Draco Malfoy was nervous as hell, which was a new thing for him. The reason for this was that he was going on a date with a girl, also a new thing for him. Today was apparently a day of new things. Zabini had insisted that if he really liked Ginny (and Draco had reluctantly admitted to this after weeks of smug looks and snarky comments from him) he had to ask her out properly. Draco Malfoy didn’t go on dates with girls. They sent him notes and sweets and other girlie stuff and sometimes, if he was feeling generous, he’d deign to meet them for a snog or twenty. That seemed to placate them well enough. But lately he hadn’t been able to muster up any interest in those girls, and the reason for this was meeting him in approximately an hour. Draco’s stomach churned in mixed anticipation and apprehension. Well, Zabini was the expert here, he supposed. (Although Draco didn’t know how much he could trust someone who thought that Lovegood girl was ‘pretty smokin’ hot’.)
~
Saturday dawned bright and sunny, which Ginny thought was promising. At least if she were stood up she wouldn’t be one of those pathetic figures huddled in the rain waiting faithfully for their date who was never going to show up (she had watched many depressing Muggle films, courtesy of Hermione). She had also been worrying about how her brother might take her going to Hogsmeade with Draco Malfoy, but fortunately the topic of Hogsmeade had not come up between them during the week. She and Draco had planned to meet early, which was fortunate as this would lessen the possibility of being spotted together by anyone they knew.
She had spent the week trying to ignore the conflicting feelings she’d had about The Weekend (as it was termed in her mind; she refused to call it a date). As she put on her best jumper and skirt, she told herself that she was just maximising the mileage out of her few nice pieces of clothing, and not for any other reason. Makeup charms were cast and uncast several times, and in the end just a touch of lip gloss was decided on, to make it look like she wasn’t trying too hard.
She strutted towards the statue of Borag the Bountiful, showing more confidence than she felt, and was relieved to see Draco leaning against a pillar, the very picture of casual elegance. Ginny felt her confidence slip away as the butterflies that she had spent the week strenuously trying to tame exploded into action once again.
“Malfoy,” she greeted. She was feeling uncharacteristically shy but determined not to show it.
“Weasley,” Draco acknowledged politely, nodding. Ginny was looking prettier than usual; she was wearing a soft-looking dark green jumper that puffed slightly around the sleeves and complemented her pale skin nicely. “This colour suits you,” he said honestly, if a touch stiffly. What was it Zabini had said? Compliment her; girls don’t like to be insulted? Not that he didn’t know all that already, but putting it into practice with Ginny, when they were so used to snapping at each other all the time, did not come naturally.
“Thank you,” Ginny said warily. “You look good too,” she said truthfully, although that wasn’t the half of it. He was looking perfectly edible, that’s what he was.
“You’re welcome, and thank you.”
Not that she didn’t appreciate manners, but, really, who was he kidding? “Oh, screw this.” Her eyes narrowed. “Who are you and what have you done with Draco Malfoy?”
Draco’s face broke into a grin. Well, she had practically given him permission to insult her. “Really, Weasley, is it that hard to imagine that I might actually have manners?”
“Not at all,” Ginny said dryly. “This must be how you charm the pants off girls.”
“No, the pants come off all by themselves,” Draco said smugly. “The date’s not required.”
“That’s more like the Malfoy I know,” Ginny said, relaxing. “Come to think of it, I’ve never once seen you on a date. Why is that?”
He turned to look at her, amused. “Been spying on me, have you?”
She answered his question with a roll of her eyes. “Seriously, Malfoy. Considering your reputation, you must admit that’s rather shocking.”
“As I said, when you’re me, dates are not required for charming the pants off anyone. And maybe I hadn’t met anyone I wanted to take out… yet.” He said this looking at her intently.
Ginny determinedly avoided his gaze, silently cursing her cheeks for their inevitable reddening. She knew that a thousand girls would probably kill to have Draco Malfoy look at them like that, but the logical part of her brain reminded her that this was Draco Malfoy she was dealing with; he could be charming as hell when he wanted something. Ginny was all too familiar with charming guys (Tom Riddle, anyone?), and the voice in her head (which sounded an awful lot like Hermione) reminded her to be please be careful. But she couldn’t ignore the not-so-tiny part of her that was thrilled and excited and wanted The Weekend to go well.
~
Their first stop when they arrived at Hogsmeade was Honeydukes, where Ginny and Draco stocked up on candy. After carefully deciding on a handful of Strawberry Chocolate Frogs and a small bag of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans – Exotic Food edition, Ginny noticed that Draco was buying what appeared to be half the shop. Boys, Ginny thought resentfully, as she watched him pile chocolate frog after chocolate frog into his basket with vigour, always eating and never gaining weight. This, however, led her to think about Draco’s body, which led down a traitorous train of thought. That would never do. Ginny pried her thoughts away from Draco’s hard, muscled, lithe, sleek, um, body, and tried to concentrate on the display of orange gumballs bouncing around in a fake mouth. She insisted on paying for her own candy, despite Draco’s protests otherwise, and he finally relented, trying to quash the accusing voice in his head that said it was probably his fault that Ginny was so sensitive about her poverty.
As they walked around Hogsmeade, going into various shops and admiring the new products on sale, Ginny found herself subconsciously comparing him to her ex-boyfriends. She was both tickled and charmed by the way he held open the door for her. Having grown up with six rowdy (except Percy) older brothers, she was not used to such gentlemanly behaviour. Michael had done it while they had been together, but more, she felt, out of a sense of chauvinism than anything else. Ginny also relished the feel of Draco’s hand resting lightly on her back, although she had found it so annoying in Dean while they had been dating. He listened to her opinions and didn’t mindlessly agree (as Dean had) or patronise her (as Michael had). Of course, he had his own opinions, which were vastly different, but they agreed to disagree. She had to mentally shake herself free from such thoughts. Why was she thinking of him as a potential boyfriend? He was entirely unsuitable for her.
As they walked past Quality Quidditch Supplies, Ginny paused to admire the Lightning 300 broom that was in the window display.
Draco leaned in to check it out as well, and Ginny’s breath caught as it registered how close they were standing to each other. When he stood behind her like that, well, Ginny’s face flamed as she tried in vain not to imagine what other things they could be doing in that position.
Unbeknownst to Ginny, Draco had A Plan. His plan, simply put, was to seduce her. He had decided against anything too overt, as that might come across as Sleazy and Desperate, but he would take every opportunity he could to affect her. So far, his plan seemed to be working, although on the flip side he was faring not much better himself. He had to constantly resist the urge to touch her – to press a kiss to her cheeks as they lit with a warm smile, to put an arm around her as they navigated crowded streets, to brush off that tiny piece of lint on the front of her sweater… and she wasn’t even trying! So he settled for the most innocent and fleeting of touches – putting his hands on the small of her back when they entered through the narrow entrance of a shop, accidentally-on-purpose brushing against her hand as they walked. How he had been reduced to resorting to such sneaky tactics when there were witches aplenty out there, Draco didn’t know. But deep down, he knew that she was worth it.
When they were getting tired, Draco suggested The Three Broomsticks, where they sunk into a booth, much to the relief of their tired feet.
After ordering their drinks, they lapsed into a comfortable silence. Draco was just feeling relieved that nothing had gone wrong so far when Ginny’s eyes suddenly widened and she grabbed his arm, ducking down low behind the booth.
“What in Merlin’s name—”
“It’s my brother!” she hissed.
Indeed, the Golden Trio was walking through the entrance to The Three Broomsticks, laughing and talking noisily.
Draco blanched. They were going to ruin his date! His stomach churned at the thought. All the times he had played out the date in his head, it had only been him and Ginny, whether it went well or badly. Somehow he had failed to provide for the possible intrusion of friends and brothers. “Let’s leave,” he croaked.
“And miss out on Butterbeer? Not a chance! Plus if we leave now they’re sure to notice.” Ginny’s face scrunched up in thought, and Draco considered it very possible that she was the only person who could make the expression look cute. “I know, we’ll cast Glamours! Change my hair,” she urged him.
With a resigned sigh, Draco touched the tip of his wand to Ginny’s hair. Slowly, it turned a dark brown in colour and was swept up into a thick braid. With another muttered charm from Draco, her eyes turned blue and rounder.
Ginny felt around her hair with her hands. “I’m impressed. Now it’s your turn.”
“I refuse to walk around with acne and a big nose,” Draco said uncompromisingly, but Ginny was already peering closely at his face, considering what to change. She tapped her wand on his shoulder, and he grew shorter and stouter. She then turned his hair brown and wavy, and removed it from its gelled confines.
Draco regarded his growing stomach with horror. “You’ve made me fat!” he said accusingly. This was not going according to plan at all. He wasn’t one of those people who believed in letting your inner beauty shine and all that rot; he knew his looks gave him an advantage and he had been planning to put them to their full use, especially since he now knew that Ginny was susceptible. Only now he was a chubby brunette with curly hair. He didn’t think his charms extended that far.
“Don’t be such a girl; it’s only for a while.” Ginny giggled as she considered her masterpiece, who looked like a petulant child who had been told he could only pick three toys in the store.
“Easy for you to say,” Draco muttered sulkily. She hadn’t been changed very much although he had to admit that red hair suited her much better than brown, in spite of all his teasing about ‘that garish red’.
The trio sat down at the next table, but did not seem to recognise them, and Draco and Ginny breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Their Butterbeers came, and they began to relax around each other as they chatted about school and everything else under the sun. Amongst other things, they talked about why toast always landed buttered side down, how muggle awry-planes worked and the possibility that the captain of the Hovering Hornets had troll blood in him.
They eavesdropped on the Trio’s conversation, and sniggered silently, catching each other’s eyes, as Ron remained painfully and utterly oblivious to the not so subtle hints that Hermione fancied him.
Ginny found herself enjoying her time with Draco. In spite of all her reservations, she found herself drawn to his wit and dry sense of humour. What shocked her was that even when he no longer looked like the Slytherin Sex God, she still found him extremely attractive. He had a magnetic quality to him that she now knew was amplified by his looks but not dependent on them. She was hyperaware of his touch. Each time his knuckles lightly grazed her arm when they walked or their fingers accidentally brushed, a warm tingle went through her.
Yet Ginny’s mood was marred precisely because the day was going so well. She hadn’t wanted to enjoy it. She had gone on this outing fully intending to prove Luna wrong and to put an end to her strange attraction to Draco. She was also slightly on edge, waiting for what would surely be a long drawn-out punch line. And yet, as the day went on, it became increasingly clear to Ginny that what she felt for Draco Malfoy might not have been just the hormones.
She had enjoyed herself tremendously. She felt utterly comfortable bantering with Draco, minus the edge of hostility that had tinged their conversations past. They shared a similar sense of humour – he was more dry and cutting while she was more boisterous – but there was never want for laughter. It had all the makings of a wonderful friendship. And yet, was friendship all she wanted?
As they returned to Hogwarts, Ginny felt herself become on edge again. The day had been wonderful, but now that they were back it felt like reality had doused cold water on her. There were friends and brothers to deal with, house boundaries and family enmity. She wondered, not for the first time, what the day had been all about to Draco.
“Is it safe for me to walk you back to your common room?”
Ginny nodded. “We can go by the other side; nobody goes by that way.”
They took a longer, less frequently used route, and stopped along a corridor just around the corner from the portrait of the Fat Lady.
While Ginny was struggling to think of something to say, Draco thrust a Honeydukes paper bag at her. “Here.”
“Wha—? You didn’t have to… I mean…”
“Well, considering you drooled on quite some of the candy, I thought it’d only be right to buy them.”
“Why, you—!”
“A simple thanks would have sufficed,” Draco said, smirking.
She glared at him. “Well, thank you.”
“Pleasure’s all mine.”
A silence stretched between them as neither wanted to leave although neither knew what to say.
Draco spoke first.
“So, Ginevra,” he began, his voice a drawl. “Was it worth your while?”
Ginny coloured as she remembered her parting words to Draco when she had agreed to go to Hogsmeade with him. I trust you’ll make it worth my while. And he had kept his promise. She’d had a good time, and she didn’t see any reason to lie now. “Surprisingly, yes,” she said, bravely looking him squarely in the eyes.
He considered for a moment. “Do you regret it?”
A heartbeat, and then the truth. “No.”
He took a step towards her, and now he was standing right in front of her. She could smell his cologne from where she was, just inches away. It was intoxicating. “Would you do it again?”
“Are you… asking me out?”
He cocked his head to the side, studying her. “That depends. Would you do it again?” He said this lightly, but his eyes were dark and serious.
“Well… Yes, I suppose I would,” Ginny admitted. As soon as the words were out of her mouth she regretted them. Not for their content, which was true, but for the fact that he now knew her feelings – or at least, some part of them – whereas she didn’t know his. She was utterly at his mercy now.
But then he smiled. Not a wry or amused or mocking smile, but a genuine, happy smile. Grey eyes met brown, and Ginny found herself unable to look away. Warmth spread through her, and her heart seemed to have stopped beating. When Draco smiled, which was rare, it was already a sight to behold. How much more wonderful it was, Ginny thought, when it was directed right at you.
Surely, the sensible thing to do would have been to pull her eyes away, to step away and start up some inane chatter. This strange connection between them would be broken and everything would go back to normal. Hermione would have approved. Molly Weasley would have approved. All her brothers would definitely have approved.
Instead, Ginny did what any other hot-blooded female would have done under the circumstances. She launched herself at him.
The kiss was incredibly gratifying and yet at the same time deeply unsatisfying for the simple reason that it wasn’t enough. Ginny could feel weeks of pent-up frustration pouring out as she struggled not to collapse in a heap at Draco’s feet. Merlin, his chest felt even better under her hands than it looked, and it had looked pretty damn good. And he smelled divine. She wanted to bury her nose in his shirt forever. That is, if she could find the strength to disengage her mouth from his. And were those his fingers lightly tracing circles on her back?
Sudden, raucous laughter nearby caused them both to spring apart. The newly-available oxygen pumped rational thoughts to the forefront of her mind, the first of which was well, that was pretty damn amazing but what the hell have you done? Ginny was utterly horrified. Her first impulse was to turn and flee but shock kept her rooted to the spot. What had she done? She had thrown herself at him! She’d truly become one of them! What was he going to think of her now?
She refused to look at him. “I—I’ve gone about this the wrong way, haven’t I?” she said hoarsely, wishing that the ground would open up and swallow her whole. Or that a herd of stampeding Minotaurs would storm Hogwarts, their rampaging causing a massive explosion in the Potions laboratory, and that the fumes from the resulting mixture of Kneazle hair, mermaid’s bile and Gillyweed juice would rise with the smoke, Obliviating everyone in the castle, including and most especially Draco. Or something along those lines, anyway.
She chanced a look at him.
Draco seemed equally stunned, though quite pleased. Too pleased. Quite smug, in fact. Was that a smirk lurking at the corner of his mouth? “Actually, it seems you know exactly the right way to do it. If I had known that some candy was all it’d take, I’d have gotten you some sooner.”
Realisation dawned.
“You planned this all along!” she accused. If the whole day had just been an elaborate hoax on his part, now would be the time to come out.
Draco shrugged. “Indeed I did.”
Her heart sank. So this was it. He had planned it. He had not even bothered to hide it. He had intended to string her along and then humiliate her, and he didn’t even look the least bit guilty. “I see,” she said tightly. It surprised her that the reigning emotion in her was not anger but disappointment. She had enjoyed spending time with him. She truly had. Why did she have to go and fall for someone when it was all but a lost cause? She tried not to let her feelings run amok on her face, but she had never been good at that. Her curiosity got the better of her. “Why?”
“Well, Ginny Weasley…” Draco ran a finger down her cheek and lifted her chin so that she was looking straight up at him. “I happen to like you very much.”
The frankness of his answer surprised her. He was not playing, his voice neither taunting nor sarcastic. He sounded fully serious, and he had just said he liked her. That was not what she had been expecting at all. Ginny was flabbergasted, panicked, and had the insane urge to burst into song. It amazed her, how a few uttered words could change her feelings so quickly and entirely.
“That hard to believe, eh?”
Ginny was still speechless. “Wha—I mean, how— you can’t!” There was a distinct possibility that she was dreaming. Perhaps the Minotaurs had come, but instead of Gillyweed juice, fresh Flobberworm blood had gone into the mixture instead, and the castle had been permeated with a Dreaming Perfume.
“I kissed you back, didn’t I?”
As he spoke, thoughts of the kiss came flooding back. She had to admit that it had been A Very Good Kiss. And he had definitely done some kissing back. But… “You’re a guy,” she retorted. “You’d kiss Moaning Myrtle.”
Draco heaved a sigh, and ran a hand through his hair. “Look, Weasel, I’m not exactly pleased about this myself. But I’m not the type of person to deny what’s staring me in the face. In the past couple of months, it’s become pretty clear to me that for some reason, I like you. Very much in fact. And, well, there’s no nice way of saying this but since it’s come to my attention that you’re lusting over me, I thought that I could take this opportunity to… persuade you.” He said this nonchalantly, as if he were talking about Quidditch or the weather, but his shoulders were tensed.
This was not in the least a romantic speech – Ginny had never pegged him as one for the romance of storybooks anyway – but on hearing his words Ginny felt a rush of affection for him. For Draco Malfoy, this was basically handing her his heart on a platter. And he’d liked her for months? “So that’s why you’ve been, um, seducing seduce me?”
“Rather.”
“Oh.” Why he thought he’d have to make an effort to seduce her, Ginny had no idea. He was getting quite close now, and Ginny struggled to get her thoughts into words. She needed to know. “Not so you can make fun of me? Or add to your, um, collection?”
“Not at all,” he said seriously. He paused, and seemed to be having some internal battle, and when he looked at her his grey eyes were searching. “Did it work?”
And she knew that he wasn’t just referring to the seduction and her overworked hormones. The answer was on the tip of her tongue, and the thoughts that flashed through her mind told her what her answer was going to be. The way his eyes crinkled with he laughed, and how lovely a sight it was to behold, even when he had been Glamoured. The way, when she saw something amusing or strange, he would catch her eye, even before she pointed it out. Not forgetting, of course, his devastatingly good looks and delectable body. “Absolutely.”
And, without a moment’s pause, she launched herself at him again.
~
~
Saturday dawned bright and sunny, which Ginny thought was promising. At least if she were stood up she wouldn’t be one of those pathetic figures huddled in the rain waiting faithfully for their date who was never going to show up (she had watched many depressing Muggle films, courtesy of Hermione). She had also been worrying about how her brother might take her going to Hogsmeade with Draco Malfoy, but fortunately the topic of Hogsmeade had not come up between them during the week. She and Draco had planned to meet early, which was fortunate as this would lessen the possibility of being spotted together by anyone they knew.
She had spent the week trying to ignore the conflicting feelings she’d had about The Weekend (as it was termed in her mind; she refused to call it a date). As she put on her best jumper and skirt, she told herself that she was just maximising the mileage out of her few nice pieces of clothing, and not for any other reason. Makeup charms were cast and uncast several times, and in the end just a touch of lip gloss was decided on, to make it look like she wasn’t trying too hard.
She strutted towards the statue of Borag the Bountiful, showing more confidence than she felt, and was relieved to see Draco leaning against a pillar, the very picture of casual elegance. Ginny felt her confidence slip away as the butterflies that she had spent the week strenuously trying to tame exploded into action once again.
“Malfoy,” she greeted. She was feeling uncharacteristically shy but determined not to show it.
“Weasley,” Draco acknowledged politely, nodding. Ginny was looking prettier than usual; she was wearing a soft-looking dark green jumper that puffed slightly around the sleeves and complemented her pale skin nicely. “This colour suits you,” he said honestly, if a touch stiffly. What was it Zabini had said? Compliment her; girls don’t like to be insulted? Not that he didn’t know all that already, but putting it into practice with Ginny, when they were so used to snapping at each other all the time, did not come naturally.
“Thank you,” Ginny said warily. “You look good too,” she said truthfully, although that wasn’t the half of it. He was looking perfectly edible, that’s what he was.
“You’re welcome, and thank you.”
Not that she didn’t appreciate manners, but, really, who was he kidding? “Oh, screw this.” Her eyes narrowed. “Who are you and what have you done with Draco Malfoy?”
Draco’s face broke into a grin. Well, she had practically given him permission to insult her. “Really, Weasley, is it that hard to imagine that I might actually have manners?”
“Not at all,” Ginny said dryly. “This must be how you charm the pants off girls.”
“No, the pants come off all by themselves,” Draco said smugly. “The date’s not required.”
“That’s more like the Malfoy I know,” Ginny said, relaxing. “Come to think of it, I’ve never once seen you on a date. Why is that?”
He turned to look at her, amused. “Been spying on me, have you?”
She answered his question with a roll of her eyes. “Seriously, Malfoy. Considering your reputation, you must admit that’s rather shocking.”
“As I said, when you’re me, dates are not required for charming the pants off anyone. And maybe I hadn’t met anyone I wanted to take out… yet.” He said this looking at her intently.
Ginny determinedly avoided his gaze, silently cursing her cheeks for their inevitable reddening. She knew that a thousand girls would probably kill to have Draco Malfoy look at them like that, but the logical part of her brain reminded her that this was Draco Malfoy she was dealing with; he could be charming as hell when he wanted something. Ginny was all too familiar with charming guys (Tom Riddle, anyone?), and the voice in her head (which sounded an awful lot like Hermione) reminded her to be please be careful. But she couldn’t ignore the not-so-tiny part of her that was thrilled and excited and wanted The Weekend to go well.
~
Their first stop when they arrived at Hogsmeade was Honeydukes, where Ginny and Draco stocked up on candy. After carefully deciding on a handful of Strawberry Chocolate Frogs and a small bag of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans – Exotic Food edition, Ginny noticed that Draco was buying what appeared to be half the shop. Boys, Ginny thought resentfully, as she watched him pile chocolate frog after chocolate frog into his basket with vigour, always eating and never gaining weight. This, however, led her to think about Draco’s body, which led down a traitorous train of thought. That would never do. Ginny pried her thoughts away from Draco’s hard, muscled, lithe, sleek, um, body, and tried to concentrate on the display of orange gumballs bouncing around in a fake mouth. She insisted on paying for her own candy, despite Draco’s protests otherwise, and he finally relented, trying to quash the accusing voice in his head that said it was probably his fault that Ginny was so sensitive about her poverty.
As they walked around Hogsmeade, going into various shops and admiring the new products on sale, Ginny found herself subconsciously comparing him to her ex-boyfriends. She was both tickled and charmed by the way he held open the door for her. Having grown up with six rowdy (except Percy) older brothers, she was not used to such gentlemanly behaviour. Michael had done it while they had been together, but more, she felt, out of a sense of chauvinism than anything else. Ginny also relished the feel of Draco’s hand resting lightly on her back, although she had found it so annoying in Dean while they had been dating. He listened to her opinions and didn’t mindlessly agree (as Dean had) or patronise her (as Michael had). Of course, he had his own opinions, which were vastly different, but they agreed to disagree. She had to mentally shake herself free from such thoughts. Why was she thinking of him as a potential boyfriend? He was entirely unsuitable for her.
As they walked past Quality Quidditch Supplies, Ginny paused to admire the Lightning 300 broom that was in the window display.
Draco leaned in to check it out as well, and Ginny’s breath caught as it registered how close they were standing to each other. When he stood behind her like that, well, Ginny’s face flamed as she tried in vain not to imagine what other things they could be doing in that position.
Unbeknownst to Ginny, Draco had A Plan. His plan, simply put, was to seduce her. He had decided against anything too overt, as that might come across as Sleazy and Desperate, but he would take every opportunity he could to affect her. So far, his plan seemed to be working, although on the flip side he was faring not much better himself. He had to constantly resist the urge to touch her – to press a kiss to her cheeks as they lit with a warm smile, to put an arm around her as they navigated crowded streets, to brush off that tiny piece of lint on the front of her sweater… and she wasn’t even trying! So he settled for the most innocent and fleeting of touches – putting his hands on the small of her back when they entered through the narrow entrance of a shop, accidentally-on-purpose brushing against her hand as they walked. How he had been reduced to resorting to such sneaky tactics when there were witches aplenty out there, Draco didn’t know. But deep down, he knew that she was worth it.
When they were getting tired, Draco suggested The Three Broomsticks, where they sunk into a booth, much to the relief of their tired feet.
After ordering their drinks, they lapsed into a comfortable silence. Draco was just feeling relieved that nothing had gone wrong so far when Ginny’s eyes suddenly widened and she grabbed his arm, ducking down low behind the booth.
“What in Merlin’s name—”
“It’s my brother!” she hissed.
Indeed, the Golden Trio was walking through the entrance to The Three Broomsticks, laughing and talking noisily.
Draco blanched. They were going to ruin his date! His stomach churned at the thought. All the times he had played out the date in his head, it had only been him and Ginny, whether it went well or badly. Somehow he had failed to provide for the possible intrusion of friends and brothers. “Let’s leave,” he croaked.
“And miss out on Butterbeer? Not a chance! Plus if we leave now they’re sure to notice.” Ginny’s face scrunched up in thought, and Draco considered it very possible that she was the only person who could make the expression look cute. “I know, we’ll cast Glamours! Change my hair,” she urged him.
With a resigned sigh, Draco touched the tip of his wand to Ginny’s hair. Slowly, it turned a dark brown in colour and was swept up into a thick braid. With another muttered charm from Draco, her eyes turned blue and rounder.
Ginny felt around her hair with her hands. “I’m impressed. Now it’s your turn.”
“I refuse to walk around with acne and a big nose,” Draco said uncompromisingly, but Ginny was already peering closely at his face, considering what to change. She tapped her wand on his shoulder, and he grew shorter and stouter. She then turned his hair brown and wavy, and removed it from its gelled confines.
Draco regarded his growing stomach with horror. “You’ve made me fat!” he said accusingly. This was not going according to plan at all. He wasn’t one of those people who believed in letting your inner beauty shine and all that rot; he knew his looks gave him an advantage and he had been planning to put them to their full use, especially since he now knew that Ginny was susceptible. Only now he was a chubby brunette with curly hair. He didn’t think his charms extended that far.
“Don’t be such a girl; it’s only for a while.” Ginny giggled as she considered her masterpiece, who looked like a petulant child who had been told he could only pick three toys in the store.
“Easy for you to say,” Draco muttered sulkily. She hadn’t been changed very much although he had to admit that red hair suited her much better than brown, in spite of all his teasing about ‘that garish red’.
The trio sat down at the next table, but did not seem to recognise them, and Draco and Ginny breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Their Butterbeers came, and they began to relax around each other as they chatted about school and everything else under the sun. Amongst other things, they talked about why toast always landed buttered side down, how muggle awry-planes worked and the possibility that the captain of the Hovering Hornets had troll blood in him.
They eavesdropped on the Trio’s conversation, and sniggered silently, catching each other’s eyes, as Ron remained painfully and utterly oblivious to the not so subtle hints that Hermione fancied him.
Ginny found herself enjoying her time with Draco. In spite of all her reservations, she found herself drawn to his wit and dry sense of humour. What shocked her was that even when he no longer looked like the Slytherin Sex God, she still found him extremely attractive. He had a magnetic quality to him that she now knew was amplified by his looks but not dependent on them. She was hyperaware of his touch. Each time his knuckles lightly grazed her arm when they walked or their fingers accidentally brushed, a warm tingle went through her.
Yet Ginny’s mood was marred precisely because the day was going so well. She hadn’t wanted to enjoy it. She had gone on this outing fully intending to prove Luna wrong and to put an end to her strange attraction to Draco. She was also slightly on edge, waiting for what would surely be a long drawn-out punch line. And yet, as the day went on, it became increasingly clear to Ginny that what she felt for Draco Malfoy might not have been just the hormones.
She had enjoyed herself tremendously. She felt utterly comfortable bantering with Draco, minus the edge of hostility that had tinged their conversations past. They shared a similar sense of humour – he was more dry and cutting while she was more boisterous – but there was never want for laughter. It had all the makings of a wonderful friendship. And yet, was friendship all she wanted?
As they returned to Hogwarts, Ginny felt herself become on edge again. The day had been wonderful, but now that they were back it felt like reality had doused cold water on her. There were friends and brothers to deal with, house boundaries and family enmity. She wondered, not for the first time, what the day had been all about to Draco.
“Is it safe for me to walk you back to your common room?”
Ginny nodded. “We can go by the other side; nobody goes by that way.”
They took a longer, less frequently used route, and stopped along a corridor just around the corner from the portrait of the Fat Lady.
While Ginny was struggling to think of something to say, Draco thrust a Honeydukes paper bag at her. “Here.”
“Wha—? You didn’t have to… I mean…”
“Well, considering you drooled on quite some of the candy, I thought it’d only be right to buy them.”
“Why, you—!”
“A simple thanks would have sufficed,” Draco said, smirking.
She glared at him. “Well, thank you.”
“Pleasure’s all mine.”
A silence stretched between them as neither wanted to leave although neither knew what to say.
Draco spoke first.
“So, Ginevra,” he began, his voice a drawl. “Was it worth your while?”
Ginny coloured as she remembered her parting words to Draco when she had agreed to go to Hogsmeade with him. I trust you’ll make it worth my while. And he had kept his promise. She’d had a good time, and she didn’t see any reason to lie now. “Surprisingly, yes,” she said, bravely looking him squarely in the eyes.
He considered for a moment. “Do you regret it?”
A heartbeat, and then the truth. “No.”
He took a step towards her, and now he was standing right in front of her. She could smell his cologne from where she was, just inches away. It was intoxicating. “Would you do it again?”
“Are you… asking me out?”
He cocked his head to the side, studying her. “That depends. Would you do it again?” He said this lightly, but his eyes were dark and serious.
“Well… Yes, I suppose I would,” Ginny admitted. As soon as the words were out of her mouth she regretted them. Not for their content, which was true, but for the fact that he now knew her feelings – or at least, some part of them – whereas she didn’t know his. She was utterly at his mercy now.
But then he smiled. Not a wry or amused or mocking smile, but a genuine, happy smile. Grey eyes met brown, and Ginny found herself unable to look away. Warmth spread through her, and her heart seemed to have stopped beating. When Draco smiled, which was rare, it was already a sight to behold. How much more wonderful it was, Ginny thought, when it was directed right at you.
Surely, the sensible thing to do would have been to pull her eyes away, to step away and start up some inane chatter. This strange connection between them would be broken and everything would go back to normal. Hermione would have approved. Molly Weasley would have approved. All her brothers would definitely have approved.
Instead, Ginny did what any other hot-blooded female would have done under the circumstances. She launched herself at him.
The kiss was incredibly gratifying and yet at the same time deeply unsatisfying for the simple reason that it wasn’t enough. Ginny could feel weeks of pent-up frustration pouring out as she struggled not to collapse in a heap at Draco’s feet. Merlin, his chest felt even better under her hands than it looked, and it had looked pretty damn good. And he smelled divine. She wanted to bury her nose in his shirt forever. That is, if she could find the strength to disengage her mouth from his. And were those his fingers lightly tracing circles on her back?
Sudden, raucous laughter nearby caused them both to spring apart. The newly-available oxygen pumped rational thoughts to the forefront of her mind, the first of which was well, that was pretty damn amazing but what the hell have you done? Ginny was utterly horrified. Her first impulse was to turn and flee but shock kept her rooted to the spot. What had she done? She had thrown herself at him! She’d truly become one of them! What was he going to think of her now?
She refused to look at him. “I—I’ve gone about this the wrong way, haven’t I?” she said hoarsely, wishing that the ground would open up and swallow her whole. Or that a herd of stampeding Minotaurs would storm Hogwarts, their rampaging causing a massive explosion in the Potions laboratory, and that the fumes from the resulting mixture of Kneazle hair, mermaid’s bile and Gillyweed juice would rise with the smoke, Obliviating everyone in the castle, including and most especially Draco. Or something along those lines, anyway.
She chanced a look at him.
Draco seemed equally stunned, though quite pleased. Too pleased. Quite smug, in fact. Was that a smirk lurking at the corner of his mouth? “Actually, it seems you know exactly the right way to do it. If I had known that some candy was all it’d take, I’d have gotten you some sooner.”
Realisation dawned.
“You planned this all along!” she accused. If the whole day had just been an elaborate hoax on his part, now would be the time to come out.
Draco shrugged. “Indeed I did.”
Her heart sank. So this was it. He had planned it. He had not even bothered to hide it. He had intended to string her along and then humiliate her, and he didn’t even look the least bit guilty. “I see,” she said tightly. It surprised her that the reigning emotion in her was not anger but disappointment. She had enjoyed spending time with him. She truly had. Why did she have to go and fall for someone when it was all but a lost cause? She tried not to let her feelings run amok on her face, but she had never been good at that. Her curiosity got the better of her. “Why?”
“Well, Ginny Weasley…” Draco ran a finger down her cheek and lifted her chin so that she was looking straight up at him. “I happen to like you very much.”
The frankness of his answer surprised her. He was not playing, his voice neither taunting nor sarcastic. He sounded fully serious, and he had just said he liked her. That was not what she had been expecting at all. Ginny was flabbergasted, panicked, and had the insane urge to burst into song. It amazed her, how a few uttered words could change her feelings so quickly and entirely.
“That hard to believe, eh?”
Ginny was still speechless. “Wha—I mean, how— you can’t!” There was a distinct possibility that she was dreaming. Perhaps the Minotaurs had come, but instead of Gillyweed juice, fresh Flobberworm blood had gone into the mixture instead, and the castle had been permeated with a Dreaming Perfume.
“I kissed you back, didn’t I?”
As he spoke, thoughts of the kiss came flooding back. She had to admit that it had been A Very Good Kiss. And he had definitely done some kissing back. But… “You’re a guy,” she retorted. “You’d kiss Moaning Myrtle.”
Draco heaved a sigh, and ran a hand through his hair. “Look, Weasel, I’m not exactly pleased about this myself. But I’m not the type of person to deny what’s staring me in the face. In the past couple of months, it’s become pretty clear to me that for some reason, I like you. Very much in fact. And, well, there’s no nice way of saying this but since it’s come to my attention that you’re lusting over me, I thought that I could take this opportunity to… persuade you.” He said this nonchalantly, as if he were talking about Quidditch or the weather, but his shoulders were tensed.
This was not in the least a romantic speech – Ginny had never pegged him as one for the romance of storybooks anyway – but on hearing his words Ginny felt a rush of affection for him. For Draco Malfoy, this was basically handing her his heart on a platter. And he’d liked her for months? “So that’s why you’ve been, um, seducing seduce me?”
“Rather.”
“Oh.” Why he thought he’d have to make an effort to seduce her, Ginny had no idea. He was getting quite close now, and Ginny struggled to get her thoughts into words. She needed to know. “Not so you can make fun of me? Or add to your, um, collection?”
“Not at all,” he said seriously. He paused, and seemed to be having some internal battle, and when he looked at her his grey eyes were searching. “Did it work?”
And she knew that he wasn’t just referring to the seduction and her overworked hormones. The answer was on the tip of her tongue, and the thoughts that flashed through her mind told her what her answer was going to be. The way his eyes crinkled with he laughed, and how lovely a sight it was to behold, even when he had been Glamoured. The way, when she saw something amusing or strange, he would catch her eye, even before she pointed it out. Not forgetting, of course, his devastatingly good looks and delectable body. “Absolutely.”
And, without a moment’s pause, she launched herself at him again.
~
Author notes: Dear all, thank you for all your kind reviews! I’m terribly sorry for the long wait; I’ve had a really hard time writing this chapter but I’m happy with how it’s turned out. Do stay tuned for a short epilogue!
To Be Continued.
like a falling star is the author of 6 other stories.
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