AN: A very long one-shot that came about as a result of writer's block on my other stories. Once I got started, it just didn't want to stop! Oh, yes - characters and Diagon Alley are not mine.
"Writer's block is evil!" Ginny Weasley declared, scrunching up the parchment she'd been writing on and flinging it over her shoulder. It bounced off a framed photo of her family, who all started shouting at her to be more considerate, instead of throwing objects at them, and landed in a growing heap of parchment on the floor. She'd been sitting at her desk all morning, trying to write an article about Harry Potter's upcoming wedding. It shouldn't be this difficult; after all, she'd known him for years. But the words just wouldn't come. She'd made at least a hundred false starts, and was thoroughly sick of it. Problem was, the Daily Prophet's deadline was tonight.
Deciding she needed a break, Ginny pulled on her jacket, scrabbled under her desk for her shoes (she had a habit of kicking them off while she worked) and walked out of her office.
"How's the piece coming, Ginny?" Colin Creevey, her photographer, rushed over.
"It isn't, Colin. Do me a favour and go take some photos of the happy couple, ok?"
"Of course."
He dashed off to fetch his camera, and Ginny decided to escape from the building before anyone else spotted her. She walked down Diagon Alley, not really sure where she was heading, until she realised she was standing in front of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes, her brothers' joke shop.
"Well, look here, Forge. It's our favourite sister."
"Why, so it is."
"I'm your only sister."
"Are you really?" Fred peered closely at her, and she pushed him away.
"What brings you here, Ginny?"
"I'm taking a break from trying to write my article. You know, the one about Harry's wedding."
"Can't believe he's marrying Pansy Parkinson. She was a Slytherin, for Merlin's sake."
The twins pulled gruesome faces at each other. Ginny realised they were attempting to impersonate Pansy.
"Oh, grow up, you two. She seems pleasant enough, and Harry's happy with her."
"But where's his house loyalty?"
"Remember when he brought her to the Burrow? Mum had to threaten us all, and Ron was banished to his room for the evening."
"At least he'd got Luna to entertain him."
"Looks like everyone's finding a partner and settling down. Mum's already asking when she's going to get grandkids. Hey Ginny, you'll be next to get married, you know."
"I doubt it. Where do I ever meet men?"
"At all those fancy parties you get invitations for because you're a famous reporter."
"Journalist, please, George."
"Sorry, journalist."
"Anyway, they're all rich, snobby idiots. And most of them are already married, and just looking for a mistress."
"When's the next one happening?"
"Next week sometime. I really don't want to go, I'm sick of it all. Having to dress up, making sure I haven't worn that outfit before, and all the rest of it."
"So don't go."
"It's my job. But I won't have a job if I don't get this silly article written on time."
"Solves your problem, doesn't it?" The twins grinned, and Ginny shook her head in despair.
"Anyway, nice seeing you, but I've got work to do. Bye."
The bell tinkled as she closed the door. Though they'd meant it as an insult, the fact that Harry Potter, a Gryffindor, was marrying Pansy Parkinson, a Slytherin from one of the dark families, would make a great angle for her story. Conjuring a notepad and a muggle pen, she grabbed a table at Florian Fortescue's ice cream parlour, where she spent the next hour scribbling her article. She'd have to thank Hermione for introducing her to muggle items such as ballpoint pens. Whenever she and Charlie returned from Romania, that was. With a flourish, she made the final full stop and lay down her pen.
"Florian, I'll have a double chocolate sundae to celebrate, please!"
Some time later, she wandered back to the Daily Prophet offices, feeling triumphant. Colin had returned, and was in the middle of processing his photographs. From what she could see, they were good. She owled her article off the relevant people, and apparated home.
The next week passed in a bit of a blur for Ginny. Harry and pansy loved the article, and Pansy asked her to be a bridesmaid. Ginny agreed, although she felt sorry for her – after all, Pansy's female friends had been avid supporters of the Dark Lord, and died in the war. Pansy had rebelled, joined the Order of the Phoenix, and fallen in love with Harry. Even now, she still wasn't accepted by everyone (such as Ron) simply because she had once been a Slytherin.
"I begged the Sorting Hat to put me in Slytherin, Ginny. My family would have disowned me if I'd been anywhere else. And when you're eleven, that's a scary thought."
"I know how you feel – every Weasley for generations has been a Gryffindor, and I was terrified I'd end up somewhere else. I guess we were both lucky."
Ginny decided to ask Pansy for her advice concerning the latest event she had an invitation for – it was a masquerade ball, supposedly.
"Nobody actually wears a mask – it's all done by glamours. You'll need to change your hair and eye colour, at least. What colour's your dress?"
"I haven't got one yet. I was hoping you could help?"
Pansy disappeared into her wardrobe, emerging a few moments later with a stunning red dress.
"Try this on."
Slipping out of her robes, Ginny pulled on the dress, which was more revealing than anything she'd worn before.
"They won't think this is respectable, Pansy…"
"You're not trying to look respectable. You represent everything they want but can't have, so you need to look sexy. Besides, no-one will even recognise you when I've finished."
That statement was certainly true, Ginny thought as she looked in the mirror a few minutes later. She didn't even recognise herself! Her waist-length hair was now a bright blonde, and her eyes blue. Despite all her protests, Pansy had made the dress slightly shorter and tighter. Ginny had to admit it was flattering.
"Here you go."
Ginny dodged a pair of high heels that Pansy threw in her direction, and slipped them on. Well, now she was ready, and she couldn't get out of it.
"Now remember, you're beautiful and aloof, too good to associate with them. That's the attitude they all have. Use it."
………………
Ginny displayed her invitation to the doorman as she entered the upmarket hotel where the ball was being held.
"Good evening, madam."
She nodded, accepted the proffered glass of champagne, and began to mingle with the crowds. George's words from a week ago seemed to have burned themselves into her brain, because she was inspecting every male for their suitability as a potential partner. Only one was deemed worth talking to, and she casually made her way across the room. He was tall, dark-haired and appeared to be alone, although she knew that his real physical appearance could be entirely different. After all, hers was.
He seemed to be relieved when she walked over to him; no-one else was even acknowledging his existence.
"You look as bored as I feel," he chuckled. "I hate these formal events."
"So why are you here?"
"Same reason as you, I imagine. It's expected of me."
She nodded.
"Care to dance, my lady?"
They swept gracefully out into the middle of the room, as the rest of the guests pointedly ignored him.
"Forgive me for asking, but whatever did you do for them to act like that?"
"Do you really not know? Well, my family were among Voldemort's supporters, and while many people here agreed with him, none would actually commit themselves to joining his ranks. They feel that showing your allegiance is a weakness."
"I see."
"And how about you? Why are you here?"
"I began receiving the invitations a few months ago. It clearly isn't acceptable to decline, so I've been attending ever since."
"They're hoping you'll agree to being someone's mistress. When they invite anybody who isn't part of the regular crowd, that's why."
"I had my suspicions."
"Nobody will come near you if you're with me – they like to pretend I don't exist."
…………………
"It's nearly midnight."
"Why does that matter?"
"At midnight, they remove everybody's glamour spells. I'm assuming you don't want them to know who you really are."
"That's true. I didn't know about that – I usually leave by about 10."
"We'd better leave now, in that case."
Taking her arm, he led her out of the hotel, and back into Diagon Alley.
"Don't feel you have to say yes, but I'd like to meet you for lunch tomorrow, if that's convenient."
"I'd love to, actually." Ginny smiled. Perhaps her brothers had been right after all.
"Say, 1 o'clock? At that café, just there. Don't wear the glamours though." He brushed a lock of hair out of her face. "I'll be carrying a rose, and I won't wear the glamours either."
"1pm tomorrow, then."
They both apparated away. Ginny appeared in Pansy's house, since her friend wanted to hear all about the evening, and Ginny needed her help removing the charms.
"His family were supporters of the Dark Lord? Hmm, I wonder…"
"Who is he, Pansy?"
"I'm not certain, but I think… you'll find out tomorrow! You said you got on well with him, so what does it matter?"
"It matters because my family might kill me for it, that's why."
"Rubbish. They accepted me, didn't they? And my family were among Voldemort's biggest supporters. Don't worry about it."
"Easy for you to say."
"Ginny, go home, get some sleep, and go meet him tomorrow. You liked him, and his personality won't have changed, even though his appearance will."
"OK. See you tomorrow, Pansy."
…………………
She looked around as she approached the café, trying to spot her mystery date. It wasn't too late to turn around, not yet. Then she saw him, twirling a rose the exact shade of the dress she'd worn last night. Glancing up to see who he was, she cursed Pansy for not warning her. Although he had his back towards her, that hair was the unmistakeable white-blond belonging to Draco Malfoy.
"Afternoon, Malfoy," she said cheerfully as she walked up to him.
"Can I help you, Weasley?"
"Actually, you can. I believe that is meant for me." She gestured to the rose.
"That was you last night? Bloody hell, I wonder how many of them knew there was a Weasley in the room."
"I'm going to kill Pansy for not warning me – she knew it was you all along."
"Pansy Parkinson? How is she? And how on earth did she end up with Potter?"
"Pansy will be fine until I see her. And as for her and Harry, they got together during the war."
"Why didn't you just walk away, Weasley? You didn't have to come over here, not once you knew it was me."
"Because, against all my expectations, I had a good time last night. And that was because of you. And Pansy basically told me to give it a chance, whoever you turned out to be."
He smiled amiably, and Ginny sat down at the table with him.
"I believe this would indeed be yours." He handed her the rose. "I can't believe I'm having to ask this, but what's your first name?" He did look embarrassed, and she laughed.
"Ginevra, but pretty much everyone calls me Ginny."
"Well, Ginny, I'm Draco." They shook hands, as though they were strangers meeting for the first time. Which wasn't far from the truth, as any previous conversation (with the exception of the ball last night) had consisted of them trading insults, and sometimes hexes. He seemed genuinely interested in what it had been like growing up with six brothers.
"I always wanted a brother or sister, but Mother said she'd done her duty to the Malfoys by having me, and she wasn't going through that again. But now I wonder why – she never supported Lucius in his Death Eater activities. Perhaps she was worried that he'd force his children into it as well, which he did try to do."
"Where did you go during the war?"
"Mother and I had a house in the Caribbean. We went there to avoid Lucius."
Looking at her watch, Ginny realised her lunch break was nearly over.
"It's been nice talking to you, but I really do have to get back to work, or I'll be late."
"Where do you work?"
"Daily Prophet."
"I'm going that way, I'll walk you back."
She nodded, and they got up to leave.
"I really should go and see Pansy – thank her for not telling you her suspicions."
"If you don't mind, I'll join you. Meet me here at 5?"
"Sounds good to me."
…………………
Pansy was shocked, to say the least, when the unlikely couple appeared on her doorstep and presented her with an enormous bouquet of flowers.
"That's to say thank you for persuading Ginny here to give me a chance."
Pansy grinned. "Well, come in and tell me what's going on between you two."
AN: Well, what did you think? The review button is begging to be clicked.