Chapter 28- Communication

*****Draco*****

Draco stared at the… he supposed she was still the Deputy Headmistress.

None of them saw Headmaster Snape outside of meals, and yet Professor McGonagall seemed in less of a leadership position than she had been in before.

Really, everyone intelligent in the castle was probably trying to be seen by everyone else as little as Draco was. He supposed the common rooms were havens for some people, but their security really wasn't that good.

It was bad enough that they had to suffer through all of those classes.

Draco hadn't desired any detention on top of that.

Even less often with entirely conjured up reasons for the aforementioned detention.

Vandalism allegedly traced to his wand.

It would probably temporarily increase his standings in his house.

If he even spoke to anyone before it was forgotten.

Draco wouldn't speak first to the professor either.

The Deputy Headmistress, because to make her otherwise would necessitate them finding a new Transfiguration teacher qualified and willing to come to Hogwarts, and admitting that everything at Hogwarts was not business as usual.

If no one talked about it, it didn't count.

The Ministry, St Mungo's, the Prophet.

"Do you have something you want to ask me?" she finally asked him. Gryffindor. "Anything you want to say?"

"No, professor. I'm sure you will tell me what my detention consists of when you are ready," he said.

"You aren't serving detention. Though, I'd wager you have broken enough school rules to deserve it by some accounts. Out of bed every night, are you?" she asked.

Draco was not going to answer that.

"You wouldn't like to hear the crass things I've heard about Miss Weasley," she said.

Which made him want to do something rash and Gryffindorish.

"They aren't true," he said. Because he didn't want someone Ginny respected to think anything… bad, tainted of her.

Even if he didn't think…

"As Miss Weasley is in my house, I'm well aware where she spends her nights, and that there are no male visitors in the female dormitories, and I believe that is a good policy that I make efforts to extend the purpose of past time and location," she said. He got it, this was apparently a lecture against teenage sex now. Despite him being already of age, and Ginny was by some standards- though those held to fourteen, which now felt terribly young- and despite betrothed, it being explicitly allowed in their demented contract, and their inevitable marriage when Ginny was hardly seventeen. In a half-normal world they would be deep into wedding planning already. "But, it is also none of their business, and anyone who says a word against Miss Weasley that I hear is reprimanded appropriately. And, it is a good excuse to give your housemates."

That was… Draco just nodded in response.

"If you hear of anything that it would be better to not deal with yourself, you can tell me," she said.

That was the reason then. The, 'I'm on your side, you can confide in me' speech. With the flavour of 'I can make everything better.' It was a sentiment that knew no ideological borders. Most commonly used in circles that couldn't offer anything more specifically concrete.

"Thank you, Professor," he answered.

"And that goes for other reasons as well. If you need someone to talk to. I know- that communicating with your aunt is difficult for a time, and that Horace- Professor Slughorn- has a lot on his mind at present," she said.

That was one way to say that the man was all but in hiding when not in class. No Slug Club meetings that year. No elaborate Christmas party plans in the works. Sometimes he didn't even come to dinners, and everyone knew the man loved to eat. Must have had house elves bring him food. Draco had asked Dobby to do so on occasion.

Draco nodded.

"And I know that your close relationship with Professor Snape might be strained?" she had a bit of a question to that statement.

"He's a busy man. I'm sure you see him more than most with your Deputy Headmistress duties," he said.

"He is a busy man," McGonagall said in non-answer.

Something more direct then.

"Then, perhaps you see him more in the course of your duties as leader of the Order of the Phoenix," he said.

The older witch just sighed.

"Miss Weasley says she trusts him. Do you share that trust?" she asked.

"When did you last talk to Ginny about such a dangerous topic?" he asked back.

"Over the summer," she said.

No one communicated, did they?

Somehow it was left to him to be direct.

"He caught Ginny, Neville, and Luna trying to steal something from his office. He gave Neville and Luna detention with Hagrid, which I daresay both will enjoy, and he firmly told Ginny that she had in no way been involved- alluding that it was for my sake. Longbottom said that he trusted Professor Snape because the castle liked him, and told them they were trying to get Gryffindor's sword to Potter- because Professor Dumbledore left it to Potter in his will, possibly for some significant reason to their quest. Neville believes that the professor will handle it. He could have given them a far worse punishment. I think you should trust him when it really matters, but not compromise his position until then. And I think all students need to leave the castle for Christmas and not return. I have not yet convinced Ginny of this."

McGonagall sighed, "We have very rare meetings full of posturing, and I believe he is as scared as I am, though I also recognize that I don't know him nearly as well as I should for having shared the same school for most of his life. I am not a master Legilimens, so he knows far more about me than I do him, but I haven't made many of my opinions secret to the world. Some days I'm surprised to still be here, but I won't leave while there are any students who need me. Some of them have nowhere to go. I have- failed too many over the years, including Severus."

"Thank him by taking care of his students," he said. Hesitated. Gryffindors could care too little or too much. That likely wasn't something confined to house boundaries. Most things weren't, he'd been learning. "I don't believe Nott can be changed. He doesn't want to. And Crabbe and Goyle are far more dangerous than I ever knew. No student should be good at casting the Cruciatus Curse. But you can look after the rest of them for him," he said. "And tell him that you care about him and want him to live through this," Draco added. Because wasn't that what all of them wanted to hear? That there was some way to get through? The first war lasted about a decade. It didn't feel like the wars they learned about in History of Magic. This didn't either. Just terror and trying to stay alive. No one communicating. Too much time wasted pretending everything was normal.

If Hogwarts wasn't safe, why were they still there?

"I can't… entirely give up on three seventeen year old boys," she said. "Albus… it's very difficult," she said.

Dumbledore was dead.

"Being a Slytherin feels like three quarters of the world giving up on you when you're eleven. May I leave, Professor?"

"Do you know- that I- care about you and want you to live through this, Mr. Malfoy?" she asked.

He did.

"Yes. Thank you, Professor."

"You shouldn't leave sooner than a reasonable length of detention, but you're welcome to any of the books on my shelves. Or an extra, personalized lesson, if you prefer? Transfiguration can be useful in absolutely any future profession and daily life."

"Yes, Professor."

*****Draco*****

"Hello, Draco," Astoria Greengrass greeted.

"I doubt it would serve you well to be seen with me," Draco said, hardly looking up. Had he said anything to anyone that day yet? The library had become a haven. Only quiet conversation allowed. And it was his NEWT year, after all. If anyone still cared about that.

"My parents are in talks with Mrs. Zabini and her son," she said.

Draco coughed.

"You realize how many past husbands she's definitely killed?" he hissed. Did she even bother changing her name anymore? Was her surname actually still Zabini?

"Seven. But killing me won't get her any money, unless she kills my parents first, and then it would still be split, and I don't even know what my parents' will says, and I am the younger daughter, and at best could only go to her son. And we're not particularly murder-worthy-rich to begin with. It's more likely they end the talks, but they haven't yet," the younger girl said, entirely blasé over the matter. "What's Blaise like?" she asked.

"A vain, pompous arse," Draco supplied.

"Daphne told me about the same- though some people say similar things about her, and I don't believe them. I suppose the situation is less than ideal. But, at least he isn't indebted in commitment in other areas," she said, more directly than a Slytherin should.

Though, hadn't Draco been complaining about a lack of communication?

"He believes in the same cause, just has thus far been able to choose not to act on it," Draco said.

"The same could be said of you, couldn't it?" Astoria asked, but she was almost smiling.

"You would do better to hold your tongue," Draco murmured.

"If I marry a controlling pureblood man, I'll be doing that far too often," she said- finally quietly enough. "Though I hope to not have permanence written into my contract. Far less murder that way, I think- though you and your betrothed do not seem ready to kill each other."

"We literally couldn't. It's against the contract under pain, suffering, and infertility. It's a matter of public record. No Weasley relative can harm me, and no Malfoy relative her. It's not specific how closely related this includes," he said. Which hopefully provided some protection to Ginny. To both of them, really. But not enough.

"Yes, well, good that you can make the best of it. At least Blaize isn't hard to look at, I suppose. Could be worse," she said. Blaize might actually share that sentiment. And she was pureblood and not a blood traitor. Astoria deserved better. Maybe when they were all older, she would get it.

*****Ginny*****

Ginny had never felt entirely safe at Hogwarts. How could she, given her first year? But, she hadn't felt safer anywhere else since then either.

So it was less of a shock to her than everyone else when Alecto Carrow arrived in the Gryffindor Common Room.

"Mister Longbottom, you are late for detention!"

"I'm sorry, Professor, I thought that was last night," he said.

Ginny knew Lavender had been asking Neville to just stop going to class, and Seamus had stood next to her and nodded.

"You have another," the 'professor' responded.

"Well, by all means, lead the way," Neville Longbottom said cheerfully.

His face showed as many bruises as always lately.

"I don't think he'd even had detention assigned," Seamus murmured to her. Seamus had a split lip.

"Doesn't really matter, does it? Wasn't the point of that… show here."

"Yeah," Seamus muttered. "We got it."

Ginny wished she wasn't the only Weasley at Hogwarts.

"We'll make more plans," she said in a louder voice. "If the common room isn't safe, we'll find a place that is," she said. Entirely against her will, two places came to mind. She pushed away the second. "We'll be okay," she said firmly.

Most of Gryffindor was living in the Room of Requirement in the next two weeks, and some from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff as well. All of the DA that had come back, helped reform it. And younger students too.

Neville was especially good at getting what he wanted from the Room, but Ginny wasn't surprised by that anymore. Dobby and other house elves brought them anything they needed that the room couldn't provide.

They set aside study times in the Room, because at least half the students weren't going to most of their classes. But they wanted to learn more than ever. Ginny learned more names of students in a week than she had in five years. Most of them looking to her for guidance. She still went to all of her classes. Still saw Draco. Still pretended. And people left her alone. But, how long could that last?

*****Draco*****

Ginny was determined to see her family for Christmas, as was Luna and Abbott. Abbott would be fine going anywhere, suitably below notice. For the rest of them… taking the train like it was any ordinary year seemed like an unnecessary risk. They could stay hidden in the Room of Requirement indefinitely- which hadn't been a bad plan- or walk to the station pretending to get on the train, apparate as soon as across the Hogwarts grounds… or for those who couldn't apparate, they could try to hide anywhere else in Hogsmeade and take an unmonitored floo… somewhere. Never return. If that somewhere was safer than Hogwarts. Draco had everything he cared about shrunk and carried with him, but he didn't know where he was going. Nott thought he was going to Malfoy Manor. Which was a problem, because that would be the last place he would ever go until… the war was over.

He couldn't go with Ginny either. To the Weasley family who was still pretending that everything was okay, that the worst thing happening to their family was their youngest son with spattergroit- if that was still their cover. Draco had a half-formed plan to… do something discrete for the duration of the holiday, and then convince Ginny to run off with him after saying goodbye to her parents. To… France, maybe. His French was passable. Or further- America, Australia perhaps. He wished he had a better grasp on muggle transportation. Aeroplanes. He'd seen them in films on the telly. Aeroports were places for dramatic goodbyes and reunions. Probably they could ask directions to an aeroport and then figure out payment. He had plenty of gold in his bag. Or a minor confundus charm if really pushed.

They had a compartment alone again. Because the school had fewer students, and many were likely still hiding in the Room of Requirement. Ginny had been busy, but Draco had been freer. Nott was more wrapped in his Death Eater role. Acting as if he had the respect of those two or three times his age. Crabbe and Goyle established as his lackeys. Leaving Draco more time… mostly to study, and too much time to think.

Being around Ginny was the best, even if he didn't have any idea what his life was.

Ginny had mentioned that her brother, Potter, and Granger had a tent packed, and Hermione had all of their belongings shrunk and lightened in a handbag. It might have prompted him to do the same- with a manly and discrete money bag. He wished he had a tent.

He could momentarily stop thinking about any of it when he was snogging Ginny. Then his thoughts would turn to how private this compartment could be with a few spells.

Until the train slowed half an hour into the journey. The train hadn't stopped before except for the dementors at the beginning on his third year, so this didn't inspire confidence.

Draco pulled an exterior curtain open, and had a perfect view.

His father, Nott's father, Crabbe's father, and Bellatrix Lestrange. Not far in the distance, on a train stop connected to nothing. He didn't know who he wanted to see least.

Bellatrix. Who had attacked Dora and killed their cousin Sirius Black.

There wouldn't be any more pretending. No more silence and covering both sides.

"Ginny, we have to go," he said. He took a few moments to shrink her bag and put it in his pocket with his before grabbing Ginny in a tight hug. He spared a thought hoping she didn't leave anything in her trunk at Hogwarts that she cared much about, before he concentrated again, "Don't let go."

A/N: Sorry for my slow progress on this story. I just… haven't felt inspired here. I greatly regret beginning to post before being finished. It will be finished eventually. I have the last chapter written, and some pieces I'm excited about… just getting there can be difficult. I maybe hurried this semester a bit, because I have many more plans for after. I really hope people still enjoy this chapter. I really like the scenes I did have.