The month of November moved by much too slowly for Ginny. She continued to contemplate the changes she was seeing in Draco Malfoy while studiously avoiding him, which proved to be harder than she expected. He just seemed to be everywhere. She had been affected by his touch on her cheek much more than she was willing to admit, even to herself. She couldn’t seem to rid herself of the memory, however.
Whenever she saw him in the corridors, she would hide and wait for him to pass. One time, she had been walking to lunch with Luna when he came around the corner. With a practiced quickness, Ginny darted behind a tapestry into a secret passage. To her surprise, Draco had stopped Luna and asked her if she’d seen Ginny. Luna, thankfully, said no, and Draco had hurried on.
Ginny was outside, taking a walk in the cold, early-December air, enjoying some peaceful thinking. It seemed to be the only place she could avoid him completely. In just a short while all of the students would be heading home for the Christmas holidays. Ginny was looking forward to seeing her family again. Only Ron would be absent. He was still off helping Harry Potter save the world.
School didn’t hold the same enjoyments as it used to. Quidditch had been disbanded, and most of the groups and clubs had stopped holding meetings. Not even her Astronomy study group was intact. Ginny was glad that the D.A. was still together. At least they still had that.
Ginny walked past the empty, untended Quidditch pitch, looking at it a little sadly. The ground and spectator stands were covered with a dusting of snow. She could remember those seats filled with excited, cheering students, waving banners and screaming encouragement to their teams. She could almost feel the wind rushing past her ears, whipping her hair out behind her.
Ginny stepped out onto the pitch and bent down to stick her gloved hand into the snow. She sighed as she thought of the good memories. She hoped that this wouldn’t be forever. That the game she loved would come back to the school before she left it. She’d practically lived for Quidditch in the past years. Not having it was like having a piece of her missing.
Continuing on her walk, Ginny tried to put her gloomy thoughts behind her and think of happier things. That was her defense against sadness. Pretending to be happy. She immediately thought of her family. If there was one thing that could bring a smile to her face, it was her family.
She thought of her mum, baking in the kitchen, as she usually was. It was always so comforting to sit at the table with a cup of tea while Molly made bread or a cake and just talk over meaningless things. And because of that, the smell of freshly baked bread was an extreme comfort to Ginny whenever she was sad.
Her dad was enamoured of Muggles and their creations and always had some thing or another to show his children. He could get so excited over the littlest things. Eckeltricity was one of his favourites.
Ginny walked into a copse of trees as a memory of one of Fred and George’s pranks hit her. They’d planted some sort of exploding device in Ron’s bed and he’d walked around for days with hooves instead of hands and feet. She laughed loudly as she thought of it.
Suddenly she heard an odd noise above her. Glancing up quickly, she caught a glimpse of black robes and flailing arms just before someone landed on top of her and knocked her flat on her back. The air was ripped out of her lungs and the other person grunted in her ear.
Ginny opened her eyes to find a pair of grey ones looking back at her. Just great. Just the person she wanted to see. “Get off of me, Malfoy!” she gasped as she continued trying to catch her breath.
Draco looked just as startled as she was. He started to push himself up, but then he hesitated and seemed to change his mind. “Actually, Weasley,” he said in his customary drawl, not out of breath at all. “While I have your attention and you can’t escape… I’d like to thank you for the help you gave me in the Room of Requirement.”
“What?” Ginny exclaimed. He’d just fallen out of a tree and landed on top of her, and all he could think to say was thank you for something that had happened a month ago?! Maybe he’d hit his head. She began looking for a lump on the part of his head she could see.
Malfoy grinned. A real grin, not a smirk or a sneer. That was even more surprising. “I said, ‘thank you.’ I didn’t get a chance to do it properly then, what with you running away, and I haven’t been able to find you since.”
“So you’re going to do it while laying on top of me in the middle of a bunch of trees? One of which you just fell out of by the way! I’m sure if anyone happened to come by, this would look a little… wrong.” She could feel snow working its way into her robes and had to suppress a shiver. With him on top of her like that, she didn’t want to move any more than necessary.
Draco shrugged. The movement felt weird because of the position they were in. “I was reading and you startled me,” he said by way of explanation. “I decided to take advantage of the fact that you can’t get away. I am a Slytherin, you know.”
Anxious to be out of this somewhat awkward spot, Ginny snapped, “Well, you’ve thanked me. Now get off!”
“But do you accept my thanks?”
What was this, an inquisition? Ginny pushed against his shoulders in a futile attempt to escape. When had he grown so many muscles? “Is that really necessary?” She was beginning to get anxious. Being pressed underneath him was doing strange things to her nerves, and she was finding it even harder to breathe than it had been at first.
“Of course it is,” he replied, bringing his face close to hers, causing her to suck in air sharply. Which was a bad decision, as all she could smell was him. That same spicy, rich scent that made her stomach flip over. “I like to know we’re on the same page.”
Ginny was squirming now. “Alright! I accept! You’re welcome! Now will you get off of me?”
Draco casually rolled to the side and stood, a book held loosely under his arm. He put down his hand to help her up, but Ginny batted it away and jumped to her feet angrily.
“That was completely uncalled for, Draco Malfoy!” She was much more comfortable now that she had a little space from him. But at the same time, she was much more aware of how cold the air was. Especially due to the amount of snow in her robes.
“What else could I do?” he asked. “I haven’t even seen you in a month. It’s kind of hard to say thank you to someone who’s not there. An opportunity fell in my… well, in your lap, and I took it.”
“You still could have had the decency to get off. I might have listened.” Or I might not have. But he doesn’t need to know that.
“Might have,” Draco repeated with a nod. “I don’t like chances. I like to guarantee my success. Slytherin, you know.”
Ginny leveled her wand at him and was pleased to see his eyes widen momentarily. She knew she was overreacting to the situation, but after being pinned underneath him, she didn’t really care.
“Here’s a chance for you, Malfoy,” she spat out. “I could just blow your brains out right now. Or I might not. What’s your call?”
Draco raised his hands, more in a calming gesture than surrender, and said slowly, “I’m sorry, Weasley. I didn’t think it would upset you this much.”
Well it did!” And she stomped back towards the castle thinking, I shouldn’t have reacted to you like that. Traitorous hormones!
“Wait!” Draco called. He hurried after her and grabbed her arm.
Ginny slowly turned to face him, hoping her expression was impassive. “Yes?” she asked in a near-perfect imitation of his drawl.
“I really am sorry.”
The look in his stormy grey eyes was so pleading that Ginny couldn’t help but smile.
“Does that mean I’m forgiven?” he asked.
“No. It means you’re cute when you beg.” Ginny immediately clapped a hand over her mouth, her eyes going as wide as saucers. She did not just say that out loud! When would she learn to think things through?
Draco’s eyebrows rose high and he smirked at her. “Oh, really?”
“I….” Ginny ripped her arm from his grasp and tore off back to the school. She could hear his laughter ringing out behind her as she ran.
Why did I say that? she asked herself. I must be stupid!
She burst through the front doors and didn’t stop running until she reached the portrait of the fat lady. The stupid woman seemed to take even longer than usually to swing open, leaving Ginny to shuffle anxiously in the hall, expecting Malfoy to come around the corner any minute and laugh at her some more.
When she was finally able to enter Gryffindor tower, she flew up the stairs to her dormitory. She threw herself across her bed and screamed into her pillow, “Idiot! You stupid, bloody, good-for-nothing idiot! What is the matter with me? Ugh!”
“Erm… Ginny?” That’s when she realized that there were other people in the room. And they’d all heard her outburst.
She looked up into the concerned faces of her friends and laughed hysterically. “I’m just so stupid!” she cried, her face turning a brilliant shade of red.
They all exchanged looks, but thankfully didn’t say anything. Ginny stared at the ceiling and kept her rants and exclamations to herself. She’d certainly been embarrassed enough for one day.
Whenever she saw him in the corridors, she would hide and wait for him to pass. One time, she had been walking to lunch with Luna when he came around the corner. With a practiced quickness, Ginny darted behind a tapestry into a secret passage. To her surprise, Draco had stopped Luna and asked her if she’d seen Ginny. Luna, thankfully, said no, and Draco had hurried on.
Ginny was outside, taking a walk in the cold, early-December air, enjoying some peaceful thinking. It seemed to be the only place she could avoid him completely. In just a short while all of the students would be heading home for the Christmas holidays. Ginny was looking forward to seeing her family again. Only Ron would be absent. He was still off helping Harry Potter save the world.
School didn’t hold the same enjoyments as it used to. Quidditch had been disbanded, and most of the groups and clubs had stopped holding meetings. Not even her Astronomy study group was intact. Ginny was glad that the D.A. was still together. At least they still had that.
Ginny walked past the empty, untended Quidditch pitch, looking at it a little sadly. The ground and spectator stands were covered with a dusting of snow. She could remember those seats filled with excited, cheering students, waving banners and screaming encouragement to their teams. She could almost feel the wind rushing past her ears, whipping her hair out behind her.
Ginny stepped out onto the pitch and bent down to stick her gloved hand into the snow. She sighed as she thought of the good memories. She hoped that this wouldn’t be forever. That the game she loved would come back to the school before she left it. She’d practically lived for Quidditch in the past years. Not having it was like having a piece of her missing.
Continuing on her walk, Ginny tried to put her gloomy thoughts behind her and think of happier things. That was her defense against sadness. Pretending to be happy. She immediately thought of her family. If there was one thing that could bring a smile to her face, it was her family.
She thought of her mum, baking in the kitchen, as she usually was. It was always so comforting to sit at the table with a cup of tea while Molly made bread or a cake and just talk over meaningless things. And because of that, the smell of freshly baked bread was an extreme comfort to Ginny whenever she was sad.
Her dad was enamoured of Muggles and their creations and always had some thing or another to show his children. He could get so excited over the littlest things. Eckeltricity was one of his favourites.
Ginny walked into a copse of trees as a memory of one of Fred and George’s pranks hit her. They’d planted some sort of exploding device in Ron’s bed and he’d walked around for days with hooves instead of hands and feet. She laughed loudly as she thought of it.
Suddenly she heard an odd noise above her. Glancing up quickly, she caught a glimpse of black robes and flailing arms just before someone landed on top of her and knocked her flat on her back. The air was ripped out of her lungs and the other person grunted in her ear.
Ginny opened her eyes to find a pair of grey ones looking back at her. Just great. Just the person she wanted to see. “Get off of me, Malfoy!” she gasped as she continued trying to catch her breath.
Draco looked just as startled as she was. He started to push himself up, but then he hesitated and seemed to change his mind. “Actually, Weasley,” he said in his customary drawl, not out of breath at all. “While I have your attention and you can’t escape… I’d like to thank you for the help you gave me in the Room of Requirement.”
“What?” Ginny exclaimed. He’d just fallen out of a tree and landed on top of her, and all he could think to say was thank you for something that had happened a month ago?! Maybe he’d hit his head. She began looking for a lump on the part of his head she could see.
Malfoy grinned. A real grin, not a smirk or a sneer. That was even more surprising. “I said, ‘thank you.’ I didn’t get a chance to do it properly then, what with you running away, and I haven’t been able to find you since.”
“So you’re going to do it while laying on top of me in the middle of a bunch of trees? One of which you just fell out of by the way! I’m sure if anyone happened to come by, this would look a little… wrong.” She could feel snow working its way into her robes and had to suppress a shiver. With him on top of her like that, she didn’t want to move any more than necessary.
Draco shrugged. The movement felt weird because of the position they were in. “I was reading and you startled me,” he said by way of explanation. “I decided to take advantage of the fact that you can’t get away. I am a Slytherin, you know.”
Anxious to be out of this somewhat awkward spot, Ginny snapped, “Well, you’ve thanked me. Now get off!”
“But do you accept my thanks?”
What was this, an inquisition? Ginny pushed against his shoulders in a futile attempt to escape. When had he grown so many muscles? “Is that really necessary?” She was beginning to get anxious. Being pressed underneath him was doing strange things to her nerves, and she was finding it even harder to breathe than it had been at first.
“Of course it is,” he replied, bringing his face close to hers, causing her to suck in air sharply. Which was a bad decision, as all she could smell was him. That same spicy, rich scent that made her stomach flip over. “I like to know we’re on the same page.”
Ginny was squirming now. “Alright! I accept! You’re welcome! Now will you get off of me?”
Draco casually rolled to the side and stood, a book held loosely under his arm. He put down his hand to help her up, but Ginny batted it away and jumped to her feet angrily.
“That was completely uncalled for, Draco Malfoy!” She was much more comfortable now that she had a little space from him. But at the same time, she was much more aware of how cold the air was. Especially due to the amount of snow in her robes.
“What else could I do?” he asked. “I haven’t even seen you in a month. It’s kind of hard to say thank you to someone who’s not there. An opportunity fell in my… well, in your lap, and I took it.”
“You still could have had the decency to get off. I might have listened.” Or I might not have. But he doesn’t need to know that.
“Might have,” Draco repeated with a nod. “I don’t like chances. I like to guarantee my success. Slytherin, you know.”
Ginny leveled her wand at him and was pleased to see his eyes widen momentarily. She knew she was overreacting to the situation, but after being pinned underneath him, she didn’t really care.
“Here’s a chance for you, Malfoy,” she spat out. “I could just blow your brains out right now. Or I might not. What’s your call?”
Draco raised his hands, more in a calming gesture than surrender, and said slowly, “I’m sorry, Weasley. I didn’t think it would upset you this much.”
Well it did!” And she stomped back towards the castle thinking, I shouldn’t have reacted to you like that. Traitorous hormones!
“Wait!” Draco called. He hurried after her and grabbed her arm.
Ginny slowly turned to face him, hoping her expression was impassive. “Yes?” she asked in a near-perfect imitation of his drawl.
“I really am sorry.”
The look in his stormy grey eyes was so pleading that Ginny couldn’t help but smile.
“Does that mean I’m forgiven?” he asked.
“No. It means you’re cute when you beg.” Ginny immediately clapped a hand over her mouth, her eyes going as wide as saucers. She did not just say that out loud! When would she learn to think things through?
Draco’s eyebrows rose high and he smirked at her. “Oh, really?”
“I….” Ginny ripped her arm from his grasp and tore off back to the school. She could hear his laughter ringing out behind her as she ran.
Why did I say that? she asked herself. I must be stupid!
She burst through the front doors and didn’t stop running until she reached the portrait of the fat lady. The stupid woman seemed to take even longer than usually to swing open, leaving Ginny to shuffle anxiously in the hall, expecting Malfoy to come around the corner any minute and laugh at her some more.
When she was finally able to enter Gryffindor tower, she flew up the stairs to her dormitory. She threw herself across her bed and screamed into her pillow, “Idiot! You stupid, bloody, good-for-nothing idiot! What is the matter with me? Ugh!”
“Erm… Ginny?” That’s when she realized that there were other people in the room. And they’d all heard her outburst.
She looked up into the concerned faces of her friends and laughed hysterically. “I’m just so stupid!” she cried, her face turning a brilliant shade of red.
They all exchanged looks, but thankfully didn’t say anything. Ginny stared at the ceiling and kept her rants and exclamations to herself. She’d certainly been embarrassed enough for one day.
Author notes: This one started out a little rough, but then it got better and I personally like the way it turned out. I hope you agree. Please leave a review. As an author, I live off of them. Food provides no nourishment like a good review! Loves!
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