A/N: I like to explore with writing friendship fics and since I'm fond of both the Draco/Ginny and Blaise/Ginny pairing I wanted to try them all together as friends. I didn't favor one boy over the other (despite the title) so there will be relatively equal amounts of Draco and Blaise dialogue. There is no romance in this fic so if you're looking for that I'm sorry but you won't find it here. This was a long process to write and I've been adding and editing it everyday for quite a few weeks. Since I had the day off I decided to finish this – I have all but the very ending written and that's only because I'm having a hard time making it seem final enough to be considered an end spot. It was supposed to be a long oneshot, but it's turned out over twelve thousand words so I split it up and it will now be three chapters.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize from the Harry Potter series.

Ginny couldn't believe she'd gotten herself stuck in this situation. She was sure if her heart raced any faster, the pounding would have her found out in no time. As it was she was using all her control not to gasp for air but breath slow, quiet breathes. It would take an extreme amount of luck not to be discovered but, as she heard them walk around the room, she thought maybe luck wouldn't even be on her side at all. Her only hope was that they didn't round this side of the bed or she'd be spotted easily. Besides, her legs were already uncomfortably cramped from squeezing in the small space she'd deemed fit for cover and she was sure she couldn't stay put for long.

She'd been on a mission, of sorts. Certain occurrences had led her to believe that a student in Hogwarts was officially a Death Eater; and she had to know if it was true. Percy always had told her she was too curious for her own good – she really wished she listened to him sometimes. Now, having been officially proven wrong she felt every bit as foolish for it as she always did when her mind got carried away from her. That's how she'd ended up here, wedged in the small, thankfully shaded, space between one of the beds and cabinets in his dormitory.

She regretted it now of course. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff were playing in a Quidditch match right now. She should have been spending an enjoyable weekend morning in the stands cheering on her friends. Instead she was wishing not to be found and swearing to herself she wouldn't end up stuck in this kind of situation ever again – conveniently forgetting every other time she'd made the same sort of promise before when one (nearly all) of her investigative missions had gone wrong.

She froze as she saw feet coming around the bed towards her or, more accurately she figured, towards the cabinet she was hiding beside. She wasn't foolish enough to think that if she stayed perfectly still she wouldn't be seen. All it would take was a single look in her direction and the shade would do nothing to cover the sight of her. It was an agonizing several seconds before such a thing happened. The feet, it turned out, belonged to Blaise Zabini. His eyes had passed over her, blinked and moved back to her. She didn't doubt that her eyes were pleading with him to remain quiet about her, but that didn't mean he was going to.

"Hey Malfoy?" he asked casually. A slight smirk pulled at his lips and Ginny knew she was done for.

"Yes?" was the drawled response.

"Are you, by chance, stashing yourself a treat for later?"

"What are you talking about?"

Ginny heard the terrible sound of footsteps coming closer. It was just her luck that of the five beds she could have hidden beside it had to be his. This was not going to end well. She watched his feet round the bed and prepared herself to either do a lot of explaining or a lot of running.

"If you're not stashing it," Zabini turned to face his dorm mate, "then have I got a surprise for you."

Zabini stepped aside and Malfoy's eyes instantly drew down to where she was, widening just the slightest bit in shock. Finding no more reason to hide, she stood with as much dignity as she could. Concentrating on the task of straightening her robes, Ginny told them. "We'll, I'll just be going then."

"Not so fast Weasley," Malfoy said threateningly. "Care to elaborate what you're doing in my dormitory, beside my bed?"

Resigned to the fact that she couldn't just leave, but not wanting to forfeit all control Ginny put on a thoughtful look. "I don't think I'd care to, no."

"Oh, well," Malfoy said dryly, a sneer making its way onto his face, "if you wouldn't care to then, by all means, be on your way.

"Thank you," Ginny nodded with a sweet smile. She carefully stepped between the two boys, making sure to touch neither. Half way to the door she started to wonder why she hadn't been stopped yet. She wasn't naive enough to think they were really going to let her just walk out the door so she sent a quick look over her shoulder and saw them both watching her with blank expressions. She wondered about their lack of action, but just went along with it. It wasn't until she was at the door that she realized their reasoning. The door was locked. It wasn't that she couldn't unlock a simple door, but she knew the appearance of her wand would be what speared them into action. With a sigh she turned back to face them, "about that explanation."

"Are you ready now?" Zabini smirked.

"No," she said simply, "but I don't want to spend all day in here either so I'll have to manage." The boys just stared, ready for her to enlighten them and she wrinkled her nose. "Should I start with the why or the how?"

"Why," Malfoy answered.

"I'd had a theory I was trying to find truth to so I decided to investigate."

"And this theory was?"

She took a deep breath, deciding the sooner she got this over with the sooner she could be on her way, and answered truthfully. "That you, Malfoy, were now a Death Eater – officially."

It wasn't that Malfoy had done anything particularly evil to make Ginny think he might actually be a Death Eater. He was nasty to anyone he thought deserving, of course, and his mouth still snarled the same vicious insults he'd favored for years, but none of that was new. No, it wasn't his actions that put the thought in her head. It was in the way he carried himself. When she'd first seen him in the hall this year she was aware there was something different about him. He'd always had the sort of presence that demanded attention. She hated to admit it, but there was something about him that just made people, even her, take notice. That day was different. It was like he didn't want to be seen. He was trying to slip through the crowd undetected and it made her uncomfortable. It was then that she decided he was hiding something.

It was nearly two months after that when the real possibility of him being a Death Eater entered her mind. She'd been walking through the dungeons alone, having taken up until the last minutes of class to brew her potion and told her friends not to wait while she cleaned up, when she found herself behind a group of Slytherins. He wasn't actually in the group himself, but she heard his name brought up in the discussion. She hadn't been intentionally listening in, especially since they were speaking relatively quiet, but being directly behind them and not in her own conversation she had little else to hear. That didn't stop her from picking out the three words she needed to hear though. There was no way she'd be able to forget those words and just what they could mean – Malfoy's new tattoo.

"You think I'm a Death Eater?" Malfoy asked now for clarification. She nodded stiffly and he went on. "You think I'm a Death Eater and you figured sneaking into my room and hiding beside my bed was a safe and logical course of action?"

"I hadn't meant to hide beside your bed," she huffed. "It's not my fault you two came traipsing in here when you should be at the match."

"You must think us terrible," Zabini said sarcastically, "going to spend time in our own room of all places."

"What were you hoping to find in here anyway Weasley?" Malfoy asked. "Notes with all my evil little Death Eater plans on them?"

"No," she answered moodily, not appreciating his condescending tone for one moment. "I'm not that naïve. I was just looking for any sort of proof."

"And how'd that work for you?"

"Surely you know the answer to that," she grumbled back, still sour her search did nothing but prove her wrong.

"Let's go back to the why," Zabini suggested. "I'd love to hear why you think he's a Death Eater."

"Thought he was a Death Eater," she corrected. She pouted over at Malfoy, as if it was his fault her mind got carried away from her. "He was hiding something. I could just tell."

"And your natural assumption was that he must be a Death Eater?" Zabini raised an eyebrow. "Glad to know your biased opinion of us Slytherins falls in with the rest of the Gryffindors."

"I'm not bias," she retorted hotly. "I'll have you know I had good evidence pointing in that direction before I even considered it. I don't just go around accusing people of being Death Eaters. That's serious."

"What evidence could you have had?" Malfoy asked skeptically.

"Your stupid new tattoo!" she blurted out.

"How do you know about my tattoo?" his eyes narrowed. "Only a select few know about that."

"More people do than you think," she said smugly. "I overheard some of your housemates talking about it. Who knows who else could have heard them?"

Malfoy stared at her coolly for several moments before nodding once, believing her story. He turned to Zabini. "I told you I thought I'd caught more eyes straying to me than normal."

"That you did," he nodded solemnly. "Pardon me for not believing you every time you get suspicious."

"I don't get suspicious that often," Malfoy rolled his eyes, "and not unless I have good reason."

Zabini scoffed and, in a stage whisper, said to Ginny. "He's kind of paranoid."

"And now you know it's not that kind of tattoo," Malfoy said matter-of-factly, ignoring Zabini's smirk and Ginny's quiet laugh. "How'd you find out?"

"You're not wearing a jacket," she pointed out slowly. "Your shirt has short sleeves."

He looked down, as if surprised to hear such news. In turn, she was surprised when, after staring down at his shirt for a moment he spoke up hesitantly, as if he didn't want to know the answer to her question. "You didn't see it as well did you?"

"No," she shook her head and he looked relieved. "I only had the chance to peek up and look at your forearm before having to duck back down to hide. Why? Is it visible?"

Ginny thought it was quite natural that she was instantly curious about what his tattoo could be after his visible relief. What was it that he wanted to hide? She peered at him now, as if trying to see through the white shirt he was wearing and he shifted slightly so his left side was out of her view. She knew then that the tattoo was on his left side somewhere. She figured it must be near his neckline or he wouldn't have thought she'd seen it. She knew her next mission: figure out what his tattoo was.

"You know what I love," Zabini spoke up.

"I'm sure you're going to inform us," Malfoy responded, rolling his eyes.

"She mentions it so casually; like it's natural. Oh darn, got caught hiding by another boy's bed!" He chuckled. "It's down right amusing that it's not a bigger deal. Even Pansy would be stammering around the subject trying to make excuses and she hangs out with us in here all the time."

Ginny wanted to point out that Pansy Parkinson was a bit of a, well, pansy, but before she could Malfoy smirked. "Maybe Weasley spends more time in boys' rooms than we know."

"One, how would you know either way," Ginny retorted hotly. "And two, I happen to have six – count them, six – older brothers. A boy's room is nothing to be embarrassed about. And three, just shut up."

"I really don't think you're in the position to be so rude," Malfoy raised an amused eyebrow.

"What are you going to do?" Ginny rolled her eyes. "Yell at me? I can handle it. Beat me up? You wouldn't dare."

"Not sure what I'm going to do yet," he shrugged back. "What do you think Zabini?"

Zabini smirked. "Oh, I've got a few ideas brewing. Before that though, we went over the why, so how about you tell us how you got in here."

"That's easy," Ginny waved a dismissive hand. "I discreetly followed some second years to find out where the entrance was, came back when no one was around and hid, waiting to hear the password, then, when the room should have been empty, I entered."

Zabini and Malfoy shared a look. "That seems… way too easy," Zabini shook his head. "You can't just get into someone's common room that simply."

"I did," she shrugged. "And I would have been back out of here no problem if you two hadn't come back in when you did."

"Didn't mean to ruin your fun," Malfoy deadpanned. "Now, what should we do with you?"

"You should watch me walk out the door and pretend this never happened," she suggested.

"And why should we do that?"

"Because I answered all your questions honestly and without complaint," she said simply.

"You did that on your own Weasley," Zabini smirked. "Maybe you should have worked out the deal for your release before you started spewing out answers."

"So what are you going to do," she huffed, trying to keep the nervous tremor out of her voice. "Keep me trapped in here? People would notice when I'm not around the common room after the game."

"Don't be so melodramatic Weasley. We're not going to keep you prisoner," Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Though I question whether anyone would be pressed to attempt your rescue."

"Hey!" she said indignantly. "I'll have you know a lot of people would come to my rescue!"

"Unless you're willing to test that theory, let's just put an end to this," Malfoy decided.

"That would ruin a lot of fun we could have," Zabini spoke up.

"It will also save us a lot of headaches dealing with her." Malfoy cast a glance in his direction and Zabini nodded solemnly in agreement. "I fear she'll get hostile before long."

"Great. So may I leave?"

"Now be patient," Malfoy warned. "You don't get to just leave with out retribution. Don't forget who we are after all."

"I'm hardly likely to forget who either of you are anytime soon."

Zabini let out a chuckle. "That almost sounds like a challenge I'd say."

"It wasn't."

"Zabini, let's go discuss our options," Malfoy drawled, turning and walking away from Ginny. Zabini leveled her with a warning look before following.

Ginny took a deep breath once they were out of range. Without really thinking of exactly where she was she sat heavily on the bed beside her. She was stuck with Malfoy and Zabini and she didn't know what to expect from here on. Though they could have easily been much harsher from the start, they certainly weren't being nice with her. She cast her eyes about the room, looking for some sort of escape but knowing there wasn't one; they were in the dungeons. Malfoy and Zabini had wisely moved in front of the door, guaranteeing she wouldn't be able to make an easy escape. The only options she had were to draw her wand and take them down or wait and see what her punishment would be. One look at Zabini's smirking face and she decided she'd best try her hand at the former.

She withdrew her wand from her robes as subtly as she could; knowing Zabini had positioned him self to keep a watchful eye on her and thanking Merlin that the curtains partially hindered his view. She quickly formulated a plan. She'd have to hit Zabini first since he was facing her. Hopefully Malfoy's surprise would cause him to hesitate and she'd get a chance to hit him before he drew his wand. She was good with casting spells, but she knew he was faster. She took a deep breath, readying herself, and raised her wand, firing a stunning spell straight at Zabini. He hadn't been quick enough with brandishing his wand and the spell hit him before he was able to cast a shield. Unfortunately, Malfoy didn't hesitate and had his wand aimed at her and a disarming spell coming from his lips before she could cast her second spell. She watched as her wand flew out of her hand and landed neatly into his with a sour look on her face. Great, she thought, it would only get worse from here.

"I'm surprised," Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "I didn't think you'd have the gall to attack."

"I'm a Gryffindor," she told him stubbornly. "I have plenty of gall."

Malfoy looked over his shoulder at Zabini, who was sprawled on the floor with his wand loosely in his grip. He shook his head and turned back to her. "Care to get your filth off my bed? I've no idea where you've been."

Ginny, realizing for the first time that, yes, she was on Malfoy's bed, quickly stood. "Let's have it then," she sighed. "I've made my escape attempts and am now without a wand. What are you going to do?"

He looked her over critically and she wished she could know what was going through his mind. She wanted some sort of preparation for whatever was about to happen. All she knew was to prepare for the worst. He sent another look over to Zabini before turning back to her.

"You better get out of here before the rest of Slytherin come back."

"What?" she blinked.

"We don't know how long the match is going to last. I'd get out of here if I were you." Caught completely off guard she could do no more than nod. She headed towards the door, moving past him and stepping carefully over Zabini. She was out the door before he called to her. "Weasley?"

She turned, knowing it was too good to be true. "Yes?"

"Aren't you forgetting something?" He held her wand up in his hand, a light smirk playing on his lips.

"Right," she nodded, moving back to retrieve it. He held it out to her and she grabbed a hold of it. When she tried to take it from him he tightened his grip. He leaned in closer and she tensed.

"We'll be seeing you," he said, releasing his hold on her wand. She left quickly; taking his words as the warning she knew he meant them as. This wasn't over.

Ginny never thought she'd actually be afraid of a pair of Slytherins. Nervous, sure, she had been nervous when she was caught in their dormitory several days ago. But she hadn't been scared. Now she found herself hastily retreating from an area when she spotted either Malfoy or Zabini. She'd regretted her actions later that night when she was laying in bed with the curtains closed. They would have let her go with little trouble, she knew it. She couldn't handle it though - waiting to see what they'd do to anger or embarrass her - so she'd attacked instead. She couldn't even tell herself it was in self defense either; they hadn't threatened her really. She'd been caught in the act of sneaking through their territory and they deserved their retribution. Now, she was left to wait for the day they cornered her and got their payback.

The dreaded moment finally came on her way back from Astronomy class late one night. She should have known it was coming then, but she was exhausted from staying up to attend the star gazing portion of class and having spent over an hour trying to locate various things in the sky. She'd passed through the entrance hall and up the main staircase with no problem, but once she turned on to the corridor to get to her next desired flight of stairs Zabini stepped out in front of her. She yelped slightly in surprise and turned to find a different route, only to find Malfoy a matter of feet away from her. She gave them a small, anxious smile, wishing suddenly that she'd rushed away from the tower with the rest of her class instead of lazily straying behind.

"Fancy seeing you here," she laughed nervously.

"What a coincidence, huh?" Zabini raised an eyebrow.

"Let's just get this over with," she sighed. "I'm exhausted and want to go to bed."

"Please," Malfoy smirked, "don't sound so happy to see us."

"Malfoy, I'm serious. This encounter was bound to happen, you know it, and I know it. Now let's just get it over with so I can get some sleep."

"Well if you insist," he sneered lightly. "Zabini?"

Zabini stepped closer to her and she instinctively backed up. "There's no need to be scared Weasley," he laughed. "You're the one who pulls wands on people."

"Because you really didn't expect me to try to escape," she rolled her eyes, taking another step back.

"Escape," he shook his head. "There she goes again, Malfoy, making it sound like we were keeping her prisoner."

"You locked me in!" she said indignantly.

"Actually," Malfoy drawled, sounding horribly bored, "we locked the others out. You weren't supposed to be there."

"Oh," she blinked, thinking that made a lot of sense. They were looking around the room for something themselves before discovering her, she recalled. Of course they wouldn't have wanted to be caught with whatever they were pulling out of hiding – why else would it be hidden? She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "What were you locking them out for?"

"Unlike you, Weasley, we aren't in any position to have to answer you," Malfoy said simply.

"I don't have to answer you either," she scowled.

"You don't," he nodded.

"And yet you told us anything we wanted to know during our last get together," Zabini said.

"It wasn't a get together," she crossed her arms, a frown settling onto her face. "You make it sound like we're old friends hanging out."

"You want to be friends," Malfoy smirked. "We're touched, truly."

"I do not want to be your friend," she said sharply. "You may not have turned out to be a Death Eater, but you're still vile."

"At least I'm not poor," he shrugged carelessly. She felt her cheeks turn hot in anger but didn't have time to get a word in. "It would only be an improvement if you considered us friends. Merlin knows you need all the help you can get with your low class standing."

"And you're going to help me?" she snorted.

"That's not a bad idea," Zabini smirked. "Think about it Malfoy. No more of these pesky Death Eater accusations, we'll be those sweet, handsome young men who helped the poor, unfortunate Weasley."

"You can't forget though," Malfoy responded, "we are the Death Eater type – pureblooded, rich, better than everyone else, powerful. And once schools over, well, can you call it pesky if it's true?"

"It is when the Ministry's still rounding them up instead of letting them accomplish their tasks to better society," Zabini said matter of factually.

"Hold up," Ginny raised her hands. "You mean you both actually plan to be Death Eaters after school?"

"No, I'm planning on starting up a few very successful businesses," Zabini told her. "The Death Eater part is just a minor factor."

"You're serious aren't you?" she asked, bewildered.

What kind of people actually planned to become a torturer and murderer? Who talked so casually about such a thing, like it was just some summer job they'd be doing? She couldn't believe the pair of them. Admittedly it should not have surprised her as Malfoy was the son of a Death Eater and, well, Zabini shared his ideals, but she was surprised either way. When she'd seen Malfoy's arm and its lack of the dark mark – as she had begun to suspect would be there – she'd felt inexplicably relieved. It was almost like she was hoping that he wasn't one. Not just because Death Eaters are evil, but because she believed it took a truly weak and foolish person to become one.

Sure, a good share of them had power, both socially and magically, but to join an army where it was necessary to follow one man's commands without question or hesitation or you'd pay the price was weak to her. It was a weak person who could not think and act for themselves. After her first year, where'd she been possessed and consequently forced to do things against her will, she'd held high regards for any person who acted of their own accord and not any one else's. It made her angry and disappointed to find out all over again that Malfoy, who for years in school had assumed command among his house mates, and Zabini, who never folded to any one's pressure and simply did as he wished, would willingly forfeit that for Lord Voldemort.

"Why," she asked them, her tone bordering on desperation. "Why would you want to do that? Why would you commit yourselves to something like that?"

She could tell her emotion had caught them off guard as they both blinked at her. "It's who we are," Zabini told her. "It's what we believe."

"Why do you have to join them though?" she pressed. She wanted to make them see that they had another choice. "You can have your superior beliefs and still have your control. You don't have to be a Death Eater. You don't have to be a murderer."

"We're not here to take lessons from you," Malfoy sneered, clearly uncomfortable with her sudden interest in their lives. "If you remember correctly you snuck into our dorm and attacked Zabini. That is why we are here."

"Do what you must. I don't care," she waved a hand dismissively, turning to Zabini as he seemed more willing to have this conversation. "Listen to me. There are other options. I don't agree with your beliefs but I don't want to see you both fold to the command of a dark and dangerous man."

"What do you know little Weasley," he shook his head pityingly. "It's so much more than that. You're family keeps you sheltered from the harms of the world, from involvement in the war, there's so much that you don't understand. This is what we believe and this is what we will fight for."

"You can't," she pleaded, foolishly feeling near tears.

"That's enough Zabini," Malfoy scowled. "We're not going to have this conversation with her. We have opposing views and it can be left at that."

"I'm going to have this conversation," Zabini turned to glare at him. "She needs to understand."

"It's not our concern whether she understands the dark sides of this war," Malfoy said coolly.

"Maybe it's not yours, but I think she needs to know what she's up against." Zabini turned from Malfoy, back to Ginny. He took a few steps towards her, until he was standing nearly directly in front of her. "You believe that everyone is equal. You think that mudbloods are just as good, if not better, than us purebloods. You're a blood traitor. You will fight for the light side of this war, will you not?"

"I will," she nodded.

"And why will you?" he asked, taking another few steps forward so she now had to tilt her head back to see into his face.

"It's only right," she answered automatically, looking him straight in the eye. "Voldemort and his followers have no right to decide whose life is important and whose isn't."

"And we will fight because we believe our lives are most important," he responded.

"But why do you have to kill people to be more important?" she asked. "Can't you just enjoy the fact that there are so many people below your status?"

Zabini blinked and let out a bark of laughter. "I never thought about it that way. You hear that Malfoy?" he asked, turning away from Ginny and to where Malfoy was scowling against the wall. "If all the lowly people are killed, who will that leave us to be better than? We'd just be common."

Malfoy sighed, a very aggravated sigh, "I will never just be common. Do not let her talk you away from our future." He stood straight from the wall, walking up to the two of them. "We will be back to deal with you Weasley."

He turned abruptly and stalked away pausing only long enough to bark, "Zabini!" when he noticed he was not being followed. As Zabini walked away Ginny couldn't bring herself to feel relief that they did not extract their revenge tonight. She couldn't even bring herself to feel nervous about when the next encounter would come. All she could concentrate on was a way to make them see that they were so much better than the Death Eaters.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this. I was particularly fond of this story as I thought it up – I just hope the idea came across as well when written as it did in my head. I've got a really busy day tomorrow (baking half-moons and coffee cake for 50, setting up for a bridal shower, seeing Alice in Wonderland [hopefully] and then the actual shower itself on Sunday), but I'll post the next chapter when I get home Sunday afternoon.