Chapter 24: Collision of Truths
“Just close your eyes,” his voice had whispered, resonating in her mind. She could still feel his fingers entwined with hers, and in desperation she gripped them as tightly as she could, as her eyes closed and she became blind to what was occurring within the field. So many doubts and fears were running through her head, it was beginning to distract her. The only solid thing she had to hold on to was his hand.
She had promised herself, that night, that because she had hesitated to use that power, she never would. It had been a decision that she’d made; in that instant when Neville died and she could have prevented it, but had been reluctant to use any magic without her wand, in fear of being discovered or branded a dark Wizard – she really wasn’t sure – but that was why she was so afraid of it. And here she was, about to perform whatever spell it was they were doing, knowing full well that by Ministry standards, this was definitely “Dark Magic”.
Dark Magic, in any form, can only do harm. This had been taught to her as a universal truth by her parents, and now, she was about to act against everything they had ever taught her. But the end justifies the means, her heart was protesting wildly. Was it really “evil” if it could help a bunch of beautiful, magical creatures that were being hunted by a force that would want to do evil things with them? The basic truth that she had grown up believing and the truth that was before her eyes were warring with each other, and the very ground she was standing on seemed to sway in the balance.
His grip on her hands tightened slightly, steadying her. Exhaling deeply, she focused her concentration. In her mind she could see the meadow as she had first seen it: green, growing and full of life. Full of a beauty so breathtaking it almost hurt to see. The kind of sight your hand aches to reach out and touch, so you can make sure it’s real, that you are actually seeing a real place. As she formed the image in her mind, she suddenly became aware that all the other sensations around her; the footsteps of the Malfoys as they walked around in the snow, the howling of the wind, the bitter bite of the cold, all seemed to fade away.
All she could feel was the rise of power from within, pulsing in time with her heartbeat, and the hands that she was holding onto as tightly as she could. Synchronizing her breathing to match the beat of her heart, she felt the enormous swell of power throughout her body slowly ebb away with each exhale. She could feel her energy in the air around her, feel the power from her body free at last, circling all around her, growing stronger with each breath. The inherent magic of the sanctuary, ancient and solid as time, was mingling with the power she was radiating, drawing on it, drinking it in desperately in the same instant it was nourished by it.
With a crack that almost shattered her concentration, Ginny found a forceful wall of resistance that was bearing down on her. Her temper piqued, she unleashed her anger, felt it wash over her, feeding her power, letting it amass within her center until it broke free in an invisible explosion. She could feel the resistance crumble from the force, and her concentration wavered momentarily as she felt a great sense of triumph.
And then the weight of all came barreling down on her. She focused her energy, pushing it back, her breaths coming out in gaps as she tried to fight it back, but it seemed to feed on whatever force she used to break it. Her legs were growing weaker, with the weight of her own power thrown against her. She was about to stumble, when she felt a growing warmth from the hands that were still holding hers, and the weight bearing down on her seemed to lessen enough for her to regain her focus.
Breathing deeply again, she concentrated the energy within her, using her heartbeat as a guide once more. She could feel it pulsating in the air around her, and she used its rhythm to fuel the gathering of power within her. As the resistant force was slowly pushed back, she could feel another heart beating at the same time as hers, throbbing in her head. She could feel another energy force encircling her, surrounding her, protecting her from the resistance, pushing it away, allowing her to concentrate solely on gathering her own energy.
Her eyes opened, meeting a pair of silver-gray eyes. It was all she could see, and as she felt her own heart beating in time with the other rhythm, she could see them both pulsating in his eyes. The wall that was blocking her suddenly crumbled, and the energy within her suddenly burst forth, shattering the cold grip that had been tightening around the sanctuary. As if a tightly-stretched elastic band had suddenly snapped, the force of the recoil threatened to carry Ginny away, but the second heart beat anchored her down, gray eyes locked with brown ones, and warm hands held her in place as the effects washed over them.
* * * * *
Ginny opened her eyes slowly, and blinked in the soft moonlight blanketing the field in the middle of the labyrinth. It took her a moment to realize where she was. She withdrew her hands from Draco’s grip, never breaking eye contact with him, until she looked around her and saw that she was standing in the middle of a once-more vibrant, green field. The snow and the cold were all gone.
An overwhelming sense of delight filled her, and she let out a joyful cry. Kicking off the over-large boots, she ran, feet padding softly on the fresh grass, until she reached the center. Looking up at the stars, shining brightly, and the brilliant light of the moon centering on her, she twirled around madly, needing to release her joy, her hair whipping freely around her in the gentle wind.
Her body felt energized, and she felt electrified wisps of power left running through her. With a laugh, she stopped before she became too dizzy and fell over. Her eyes met once again with gray ones, and she gasped. In those moments, her eyes locked on his, she remembered all that she had seen while lost in the spell, and she found breathing becoming more difficult. She could still feel his heart beating.
“Where is everyone else?” she asked softly, noticing for the first time that they were the only humans there.
“They left us once it was clear that they weren’t needed; that the spell had been in place and you were able to hold it,” he answered, his voice low and soft. His eyes, so intense, were meeting hers once again, and the power within her rose again, protesting the loss of the connection between them. Barely able to breath under the weight of those eyes, she found herself propelled towards him, her magic calling out for the touch of his again.
Before she was able to think, she was in his arms, needing his touch, the contact of his skin on hers. She felt the power well up with her again, as her lips made contact with his, her arms wrapping around his neck. He reached around her waist, pulling her up against him, needing to feel her body against his. She was giddy and lightheaded, and running out of air. Pulling away abruptly, before either of them was satisfied, making the need even stronger, she gasped for air, leaving one hand on his chest, unwilling to completely break contact with him. Moving that hand down his chest, over to where his heart was, she could feel the throbbing beat und her palm that was echoed in her mind. She looked up into his eyes one last time and she was lost to the power within him that was calling out to her own. Unable, unwilling to stop, she captured his lips again, reveling in the electric flare of power that rose up at his touch, rising forth and sweeping them both away.
“Just close your eyes,” his voice had whispered, resonating in her mind. She could still feel his fingers entwined with hers, and in desperation she gripped them as tightly as she could, as her eyes closed and she became blind to what was occurring within the field. So many doubts and fears were running through her head, it was beginning to distract her. The only solid thing she had to hold on to was his hand.
She had promised herself, that night, that because she had hesitated to use that power, she never would. It had been a decision that she’d made; in that instant when Neville died and she could have prevented it, but had been reluctant to use any magic without her wand, in fear of being discovered or branded a dark Wizard – she really wasn’t sure – but that was why she was so afraid of it. And here she was, about to perform whatever spell it was they were doing, knowing full well that by Ministry standards, this was definitely “Dark Magic”.
Dark Magic, in any form, can only do harm. This had been taught to her as a universal truth by her parents, and now, she was about to act against everything they had ever taught her. But the end justifies the means, her heart was protesting wildly. Was it really “evil” if it could help a bunch of beautiful, magical creatures that were being hunted by a force that would want to do evil things with them? The basic truth that she had grown up believing and the truth that was before her eyes were warring with each other, and the very ground she was standing on seemed to sway in the balance.
His grip on her hands tightened slightly, steadying her. Exhaling deeply, she focused her concentration. In her mind she could see the meadow as she had first seen it: green, growing and full of life. Full of a beauty so breathtaking it almost hurt to see. The kind of sight your hand aches to reach out and touch, so you can make sure it’s real, that you are actually seeing a real place. As she formed the image in her mind, she suddenly became aware that all the other sensations around her; the footsteps of the Malfoys as they walked around in the snow, the howling of the wind, the bitter bite of the cold, all seemed to fade away.
All she could feel was the rise of power from within, pulsing in time with her heartbeat, and the hands that she was holding onto as tightly as she could. Synchronizing her breathing to match the beat of her heart, she felt the enormous swell of power throughout her body slowly ebb away with each exhale. She could feel her energy in the air around her, feel the power from her body free at last, circling all around her, growing stronger with each breath. The inherent magic of the sanctuary, ancient and solid as time, was mingling with the power she was radiating, drawing on it, drinking it in desperately in the same instant it was nourished by it.
With a crack that almost shattered her concentration, Ginny found a forceful wall of resistance that was bearing down on her. Her temper piqued, she unleashed her anger, felt it wash over her, feeding her power, letting it amass within her center until it broke free in an invisible explosion. She could feel the resistance crumble from the force, and her concentration wavered momentarily as she felt a great sense of triumph.
And then the weight of all came barreling down on her. She focused her energy, pushing it back, her breaths coming out in gaps as she tried to fight it back, but it seemed to feed on whatever force she used to break it. Her legs were growing weaker, with the weight of her own power thrown against her. She was about to stumble, when she felt a growing warmth from the hands that were still holding hers, and the weight bearing down on her seemed to lessen enough for her to regain her focus.
Breathing deeply again, she concentrated the energy within her, using her heartbeat as a guide once more. She could feel it pulsating in the air around her, and she used its rhythm to fuel the gathering of power within her. As the resistant force was slowly pushed back, she could feel another heart beating at the same time as hers, throbbing in her head. She could feel another energy force encircling her, surrounding her, protecting her from the resistance, pushing it away, allowing her to concentrate solely on gathering her own energy.
Her eyes opened, meeting a pair of silver-gray eyes. It was all she could see, and as she felt her own heart beating in time with the other rhythm, she could see them both pulsating in his eyes. The wall that was blocking her suddenly crumbled, and the energy within her suddenly burst forth, shattering the cold grip that had been tightening around the sanctuary. As if a tightly-stretched elastic band had suddenly snapped, the force of the recoil threatened to carry Ginny away, but the second heart beat anchored her down, gray eyes locked with brown ones, and warm hands held her in place as the effects washed over them.
* * * * *
Ginny opened her eyes slowly, and blinked in the soft moonlight blanketing the field in the middle of the labyrinth. It took her a moment to realize where she was. She withdrew her hands from Draco’s grip, never breaking eye contact with him, until she looked around her and saw that she was standing in the middle of a once-more vibrant, green field. The snow and the cold were all gone.
An overwhelming sense of delight filled her, and she let out a joyful cry. Kicking off the over-large boots, she ran, feet padding softly on the fresh grass, until she reached the center. Looking up at the stars, shining brightly, and the brilliant light of the moon centering on her, she twirled around madly, needing to release her joy, her hair whipping freely around her in the gentle wind.
Her body felt energized, and she felt electrified wisps of power left running through her. With a laugh, she stopped before she became too dizzy and fell over. Her eyes met once again with gray ones, and she gasped. In those moments, her eyes locked on his, she remembered all that she had seen while lost in the spell, and she found breathing becoming more difficult. She could still feel his heart beating.
“Where is everyone else?” she asked softly, noticing for the first time that they were the only humans there.
“They left us once it was clear that they weren’t needed; that the spell had been in place and you were able to hold it,” he answered, his voice low and soft. His eyes, so intense, were meeting hers once again, and the power within her rose again, protesting the loss of the connection between them. Barely able to breath under the weight of those eyes, she found herself propelled towards him, her magic calling out for the touch of his again.
Before she was able to think, she was in his arms, needing his touch, the contact of his skin on hers. She felt the power well up with her again, as her lips made contact with his, her arms wrapping around his neck. He reached around her waist, pulling her up against him, needing to feel her body against his. She was giddy and lightheaded, and running out of air. Pulling away abruptly, before either of them was satisfied, making the need even stronger, she gasped for air, leaving one hand on his chest, unwilling to completely break contact with him. Moving that hand down his chest, over to where his heart was, she could feel the throbbing beat und her palm that was echoed in her mind. She looked up into his eyes one last time and she was lost to the power within him that was calling out to her own. Unable, unwilling to stop, she captured his lips again, reveling in the electric flare of power that rose up at his touch, rising forth and sweeping them both away.
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