“Be polite, Draco,” Lucius purred, his voice like silk. “We have company.”
Draco waited for Lucius and the young woman at his side to enter the suite, closing the door behind them.
Erin stood next to Draco’s father, her eyes cast to the side and a grimace on her face. She did not struggle against the grip Lucius still had on her arm, nor did she speak. Were it not for the obvious expression of displeasure she wore, Draco would have wondered if she were under the Imperius Curse.
It struck him, then, how odd her reaction was to the circumstances that surrounded her. Displeasure, mingled with a wariness that seemed more calculating than fearful, was the only sign of her discomfiture. Surely Lucius had forced her to come with him; there would be no need to continue his hold on her arm if she was present of her own accord – and yet she was calm.
“Why did you bring her here, Father?” Draco demanded sharply. He did not like this turn of events at all, and he suspected the answer to his question would do nothing to calm the uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.
Lucius’ lip curled. “I brought her to visit with us. Really, Draco, I’d expected you to be a bit more curious about the person using Hermione Granger’s name. I must admit, I was quite taken aback when I discovered who it was, but perhaps the information won’t be so surprising to you.”
Erin was using Hermione Granger’s name? Draco could only stare at his father as this piece of information soaked in. How was that possible? It made no sense at all. Confusion evident on his face, Draco turned to look at the woman he’d been so intimate with only hours earlier.
“Why would you be using a false name?” he asked, bewildered. “How do you know Hermione Granger?”
At his direct question, Erin’s violet eyes met his own. Draco could see the apprehension in their depths. Her lips parted as though she meant to answer him, but after a moment she closed her mouth and simply looked away.
“Erin?” he pressed, taking her chin in his fingers and forcing her to look at him.
It was Lucius’ turn to be surprised. He spoke to the young woman with cold amusement. “Hermione, Erin – how many names you have, my dear.”
Jerking her chin from Draco’s grasp, Erin pinned a disdainful glare on her tormentor.
“Not enough, apparently,” she riposted.
The grip on her arm tightened as Lucius leaned down to look her in the eye. “No number of aliases could have kept me from identifying you in the lobby.”
“You know her?” Draco inquired. He felt dazed, surreal. Clearly he was missing a piece of this puzzle, and without it the truth was hopelessly lost in confusion.
“Yes,” Lucius replied with a hint of derision, “though not so intimately as you.”
Color rose in Draco’s cheeks. “You’ve had your share of lovers, Father. I don’t see what business it is of yours if I choose to share my bed with a woman.”
“That depends on with whom you choose to share it. When your dalliances endanger our master’s interests, then I make them my business. Twice now your weakness has brought her,” Lucius growled, giving Erin’s arm a yank, “too close to our affairs. Either you are breathtakingly careless, or you are a traitor, Draco. Which is it?”
Draco hesitated, torn between defending himself and wondering what his father was talking about. Twice? He’d only met Erin the night before. Had Lucius not dragged her back into the room, he’d never have seen her again. He was distracted from his internal debate when the woman in question spoke.
“Oh for God’s sake, Lucius, look at him” she sneered, gesturing at Draco. “He’s not complicit; he’s confused! Draco has no idea who I am, and you shouldn’t be so certain either.”
“Oh?” Lucius replied. “Why should I not be sure of your identity? I saw you clearly in the lobby and you as much as admitted who you are.”
Erin laughed. “No, I don’t believe I did. I simply didn’t contradict your assumptions. For all you know, I’m a Muggle.”
“A Muggle? No, I think not. I felt your shape shift beneath my fingertips. I watched you change. Not a usual occurrence for a Muggle, I’d say.”
“What was it you said in the hall about memory charms?” Erin put on a show of deep thought. “Oh yes, I remember. They work as well on Muggles as on wizards. Are you sure the same can’t be said about Polyjuice?”
“An unlikely scenario, my dear.”
“More unlikely than my being a dead woman? For that matter, how do you know that this is not my true appearance and the one you recognized was the disguise? How can you be sure that you’ve even seen my real visage? I might just be changing from one disguise to another.”
Draco stiffened at the words ‘dead woman’. His brain felt like it was churning through mud, trying to grasp an idea that was incomprehensible.
Smugly, Lucius countered, “Dead women don’t age.”
“Alright, not dead,” Erin conceded with a frown. “That doesn’t mean that I am her.”
“Enough of these games,” he said impatiently. “I know who you are, Miss Weasley.”
It felt as though all the air had been sucked from Draco’s lungs as he recoiled in shock.
“Ginny Weasley is dead,” he breathed, shaking his head slowly at his father. “I saw her die.”
“And I saw her in the lobby less than an hour ago,” Lucius replied glibly. “Really, Draco, might we do without the dramatics?”
“Shut up, Father.” His tone left no room for argument.
Draco turned to Erin, bearing down on her with menace.
“Are you saying that I did not see Ginny Weasley killed by the Dark Lord’s Avada Kedavra five years ago?” he demanded.
Slowly, grudgingly, Erin met his eyes. “That may be what you saw, but it is not what happened.”
His eyes closed and his hands curled into fists which trembled with the effort of remaining calm.
“She is alive?”
“I’ve just said so, haven’t I?” Erin snapped. Draco’s were not the only nerves beginning to fray.
His next question came in barely a whisper.
“Who are you?”
Jaw clenched, she looked beyond him, focusing instead on a painted beach scene hanging nearby. Draco’s hand slammed the wall, rattling the artwork.
“WHO ARE YOU?”
When she looked up at him, her face was contorted in fury.
“It’s me, Dragon. It’s Ginny.”
Draco waited for Lucius and the young woman at his side to enter the suite, closing the door behind them.
Erin stood next to Draco’s father, her eyes cast to the side and a grimace on her face. She did not struggle against the grip Lucius still had on her arm, nor did she speak. Were it not for the obvious expression of displeasure she wore, Draco would have wondered if she were under the Imperius Curse.
It struck him, then, how odd her reaction was to the circumstances that surrounded her. Displeasure, mingled with a wariness that seemed more calculating than fearful, was the only sign of her discomfiture. Surely Lucius had forced her to come with him; there would be no need to continue his hold on her arm if she was present of her own accord – and yet she was calm.
“Why did you bring her here, Father?” Draco demanded sharply. He did not like this turn of events at all, and he suspected the answer to his question would do nothing to calm the uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.
Lucius’ lip curled. “I brought her to visit with us. Really, Draco, I’d expected you to be a bit more curious about the person using Hermione Granger’s name. I must admit, I was quite taken aback when I discovered who it was, but perhaps the information won’t be so surprising to you.”
Erin was using Hermione Granger’s name? Draco could only stare at his father as this piece of information soaked in. How was that possible? It made no sense at all. Confusion evident on his face, Draco turned to look at the woman he’d been so intimate with only hours earlier.
“Why would you be using a false name?” he asked, bewildered. “How do you know Hermione Granger?”
At his direct question, Erin’s violet eyes met his own. Draco could see the apprehension in their depths. Her lips parted as though she meant to answer him, but after a moment she closed her mouth and simply looked away.
“Erin?” he pressed, taking her chin in his fingers and forcing her to look at him.
It was Lucius’ turn to be surprised. He spoke to the young woman with cold amusement. “Hermione, Erin – how many names you have, my dear.”
Jerking her chin from Draco’s grasp, Erin pinned a disdainful glare on her tormentor.
“Not enough, apparently,” she riposted.
The grip on her arm tightened as Lucius leaned down to look her in the eye. “No number of aliases could have kept me from identifying you in the lobby.”
“You know her?” Draco inquired. He felt dazed, surreal. Clearly he was missing a piece of this puzzle, and without it the truth was hopelessly lost in confusion.
“Yes,” Lucius replied with a hint of derision, “though not so intimately as you.”
Color rose in Draco’s cheeks. “You’ve had your share of lovers, Father. I don’t see what business it is of yours if I choose to share my bed with a woman.”
“That depends on with whom you choose to share it. When your dalliances endanger our master’s interests, then I make them my business. Twice now your weakness has brought her,” Lucius growled, giving Erin’s arm a yank, “too close to our affairs. Either you are breathtakingly careless, or you are a traitor, Draco. Which is it?”
Draco hesitated, torn between defending himself and wondering what his father was talking about. Twice? He’d only met Erin the night before. Had Lucius not dragged her back into the room, he’d never have seen her again. He was distracted from his internal debate when the woman in question spoke.
“Oh for God’s sake, Lucius, look at him” she sneered, gesturing at Draco. “He’s not complicit; he’s confused! Draco has no idea who I am, and you shouldn’t be so certain either.”
“Oh?” Lucius replied. “Why should I not be sure of your identity? I saw you clearly in the lobby and you as much as admitted who you are.”
Erin laughed. “No, I don’t believe I did. I simply didn’t contradict your assumptions. For all you know, I’m a Muggle.”
“A Muggle? No, I think not. I felt your shape shift beneath my fingertips. I watched you change. Not a usual occurrence for a Muggle, I’d say.”
“What was it you said in the hall about memory charms?” Erin put on a show of deep thought. “Oh yes, I remember. They work as well on Muggles as on wizards. Are you sure the same can’t be said about Polyjuice?”
“An unlikely scenario, my dear.”
“More unlikely than my being a dead woman? For that matter, how do you know that this is not my true appearance and the one you recognized was the disguise? How can you be sure that you’ve even seen my real visage? I might just be changing from one disguise to another.”
Draco stiffened at the words ‘dead woman’. His brain felt like it was churning through mud, trying to grasp an idea that was incomprehensible.
Smugly, Lucius countered, “Dead women don’t age.”
“Alright, not dead,” Erin conceded with a frown. “That doesn’t mean that I am her.”
“Enough of these games,” he said impatiently. “I know who you are, Miss Weasley.”
It felt as though all the air had been sucked from Draco’s lungs as he recoiled in shock.
“Ginny Weasley is dead,” he breathed, shaking his head slowly at his father. “I saw her die.”
“And I saw her in the lobby less than an hour ago,” Lucius replied glibly. “Really, Draco, might we do without the dramatics?”
“Shut up, Father.” His tone left no room for argument.
Draco turned to Erin, bearing down on her with menace.
“Are you saying that I did not see Ginny Weasley killed by the Dark Lord’s Avada Kedavra five years ago?” he demanded.
Slowly, grudgingly, Erin met his eyes. “That may be what you saw, but it is not what happened.”
His eyes closed and his hands curled into fists which trembled with the effort of remaining calm.
“She is alive?”
“I’ve just said so, haven’t I?” Erin snapped. Draco’s were not the only nerves beginning to fray.
His next question came in barely a whisper.
“Who are you?”
Jaw clenched, she looked beyond him, focusing instead on a painted beach scene hanging nearby. Draco’s hand slammed the wall, rattling the artwork.
“WHO ARE YOU?”
When she looked up at him, her face was contorted in fury.
“It’s me, Dragon. It’s Ginny.”
To Be Continued.
KateinVA is the author of 15 other stories.
This story is a favorite of 94 members. Members who liked Anniversary also liked 1272 other stories.
This story is a favorite of 94 members. Members who liked Anniversary also liked 1272 other stories.
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