Disclaimer: OBVIOUSLY the characters and place setting are not mine. This is the ultimate disclaimer - the only one you'll see for this story - so you may as well get it into your head that I am not JK Rowling, okay?! Plot's mine, though, as well as any characters you don't recognize.
Author's note: This is sort of a take-off on a Roald Dahl story called "The Great Switcheroo", only in MY story, they don't really mean to have that little embarrassing mix-up. So . . . Hope you like it! Advice is nice, and reviews amuse, so why not review my story? Sorry for a bit of a slow first chapter. It gets interesting in Chapter 2. Wait, why am I apologizing . . ? Anyway, as I write this, I've got 4 chapters written. :D
- - - - - - -"Good afternoon, class," Professor Snape said, more to the students of his house (Slytherin) than to the unlucky Gryffindors with whom they shared Potions that day. "Today we will be brewing the Attentus potion. Ten house points to whomever can tell me what it does."
Ginny Weasley raised her hand and found hers was the only one raised in the classroom, or rather, dungeon. It was lucky she actually finished the reading last night. Maybe she'd win some house points.
"Yes, Weasley?" Snape snapped, throwing annoyed looks at the Slytherins.
"It increases the attention levels in a person, so they're hyper- alert," Ginny answered.
"Ten points to Gryffindor," said Snape resignedly. "But, incidentally, I shall have to take ten points from Gryffindor for not having your books and other materials out, Weasley."
Having had Snape for more than five years, Ginny had enough sense not to argue. Her fellow Gryffindors muttered in anger and disgust, but no one wanted more points taken away.
Throwing Snape a murderous glance, Ginny resignedly pulled from her bag her materials for class. From her "1001 Magical Herbs and Fungi" textbook fell a triangular, folded-up piece of parchment. Making sure no one saw her, she slipped her hands beneath the table and soundlessly unfolded it. She pretended she was reading the book in her lap, but she read,
Tonight. Same time. Same place. - TBWL
Ginny had to stifle a laugh at the way he signed his note. It was a shortened version of her favorite nickname for him - The Boy Who Lived.
Yes, the inevitable had finally happened, and Ginny and Harry were at last together and dating. She knew she was now Public Enemy #1 to about half the girls at Hogwarts, but Ginny loved being his girlfriend, and not just because of the jealous looks she got so many times a day. Harry was so kind to her, so brave and noble and everything else she'd ever want in a boy. In a man, she corrected herself. Well, nearly one.
Lost once again in thoughts of her favorite hero, it took Ginny a moment to realize that everyone was moving to the front of the classroom to collect ingredients, and that there was a certain teacher's assistant in costly black robes standing in front of her with his usual smirk.
"Reading notes, Weasel?" he drawled lazily. "Thought you were supposed to be the good student."
"Oh, shut up, Malfoy," Ginny spat, hastily shoving Harry's note back into her bag and hoping she wasn't blushing. She pushed past him to join the line of students at Snape's desk, then realized he was behind her again. She set her jaw and prepared herself for any of his typical cracks about the state of the Weasley finances.
"Seems to me that Scarhead should be contributing to the Weasley family fortune," he observed from behind her as the line moved forward. "Oh, wait - is that why you're going out with him? Does he pay you to snog him?"
"Didn't I tell you to shut up?" Ginny hissed, feeling brave.
"Yes, but I believe the real question is, do I really care what you tell me to do?" he pondered slowly. "Add a bit more powdered root of asphodel," he muttered to a fellow Slytherin. As the TA, Malfoy's main job was to ensure that all the Slytherins brewed their potions perfectly, and that all Gryffindors' errors were to be pointed out and laughed at.
Choosing not to answer his question, Ginny collected her ingredients and walked quickly back to her cauldron, head high in the air. Nothing Malfoy could say could bother her, except perhaps calling her Weasel. "This from the boy who was once an actual rodent," Ginny thought, her eyes narrowing as she crushed her beetle heads, imagining each one to be Malfoy's face. "Take that, Malfoy's stupid face . . . though it's not, in and of itself, a horrible-looking thing," she had to admit to herself.
Ginny brewed her potion perfectly, if only to annoy Malfoy. He began to whisper something very probably insulting at her as she practically ran out of the dungeons, but she paid him no attention. He wasn't worth anybody's. No wonder he has no girlfriend, Ginny sniggered to herself. Over the past few years she'd realized that Malfoy's constant bullying was not worth her time at all. Finally, she'd gotten her priorities straight, she thought to herself, smiling. Well, hopefully. It rather seemed as if she'd blown the whole Harry thing out of proportion - he was in her thoughts all day long - but that was love, wasn't it?
After quickly throwing her bag onto her bed in the dormitory, Ginny joined her fellow Hogwarts students in the Great Hall for a delicious dinner of grilled chicken and salad. She slipped into her usual seat between Harry and her best friend, Isabelle Levy.
"Ah, here she is," announced Harry. "Shh, don't tell her we were just talking about her."
Ginny rolled her eyes dramatically. "Right, Scarhead," she drawled lazily in an uncanny imitation of Malfoy. Harry laughed and gently took her hand beneath the table. She smiled at him, then asked him how his day was, shivering at his beautiful green eyes. They sparkled brightly at her.
"It was all right, I guess," he answered, then whispered, "It's the nights I look forward to . . ."
Ginny pretended to look shocked. "Harry Potter!" Then she lowered her voice and muttered, "Got your note." They winked at each other, then turned to join the heated argument about whether or not house-elves should be paid.
" 'Udge gib ib ub, 'Er-my-nee," Ron said with his mouth full of chicken. He swallowed. "Haven't we been through this before? Enough spew!"
"It's not 'spew'," Hermione said patiently through her teeth. "It's S-P-E- W, as you should know by now. By the way, why aren't you wearing your S.P.E.W. badge? Look, Ron, if you don't stick up for these house-elves-"
"Then nobody will," finished Ron dully. "Lost my badge, as well as any interest in spew. Pass the ranch dressing?"
Dinner passed as usual, with discussion about Quidditch and classes, and they all returned to the common room for either homework or chess, depending on the amount of procrastination. Ginny's eyes constantly darted to the clock, wishing it would hurry up and be midnight already. Colin Creevey had challenged her to a game of chess, which she thought would pass the time quickly. As it turned out it slowed it down quite a bit.
"What're you looking at the clock so much for?" Colin Creevey asked her. His knight took one of her pawns, yelling something extremely rude as he kicked the pawn off the board. "Shut it, you," Colin chastised his overly enthusiastic knight.
"Oh, nothing," Ginny lied. "I just want to get to bed early tonight."
"It's ten," Colin pointed out.
"I know how to tell time," Ginny snorted. "Might as well go up to my dormitory once I win."
"You'll be down here for a very long time, then," said Colin seriously as his loud knight took her rook. "Checkmate."
Ginny scowled dramatically. "Right, I'll just be going to bed now, then. I'll win tomorrow, mark my words!" Colin tried not to snicker as he wished her good night. Ginny passed a few more of her fellow fifth-years as she made her way to her dormitory, half thankful and half disappointed she didn't have any more homework to keep her busy.
Harry had Astronomy that night, and that didn't end until midnight. His note had indicated that they meet in their usual secret place, the sixth classroom to the left from the statue of Boris the Bewildered. Not many teachers patrolled that area, and they figured it was safe enough for private talks or, as it usually turned out to be, kisses. Which was why Ginny kept such an anxious eye on her watch; finally, it was 11:30, and she figured she had better make her way to their favorite place in Hogwarts.