Prologue

Ginny ran from the castle, ran as far as she could get and finally collapsed, out of breath, on a stone near the edge of the Forbidden Forest. She was a slim sixteen, fragile and pale with the flaming red hair of a goddess. Tears poured down her face, leaving clean streaks of pale across the dirt from her flight. Her chest heaved with a sob and she bit her lip to keep from wailing. Ginny had always had a crush on Harry Potter, but when she finally gained the courage to stand tall and talk to him about it, he had crushed her, telling her that there was no chance for them- he liked Cho and there were too many other obstacles in a relationship. Ginny bit back a bitter sob. If only Harry knew what a phony Cho was. She'd heard her talking in the Prefect's bathroom when she thought no one was in the stalls. Cho never had good to say of anyone and considered herself superior to others. But Ginny was too nice to hurt Harry like he'd hurt her. She was young, and the breath of innocence was still in her heart.

Suddenly, Ginny felt someone take her wrists and pull her up. She abashedly turned her head to the side, not wanting anyone to see the anguish and hurt in her eyes. She peered out from beneath her tear-bejeweled lashes and saw two slim, elegant white hands firmly supporting her. Her eyes traveled up to the arms of silky green Quidditch robes, then up his ivory neck to finally come face-to-face with Draco Malfoy. Ginny bit back a gasp.

M-Malfoy what the hell are you doing here? she exclaimed, looking around worriedly. She hoped he hadn't heard her crying but she knew that it would've been impossible to ignore if he had been this close.

Relax Weasel, it's not as if I don't have a good reason to be here, he scoffed, his eyes masking the minuscule flicker of emotion that Ginny thought she had glimpsed a minute ago, I couldn't see one of my best victims drown themselves before I got another chance to astound them with my wickedly biting mind. Unfortunately you're already crying, so there's nothing there for me.

Draco eyed her up and down, trusting his eyes to keep his feelings masked as they had so many times in the past. He had watched her for a couple weeks now, and had talked to her several times, managing to remain aloof and detached while still attempted to satisfy the need to be close to her. A slim beauty after growing out of her gangly, awkward stage, Ginny's fiery hair had drawn her to him. Her innocence and naivete, kindness and unknowing charm, fascinated him. As a boy, he had never been shown care, or love, or anything in a rough semblance, by anyone. Ginny was so unknowingly sweet and beautiful, moving gracefully without trying, exuding an aura of calm and gentleness that Draco would've found revulsive under any other circumstance. But on Ginny it was fitting. She was all things good, the angel of light, and Draco was the fierce dragon, circling and waiting for the correct moment to cleanly slaughter his prey. Malfoys remained cool and distant even at the best of times, and were born as a stone cold wall wiped clean of emotions, only allowing smirks and jests at the expense of others.

And therein lay the problem. Draco was a Malfoy, indifferent and unconcerned, an aristocrat without a conscience. Ginny was a Weasley. A pathetic, sniveling Weasley. Her family was dirt poor and there were about a million people in just her nuclear family. He had made it a point to hate the Weasleys- they were disgusting people who just kept breeding. But Ginny was so different. Her calm, gentle grace drew him to her. He imagined how it would feel to hold her, to stroke her smooth skin and tell her that he would always protect her. Draco wanted to offer her the world on a silver platter, but could never admit his feelings. It would be his undoing. Besides, even if she wasn't a Weasley it would be an unimaginable to tell her he loved her or something equally stupid. Love didn't exist. It was a myth told by bookworms and hopefuls, those who would sit, mooning away at someone and never realizing that their feelings were just a sham, a facade brought on by too many fairy tales and in desperate need of a dose of reality.

Ginny shivered and drew her wrists close to herself, bringing him back to the present. He sighed disgustedly and released her slim form from his tender hold. Another example of showing your weaknesses. It was arctic out here, but you didn't see even a hint of his iciness, only in the puff of his breath when he sighed and handed her his sweater from underneath his Quidditch robes. Ginny's eyes widened.

You haven't...hexed it or something, have you? she inquired nervously, holding the sweater as if it might bite.

Don't be silly Ginny. I was just wearing it. Think I'd really be wearing something that could hurt me? he smirked, hoping she wouldn't notice the slip of his tongue on her name.

Ginny's eyes widened mischievously. What'd you just call me...Draco? she said wickedly, provoking him further with his name and the twinkle in her eyes. He was drawn to her, almost smiling as he heard his name on her lips. His self control left him, disappearing somewhere over the wood and leaving him in a moment of weakness. He encircled her waist with his arms and lowered his head to hers.

I called you Ginny, he whispered, following a dried tear track with his finger before pressing his lips to hers gently, pulling her close to him and expressing his feelings for the first time, wanting to tell her how he felt but lacking the words. A small sigh slipped from Ginny's lips as she clasped her hands at the back of his neck, running her fingers through the shorter hairs at the nape of his neck. Her goodness enveloped them in Draco's moment of weakness, leaving them as the only two people in the world, passionately embracing, and unknowingly being watched by the Fates, who sighed in pleasure as they saw the glowing flame that Ginny and Draco had unknowingly created together, the flame that would bind them to each other for an eternity.

Draco suddenly broke from the being that they had become, splitting apart and causing their eternal flame to flicker. His duties, responsibilities, reputation, and self control all returned to him in an angry blast, taunting him with the knowledge that he was a Malfoy.

he roared, sending a quiver through the grass and causing the Fates to wail with pain and rush back to their place inside each and every being. Ginny opened her eyes in shock and rushed to him.

What's wrong? I'm so sorry, I don't know what happened. I- she hastily murmured, smothering her disappointment with kindness. She attempted to touch his arm, to comfort him, but he slapped her hand away and whirled around to face the castle. His head bowed in self loathing, he rushed back to the castle in a swirl of expensive green, leaving Ginny with his sweater and taking with him a piece of her heart.








I'm going to continue this later, this is just the prologue but the rest will be based on the lyrics of Best I Ever Had (Grey Sky Morning)' by Vertical Horizon. Please review and let me know what you think. It means a lot to me!

-Alli