OMG!!!! I am so terribly sorry, but I don't really have a good explanation that I completely dropped off the Ss planet. Please please can you forgive me? Maybe I can trade your forgiveness with a new chapter? Pleeeeease? Anyway for anyone who might keep up with this story, a small warning....this chapter is heavy, like really strong....Please reply....and forgive me?


Chapter 14 – Life Sucks!
Hogsmead. I used to love going to Hogsmead, but for the last weeks I was dreading this upcoming trip, knowing that it would stir so many memories and yet I had to go so not to make Luna and Neville worried. Thankfully that was one test that I wasn’t going to endure since I was banned from going, punishment for entering Snape’s office. So, I stayed back waving Lu and Neville off, putting on a disappointed face. Little did I know that I should have fallen on my knees and beg for them to take me along or rather beg them not to go.
But the day was still young, so after trying unsuccessfully to study, I gave up on my books and decided to go for a walk. I hadn’t actually decided it but my legs brought me to the beech tree near the lake. Oh the shock! I think I’m getting far too predictable. Uh well. I sat down on the grass and just stared at the lake before me.
I really wish I could say that I’m fine. I really wish that I could say that it’s fine. But it can’t. Because it isn’t. I feel like a bottle. A bottle, yeah that’s what I said. It’s like I’m gradually getting filled with all those emotions and I just cannot take it anymore; I feel like I’m about to burst. I exhaled deeply and made to stand up and head back to the castle, but something caught my attention.
As I was brushing my fingers through the grass a piece of paper got caught in my hands. I pulled it out of the dirt and unwrapped it. It just a plain parchment with some plain words; it said: LIFE SUCKS! II stared at it for a whole moment before unexplainably I burst out into laughter. I fell back on the ground and kept on laughing my head till tears run down my face. I smiled and wiped them away, slowly bringing myself back to seriousness.
The moment I stopped laughing I had forgotten what it was that had made me laugh in the first place. Was there anything worth laughing? And just as suddenly as I had started laughing I started sobbing. Yes I was just sitting there, by the lake, with a parchment that said was clearly telling me that my life sucked and I was crying my eyes out. Maybe I was losing my mind. I stopped after a few moments though, reminding myself that I hate crying like a hopeless little girl. I took the paper and after making a small hole in the ground with my hands, I buried it again and then got up/
“Sure life sucks”, I muttered under my breath and then lifted my head up to the sky. “But at least the sun is still shining”, I added and started walking back to the castle again, smiling to myself.
And then I heard screams coming from behind me. My heart clenched and I turned to see what was happening. McGonagall was leading a group of students from Hogsmead back to the castle; most of them had faces of pure horror and tears on their eyes. What could have happened? I started running towards them and as I did I spotted Neville among them. I run to him as more people came out of the castle to see what was wrong.
“Neville what happened?” I asked him out of breath.
“Luna”, he said laconically.
I spun around and saw them. If my stomach was upset before now I felt ready to vomit. Hagrid was walking hurriedly towards the castle. Luna was in his arms. Blood everywhere.
“Who…?” was the only word the escaped my lips.
“Crabbe”, Neville replied as he too had stopped and was waiting for Hagrid to catch up with us. “He said something like Sectumsembra”.
I bit my lower lip as I recognized the curse. That was the one Harry had used against Malfoy last year; that was the one that cut my brother’s ear; that was Snape’s curse. I turned to Neville again.
“Where were you?” I spat, my tone accusatory.
“She said she was going to buy new quills and I went with Seamus at Zonko’s”, Neville said with a guilty expression. “We agreed to meet at the Three Broomsticks and when she didn’t show, I went to look for her and found her like this at Crabbe’s and Goyle’s feet. I swear Ginny I don’t know why they attacked her, I tried to…”
But he cut his sentence short as Hagrid finally reached us and as he walked past us I got to take a full look on Luna. She was a mess of deep cuts and angry bruises. And I felt like someone just pulled the lid of my bottle off. I was about to explode.
“Where are they?” I murmured through greeted teeth, but Neville didn’t need to answer me, because I saw all three of them, Crabbe, Goyle and Malfoy coming through the gates, with Professor Sprout accompanying them. Malfoy was walking a little behind from the other two, like he wanted to separate himself from them, but I wasn’t really interested in that.
I pulled my wand out of my robes in no time and before Neville had time to register what I was about to do, I launched myself towards them. Goyle barely had enough time to raise his head as my stunning spell send him flying across the yard and crush on the nearest tree. I then rounded on Crabbe.
“You petty little piece of trash!” I exclaimed.
“Weasly stop now!” Professor Sprout shouted rushing forward towards me, but I ignored her and I raised my wand.
“Sectumsembra!” Crabbe exclaimed before I had time to say my curse and I ducked down to avoid his.
Sprout changed her direction and started running towards Crabbe with her wand aloft, shouting warnings, while Malfoy stood frozen a couple of meters behind his friend. I stood up straight and raised my wand again.
“Ginny stop!” Neville yelled behind me but I ignored him.
“Expelliarmus!” a nasty voice said behind me and the wand flew from my hands. I turned around outraged to come face to face with Amycus. He wet, little eyes were two slits as he looked at me with content.
“Well, well, what do we have here?” he said.
“Professor”, Sprout said. “Crabbe used Sectumsembra on a student and just tried to…”
“Yes, Minerva McGonagall has already informed on that”, he said cutting Professor Sprout off. “Of course it’s obvious it was an accident”, he said and a large smile spread on Crabbe’s lips. I felt my stomach twisting with disgust.
“What?” Professor Sprout exclaimed. “How could it be an accident? He just tried to use it again against Miss Weasley”.
“But it was self defense of course”, Amycus shrugged. “And look what Miss Weasley did to poor Mister Goyle”, he added pointing at the still unconscious form of Gregory Goyle.
“She only stunned him!” Neville shouted. “They cut Luna into pieces just for fun’s sake!”
“And what a fun experience it must have been”, Amycus sighed. “Too bad I wasn’t there to see it”, he said winking at Crabbe.
“You son of the…” Professor Sprout started with voice full of venom.
“ENOUGH!” Amycus shouted cutting her off again, before she finished her swearing. “The Headmaster will be informed for this disobedience Pomona”, he warned her. “Now see if you can help the poor child”, he added pointing at Goyle, then he rounded on us. “As for you two…”
“Neville didn’t do anything!” I exclaimed.
“I will be the judge of that!” he spitted. “Longbottom, detention tonight with my sister! As for you Miss Weasley, I will personally see to it that you’ll learn to control your little tongue. Tonight at my office or get locked up in Azkaban!” he ordered and then turned around and left us there, thinking dazed what happened.

“How are you feeling Lu?” I asked her as I stroked her now healed from cuts cheek.
“Better”, she sighed and winced as she sat up on the Hospital Wing’s bed.
“Luna, how did it happen?” Neville questioned her. She frowned as if trying to remember.
“I’m not really sure”, she said shaking her head. “One moment there I was walking towards the Three Broomsticks and the next they were there teasing me and calling me…you know… ‘Loony’. I didn’t really pay them any attention, they wouldn’t be the first or the last to call me that, but the next moment Crabbe grabbed me from the hair and…” but her voice trailed off.
“What?” I frowned.
“And pined me against the wall, choking me with his hands”, she said pointing at the bruises around her neck; Neville swore under his breath.
“Then Goyle said that it would be more fun if they tried the new curse the Carrows taught them and Crabbe agreed, in spite the fact that Malfoy was telling them to stop and then he…”
“Wait”, I said confused. “Malfoy told them to stop”.
“Yeah, he said they should let me go, that they’ll get in trouble”, Luna nodded. “But they ignored him and then I heard Crabbe yelling the curse and that is pretty much what happened”.
“I’m so sorry Luna”, Neville said miserably. “I shouldn’t have left you alone”.
“Oh, Neville it wasn’t your fault”, she shook her head. “I’m sorry that you both have detention because of me”.
“Don’t be silly it’s not because of you”, I said. “It’s because Amycus is a bloody Death Eater and when the time comes, I swear I will kick his…”
“Gin!” Neville said warningly. “Watch it or everyone will start thinking that we are behind DA”.
“Like they don’t already”, I said sarcastically, then I sighed. “Anyway, I just hope he doesn’t torture me very much tonight, because I have that test for McGonagall tomorrow and I really want to study before I go to sleep”.
“Ginny!” Luna exclaimed widening her eyes more than usual. “You don’t think…he won’t…he can’t...”
“I’m sure he won’t”, Neville shook his head.
“Oh please, you heard him Neville”, I said. “He wants to teach me a lesson and I’m pretty sure that involves the cruciatus curse”.
“He can’t, Ginny”, Neville insisted with a slightly panicked voice that said otherwise. “I mean it’s one thing with us, but you are a girl, he won’t possibly…”
“So what? How many girls have the Death Eaters inflicted the cruciatus upon?” I replied.
Neville seemed to have lost his color and then I realized that I had hit a nerve; surely he was thinking of his mother.
“I won’t let him”, he exclaimed. “I’ll come with you and if he tries to touch you…I’ll…I’ll…”
“You’ll what Neville?” I sighed. “There is absolutely nothing we can do and you know it. Besides, I’m a big girl, I can fight my own battles…and receive the consequences for them”.

No matter what I was saying to Neville and Luna during the entire day to make them calm down, when the evening arrived my heart was beating like a drum in my chest. Truth be told, I was scared. No, I was terrified. I had never experienced the Cruciatus curse. I had seen Neville under its influence, Seamus too and I knew Harry had tasted it too, but it would be something completely new to me.
What if I broke down and cried like a five year old? No, I wouldn’t let that happen. No matter what he did to me, I WAS NOT GOING TO BEG. I kept repeating to myself that I had to be strong. How much could it possibly hurt? More than having your life sucked out of your body and transmitted to Riddle? More than having your ankle strained in the Ministry? More than having the boy you love breaking up with you for your own good?
My hand trembled a little as I raised it to hit Amycus’ door, but I steadied myself and did it. For an entire beautiful minute I though he wasn’t inside and then a growl told me that I was stupid. Of course he was inside. I pushed the door open and stepped inside. His office was dark and untidy, but not so different from the ones of the other’s professors. He was sitting behind his desk and when I stepped in he raised his head and a large, somewhat cruel smile appeared on his face; and just like that my fear was back.
“I came for my punishment”, I said keeping my voice as steady as I could.
“Oh, yes, I almost forgot”, he replied standing up and I noticed that he already had the wand in his hands. “No, scratch that I couldn’t have forgotten”.
He was so infuriating that all I wanted to do was turn him into a pig or a toad, but then I would have to deal with the possibility of a life sentence in Azkaban.
“Give me your wand, Miss Weasley”, he ordered and I felt the blood draining from my face.
My wand? But I and my wand were one. I wouldn’t have anything to protect myself, nothing to stop him. I gulped the lump in my throat though and gave it to him. He took it and putted away inside his pocket, making me note to wash it carefully whenever I got it back.
He then started circling me.
“You know Miss Weasley, there are many rumors flying around in this school”, he said. “Some I too have heard, but I am not sure if I should believe in them”.
My heart froze for I knew exactly where he was going with this.
“I don’t understand”, I lied.
“Oh, you understand, very well Miss Weasley”, he hissed. “Is it true?”
“What is?” I asked with tremor in my voice.
“Were you or were you not involved with Harry Potter?”
I closed my eyes for only a moment and in that moment I noted in my mind that whenever and if ever I see Harry again I was so going to give him hell.
“What do you mean involved?” I asked with a blank expression.
“I mean were you his girlfriend?” he asked.
“Yes, I was”, I blurted out and his eyes widened. Obviously he wasn’t expecting me to confess it so easily.
“Are you…I mean...do you realize…?” he mumbled.
“That git bumped me”, I said then, taking a wounded up expression.
“What?”
“Actually he said that we were never really a couple, that everything was in my head and that he only wanted me for entertainment!”
At the end of that sentence I let out a very convincing whine and hid my face in my hands, pretending to cry into them.
“And then the idiot run away with Hermione Granger and forgot all about me”, I kept on whining. I heard Amycus growling behind me.
“You silly girl!” he said grabbing me from the shoulders and throwing me on the floor. “I guess you were just a toy for him”, he sighed then. “No reason bothering the Dark Lord with you, he’s only gonna get mad at me”.
If this was a play and I was onstage I’m sure the audience would have applauded my acting skills right now. Thank you, thank you.
But Amycus was really infuriated. Obviously he thought he was on to something and the fact that he had only discovered a silly fling of Potter’s was a terrible let down. He spun around and pointed his wand at me. My body became tense instantly as I felt my heart climbing up to my throat, while I stared up at his cruel gray eyes.
“Crucio!” he yelled and the next moment the curse hit me.
And it hurt more than everything I had ever experienced. I felt like daggers were stabbing every inch of my body, my bones were on fire. I screamed, wiggling on the floor, as my head felt ready to explode. And then it was over. The pain lifted but my body refused to obey me and I kept trembling, all the while trying to catch my breath.
Amycus laughed lowly and then scooped down and pulled me in a sitting position, dragging me from my hair. I looked up at his screwed up from hatred and contempt face, wishing that this was the end of my punishment and then telling myself that I was being exceptionally naïve.
“So you had me thinking that you were my ticket to a higher position, while Potter just wanted to sleep with you, is that right?”
“I never slept with him”, I said with a trembling voice.
“Really?” he questioned taking hold of my chin with his other hand. “But you said you were his entertainment. What did you do to entertain him then?” My heart could have stopped when I realized how close to me he was; I could clearly smell his disgusting breath and see his dirty teeth. I had said the wrong thing. “Clearly you’re just a naïve girl that was blinded by the fame Harry Potter had and he clearly saw you as a nice body…a very nice body indeed”.
And the next moment he started kissing my neck. I screamed and pushed him over me, but he pinned me on the floor with his own body.
“What are you doing? Let go off me!” I yelled trying to push him off of me, but he was too strong for me.
I felt dread spreading all over my body as his hands were all over me, and at that moment I wished for twenty, a hundred more cruciatus than this. I screamed and screamed, trying to free myself from his hold but I couldn’t and then he just ripped my shirt into pieces. Tears run down my face as I started pleading with him, but he just closed my mouth with his hand and lay on top of me. But that was my chance.
I raised my knee up to hit him right where I knew he would hurt the most and really he screamed and let go of me. I jumped up the next second and before he had any time to react I grabbed the lamp off the desk and hit right on the head with it. He fell on the ground still conscious but unable to move and I was already running.
I run across the room and opened the door, ready to get as far from this office as possible, but that just wasn’t my day. As I opened the door I came face to face with none other than Severus Snape himself. My eyes widened as I took some steps back, shaking with fear and trying to cover myself up with the pieces of my shirt.
Snape entered the room looking at me with his eyes widened; for the first time I saw the man in a complete shock.
“Come back you little…” Amycus had gotten up and he too run across the room, holding his bleeding head, but stopped when he spotted Snape in the room.
“What-are-you-doing?” Snape spat each word with venom as he walked towards him with his wand raised.
I could clearly see that he was outraged and even though I knew he was a Death Eater as well, even though I knew he was an evil man, for some reason I felt relief filling my chest; somehow he made me feel that I was safe.
“Where’s her wand?” he asked Amycus. He took my wand off of his pocket and threw it at Snape’s feet. He scooped down, picked it up and he, himself casted a cleaning spell, before stretching it out for me to take it. I did and if I wasn’t so scared and confused I would have spun at the spot and cast a major Bat Boogey curse upon Amycus, but I was terrified to the bone.
Snape turned at me, keeping his eyes at my feet and murmured a spell that made my shirt as brand as new. Then he drifted his eyes up at me and told me to leave with a nod. I didn’t need him to tell me twice; it was like my feet had wings, as I launch myself at the hallway and run as fast as I could towards my dorm. But while I was still close, I would swear I heard Amycus screaming.
I reached the Gryffindor Tower and ignoring everyone who tried to talk to me, I run up to my dorm. I opened the door and run to the bathroom, throwing myself into the shower without bothering to take off my clothes. The water was freezing cold, but I didn’t really notice, as I was starting to realize close to what exactly I had come tonight. Raped. That’s what I would be. I started thanking God that I had managed to get out before anything else had happened and somewhere inside me, even though I didn’t want to admit it, I was thanking Snape.
When I felt like I had cleaned every part the hateful Carrow had touched, I got out from the shower, trembling from the icy water that was soaking on me. I took my clothes off and threw on my nightgown, falling on my bed and closing the curtains. For a girl that didn’t like to cry I sure did cry a lot, but can you blame me that I started sobbing into my pillow? Suddenly I was reminded of the parchment I had found this very morning outside. Life sucks. Tell me about it.

-Angie-