Title

Title: Diversionary Tactics
Author: Obfuscus
Rating: Naughty
Warnings: Language and sexual themes
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Notes: Written for Pud’s Great Draco & Ginny Fic Contest 2006. Happy belated birthday, Rainpuddle! My 2,500 word one-shot mutated into a full-fledged story - I apologize for this being such a massive beast, but I couldn’t bear to take a hatchet to the plot for brevity’s sake. Believe it or not, this is the pared down version. In the story, the method used in Ginny and Draco’s wedding was inspired by the Celtic tradition of handfasting.

Summary: Covert operative needed- Passport, intrigue and romance required; no experience necessary. Please enquire within.

The corners of Rhys Hamilton’s mouth tugged into a reluctant grin as he read the message his agent had sent.

'Progressing. In contact with primary suspect. Very suspicious of my intentions. Need different angle. Wife operates Trevid Agency. Run agent through said company to cement my cover. My discriminating taste is well known to target. Use someone believable, not hags currently in programme. Normal channel for reply is valid. -M'

A brief Floo call to the Department of International Magical Cooperation's Business Management Office had secured him the information he needed about the Trevid Agency: 'A marriage agency specializing in the union of compatible magical persons residing in Europe looking for specific criteria in a spouse that ordinary dating could not fulfill in a satisfactory manner.'

Rhys laughed. It was a prettily-phrased way of saying, "If you are rich and incapable of attracting women on your own merits, tell us your 'ideal' wife and we'll wrap her up and deliver her to your doorstep for a monumental fee."

The mere idea of Draco Malfoy, the agent currently assigned to this case, having to rely on a marriage agency was laughable. However, if that’s how he wanted to play it, then that’s what he would get. This mission was too important to quibble over details like method.

He tapped a cabinet with his wand. The drawers banged open as files of every woman in his employ opened to reveal their clearance badge photos. Malfoy was right. None of them could be even remotely mistaken for the type of woman he would consider his match. That meant he had some work to do.

"Damn it, Malfoy," he muttered. "Why is my job so much more difficult when you are in the field?"

Ginny opened her eyes and refocused on Moody. "I'm what?" she asked slowly. "Released, as in 'fired'?"

"No, Weasley," he barked. "Pay attention. The contract you signed to enter into the Auror apprenticeship programme had a clause stating that you may be reassigned at the needs of the Ministry. And now you are. You are hereby released from the Auror programme."

He shoved a paper with the Minister of Magic's seal on it and a container of her personal items at her. "You've been tasked to help on a comprehensive review of the international magical import/export tax codes. Report to Rhys Hamilton at the ‘Convoluted International Magical Agreements and Actuaries Office’ on Level Five after lunch." Moody turned on his heel and clumped a few steps away before pausing. He looked over his shoulder. "Shame, Weasley. You'd've made a damn fine Auror."

Ginny peered at the small brass plaques next to each doorway, looking for one marked 'Convoluted International Magical Agreements and Actuaries Office'. Finally she came to the end of the corridor. Feeling distinctly harassed, she stuck her head into the office nearest her- 'International Magical Office of Law- Frivolous Litigations Division'.

A rumpled-looking old wizard, sitting at the only desk in the cramped little room, muttered, "Ruddy woman. You can't sue the Ministry because the erkling you imported illegally bit you and landed you in hospital!"

"Sorry, but could you tell me where to find the Convoluted International Magical Agreements and Actuaries Office?" she asked him.

"The Convoluted International Magical Agreements and Actuaries Office," Ginny repeated, despising her new office on the grounds of truly atrocious naming. "It's supposed to be on this floor."

"Honestly," she sighed as she made her way to the indicated door. "I've never even heard of this place. And the bloody office isn't properly marked," she groused with a dark look for the plaque in question, almost entirely obscured by a leaflet touting the "specials" in the cafeteria for the week. Giving the door a sharp rap, she turned the knob and stepped into an unused room.

A man sat at a very dusty desk, his feet propped up and the Daily Prophet open on his lap.

He dropped his booted feet to the floor with a thud and looked her up and down in a slow appraisal, a look of masculine appreciation in his eyes. "You Weasley?" he queried.

Ginny shoved down her ire at being leered at by a wizard old enough to be her father. "Yes, I am," she replied in clipped tones. "Are you Rhys Hamilton? And where, precisely, is the office this is supposed to be?"

He gave her a smile that was really more a token twist of the lips. "I am your new supervisor. Your," he paused briefly, seemingly searching for a word, "duties will be completed outside of our office. Follow me, please."

Without waiting for a reply, he folded the paper and marched past her towards the lift. Once inside, he stood silently at the back until it emptied. Pulling his wand from its holster, he pressed it to the blank space above the buttons marked for each level. A flash of blue temporarily blinded Ginny. As her vision cleared, she saw that an unmarked button had appeared where he had touched his wand to the wall.

He pressed the newly arrived button and waited, not acknowledging her demand for an answer. The doors slid open silently, revealing a few small offices along one wall and an open area dominated by a long table covered in papers. A dozen or so people looked up from their work at the arrival, inspecting the newcomer before resuming their tasks.

"Welcome to the Convoluted International Magical Agreements and Actuaries Office, Miss Weasley," he said as he stepped out of the lift, motioning for her to precede him. "Or as we call it, the division for Human Intelligence Collection and Evaluation. HI-C, for brevity's sake."

He raised an eyebrow. "I assure you, this operation is as serious as can be. Our work is aided by a certain amount of subterfuge in regards to our existence. It cuts down on the tedium of collecting disinformation fed to our agents by those with their own agendas."

Ginny narrowed her eyes suspiciously at one particularly dirty-looking man dumping Galleons into his pocket. "This is legitimate, right?"

He took the question in stride. "Most certainly; however, for security reasons, only the Minister is aware of our existence in this capacity. You will have a brief audience with him in an hour to confirm everything."

He waved a hand negligently at the wizard she had been eyeing. "He's not stealing- just preparing to do business on our behalf. Our funds are routed through outside channels so as to appear as if we operate on a budget suitable for a small office like the Convoluted International Magical Agreements and Actuaries Office. This gives us a degree of autonomy and efficacy not achievable by the more public, and publicized, Department of Magical Law Enforcement."

"No, no, Miss Weasley. You have the wrong end of it entirely. Please, come into my office and I will elaborate on my reasons for inviting you into HI-C."

She walked stiffly towards the door marked "Director, Operations". Once inside, he closed the door and raised Silencing and Imperturbable Charms, as well as several complicated wards that Ginny didn't recognize.

Easing himself down into the chair opposite her, he smiled in what Ginny assumed was supposed to be a reassuring manner. "Now. HI-C, while primarily concerned with domestic matters, does occasionally operate outside of British boundaries. We are currently running an agent in Macedonia. He has been in deep cover on this assignment for almost three years getting close to Agim Haradinaj. This man has caused extensive damage in both Wizarding and Muggle Britain through his various operations. The Ministry alone has lost between 13 and 29 people because of him."

"Lost, as in killed?" Ginny asked in a horrified voice. "And you don't know precisely how many?!"

"Yes, as in killed. He was behind more than a few of the deaths and disappearances we attributed to Lord Voldemort after his resurrection and second campaign. We have only been able to confirm 13 deaths. The rest, along with countless cases of bribery, extortion and human trafficking, are what our agent is attempting to nail down. If he is successful, we will be able to extradite Haradinaj from Macedonia and put a halt to his operations for good.”

Ginny sat back, replaying his words in her head. Finally, she nodded. "And how do I figure into this equation? You need another agent to infiltrate from a different angle?" She envisioned herself in a dark cloak, witch's hat tilted alluringly over one eye, charming her way into a private club where she could overhear Haradinaj 's secret conversations.

"Hardly the jaunt you are envisioning, no doubt." He raised an eyebrow as a pink tinge stole across her cheekbones. "My agent, as I said, has finally come into sustained personal contact with Agim Haradinaj; however, Haradinaj is wary of his intentions. His wife, Svetlana, runs a business that provides an excellent opportunity for my agent to further incorporate himself into their lives on a social basis."

Curious, Ginny leaned forward unconsciously. "What kind of business does she run?"

"A marriage agency." He leaned back and peered at her over steepled fingers, gauging her reaction.

Ginny floundered for a moment. "I'm sorry, did you say a marriage agency?" she repeated. "And this is what you need me for? To marry some bloke I've never set eyes on so you can give him a bloody better cover?" Her outrage, and volume, increased with each word.

"Now, Miss Weasley, before you fly off into a temper, let me lay the strategy out fully. Are you at least agreeable to hearing me out?"

"Fine," she sniffed. "I'll listen, but you can be bloody sure that I won't marry a complete stranger, even if it's for the good of the country. I'm afraid the 'lie back and think of England' philosophy went out of style long before I was born."

He gave her a quelling look. "Alain, my agent, is notoriously selective about the women he associates with. Furthermore, though he can be quite charming, he does have the personality flaws that would make using a marriage agency believable. He-"

Calmly, he replied, "Arrogance, certainly, and a deep-seated elitism that he takes to heart. Only pure-blooded witches are acceptable to him for anything more serious than an occasional dalliance."

He smiled with genuine amusement. "He is a rather handsome wizard, intelligent, and as I said, his charm can knock you down when he chooses to employ it fully. However, we digress. By using the services of the Trevid Agency, he can become closer with the wife until he achieves the goal of Haradinaj's trust as a friend. Perhaps, if he is lucky as well, he can ferret out more information than we currently anticipate."

"So let him pick a wife from her agency," Ginny said, enunciating every syllable carefully, as if talking to a particularly slow child.

"Yes, well, we're trying to make it so the poor boy isn't shackled to someone for life simply because he's aiding his country. If we set up the woman he chooses, then we can make arrangements for the union to be temporary."

"I mentioned his elitism and love of the Old Ways, didn't I? Haradinaj knows Alain well enough by now to become very suspicious if he does not adhere to something as important as a traditional marriage."

"The Old Ways have the bride and groom, if both are pure-blooded, marriage bound. It's more than a civil service; in fact, it's much closer to the ties created in an Unbreakable Vow. Has no one in your family been married this way?"

Ginny thought hard. "I'm not sure, but I think my parents might be," she said thoughtfully. "I never asked."

"That doesn't explain how you're intending to marry me off to him through what is essentially an Unbreakable Vow and then get us out of it later."

He paused momentarily, smiling inwardly. She had begun to imagine herself as part of this plan. An excellent first step. "With a witch pre-selected and placed with the Trevid Agency, I can notify Alain in advance. What would happen, should this plan proceed, is that I would have a contract- pre-signed by you, of course- brought into country for Alain to sign establishing parameters for the marriage. Because Alain is the identity he has established, not his true name by birth and record with the Ministry, the marriage conducted in Macedonia would not be valid. The contract would essentially acknowledge that you, marrying him under false circumstances, could have the marriage annulled immediately upon learning his true name."

"And that would work?" Ginny asked incredulously. "That seems incredibly... convoluted."

His lips quirked. "Convoluted magical agreements are a specialty of this office."

He continued, "We have had the specifics ironed out. The Minister has approved. The only problem has been finding the woman for the job."

"Either not Pureblood, not a competent enough witch to be placed in such a potentially dangerous situation, or simply not possessing enough social charms," he replied.

"Unfortunately. Alain would murder me slowly if I sent any of them," he replied candidly. "But the moment I saw your Department of Magical Law Enforcement file, I knew you were the ideal candidate. Please at least consider the assignment, Miss Weasley. I'll be at quite a loss if you refuse."

Ginny stood up and walked to the magical window, taking a few moments to digest all that she had been told.

In an honest assessment, her life could do with some improvement. Though she loved the challenge of the Auror programme, it paid rather poorly for its trainees. She lived in a cubbyhole of a flat in a marginal neighborhood. It seemed as if this man was set on her taking the job. 'Well,' she thought, 'if he wants me for it, he's going to have to make it worth my while. I can haggle with the best of them.'

"Let me recap," she said aloud. "You want me to go pedal myself to a marriage agency, move to another country to marry a man I don't know, accept your word that my marriage can be dissolved later, presumably lie to my family and friends, and all because your agent is a snob whose taste you are otherwise unable to accommodate?"

"Well now, you are purposely trying to over-simplify things. I'm asking you to help find answers to give to the poor families who lost loved ones to this fellow, to find information that may bring even one person back alive from whatever place they've been forced to, to give one child back a parent being held for the information or expertise they can provide."

She sniffed disdainfully. "And now you are trying to play on my emotions. It won't work. I know that what this Alain finds out can save lives. But that's not what I want to know. At the risk of sounding mercenary, what's in it for me?" She waved a hand. "Besides the 'God and country' tripe."

"Fine," he said shortly. "As for you, aside from the aforementioned 'tripe', we are prepared to triple your current salary. When the mission is completed, we would also return you to the Auror programme and maintain the increased salary for a period of five years, or until you become a full-fledged Auror. Is that a satisfactory enough compensation package?"

Ginny quickly did the sums in her head. Triple her salary? That would let her stop renting her current place and BUY a posh flat in a nicer neighborhood, with money left over. Plus, they would continue that salary until she made Auror, which paid very handsomely once you achieved full rank. 'The hell with it,' she thought. 'If I turn him down, I'll always look back and wonder.' She decided to do it.

"And what do I tell my family? Or this Trevid Agency- won't they be a little suspicious when they try to verify the history I give them? And how is this Alain going to know to choose me?"

"-very similar to the truth, for simplicity. You will receive an 'invitation' to train with the Macedonian Ministry of Magic's Auror programme. You may share the news with your family, as well as with the Trevid Agency when you apply. However, you will also share with the agency that the offer was rescinded after you had prepared to go. You are bored with your life here. Some excitement and romance in a foreign country are precisely what you are looking for. But you want your family to believe that you are still accepting that job so they do not become ashamed of you. Then, if the person you are matched with seems to be working out, you will write to your family and tell them of the man you 'met' while in Macedonia."

He arched an eyebrow. "Compared to some of the other scenarios we considered, yes. And as for notifying Alain, we do have certain methods of contacting him. He will be given a very general description of your appearance and a key phrase. It will be something unusual that you will include in your biography at the Trevid Agency so that he may identify you when he is reviewing the options they pose to him."

"Options.” She sniffed haughtily. “You mean the witches lined up like morsels at a cake tasting party."

Ginny smiled blandly. "It's a gift." Resting on the arm of her chair, she stared him down. "Have you told me everything?"

He gazed at her flatly. "Certainly not. But I have told you as much as you'll get without accepting the assignment."

"Then I'll do it." A steely light shone from her eyes. "Now, let's get down to details."

The owner of the Trevid Agency, Svetlana, came bustling down the corridor, her round little figure looking out of place in the swank surroundings. "That silly girl Liljana only told me that a man had arrived, not that it was you. I would not have a friend sitting here like a commoner. I should fire her-"

"Please, Sveta," he said smoothly as he bent to kiss both of her cheeks. "It's no trouble at all. In fact, I only just arrived. I must admit, I have been rather looking forward to this."

She beamed. "You will see, Alain. I will find you the perfect girl." Turning, she took his arm and moved back down the corridor. "Have you considered the specifics that you would like in a spouse yet?"

He opened the door she stopped in front of and ushered her through. Once settled in the chair she indicated, he leaned back. "Yes, of course. This is quite a monumental decision for me, Sveta. I find that I have given it a great deal of thought."

She sat down opposite him, picked up a quill and balanced a pad on her knee. "Then let's begin. Tell me the qualities you seek, in the order of their importance to you, if you please."

Crossing his feet at the ankles, he studied the ceiling. "She must be a Pureblood. She needs to be intelligent- the gods know I've dated enough vacuous women to this point- and have the grace and poise of a woman comfortable in my lifestyle. Not French. I find that my countrywomen can be a bit... fickle. And she must be able to manage a large household that can transition seamlessly amongst four properties. She-"

"Alain," she interrupted. "If I may make a suggestion, I think that you would be best pleased with the outcome of our search if you also include the physical features you find most appealing."

"Ah, yes," he smiled. "She must be beautiful. And fair- blonde or red hair is fine. No brunettes, please. They leave me cold. Slim would be preferable, but none of those witches that starve themselves or use Augmentation Charms." He made a face. "I find it distasteful."

"I am not overly particular about height or eye color. She must be near to my age, preferably within five years of me. Oh yes, she must be elegant- I had quite forgotten that. I do not care if she is an athlete, so long as she retires from her chosen sport upon our marriage. I do not want a wife with children from a prior marriage. She must be willing to have at least two children in our marriage, one of which is to be a son."

"Non," he said, "you misunderstand me. If she gives me two daughters, we will continue until I get my son."

Svetlana smiled indulgently. He was such a particular man. She laid the quill on the table in front of her and examined what she had written. "I believe we can begin to look over suitable candidates. Though I must admit, your requirements are perhaps a bit stringent. There may be one or two qualities that are not a perfect match. We shall see."

She flicked her wand at the rows of bookshelves across the room. Half a dozen or so floated over and deposited themselves on the table between them.

She cast a variation on a Sorting Charm. "Pureblood. Intelligent. Manage household. Not French. Blonde or redhead. Wants children. No Augmentation Charms. Similar age- five years."

With a bang and a puff of dust, parchments detached themselves from the books and formed a neat pile on the table. "Shall I order us some refreshments?" she asked.

"I noticed the corner shop makes brek with harissa sauce. Send that girl down for me, would you?"

After they had their drinks and dispatched the girl to fetch their food, she handed the top parchment to him. "Katya. 23, blonde, excellent Ukrainian pureblooded family-"

He barely skimmed the biography and gave the photograph only a cursory review. "Her face is too long. She looks like my mother's afghan hound."

Setting it aside, she handed him the next from the stack. "Claudia. German, 27, top marks in her class at university-"

"She's built like a Beater. I'd be afraid of her hurting me if I told her she couldn't go shopping."

Privately thinking that this was going to be a long afternoon, Svetlana handed him the next biography. "Marta. Dutch..."

Alain drained his coffee cup and wearily rubbed a hand across his forehead. After three hours, they had narrowed the candidates down to three women, one of whom was the plant from the Ministry. ‘She,’ he thought, ‘is either an ironic twist of fate or Rhys’ idea of a joke. Weasley's little sister, all grown up, is going to be my wife and backup?’

"Sveta," he said, "this is getting incredibly tiresome." He leaned forward and placed a hand on her arm. "Don't you have a sister you could introduce me to?" he asked with a roguish grin.

She buffeted his hand. "You know Dasha is married. Though I do accept the implied compliment. Come now, only one more decision to make, and then we can both retire for the day."

"Well," she said, "Johlana, Ginevra and Paz are all lovely girls who more or less adhere to the standards you outlined. Perhaps you need to mull this over at home." She stood. "If you give me a moment, I'll pull their more detailed files for you to review at your leisure this evening. They will include more photos, transcripts of in depth interviews, the results of personality tests and background checks."

Ginny received a Floo call from Svetlana, the owner of Trevid Agency, less than two weeks after she had first visited their London office.

"Miss Weasley, we have found a darling man, Alain, that we believe is the ideal candidate for you, given the information you provided us."

Ginny thought about the 'biography' she had been handed at HI-C and told to memorize; it was the basics of her life tweaked and manipulated just enough to make her laugh- especially that part claiming that she wanted a wizard with 'a smile like that dashing Gilderoy Lockhart fellow'. "But I haven't heard anything before this," she protested. "Why haven't I been shown any information about him?"

"We prefer to allow the relationships we cultivate here to develop more naturally than other agencies of our kind," Svetlana said smoothly. "We keep all profiles confidential, and attempt to set up our clients with the most compatible partner we have access to. We have found that operating in this manner results in more solid relationships that take personal compatibility into account as much as physical attraction."

Ginny put on an earnest face at this obviously well-rehearsed, and entirely false, answer. She knew good and damn well that this Alain man had been handed every scrap of information they had on her. The Trevid Agency was a meat market for men and a ‘dating service’ for women. "Oh, okay. Well, then, what is he like? Tell me everything about him, please."

"His name is Alain Moreau. He is a French expatriate currently living here in Macedonia at Ohrid. He is a very wealthy Pureblood with a family tree almost as ancient as yours. He has extensive business holdings that he oversees, wants a wife who is interested in children and staying at home, desires an intelligent partner who enjoys both the finer points of living and the joy of athletics. He is also quite handsome," she finished.

Ginny gave her a dubious look that she hoped made it through the flames of the international Floo call. "So what's wrong with him? A man like that should have women crawling all over him."

"That," she laughed, "is precisely the problem. He wants a woman with quality, refinement and subtlety, and he doesn't want to have to continue to sort through the chaff to find her. You, however, embody everything I believe he wants," she finished in a flourish of blatant flattery.

"As I said, very handsome. He is tall and lean, with blond hair and light eyes, a lovely smile- a quality you prize, yes?- and beautiful manners. Perhaps a bit on the fair side of skin tone, but it is winter and we are all pale now," she said, giving a tinkling little laugh. "Would you care to see for yourself?"

"Oh yes, please," Ginny said, injecting enthusiasm into her voice. "Could you Owl me a photograph of him?"

Svetlana laughed again. "Oh no, dear, I was asking if you would like to come down to us for the weekend to meet him. I would, of course, arrange for your accommodations at an inn of your choosing, or if you prefer, you may stay with my husband and me."

"Miss Ginevra Weasley, I'd like to introduce you to Monsieur Alain Moreau. Alain, Ginevra Weasley."

Ginny stood rooted to the floor in shock. "He's... he's..." she stammered. Alain was Draco Malfoy. No wonder she had not even heard his name uttered the last several years. He was the bloody spy she was supposed to 'marry'.

Recovering her wits, Ginny tore her eyes away from him. "He's very handsome. I thought you were lying about that."

He stepped forward and took Ginny's hand lightly. Instead of kissing it, as she had anticipated, he used it to draw her closer and bent to kiss her lightly on each cheek. "Belle," he murmured, just loud enough for Svetlana to hear.

"I agree, Alain. She is beautiful," she smiled. "Now, I have arranged for a lovely meal for you to get to know one another better."

"Alain, why don't you and Ginny take a few moments to yourselves and get better acquainted?"

"That would be lovely," Ginny smiled sweetly. "Would you like to step out on the veranda, Alain?"

He looked at the large, dark man that Ginny assumed to be Agim Haradinaj, silently communicating something.

Ginny allowed herself to be led from the room, making small talk as she went. "Alain, what part of France do you hail from? I am from Ottery St. Catchpole, a small village in Devon. It's quite lovely there."

As soon as the doors had closed behind them, he motioned for her to be quiet while he raised the wards.

Holstering his wand, he leaned indolently against the doorframe. "Little Ginny Weasley," he drawled, looking her over. "My, how you've grown."

"You snake," she hissed, dropping all pretenses at once. "Isn't there a cozy spot in Azkaban for killers and Death Eaters?"

"I was never a Death Eater," he corrected with little more emotion in his voice than if he was telling her what the weather had been like. "I was more of an... associate with a skewed perception of reality. And virtually everyone that fought in the war is a killer, regardless of which side they were on."

Ginny gave him a look of disgust. "Of all the men in Britain, why are you the one that I have to work with?"

"I beg to differ," he said casually as he strolled over to rest a hip against a bookcase. "I believe I've been doing this for three years. It was you who waltzed into my gig, not the other way around. Speaking of, how did you manage to make your way into HICKEY?"

He smirked. "No, I meant HICKEY. I've been calling it that since I started there, simply to hack off Rhys. Although in this case, it seems that HICKEY is an appropriate name."

"We’re going to hit it off, be all over one another and get married, you know," he threw over his shoulder as he strolled to the window. He couldn't seem to stay still for more than a few seconds.

"The cover, remember? You are, for lack of a more appropriate term, my mail order bride."

He walked over to her, took her arm and steered her to the loveseat. "Sit," he ordered, before kneeling next to her so that they were at eye level. "In all seriousness, I don't care if you harbor some ridiculous schoolyard grudge against me or-"

"Don't make accusations when you have no idea of the specifics," he warned her, eyes narrowed and flashing silver. "Now focus, or walk out those doors, tell Sveta I'm not for you, go home to England and explain to Rhys why you left. I don't care. But if you stay, you are going to follow my orders to the letter, marry me, look gorgeous and play your part to perfection. Is that clear?" he demanded.

Ginny stared at him. The words coming from Draco Malfoy's mouth were unbelievable. "Can I just take a Love Potion?" she asked weakly.

"No, Sveta would know in a heartbeat. Look, it will be easier if you think of me as Alain instead of the Draco Malfoy you remember. Pretend that we are dating and just act as you have with every other boyfriend. I'm handsome; focus on that."

His lips twitched at the corners. "Very mature. Don't be petty, Ginny. Take my plan, for example. I'm going to ignore the fact that I recall a scrawny little girl with an atrocious temper and foul mouth and instead focus on the very beautiful face and body you've acquired in the years since I've seen you last."

"Why don't you go sodomize yourself with a Firebolt?" she responded in a syrupy voice.

"Give over, you know it's my way or back to England. That's why you're in such a snit, isn't it?" he asked, arching an eyebrow. "Look, I need you to be attentive and flirty- just a bit, don't overdo it- for the rest of the evening. And for the love of all that's holy, don't jump when I touch your arm or back. Can you manage that?"

"Fine. Now let's get back out there; dinner should be served shortly." He took her hand as she stood. "After you," he said.

Ginny turned on her heel and moved for the door. She froze when his warm hand landed on the curve where her back met her hip.

"See?" he whispered next to her ear. "You can't do that out there. Relax." He removed his hand, dropped the wards, and ushered her out into the foyer. "Now, Ginny, may I escort you in for an aperitif with Agim and Sveta?"

Ginny noted the dark sky with surprise. The meal had been delicious and the conversation enjoyable. The most shocking aspect of the evening was the ease with which she played her part. Taking Draco's advice, she pretended that she knew nothing of his past, that he was truly the charming man next to her.

She blinked. "I'm sorry, Svetlana, I'm afraid I wandered off for a moment. What was that again?"

Draco chuckled. "I'm sure Ginny must be exhausted after her traveling and the time difference. I think, in light of that, I should be taking my leave."

He set down his coffee cup and pushed back from the table as the others followed suit.

After allowing Ginny to thank her hosts and ask for a reminder on how to get to her room, Draco bid Agim and Sveta a good night, tucked Ginny's hand in the crook of his arm and strolled to the front hall.

He leaned in and murmured quietly, "Sveta is watching from the top of the stairs." In a normal voice he said, "I'm very glad you came down here, Ginny. I enjoyed tonight and I hope there is ... more time for me to get to know you better."

She turned and laid a hand on his cheek. "It's been lovely so far. I have to admit, I was very nervous about this whole affair, but I'm glad I came, too. Perhaps you would have some time to spend with me tomorrow?" she asked, smiling up at him.

His breath stuck in his throat. 'She really is very good-looking,' he thought, 'but she's a knockout when she smiles like that.'

"It would be a pleasure to see you tomorrow. There is an excellent cafe a kilometer or so from here on the east side of Lake Ohrid that does a beautiful lunch."

He bent his head and captured her lips for a soft kiss, cutting off her farewell. Feeling her stiffen, he broke the kiss and straightened. "Until tomorrow, Ginny."

After he had gone, Ginny touched her lips absently as she turned to make her way up the stairs to her room. Sveta withdrew around a corner and smiled. "I've done it again. They are perfect."

The next three months flew by for Ginny. She went on countless dates with Draco. He took her sightseeing and shopping and set up romantic little tête-à-têtes. They spent countless social evenings with Svetlana and Agim and attended a ridiculous number of parties and gatherings.

Ginny gradually became comfortable with the familiarities Draco took- a kiss here, a caress there. His scent became so familiar that she could tell when he was standing behind her without looking. She began to willingly touch him and kiss him in front of other people, and generally acted as if she was truly happy with him. She learned to behave as if theirs was a real relationship and to think of him only as Alain, unless he had set up wards so they could talk privately.

Some days, she forgot entirely the Draco Malfoy she knew in school and became caught up in the lie they were living. She discovered how he liked his tea and that he was a morning person. She took to spending the occasional weekend at his house with him, which gradually evolved into her living with him. Her things began to accumulate more and more at his place until it finally made more sense to simply announce that she was moving in with him.

One night he proposed to her, orchestrating an unbelievably romantic date that ended with him on bended knee, slipping an enormous diamond onto her left ring finger. When Ginny recounted the story to Svetlana over lunch the next day, the other woman just smiled and said, “I had no doubts, my dear. You and Alain are meant to be.”

She sometimes felt like her life in Macedonia was real, and then something would happen to shatter the illusion. After she and Draco had announced their engagement, he insisted that she move into his bedroom with him. He reasoned that the house elves were spies for Svetlana and Agim and that they had to keep up appearances.

Ginny argued vehemently against it, but when they returned from dinner one night, all of her things were neatly put away in his room.

He took one look at her face and knew that she was going to lose it. “Now, Ginny, see reason,” he began.

Her face turned a dark red and he held up his hands. “At least let me take precautions first,” he warned. After he had set up the wards, they had an awful row about it. Ginny clung to her refusal to sleep in his bed with him for a whole week- a week of misery from sleeping on the settee in the bedroom.

In the middle of her seventh night of aching sleeplessness, she gave up and crawled into bed with him.

“Tired of being a stubborn bint?” he murmured, half asleep.

She lay stiffly as far away from him on the bed as possible. “I’m not sleeping with you,” she said crossly.

“So you’re going to lay there awake every night?” he said, opening his eyes to gaze at her.

She heaved an annoyed sigh. “You know what I meant.”

“Believe it or not, I’m pretty sure I can resist your charms,” he drawled. Turning over, he gave her his back. Ginny’s temper boiled when less than five minutes later, he began to snore.

“Arse,” she whispered spitefully at his back.

Draco got an immense amount of amusement from Ginny’s puritanical views on sharing his bed. He ignored her for several nights, a smile on his face as he fell asleep to the annoyed huffs she would emit periodically. One night when she was being especially noisy in her ongoing protest, he simply reached over and pulled her in against him.

She struggled mightily, but all she had to show for it was her hair tangled in her face. “Let me go,” she demanded.

“I think not,” he responded. “Your protracted temper tantrum is causing me to lose sleep. You have my word that I won’t strip you naked and make you scream in pleasure, Ginny,” he said, biting his lip to hold in his laughter.

She snorted.

“Now go to sleep,” he ordered with a smile.

After that, she gave up the fight altogether. It was no fun trying to annoy him when he refused to play. Each night, she inched closer to him, until one morning she awoke with her head on his shoulder and her legs intertwined with his. When she stiffened self-consciously, Draco forcibly pushed her head down on his chest. “I’m comfortable,” he complained. “Don’t ruin it.”

She sighed and closed her eyes again. If he was calm about it, then she would be too.

Draco waited in front of her under a low-hanging limb of a tree, a small stream gurgling merrily behind him. Nervously, Ginny adjusted the neckline of her gown and cut her eyes to the guests lining the lane of flowers in front of her. And that's what it was- someone, probably Svetlana, had magicked a pathway of delicate wildflowers for her to walk down to meet him.

Ginny swallowed. She knew only a handful of the people in attendance, and most of those were only acquaintances she had made over one or two meetings. 'Am I really going to be married in front of complete strangers?' she thought a little wildly. 'None of my brothers are here. None of my friends. Mum and Dad aren’t here. Everyone I love is sitting at home thinking I’m off training with the Macedonian Aurors, and here I am getting ready to be married. They deserve better,’ she thought morosely.

She startled from her thoughts as a group of fairies began to sing a haunting melody in French. Ginny smiled sadly. 'At least I've picked up enough French from Draco and Svetlana to understand what the song is about,' she thought. 'That's something at least. Bill always said I was rubbish at languages. He'd be so surprised.' Her eyes welled up and a lump in her throat threatened to choke her. Fighting to regain her composure, she didn't notice when Svetlana and her assistant Liljana slipped up on either side of her.

"It's perfectly normal to be nervous, Ginny," Svetlana said soothingly. "I was so nervous when I married my Agim, I thought that I would explode. All you have to do is look at Alain, smile, and put one foot in front of the other. The rest will happen naturally, trust me."

Ginny looked at Liljana, who just nodded vigorously.

Ginny straightened her shoulders and took a deep breath. This is why she had come to Macedonia, to be Draco's mail order bride and help secure his cover so he could put Agim Haradinaj where he belonged- in jail. Summoning a smile, she said, "Thank you, Svetlana. I’ll be okay now."

Draco pasted on an indulgent smile as Ginny stood rooted to the ground not ten yards away. 'Walk towards me,' he thought at her, hoping to propel her forward simply by force of will.

She said something quietly to Svetlana, looked him straight in the eye and began to walk towards him, crushing flowers under her feet. The faint perfume of those flowers wafted to him, and his smile became real. She was going to do it; Draco fervently thanked whatever angel it was that was pushing her down the flowery path. His doubts, so very real only moments before, began to melt away.

As she drew even with Draco, Ginny reached out instinctively to take his hand. It was cool and dry, and somehow she felt calmer for it.

When the officiating wizard drew the ribbon from his robes, Ginny swallowed hard. This was her last chance to back out. She shoved the thought down and looked at Draco as their clasped hands were loosely bound with the length of ribbon.

"I bind you, Ginevra Weasley, to Alain with this ribbon as a physical reminder of your spiritual bond. Alain Moreau, you are so bound to Ginevra by oath and the symbolism of this ribbon. The ancient Houses of Moreau and Weasley will be tied by blood, magic and love from this day forth until the earth dies and time fades. You continue the honored tradition of keeping magical blood pure, as the gods of old decreed and the faithful have believed in."

He tapped the ribbon with his wand and a yellow glow engulfed their hands. "Ginevra Weasley, do you vow to join your life with Alain's from this moment until death?"

She felt Draco's hand squeeze hers, although she wasn't sure if it was in support or warning. "Yes," she breathed, incapable of saying it louder.

"Alain Moreau, do you vow to join your life with Ginevra's from this moment until death?"

Draco smiled as he looked the wizard in the eyes. "Oh, yes," he replied. "Ginny and I are destined to do great things together." He felt Ginny’s hand clench in his own; little tremors were jerking through her arm. He squeezed her hand in an attempt to remind her that everything was going according to plan.

"Then by your oaths, you are bound to one another. This bond will see you through many happy times, and help carry the burden in more difficult times. It will end only with death, may that be many years from now. Will all those in attendance acknowledge these vows?"

The assembled group replied as one, "We do."

The wizard smiled warmly and broke the connection between his wand and the ribbon wrapped around their hands. Ginny shivered as she looked at Draco; he was staring back at her with an expression of adoration. His normally cool grey eyes seemed warm, and for a moment, she had the feeling that she was truly marrying a man that loved and valued her above all else. She blinked her eyes to break the trance she was in. When she looked back at Draco, the light in his eyes had dimmed. Ginny watched passively as the old wizard removed the ribbon.

"I present to you Alain and Ginevra of the ancient and pure House of Moreau."

Ginny gulped as they turned to face the guests. Draco lifted a finger to her face, turning her gaze to him.

"I believe a kiss to seal the proverbial deal is what we do next," he said, a smile lurking behind his eyes.

Still a little stunned at what had just taken place, she obediently tipped her face up for his kiss. Even with the haze of disbelief clouding her mind, she noticed how gently he kissed her, and was grateful to him for not taking advantage of the situation even as she pushed aside the thread of disappointment at the lack of passion he put into the kiss.

'Married to Draco Malfoy in a false union,' she thought dazedly. 'I must have shoveled shit on some sacred alter in a past life.'

It had been almost a month since Ginny had married Draco, and she felt completely at ease living in his house and spending his money. In fact, she had just blown almost 500 Galleons on a formal gown for tonight’s engagement.

Ginny was hanging up her new gown for the gala Svetlana was throwing when Draco came in the bedroom, wordlessly shut the door and raised the wards. She closed the doors of her wardrobe and turned to face him.

“What is it?” she asked as soon as he had completed the spells. “Is everything okay?”

He took her hand and pulled her to the settee. Once she sat, he began to pace in front of her. “It’s tonight,” he finally said, excitement lacing his words.

She raised her eyebrows. “You’re this happy at the prospect of the gala? You social butterfly,” she teased.

He shot her a look out of the corner of his eyes. “No, Ginny, I’ve just received word from Rhys’ men. The information I passed back to HICKEY has checked out- the whereabouts of six missing wizards have been discovered and they’re tracking at least a dozen of Haradinaj’s associates across Europe as we speak. We take down Agim Haradinaj himself tonight.”

She sat up straight. “You mean that it’s all over tomorrow?” Ginny sucked in a breath. “It’s very sudden, isn’t it? I mean, today I picked up a dress for tonight like nothing’s wrong, and –bam! - tomorrow we’ll be back in England?”

“Hopefully, as long as everything goes according to the plan,” he responded, rubbing a hand over his face tiredly. He stopped pacing and dropped down on the settee beside her. “Listen, Ginny. I’m not supposed to feed you any information about tonight, since you are not a permanent member of Rhys’ unit, but I want you to have a general understanding so you stay out of harm’s way. When you’re debriefed, you’ll say that I told you nothing. Got it?”

“Alright, here’s how it’s going to happen. I’ll be leaving you soon after the dancing concludes. If anyone asks, I’m discussing a possible business opportunity with investors. You are going to mix with the guests while I meet with another operative and handle Haradinaj. A man named Flint will come collect you when it’s safe for you to rejoin me.”

Ginny’s eyes flared. “Dear God, please tell me you’re not talking about Marcus Flint.”

He laughed. “No. That Flint couldn’t go undercover anywhere except in a den of Trolls. Particularly slow Trolls, at that. So that’s what you need to know; have you got it?”

“Yes, Draco, I think I can remember that I’m supposed to stay the hell out of your way.”

He leaned over and kissed her softly. “There’s a good wife,” he said fondly.

He turned at the sound of high heels clicking on marble. Ginny was coming down the staircase towards him, daintily holding the train of her gown to the side so she wouldn't step on it.

Draco sucked in a sharp breath. "Exquisite," he said quietly as he proffered a hand to help her down the last step.

She smiled tentatively. "It's not too much?" she asked. "Is it the sort of thing one wears to an event like this?"

He eyed her appreciatively. She had somehow managed to sweep her hair up into a topknot while leaving the front slightly mussed, like she had just been backed into a corner for a thorough snog. He approved of both the style and the imagery. Something to keep in mind for later, certainly. Her gown was a delicate ivory that should have washed her out- instead, it enhanced the pale gleam of her skin and the deep red of her hair. The dress was a simple sheath with two scraps of antique lace that formed the smallest of cap sleeves as embellishment. The only jewelry she wore was a worked gold bracelet and her wedding rings.

"The gown was a perfect choice," he confirmed. "But the rest of you is a bit bare."

She drew herself up straighter and glared at him. "I am most certainly not showing too much skin, Alain," she sniffed. "Everything is covered."

He smiled, his eyes brimming with genuine mirth. "I wasn't talking about your dress, Mrs. Moreau," he countered. "I meant that you look like a canvas waiting for paint."

He turned and walked back into his study, listening to her splutter as she trailed behind him. Unlocking the bottom drawer of his desk, he withdrew a dinner plate-sized velvet box, as well as a smaller one. "Jewels, Ginny," he answered the question before she had spoken. "An event like this- and a dress like that, may I add- requires jewels." Snapping open the larger of the two cases, he turned it so she could see the contents.

Ginny gasped. Hands flying to her throat, she squeaked, "You want me to wear that?" Stepping closer, she traced a finger over the necklace. "There must be a dozen sapphires in it." She looked up at him, the wonder clear on her face.

"Nineteen, to be precise," he replied. "I had it commissioned. Eighteen smaller sapphires, plus the center stone."

"Smaller?" she asked incredulously. "Those things are the size of marbles. And that big one has to be at least ten carats. Not to mention the diamonds."

"Fourteen carats or so," Draco corrected her. "And the diamonds are only pave to frame the sapphires- the stars of the piece." He motioned for her to turn around. Lifting the heavy necklace over her head, he fastened it around her neck and trailed his fingertips lightly over her collarbone as he smoothed the necklace into place. "Turn," he ordered gently. "I'd like to see it on you."

She turned and looked at him, waiting for his reaction. She was disappointed when he simply cocked his head to the side and frowned. "You need just a bit more," he mused. Snapping open the smaller case, he lifted an earring out. "You do have pierced ears, don't you?" he asked as he raised a small cluster of very dark sapphires to her left ear.

"Yes," Ginny replied, shivering slightly when he grazed her earlobe. "Here, I'll do that," she said briskly, reaching to take the earring as she tried to get her reaction to his proximity under control.

He pulled it back out of her reach. "No, let me," he said, the order in his voice clear. "These were my mother's. They have a certain sentimental value to me, having not seen her in so long," he explained as he secured the post in her ear and repeated the process with the second earring. "They may be somewhat less valuable than the necklace, but I thought that my wife's first gala appearance should include at least one piece of her new family's heritage."

He cut her off with a swift kiss. As he broke away, he whispered, "The house elves are listening. Never assume that we are alone unless I have done a sweep." He smoothed a hand over his hair and continued at a normal volume, "It's a bit late, but consider the jewels a bridal gift. The earrings are old, the necklace new, and of course, they're both blue." He grimaced. "Ugh. Forgive the unintended rhyme."

"I was hoping that hideous tiara you wore to the wedding was borrowed." Her indignant yelp told him that it wasn't. He grinned at her unrepentantly. "If it wasn't borrowed, be assured that it will accidentally make its way to the bottom of Lake Ohrid by the end of the week."

"Ron gave it to me on my birthday a few years back," she huffed. "I thought it was lovely."

Ginny pushed his shoulder lightly. "He loves me, and will be perfectly willing to help me hide your body should you meet with an unfortunate accident. Keep that in mind, Alain."

He patted her cheek lightly. "I'm sure," he said, biting his lip to keep from laughing. "Remind me to alter my will so that you get nothing if I ever disappear." He ushered her out into the hallway. "It's getting late; I'm sure the car is out front by now."

Two of the aforementioned house elves swept open the front doors with a flourish, bowing so low that they scraped their noses on the floor. Draco ignored them and offered Ginny his arm. "Shall we, Mrs. Moreau?" he asked, sweeping his arm towards the car.

Ginny kept one eye on the shadowed area where Draco was talking with Agim and another man as she made small talk with a group of women that included Svetlana.

Several minutes later, when the men began to move back towards the house, she noted with interest that Svetlana was also keeping track of their movements. Ginny turned her gaze to the blonde next to her, pretending to be wholly absorbed by her recounting of a recent shopping expedition to Taipei. As the minutes passed, Ginny kept noticing how Svetlana would turn to check something in the direction of the house. She seemed preoccupied, glancing frequently at her wristwatch.

Abruptly, Svetlana turned to a passing servant and handed him her still-full champagne glass. Smiling apologetically, she said, "Please excuse me, ladies. I must go check on some arrangements."

Ginny eyed the smaller woman as she made her way back to the house. Svetlana was weaving through the clumps of guests at a hurried pace. Something was very off, and Ginny intended to find out what. Quietly excusing herself, she trailed after Svetlana.

Very carefully, Ginny made her way into the house. She had seen the other woman head into the east wing through a set of windows. Taking a moment to lean against a table, she removed her heels so she could move without alerting everyone within a hundred meters.

Padding softly in her stockings, she moved down the hallway carefully. Ducking into a bathroom halfway down at a noise in front of her, she peered cautiously around the door. Svetlana was walking into the sitting room just a few meters ahead. Waiting until the woman closed the door behind her, Ginny made a dash for the door next to the sitting room after remembering that a small servants' corridor led between the two rooms. Quietly, she moved into the small space.

"Shit," she cursed under her breath as she fumbled to get the Extendable Ear out of her décolletage, though she was glad she had included it while dressing. Pushing one end into her ear, she finally managed to snake the other end out through one of the two eye holes she found, though she had to drop to her knees to do so. "Bloody short elves," she muttered darkly, even as she peered out through the other hole.

Draco was standing to one side, looking nonplussed at Svetlana's arrival. "Haradinaj, perhaps we should take a break from our discussion. It seems your wife needs to speak with you."

The larger man gave a great, rumbling laugh. Holding out an arm to beckon his wife to him, he replied, "No, Moreau, it is not me she wishes to speak with."

Svetlana's tinkling laugh mixed with the rougher one of her husband's. "Who is this, Alain?" she asked, waving a hand airily at a man standing at the far end of the room. "Come closer," she called imperiously. "I cannot see you over there, and I do not negotiate with men when I cannot see what lies behind their eyes."

Draco's head swiveled slowly towards her, an incredulous look crossing his face. "What was that?"

"Business, my friend," she replied with an empty, cold smile.

Ginny felt the blood in her veins freeze- she knew that smile. It was the last thing she remembered before falling unconscious on stones colder than death in the Chamber of Secrets.

Years had passed, but in that moment, it was like Tom's face had risen from her darkest dreams and transposed itself onto Svetlana's. She swallowed hard and whispered in horror, "Oh my God, it's her. It's not Agim; it never was." She pressed closer to the eye hole as she whispered to herself, "Figure it out, Draco. Figure it out and get the hell out of there."

The man that was supposedly Rhys' agent walked into Ginny's line of sight, arms folded, one hand clenched around what surely was his wand in his sleeve. "What the hell is going on, Moreau?" he demanded. "You said I was going to negotiate with Haradinaj."

Draco shrugged his shoulders eloquently. "I'm as perplexed as you, my friend."

Svetlana paced in and out of Ginny's view. "You are doing business with Haradinaj, Mr. Kakowski. Just not the Haradinaj you had envisioned. Agim enjoys his reputation and provides me with a valuable service- men do not respond to a woman in our field with the same respect that they would render a man. I have a gift for strategy, though, which has made our operation more successful than any other in Europe."

Draco complained petulantly, "Why has no one mentioned this to me? I am not unconnected in the underground."

Kakowski nodded. "Very odd. How has this stayed secret, Mrs. Haradinaj?" he asked, stressing her title sarcastically.

Svetlana brandished the wand that suddenly appeared in her hand. "Memory Charms, of course. After we finish, I will cast Memory Charms on you. I will alter nothing of importance; I am willing to swear an Unbreakable on that. All I will do is tweak your recollections so that you believe all of this was discussed with Agim. In your minds, I was never here at all."

Ginny listened carefully as they spent the better part of an hour negotiating the capture of some man and his subsequent torture for information. She felt bile rise in her throat as Svetlana explained what she wanted them to do to extract what she wanted. The woman was a truly a sociopath; she discussed torture with the same ease as she had spoken of marrying Agim for love at Ginny's wedding.

Ginny waited for Draco and Kakowski to act. She waited through the awful negotiations, through Svetlana's Unbreakable Vow, even through Kakowski's memory modification. When Svetlana turned her wand to Draco, Ginny stood, wound the Extendable Ear up and tucked it back into her dress.

"What is that bloody man up to?" she whispered to herself. "What happened to his grand plan? Caught out by the turn in events, I bet." Ginny had left the servants area behind and stalked out into the corridor without realizing it. Clutching a high heel in each hand, she looked about for a weapon. Nothing. Fine then. She'd just tackle the bitch.

The door to the sitting room opened and Svetlana emerged. Without thinking, Ginny raised one of the shoes she was holding and brought the heel down as hard as she could on Svetlana's head. The woman crumpled to the ground with a thud. Ginny bent to make sure she was still breathing. As she stood, noise exploded inside the sitting room.

Draco yanked the door open, dodged a jet of green light and skidded to a halt. He looked down at Svetlana's prone form, at Ginny still clutching a shoe, and finally behind him. Turning back to Ginny, he broke into a hysterical laugh as he plowed both hands through his hair. "Tell me you didn't just fell the target I've been chasing for three years with a Christian Laboutin sandal." He wiped tears of mirth from his eyes. "Please. I don't think my manhood can take it."

Ginny dropped the high heel in question and launched herself at him. "All you alright? A Memory Charm- you- she- I couldn't get in there fast enough to stop her-" she babbled, running her hands across his arms and chest, assuring herself that he was indeed okay.

His face darkened and his lips drew into an uncompromising line. He handed her the dropped shoes and pushed her into the room before pulling the unconscious Svetlana in after them and closing the door. Ginny watched as Kakowski placed several Binding Charms on the struggling Agim and heard Draco do the same to Svetlana behind her. She made her way to a divan and sat down rather heavily.

It seemed like all she had done the whole evening was wait. She waited for almost a half an hour as three men came and collected Agim and Svetlana Haradinaj. She waited while Draco spoke with Kakowski at length. She even sat quietly while he straightened his clothes and hair in a mirror. Finally, he turned to her.

"Are you a complete nutter?" he shouted at her without warning. "What did I tell you, Ginny? What?"

"I knew you'd react like this," she huffed. His cocked eyebrow said he was still waiting for her to answer him. "You said to stay away," she replied, her chin tilted stubbornly. "But if I hadn't, you'd be-"

He strode forward, leaned down and hauled her up before she could do more than open her mouth to protest. He shook her hard enough to make her teeth clack together. "Fine," he snarled. "I'd be fine, you fool. HICKEY developed anti-memory modification technology more than a year ago."

Ginny swallowed hard at the lump in her throat. "I was saving your ungrateful arse! How was I supposed to know if you don’t tell me anything!" she yelled in his face, pushing ineffectually at his chest.

"I. Didn't. Need. Your. HELP!" he yelled back at full volume. "You could have gotten yourself killed, or worse, you stupid woman!"

Ginny's eyes flared wide in surprise and fear. She had never seen him lose his temper like this in all the time she had been in Macedonia, but he looked capable of violence.

He sucked in a deep breath and visibly forced himself to relax. Shaking his head slowly, he spoke again with deadly calm. "Thank you for acting to save my life. I appreciate the intent; however, you disobeyed my orders. Direct orders, Ginny. Go back to the house, please. I need to tie things up here, but when I get back, you and I are going to discuss this before I send you to England in the morning."

Ginny squared her shoulders and stepped out of his grasp. "Fine, then," she said softly as she slipped on her shoes. "Since I seem to be a nuisance to your efforts here, I'll be waiting at home for you to grace me with your presence." She turned and swept out of the room with as much dignity as she could muster.

Ginny had unzipped her gown and was preparing to ring for a house elf to help her unlace the stupid corset she needed to fit into the dress when the bedroom door flew open. Gasping, she pulled the bodice back up and held it in place. "What the hell do you think you're doing!" she yelled as Draco stalked in, two spots of temper staining his cheekbones.

"My debriefing has been postponed until tomorrow morning," he responded angrily. "So I thought I'd come home and find out why my wife- who swore to follow my orders- disobeyed me."

"Get out, Draco," she responded in her sternest voice. "I'm exhausted. I just want to get undressed and go to bed."

"You want to get undressed?" he asked dangerously as he stopped in front of her, invading her personal space. "Here, let me help." He grabbed the material of her dress on either side of where she clutched it to her chest and ripped it with one violent motion, causing her to stumble into him.

The pieces hung from her waist as she gaped at him. The corset was the only thing between her and nudity, but she wasn't afraid- no, she was enraged. "You son of a bitch!" she shrieked as she slapped him with every ounce of strength she had, snapping his head to the side. She backed out of his reach. "Get out, you bastard! I will kill you if you come any closer, Draco, I swear it!"

He was breathing heavily. Even with several feet between them, she smelled the Firewhisky on his breath. "You're drunk," she accused.

"Not nearly enough," he sneered. "I had one shot before I came home to help calm me down. Doesn't seem to be helping, though, does it?" He closed the distance and grabbed her arm, steering her to the mirror on the wall. "Look at yourself," he demanded, physically turning her face to the mirror. "Go on, do it. I'm not going to hurt you, Ginny. It was only a dress. Look. Do you know what I see?"

She gulped. There was a wild light in his eyes. She looked at their reflections and saw a disheveled, flushed man and a partly naked woman. "What do you see?" she whispered, half afraid of his answer.

"I see a beautiful woman. A beautiful woman that could have met a horrific end tonight. If you had been caught spying on us, or if my plan failed and you were captured, you'd be in someone's dungeon right now. Do you really think the men I've spent the last three years insinuating myself with would really pass up a delectable little opportunity like you?" His hands fisted on her shoulders. "Do you think that they wouldn't have abused you? Trust me, wife," he sneered, "it isn't a future you would enjoy. Or do you like your sex rough?"

Ginny shook her head mutely and tried to step away from him. He had unclenched his fisted hands and grabbed hold of her shoulders again before she had gotten more than a step away from him. She unsuccessfully tried to shake him off, but he maintained a grip that was just an ounce of pressure away from being painful.

"Nothing to say now?" He turned her to face him. "Reality not what you expected? Or did you think espionage was a goddamn game?"

"I- no. I mean, I know it's not a game. I didn't think-"

He began to back her towards the bed, step by step. "Exactly. You didn't think. It's only the sheerest of coincidences that you're here safe and everything worked out. You acted without thinking. You disobeyed me," he finished darkly.

"I'm not your bloody dog, Draco!" she yelled, angry again. "Yes, I disobeyed you, and I'm sorry, alright? Happy?" She blew out a frustrated breath. "What the hell do you want from me? An apology? To beg you on hands and knees for forgiveness?"

He took one more step towards her. She stepped back automatically but wobbled unsteadily when her legs hit the edge of the bed. He automatically grabbed at the gown now hanging from her hips to stop her from tumbling back onto the mattress. As she teetered back, the material tore and dropped to pool at her feet.

Slowly, he looked her up and down, from the jewelry to the corset to her stockings and heels, before raising his eyes to her face. "You asked what I wanted from you?" he growled as he loomed over her. He jerked her hips forward until they were flush with his. "How about a kiss?"

"You're trying to punish me, not kiss me, Draco," she replied stonily. "I don't want to kiss you right now."

His eyebrow quirked. "Not yet," he growled before crushing her to him and kissing her breathless.

Ginny pushed at him even as she kissed him back. The stupid man was half aroused and half angry, and she wasn't going to be the way he worked out his temper, even if he was a damned fine kisser. "Draco, stop," she insisted when he broke the kiss. "I-"

He went for her ear when she turned her head away. She was summoning up her best impression of McGonagall when he grabbed the backs of her thighs and hoisted her up, settling her on his waist so that she clearly felt his erection rubbing against the inside of her thighs. Her breath caught.

"Ginny," he breathed, his anger diminishing as his attention turned to more carnal pursuits. "Tell me you don't want this too," he whispered in her ear as he rubbed himself against her. "Go on, lie to me."

Ginny dropped her head against his collarbone and felt her stomach tighten as he ground against her. She could say no if he would just stop grazing her most sensitive spot with the seam covering his zipper. She moaned. "Damn you, Draco Malfoy," she said as she grabbed his hair in both hands and pulled him back to her lips. "Damn you, I give up."

Ginny stretched sleepily and scooted back until she was cuddled against the warmth of Draco's body. Even if he was an absolute prat most of the time, he was like a favorite pillow- she slept better with him than without. She was closing her eyes to settle back into sleep when a very relevant fact caught her notice. She was naked. A squirm against Draco told her that he was as well. Last night flooded back into her mind.

"Shit," she whispered, suddenly in a panic. "Shit, shit, shit!"

Draco stirred behind her. "Morning," he mumbled as he pulled her more firmly against him. "Sore?"

Ginny took stock of her body. As soon as he had said it, she felt the ache between her legs and how swollen she was. She blushed furiously and was glad that he couldn't see her face.

When she didn't answer, he reached down and caressed her gently. She jumped. "Yes, I'd definitely say sore," he chuckled. "Last night was the most... interesting time I've had in a long while. You were not what I had anticipated."

Ginny turned so she was facing him. "What's that supposed to mean?" she demanded with a frown.

He grinned at her. "Well, the first time was hot. The second and third were agonizingly slow and delicious. I'm not sure if the fourth time actually happened or if I dreamt it." He raised one arm from beneath the covers, studying the stocking knotted around his wrist. "Not a dream, apparently." He smirked. "Who would have thought that a dominatrix lurked beneath that innocent exterior?"

She swatted at him and pushed herself up into a sitting position, pulling the sheet up to cover herself.

"It's a little late for modesty, Ginny," he said wryly. "I have what I believe to be your corset digging into my arse and your stocking tied around my wrist. Not to mention this," he added, sitting up next to her.

Ginny looked at the perfect set of teeth marks around his left nipple, vivid purple against his pale skin. "Oh," she said weakly.

"Oh, indeed," he replied, smirking so hard she thought his facial muscles would cramp. "Listen, I know you're sore; how about we have a nice soak in the tub before I-"

He was cut off by the sound of chimes. "Fuck," he spat, tossing off the covers and standing up. He threw on his trousers and shirt from the previous night and wrenched open the door. "What?" he demanded coldly.

Ginny couldn't distinguish what the person on the other side of the door was saying.

"Fine," Draco agreed. "I'll be out in a minute."

He closed the door and looked at her somberly. "I've got to go be debriefed downstairs. It shouldn't take more than an hour, I think, but that bath is going to have to wait.”

Ginny, at a loss for words or actions to match the situation, merely nodded.

He studied her intently for a moment, nodded as if he had decided something important and left the room.

Ginny smiled softly. Maybe things would work out between them; if she was honest with herself, she would admit that last night had cemented it for her. She would ask Draco when he came back if he would like to continue seeing her when they returned to England.

Draco stood outside the bedroom door and collected his thoughts. Rhys had arrived to personally debrief him. While they weren't mates, Draco trusted him and his opinions implicitly. When he admitted that he had grown attached to Ginny, Rhys had firmly told him to cut it off. Immediately.

His exact words had been, "Slam that door closed so hard she never wants to open it again. You're a covert operative, Malfoy. You leave for long periods of time. You can't tell anyone where you're going or why. No woman should live her life waiting in those circumstances for a man that will likely not come home one day. You know the odds that you'll be caught someday; would you really put her through that?"

Draco had felt true regret spear through him, but he knew the older man was right. It wasn't fair to her.

Composing his face, Draco opened the door and found Ginny seated at her dressing table applying cosmetics. He closed the door gently and walked to stand behind her.

She smiled up at him. "Listen, Draco, I've been thinking. What would you say about maybe seeing each other when we go home?"

His throat tightened painfully at the look of hope and affection in her eyes. "Ginny," he began. He steeled himself. "Look, I know this," he waved at the bed, "meant something to you. It always does with women. But you and I are not going to be Wizarding England's next great couple. You were a prop," he said harshly. "I used you. You don't have the training to carry off an assignment of this magnitude, so I treated you like we really were in love. You believed it and acted accordingly, which was my goal all along."

He prepared for the final blow. "I don't love you- hell, I don't even like you," he laughed viciously. "What makes you think that I'd want to date you? Because we fucked? I hate to be the one to break it to you, but a man could fuck a woman he hated and be just fine with it. Don't get me wrong- the sex was fantastic. But I'd just as soon never see you again if it's all the same."

Ginny stood on shaky legs, leaning on the table heavily for support. He longed to reach out and hug her to him and tell her the truth, but he owed her something he couldn't provide- a normal life.

"It was all a lie?" she whispered brokenly, tears pooling in her eyes. "All of it?"

He watched as she rallied herself and faced him squarely. "We'll just pretend it never happened when we run into each other on the street?" she asked, the plea in her voice making it waver.

Her chin came up even as a tear slid down her cheek. "Alright," she said quietly. "If that's how you want it."

Ginny stepped out of the lift. Trying to ignore the quiver in her legs, she gave a half-hearted smile as she caught sight of Draco in profile. He looked as handsome as ever, but he was eerily still in a way that he never managed in Macedonia.

"Hello," she tried timidly. "I guess Rhys wanted to meet with us together." She stepped toward him awkwardly, as if she wasn't sure whether she wanted to be close to him or not. "So," she continued, "are you happy to be back in England and to be yourself again? How about seeing your family? They must be so happy..." She trailed off with a sudden blush. 'Stop prattling on, you nit,' she told herself sternly.

Draco turned from his rather absent-minded examination of a portrait at the sound of her voice, unsurprised to see her here. She was dressed in a simple set of robes, her face scrubbed free of cosmetics and her hair caught back in a neat plait. He had thought that she was a creature that needed friends and family, and her appearance confirmed it. She looked healthy and vibrant and beautiful in her simplicity, and it made him angry for some reason that he couldn't quite identify.

Ginny was momentarily taken aback by his voice- it was sad and angry and held just the slightest touch of bitterness. 'Maybe he was just a little happy down there with me,' she thought. 'Maybe he's wondering if... no. It's over, and he made it very clear before we left what he wanted. Stop projecting, Ginny,' she scolded herself.

"I am," she replied. "Well, that is. And happy to be home, too. How have you been, Draco?"

His lips quirked at the irony. It sounded as if she were greeting a schoolmate she hadn't seen in years rather than the man she had lain in bed with, sated and happy, not so long ago. "Fine, Ginny. Thrilled to land back on English soil. I'd forgotten how the rain and fog suited me," he quipped dryly. "I do broody and sullen so well, after all."

Steeling herself, she gave voice to the thought that had been driving her mad since returning to England. "Are you- I mean..." she swallowed nervously. "Is this it, then? Did it really mean nothing to you?" she asked plaintively.

He stepped forward and gripped her arm tightly, forcing her to look him squarely in the eye. "What do you think will happen? That we'll have tea once a month or so and reminisce about our fake marriage, how we played house, shagged and dabbled in espionage? That you'll get to bring me home and introduce me as your sometime spouse and partner in covert operations? Hardly, Ginny. Be realistic," he finished, his voice barely more than a harsh whisper. "It's over. Forget it. Go back to your life."

"But I... Draco, were you even a little happy?" she asked as she tried desperately to search his eyes. "Was it-"

"Malfoy! Miss Weasley! So glad you could make it," Rhys Hamilton bellowed from his office. "Make your way over here, then. I don't want to take up your entire day- I'm sure you each have places you'd rather be."

Draco dropped her arm and stepped back, breaking eye contact with her. "Don't," he said brusquely. "Don't do this. Don't ask; you don't want to hear the answer anyway."

Ginny took in his words and nodded resignedly; she’d had to try. "Of course," she said softly. "I was just... curious." Turning, she followed him to the office.

Draco opened the door and waved her through, simply nodding at her murmured thanks. Taking their seats, they faced Rhys and sat quietly, waiting for him to speak first.

"No need to look so solemn," he smiled. "This is not school and I am not your Head of House. I can't tell you how pleased I am with your work in Macedonia. You've both done a great service to the Ministry. Malfoy, there’s something I’d like to discuss with you after we're finished here. I know you've requested some time off, but I've been apprised of a situation I think may hold some interest for you."

Draco leaned back and casually crossed his feet at the ankles. "I doubt it. I'm looking forward to a month of nothing but sand, sun and massages in Thailand. I don't think another assignment is quite what I had in mind."

Rhys flicked a file across the desk. Picking it up, Draco opened the dossier so that Ginny could not see what it contained. "Perhaps Thailand can wait after all," he drawled. "This is very... intriguing, Hamilton."

"I thought you might say that," he replied. With a sudden smile, he turned to Ginny. "Sorry about that. Small bit of business- but let's get on with it, eh? We'll just iron out the last little details and this chapter of your respective lives will close."

He flipped open another file on his desk and picked up a quill. After checking to make sure it was properly inked, he said, "By tomorrow your marriage will be annulled, all nice and proper. First question: Was the marriage of the Old Ways?"

"Yes," Draco said shortly. "Of course. That was part of the arranged protocols."

"Don't you get huffy with me, Malfoy. I'll assign you a mission to provide entertainment at all Ministry officials' children's birthday parties for the next year. Always thought you'd look splendid in a red foam nose."

Draco sneered back, "I'd accidentally make all of their gifts disappear. Trust me, you'd be more miserable fielding the complaints than I would be destroying their parties."

At Ginny's horrified look, Draco said in a bored voice, "Stop that. It's a bit of fun. We’re always like this."

Rhys picked his quill back up. "My apologies for getting off-track, Miss Weasley. Was the marriage accomplished under duress?"

"Only one of you knew the true identity of the person you were marrying. Miss Weasley, you only knew my agent as Alain, correct?" He looked up at her from under his bushy eyebrows.

"We knew once we met face to face," Ginny replied softly. "We were at school together and had more than a passing acquaintance. I knew he was Draco Malfoy when I said my vows."

"I see," he frowned. "Aside from taking your vows in the traditional manner, you did nothing else to cement the union, right?"

Draco sat quietly, letting her decide how to approach this. Her decision was, by all accounts, to do nothing but wriggle about like a worm on a hook. Heaving a sigh of annoyance at her sudden lack of Gryffindor courage, he pinned Rhys with a glare. "We consummated the marriage," he said flatly, a flash of warning clear in his eyes.

Rhys leaned back in his chair and frowned hard at Draco, desperately trying to keep his tongue behind his teeth. "Well, this certainly mucks things up a bit," he finally sighed. "Just a moment."

He turned to a row of shelves. "I know it's here somewhere," he grumbled. "Er... here we are, 'Ministry of Magic: Guidance for the Voidance of Magical Contracts, 74th edition'." He spent several minutes riffling through the pages before letting out a small exclamation of victory. "Ah! There's a solution to our little dilemma- it just needs to be signed by the Minister himself, is all."

Clearing his voice, he read aloud. "In the event of a traditional marriage employing magical bonding which the participants wish annulled, a complete dissolution is possible when all requirements set forth in paragraph 3(a)1-24 are met. If any of these requirements are not satisfied, no dissolution is possible; however, by special writ of the Minister of Magic, the union may be considered void for legal purposes. The participants would be considered legally single and free to remarry persons of their choosing, although no further marriages would be allowable in the traditional method- only civil union would henceforth be permissible."

Ginny stole a sideways glance at Draco, but he was looking directly at the other man. "So we wouldn't be married anymore, right?" She paused for a moment as she tried to catch Draco's eye again. "And I could get married again in the future, so long as it isn't in a traditional ceremony?"

Draco felt a small twinge in his stomach at her words. Somehow, the prospect of Ginny in a white dress marrying another man was bothersome. He didn't care to examine the feeling any further; it wouldn’t change their present circumstances. It would only make him more miserable.

Rhys smiled. "Precisely, my dear. No worries, the Minister will be happy to do this in return for your service. I'll have this taken care of by the weekend. Now, if you'll each just sign this statement- it states your desire to dissolve the marriage and that you'll each leave only with the assets you brought into your union- I'll have this off to the Minister's lawyers by this afternoon." He watched as they signed their names in the indicated spaces and wondered at their gloomy attitudes.

"Excellent. When the paperwork is taken care of, I'll have a copy Owled to each of you at home. I suggest storing the originals you'll get in your vaults at Gringotts for safekeeping."

Ginny stood as Rhys rounded his desk and opened the door for her. "A pleasure, Miss Weasley. You truly did a fine job. I've arranged everything with Moody to transition you back to the Auror programme beginning Monday after next- you’ll get until then to readjust. Best of luck," he smiled.

She let him herd her to the door as she kept stealing glances at Draco. He sat in the same position stubbornly staring at the floor in front of him, ankles crossed, and so still he might have been hit with a Full-Body Bind.

"Right," she said. "Well, it's been enlightening, if not a pleasure, in my brief stint working with you," she said, her voice laced with hurt. "Do try to not get killed." Rhys stopped short and looked at her quizzically. "Miss Weasley, I stopped doing field work years ago."

After a moment of contemplative silence the older man said, "Well, Malfoy, about that assignment. You'll leave on Saturday..." and the door closed softly, cutting off the rest of their conversation.

Ginny opened the window to let in the owl pecking insistently at the glass. She had been unpacking her things for the last day and a half in her new home, a small cottage not far from the Burrow. It was small, cozy, and best of all, cheap. She was so involved in arranging her china perfectly in the cabinet that she barely heard the tapping that heralded the arrival of her paperwork from the Minister.

Feeding the owl eat a treat from one hand, she broke the seal on the parchment with the other. Patting him a last time before sending him off, she unfurled the document and briefly skimmed through it. It said exactly what she had thought:

'The marriage between Draco Malfoy and Ginevra Weasley has been legally voided at the Minister of Magic's behest. Each participant may claim single status and is eligible to remarry at any time, provided they do not do so via a traditional magical bonding ceremony.'

Dropping the parchment on the table, Ginny sank into a chair and drew up her legs. She felt empty and calm, a welcome departure from the storm of emotion she had been fighting since she had seen Draco at the Ministry. She had spent an entire day holed up in her old room at the Burrow, and two more alternately packing her things for the move and crying for no good reason.

"It's time to buck up and move on," she told herself firmly. "You've got a lovely new place to set up and make home. Stop mooning over the might-have-beens and enjoy what you've got."

She spent the rest of the day sorting and unpacking. Everything was moving along so well that she was already unpacking her bedroom and clothes that night. She pulled the last Daily Prophet-wrapped item from the box: her little jewel case. Placing it gently on her dressing table, she opened it to get a bracelet for the outfit she was wearing to dinner at the Burrow the next day. Things went all to hell when she found the earrings Draco had given her the night of the gala.

Right before they left Macedonia, she had returned the engagement ring and wedding band to Draco. She had nearly thrown the sapphire necklace at him. In her anger, she had not thought to go retrieve the earrings from her jewel case; in fact, she had forgotten them until now.

Sitting at the front of the case, nestled in velvet, the beautiful sapphires winked in the lamplight. He had told her that they had been passed down through his mother's family. Ginny didn't know if they were truly a Black family heirloom or if he had bought them and said that as part of his cover, but she had to return them on the off chance that they really were part of his heritage.

Looking at the wall clock, Ginny realized that it was already nearing ten at night. According to what she had heard in Rhys' office at the Ministry, he was leaving the next day for another assignment. "God knows when he'll be back from that," she muttered darkly. "If he comes back at all. Sodding man takes chances with his life like he's got the luxury of a do-over or something."

Deciding quickly to just go to his flat tonight to return the earrings, she cast a quick Freshening Charm and Floo-called Percy.

"Perce," she said the moment his head appeared in the fire, "I need a favor. I need Draco Malfoy's home address."

"Malfoy Manor," he snapped in an irritated tone. "What for, anyway? He hasn't been in-country for ages. And I'm not someone you just ring up when you need something, Ginny, I'm your brother. A social call now and then wouldn't be amiss, you know." He blinked owlishly before breaking into a wry smile. "I just did a fair impersonation of Mum, didn't I?"

"Yep," Ginny replied. "I’m looking for other residences besides Malfoy Manor."

"Oh, hold on. I'll go find his bloody address for you. I know I've got that Ministry address book laying about here somewhere..."

Ginny tapped her foot impatiently while he looked. It seemed like hours before he reappeared, puffing with exertion. "Under the stove. Who in the world stuffed this under the stove?" he wailed. "I'll bet it was George. He just happened to pop by for a visit last week. Prat." He opened the massive book and began to look. "MacFarlan, MacMillan, here we are- Malfoy." He looked up. "You said you didn't want the address of the Manor, right?"

"There's a London address here." He whistled appreciatively. "In Kensington, too. Pretty posh for someone who never uses the place. Why do-"

She cut the call before Percy could reply. She wasn't sure if Draco's building was Floo-capable, so she Apparated to a closed-down pub she knew of in the general area and walked.

Clutching the earrings so tightly that they bit into her palm, she rang his buzzer and waited. After what felt like an eternity, a sleepy-sounding Draco answered through the speaker, "Who is it?"

"It's Ginny," she said, trying to keep her voice even. "I found something of yours that I think you would like back."

The box was silent. Ginny wondered if he had gone back to bed after hearing that it was her. Just as she was contemplating leaving, the front door opened.

"I suppose you'll want to come in." He opened the door wide and stepped back, allowing her into the front hall before closing the door firmly behind her.

Now that she was there, she found that she had absolutely nothing to say. He stood before her in only what looked to be a hastily donned pair of pajama bottoms. Rumpling his hair further as he yawned, he asked, "What was so important that you had to give it to me in the middle of the bloody night?"

"It's only ten," she replied, studying her shoes in an effort to avoid staring at his chest. "And these are the reason I'm here." She held out the earrings on her opened palm. "You said they were your mother's. I don't know if that was a lie or not, but I thought that if it was true then she would like them back."

He wished she would look up so he could see what she was thinking. Instead, he gently took the earrings from her hand, noticing the punctures where she had pushed them through the skin by gripping so hard. "Why don't you sit for a moment so I can clean those out?" he offered.

Unsure of what he was referring to, Ginny looked up. He glanced pointedly at her hand. Flustered, she stammered, "Oo- okay."

She sat in the chair he gently shoved her towards while he retrieved his wand. Looking around, she admired the tastefully-decorated flat. "I guess you keep this place up while you're gone," she observed. "Must get expensive."

He snorted. "Hardly. It was atrocious. Moldy, musty and uninhabitable. I paid a small fortune to have it fixed up in 24 hours so I could escape Mother and the Manor. I refuse to be in my twenties and living with my mother. It's unconscionable."

Ginny furrowed her brow. "What I meant was why do that when you're leaving again tomorrow?"

Draco laughed with genuine humor. "Suffice it to say I had no more interest in pursuing the avenue he was talking about. I've taken an indefinite leave of absence, Ginny. It's time that I take care of matters here at home."

"You're not leaving, then?" she asked before ducking her head and scuffing the toe of one shoe across the rug. "Don't I feel silly tromping over here in the middle of the night now. Had I known you'd be here tomorrow-"

"You'd have lost your nerve and Owled those to me," he finished for her, waving a hand at the earrings he had deposited on the table in front of her. "Besides, as you pointed out, it’s only ten. Still a civilized hour for a visit."

She sat motionless as he performed a quick Antiseptic Charm on her hand and healed the small wounds. "Thank you," she said softly. "I just wanted to make sure you got those back. I’d better be going," she said, pushing herself to her feet.

Draco put a hand on each of her shoulders and pressed her back down. "Not yet, you don't. We're going to have a nice chat first, since you're so conveniently here. Saved me a trip," he said, seating himself carefully on the table. "Got your letter from the Minister today?" he inquired.

"It set me to thinking," he said, spreading his legs and leaning forward to rest his arms on them. "Be honest with me. How did you feel about me? I mean, our so-called marriage." He looked up at her through his lashes and the fringe of hair falling into his eyes.

Ginny wanted to smooth back that hair and climb into his lap, and she was ready to be honest with him about it. "I hated it- and you- at first. And then I loved it and hated myself for it. It was exciting to pretend to be someone else, to live a life a hundred times more glamorous than mine will ever be. In the last few months, I just sort of took it at face value. I enjoyed pretending that I was the adored wife, and it was so easy to believe the lie. You made it so easy," she finished.

Whatever he was thinking, he hid it too well for her to see. She settled for asking instead. "What about you? I know you said that it was just the job and that you wanted nothing to do with me when it was over. Was that really true, Draco?"

He watched her eyes cloud with doubt and her body go rigid, as if she was expecting a physical blow. His lips flattened as he thought about what he wanted to say. "You were part of the job. I had to use you and make our romance seem real to accomplish what I was sent in to do. It was easier for me to make you fall in love in truth than to coach you through playing the part. It was calculated, Ginny, I'll admit it.”

He smiled, regret plain in his eyes. “I fell into my own trap. I started to believe somewhere along the line that we could make a go of it after the mission was over. Those earrings really were my mother's; I gave them to you because I thought that I might see them in your ears for years to come. But everything was built on lies, and I realized that our lives were incompatible. So I was as brusque as possible in the hopes that you would be hurt, and then angry enough to move on and get the life you deserve." He looked at her intently. "Have you?"

"Moved on?" she asked. "I suppose. I just found a new place and I'm headed back to the Auror programme."

"I don't know," she replied honestly. "I think about Macedonia and you a lot. I don't want to go on the date my mother is pushing me into with some Chaser on my brother's team. I'm-"

"Good God, Ginny! You've been home for two weeks!" he yelled indignantly. "And you're already out on dates?"

"No!" she cried. "That's the point! I don't want to go on dates! I want to stay with you!" She clapped her hands over her mouth, horrified. Her brown eyes grew enormous in her suddenly pale face.

Draco slowly stood up. "Is that so?" he asked, reaching down to pull her up by the arms. When she sagged, he gave her a slight shake. "Stand UP, Ginny. Don't make me haul you around like a sack of Floo powder." He walked her to the front door before releasing her. "I'll only ask you once. Do you want to leave?"

She focused her eyes on him, still clearly stunned. "No," she replied, resolve stiffening her spine. "I don't. I want-"

"You had your chance," he growled as he pulled her in against his chest. "Now you have to stay. I'm sure we can work out the details in the morning."