sesheta66 | A Beautiful Lie - Part 4 of "A Woman Scorned" (H/D, PG-13)

Title:   A Beautiful Lie - part 4 of A Woman Scorned
Author:   sesheta_66
Rating:   PG-13
Word Count:   1381
Pairing/Characters:   Harry/Draco, Ginny
Challenge:   AWDT challenge "A Beautiful Lie," and 100quills prompt 024 - "absurd"
Warnings:   No beta. Please point out any errors you find.
Summary:   Harry tries to find a way out of his current situation.
Disclaimer:   The characters contained herein are not mine. They belong to JK Rowling and her publishers. No money is being made from this fiction, which is presented for entertainment purposes only.

Part 1 - A Valentine Surprise
Part 2 - The Plan
Part 3 - Without a Trace

As Ginny took his tray away, humming contentedly to herself, all Harry could think is this is absurd. She really thinks we're going to live happily ever after like this!

It had been a week or so now, since Ginny had kidnapped him and brought him to this "cozy little cottage in the country," as she had put it. He wasn't exactly sure how long it had been, since he had been drugged for the first part of it, and again a couple of times, just when he had started regaining his strength. Since then, he had been sure to mask just how strong he was getting. His magic reverberated through him, but without his wand, he felt useless.

Ginny had wards around herself, which he had discovered one time when he tried to grab her arm, and was jolted back with what felt like an electrical charge. It was right after that when she had drugged him again. He hadn't tried that again since. Truth be told, he was pleased that she didn't want him touching her. Yet, anyway. He shuddered as he thought about exactly what she might have in mind for him. After all, she said she was in love with him. It was only a matter of time before she wanted to show him just how much. He shuddered as the image of her touching him entered his mind unbidden.

Draco, where are you? Never mind that - where am I? How the hell am I supposed to get out of here? At least with a clear mind, the drug-induced fog having lifted, he could try to formulate a plan. Of course, that wasn't his forte. That was what Hermione and Draco were good at. Harry was more of an act now, ask questions later kind of guy that was good at executing plans, not devising them. This kind of thinking, he kept telling himself, was the reason why he was still there. He shook his head, as if to physically dismiss the negative thoughts. He took a deep breath, and tried to recall everything Ginny had said to him over the past week. Maybe she had inadvertently let something slip.

He knew that they were untraceable - or so she said. He couldn't dwell on that part, anyway, since he had no control over what others were doing to find him. He needed to focus on finding a weakness here - in the wards, in the house, in Ginny. Ginny was the key, of course. He needed to manipulate her into letting down her guard. He was her weakness, after all. Unfortunately, it was not in Harry's nature to manipulate people. He wore his heart on his sleeve, so it was difficult to mask his true emotions and lie to those he cared about. But did he even care about Ginny any more? Of course he did. But this wasn't Ginny. This was some sick woman who needed help.

That's it! He would need to focus on that. First, he thought back to school, and how easy it was to lie to people in a position of authority over him. He was able to lie to the professors when caught at something. Now it was Ginny who held the power. He needed to stop thinking of her as Ginny, and start thinking of her as his captor. She was the obstacle preventing him from living, from being with Draco. She was now the enemy. Good. That's a start. Maybe he really could do this.

Second, he thought about Ginny - no, his captor - and what made her tick. Of course, he couldn't know for sure what was going on in that delusional mind of hers, but he wasn't a complete idiot. He could figure this out. She was a witch with strong inherent magic, who was also extremely good with hexes and charms. She was good defensively, no thanks to his own training of her in the DA. She was also smart. Not Hermione-smart, but still very smart. And obviously cunning, or she would not have been able to pull this off in the first place.

But she had her weakness. Everyone had at least one. And hers was Harry. Now what was he going to do? The easy answer was pretend to be in love with her, but he knew she would see right through that. No, his manipulation needed to be more subtle, more gradual than that. Much as he wanted to escape right away, he needed to make her think that she was the one changing his mind. She needed to be the one in charge. She needed to "show Harry the error of his ways," as she had put it. Well, maybe he would have to let her do that, after all. Determined, Harry drew on all his Slytherin qualities, and started to formulate the plan in his mind. This could work. No - this HAD to work!

"Ginny!" he called. He had not summoned her to his room before, so he knew he was taking a risk. But now that he had an idea of what he was going to do, he wanted to waste no time.

She arrived at his door looking confused, and perhaps a little bit pleased that he had called her. "Yes?" she asked warily.

"You'll probably say no, and I'll understand if you do, but I'm going a little snaky here. Do you think we could have a cup of tea together and talk?"

Her look clearly said you're not fooling me.

"No? Well, okay. You know, I didn't want to say anything." He bit his lower lip, and stared at his feet, looking as vulnerable as he could. "It's just that ... well, you know what it was like for me growing up. I was always stuck by myself, locked away, and it was really hard for me. I've tried not to let this get to me, but I can't help but feel like I'm back there, in that time, in that place. And right now, I just need someone else to talk to. Do you think we could do that, Gin? Do you think we could talk?" He put on the best kicked puppy dog look that he could, as he lifted his eyes to meet hers.

He watched Ginny's face, as she warred with herself. She loved him, and wanted him to be happy, but she was hurting him. She hadn't thought about the effect locking him up would have. Now she was the cause of his pain. But could she trust him?

"It's okay, Ginny. I understand. I just thought ... well ... the wards here are impenetrable - you told me that yourself. You have your own protection around you, so I can't hurt you. I have no wand, so I can't do magic. It's not like I could go anywhere or do anything. And it would only be for half an hour. Please? I promise you I won't try anything. I just want - no, I need - to get out of this room for a little bit, so I don't go crazy." The irony of that last statement wasn't lost on Harry, but he didn't let on.

Ginny's eyes narrowed on him, and she looked like she was going to argue with him. "Never mind," he said, his voice catching. "I don't expect you to understand. How could you?" He walked away from the door, and fell onto the bed. He then turned to face the window, curled up, and began to sob. As he felt the ripple of the wards on the room drop, he didn't react. Nor did he move when he felt Ginny's hand on his shoulder.

"Oh, Harry, I'm so sorry." He turned to look up at her, then wrapped his arms around her waist, and sobbed into her shoulder. "I didn't know. I really didn't know," she said, sounding as though she was on the verge of tears herself. He said nothing, as his body shook in her embrace. He was actually quite surprised at just how easily the tears flowed. And how easy it was to lie to her. Well, he had to admit - it was a beautiful lie, after all.

Part 5

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*pets false angsting Harry* *cackles*

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There's Always Fiction

A Beautiful Lie - Part 4 of "A Woman Scorned" (H/D, PG-13)

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