AN: Prompts will be displayed at the bottom to avoid them potentially giving away things.

this road to hell (we had good intentions)

AlwaysPadfoot

Ginny was going to be caught.

She was sprinting through the corridors of Hogwarts away from Amycus Carrow, sure she was going to receive a punishment so terrible that she wouldn't be able to leave her bed for a week. Echoed shouts of 'stop' came from behind her as she rounded another corner. She was well and truly fucked.

All of a sudden the door of the library swung open on her right, someone grabbed her arm dragged her sideways, and pressed their hand over her mouth.

For a long moment Ginny froze, listening as Amycus ran past in the corridor outside and then she twisted out of the grip of her captor, hand going for her wand. Ginny found herself face-to-face with Astoria Greengrass, a Slytherin in the year below. She had a grin on her face and a cigarette in her hand.

"Don't tell my sister I smoke, she'll kill me," Astoria said simply.

Ginny had a feeling she didn't give a shit whether her older sister, in the year above Ginny, found out or not. Either way, Ginny wouldn't be divulging her secret to anyone anytime soon. She still had her wand clutched between her fingers.

"What are you doing here?" Ginny asked, at a loss for any other words besides suspicious ones.

"I like the night. Without the dark we would never see the stars." Astoria took another drag from her cigarette and exhaled rings of smoke. "Besides, helping you idiotic Gryffindors and your DA club not get caught after curfew absolves me of my sins in Muggle Studies class."

Ginny blinked. She'd always assumed the younger Slytherin was quite shy, not that they'd spent that much time together.

And how on earth did Astoria know that they had truly started the DA again?

"We all know it's true," Astoria said, as though she'd read Ginny's mind. "Everyone knows you're running a rebellion, so to speak."

Astoria leaned against a nearby table and held a fresh cigarette out to Ginny, pinched between her yellow painted nails.

"I read once that a cigarette is the perfect type of a perfect pleasure. It is exquisite and leaves one quite satisfied. What more can one want?" She rolled her eyes at the last few words. "Personally, it just gives me something to think about when I can't sleep. Let's be honest, the world's a bit shit right now, and these give me something to look forward to. Take one."

Ginny considered saying no, but what was there to lose?

The two girls smoked in silence, and when they were done, Astoria crushed hers under foot and moved to the door. She stopped, listening, and then pushed the door open. The Slytherin turned back to Ginny. "See you around, Gin."

And with a wink, she was gone.

Comp/Challenge & Prompts:

- Insane House Challenge: 897. Trait - Easy Going

- 365 Prompts Challenge: 52. Class - Muggle Studies

- Femslash February: 36. Astoria/Ginny

- Scavenger Hunt: 2. Write a fic between 400 and 500 words with the prompts: terrible, yellow and sleep.

- Serpent Challenge: 70. Zebra Snake - Library (setting)

- Library Lovers: Twilight - Stephanie Meyer - 2. (Dialogue) "I like the night. Without the dark, we'd never see the stars.", 3. (Word) Loss, 4. (Plot point) Someone has a secret, 5. (Trait) shy, 7. (Setting) School

- Writing Club [Character Appreciation]: 11. Muggle Studies (school subject)

- Writing Club [Showtime]: 2. (Setting) Hogwarts

- Writing Club [CYB]: 1. (Dialogue) "We all know it's true."

- Writing Club [Jenny's Jovial Quotes]: 6. A cigarette is the perfect type of a perfect pleasure. It is exquisite and leaves one quite satisfied. What more can one want?" - Oscar Wilde

Word Count: 467 — not inc. notes, titles, or ANs.