Six days had passed. There had still been no word from Harry, and Ginny could not figure out why. She knew he still loved her. Why hadn’t he come? Then a thought occurred to her; maybe Draco had not sent the letters at all. Oh, how she wished she had her snowy owl, Hedwig. However, her beloved owl had remained with her parents when she went to live in Slytherin. Draco had assured her at the time that it was for the best.
Ginny went to find Draco; she had to know if he had heard something…anything. Walking into his study, she found him talking with one of his advisors, Flint.
“Have you heard from Harry?” Ginny asked; looking Draco in the eye, and really not caring what she was interrupting.
“Ginevra, darling, it’s been too soon,” he replied.
“He will come for me,” she said.
“Of course he will. Any man would be foolish not to do so,” he said soothingly.
“Just so you realize that he will come,” she said, walking out of the room.
As soon as Ginny was out of the room, Draco turned back to Flint; “She will not be harmed. I want Knockturn Alley emptied by the dawn. Gather a team of Aurors if you have to.”
“It will not be easy, your Highness,” Flint said.
“Try ruling the world sometime,” said the prince snobbishly.
* * *
The day of the wedding arrived. Knockturn Alley was practically abandoned except for a few Aurors, and people who had been commissioned to help clear it out.
Flint was busy looking around to make sure everything was going according to plan, when he noticed an Auror walking towards him.
“Nott, is everyone out?” Flint asked.
“Everyone except for this one man that is giving us trouble,” Nott replied.
“Well, you give him some trouble,” said Flint, walking off.
“Yes, sir,” replied Nott, as he walked back to where he had left a very intoxicated Neville.
As Nott approached him, he could hear him muttering to himself about ‘going back to the beginning,’ or something like that. He thought the man was a bit simple.
“Hey, you!” Nott shouted. “You need to clear out; the Prince gave orders.”
Neville, with a bottle of firewhiskey in one hand and his wand in the other, looked at the man, and stumbled to his feet. “I will stay here,” he said, as he unsteadily pointed his wand at Nott. “I have my orders, too.”
“Hey, giant, come here and help me,” Nott said to someone Neville could not see.
“Snape told me to come back to the beginning if anything went wrong. Well, I’ve come back, Snape!”
Hagrid came around the corner ofa shop, and immediately noticed his friend. “He truly was a snake,” Hagrid said; knocking out Nott, and walking over to Neville.
Hagrid picked Neville up, and took him to this little hut. He gradually managed to bring his friend back around; telling him of Snape’s death, and about the Countess Lestrange. He had discovered, during his brief dealings with Nott, that the Countess had a knack for the Cruciatus Curse. By doing a little research he had further discovered that she had been the one that had tortured Neville’s parents to insanity.
You see, when Neville was a little boy, this beautiful woman with haunting eyes had come to visit his parents. She had wanted information about the location of a great and powerful Dark Wizard. When they refused to tell her, she turned her wand on them, leaving them but a living empty shell. Neville was then sent to live with his Grandmother, vowing to avenge their honour.
“She’s in the castle ‘ight now, and it is guarded by at least thirty wizards,” Hagrid continued.
“Hmmm…how many can you handle, Hagrid,” said Neville.
“No more than ten, I think.”
“That leaves twenty for me. At my best I don’t think I could have handled that many,” Neville groaned. “What I need is Snape. He was a git, but a good strategist.”
“But Snape is dead.”
“The man in black!!” Neville exclaimed suddenly. “Think about it; he bested me with a wand, my greatest skill; you in strength, yours; he must have out thought Snape, and any man that can do that can plan my revenge any day. Let’s go find the man in black.”
“But you don’t know where he is.”
“Do not bother me with trifles. After twenty years, my parents’ souls will be at rest!” said Neville, walking out of the hut to begin his search for the man in black.
* * *
Ginny looked out of her window at the rolling countryside watching the sunrise. Tonight she would be forced to marry Draco if Harry did not come. Glancing up at the sky she noticed a dark familiar owl gliding towards the owlery. It was Draco’s eagle owl! He had lied to her! Grabbing her wand she ran towards Draco’s chambers.
Storming into the room she said, “You never sent the owl! Don’t bother lying. It doesn’t matter anyway. Harry will come for me!”
“You silly Gryffindor,” he sneered.
“I might be a silly Gryffindor, but only for not seeing what you really are earlier;a snake and a coward!”
“IwouldnotsaysuchthingsifIwereyou!” he said in a rush.
“Why not? It’s true. And you can’t hurt me either. Harry and I are joined by the bonds of love. That is something a slimy, little, snake of a ferret like yourself could not start to understand!” she said, pointing her wand at him.
“Expelliarmus!” he hissed; grabbing the wand in one hand, and her arm with the other. “IWOULDNOTSAYSUCHTHINGSIFIWEREYOU!”
He dragged her down the hall towards her rooms. When he reached them he opened up the door, and threw her in; locking it with the strongest locking charm he knew. After he made sure that she could not get out he went to take careof his other problem: Harry.