Ginny Weasley gave the Gryffindor password and passed into the common room. Harry was sitting on one of the couches with Ron. "Hi guys," she said brightly, "Have you seen the posters about the dance next month? Thirties Hollywood, great theme eh?" Although it was Ron that answered, she noticed Harry shift uncomfortably in his seat.
"Yeah, should be fun. What did people wear in the Thirties?"
"No idea, Ron. Still, we have six or seven weeks to find out. Should be a breeze. We need to find out about the dances of the time too. I take it we're all going? Yes?"
"I'm already fixed up, I'm taking Lavender." Said Ron. Again Harry shifted,
"I wanted to talk to you about that Ginny, sorry but I'm taking… Hermione." Ginny was stunned. Surely she had misheard. She kept control of herself and calmly walked upstairs to her dorm. Sitting on her bed she struggled to take in what she had heard. Harry was taking Hermione to the dance! He's been dating and groping me for the last nine months, and now he takes Hermione on a date. Bastard. She thought. Right Ginny; don't let it get to you. Don't get mad, get even. Show him that he's just made a huge mistake. Don't grovel, keep your dignity. Act like you're okay with it.
Just then there was a knock on the door. "Come in." Ginny called. She held her surprise in, when Hermione poked her head around the door.
"You sure about that?" Hermione asked. Let the acting begin, thought Ginny.
"Yes, of course, why shouldn't I be sure?" she asked sweetly.
"Well, I thought you might be upset about the dance. I can turn him down if you like."
"I can't deny that I'm disappointed, Hermione, but it's okay, really. Don't worry about it."
"I was as surprised as you must have been. I said he should take you. Won-Won had already told me that he was taking Lav-Lav."
"I told you Hermione, don't worry about it. What are you going to wear?" Inwardly seething, Ginny was impressed with her own performance.
"Something from the Thirties, I suppose. Don't know what yet."
"Same here. Right I'm off for a shower. See you later." Ginny said, feeling her composure starting to slip, she had to get away.
It became obvious the next day that the news was all over the school. Harry Potter has dumped Ginny Weasley in favour of Hermione Granger. To avoid the sniggers and behind the hand comments, Ginny had taken to using the less frequented corridors to get around the school. This worked well until she found herself face-to-face with Draco Malfoy. She waited for the usual insults and was surprised when none came. "Hello Weasley." was all he said.
"What do you want Malfoy? I'm in a hurry." His grin unnerved her a little.
"No you're not. If you were in a hurry, you wouldn't be taking this route back to your common room. Give me two minutes for a quick chat?"
"What could you possibly have to say that would be of any interest to me?"
"It will only cost you two minutes of your time to find out."
"Make it quick then. What do you want to chat about?" He opened the door to a vacant classroom.
"In here," when she hesitated he continued, "oh come on, for once in your life, trust me. You won't regret it." she followed him in. They sat at a double desk.
"Are the rumours true? About you and Potter, I mean."
"Yes, but why does that interest you? Apart from an opportunity to gloat."
"I'm sorry, that must hurt. I'm not going to gloat."
"Yes it hurts, but again, why are you so interested?" Draco looked thoughtful,
"How would you like to… er, get your own back on Potter? To really piss him off."
"And just how would I do that?"
"Go to the dance… with me." Wow! She hadn't expected that. That would certainly have the desired effect, she decided. Harry would not like that, not one little bit. Trying not to seem too eager, she asked,
"Tell me more, like what's in it for you?" he smiled,
"Two things. One; I get to go to the dance with a beautiful girl. Two; I get to put one over on Potter. But hear me out, we can make it even better."
"Better? How?" She had already decided to do it. Did he really call her beautiful? She would hear more before accepting.
"If anyone asks you to the dance, decline gracefully. Just say that you have decided that you're not going at all. Nobody will bother if I say I'm not going to some stupid dance. Then we just turn up on the night and watch the faces. Especially Potter's."
"You're a devious git, aren't you, Malfoy?"
"Thank you, I'll take that as a compliment, Ginny. I can call you Ginny, can't I?"
"Yes, that's okay. I've been called worse, as you very well know." he smiled again,
"Sorry about that. It won't happen again. Can you dance? I mean dance, not stand on one spot jigging about as though you've been hit by a jelly-legs curse."
"I don't know, I've never tried. Can you?"
"I've had dance lessons since I was eight. It's not something I talk about at school, especially in Slytherin. I'd prefer that it stayed that way until dance night. I can waltz, tango, foxtrot and tap. I even tried ballet. Come on let's try." He stood and offered his hand. Ginny joined him. From his pocket he produced a small gadget and tapped some keys. Music filled the room. A silencing spell made sure that outside the room nothing could be heard. So began Ginny's first dance lesson.
Over the next two weeks a pattern emerged. Ginny Weasley would return to the Gryffindor common room after her evening meal. She would change out of her school robes into jeans and a T-shirt and then leave again, returning, often perspiring, some 3 or 4 hours later. At the weekends she would disappear for the entire day. If anyone who asked what she was doing, she politely requested that they mind their own business. During that two week period, one thing had happened that she regretted deeply. She had hurt Neville Longbottom. He had approached her as she was leaving the common room and asked her to be his date for the dance. Her answer had been abrupt.
"No thanks, I don't need a sympathy date." She had seen the hurt expression on his face and had quickly tried to make amends. In a softer tone she said, "I'm sorry, Neville, that was an awful thing to say. I didn't mean it the way it sounded. I appreciate you asking, it's just that I've decided I'm not going to the dance. I'll give this one a miss. Forgive me?"
"Yeah right." He had replied, but only after his back was turned and he was walking away.
The next weekend the students were permitted to visit Hogsmeade. Draco arranged to meet Ginny in a quiet corner where they could be out of sight. When he told her that his plan for the day was to apparate to Malfoy Manor, she faked a look of shock and said shyly,
"I don't usually let a boy apparate me on the first date." He grinned and took hold of her arm.
"Don't knock it till you've tried it. Here we go." Hogsmeade disappeared. The couple appeared in a room at Draco's home. Ginny looked around,
"I might have known. Surprise, surprise, here we are in what I assume is your bedroom. There had better be a good explanation apart from the obvious one."
"We won't be doing anything in here. Sorry if that disappoints you. Follow me." He led her through a door near the side of the bed. She gaped in amazement at the large, bright room with large windows down one side. On the opposite side the whole wall was mirrored from floor to ceiling. At just about waist height for Draco a barre ran the length of the wall. Next to the door they had entered through, a console held record decks and CD players.
"Wow, this is some room, Draco. I didn't think muggle electrics worked for us."
"In areas of intense magical activity, such as Hogwarts, they won't. But this place is, magically speaking, very quiet since my father died, and I cleaned out all the Dark Magic. Now then, listen up. You've done a couple of weeks of tap and waltz. It's time for a change." He checked his watch, "We should be back in Hogsmeade by four thirty, so that gives us about six hours. Plenty of time to start learning the Tango."
"Ok now," he said, this is the starting position." He stepped closer to Ginny and gently put her hand on his shoulder. His arm snaked around her small waist, pulling her closer to him. This caused Ginny to take a sharp breath. He took her free right hand in his left. Draco could feel her hesitation,
"Scared? I'm not going to bite you know." He whispered in her ear. "Unless you want me to, of course." He added with a smirk.
"I'm not afraid of you." She replied in a firm voice looking him directly in the eye. They had never been this close before. To a bystander, it would look like the two were lovers about to go at it.
"Toes and elbows touching. This is a dance of passion; we must be close for it to be done properly. Now turn your head away and look over my right shoulder." He pulled her tighter into his body. Merlin, but he's strong, she thought.
"One." Draco pressed lightly on the small of Ginny's back making her instinctively take a step backwards.
"Two." Another press and another step back for Ginny.
"Three." He brought their hands up above their heads and made eye contact. Draco's icy blue-grey ones stared into Ginny's light brown ones, and something sparked. Okay this is not going to turn into anything but a dance lesson, she thought, so why the hell can't I take my eyes off him?
In two hours she had the basic steps of the Tango under control. A house elf brought sandwiches and juice and they took a break. "Do you know Ginny, every time we start something new, you pick it up very quickly: I'm a good dance teacher, but not that good. I think you are a natural dancer. If you put your mind to it, you could be very, very good." She blushed at the compliment.
"So how did you get into dancing?" she asked, taking a bite of an excellent chicken salad sandwich.
"My mother. She loved dancing, and she was very good at it. When she was fourteen, she won just about every title in the regional competitions for her age group. It was only my evil git of a father that made her give it up. She still resents him for that; if she had a stronger personality then it might have been different. For the first three years that I did it, we had to keep it a secret from him. He was not a happy bunny when he found out. That was one of the few times I defied him."
"So why are you willing to let Hogwarts find out now? After all these years of being the school's premier arsehole. Which is your true character, Draco, that one or the one you're showing me now?"
"If I'm honest, neither. But probably closer to this one than the other one. This is my last year at school. I'll leave with qualifications that I have absolutely no interest in using. I inherited three quarters of the family fortune; mother got the rest, so I don't need a job as such. Just managing the estate will keep me occupied." Abruptly, he changed the subject. "Break is over. Back to work."
In the middle of their afternoon session Draco ramped up the pressure, becoming more demanding and less conciliatory in the face of errors. Both his and hers. "We can do better than this, Ginny." He said, throwing her a towel and taking one for himself. "It's just little things that are spoiling it. Let's try and get it right at least once."
"I'm shattered, Draco. I'm sweating, I stink and I need a shower, so do you for that matter." when she saw him grin she raised her hand. "Don't even bother with a clever answer to that. Just start the damn music again." She was smiling too.
They were halfway through their next attempt when Ginny came out of a turn and met Draco's arm coming the other way. His open hand landed squarely on her left breast. Their eyes met. She waited briefly for him to move his hand. When he didn't she slapped it away. "That was your mistake; you were too quick out of your turn." She said.
"Bullshit. You didn't step in far enough and you were too slow."
"You were both wrong." Said a female voice. Draco spun round.
"Mother! What are you doing here?" Narcissa was standing in the doorway.
"I live here Draco."
"No, I mean here and now."
"I'm watching two very good dancers spoiling a routine because they are fighting each other's moves. They are thinking too much about what they are doing. Now you can keep on doing that, or you can listen to some advice. What's your pleasure?"
"Please show us, Mrs. Malfoy, I'm Ginny, by the way." Ginny held out her hand and stepped forward. Narcissa shook her hand,
"Please call me Cissy. I'm pleased to meet you. Right let's start with the move you just messed up. As I said, you were both wrong. Ginny, you didn't step in far enough but that was because you drifted too far out when you turned." Draco smirked,
"Told you so." His mother turned on him.
"Your mistake was bigger, so stop with the smart mouth. Your turn was one rotation short, which is why you came out of it early and not close enough."
"Told you so." Said Ginny poking out her tongue at Draco. "Sorry Mrs. Malfoy, we must sound like a couple of pre-pubescent kids."
"Actually you sound like a couple of dance partners fighting over a routine. Sit down, the pair of you. You two are good, very good. Not close to competition standard, of course, but you could be. I think your basic problem is that you are thinking too much about what the other one is doing. Just worry about your own moves, because if you both get your own moves right, you'll have a good routine. You've got to learn to trust each other. So come on, into the start position."
They stood and went into hold. Narcissa moved around adjusting a head position here, and arm there. They started to dance and she would occasionally call 'Stop' and they would freeze. Once more, hands, arms, leg and head positions would be adjusted. A couple of repeats later they cracked it.
They danced the Tango, virtually error free, for the rest of the time they had available that day. With every repetition she became more sure-footed and confident. He secretly enjoyed feeling of her body pressed tightly to his. He had not noticed that she came to feel the same way. She especially liked looking into his eyes. She found them fascinating. They called it a day and as they stepped apart he placed a soft kiss on her cheek. "You're a good partner, Ginny. I like dancing with you. Well done."
Returning to Hogwarts, they by-passed Hogsmeade and apparated unseen, straight to the school gates. By the time the rest of the students returned, they were in their respective common rooms, showered and dressed, as though they had been there all day.
Hermione had queried why they hadn't seen Ginny in Hogsmeade during the day. Ginny replied that she had developed a bad headache and had returned to the castle and gone to bed. She had slept and was feeling better now. Later, Ginny and Hermione had sat on her bed idly chatting. Hermione had asked again where Ginny kept disappearing to during the evenings. "Don't tell anyone Hermione, but I go running in the grounds. I'm not going to the dance and that's all anybody talks about these days, so I get out of the way." That seemed to satisfy Hermione, who changed the subject.
"Tell me something Ginny; have you noticed anything different about Malfoy lately?" Ginny's mouth dried up instantly and her heart began to pound harder within her chest.
"What do you mean different?"
"Well it used to be that just passing him in a corridor would be enough to bring some insult or filthy comment. You know, 'mudblood' or some such thing. But this term he hasn't said a word and he even smiled once or twice. Have you noticed anything?"
"Now that you mention it, I haven't heard 'blood traitor' or 'Weaslette' for a while. D'you think that… no, it couldn't be. That's ridiculous."
"What's ridiculous?"
"That perhaps, just perhaps, he's turning into a… nice guy."
"Don't hold your breath waiting for that, Ginny, that would be too much to hope for. Pity really, he's quite good to look at. I should imagine that a nice Draco Malfoy would be really hot." Ginny felt her temper kindle. She maintained her outward calm while thinking. Oh no you don't Granger, you've had one boy off me and that's enough. Malfoy is mine, you bitch, and don't you forget it.
"Yeah, you're right, but why the sudden interest in Malfoy?" Hermione made her promise never to repeat what she was about to be told. Ginny promised.
"A couple of months ago I had an erotic dream about him. I mean very erotic. I didn't think anything of it at the time. We all have those dreams, right? Only I had it again last night. It was even more intense," she lowered her voice to a whisper, "and it didn't end, like normal dreams, just before the… climax. If you get my meaning. I woke up feeling like I'd actually just had sex." Realising what she had said, she hastened to add, "Not that I know how that feels, of course." Had she been able to read Ginny's mind at that moment, Hermione would have been very surprised at what she would have found there.
You lucky cow, Ginny thought, first you steal my boyfriend and now you're having dreams that I should be having. Leave something for me, will you? She became impatient for Dance Night. She was going to blow Harry Potter and Hermione Granger clean out of the water, not to mention their tiny minds.
Before settling down to sleep, Ginny lay thinking about her conversation with Hermione. More specifically she was thinking of her own reaction to what Hermione had told her. Malfoy is mine? What on earth made me think that? Of course he's not mine. An inner voice betrayed her. No, but you would like him to be, wouldn't you? No! It's Malfoy for heavens sake, he's a… a…" Great looking piece of ass. No, stop that. Stop it. Not on your life, this is such fun. Like why the jealousy over Hermione's dream? Shut up. Shut up. Shut up! Eventually she slept.
Just before eleven the next morning, Ginny set off from the common room to meet Draco in the Room of Requirement. This was where she had been going during the evenings and weekends. They had worked hard the previous day and this morning her muscles were stiff and sore. Entering the room she saw Draco doing some stretches, working out the strains of yesterday. A well fitted pair of black slacks topped by a crisp white shirt, undone to one button above his waistband with sleeves rolled up to the middle of strong looking forearms, presented a picture that made her heart beat faster. He saw her coming and relaxed. "Morning Ginny, from the way you're walking I would say that you're as sore as I was. Do ten minutes stretching and listen while I talk." Ginny stripped down to a pair of shorts and a sports bra, something that Draco sincerely wished she had not done. He felt a little better when she pulled on a T-shirt. Now he only had her legs to distract him.
"Right, I've been giving some thought to what we might do at the dance. What would you think about a tango and a three or four minute tap routine?"
"Sounds alright. We'll need to concentrate practicing that though. There's only three weeks to go."
"We'll take it relatively easy today and then crack on tomorrow. I'll have to do the choreography for the tap. Nothing too extravagant."
"I have to think about what I'm going to wear and how I'm going to get it here in secret."
"I'm sure you'll think of something."
The next day fate intervened. A delegation of girls had visited Dumbledore in his office. They had demanded, yes demanded, an extra Hogsmeade weekend in addition to the normal monthly one, in order to prepare for the dance. Many of them still had outfits to get. Unsurprisingly, Dumbledore, faced with a posse of hormonal teenaged girls, had acquiesced. Draco and Ginny would get to spend another two Saturday's at Malfoy Manor. They spent the rest of the week tap dancing, with just enough tango to maintain the progress they had made.
Ginny was not impressed with her tap. She thought she would never get anywhere near Draco's standard and was holding him back. "Perhaps you should do the tap on your own, Draco. I'll only embarrass myself; or worse… you." He looked at her, strangely, she thought.
"You could never embarrass me, Ginny, even if you tried. Don't worry; we're not going to do anything beyond your ability that might make you uncomfortable."
"Okay, on your head be it," she sighed, "show me that move again."
Saturday. Two weeks before the dance. Malfoy Manor.
Draco and Ginny arrived earlier than their previous visit which pleased Narcissa. She had planned the day ahead, not particularly strenuous, but an early start would help.
"We'll start with a couple of tangos. I want to see how much you've forgotten since you were last here." She was pleasantly surprised that no major errors had shown themselves. "Well done. You have obviously been training. Just a couple of minor points." She demonstrated the detail of her concern and they went through the dance again. "Excellent. Now take ten minutes out in the fresh air and come back ready for some drama. Go on, out."
Ginny followed Draco downstairs and out onto a large patio. The day was grey and overcast and cool. "Nice garden." She said idly.
"That's mother's department. I couldn't spot the difference between an oak tree and a twig." They wandered around the flower beds. She was thinking about the fact that she felt so at ease. This was Malfoy Manor after all, and she was a Weasley. She could almost feel the ghost of Lucius Malfoy squirming in his grave.
"Draco, tell me again why we're doing this? I seem to be losing focus."
"You wanted to give Potter a kick up the arse, remember."
"Oh yeah, that's right."
Draco turned to face her, his face deadly serious. "That was my second reason. But that doesn't matter to me anymore. I don't give a damn what Potter thinks. Even my first reason has changed. Do you remember what that was?"
Her face reddened, "Well, I…" she stammered. He looked into her eyes and she felt as though he was casting a spell that had nothing to do with magic.
"I wanted to go to the dance with a beautiful girl. Just change that to, I want to go to the dance with you Weaslette. And only you. From now on please consider Weaslette as a term of affection. You see Ginny I…"
"Draco, Ginny, your ten minutes are up. Get back in here." The voice of Narcissa Malfoy wrecked the moment between them. They stood before her again. "Right. Tango again. Go." After a flawless tango, she sat them down. "Okay, that was fine, but what it needs now is drama. Let me show you. Draco up here." They got into hold. "Now Ginny let me show you what you're doing." They went through a few steps. "Now watch me." She repeated the move. "Do you see the difference?"
"I think so. Your head movements are much sharper, and some of your leg movements are more like kicks."
"Correct, make your movements snappy and precise." She put them through two more hours of training before stopping for lunch. The last thing she showed them was a dip. Ginny ended up draped backwards over Draco's left arm, her own left arm was extended behind her head, her right arm bent at the elbow placing her right hand on his left cheek. Draco was bent forward with his face a few inches from hers. His right arm extended behind him. Their eyes were locked into each others. This, Narcissa explained was the position to be in at the end of the dance. "No more dancing today, let's watch a movie." They went to another room where Narcissa slipped a DVD into a player. "I love these machines. Now in this film you will see some of the absolute best movie dancing ever filmed. Draco, watch the tap sequences, it may give you some ideas." Ginny sat on a large sofa between the two Malfoy's and they watched Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds and Donald O'Connor in 'Singin' in the Rain.' O'Connor did a run up a wall and back-flipped over onto his feet. Draco grabbed Ginny's hand,
"Wow, did you see that… I have just got to try that. I hope you can do a cushioning spell Ginny."
"I had six brothers when I was little," she said with a hint of sarcasm, "of course I can do a cushioning charm." It was five minutes before she realised that she and Draco were still holding hands. Her mind drifted to that moment on the patio. What, she wondered, had he been about to say. She felt a nervous tension in her midriff. The film ended. Narcissa stood in front of them.
"Great movie that. Okay, Draco go work on the tap routine, Ginny come with me. Sorry, but you'll have to let go of each other." She said with a wry smile.
Ginny followed Narcissa to a bedroom not far away. Narcissa threw open a large wardrobe, and turned to look at Ginny. "Believe it or not I used to be the same size as you. Try some of these dresses; there should be half a dozen tango outfits here. By the way, how is the music being provided?"
"We're having an orchestra, or rather a large band. Swing bands I think they're called. Somebody called Simeon something-or-other.
"Oh, that must be Simeon Scantlebury. Well, well, good old Simi. Haven't seen him for years. Hmm interesting." She saw the dress Ginny was holding in front of herself. "That will do very nicely, if you like it you can wear that one."
Ginny was holding a tango dress. Open to the waist on the right side, a black lace outer overlaid a flesh coloured lining which Narcissa assured her gave an illusion of nudity under the lace. In the right lighting it looked sensational.
"May I… try it on, Mrs Malfoy?"
"Only if you call me Narcissa. And while you change talk to me about Draco. I would never have expected a Malfoy to fall for a Weasley."
"Fall for… No Draco hasn't fallen for me. We just have a mutual aim of screwing with Harry Potter's head."
"Oh, you are so wrong, Ginny. He is seriously attracted to you and also… don't bother denying it, you are attracted to him. You won't need that bra, by the way."
"I… um, he's changed. The girls at Hogwarts knew he was a good looking guy, but he was too busy maintaining his reputation as an evil git. He made my life a misery on more than one occasion."
"That was purely his father's influence. He made Draco's life hell. How many men do you know that would use the Cruciatus on his own son?
"My God, he really did that?"
"Yes, he did. I should thank you for what you are doing, Ginny. Since his father died I've noticed a significant change in Draco. The real person, the one inside, is starting to appear. He needed someone to trust him and give him a chance. It seems as though you are the one. But now let's have a look at you. Hmm, it looks fine, it just needs…" Narcissa waved her wand; Ginny felt the dress shrink by at least one size. She looked in a mirror. Oh My God, she thought, is that really me? Her bust looked fuller, her cleavage highly visible and her waist slimmer. The lining only fitted where it touched, but that was okay because it touched absolutely everywhere. If it's done that to the front, then my bum is going to look enormous, she thought. As she turned her back to the mirror she noticed the side panel of the knickers she was wearing visible where the dress was cut to the waist. They will have to go, she decided. Looking back over her shoulder, she couldn't keep the grin off her face. Wow, fantastic, Potter will have a metaphorical heart attack.
Early on Monday evening Albus Dumbledore looked, over steepled fingers at the two nervous students before his desk. The seventh year Ravenclaw girl was near to tears and the boy swayed from foot to foot. "I will be writing to your parents if another occurrence of this kind is brought to my attention. That is all, you may go." The students all but ran from the room.
Sitting behind Dumbledore's shoulder, Minerva McGonagall smiled. "Albus, you do realise that the message you have just given those two is 'don't get caught again' don't you."
"Minerva, I remember a very similar interview just after my appointment as Head of Gryffindor. Perhaps you remember. I gave the same advice then."
Minerva blushed, no mean feat for a woman well past the first flush of youth, "Yes, Albus I remember."
Dumbledore chuckled in his inimitable manner. "You know, Minerva, the more times change, the more they stay the same. Did you ever get caught again?"
"Mind your own business, Albus." She smiled, "I'll be going now." Two minutes later the fireplace in Dumbledore's office flared green and the face of Narcissa Malfoy appeared. They greeted each other and she enquired as to whether it was a convenient time for a visit. Shortly thereafter, she was sitting where Minerva had been.
"To what do I owe the pleasure, Narcissa?" he said leaning back in his seat,
"I need your help Professor. It's something that could reduce the tension between Slytherin and Gryffindor."
"Does it concern Draco and a certain Gryffindor redhead? I know they're up to something, but I have yet to find out what.
"Let me enlighten you. Here's what I want to do…"
The next morning a special assembly was held for sixth and seventh years. Dumbledore rose to address the students. "Good morning. I will not keep you long. I know how eager you are to get to your lessons. I need a couple of volunteers for a task. So please raise your hand if you are not attending the upcoming dance." Only half a dozen hands went up, Ginny and Draco included. The headmaster looked as though he was considering his options. "Mr Malfoy and… mmm, Miss Weasley. Please remain behind. The rest of you may go. Thank you for your time."
That lunchtime Ginny Weasley stormed into the Gryffindor common room. "Bloody Dumbledore! Ye gods, Fred and George spent years telling me 'never, ever, volunteer for anything'." She faced her brother, "This is your fault Ron Weasley, why didn't you stop me putting my hand up? Thanks to you I have to spend the entire weekend with that evil git Malfoy. I'm going to my dorm and I don't want to be disturbed." She went upstairs leaving Ron, Harry and Hermione open-mouthed and speechless. Ginny fell on her bed and buried her face in her pillow to deaden the sound of her laughter, which otherwise would have been heard in Hogsmeade. They had permission to spend Saturday night at Malfoy Manor.
Also present at the manor that weekend was Simeon Scantlebury with a reduced version of his band. With the live music to work with, Narcissa put them through hell. Ginny was in the next room to Draco's, separated only by a shared bathroom. The two of them were too shattered to even think about any sort of 'fooling around'. On Sunday evening after returning to Hogwarts, Ginny had just collapsed on her bed. Narcissa had declared their routine 99% perfect and that, thought Ginny, made her present pains worthwhile. Hermione had heard her groans and when questioned, Ginny had said that she had overdone the running and was paying the price.
The Saturday of the dance dawned. Ginny Weasley slept late. She had not climbed into her bed until 2am; she had gone over Draco's plan in her mind. She had the routines down pat. There was just one thing troubling her. Draco. She had started all this to make Harry squirm. Not because she wanted him back, she didn't. If he could dump her so casually then he had no real feelings for her, despite the words he spoke so easily while attempting, unsuccessfully, to get under her clothes. She didn't blame Hermione; she had been, and indeed was still, a good friend and Ginny hoped Harry would treat her better. Now though, it was less about Harry and more about Draco. The last thing she had expected was that she would develop feelings for Draco. No, she thought, this was more than feelings. Feelings were what she had, or rather used to have, for Harry. Draco was more than that, she knew that now. She was hopelessly, helplessly, 100% prime time in love with Draco Malfoy, hating every minute that they were apart. She fell asleep wondering how he felt about her.
She slept well.
Their plan called for her to enter the hall at 7.40. She had hung around the common room in jeans and a jumper until the rest of the students had left. They all looked smart and glamorous, and were gone a few minutes before seven. Harry was wearing a tuxedo and Hermione was in a dress reminiscent of the one she had worn to the now infamous Yule Ball years before. It was longer, mid-calf length. She filled out the bust line better than before and her cleavage was more pronounced. She wore elbow length red gloves.
When the common room emptied, Ginny had dashed up to her dorm, showered, applied her make-up and dressed in record time. Right on time she was ready. The bottom half of her tango dress hidden under a long school skirt. Around her shoulders was a thirties style cape which hid the top of her dress. The fishtail at the rear of the dress she had lifted under the skirt, held in place by the waistband. When she dropped the skirt the dress would fall into place.
At 7.40 precisely Ginny took a deep breath and entered the Great Hall. As luck would have it, there were still two seats at the table where Harry, Hermione, Ron, Lavender, Neville and Luna were sitting. Boldly Ginny walked to the table and asked, "Anyone mind if I sit here for a few minutes. I'm not stopping long, just thought I'd pop in and sort of get the flavour, if you see what I mean." They made small talk for several minutes, although Harry never said a word, looking anywhere except at Ginny.
The lights dimmed. "Strange." Said Hermione, "It's not supposed to start for another ten minutes." They watched as from the opposite corner a figure stood. Music started. The figure strode, ramrod straight, into the centre of the floor, stopping when he was level with Ginny. She had, surreptitiously, undone the waistband and zip of her skirt, all was ready. Her heart thumped in her chest. She was so ready for this. Her mind emptied of all thoughts but the dance.
"It's Malfoy, that's bloody Draco Malfoy." Exclaimed Ron. Draco snapped his head to the right and thrust his arm out towards Ginny. The whole room gasped as one when Ginny rose from her seat. The school skirt dropped to the floor and her dress fell into place. In a dramatic gesture she threw the cape away. Harry stared at the sight of Ginny's bare right thigh. He heard Ron mutter something about 'no knickers'. It certainly looked that way. He had no idea how to react. He resisted an impulse to stand and push her back to her seat. He was burning inside. Why… how could she do this, with Malfoy of all people? He felt Hermione's elbow jab into his ribs.
"Hey, you're supposed to be here with me, Harry." Without taking his eyes off Ginny he murmured,
"What? Oh… er yeah, right."
Ginny threw her left arm out and took Draco's hand and in response to the slight pull of his arm did a spin across the front of him to finish at arms length on his left. Her left arm extended out and slightly up, the hand position nicely poised. He tugged again and she spun back into hold. The band hit the full tango rhythm and the unlikeliest couple in the school went into their routine. Ginny caught a glimpse of Harry's face. It bore a mixture of disbelief, confusion and anger. Strangely, the sight gave her little pleasure and no measure of satisfaction. This really was about more than Harry now. She concentrated on the dance. In the places where she was required to stare into Draco's eyes with desire in her own, she found that no performance was required. She did that quite naturally.
Two figures stood in a shadowed corner. "You have trained them well, Narcissa. I'm no expert, but it looks very good to me."
"Thank you, Albus. As the saying goes, you ain't seen nuthin yet."
The tango was nearing its finale. Ginny managed to whisper to Draco. "I want to do the final dip in front of Harry." A simple 'okay' was all he said. He modified their route around the floor and as they came before Harry's table, swung Ginny back over his left forearm. Her left arm went back over her head, her right hand on his left cheek. His face was inches from hers when he did something that they had not rehearsed. His right hand, instead of being extended artistically behind him, caressed her cheek and his lips met hers in what was, given the circumstances, a tender kiss. She savoured the moment as once again all thoughts of Harry vanished from her mind. He held the kiss until the final notes of the music died away. A slight pause and he lifted her upright. Hand in hand, at arms length they walked back to the front of the bandstand. Turning to face the room they were grinning as they accepted the applause from the room. The clapping stopped when the lights went out, plunging the room into darkness. Narcissa had aimed her wand moments before the room darkened, she muttered an incantation.
The lights came on and revealed Draco and Ginny. He was now dressed in white trousers and a close fitting white shirt the V neck of which was open down to his waist. Ginny was in identical clothes but all in black. They were standing back to back and leaning into each other with their arms folded and one leg crossed in front of the other. The band's vocalist walked onto the stage carrying a microphone. He started to sing.
"Me…" Draco and Ginny stopped leaning against each other. Draco moved away from her, tapping out a rhythm with his shoes. "…and my…" A jerk of his head summoned Ginny to him. She copied his movements. "… sha…" tap, tap, tappity tap. "… dow." The two of them flowed across the floor. Whatever moves and rhythms Draco did, Ginny repeated. The audience with the exception of half of one table were suitably impressed. As they came to the last line of the song a large upright wooden panel appeared. Draco spotted it and took off at a run. He leapt at the board, left foot, right foot, swing the left, and push off hard with the right. He completed the back-flip and landed on his feet. He moved to one side and beckoned Ginny to repeat the move. Ginny started to run. Hermione gasped,
"Surely she isn't going to try that!"
As she closed on the panel she slid artistically to a stop and turned to wave an admonishing finger at Draco. They moved together and as the music ended assumed the same back-to-back position they'd started in. They relaxed and stood straight. Ginny felt for his hand and intertwined their fingers. The room was quiet and then they saw Hermione stand and begin to clap. Followed swiftly by Neville, Luna, Dean Thomas, and after a moment there were only two people not applauding. Harry and Ron, who was red-faced and being restrained by Lavender. Harry sat motionless, staring at the floor.
Ginny and Draco now only had to walk the length of the hall and out of the door and their evening was done. They were halfway to the door when Harry planted himself in front of them. "Ginny, what the hell are you doing?"
"Why Harry," She said innocently, "it was a tango and a tap dance. Weren't you watching?" She was very conscious of his eyes, which even now were gazing at the bare skin of her chest that was visible in the cut of her shirt.
"Don't be cute, Ginny. I mean why with… him. Are you trying to humiliate me?" That did it. Although her voice was quiet, her rage was obvious.
"Humiliate you!? You don't need my help for that Potter; you're doing a great job on your own. I did this for me. For me, you arrogant git, so… so up yours Potter." Draco had had enough, and not wanting the situation to deteriorate further, he lifted their joined hands,
"See this Potter? Well suck it up and get used to it. You will be seeing it a lot. Now, if you will excuse us, we have things to do." He pushed past Harry and the two of them left the Great Hall. When they were clear of the hall they broke into a run, yelling and laughing. Stopping only briefly to remove their tap shoes which were making a hell of a racket as they ran.