The Price

Summary: She should have known he would have asked for something in return after that time. Ginny just simply hadn't expected that it would be this.

For the If You Dare Challenge. Yup, still on my dark kick. I have no idea where I get these things from.

Prompt: There is Always a Price(19)

It had barely been a week since it happened but now Draco was standing there waiting expectantly infront of her while she just stared at him, wondering if she had heard correctly. Her mind flashed back to the event leading up to this.

She had been walking down a hall, one of many on the Dungeons level of the school. Where both Slytherin and Hufflepuff resided. Not looking where she was going, not listening to the snicker from one of the alcoves as she was lost in thought, specifically on a project for one of her classes. The very same project she held the papers for at the time. It was just research, mostly. Half the essay was buried in there as well. Somewhere.

It was only seconds after she started rounding a corner that she realized something was wrong. The first hint being that she tripped when her foot snagged over a clear string pulled taut. She hit the ground hard, laughter roaring above her from none other than Crabbe and Goyle.

Her first reflex was to hit them with the bat-bogey hex. That action was stopped when her wand was kicked away from her sprawled form, meters from her hand when previously it had been only a few inches away.

"Never had a lioness before. What about you, Goyle?"

"Nope. I'm sure she'll squirm though."

There was more laughter and her eyes widened at the implications of their words. Opening her mouth she released the beginnings of a scream-to be cut off from a kick to her stomach that sent her into a coughing fit. The next thing she knew was that her robe was being undone. Panic was sweeping over her.

Right here? In the hall?

At the sound of her robe being torn when they didn't have the patience to take it off her questions were answered. Once her coughing had subsided she went to scream again, at them or for help. Whatever words made their way out first.

"Crabbe! Goyle!" a distant voice called and she watched as the two hesitated for a moment until they reconginzed who it was and just smiled at her.

"Over here! You should see who we caught sneaking around Malfoy!"

Barely a second later he turned the corner, Draco Malfoy. Her heart sped up as his gaze fell towards her and then raised towards his cronies. "A weasel? It's easy to catch them. Hardly a trophy. I've been looking for you two, Snape wanted to talk to you."

Both Crabbe and Goyle's faces paled at the mention of their Head of House. "What for?" Goyle asked, looking back toward Ginny with a clear hunger in his eyes.

Draco's eyes seemed to narrow at this and it made her heart skip a beat out of pure terror of what he would do to her once they had left. "How should I know? He said to go see him! Now go!" The commanding tone of his voice made them scramble from the floor and take off running. Turning to her there was a scowl set on his face. "Get out of here before I change my mind Weasel."

He was letting her go? She was close to questioning him but quickly let it go and grabbed book bag and papers from the floor and ran away.

It was the next morning that she saw him again. Standing at the top of the stairs just above where the entrance to the Gryfindor dorms were. Twirling a wand absently in his hand. Her eyes settled on the wood and she recognized it as hers, hurrying up to stop short infront of him when he spoke though she had been determined to shout at him for having her wand. He didn't give her the oppurtunity.

"Can't you keep care of your own things?" He flicked it towards her and she caught it awkwardly, staring at him in surprise for the second time in a span of barely twelve hours. As he passed by though on his way down he spoke again and his words then had echoed in her ears. "That's two times you owe me now."

Now he was here again, infront of her. Having just said how it was time for her to pay up.

"What?" she asked rather angry at herself for waiting till the last possible second to leave the library where she had finished her research for the essay just under fifteen minutes ago. She was also cursing herself for using a hallway that not many students used at an ungodly hour like this.

"You owed me, but you never gave a timeframe yourself so I choosed. So, now it's time to pay up Weasel."

She scowled. "I don't owe you anything."

"Let's go over this then, shall we? First thing you owe me for, saving you from Crabbe and Goyle. Second, I gave you the wand that you had forgotten in a Slytherin hall."

With a sigh she asked, "What is it you want?"

The trademark Malfoy smirk appeared on his face. Then he stepped toward her in the next second, wrapping an arm around her waist and back to crush her against his chest. Her eyes widened in surprise, only going further when he murmured, "First paid." Her spine prickled as his hand moved up her back to caress the back of her head, tugging gently on her hair to tip her face up to his. Leaning down he claimed her lips and she practically jumped at the sudden feeling of his soft lips against hers. There was a mumble against her mouth but she still heard him clearly, "Second paid."