A/N: Okay, this is my first-ever Draco/Ginny fanfic but I hope it isn't the last because I just LOVE that couple! Flames are accepted; I need criticism! Oh and btw: if it says "DM" before a section, that means that section is in Draco's POV. If it says "GW", then it's Ginny's point of view.

Setting: Hogwarts; Draco's 4th year and Ginny's 3rd; NONE OF THE HARRY POTTER BOOKS EVER HAPPENED UNLESS I REFER TO THEM IN THIS FANFIC

Disclaimer: scoff Yeah I WISH I owned Harry Potter; I'd be a billionaire if I did! No, but Jo owns HP and all of the characters and most of the ideas… I just enjoy playing around with them ;)

Chapter One—ENCOUNTER

DM

Draco strolled through the grounds, hands in his pockets. For a few precious hours, he wasn't being followed by Crabbe and Goyle. His father had written to their fathers so he could spy on Draco even when he was in Hogwarts; so he could see just how nasty Draco REALLY was. It's just too bad that I take after Mother instead, huh, Father? Draco smiled grimly.

The tiny crescent moon shone waveringly through the trees as the pale-haired boy walked to the willow tree next to the Black Lake. This willow tree wasn't the Womping Willow. Rather, it was Draco's special place—or so he liked to think.

The trunk was amazingly thick and broad, and bent over the surface of the lake some three meters or so, making it a perfect place to sit or even lie down occasionally.

Walking up to the very top—or the farthest from the shore—of the tree, Draco sat down amongst the branches and leaves, hidden to everyone.

Everyone, that is, except for the red-haired girl that was already there.

GW

She'd had a really bad day. She'd woken up late, so Snape had fined Gryffindor fifteen points. Then, she had forgotten to do her Transfiguration homework, so she had to skip lunch to do that.

Hoping to have some peace and quiet, Ginny had trudged into the common room at the end of a seemingly never-ending series of classes—each one harder than the next. Unfortunately, she had been accosted by her older brother. "Ginevra Weasley…WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS THIS I HEAR ABOUT YOU AND ERIC KNIGHT GOING OUT?!"

Ginny had winced. I am going to kill whoever told him… "Oh shut up, Ron," she'd said tiredly. "I'm not in the mood for this right now. Can't you hold out until tomorrow? I've got to meet with someone later and I've got tons of homework."

"So you're meeting Eric later?!"

Ginny's blood had been up. Maybe her temper had something to do with her hair. However, she was much better controlled than her brother. "Ronald, I don't suggest that we talk about this here. Let's go into your dorm." She'd turned and headed up the stairs to the boys' dormitory.

"You're too young for a boyfriend!" Ron had immediately started spewing after he closed the door behind him.

"I am NOT, Ron! I'm not a baby!"

"Then don't act like one!"

"I'm not! You're being way too sensitive about this!"

"Well then excuse me if I feel worried that my baby sister is seeing some guy four years older than her!"

"He's only two years older than me, and I'm NOT a baby!"

"To me you are!"

"I'm only a year younger than you are, Ronald!"

"He's two years older! What if he tries to take advantage of you?"

"I know how to handle myself, Ron, I handled Fred and George!"

"They're your brothers; they would never take advantage of you!"

Ginny had closed her eyes and counted to five slowly. She'd exhaled, and looked Ron straight in the eye, determination written on her features. "Ron, Eric is my boyfriend, like it or not. I don't know who told you—"

"Eric told me."

She had blinked several times, unwilling to accept the fact, waves of betrayal threatening to bring her under. "What did you just say?"

"Your boyfriend told me about you two." Ron had enunciated clearly, a smug smile playing around the corners of his mouth.

Fury had welled up inside Ginny. It was dark and scary—yet strangely enthralling. Without thinking, she had waved her wand. "Petrificus totalus!" she'd shouted. Ron's arms and legs had snapped together and he had looked at her in fury and shock as he began to topple backwards. Walking to the door, Ginny had caught his arm and propped him up against the wall. "I'm not a baby, and I don't need your protection," she had hissed, and left.

And then she had gone to find Eric in the Great Hall.

When she had gotten there, he had been laughing with his friends and calmly eating dinner. That, above all, had made Ginny bloody furious. Stalking up to the Ravenclaw table, she'd tapped him on the shoulder and asked sweetly, "Hey, Eric, can I talk to you real quick?"

He'd been a bit nervous and had said, "Um, Gin, can it wait until after dinner?"

Eric's friend had nudged him and laughed, "Probably just wants to snog you somewhere private! Go on, mate, it can't hurt!"

So Ginny had dragged her boyfriend out of the Great Hall and into an empty classroom. She had said in a low, deadly calm voice, "When did you go see Ron?"

"Gin, don't be mad. He's your brother; I thought he had a right—"

"A right to stalk me and know exactly what I'm doing every second of the day when I'm out of his line of vision?"

"No, I just thought that your family should know—"

"About us? There is no us, Eric. Not anymore."

"What? Ginny, why?"

"Because you told Ron. After I specifically asked you not to. Do you remember that at all? Or were you too busy snogging me?"

Eric had stood speechless as she had turned and walked out of the room. He'd managed to call out after her, "So we're meeting up tomorrow, right?"

Ginny hadn't even turned around. She'd just kept walking, back into the Great Hall to grab some pumpkin juice and a plate of food. She had then left to eat by the lake and wallow in self-pity just this once.

She had crawled onto the trunk of the huge willow tree and continued crawling until she found a safe haven in the middle of the leaves. Then, tired out after a long and emotionally painful day, she had fallen asleep, tears still trickling out from under her eyelids.

DM

Draco stared in surprise at the sleeping beauty that lay curled up on the intersection of three branches, leaves in her hair and dirt on her tear-stained cheeks. Without even realizing he was doing it, he bent down and brushed a stray eyelash from underneath her eye. His hand lingered near her lips, and he traced over their outline, barely skimming them so soft and gentle was his touch.

Ginny stirred slightly, and Draco froze. What am I doing?! he thought to himself incredulously. She's a WEASLEY, for Merlin's sake! She's Potter's little sidekick-girlfriend!! He felt an unreasonable stab of sadness shoot through him.

Losing her look of peaceful sadness, Ginny began to groan and flail weakly. "Ron…Eric…" she murmured. Then: "Betrayal…" Draco immediately understood what had happened. Her rotten boyfriend had ratted them out to her overprotective big brother. Knowing how that felt from what had happened with his father with his previous girlfriend, he sympathized.

"C'mon…let's get you back into the castle, okay?" he muttered, stooping down to pick her up. She was surprisingly light. Her head rolled over to rest in the nook of his neck, and without thinking, Draco planted a kiss on the top of her head. Immediately, he shook himself out of it and began to carry her back into the castle.

Shit… Where're the Gryffindor common rooms? Having never been to Gryffindor, Draco had no clue where to go. He began trying to shake the angel in the arms awake. "Hey…HEY…WEASLEY… Wake up!" He shook her gently, then decided to try and different tactic and started tickling her.

GW

Ginny was unceremoniously awakened by someone's fingers tickling her. She instinctively curled up, and suddenly realized that she was being carried by someone very unfamiliar. Startled, she glanced up—and saw a blonde-haired boy looking down at her. "Malfoy?!" she spluttered. She thought she saw gentleness in his eyes…but it was quickly replaced by his normal casualty and prat-headedness. No, I must've imagined it…

"Oh, good, the baby weasel's awake," he drawled. "Now tell me where the Gryffindor common rooms are, or we'll be stuck wandering in the castle until someone finds us and directs us there."

Ginny struggled to get out of his arms. "I can walk just fine, you know." Despite her angry words, her knees buckled as soon as her feet touched the floor. He swooped down and caught her arm.

"Apparently not," he chuckled. "You've been asleep for around seven hours. I'm not surprised you can't walk, given the position you were in."

"Were you WATCHING me sleep?!"

DM

Draco stared at the little Weasley, dumbfounded. Where had that come from? "You were sleeping in MY tree; of course I noticed!"

"Did it have your name on it?" Without bothering to wait for his answer, Ginny went on, "If it didn't have your name on it, then it doesn't count as YOUR tree. Therefore, it belongs to Hogwarts and anybody who goes to Hogwarts can sit on it."

"Yes but you weren't sitting. You were curled up, sleeping."

"Fine then; anybody can sit OR SLEEP in it."

Draco sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "C'mon, Weasley… Just tell me where the common rooms are. You're in no fit condition to walk, and I don't want to be caught walking around at midnight carrying you. People will talk."

"So let them talk!" Suddenly something struck Ginny. "Wait… The great Draco Malfoy is afraid of what people think of him?"

Damn these Weasley women! Her mother was bad enough… "I don't believe that's any of your business, weasel," he said, trying to sound nonchalant.

GW

Ginny watched in satisfaction as a blush began to creep up his neck. He didn't seem to realize it, but he had stuttered slightly. Grabbing his arm, she pulled herself up, nearly pulling him onto the floor as she did so.

"Bloody hell, woman!" he grunted as he managed not to fall. Instead, he pulled her up and, in one smooth movement, was carrying her again. "Are you TRYING to unbalance me?!"

She grinned mischievously. "Did it work?" Draco chose to ignore her comment and began to walk down the hall. "Umm…Malfoy?"

"What?" he snapped.

"Gryffindor's the other way."