A Forbidden Love

Chapter Eight: The Slug Party and the Betrayal

The next morning, Meg and Blaise met in the library to talk about their plan for Sluhorn's Christmas party that night. Meg began the conversation by venting about Draco. "He has the perfect liberty to do whatever he wants! I REALLY couldn't care less! Was I under the impression that he and I would be attending Slughorn's Christmas party together? Yes...now, given the circumstances, I've had to make other arrangements." Blaise somewhat doubted her, "Have you?" "Yes...why?" "Well, considering that neither of us can go with who we really wanted to, why don't we go together as friends?" "Why didn't I think of that?" "Who are you going with?" "Ummm...I hadn't gotten the chance to ask anyone yet. Anyways, you've got to worry about, you have to deal with me all night." "Meg, I wouldn't offer if I didn't want to. Besides, we could get to know each other better and grow our friendship." Meg didn't disagree with him; Blaise continued. "Plus, after the party, we'll sit down with Draco and work this whole thing out, so we don't have to worry after the holidays. Alright?" Meg hugged Blaise, "Thank you." Blaise returned the hug. 

That night, as soon as Meg and Blaise were far enough away from the dormitory, Draco set out for the Room of Requirement. He was still determined to fix it, even though his hope was fading rapidly. Once he got to the cabinet, he opened it and put an apple in it to see if it was ready to transfer objects. He closed the door as said the incantation to make the object "disappear", but it was really going to Borgin and Burkes. After he opened the door to see if the apple had disappeared, he repeated the process again. However, when the apple returned, it looked like someone had taken a bite out of it. This puzzled Draco, of course, but not enough to make him think he wasn't making progress. Once he finished with the cabinet, he headed down to observe the Slug Party. Deep down, he wished he could've gone with Meg, but he didn't want to make her even more angry with him. 

Meanwhile at the party, Meg and Blaise didn't mingle as much as the rest of the club members did. They stuck to their corner and kept to themselves. Slughorn eventually came to greet them and take a picture with them. "Mr. Zabini, Ms. McCown, so glad to see you both!" Meg responded, "Good to see you too, sir." Slughorn made his way around the party rather quickly. After a while, Neville came up to the pair offering them drinks. Meg greeted him first, "Neville!" Neville returned the greeting, "Hey, Meg! I didn't get into the Slug Club, but it's okay though. He's got Belby handing out towels in the loo." Meg laughed hysterically; Neville made his way to other members of the party. After about a half hour of talking, Hermione came to Meg and Blaise; Meg acknowledged her first. "Hermione, what are you doing? What happened to you?" "No, I've just escaped. I mean...I left Cormac under the mistletoe and he's coming back for more! He's got more tentacles than a Snufflar Plant!" Meg replied, "Cormac?! That's who you invited?" "I thought it would annoy Ron the most." "Ron isn't here! What made you think this was a good idea?" "Oh said the girl who is with her boyfriend's best friend!" "That's different!" "How is he?" "Hell if I know! We haven't spoken in two days!" Hermione didn't take the conversation any further. "Well, I'm going to go mingle." Meg replied sarcastically, "Have fun!" Once Hermione was away from them, Blaise began to calm Meg down. "I'm sure he's fine whatever he's doing." Suddenly, Filch came running in with a boy in a firm grip; the boy protested at his kidnapper. "Get your hands off me, you filthy Squib!" Meg recognized the voice instantly. Draco had been stalking the party this whole time and she didn't even know it. Filch reported to Slughorn, "Professor Slughorn, sir, I've just discovered this boy lurking in an upstairs corridor. He claims to been invited to your party." Draco protested, "Okay, okay, I was gatecrashing. Happy?!?" Snape walked up to the pair and told Filch, "I'll escort him out." Draco shoved himself out of Filch's grasp and headed out with Snape. As he headed out, however, he grabbed Meg in the process. 

As the trio walked down the corridor, Draco began to taunt Snape. "Maybe I did hex that Bell girl, maybe I didn't. What's it to you?" Without hesitation, Snape shoved Draco against a wall and began to talk to him intensely. "I swore to protect you! I made the Unbreakable Vow!" Draco protested, "I don't need protection! I was chosen for this! Out of all others, ME! I won't fail him!" His voice began to shake as he talked, and Snape took this as a sign. "You're afraid, Draco. You attempt to conceal it, but it's obvious, let me assist you!" "NO! I WAS CHOSEN! THIS IS MY MOMENT!" Meg got tired of their bickering so she asked Snape to return to the party so she could talk to Draco alone. "He's right you know. You don't have the heart to do this task. You're not all powerful Draco." Suddenly, Draco got a wave of evil in his mind, and he began to talk rather differently than he had before. "No, Christine, I have become more powerful than any wizard has ever dreamed of and I'm doing it for you. To protect you." "Come away with me, we can end this now. Leave everything else behind while we still can!" "Don't you see? We don't have to run away anymore! I am more powerful than Voldemort, I can overthrow him, and together you and I can rule the wizarding world! Make things the way we want them to be." Meg's eyes began to tear up and she backed away slowly. "I don't believe what I'm hearing. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were right! You've changed." "I don't want to hear anymore about the Golden Trio! They all have turned against me! Don't you turn against me!" Meg began to cry, "I don't know you anymore! Draco, you're breaking my heart! You're going down a path I can't follow!" "Because of the trio." "Because of what you've done! What you plan to do! Stop! Stop now, come back! I love you!" Suddenly, Harry stood around ten feet behind Meg and Draco wasn't having it. "LIAR! You're with him! You brought him here to kill me!" At those last words, Draco began to force choke Meg; Harry protested. "Let her go, Malfoy! Let her go!" Draco released Meg, and Meg fell on the ground unconscious. Draco protested against Harry, "YOU'VE TURNED HER AGAINST ME?!?!" Harry responded, "YOU HAVE DONE THAT YOURSELF!" "YOU WILL NOT TAKE HER FROM ME!" "YOUR ANGER AND YOUR LUST FOR POWER HAVE ALREADY DONE THAT! YOU'VE ALLOWED VOLDEMORT TO TWIST YOUR MIND UNTIL NOW. NOW YOU'VE BECOME THE VERY THING YOU SWORE TO DESTROY!" "DON'T LECTURE ME, POTTER! I SEE THROUGH YOUR LIES! I DO NOT FEEL THE DARKSIDE AS YOU DO!" "HOW MENTAL HAVE YOU GOTTEN, MALFOY? DON'T YOU SEE WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO HER?!? YOU'VE BROUGHT THIS WHOLE MATTER ON YOURSELF AND FOR WHAT COST?!? LOOK AT WHAT YOU HAVE DONE, MALFOY!" Draco looked down at an unconscious Meg and began to cry. She was lying in the same position as she did in his dreams after Voldemort kills her. Draco looked up at Harry, "MARK MY WORDS, POTTER, THIS ISN'T THE END!" He turned around and walked away in tears. Harry moved closer to Meg, knelt down, and tried to get her to wake up. Blaise came into the corridor and knelt beside Meg as well. Harry looked at Blaise, "She's unconscious, but she's still breathing." Blaise then pulled out his wand and cast the Renervate charm, and Meg awoke immediately. Harry pulled Meg into a bone crushing hug, but Meg pulled away rather quickly. "I can't stay here anymore. Blaise, go back to the dorms and pack my stuff into a trunk and meet me at the front entrance. Harry, take me to the Gryffindor dorms." Both did as they were told, but neither knew what was about to happen. Once at the Gryffindor dorm, Meg walked straight into Hermione's dorm, wrote a note, tied it and her promise ring to a rose, and gave it to Harry. "Do not open this until Hermione has seen it!" Harry nodded and hugged her tightly. Meanwhile at the front entrance, Blaise called for a flying carriage and paid him to take her to Paris. Once Meg arrived at the front entrance, Blaise told her what he had done. "I got you a carriage that would take you all the way to Paris" "Thank you, Blaise." She hugged him tightly and whispered into his ear, "Take care of Draco for me." Blaise responded, "Of course. Be safe." Meg broke the hug and walked towards the carriage. Back in the Gryffindor common room, Harry broke his promise to Meg and read the letter for Hermione. His eyes widened immediately and he ran out of the common room straight for the main entrance. Meg got into the carriage and told the driver where she wanted to go. "To the Paris Opera House please." The driver did as he was told. Harry arrived a little later than he had hoped and asked Blaise, "Where is she going?" "She's going home." "That's impossible, she has no home to go to!" "Not that one smartass." In the carriage Meg began to sing to herself. "In sleep he sang to me, in dreams he came. That voice which calls to me, and speaks my name."

After about an hour of traveling, Meg made it to the opera house where she was born. She began to walk towards it and sing to herself. "Little Lottie thought of everything and nothing. Her father promised her that he would send her the Angel of Music. Her father promised her...her father promised her." 

*Song: Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again from Phantom of the Opera*

You were once
My one companion
You were all
That mattered
You were once
A friend and father
Then my world
Was shattered

Wishing you were
Somehow here again
Wishing you were
Somehow near
Sometimes it seemed
If I just dreamed
Somehow you would
Be here

Wishing I could
Hear your voice again
Knowing that I
Never would
Dreaming of you
Won't help me to do
All that you dreamed
I could

Passing bells
And sculpted angels
Cold and monumental
Seem, for you
The wrong companions
You were warm and gentle

*Rides boat across river in basement-opens gate and singing gets intense*

Too many years
Fighting back tears
Why can't the past
Just die?

Wishing you were
Somehow here again
Knowing we must
Say goodbye
Try to forgive
Teach me to live
Give me the strength
To try

*Walks towards organ and sits in front of portrait of Erik, Christine, and their child*

No more memories
No more silent tears
No more gazing across
The wasted years
Help me say
Goodbye