The valley fell dead silent. The only sound that was heard was that of her determined footsteps. The surprise on Voldemort's face made it clear that he underestimated his enemy: a good opportunity for her to cower under and strike when the time became ripe.

"Is that all you have? An ordinary soldier with no rank?"

With closed eyes, she concentrated on her beating heart rather than the words of her — their — bitter enemy. This was the time for her to follow her heart, like her brother, Charlie, had always quoted back when she was a young girl with a passion of flying.

But now, even her broomstick was not with her.

It was a one-on-one. She had no advantage over a genocidal maniac like Voldemort but she was not going to show that she knew that. Right when she was certain she was standing at the foot of the dais, she opened her eyes and looked up with a determined glint.

Without chancing a glance at the hollow body of Dumbledore, she spoke in as much a hoarse voice as possible. "I, Weasley, warrior of the Order, challenge you to a duel with the condition that if you were to lose, the kingdom would belong to whoever it should be ruled over by lawfully and by the King's will!"

Bellatrix's eyes narrowed at her, before she whispered something into Voldemort's ear. It did not go unnoticed by Ginny but she had no idea what was told to the Dark Lord.

"Very well, then! I accept this challenge, Weasley." Voldemort remained expressionless as Ginny came to stand opposite of him. The curtsies were exchanged, as if the duellers were totally not going to fight to kill. Ginny took her en garde, positioning her left arm behind her right in case she had to defend all of a sudden by pulsing her magic to the front.

"Stupefy!" Her simple charm was easily deflected by Voldemort with a swish of his wand. Something silver glimmered at the helm of his waistcoat but the Weasley shook it off. She had to gain the upper hand and it was her first priority.

"Bombarda!"

It was, at times like that, that Ginny had fun with charms. "Bombarda Maxima!"

As expected, the two curses collided, sending ashes of dust and time. 'An explosion will be a distraction for you.' Harry's words echoed in her mind and she enjoyed racing with the quick flashes of memory by acting on her instincts. Ginny sent two non verbal spells, one for stunning her foe and one for losing his balance.

She kept her ears alert until the smoke cleared. Her eyes were greeted by the pleasant sight of Voldemort struggling to get to his feet. Perhaps, her stunning charm had been most unsuccessful but her leg-locker jinx did the trick as compensation.

Harry's second lesson echoed in her mind and she compelled herself to engage her enemy with a ted talk. "What, I would have never known that the Dark King would be the one to cause powerful explosions. Perhaps you are way better at magic than you show."

Voldemort merely smirked. "Should I be grateful for the fact that I am, at the very least, more truthful than you are, Miss Weasley?"

Everything suddenly went blank. Her mind seemed to have switched off, entirely, as panic coursed through her veins, replacing the adrenaline that was previously flowing through her and fuelling her spirit. It seemed that the Dark Lord had doused the fire in her by just one simple sentence and she could not come into terms with that.

"I-"

"So, you haven't told anyone, yet?" Voldemort's gaze shifted to the crowd, who had obviously overheard everything thanks to Sirius' charm.

Ginny could not bear to look at them. Their surprised faces of betrayal was just too much for her to endure. She briefly wondered if Charlie was right about telling her to follow her heart. Which piece does she have to follow if she broke into a million ones?

The drop in her concentration paved a way for Voldemort to attack.

"Expulso!"

Without any warning, the girl was thrown to the ground. She felt something light and familiar hit her. It was a feeling she had not felt in a while. Her eyes shot open, her neck craning to see the fiery red locks that she had chopped, nearly a month ago, to attend the camp.

Collective gasps were heard from that very people she had come to after sacrificing her hair. Her heart ached in agony and she struggled to keep her emotions in check. She would definitely be mocked for being a girl and practicing offense under the disguise of a young man.

Voldemort's manipulative hiss resonated in her ears, forcing her to bend down in recoil. "That is all the support you receive for coming here instead of a male member from you family. . . instead of your father. Once they know what you are, they don't care about encouraging you. Their silence is the answer to their thoughts, the door that shows their true feelings about your real identity.

"You have no real respect, Weasley. You could have gained some, should you have not lied but alas! Now, your dignity has hit the dust just as you are lying on the grass, waiting for a wasted miracle.

"Listen, girl. You wish to be an attacker, learn offense, practice curses and hexes, you are more than welcome with me as your King. You can even enquire from my dear Bella how she practices offense more than the stupid norms ladies are forced to take upon themselves.

"All you have to do is give in to your desires and give up the Order, the family that has now given you up just because you are a girl."

"My Lord is right, Weasley. I've been really training offense and if you wish for a demonstration, I could show one! Lacarnum Inflamarae!"

The temperature rose spontaneously, reminding her bitterly if the fire summoning charm that Bellatrix had performed. Tainted with shame and guilt and unable to hear the yelps of the pained voices of her family, she screamed at the people standing in front of her. "NO!"

At once, the explosions ceased and the atmosphere filled with heavy, ragged breathing. "What is your decision, then, Weasley? Will you join us or meet your doom?

The words spoken by the broken spirit was nothing more than an exhale of air. "I will—"

Ah, you must hate me for the cliffhangers but I couldn't resist! I'm starting to get an hang on writing once again and adding cliffhangers is just irresistible!

Thank you for reading!

Miyoko x