The only reason a marriage had not yet been arranged was that Severus was about as fond of Pansy as Draco was.
Draco knew, though, that Severus would crack sometime. It was only a matter of when. Draco hoped fervently that the old potions master would remain unconvinced for another year and half, until Draco was twenty-five and took full control of the estate. Then nothing anyone said or did could force him to marry Pansy.
Draco sometimes wondered what the Slytherin Horde would do if he never married- or worse, if he married someone they considered unacceptable. They would probably have kittens, he reflected with a grin. He looked over at Ginny Weasley, who was ducking under a branch as the group entered the thick woods on the manor's land. She looked positively homely- her hair slightly frizzy, her shoes old and worn, a sprinkling of freckles across her nose. What if, Draco thought, grinning to himself, I married someone like Ginny Weasley? He could imagine the scandal that would arise, the arrogant grins falling off the faces of the Slytherin Horde when they heard the news. It would serve them right, he thought, teach them not to meddle in my business.
He was so caught up in the humor of the thought that he scarcely noticed Severus turning back to the Weasel. "There is a steep drop-off into a ravine along the path ahead," he told her. "Do be careful- we'd hate to have to climb down there to fish you out of it." Ginny nodded, looking slightly apprehensive, which Draco thought was rather cowardly of her. After all, he'd been playing in these trees since he was able to walk, and he'd never fallen. Of course, he had to admit it could be a bit scary, as the ravine was nearly a hundred feet deep and the sides were sheer, vertical rock, but the Weasel still should have shown a little more backbone.
They passed the ravine without incident and entered the clearing where Severus had been bitten. After setting her bag down, Ginny pulled her wand out and began performing spells, pointing at the center of the clearing and at the badger's hole. Whatever the spells showed seemed to satisfy her, and she turned back to Severus with a polite smile. "Everything seems to be all right. I think I won't have to prescribe a potion for you after all, Professor." Severus returned her bland smile, and the group began to head back to the house.
They were passing the ravine again when Draco saw a shape running toward him on the path. Behind him, Ginny stopped dead, obviously afraid of whatever it was, but Draco knew from the shape that it was simply one of the dogs.
The animal, a big, stupid brute called Cassius who had a talent for getting off leashes and tethers, came bounding up the path toward them. It obviously intended to jump on Draco, whom it was very fond of, so Draco simply stepped to the side, assuming everyone would follow suit and the dog would lose its momentum.
That was not what happened, however. The dog started sliding to a halt as it moved past Draco and toward Ginny, who realized belatedly that she ought to get out of its way. For some reason, though, she moved toward the edge of the ravine instead of toward the flat ground on the other side of the path. She started stepping backwards, unable to see how close she was to the cliff, and before anyone could blink she was falling over the edge of the ravine.
Everything seemed to slow down then. Severus began reaching into his robe for his wand, but Draco simply stood and watched her begin to fall in mute surprise, remembering in the back of his mind that both he and Severus had left their wands back at the manor. Then some long-dead instinct awoke in him, and without thinking he found himself diving toward across the path toward her and landing on the hard ground above the cliff.
She was a few feet below him, gripping the rock wall with one hand, her fingers white with the strain and obviously unable to hold on much longer. As he reached down her fingers slipped from their hold on the cliff, but his hands wrapped around her wrists before she could fall. She stared up at him, her brown eyes wide with shock, but quickly recovered and began looking for hand and foot holds to start scrambling up the rock. Draco pulled back as hard as he could, and between the two of them they managed to get her up over the edge.
It all seemed to pass in an instant, and before Draco knew it he was lying on his back next to the cliff with Ginny lying near him and looking stunned. Slightly shaken, but not so much that he would show it, he stood and brushed himself off. "Watch yourself, Weasely," he sneered as he pulled twigs off the front of his robes.
The red-haired girl simply nodded breathlessly as she shakily pulled herself to her feet. Her eyes traveled down over the edge of the cliffs to the pile of rocks a hundred feet below, and she shook her head. "Thank you, Malfoy," she murmured, obviously shocked- though not so shocked, he noticed, that she would slip up and use his first name.
"Are you all right, Miss Weasley?" asked Severus, striding up and looking at her with a concerned expression that most people wouldn't expect to see on the cold professor's face. She nodded, but Draco, ever observant, could see that her hands were shaking. His own hands were shaking slightly too, but he hid them in his pockets. Never show weakness.
The Weasley, however, had apparently never been taught that maxim, and was presently being helped by Severus toward a boulder on the safe side of the path, where she sat down heavily. She looked down a moment, obviously trying to slow her breathing, then looked up at Draco with a confused look on her face. "You saved my life,"she said, and at her words, Draco felt a slight rush of magic flare up around her. He furrowed his brow, trying to figure out what it was. An identical bit of magic flared up around his own body, and he looked around, wondering where it had come from. His eyes suddenly widened. It can't be.
. . . . . .
Ginny felt the flares of magic too, but seeing as how there were three wizards in the area, she didn't find it at all unusual. She sat a moment longer, slowly breathing in and out, until she felt calmer. Once she felt she could stand, she moved to the edge of the ravine and pulled out her wand. "Accio bag," she said, and her medical bag came flying back up the cliff toward her. Clutching the bag close to her for a few moments, she breathed deeply while she tried to stop the shaking in her hands.
Then she turned back to the two men behind her. Draco was staring at her with an unreadable expression, and Severus was looking back and forth between the two young adults with a raised eyebrow. She wondered about it, but decided it was unwise to delve too deeply into the affairs of slimy gits.
"So, shall we leave, or should I just show myself the way out of here?" she asked sarcastically. To her surprise, neither man answered. She looked back and forth between them slowly for a moment, then shook her head. Fine, she thought. I'll just wander out of here myself. "Well, then, thank you again, Mr. Malfoy," she said formally, nodding to him. "And I hope your ankle doesn't cause you anymore problems," she added, looking at her former professor. Neither returned the farewell, so she shrugged to herself and started down the path.
And then she stopped. Her head was beginning to pound, and every step she took made it feel worse. She felt nauseated and weak, and her body suddenly felt very inclined to turn back toward the two silent men behind her. It was as though something was trying to keep her in the area. That's ridiculous, she thought to herself, and determinedly took another step forward, then another. At the third, she didn't move forward. Trying not to panic, she tried again, but with every step her feet simply slid frictionlessly against the ground, and she stayed in the same spot.
"Trouble, Miss Weasley?" Severus asked.
She turned back to face him. Instantly her headache and nausea left her. "Umm . . ." she replied, feeling foolish. "Yes, actually. Something appears to be wrong. I can't get down the path." She cringed a little, waiting for them to mock her, but to her surprise nothing came. Severus raised an eyebrow and walked past her. He had no trouble at all passing her and moving to the first turning of the path.
Ginny watched him in confusion, her head continuing to pound. Searching for answers, she turned back to Draco, and was surprised to see her headache disappeared when she did so.
Severus returned to where he'd been standing, and he and Draco exchanged significant glances. Severus raised his eyebrows, and Draco nodded slowly. "What is it?" Ginny asked, looking at them suspiciously.
Draco acted like he hadn't even heard her, but Severus looked up and forced a polite smile. "That's an interesting question, Miss Weasley, and one I wish I didn't have to answer. However, you are here now and rather involved, so I guess you'd better hear it. Why don't you come sit down?"
Ginny moved suspiciously toward him and sat tensely down on the same rock she'd been on before. Severus looked at her a long moment, and then sighed. "You took history in your time at Hogwarts, correct?"
Ginny shrugged. "Everyone does. It's a required class."
"Well, then," he replied, "you have undoubtedly heard of such cases as William of Ravensborough and the princess Cecelya?"
Casting her mind back to thick tomes of dull history, Ginny tried to remember the names. "They sound familiar. Didn't William rescue Cecelya and then become lord of . . . somewhere or other?"
Severus nodded. "William married Cecelya after rescuing her. That was a wizarding law back then. If a single man saved the life of a single woman, and they were of equal social standing, she would offer him her hand in reward for his rescue. It was one of the rules of chivalry, and in the wizarding world back then, chivalry was law."
At this, Ginny stole a glance at Draco, who was still watching her with those inscrutable eyes. "What are you saying?" she asked, looking back at Severus.
He shook his head, presumably at her stupidity. "There were spells around back then that forced people to follow these laws. This land has just such a spell on it, and it compels those in it to follow the rules of chivalry. It is now trying to compel you to."
Ginny shook her head. "But that's such an old rule!" she laughed.
"This is a very old forest," Severus replied gravely, and her smile fell. Severus looked around the woods for a moment. "This area hasn't changed much at all since those spells were in use. Most of the manor itself has been rebuilt and remodeled and changed, so the spell has worn off there, but in this forest . . ."
It seemed unbelievable, but she had just as much trouble believing that Severus would make up such a story. She could believe a lot of the former Death Eater, but not that he would make up such a fanciful lie. Feeling a sudden surge of panic, she looked over at Draco. "But you said 'of equal social standing.' As Mr. Malfoy here made a point of telling me nearly every day in school, we are not quite on the same level."
Severus seemed to shrug without moving his shoulders. "Maybe not financially, but in all other ways you are a suitable match. You come from a respectable family-" here Draco snorted and was given a withering look by Severus- "and most importantly, you have pure blood. Social standing back then had as much to do with name as money. I'm sorry, Miss Weasley."
"What are you saying? That's ridiculous! It's ludicrous, and I'm not going to do it." With an annoyed look, she bent to pick up her bag and stalked down the path, only to be stopped by the spell and the oncoming headache. Weakly, she turned around and set her bag down. "How do I get out of here?" she asked, moving toward Severus. "Tell me how to get out of here, and tell me it doesn't involve any ridiculous spells."
Severus shrugged, gesturing toward Draco. "You're both single, both of age. He saved your life in an area where the spell is still strong. I'm sorry, but there's only one way out."
"No," Ginny replied, glancing at the silent Draco and then back at Severus. "I am not going to propose to the great ferret!"
"Relax," Draco said suddenly, speaking up for the first time. "You just have to offer. I don't have to say yes."
Ginny looked to Severus, and he nodded his confirmation. The red-haired witch dropped her head back to gaze helplessly at the cloudy sky, then shook her head and looked back at Draco. "All right," she said, forcing the words out. "But no one hears about this, okay?" Draco nodded impassively, and Ginny sighed. "So how do we do this?"
In the end, Ginny found herself kneeling at Draco's feet, holding his right hand in both of hers. "This may be the most demeaning thing I've ever done," she commented, and Draco raised an eyebrow in annoyance. "All right, sorry," she said, then tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Okay, here goes.
"My lord," she said, straining to remember the words Severus had just taught her, "I owe you my life. In return for this kindness, I offer you my hand in marriage. I am yours, if you like of me. I swear it." Closing her eyes so she wouldn't feel quite so embarrassed, she brought his hand to her face and kissed his signet ring, which bore the seal of the house of Malfoy. It was disgusting and demeaning, but immediately the same flares of magic she had felt before came again, so she knew that she'd be able to leave. She kept kneeling, though, until he refused her offer- after all, she had just sworn on it.
Several long moments passed before Ginny finally looked up at Draco, wondering why he hadn't said no yet. He was looking down at her in an appraising way that made her feel distinctly uneasy. She was about to drop his hand when he spoke.
"All right," he said, smiling maliciously. "I accept."
. . . . . .
This story was started several years ago and first posted at Fiction Alley earlier this year, before book six came out and changed . . . well, everything, really. So please excuse any discrepancies; it definitely is not HBP canon. Well, on with the show. Enjoy!
. . . . . .
My Anything
. . . . . .
I am peremptory as she proud-minded;
And where two raging fires meet together,
They do consume the thing that feeds their fury:
Though little fire grows great with little wind,
Yet extreme gusts will blow out fire and all:
So I to her, and so she yields to me.
Taming of the Shrew, act II, scene I
. . . . . .
THE PEACE AND quiet of the ground-floor staff room at St. Mungo's was interrupted suddenly by the yelling of a middle-aged orderly out in the hall. "Miss Weasley!" Corbin shouted, running in the door. "Miss Weasley, where are you?"
The young woman in question looked up from her lunch with a slight scowl, annoyed at having her break interrupted but not wanting to offend the orderly. The man, despite being very high-strung and having a tendency to exaggerate, was fairly nice, and Ginny didn't want him to think she was angry at him. "What is it, Corbin?" she asked. "I'm right here."
Corbin, finally seeing her at the table in the corner, looked relieved and straightened up. "Emergency call," he said briskly, obviously enjoying the importance of the words. "Glennis seemed to think you should go."
Ginny sighed. Glennis knew she was on break; the only reason the head healer would want Ginny to go was if it was a non-urgent call that, for whatever reason, Glennis saw as a nuisance and not worth her own time. Still, Ginny was required to interrupt her breaks for the sake of emergency calls, so with a final sigh she packed up the rest of her food and followed Corbin upstairs.
When she reached the call room, she found Glennis sitting at the desk, grinning warmly. Ginny returned the grin; despite the difference in their ages, Glennis was one of her best friends at St. Mungo's.
"So, what's the problem?" Ginny asked.
Glennis gestured toward a map of England which hung on the wall. On it were several glowing dots, each one indicating the spot where someone had used their wand to send for help. Glennis pointed to a dot in northern Wiltshire. "Fellow called through the Floo Network to say a friend had been bitten by a badger. They gave the man a potion, but they wanted a healer to come and make sure that nothing was wrong."
"All right," Ginny said slowly. The situation sounded normal enough, so why was Glennis grinning like that? "What else is there? What's so amusing?" she asked.
The older woman simply gestured toward the map. "You'll see when you get there," she grinned.
With a shrug, Ginny decided to go and see what was so funny. Picking up a medical bag, she placed the tip of her wand on the dot Glennis had indicated and Apparated.
She landed on soft grass next to a long, dirt driveway. Taking a moment to dust herself off, she looked around, wondering what about this spot had amused Glennis so much. There was a house a little ways away, but it was difficult to see through the fog around her, which was remarkably cold despite the fact that it was summer. Suddenly, a ray of sunlight burst through the clouds and lit up the huge house. Ginny peered at it a moment, then groaned as recognition hit her. The house that Glennis had found so amusing was none other than Malfoy Manor.
. . . . . .
Deep within the stone walls of the Manor, two men reclined on sofas and waited for the Medi-witch to arrive. "Late, as usual," complained one, older and black haired, who had one foot propped up on a stool. "Why did you even call St. Mungo's?"
His companion, a slender young man with perfectly slicked-back blonde hair, shrugged lazily. "To exasperate you. To give me something to do." He raised a smooth eyebrow. "And it's only good manners to make sure you're all right. If I didn't show good manners, Severus, you would undoubtedly go tattling back to Zabini and the rest of them, and we certainly wouldn't want that."
The Hogwarts potions master shook his head. "Draco, we've known each other for years. Do you really think I'm going to go telling stories to Zabini?"
Draco Malfoy, lord of Malfoy Manor, shrugged. "You never can tell, Snape," he drawled, causing his companion to shake his head in annoyance.
"If you hadn't insisted on taking that shortcut through the woods," Severus said, gingerly moving his sore ankle, "you wouldn't have this problem."
"I said I was sorry."
"Yes, but you say a lot of things," Severus muttered. "How many of them do you really mean?"
Draco grinned back in genuine delight. "I knew I liked you," he said. "One of the few people I know with real sense."
Severus shook his head, but before he could respond, there was a discrete tap on the door. "Yes?" Draco called.
The door opened to reveal Bernard, the head house elf. Bowing respectfully, he said, "If you please, masters, there is someone at the door from St. Mungo's."
Draco shooed the elf back out. "We will be up presently," he said, managing to sound arrogant in those few words. He rose gracefully to his feet, his companion clumsily following suit on his swollen ankle. "Shall we?" Draco asked, and Severus followed him out of the room.
The pair moved through the corridors in silence, Severus occasionally stealing glances at his young companion. How had such an arrogant, irresponsible person become one of the most powerful men in Britain? The question was, he knew, in the minds of the other noblemen and political leaders in Severus and Draco's social circle, which was comprised of nearly every powerful figure to come out of Slytherin house in the last fifty years. They all worried about the idea of the over-confident, careless Draco being a prominent member of society. Despite what many people thought of the former Slytherins, they were not wholly without senses of duty or concern for social niceties, and the reckless and sometimes embarrassing behavior exhibited by Lucius Malfoy's only son was beginning to become a concern.
At this thought Severus' thin lips twisted into a slight smile. This is all your fault, Lucius, he thought, directing his words toward wherever Lucius was now. Even two years after the man's death, Severus felt a bond with the former Lord Malfoy. They all did. Underneath Lucius' cold, unfeeling exterior and unfortunate fascination with the Dark Arts had been a man with a strong sense of duty toward his family and an unwavering loyalty toward those lucky enough to be his friends.
It was that same devotion that had caused Lucius to spoil his only child, Draco, and turn him into the terror that he now was. Lucius, Severus thought with a resigned sigh, if you're watching, I hope you're feeling heartily ashamed for how you spoiled the boy. Merlin knew it was going to difficult to convince Draco to be the Malfoy lord he was meant to be.
. . . . . .
Ginny stood in the front hall with her arms crossed, bristling at being kept waiting. It was bad enough to be in this place again, to be seeing him, but to have her time wasted in the process . . . She felt ready to throttle Glennis for thinking that sending her here would be funny. The woman had never met Draco Malfoy, but thought that the young lord of Malfoy Manor was very attractive and had hinted to Ginny several times that she should catch up with her old school chum. If Glennis had ever known the git, Ginny thought, she wouldn't be nearly as enthusiastic about him.
As she waited, she looked around the high ceilinged room, feeling the memories creeping up on her. It had been five years ago that she'd joined up with the Order of the Pheonix, back when the war with Voldemort was in full swing. She'd gone to be trained as a Medi-witch by the Ministry the week after graduating from Hogwarts, and after a mere month of training had been shipped out to the front lines. Most other trainees her age had been sent to refugee camps, but since her entire family was already members of the Order, she was allowed to become a member herself and work with the small cadre of healers reserved for the central circle of the Order.
It was there that she came once again into contact with Draco Malfoy. The dictator of Slytherin House, the tormentor of her childhood, the one person she didn't want to see again after leaving school, had joined the Order a few months before she had. He claimed to have turned to good, but it was generally suspected that he simply hadn't wanted his family's estate, money and good name destroyed if Voldemort lost.
And with Draco helping the Order, Voldemort did lose, unable to fight an enemy who was assisted by one who knew the workings of the Dark intimately. It was well known that Draco's assistance was pivotal in winning the war.
This, Ginny reflected, was lucky for him, or else the rest of the Order might have killed him with their bare hands. The entire time he'd been a member, he'd been a holy terror, putting on airs of nobility and ordering the rest of the members around, reminding those who tried to refuse that if he decided to leave, the Order would lose a source of valuable information and probably lose the war.
Ginny remembered numerous occasions on which he'd made her shine his shoes, make him coffee, and even give him a back massage. The worst of it, though, had been the time he'd made her come on an errand with him to this very house, Malfoy Manor, forcing her to miss one of the Order's few days of real rest in the entire war. The very memory still made her furious.
At that moment, footsteps sounded in the hall, and Ginny pushed the memories into the back of her mind, though mentally reminding herself to give Glennis a piece of her mind when she went back to St. Mungo's. One of the several doors in the entryway opened, and through it stepped a house elf, followed by her old Potions teacher Severus Snape. After them, the man himself, Draco Malfoy, swept dramatically into the front hall. He was as handsome as ever, Ginny noted, and based on the expression on his face, as arrogant as ever.
Professor Snape nodded to her. "Miss Weasley," he said by way of greeting.
At the sound Draco stopped his impressive entrance and stared at the Medi-witch in his entryway, a scowl marring his handsome features. "Oh, it's you, is it?"
. . . . . .
She hadn't changed much, Draco noticed. Her hair was still shoulder length and bright red, too straight to be called curly and too wavy to be called straight. She still barely reached his shoulder, and she still glared at him as though she'd like to do him bodily harm. Beyond asking exactly what the medical problem was, though, she didn't say a word to him. She simply knelt on the floor and pulled out her wand to heal Severus' ankle, then stood and began to examine his hand.
As she worked, Severus briefly explained the situation- while the two were going out into the manor's park to check on repairs needed for a shed, Draco had insisted on taking a shortcut through the woods, and the potions master had stepped in a badger's hole, angering the badger enough to bite him. Draco detected a hint of amusement in the Weasel's eyes, but she didn't say a word.
After a few minutes and a healing spell, Ginny looked up. "You're fine, Professor," she said, packing up her bag. "But if it's all right, I'd like to go out to where you were bitten to see if the badger was rabid or magical at all, to see if I should prescribe any potions for you."
Draco nodded and opened a door. "This way, Weasel," he said, smirking, and was rewarded by a dark look from the short witch in front of him. Severus simply rolled his eyes and followed her out the door.
They moved through the house and out a side door wordlessly, both Draco and Severus perfectly comfortable with not speaking. Before long, though, the chatty Weasley started talking to fill the silence. "So, what are you doing here, Professor Snape?" she asked.
Draco didn't have to look at him to know the potions master was rolling his eyes. "Just visiting Draco," he replied, ducking through the short side door. "I do try to keep an eye on him."
There was more to that statement, Draco knew, than would seem. The Slytherin Horde, as he liked to call the group of influential former Slytherins that he and Severus moved in, had been watching him ever since the end of the war. They were not worried because he had been in the Order- many of them had never joined Voldemort, and some had openly defied him- but because they felt that he might not be a suitable replacement for his father. Ian Zabini, especially, had taken it upon himself to keep Draco in line, and when the Slytherin Horde started in on Draco about some aspect of his life that they didn't feel was quite up to snuff, he knew that Zabini was behind it. His "friends," as they claimed to be, hadn't managed to persuade him to do much yet, but it wasn't for their lack of trying. They sent Severus to check on him often, frequently gave him unwanted advice on how to manage the estate and his business and political affairs, and generally tried to run his life. They had even gone so far as to start discusing potential wives for him, to keep him out of trouble. They didn't tell him this, of course, but he had his ways of finding things out, and he knew that at present they had settled on Pansy Parkinson as a suitable match for him.
As if I would ever marry that overbearing wench, he thought snidely. The woman was a loud and portly gold digger, and based on what he'd seen of her lately, she spent most of her days completely sloshed. Worst of all was not that she was notoriously unfaithful to boyfriends, but that she first gained that reputation while dating him. Nobody cheated on Draco Malfoy. She may have had the looks, the bearing, the experience and the Slytherin breeding, but no amount of persuasion could ever induce Draco to marry Pansy Parkinson.
Unfortunately for Draco, though, his father Lucius Malfoy had made Severus Snape the steward of the estate until Draco turned twenty-five. As such, the potions teacher controlled the monetary affairs of the estate, though he usually deferred to Draco on the decisions that had to be made. What this meant, though, was that if the Slytherin Horde ever convinced Severus that Draco should marry Pansy, Severus could use the power he had over Draco to force him into the marriage. If Draco refused, he would be denied access to the family's vast fortune.
This wouldn't have been terrible, as Draco made enough to live on in his job at the Ministry's Department of International Cooperation. He, however, was a Malfoy, and "enough to live on" simply wouldn't cut it. He enjoyed his lifestyle, his vacations on the Continent, his fancy clothes and food, his home at the Manor. He didn't want to lose that. If Severus decided to exercise his authority and withhold money from Draco, there was a very good chance that Draco would finally crack and agree to marry Pansy. The Slytherin Horde was pushing hard for this. The only reason a marriage had not yet been arranged was that Severus was about as fond of Pansy as Draco was.
Draco knew, though, that Severus would crack sometime. It was only a matter of when. Draco hoped fervently that the old potions master would remain unconvinced for another year and half, until Draco was twenty-five and took full control of the estate. Then nothing anyone said or did could force him to marry Pansy.
Draco sometimes wondered what the Slytherin Horde would do if he never married- or worse, if he married someone they considered unacceptable. They would probably have kittens, he reflected with a grin. He looked over at Ginny Weasley, who was ducking under a branch as the group entered the thick woods on the manor's land. She looked positively homely- her hair slightly frizzy, her shoes old and worn, a sprinkling of freckles across her nose. What if, Draco thought, grinning to himself, I married someone like Ginny Weasley? He could imagine the scandal that would arise, the arrogant grins falling off the faces of the Slytherin Horde when they heard the news. It would serve them right, he thought, teach them not to meddle in my business.
He was so caught up in the humor of the thought that he scarcely noticed Severus turning back to the Weasel. "There is a steep drop-off into a ravine along the path ahead," he told her. "Do be careful- we'd hate to have to climb down there to fish you out of it." Ginny nodded, looking slightly apprehensive, which Draco thought was rather cowardly of her. After all, he'd been playing in these trees since he was able to walk, and he'd never fallen. Of course, he had to admit it could be a bit scary, as the ravine was nearly a hundred feet deep and the sides were sheer, vertical rock, but the Weasel still should have shown a little more backbone.
They passed the ravine without incident and entered the clearing where Severus had been bitten. After setting her bag down, Ginny pulled her wand out and began performing spells, pointing at the center of the clearing and at the badger's hole. Whatever the spells showed seemed to satisfy her, and she turned back to Severus with a polite smile. "Everything seems to be all right. I think I won't have to prescribe a potion for you after all, Professor." Severus returned her bland smile, and the group began to head back to the house.
They were passing the ravine again when Draco saw a shape running toward him on the path. Behind him, Ginny stopped dead, obviously afraid of whatever it was, but Draco knew from the shape that it was simply one of the dogs.
The animal, a big, stupid brute called Cassius who had a talent for getting off leashes and tethers, came bounding up the path toward them. It obviously intended to jump on Draco, whom it was very fond of, so Draco simply stepped to the side, assuming everyone would follow suit and the dog would lose its momentum.
That was not what happened, however. The dog started sliding to a halt as it moved past Draco and toward Ginny, who realized belatedly that she ought to get out of its way. For some reason, though, she moved toward the edge of the ravine instead of toward the flat ground on the other side of the path. She started stepping backwards, unable to see how close she was to the cliff, and before anyone could blink she was falling over the edge of the ravine.
Everything seemed to slow down then. Severus began reaching into his robe for his wand, but Draco simply stood and watched her begin to fall in mute surprise, remembering in the back of his mind that both he and Severus had left their wands back at the manor. Then some long-dead instinct awoke in him, and without thinking he found himself diving toward across the path toward her and landing on the hard ground above the cliff.
She was a few feet below him, gripping the rock wall with one hand, her fingers white with the strain and obviously unable to hold on much longer. As he reached down her fingers slipped from their hold on the cliff, but his hands wrapped around her wrists before she could fall. She stared up at him, her brown eyes wide with shock, but quickly recovered and began looking for hand and foot holds to start scrambling up the rock. Draco pulled back as hard as he could, and between the two of them they managed to get her up over the edge.
It all seemed to pass in an instant, and before Draco knew it he was lying on his back next to the cliff with Ginny lying near him and looking stunned. Slightly shaken, but not so much that he would show it, he stood and brushed himself off. "Watch yourself, Weasely," he sneered as he pulled twigs off the front of his robes.
The red-haired girl simply nodded breathlessly as she shakily pulled herself to her feet. Her eyes traveled down over the edge of the cliffs to the pile of rocks a hundred feet below, and she shook her head. "Thank you, Malfoy," she murmured, obviously shocked- though not so shocked, he noticed, that she would slip up and use his first name.
"Are you all right, Miss Weasley?" asked Severus, striding up and looking at her with a concerned expression that most people wouldn't expect to see on the cold professor's face. She nodded, but Draco, ever observant, could see that her hands were shaking. His own hands were shaking slightly too, but he hid them in his pockets. Never show weakness.
The Weasley, however, had apparently never been taught that maxim, and was presently being helped by Severus toward a boulder on the safe side of the path, where she sat down heavily. She looked down a moment, obviously trying to slow her breathing, then looked up at Draco with a confused look on her face. "You saved my life,"she said, and at her words, Draco felt a slight rush of magic flare up around her. He furrowed his brow, trying to figure out what it was. An identical bit of magic flared up around his own body, and he looked around, wondering where it had come from. His eyes suddenly widened. It can't be.
. . . . . .
Ginny felt the flares of magic too, but seeing as how there were three wizards in the area, she didn't find it at all unusual. She sat a moment longer, slowly breathing in and out, until she felt calmer. Once she felt she could stand, she moved to the edge of the ravine and pulled out her wand. "Accio bag," she said, and her medical bag came flying back up the cliff toward her. Clutching the bag close to her for a few moments, she breathed deeply while she tried to stop the shaking in her hands.
Then she turned back to the two men behind her. Draco was staring at her with an unreadable expression, and Severus was looking back and forth between the two young adults with a raised eyebrow. She wondered about it, but decided it was unwise to delve too deeply into the affairs of slimy gits.
"So, shall we leave, or should I just show myself the way out of here?" she asked sarcastically. To her surprise, neither man answered. She looked back and forth between them slowly for a moment, then shook her head. Fine, she thought. I'll just wander out of here myself. "Well, then, thank you again, Mr. Malfoy," she said formally, nodding to him. "And I hope your ankle doesn't cause you anymore problems," she added, looking at her former professor. Neither returned the farewell, so she shrugged to herself and started down the path.
And then she stopped. Her head was beginning to pound, and every step she took made it feel worse. She felt nauseated and weak, and her body suddenly felt very inclined to turn back toward the two silent men behind her. It was as though something was trying to keep her in the area. That's ridiculous, she thought to herself, and determinedly took another step forward, then another. At the third, she didn't move forward. Trying not to panic, she tried again, but with every step her feet simply slid frictionlessly against the ground, and she stayed in the same spot.
"Trouble, Miss Weasley?" Severus asked.
She turned back to face him. Instantly her headache and nausea left her. "Umm . . ." she replied, feeling foolish. "Yes, actually. Something appears to be wrong. I can't get down the path." She cringed a little, waiting for them to mock her, but to her surprise nothing came. Severus raised an eyebrow and walked past her. He had no trouble at all passing her and moving to the first turning of the path.
Ginny watched him in confusion, her head continuing to pound. Searching for answers, she turned back to Draco, and was surprised to see her headache disappeared when she did so.
Severus returned to where he'd been standing, and he and Draco exchanged significant glances. Severus raised his eyebrows, and Draco nodded slowly. "What is it?" Ginny asked, looking at them suspiciously.
Draco acted like he hadn't even heard her, but Severus looked up and forced a polite smile. "That's an interesting question, Miss Weasley, and one I wish I didn't have to answer. However, you are here now and rather involved, so I guess you'd better hear it. Why don't you come sit down?"
Ginny moved suspiciously toward him and sat tensely down on the same rock she'd been on before. Severus looked at her a long moment, and then sighed. "You took history in your time at Hogwarts, correct?"
Ginny shrugged. "Everyone does. It's a required class."
"Well, then," he replied, "you have undoubtedly heard of such cases as William of Ravensborough and the princess Cecelya?"
Casting her mind back to thick tomes of dull history, Ginny tried to remember the names. "They sound familiar. Didn't William rescue Cecelya and then become lord of . . . somewhere or other?"
Severus nodded. "William married Cecelya after rescuing her. That was a wizarding law back then. If a single man saved the life of a single woman, and they were of equal social standing, she would offer him her hand in reward for his rescue. It was one of the rules of chivalry, and in the wizarding world back then, chivalry was law."
At this, Ginny stole a glance at Draco, who was still watching her with those inscrutable eyes. "What are you saying?" she asked, looking back at Severus.
He shook his head, presumably at her stupidity. "There were spells around back then that forced people to follow these laws. This land has just such a spell on it, and it compels those in it to follow the rules of chivalry. It is now trying to compel you to."
Ginny shook her head. "But that's such an old rule!" she laughed.
"This is a very old forest," Severus replied gravely, and her smile fell. Severus looked around the woods for a moment. "This area hasn't changed much at all since those spells were in use. Most of the manor itself has been rebuilt and remodeled and changed, so the spell has worn off there, but in this forest . . ."
It seemed unbelievable, but she had just as much trouble believing that Severus would make up such a story. She could believe a lot of the former Death Eater, but not that he would make up such a fanciful lie. Feeling a sudden surge of panic, she looked over at Draco. "But you said 'of equal social standing.' As Mr. Malfoy here made a point of telling me nearly every day in school, we are not quite on the same level."
Severus seemed to shrug without moving his shoulders. "Maybe not financially, but in all other ways you are a suitable match. You come from a respectable family-" here Draco snorted and was given a withering look by Severus- "and most importantly, you have pure blood. Social standing back then had as much to do with name as money. I'm sorry, Miss Weasley."
"What are you saying? That's ridiculous! It's ludicrous, and I'm not going to do it." With an annoyed look, she bent to pick up her bag and stalked down the path, only to be stopped by the spell and the oncoming headache. Weakly, she turned around and set her bag down. "How do I get out of here?" she asked, moving toward Severus. "Tell me how to get out of here, and tell me it doesn't involve any ridiculous spells."
Severus shrugged, gesturing toward Draco. "You're both single, both of age. He saved your life in an area where the spell is still strong. I'm sorry, but there's only one way out."
"No," Ginny replied, glancing at the silent Draco and then back at Severus. "I am not going to propose to the great ferret!"
"Relax," Draco said suddenly, speaking up for the first time. "You just have to offer. I don't have to say yes."
Ginny looked to Severus, and he nodded his confirmation. The red-haired witch dropped her head back to gaze helplessly at the cloudy sky, then shook her head and looked back at Draco. "All right," she said, forcing the words out. "But no one hears about this, okay?" Draco nodded impassively, and Ginny sighed. "So how do we do this?"
In the end, Ginny found herself kneeling at Draco's feet, holding his right hand in both of hers. "This may be the most demeaning thing I've ever done," she commented, and Draco raised an eyebrow in annoyance. "All right, sorry," she said, then tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Okay, here goes.
"My lord," she said, straining to remember the words Severus had just taught her, "I owe you my life. In return for this kindness, I offer you my hand in marriage. I am yours, if you like of me. I swear it." Closing her eyes so she wouldn't feel quite so embarrassed, she brought his hand to her face and kissed his signet ring, which bore the seal of the house of Malfoy. It was disgusting and demeaning, but immediately the same flares of magic she had felt before came again, so she knew that she'd be able to leave. She kept kneeling, though, until he refused her offer- after all, she had just sworn on it.
Several long moments passed before Ginny finally looked up at Draco, wondering why he hadn't said no yet. He was looking down at her in an appraising way that made her feel distinctly uneasy. She was about to drop his hand when he spoke.
"All right," he said, smiling maliciously. "I accept."
. . . . . .
Leave a Review