Snagging the Malfoy
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Chapter 2 – The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Draco Malfoy was having a most exasperating day.
The lanky blonde had no idea what Ginny Weasley was trying to do and although he really didn't want to find out, he would like to know why the littlest Weasel had been tailing him for the good part of the day. Hell, the good part of the week.
He had at first noticed the glimpse of red on Monday, right after Potions. It had disappeared from his peripheral sight as soon as it had appeared though, and Draco had dismissed it. He had proceeded on to Transfigurations with Zabini and Parkinson then, and it was before he entered McGonagall's class that he saw that elusive wisp of red again. Once again, he wrote it off as coincidence; after all what would the Gryffindor Princess want with him?
She obviously wanted something, that's what.
It had taken half a day, as well as the amused observations of his friends for him to realize that he was not being paranoid. The little redhead was indeed following him around! Draco did not know what to make of it, and had been initially amused by the littlest Gryff's failing attempt as inconspicuous stalking. He sure as heck wasn't amused now. Despite the fact that he would without fail only see flashes of her every time each of his classes ended, he was starting to get irritated with all the skulking around one Ginny Weasley was doing around him. Not that he hadn't experienced overzealous stalker-ish ex-girlfriends before, but he really doubted that the Weaslette had the intention of getting into his bed.
Which meant that she was up to something.
The blonde started to scowl as he tried to recall what the runt of the Weasley litter looked like. He could only remember a diminutive stature, a mass of garish red hair, a lot of freckles and boring brown eyes. He was quite surprised with himself to have come up with such details; he barely paid attention to Ginny Weasley other than to mock her and her family, and even that was pretty rare in itself. Insulting the Golden Trio was actually what he did more often, although that childish appeal had faded by the time he reached sixth year and as much as he still disdained Potter and his sidekicks, he now had much better things to do than to go around picking fights with them. Being elected Head Boy had allotted him with a lot of responsibilities, and contrary to popular belief, Draco Malfoy is not one to shirk his duties.
Speaking of duties, Draco recalled that the female Weasley was a prefect too, together with her insufferable brother as well as the know-it-all Granger, who happened to be the Head Girl this year. He also recalled Snape's grudging recognition for the little redhead's outstanding abilities in Potions, not to mention the fact that she was also the smartest witch in her year. An important member of Dumbledore's Army, she had helped in the permanent defeat of the Death Eaters a year ago when the mighty Harry Potter had destroyed Voldemort once and for all. She was the star chaser of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team, and appeared to be on good terms with not only the members of her own house, but those in Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and even a handful of Slytherins as well, something quite rare for a Gryffindor to do.
His frown intensified. Ginny Weasley was smart, accomplished and a general all-rounder in everything she chose to do.
So what the hell was someone like her doing following him around for that past few days?
"Judging by that sour look I would say that you are thinking about the littlest Weasley."
A low, feminine voice cut through his thoughts. Parkinson. Draco turned his head to look grumpily at the Slytherin walking by his side.
Pansy Parkinson eyed her friend with a slight smirk flirting with her lips. Like Draco, the once upon a time 'pug-nosed' Slytherin had grown into her looks. The baby fat from childhood had melted completely off rounded cheeks to reveal a small but stunning face with an irresistible baby doll appeal as well as a compact but voluptuous body that were simply to die for. Adding that to a pair of smoky sapphire eyes and waist-length mahogany curls it was no wonder that Parkinson had risen rapidly among ranks to become one of the most beautiful witches in Hogwarts. However, beauty does not a ditz make; the gorgeous but seemingly air headed brunette was actually one of the top five smartest students among all seventh years, the fact well known only among Slytherin and nearly nowhere else, which was exactly the way Pansy wanted.
In other words, if the infamous Draco Malfoy was the Slytherin Prince, then surely Pansy Parkinson would be the Queen of Snakes, ruling the House of Salazar with an iron fist.
"Come off it, Pans." A soft, sardonic voice drawled out from Draco's other side. "Why announce what we all know? Can't you see that our poor friend is getting frazzled by his newest stalker as it is?"
Enter Blaise Zabini, the last member of Draco's innermost circle. Easily the most sociable among the three, the tall, lanky teenager sauntered lazily down the hallway beside his friends as they slowly made their way to the Great Hall for supper, his dark indigo eyes glimmering with light humor as he surveyed the look of irritation on the face of his blonde friend.
The direct opposite of Draco in appearance, Zabini possessed a darker complexion as well as hair so black that it was streaked with blue highlights. His indigo eyes were exotically slanted, and like Draco he possessed the high cheekbones of purebred aristocrats. Thin lips often curled up in an ironic smirk completed the proud patrician features, and like Pansy, this seventh year Slytherin Prefect did not excel in looks only. Zabini's grades were second only to Hermione Granger's, and everyone knew it.
"Malfoys do not-"
"-get frazzled?" Pansy finished with amusement as they turned into the great hall. The three Slytherins ignored the furtive looks of admirations that were directed towards them as they made their way to their seats at the head of the Slytherin tables.
"Exactly." Draco's expression was one of utmost blandness, his frown having been smoothed away the moment the doors of the Great Hall were opened. Appearances have to be kept up, after all. "And you had better not be implying what I think you are implying, Zabini. There is no way in hell I am afraid of a girl Weasel."
The slightly shorter boy arched an eyebrow. "Huh." He merely said as he sat down beside Pansy. Across the table, Draco narrowed quicksilver eyes at the Slytherin jester, the look on his face still as impassive as ever.
"I am not amused, Zabini." The blonde murmured as he started to pile on some mash potatoes and rosemary marinated lamb chops onto his plate. On either side of him, Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe were already well onto their third servings and Draco refrained from staring at the messy way they ate their food. Blaise and Pansy weren't so lucky however, having seated across the two hulking and admittedly not-quite-intelligent males. Crabbe and Goyle might not follow Malfoy around like they used to anymore but they still sit flanking him; the identical expression of barely concealed disgust on both Blaise and Pansy's eyes were just too amusing for Draco to move his ex-bodyguards away.
Pansy stared at the gravy slowly dripping down Goyle's chin before shaking her head slightly and focusing her attention elsewhere. Was it any wonder that she had gotten slim after having been forced to see those two eat? Her lazy sapphire eyes widened slightly when she saw what was happening across the hall, behind Malfoy's back. She nudged Zabini surreptitiously under the table, and he looked up from his plate to see what exactly had caught her attention.
"So you are going to corner the little Weaslette later? End this little game once and for all?" Draco had not noticed the peculiar behavior of his friends yet; he nodded at Pansy's question.
"Might as well tease her a little too, for old times' sake." Draco lifted his head just in time to catch Blaise's smirk. By his side, Pansy looked at him with pure amusement on her face.
"Well Malfoy, you are in luck. You don't even have to wait for later." Zabini told the blonde cheerfully.
"She's right behind you."
"Ginny, are you really sure that you want to do this?" Colin Creevey asked as he looked anxiously at the redhead sitting right beside him. She looked at him and smiled with all the bravado she did not possess.
"But it's such a good opportunity today, don't you think?" Ginny inclined her head to Ron, who was sitting at the far end of the table with Harry and Hermione. The male Weasley was shoving food into his mouth at an unbelievable speed while talking to (and spraying food at) Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan between brief intakes of air. Ginny did not envy the pair who was sitting right before Ron, and by his side his girlfriend Hermione was trying to nag him into slowing down his insane pace of consumption. Ginny did not envy her position either. On the other side of Hermione, Harry noticed her stare and rolled his eyes at her brother's antics. Ginny merely smiled before turning her attention back to Colin.
Colin Creevey was no longer the scrawny little boy with a squeaky voice and the overenthusiastic tendencies. The happy-go-lucky sixth year chaser of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team had toned down a lot, and in the span of two years had shot up to be nearly as tall as Ron (who hit the low ceiling lights on a very regular basis) and thanks to the intense Quidditch practice had also grown from a skinny, gangly boy to a buff and muscular teenager who broke hearts on an alarmingly frequent basis. His friendly manner and sociable ways had made him very popular with the girls and he was always happily soaking in their attentions, much to Ginny's exasperation.
Colin had been her best friend ever since first year. Embarrassingly enough, it was their mutual adoration of Harry Potter that had made them fast friends, and whereas Ginny had fallen out of her crush for The-Boy-Who-Lived right after the entire Chamber of Secrets fiasco, it had taken the blonde two more years before he finally realized that Harry Potter was just as human as everyone around him. Poor Harry was infinitely relieved when Creevey finally stopped asking him to sign his own photos. That didn't mean that Colin had given up on his love for photography though, no; he still lugs his old-fashioned camera around whenever he could, though it was not as often as it had used to be a couple years back.
"Yes, but Ron is known to sprout wings sometimes, you know. Especially when he sees things that he does not like to see." Colin retorted dryly. "I bet he is going to hit the roof and then fly straight over to strangle Malfoy."
Ginny grinned at the image. Her love interest might be a few inches shorter than her giant of a brother and leanly muscled but she had no doubt that he could hold his own against Ron. He was a Malfoy after all. "I think that Malfoy will manage along."
Her eyes flitted over to the Hufflepuff's table and Zacharias Smith lifted his head to lock eyes with Ginny. He winked encouragingly at the redhead and her grin widened.
The flirtatious sixth year was also part of her small band of close friends, and he had really been an unexpected find. During the start of her second year Ginny had often been unmercifully teased and taunted for the near fatal escapade of her first year, and due to the fact that Colin was as small and as awkward a preteen as she had been, the two of them had often been the butt of many a joke. That was before a more normally-developed Zacharias had taken them under his wing, and with the three of them always banded together it became much harder for others to subject them to extensive bullying. Ginny never knew the reason why the dark-haired Zacharias had decided to help them those years ago, but she was grateful for it. The Hufflepuff has been nothing but a great friend; always slow to take offense and quick to understand any problems that she had.
With her grin in place, Ginny nodded her appreciation to Smith before moving her gaze to the next table. Luna was already waiting to catch her gaze; the blonde Ravenclaw waved mistily at Ginny, the bracelet of phoenix feathers fluttering on her delicate wrist as she did so. Lovegood had told her earlier that in some Eastern cultures the phoenix symbolizes true love, and so she had worn the bracelet in support of Ginny's endeavor. Ginny waved back, uncaring of the odd looks that people were giving to them.
Luna Lovegood was the last member of her little circle of friends. Like Zacharias, the blonde had joined their little friendship circle on their second year. Despite being a recent victim, Ginny had not understood the cruelty of children and why they would say nasty things to others just to make themselves feel good. Luna was special, not Loony like they had taunted her with, and Ginny had gotten her to join her and the boys when people started to steal her possessions as some sort of sick joke. That had stopped soon enough though, especially after the small group of 'misfits' had informed the Ravenclaw Head Professor Flitwick about the happenings within his own house.
Indeed, it was true that necessity had pulled the four of them together, but ultimately it had been the ties of friendship that had bound them together even more tightly than any magic could ever do so. For four years they have stuck closely together, and they knew each other as well as themselves. Despite the fact that each of them were by now popular enough on their own merits (Ginny with all her stunning achievements, pretty Luna with her adorably eccentric (not weird) ways, Colin with his charming and friendly appeal, and Zacharias with his flirtatious and playful manner) they were still the closest with each other. After all, they had all seen one another in their weakest and worst moments, and they had not left or said anything derogatory yet. They still stayed bound together, and only in that little circle of four did they really reveal their true selves and innermost thoughts, without any worries of repercussions or harsh judgments. That was the meaning of true friendship.
And it was because of this friendship that Colin Creevey was now attempting his best to dissuade one determined redhead from what he deemed as a suicide mission, for he had no doubt that Ron was going to murder them all when everything is said and done.
Colin sighed loudly.
"Really, Ginny, is it really prudent of you to do this in such a public manner?" The blonde questioned. He still had difficulty believing that his cheerful little pint-sized friend liked the Ice King Malfoy in that manner. It was a literal sense of opposites attracts, and try as he might Colin could not see what it was about Malfoy that had appealed to Ginny. Sure, he had toned down on the bullying and the gleeful picking on Gryffindors, but he was still the same annoying git that everyone loved to hate. "Can't you be like normal girls and hide yourself in some dark corner of the castle and spring upon the object of your affections in private?"
Ginny shook her head resolutely. "No, I am not planning to be just another anonymous notch on his bedpost. If I am going to declare my affections, then I am damn well going to do it where everyone can see and know."
If there was one thing that her close-knit family had taught her, it was that love was nothing to be ashamed about. Love was not an embarrassment, and she would not degrade its value by treating it as such. Besides, the determined redhead was no longer the painfully shy and awkward ten-year old that she once was. She had long grown out of that phase, and all her hard earned achievements had made her one very confident young woman who knew what she wanted and how to get it.
Colin stared at the set expression on Ginny's face and knew that he might as well have been talking to a wall. Her stubborn streak was especially well-known among the Gryffindors and he shook his head in defeat. "I don't understand why it has to be him of all people."
Ginny smiled sympathetically at Colin. She knew that it had been a huge shock to her friends when she had confessed that she really liked Draco Malfoy but she really didn't know how to explain to them what her mother had told her so many years ago.
"Mama, how did you know that you love Papa?" A nine-year old Ginny had asked. Molly Prewett Weasley smiled as she combed her daughter's flame-like hair with a gentle and patient hand. She had a feeling that this was about a certain boy with messy black hair and crooked glasses.
"Well, you will know." Molly said patiently as she ran her fingers through Ginny's red tresses. "The Prewett blood runs true in your veins. You will know."
Ginny did not understand.
"Do you think that Harry will be the one for me?" She asked her mother with childish hope. Molly looked maternally at her baby. It would be nice if Harry was the Soulmate of her Ginny, but a mother's instinct was never wrong. Polite, chivalrous Harry was a childhood crush, and that was what he would always be. There would be someone else for little Ginny, someone who would make her feel the way Arthur had made Molly feel.
Molly smiled at her youngest again.
"We will see."
"For Merlin's sake, Ginny. Stop daydreaming." Colin nudged her from her thoughts. "Your new love and his two friends have just walked in." Ginny lifted her head just in time to see Malfoy, Zabini and Parkinson take to their seats at the prestigious head of the Slytherin table. They were as usual, 'fashionably late' for supper, and for awhile Ginny had thought that maybe the three Slytherin prefects would not be appearing at all. Malfoy's back was facing hers and all of a sudden she felt a little nervous for what she was about to do. This was only her second public declaration after all, the first having been forced out of her in the form of that horrible poem during her first year by none other than Draco Malfoy in the exact same hall. Her eyes narrowed at the memory.
Suddenly she didn't feel quite so apprehensive any more. If she could survive that, she could survive anything. Ginny stood up suddenly from her seat, nearly upsetting her own uneaten supper. Colin looked at her in alarm.
"Ginny, there is no turning back after this." He warned quickly. Ginny smiled grimly.
"I know." She whispered loudly for him to hear. "Wish me luck."
"Don't worry, what are friends for? I will be at your funeral with the largest bouquet of flowers." The blonde said morosely as Ginny clambered over the bench. "Good luck, Gin. You are going to need it."
Ginny barely heard the end of Colin's sentence. She darted quickly to the other side of the Great Hall, knowing that it was only a matter of time before Ron noticed what she was doing. She nodded purposefully at Zacharias and Luna as she passed them by, her heart warming at their unconditional support. She had the best friends in the world, and for that she was infinitely thankful. Ginny flitted past the Ravenclaw Table and by then she could already hear the whispers starting behind her, traveling like wildfire.
She ignored them and came rapidly to a stop behind Malfoy, just in time to catch Zabini's amused purr.
"She's right behind you."
Draco took his time responding to Zabini's statement, the bland expression on his face indicating that he was unaffected by the other boy's words. It was just too bad that his two friends knew him too well; their faces were equally blank but their eyes laughed at him.
He decided to ignore them. The blonde wiped his mouth delicately with a piece of dining napkin before setting it aside and getting to his feet. He stepped gracefully away from the bench before turning to regard the bane of his existence. Ginny Weasley was standing before him, her hands by her side and a very dogged expression on her small face. She barely came up to his shoulder, this pint-sized stalker of his.
"Yes, Weaslette? Is there anything that you require of me now that you have been following me around for a week? An evaluation form perhaps?" Draco spoke at last, his voice thick with sarcasm. By then the Great Hall was silent, and from the corner of his eyes he could see the Gryffindor Dream Team storming over to the rescue, with the redhead string bean in the lead. This was going to be interesting.
Ginny stared up at Draco. This was the first time that she was standing this near to the blonde and it was a lightheaded experience. The Slytherin was very tall and the slightly menacing way he looked at her made her feel slightly nervous.
"Ginny Weasley! What are you think going over there? Come back here now!" Ginny immediately shoved away her discomfort as the nearing roar of her brother made itself known to her. It was now or never.
"Actually, there is something I require of you." Ginny spoke quickly, her clear and steady voice belying the crazy manner her heart was pounding in her chest. Draco swept up a lazy eyebrow.
"Oh?" It was hilarious the way the little redhead looked at the moment. She was green around the gills, and he could hardly wait to see the expression on her brother's face when he told the elder Weasley just what his little sister had been up to this past week. "And what is that?" Draco drawled slowly, crossing his arms across his chest.
It was exactly what Ginny had been waiting for.
"I want you, Malfoy." She blurted out, and she watched as his eyes widened fractionally with shock.
Then quickly, because she could almost feel the vibration of Ron's footsteps as he stampeded towards them, she tiptoed, grabbed the ears of the bewildered blonde and pulled him down to her eyelevel. Her eyes lit up with laughter when she realized Malfoy's uncanny resemblance to a landed trout. Suddenly, she felt as though all her worries had been for naught.
This was going to be easier than stealing candy from a baby.
"I like you, you stupid git."
Then she planted one on him.
