Nothing Compares

by jay1013

Sequel to Against All Odds. Keeping their illicit love affair a secret is a lot harder than Ginny and Draco anticipated. Added to that stress, Hermione has decided to quit her job in order to live a life of luxury while Harry tries to win over Catherine.

2. And So It Goes

Here's the second chapter, hope you enjoy it! I actually had to go back and change the original plot a bit because I just had to include this one scene I've been dying to do for a while now. Anyway, you guys know the drill. Read, enjoy, review. Oh and WARNING: extremely long chapter up ahead. Sorry guys, I just couldn't break it up!

"I'm sure he appreciates her." Harry stepped forward from beside Catherine and nodded at the both of them. "We overheard that last sentence there. It appeared like a pretty intense argument though. We saw it from all the way across the room. We came over to mediate." Draco and Ginny silently recognized what he was trying to tell them and sighed with relief; Catherine still didn't know about them.

"Oh, it wasn't anything intense." Ginny waved away their concern. "Just some old tension that hasn't really gone away."

"Work related tension," Draco added.

"We're angry now, but by tomorrow it will pass."

"It's how we always argue."

Ginny decided to change the subject. "So how's your non-date going?"

"Well-" Harry started. He turned to look over at Catherine who was already walking away, arm-in-arm with Matthew. "That's how it's been going," he finished, annoyed with the situation and himself. "She came over to the party with me as her date so she could spend the entire evening being Matthew's arm candy."

"I thought it wasn't a date," Draco pointed out. "And if she'd rather spend the night on his arm than on yours, you've no one to blame but yourself."

"What does he have that I don't?" Harry demanded.

Draco held up his hands palm up. "Don't look at me. I'm attracted to women." Both men turned to look at Ginny.

"What? Do I have something on my face?" She took the sleeve of Draco's sports jacket and wiped at her nose. "I had a feeling I had fallen asleep on top of a quill this afternoon, but I wasn't sure. You two are a fine pair, allowing for me to walk around with an enormous ink spot on my face. Is it off now?"

"There's nothing on your face and there never was anything on it to begin with." Ginny shoved Draco's arm away and glared at Harry.

"What a cruel trick to play-"

"Right, right. Sorry. A million times sorry. But I have a serious question for you. If you had to choose between myself and Matthew, who would you pick?" Ginny looked from Harry to Matthew to Harry and then to Matthew again. Harry's jaw dropped as Draco began to laugh. "You can't honestly find him more attractive than me."

"Er, see, the thing is..." Ginny glanced back at Matthew and nearly sighed; she remembered Draco was there and how possessive and vain he could be just in time to suppress it. And save Matthew's face. "You and Matthew are both handsome in your own unique ways. You have the messy black hair, emerald-green eyes, and faint, almost mysterious scar look. And then you have Matthew. Straight jet-black hair that is always either combed back or left to hang over his eyes, round eyes a shade of blue as brilliant and sharp as sapphires when he is angry and remind you of the ocean when he is happy and mellow. He's got the aristocratic bone structure, a mouth that is just the right size and texture, and a perfect nose. Lips that are as delicious as they are perfect in appearance, that curve easily into a smile and can just as easily-"

"How much time have you spent admiring this guy?" Draco drawled. "Funny, I could have sworn-"

"And then there's that chest." Ginny closed her eyes and sighed appreciatively. She kept one eye half-opened, watching Draco's face. "God was having a really good day when Matthew was created. He was in such a good mood, he gave Matthew all the qualities of perfection."

"And just how the bloody hell would you know-" When he caught Ginny giggling, he shook his head, but he was secretly happy they could still joke around with one another. Sure, their relationship had problems, but they still loved each other. Things could be worked out, he thought to himself. "Can't believe I fell for that. And isn't it a shame you seem to like imperfections?"

"No, Draco. Only perfection is acceptable. And Matthew may have all the qualities of perfection, but you are the definition of perfection." Knowing it was their way of making up for what happened earlier, Draco and Ginny grinned at one another, wanting to kiss or hug or touch in some way but knowing they could not at the moment.

"That's all fine and dandy. I still don't understand why she would choose him over me. He's her ex, for Merlin's sake!" Harry huffed.

"Pansy did say it was rumored those two were still secretly in love with one another. If that rumor has any merit, it makes perfect sense she'd choose to spend the evening with him rather than with you," Ginny replied.

"But we don't know if Pansy's word is the truth! I never believe in gossip because it's usually rubbish. Just look at all the trash Rita Skeeter's printed on me over the years. If half of it were true, I'd be at St. Mungo's with two giants for children and a squib for a wife. Not that there's anything wrong with either – never mind all that. I guess I'm just going to have to do a little investigating for myself." Harry blew out a breath, as if he could already see what a difficult challenge that was going to be.

"Or you could just ask her," Draco suggested. "You know, go up to her and ask her if she's ever dated Matthew and if she'd like to date Matthew sometime in the future. That doesn't sound so difficult to me."

"Have you lost your mind?" Harry sent Draco a disgusted look. "If I flat out asked her, she'll probably get defensive about it. Or evasive, like she was earlier. And we didn't even mention specifics then. And let's say I do ask her, then she would know I am interested."

"Interested in what? In her?" Draco laughed whole-heartedly when Harry nodded. "I would love to know how you plan on going on a single date with her without showing any interest in wanting to date her. Is this how the 'Oh-so-wonderful' Harry Potter gets dates?"

Harry stepped forward, directly in front of Draco, with his fists clenched as if he were prepared to fight. "We all have our own style, Malfoy. And just because our styles differ, in that I don't collect women as you seem to, doesn't make your style superior to mine."

"Except I've dated Catherine. And I've got Ginny. I say, Potter, that's two women you've lost to me," Draco smirked.

"How did I lose Catherine to you when she and I never dated?"

"She works down the hall from you, doesn't she? You've had ample opportunity to make a move. Except she made one on me first. And our relationship went all the way to the altar. Therefore, you lost her to me. Until, of course, I gave up Catherine for Ginny."

"I didn't like Catherine back then! So I couldn't have lost something I didn't want or didn't have! And you went to school with Ginny, just as I did. According to your logic, you also had ample opportunity to make a move, but you were probably too busy taking care of the stick up your ass and-"

Ginny stood in between them and placed a hand on both of their chests and shoved. "What's the matter with you two? We're at a public party! This isn't the place to come to blows." Then Ginny punched each of them in the gut. "And for Merlin's sake, stop speaking about Catherine and me as if we were property to be lost and gained! We're people, God damn it, so treat and speak of us as if we were such! And quit talking about me as if I weren't standing right here. God, it's no wonder our relationship didn't work out," she nodded towards Harry. She then turned to face Draco. "And you...Don't even get me started on you."

"Ha! See! Ginny likes me better!" Harry smirked triumphantly.

"Did I say you could steal my smirk, Potter?" Draco drawled. "And if she likes you better, then why is she with me?" Harry's hand snaked out, as if to try to choke Draco, but instead it connected solidly with the top of Ginny's head.

"Ow! Am I invisible? Are you two even listening to me?!" Ginny rubbed her head and glared at Harry, who was apologizing profusely. "You can say sorry all you'd like, the bruise will still be there."

"It's his fault!" Harry accused. "If he hadn't-"

"You hit her, not me. Abusing women now, Potter?" Draco sneered. He ordered a glass filled with ice and placed the glass on Ginny's head.

"Thanks. You two are acting like children. I thought this rivalry between the two of you would have disappeared after-"

"Ginny, you have to hide me." Ron reached out and held Ginny in front of him, as if using her as a shield.

"Nice to see you, too. Why are you hiding behind someone half your size? Or, more importantly, who are you hiding from?"

"The Gruesome Twosome." Victoria appeared in front of Ginny and greeted everyone.

"The Gruesome Twosome?" Draco questioned.

"Lavender and Hermione," Victoria supplied.

"Ah. Clever."

"I like to think so."

"But why is he hiding from them? Ron? What have they done to you?" Ginny turned around and rolled her eyes when she saw him cowering by the barstool behind her. "For the love of God, Ron. You dated Lavender for the better part of a decade. And you and Hermione have been best friends for the better part of your lives. There's no reason for you to-"

"Lavender is the girl I dumped after ten years of dating at a wedding that didn't happen. She was annoying and overbearing as a girlfriend and can only be described as an amplified version of her old self as an ex. Hermione takes Lavender's side on virtually everything. And if I didn't know any better, I'd think she's trying to get me and Lavender back together. The two of them seem to have it stuck in their heads that Victoria and I are dating! Who on earth gave them that ridiculous notion?"

"It doesn't matter. The fact is, they've been following Ron about all night. And since I'm with Ron, they're following me about. It's gotten kind of annoying. How did they get in, anyway? I know I certainly didn't invite them. And my guests shouldn't have to hide because they're here." Victoria pulled Ron out to stand with them and not behind them.

"Ron! There you are! We've been looking all over for you!" Lavender squealed. Hermione appeared by her side, smiling a bit timidly. "Why did you go running off? You wouldn't be running away from us, now would you?"

"Yes," Victoria said bluntly.

"No," Ginny quickly covered, sending Victoria a warning look. "He was just eager to see me and Harry. He hasn't seen us in a while."

"I thought you said you left Victoria's party together last night," Lavender said softly. Victoria's eyebrows rose, as if amused.

"Did she, really? Interesting." Victoria ran her tongue over her teeth and decided to let Ginny flounder for a second. It had been her lie after all and Victoria did enjoy teasing Lavender and Hermione.

"I didn't leave-" Ginny shoved an elbow into Ron's stomach. "Ow! What the bloody hell has gotten into you?"

"But you did leave with us, Ron. Don't you remember?" Ginny said, eyes narrowed as if daring him to contradict her.

"Er, yes? Yes. Yes! I do remember now!" Ron began to nod as if he were a bobble head doll. "I was planning on leaving earlier, but I wanted to spend more time with Ginny and Harry. Is that Johnathan I see? I don't believe we've greeted him yet."

"No, we haven't. Let's be on our way then." Victoria took Ron's hand and turned to smile at the fuming Lavender and Hermione. "So nice of you to stop by uninvited. Feel free to continue to leech off of my food and entertainment. And if you need a room, it's on the house. The owner of the hotel said so, because unlike you two, she knows how to be the bigger woman."

Once they were out of earshot, Lavender began to curse her. "Damn her and her money! How am I supposed to compete with that?"

"You aren't competing. They aren't dating!"

"They aren't listening, Ginny. So why waste your breath?" Harry ordered himself a butterbeer.

"Victoria stocked a muggle bar with butterbeer? That's against the law. She should know that." Draco frowned as he took Harry's drink away and sniffed it.

"What the bloody hell are you doing? That's mine! And I have every intention to drink it. I don't appreciate you sniffing at my food." Harry tried to snatch it back and ended up knocking it out of Draco's hand, spraying the drink all over Ginny in the process.

Ginny felt like screaming, tearing her hair out, bashing Harry and Draco's heads into one another, throwing something, scratching Lavender and Hermione's eyes out, throwing a glass across the room at Matthew and Catherine, yelling at Ron and Victoria to finally clear up whether or not they are dating. Instead, she clenched her teeth and spoke in a calm manner. "Why is it that whenever you two argue I always seem to get hurt?"

"You weren't injured," Draco pointed out.

"You're merely wet," Harry agreed.

"And clothes can easily be changed."

"And-"

"Quiet!" Ginny sent each boy a withering look, daring them to defy her. "So far since you two became 'friends'-" She made a show out of using air quotes on the word. "So far, I've had a drink spilled on me, I've been bashed on the head-"

"That was Potter's fault. Both times," Draco interrupted.

"What about the time you pushed me into that speeding car?"

"You what?!" Lavender and Hermione had stopped gossiping long enough to catch Ginny's last comment. "We'll hold him down for you while you bash his face in. Right, Hermione?" Hermione nodded in agreement.

"I ran into the street and whisked you out of harm's way myself, didn't I?" Draco grinned a cocky grin. "You weren't complaining later on that night when-"

"You did save me," Ginny quickly cut him off. "And it only cost me a pair of shoes."

"I bought you a new pair. Bloody hell, you own more shoes than I do ties, shirts, suits, boxers, and brooms combined! And just how much did the new shoes cost you? Nothing! I paid for the sodding closet-full you insist on owning."

"I insist? I insist?" As if offended, Ginny's nostrils flared. She chose to ignore Draco. He was probably saying those things just so he could rile her up. "Did I mention the time you accidentally poured steaming hot coffee on me?"

"It was tea! And it was tepid at its warmest because someone didn't heat it up properly. Damn incompetent assistants. So hard to find good help these days."

Appalled by what she had heard, Hermione cleared her throat. "What the hell kind of psycho boss do you have?"

"To be fair, I did pour two cups of steaming tea on him once. On a much more...fragile part of his anatomy, I might add." Ginny grinned when Draco scowled.

"Must you insist on reminding me of what an ass I had been?"

"Yes." Ginny stood on her toes as if to kiss him. And then she remembered Lavender was there. Deflated, she got back down on the balls of her feet and pouted a little. "I think I'm going to go change now that I am all wet and...sticky." Ginny bid her goodbyes and headed towards her room. At the door, she was berated by the paparazzi once more.

"Ginny, where's Matthew?"

"Is your relationship on the rocks?"

"Has he finally moved on?"

At that Ginny stopped and turned around. "Matthew's inside. I had a drink spilled on me and am now going to change. Our relationship is just peachy. Isn't it obvious we're in love? As for moving on...To think we were just about to release that elusive wedding date. Oh, well. Guess you'll never know." Ginny shook her head when she heard them calling after her. "You're not getting another word out of me," she mumbled as she tried to work her room card. She passed it over the knob, but nothing happened. She arched a brow as she passed it a second and third time. Nothing happened. "Damn muggle contraptions. Hardly ever work." Ginny began to impatiently shove the door. She kicked at it a couple of times before returning to shoving it again. The door suddenly opened and she fell into the room. "Ow! What just happened?" Ginny stood up and examined the door. After about a minute, she shrugged. She wasn't a door expert anyway so as far as she knew, she'd probably just shoved the door in. She turned towards the bed and reached for her duffle. She pulled out a kimono Draco had gotten her on their trip to Tokyo. She reached for the zipper of the dress she had on and pulled it down. She shimmied out of her dress and stepped out of it. She was stepping out of her shoes when she felt arms wrap around her shoulders. Ginny shrieked in alarm and went with pure instinct: she elbowed her attacker in the ribs, took one arm and twisted it around while shoving her attacker down onto the ground.

"Who are you? What do you want? Answer me!" Ginny twisted the arm harder, causing the attacker to groan in pain.

"Ow! Will you stop that?" Ginny gasped and let up a little when she recognized the voice. "I am Draco Malfoy, your alleged boyfriend. I wanted some hot, steamy, make-up sex for our little tussle, but you apparently wanted to wrestle. Then again wrestling could lead to what I want..."

"How did you get in here?"

"Apparated. I was the one who opened the door for you. Nice kicking, by the way. Very effective. How's the foot?"

Ginny stuck out her lower lip, dangerously close to pouting. "Leave me alone. I have to change because someone spilled a drink on me."

"Potter, yes. Glad we agree. And go on changing. As a matter of fact, change your underwear while you are at it. I did enjoy the striptease," Draco added with a smirk.

"You were watching me?" Ginny gaped at him. "Why, you little pervert-" Draco tugged her up against him and crushed his lips on hers. Ginny trailed off on a moan.

Draco pulled away long enough to look down at her and say "Enough talk, wouldn't you agree?" Ginny responded by tugging his tie and lowering them onto the bed. They struggled for control for a minute, with both trying to be on top. Finally, Draco decided to let her win and concentrated on trailing kisses along her collarbone and then down her arm. Ginny helped him out of his jacket and tie. And just when she was reaching for the buckle of his pants, they heard a knock at her door. They would have ignored it, but a familiar voice was at the door.

"Ginny? Open up, it's Catherine." Catherine continued to knock unaware of the crisis she was stirring inside.

"Shit! Damn it. Damn it," Draco repeated. He shoved Ginny off a bit too forcefully, sending her over the edge of the bed.

"That's twice in one day, Malfoy," Ginny hissed.

"Malfoy? Is that you I hear in there? I heard your voice," Catherine accused from outside the door. Ginny and Draco looked at one another, eyes wide and not exactly sure what to do next. Had they just been caught? Finally, Draco thought. Now they could move on with their lives. No! Ginny thought. Now she had a lot of explaining to do.

"I've got to hide! Where can I hide?" Ginny whispered. She rushed to the closet and to her dismay, it was crammed with clothing. Clothing she assumed belonged to one of Victoria's legions of friends, or even Victoria herself.

"Come here." Draco pulled her by the arm back to the bed.

"Malfoy, I demand that you open this door immediately! If you've hurt Ginny...I have diplomatic immunity, thanks to my father, so as long as I don't murder you they can't send me to Azkaban. Open the bloody door! I'm using my wand," Catherine warned. Draco swore and shoved Ginny's head down until she was on the ground.

"Under the bed. Get under the bed," he muttered. Ginny forgot to let go of his hand and pulled him down with her. Draco pinched Ginny and shoved her further under the bed. The space was cramped for the both of them and especially tiny for him. As a man over six feet tall and weighing in at 175 pounds, beneath the bed was not a very practical place for him to hide.

"What is going on here?" Catherine asked as she burst through the door. When she didn't see anyone in the room, she shook her head. "I swear I heard him. I must be losing my mind." She turned to leave and remembered to close the door behind her. The instant the door clicked shut, Draco pinched Ginny once more.

"Ouch! Stop abusing me! I might as well call the police with all the bruises you've put on me! Domestic violence," Ginny whined.

"Stop it. I didn't pinch you hard enough to bruise either time and we both know it. And you pinched me twice earlier. Consider it pay back. I'm not sure how we're going to-I need to get out from under here before we can continue this discussion. I swear to you, it feels like my lungs are being crushed and my flesh is being pressed against my bones." Draco stood up and held out a hand to help Ginny. His body snapped back when Catherine burst through the door for the second time. "Catherine, what brings you to these parts?" He placed his foot above Ginny's head and tried as gently as possible to shove her back down. He heard her moan softly and prayed to God Catherine hadn't heard her. He stepped away from the bed, and away from Ginny, and moved up to be in front of Catherine. He was effectively blocking her view of the bed, just as he had aimed to.

"I'll ask the questions here, Malfoy." Catherine began to circle around him, attempting to make him sweat. But Draco remained as cool as a cucumber on the outside, even managing to appear bored. Internally, however, he was sweating like a pig and praying to God Ginny didn't move and that Catherine kept her piercing gaze on him and not on the bed behind him. "What are you doing in Ginny's hotel room?"

"Looking for Ginny. Same as you are, I suppose." Draco nonchalantly put his hands in his pockets, with the ghost of a smirk on his face.

"How did you get in?"

"Same way you did. Except I didn't break down the door with a spell. I apparated."

"Why didn't you open the door for me? And where were you a few seconds ago when I first stepped into the room?"

"You poured a cup of water on me earlier. I dumped you at the altar. Pick a reason, any reason you want. We're not friends, Catherine. Why would I open the door for you? And I did say I apparated here. Just a few seconds ago, in fact, so I wasn't even in here to open the door for you in the first place," he responded coolly. Catherine stopped circling him and narrowed her eyes.

"As much as I despise you, I have to admit you do have a point. But why, pray tell, is Ginny's dress on the floor while her new dress is still laid out in the bed? Am I expected to believe she's running around the hotel in her undergarments?"

"How should I know? I only got here moments before you, remember. For all we know, she and your precious Matthew could be off snogging somewhere."

Catherine laughed at that. "Be serious, Malfoy. Matthew already told me they were on the fringes of breaking-up. It's just a matter of who calls it off first."

"He said that, did he?" Draco shrugged. "That's their business. Why are you still here?"

"Why are you still here? I'm the one who's actually concerned about Ginny' s well-being. You're probably here to bother her. Don't you know better than to barge into a woman's room? Especially when said woman is supposed to be changing? And you knew she was changing because she said as much before she dashed off ten minutes ago."

"I think I just saw Matthew pass by with Potter. They were looking for you earlier," Draco lied. "You better hurry, they looked anxious."

"That's bollocks." But Catherine did look over her shoulder, where she spotted the door open. She debated between staying to make sure Draco left and believing Draco and going after Matthew and Harry. She opted for the latter, justifying it with the fact that Ginny was a grown woman and could take care of herself. She didn't understand why Draco was waiting for her in her room as she changed, but their crazy relationship was beyond her realm of comprehension. She had long since given up on trying to figure out how they actually managed to get along, work side-by-side, and remain friends. "I'd better go after them. I wouldn't want them to worry about me. Don't touch anything and if Ginny comes back wearing just a towel, you better leave."

"I will. Scouts honor." Catherine left at last and Draco quickly closed the door, sighing when Ginny came out from under the bed. "She shouldn't have believed me. I'm not even sure what a scout is. I just heard some boy say it once while I was studying at Oxford."

"Did you have to shove so hard? You nearly cracked my neck!" Ginny whined.

"This has gotten way out of hand. You're lying to your friends and the world about who you are with and what you are doing. You can't honestly stand there and tell me you see nothing wrong with telling people you're engaged to one man and then sneaking off to fool around with some other guy." Draco grabbed the kimono from the bed and tossed it to her.

"Hey!" It almost hit Ginny square in the face. "Watch it! What are you angry with me for? Just a few minutes ago, you were ready to hop into bed."

"Yeah. I'm no longer in the mood. Just put your clothes on. I'm leaving."

"You're leaving? What about me?"

"You're not my date, remember?" Draco retorted. "Go be with your fiancé. You wouldn't want people to know the truth."

"I'd rather spend my evenings with you, you know that. And I understand you're frustrated by the situation-"

"I don't want to argue with you anymore today. And that's just what this discussion is going to end in, us arguing. If you want to leave with me, then leave. It doesn't make any difference to me." Draco apparated then, leaving Ginny by herself in the hotel room. He was lying, she told herself. Of course it mattered to him. Ginny decided to give him some time to cool off and put on her green kimono so she could indulge in a small drinking session. She walked back into the party using the back entrance to avoid the paparazzi. She headed straight for the bar, briefly waving at Lavender, Hermione and Pansy who were seated on the opposite end.

"What's wrong with her?" Pansy chewed her bubble gum and watched Ginny with mild concern. The truth of the matter was, Ginny may not have been Pansy's friend, but since she had started seeing Draco Malfoy on the sly she suddenly became interesting gossip. And if there was anything Pansy couldn't live without in this world-Well, she wouldn't go as far as saying it was gossip, but gossip was a close second on her list of necessities. And Ginny was just about the only person in the world Pansy felt she could trust with her problems; she could tell Ginny anything and she knew whatever she said was for Ginny's ears and Ginny's ears only. Pansy's eyes widened when she saw Ginny shoot back a couple of shots of what appeared to be vodka, one right after the other. "That right there just takes the biscuit for the dumbest thing I've seen tonight. A girl that thin shouldn't be having so much vodka. Wonder where her boyfriend is."

"Off flirting with the Minister's daughter. I swear to you, he's cheating on her. Ginny, that is," Lavender clarified, just in case they were moving too fast for Hermione. Hermione rolled her eyes. Didn't Lavender realize just who she was dealing with here? "He, Matthew, spent the entire evening with Catherine on his arm. Beautiful girl, but he's supposed to be taken! And she's been cheated on before, hasn't she? I heard Draco got off with some strange woman he met at Fred and George's party last fall. Why on earth would she want to play at the other woman when she knows what it's like to be cheated on? You'd think she would be more sympathetic than that."

"Hmm. Matthew's arm you say? Didn't you hear, she used to date-"

"We have more important things to worry about," Hermione interrupted.

Lavender and Pansy rolled their eyes. "Like what?" they asked at the same time.

"Like Ron being lured away from me-er, Lavender by that girl. Victoria Wellington," she specified for Pansy's benefit.

"The damn wench!"

"Well, don't mince your words, Lavender. Tell us how you really feel about her."

"I mean it, Pansy. The girl's the biggest wench-"

Pansy cut her off. "I was being sarcastic. No need to yak away on your reasoning."

"You have to help me get him back, Pansy."

"You want him back?" Surprised by the admission as well as the plea for help, Pansy rocked back on her heels. "How can I help you to get him back? Especially when he's hanging around Victoria Wellington. We were all there, Lavender. He broke up with you meaning you can't just win him back that easily. And no offense to you, but Victoria Wellington is some men's dream. Why would he want to give up a new and exciting relationship with her for an old and mundane relationship with you?"

"That's where you come in. Dig up some dirt on her."

"Uh, not happening, sorry." Pansy shook her head.

"Why not?" Lavender asked, disappointed to be turned down so quickly.

"First of all, dig where? The girl was raised in muggle New York. Not only does she have very few friends who are wizards, she has very few friends that are British! The only friends of hers I know or have any sort of connection to are Matthew and Johnathan. And I don't really know them know them, it's more like I know of them. Do you honestly expect her closest friends in the world who don't truly know me or trust me would tell me anything about her life? And just where am I going to find anyone willing to talk to me who would actually have some useful information? She's a billionaire, Lav. Her slate's going to come out clean because she can pay people to keep their mouths shut. Or at the very least, blackmail or threaten them to keep her secrets."

"Don't you want a challenge, Pansy? Imagine, cracking the enigma that is Victoria Wellington. You'd go down in the history books. And you managed to get something on Catherine, who's the Minister's daughter. I'd say she's more important and tougher to crack than Victoria."

"No, it doesn't work that way. You don't seem to understand how much money and power this girl actually has. She's a very important person at the Ministry and-"

"Are you telling me you can't do it? Pansy, what happened to that killer spirit of yours? You looked up information on Catherine and that was hard. So this may be a little harder." Lavender shrugged. "You never know what you can do until you try. You should always aim higher. Once you've reached one rung on a ladder, figure out how to get to the next one. Don't be a big girl's blouse. Wimps never make it to the top of the ladder, but you aren't a wimp, Pansy."

Pansy considered it for a moment. "And if I do help you? What do I get out of it?"

A slow smile crept along Lavender's face. It was like dangling candy in front of a small child. "Gossip. Juicy gossip no one else knows about."

That got Pansy hooked. She'd be the first and the only to know. Because if she found something, she didn't necessarily have to share it with Lavender or anyone else for that matter. It was her favorite part about gossip, deciding what information to leak and which to keep to herself. Lavender like to spread, but Pansy just enjoyed knowing. Of course, Lavender didn't know that. No one did. "And what are you going to do with whatever I manage to find on her?"

"We're going to destroy her."

"We?" Pansy and Hermione looked at one another.

"That doesn't sound wise, Lavender. She's a billionaire and a powerful witch. She can make us disappear."

"Don't be so melodramatic, Herms. Where would she send us to? And besides, how would she know it was us doing everything? If we cover our tracks well-"

"She's smart, though. And you two blatantly hate her. It's kind of obvious who would try to harm her. I can come off smelling like a rose. But you two...Okay, I'm in." Lavender grinned at Pansy.

"And you, Hermione? Care to join the destroy Victoria club?"

"Listen to yourself. Destroying people's lives? Sabotaging relationships? Does that sound like something I'd do?" Hermione shook her head in disbelief. "What makes you think you could even get away with all of this? Or any of this, for that matter."

"Come on, Granger. Don't be so terrified of getting caught. Where's that Gryffindor bravery we were always being told about at Hogwarts? Weren't you placed in Gryffindor House because of your daring nature? Aren't you supposed to be bold?" Pansy taunted. "Besides, I know you wouldn't want Weasley to end up marrying her."

"He wouldn't marry her, that hooker. Would he?" Hermione looked to Lavender for confirmation. Ron knew better than that. At least, she hoped he did.

"I don't know. There's no way of predicting what kind of effect her charms will have on Ron. A woman's wiles can break a man. That's why we need to find out exactly what's going on and stop whatever ideas that wench may have running through her mind. Or any ideas she may have planted in Ron's head. We have to do this, Hermione. You have to do this, as Ron's friend," Lavender said.

Hermione sighed and gave in. "You're right. We have to protect Ron, as his friends. What do you want me to do?"

Lavender smiled victoriously. "Let's wait until Pansy gathers some information before we do anything drastic. But for now...This is her hotel, right?"

"And her party," Hermione added. "What are you getting at?"

"These are her people here. Mingle, get to know them. Become an insider. Someone's got to find out exactly what's going on between her and Ron. Target whoever looks completely wasted. And act drunk. People tend to say things to drunks because they won't remember in the morning."

"How does a person act drunk?"

Impatient, Lavender shoved a drink into her hands. "Take this. Swirl it a lot and toss it back as if it were a shot of something strong. Giggle a lot, stumble around a little, slur a word or two. Someone's bound to fall for it and someone's bound to have a loose tongue."

Hermione had her doubts but decided to give it a shot. "I've got nothing better to do now that Ginny's completely out of it."

"That's the spirit!" Lavender gave her a push towards where Matthew and Johnathan were busy entertaining Catherine. "Try them first."

"Er, hiya Matthew. Johnathan. Catherine." Hermione giggled nervously and hoped it came out as more of a drunken giggle.

"Hermione. Are you drunk?" Catherine leaned in, as if trying to smell her breath. Hermione instantly stepped back. She didn't want the truth to be revealed so quickly.

"No. Of course not. Since when do I drink?" She laughed as she tossed back some of what was in the glass Lavender had handed her. She hissed as the vodka burned a route down her esophagus. It must have been Ginny or Draco's glass. They were the only two she knew who actually enjoyed torturing their stomach linings. "Strong stuff."

"Considering that was your first time having some..." Johnathan removed the glass from her hands and handed it to Harry, who was conveniently standing nearby.

"Some party. Right, Harry? Victoria sure does know how to throw a party." Hermione nodded a lot, thinking that drunks can be very repetitive at times.

"She throws the best," Johnathan agreed. "Is there any particular reason you're here pretending to be drunk?"

Hermione's eyes widened. How did he figure her out so quickly? "Who pretends to be drunk? Which, by the way, I am not. Drunk nor pretending."

"Contrary to popular belief, I'm not stupid. I attended Yale, took the same classes as Matthew did. We both got a degree in economics and I have an additional degree in psychology. My parents may have gotten me into school by writing a check, but they certainly didn't pay for my distinctions of being a member of Phi Beta Kappa or graduating magna cum laude."

"Er..." Hermione looked to Harry for help, but he was busy eyeing Matthew with complete and utter disdain. "I'm not sure what any of this means-"

"It means he's smart. Very smart," Catherine explained.

"And as a college graduate," Johnathan continued with a small smile serving as thanks to Catherine, "I know when a person is truly drunk. I myself have been drunk many times throughout my life and by the face you made when you sipped your drink, I could tell you'd probably never had anything stronger than champagne. Maybe you've had a glass of wine and a cosmopolitan whenever you're around friends and don't want to seem like a prude. Now, since I do have a degree in psychology, I have dissected the evidence and have come up with three reasons why you would pretend to be drunk. First, you could be bored of your straight and tidy life and wanted to see what it was like to have fun for a change and since you didn't want to be hung over tomorrow at work, you decided pretending was your best option."

"Sounds plausible," Catherine and Matthew nodded in agreement.

"Second, you could genuinely believe you are drunk because you have never truly had alcohol before and are under the impression that a single shot of the-what did you call it? Strong stuff? Yes, that a single shot of the 'strong stuff' ought to do the trick."

"Naive. Yes, also believable," Catherine and Matthew concurred. They had started to sound like parrots and were getting on Hermione's last nerve. Wasn't anyone on her side today?

"Third, and this is the one I truly believe in, you're pretending to be drunk so that you can pump us for information concerning Victoria that you can go back and feed to your gossip-thirsty queen bee also known as Lavender Brown. Am I right or am I right?" Johnathan asked acidly. This isn't going too well, Hermione thought as she quickly planned the best way to retreat.

"No! No! You couldn't be any further from the truth. I just want to have fun. Harry, come dance with me." She desperately dragged Harry away and spared a searing look at Lavender and Pansy.

Pansy noticed her look and rolled her eyes. Of course Lavender's plan hadn't worked. Hermione had probably been too obvious. But it wasn't poor Hermione Pansy held responsible. "Nice touch, using the friend card," Pansy commented. "It was a low card to pull, even for me. Are you sure you weren't meant to be a Slytherin?"

"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned," Lavender said in response.

"Except you're not angry with him, but with her. Seems your aim is set on the wrong target." Pansy breezed by Lavender, eyeing Ginny and then Hermione before bumping solidly into a man's chest. "Oh! My apologies, I didn't see you there. I can be a bit of a klutz," Pansy confessed.

"Pansy?" Pansy gasped when she recognized the voice.

"Oliver?" Pansy didn't wait for a response. She made a beeline for the bar, right beside Ginny where the lights were at their dimmest. "I'll have two shots of whatever she's drinking," Pansy ordered. She kept her head down low and tried her best to suppress the urge to turn around. She looked over at Ginny and curled her lip, preparing to do something she hated, even with Ginny: releasing information about herself. They'd been doing it for months now, exchanging woes, but it still galled Pansy that she felt a need to discuss her problems with someone else. "I'll spill if you will."

"My boyfriend, Draco, is angry with me because as far as the entire world is concerned, my boyfriend's name is Matthew. My ex is obsessed with my boyfriend's, that would be Draco's, ex. And she seemed interested in him, the ex-er, my ex, before, but she now seems interested in my boyfriend, Matthew this time, whom she used to date once upon a time. Hermione and Lavender are constantly bitching about Ron and Victoria, who aren't even dating. And somehow, this has all been going on for a while but I didn't notice until today because my boyfriend, Draco, and I have been too involved with one another these past few months to notice that anything was wrong. Ain't that something? I thought everything would be great after we got together, but nope. Honeymoon's over folks. Wait, not honeymoon. We're not married. But you know what I mean. Bet you can't top that," Ginny challenged lazily. She was feeling buzzed and mellow from the glasses of Pinot noir and vodka she'd had since Draco left.

"Bet you I can." Pansy tossed back a shot, scrunched her nose when the burn she had been expecting hadn't occurred, and then tossed the second back. "You're having wine? You just made me toss back two shots of wine? Pathetic. Get me something strong. The strongest stuff you've got back there." Pansy waited for the shots to arrive and nearly screamed after she'd had her first. "Bloody hell! That burned skin off! I think I need another."

"You're stalling. Can't beat me," Ginny smirked.

"Oh, yeah? Just listen to this. First, I had to sneak past my current boyfriend, Blaise from our Hogwarts days, so I could attend this party on my own. I've been trying to break up with him for weeks now, but he just doesn't seem to take my hints. I mean, if your key doesn't work on my locks, chances are I changed them. Anyway, so I arrive here stag and bump into Lavender and Hermione. They've got me in some deal to destroy the pretty little girl hanging around your brother. Honestly, I didn't realize he was such a catch. He's got three beautiful women floating around after him. One of them's dumb as a rock, the other's too smart for her own good, and the third is so mysterious, her own shadow probably doesn't follow her because it doesn't know where she is! And my job, or end of the deal I should say, is to find out information about the mysterious one. Then, just as I am about to talk Lee Jordan into dancing with me, my ex-husband bumps into me. Or, rather, I bumped into him. I haven't seen or heard from him in...Who knows how long? It's been so long, I can't even remember the last time we sat down and had a one-on-one conversation."

"Doesn't top me. So sorry you've lost our little game today."

"How are you more less fortunate? You have two boyfriends, one real and one fake and both gorgeous, while I've got one unwanted boyfriend and one too-gorgeous-for-the-eyes ex-husband. Damn it, I'm still in love with him!"

Ginny considered this new evidence. "That does sound bad," she agreed. "But you keep saying ex. Last time I checked, the petition you two filed two years ago is inactive. Neither of your necessary signatures were on it and after a year of inactivity, the Ministry decided you two just didn't want it to go through. You could try to work it out with him-"

"No," Pansy said sadly. "No," she nearly sobbed. "I can't. We can't. Our worlds are too different, our lives too incompatible. Some things were said that just can't be erased or taken back."

"They say time heals," Ginny offered. "See if the saying has any merit."

"Turn around and see if there's a tall, lean, sandy blonde. Knowing Oliver, he's probably wearing a black suit with a matching tie and white sneakers with-"

"Black laces," Ginny finished. She faced Pansy once more, goggling. "That's Oliver? He's like a darker, lankier version of Draco. I mean, don't get me wrong. The guy's gorgeous, he just seems so...well, boring. Like someone who wears matching socks and underwear."

"Yes, actually, he does. Oliver loves matching things." Pansy miserably ordered them another round, of butterbeer this time.

"If it weren't for the sneakers, I would have thought he was heading off to work."

"Oliver's always ready for work. He's an investment banker and he used to say besides stocks, I was the excitement in his life. I'm not sure what a stock is, but it doesn't sound too interesting. But Ollie loves stocks, bonds, and securities. He's such a nerd, too. A real wiz with numbers. And he's got a memory like an elephant. Never did forget a single birthday or anniversary. Blimey, he used to have to remind me sometimes." Pansy sighed, wistfully remembering each and every birthday he had surprised her on. "Listen to me, making myself sad and regretful on how things turned out. And you, listing all the reasons you're unhappy. We sound like a pathetic bunch, don't we? Why don't we change that? We deserve to have fun too, you know." Pansy finished off her drink and waited for Ginny to do the same. She then ordered them another round. She clinked her glass (Victoria, apparently, didn't stock the traditional mugs in which butterbeer was supposed to be served) against Ginny's and made a toast. "To a happier and better night as a couple of single girls then we ever were as a part of a couple."

"Er, sure." Ginny clinked her glass in turn and gulped down her drink. That last glass did them both in. Their heads were no longer swimming; they were now completely drowning. Their movements were now very liquid and every step they took felt like they were walking across a pool. Ginny giggled when she moved her arm and saw the room spin about as she moved. "I think we're having fun already."

"Haven't even started yet, Gin. I can call you Gin, right? Doesn't matter." Pansy waved all of this aside. "Want to have some real fun? Let's dance." Pansy stood up and stepped up on the bar stool, nearly falling off and onto Ginny.

"What are you doing? Dance floor's that way." But Ginny had already taken Pansy's hand and was on top of the table before her brain could even process the movement. "I think this isn't a very good way to hide from Oliver. You'll stand out like hell up here, especially dancing beside one of the only two redheads in the room. And I don't think Draco would like it if he found out what we were doing."

"Who cares about Oliver? And who cares about Draco?" Pansy demanded. "This is about us two, Pansy and Ginny, having fun. So let's get to it." Pansy began gyrating on the bar stool and Ginny shrugged, deciding she would look foolish if she didn't follow her lead. "Watch this!" Pansy got up on the bar and moonwalked across. Pansy wiggled her brows. "Not bad, huh?"

"You look like you've done this before."

"Nope. First time. In public anyway. Just try it. It's not as hard as it looks," Pansy assured her. Ginny knew she shouldn't, but wanted to try it desperately. So she turned around and moonwalked across the bar, so intensely concentrating on the movement of her feet (or at least as much as a drunk can be expected to concentrate), that she didn't notice the crowd that had gathered to cheer them on. Nor did she notice her brother yelling at her to get down, the flashbulbs going off in a frenzy, or the drinks she was knocking over as she crossed the bar. But most importantly, she didn't notice her position on the bar and how close to the end of it, and to Pansy, she actually was. She ended up crashing solidly into Pansy who had been standing at the edge of the bar. They ended up going over, both unperturbed with the idea of crashing onto the ground. Except they didn't crash onto the ground.

Just as they were about to hit the floor, an arm wrapped around each of their waists and dragged them across a shoulder. "Wow! That was fun! Let's do it again!" Ginny looked up and caught a glimpse at the man who saved them. She had been expecting Ron or Harry or Matthew or even Draco. She hadn't been expecting Pansy's husband to catch them. Since he'd saved her face from being smashed in, she decided to be friendly. "Thanks a bunch! You're so helpful even though Pansy's so angry with you. You're a lot stronger than you look, too."

"No, you two just don't weigh all that much." Oliver grunted as he sat them down on an empty table. "What were you thinking? Dancing on top of a bar has got to be the stupidest thing I've ever seen you do, Pansy. And I've seen plenty of stupid things come out of you in the seven years I've known you."

"It was fun, not stupid." Pansy crossed her arms and blew hair out of her eyes. "And what are you doing here anyway? These aren't your people, they're my people."

"People don't belong to anyone, Pansy. I was invited, just as you probably were. And if that was your idea of fun, I would hate to see how you celebrate. Drinking responsibly-"

"Don't be so prim. It's my life, I live it how I want to."

"Right. Which of the two of you is the paparazzi after? The press has been snapping pictures like crazy." Oliver tried to block them from the lenses, using his body as a shield.

"Probably me." Ginny shot up her hand, as if still in school and waiting to be called on by a teacher. "I'm dating one of your friends. Allegedly, anyway."

"Can't be. My friends are all single. I'm the only semi taken one and, as you can see, my soon-to-be-ex-wife and I aren't on the best of terms. Hence the soon-to-be-ex part. Do you two need a ride home or something?"

"A ride?" Pansy and Ginny exchanged a look before bursting into a fit of laughter. "We're witches. Why would we need a ride anywhere?"

Oliver arched a brow. "You're both drunk. Statistically, drunks are nearly six times more likely to get into an accident than a sober person and-"

Pansy groaned. "No more stats, please. I thought once you moved out, the stats lessons would end."

Oliver stiffened. "Excuse me for wanting to share my knowledge. Excuse me for wanting to protect you two from getting hurt. I wasn't aware caring for another human being was against the law. But now I know. And since you'd rather spit insults at me at the moment, perhaps it would be best if I just left you to the piranhas that call themselves the media."

"Leave her to the piranhas. I appreciated your help. And I know my boyfriend would appreciate it if you took me home." Ginny batted her eyes and prepared to beg. "Please, please, please see me home?"

"Grown women with pride don't beg for anything, Ginny. I expected you to know that. Dating a billionaire and all." Pansy snorted at that. "Want some advice? Marry for money. Love is overrated." Pansy stood up and wobbled to the door where she ran into Blaise. "Boyfriend! Take me home?"

"Ah, sure. I was just looking for you, actually. Things are quite lonely in the evening without you around." Blaise wrapped an arm around Pansy's shoulders and led her out. Oliver watched on, his jaw ticking in anger.

"Who is that guy Pansy just left with?" Oliver asked as he helped Ginny up.

"Whoa. World is spinning. Or maybe I'm spinning. Who knows?"

"The man Pansy left with?" Oliver prompted patiently.

"Oh, you mean Blaise? That's her soon-to-be-ex-boyfriend. They've been dating for like a year, I think. Maybe more, maybe less. I haven't been paying attention to anything but my relationship for a long time. You're still married, did you know? And you'll probably remain married for a while yet."

"We will?" Oliver looked down at Ginny, eyes wide with disbelief. "I think I will take you home. What's the address?" Ginny rattled off her address and then leaned against Oliver for support. "What did you mean when you said we were still married and will probably remain married?"

"Oh, the petition you guys filed has been rendered inactive because neither of you signed it." Ginny shook her head a little. "If you didn't want to divorce, then why file? Only made my job harder. Or, actually added to my ever increasing duties. You see, my boyfriend/boss makes me do extra work so that we can spend more time together."

"How sad. I could have sworn I signed that petition."

"You signed the one in the muggle world, not the wizarding world. And unless the one in the wizarding world is signed, the one filed in the muggle world is void. Null. Doesn't count."

"I get the picture. Pansy never showed me the-what did you call it? Wizarding petition? She never showed me that one."

"She never signed it herself."

"I don't understand. She practically shoved me out of the door. She pushed for the divorce. Why wouldn't she want to finalize it? Especially if she has a new boyfriend." Oliver hailed them a cab and recited the address while gently settling Ginny into the car. "Why wouldn't she even mention the petition for divorce?"

"Because she still loves you. Duh." Ginny rolled her eyes at Oliver's shocked look. "Men are so naive. Why else would she not even mention the papers to you? She doesn't want to get divorced. She probably just thinks that's what you want."

"But she pushed for the divorce," Oliver insisted. "I never mentioned the word divorce."

"Again I say she thought that's what you wanted. So she pushed for it first. Rejection sucks. I should know. My boyfriend rejected me for someone else. Then he came to his senses and chose me. Now we're happy. Sort of." Ginny pouted a little. "We should be, anyway."

"I don't understand why she would date someone else if she still loves me. And while still being married. I mean, I didn't know about the divorce rules in your world, but I'm sure she did. And what was she expecting to come out of all of this? Had I not run into you, I wouldn't have known any of this."

"She wants you, you want her. I don't see a problem." The taxi slowed to a stop. "Help me up? I can't really move own my own yet."

"Sure." Oliver paid the cab driver, over tipped him and then stepped out and held out an arm for Ginny. "You know, many people like to say fifty percent of all marriages end up in divorce. That number is actually false considering it is typically a comparison of the number of divorces over the number of marriages that have occurred in a single year and ignores marriages that occurred years ago but the couples are just now divorcing. For example, if 2 million couples were married last year and 1 million filed for divorce, it appears that half of the marriages resulted in divorce. Except that out of the 1 million-"

"Pansy's right, you're too into stats and analyzing data. Maybe that's why your marriage didn't work out."

Oliver shook his head as he decided it would be best to carry Ginny up. "What's the apartment number?"

"Top floor. The entire top floor is one apartment." Ginny snuggled into Oliver's shoulder. She pulled back to rub at her nose a second. "You know, you're really bony. Maybe that's why she left you."

"That's a theory." Thankfully, the building only had three floors so he didn't have to carry her too far. When they arrived at the front door of the apartment, Oliver looked down at Ginny and shook her a little to make sure she was still awake. "Keys? To open the door," he explained.

"Oh, just knock. He should be home." Oliver wanted to ask who he was, but knew it wasn't any of his business. So he just knocked and waited patiently for someone to answer the door. His eyes widened slightly when a familiar blonde answered the door. "Draco Malfoy?"

"Clear off, it's fucking three in the morning." Bleary eyed, Draco stood at the doorway in nothing more than a pair of black boxers. "Do I look ready for polite company? Someone better have died or else someone will-" Draco stopped as his eyes finally adjusted to the light. "Oliver Weiss? Pansy's husband?"

"Yes." Oliver beamed at him, surprised Draco had remembered him. "I brought you someone who partied a little too hard tonight. She claims to live here."

Draco looked down at Ginny and frowned. "She knows better than to get drunk. Last time she got drunk, she ended up shagging a stranger. Of course, that stranger ended up being the love of her life, but that's the luck of the draw." Draco looked back up at Oliver. "She said she lived here? You asked her for her home address and this is the one she gave you?"

"Uh, yes." Not comprehending the significance of this fact, Oliver shifted Ginny slightly in his arms. "Do you mind taking her from me now? She doesn't weigh any more than a feather, but it feels awkward, you know, standing at someone's doorway carrying a drunk redhead. It's an experience, I must admit, but not one which was on my list of things to do before I die."

"Understandable." Draco took Ginny into his arms, shaking her a bit to see if she was awake. "She's out cold. Thank you for bringing her over, I really do appreciate it."

"Ah, no problem." Oliver hesitated a bit before speaking again. He didn't like to pry, but he was curious. "Luck of the draw? She had a one night stand with the guy she ended marrying?"

"Marriage?" Draco choked on the word. "I never said anything about marriage. Love and marriage don't always go together."

"Sure they do. Have you ever watched an episode of Married With Children? The theme song said something about love and marriage going together like a horse and carriage."

"They said that to rhyme. I've been down the marriage path before. It didn't end too well. Neither did your path, I suppose. Then again, you married Pansy. Any man who puts up with Pansy out of their own freewill deserves some sort of award or compensation."

Oliver shrugged. "She's not a bad person once you get to know her. Anyway, what does it matter now that the marriage is nearly over? My duty here is done. I hope your girlfriend doesn't feel too dead in the morning. I'll get the door for you." Oliver stepped back and closed the door. Draco laid Ginny on the bed and decided to let her sleep. If she wanted to do her own thing and not listen to his advice, it was fine by him. He'd show her who needed whom...

The next morning, Ginny woke up with a splitting headache. Disoriented, she got up to brush her teeth and wash her face. "The world is spinning," she mumbled on her way back to the bedroom. She got clothes out of the closet and prepared to dress for work. "Draco, is breakfast ready?" No response. Strange, Ginny thought. He usually took care of breakfast while she handled dinner. "Would you like for me to prepare something for us?" Still no response. Ginny walked over to the kitchen carrying her shoes in her hands. She got out a bowl, cereal, and milk and prepared herself breakfast. As she prepared to ingest her first spoonful, she glanced over at the clock. And then proceeded to spit out the food which had been in her mouth. "Jesus Christ, I'm late!" It was ten past ten, making Ginny officially and hour and ten minutes late for work. Ginny pulled out her wand and apparated to the Ministry, shoes still in hand. She jogged up the steps to her floor and nearly flew to her desk. She screeched when she spotted Matthew in her seat. "You scared me. What are you doing here? Never mind that. Do you have aspirin? I've got this monster headache and-"

"I need to speak with you in private. Now." Matthew didn't even wait for a response. He simply grabbed her by the wrist and used the nearest empty office. He sat Ginny down in a chair before he began to pace in front of her.

"Are you all right? You never pace." Concerned, Ginny sat up straight, holding her head in an attempt to keep it attached to her body. Then she realized she had dropped her shoes. She picked them up again and proceeded to put them on. "I have to lay off the alcohol. I can barely think with all the banging going on in my head right now."

"Speaking of your little binge..." Matthew slapped a paper down on the desk in front of her. "The New York Post reports on Page Six 'Computer tycoon's future wife sure knows how to party. Just last night, Ginny Weasley, fiancée of Matthew Dellworth of Wellington Enterprises, was spotted tossing back shots as if they were glasses of water alongside an unidentified gal pal. Is rehab in the near future for London's premier redhead?' The Chicago Sun Times writes 'A relationship already on the fritz seemed to have progressed and regressed yesterday as cameras busily snapped photos of Matthew Dellworth and his fiancée of six months Ginny Weasley smooching at the start of Victoria Wellington's cocktail party and then later each leaving on the arms of different people.' The New York Times notes 'Many have been wondering if the couple will even make it past the end of end of the year. But sources tell us Ginny, while attending an exclusive party hosted by the ever elusive Victoria Wellington, reaffirmed their plans of not only remaining a couple, but of tying the knot as well. Sources have quoted Ginny as saying 'Our relationship is just peachy. Isn't it obvious we're in love?' Ginny then went on to tease witnesses, saying she had been planning to release the wedding date in exchange for being left alone by the paparazzi.' The London Times reads 'After a night of drinking, Ginny Weasley brushed by the paparazzi standing by Victoria Wellington's party soaking wet. Apparently, another guest had accidentally spilled a drink onto her simple green dress. Despite this mishap, Miss Weasley was all smiles as she assured reporters of the undying love shared between herself and her fiancé Matthew Dellworth, the American computer mogul. Miss Weasley revealed that they had already set a date for the what is expected to be the greatest wedding in the history of Great Britain since that of Prince Charles to Lady Diana." Matthew let out a deep breath once he was finished.

"Okay. It has become obvious you weren't paying attention to me yesterday." Matthew cleared his throat and prepared his lungs. "What the fuck are you doing?" He yelled. "Have you completely lost your mind?"

In awe, Ginny gaped at him. "What? No," she sputtered.

"Ten papers caught your little statement last night. Ten! Every newspaper in the world is now scrambling to find out more details about this nonexistent wedding. We're supposed to be breaking up! That was the plan. But now the entire world is under the impression we're madly in love. And then to top it all off, you get drunk and dance on top of a bar with Pansy Parkinson. Pansy fucking Parkinson, who I was under the impression you didn't even really like! So now, not only are we madly in love and getting married very soon, I'm also marrying a drunk! Because that's how the press is spinning it. America's very own Prince Charming is marrying an alcoholic. Do you have any idea how that makes me look?" Matthew demanded. His face had turned beet red with rage and the force of yelling, leaving Ginny to only be able to stare at him. After a few moments of silence, she managed to shake her head, which only made him angrier. "Well, let me enlighten you. Dating an alcoholic calls into question my character, which up until yesterday had been very highly regarded. Now, people are calling into question my sense of judgment, personal and business wise. Imagine that, people questioning my business sense. A couple of my clients called in this morning, claiming not to be satisfied with my company's services. I'm losing customers, Ginny."

"That has to be coincidence. They wouldn't fire you over something so-"

"Oh, but they have," he nodded bitterly. "And you better believe all hell will break loose when Victoria catches wind of this."

"Why would she be upset that you lost customers?"

"We own shares of the same company. Victoria, Johnathan, myself, and a few others you don't know." Matthew snarled. "I suppose you might know some of them. Oliver Weiss being one. You fell very neatly into his arms. The press is having a field day with that one since he's allegedly still very much married."

"What?" Ginny stammered. "I did not fall into his arms, he-" Matthew threw a copy of The Quibbler across the desk. Ginny gasped when she saw a picture of Oliver carrying her into Draco's building.

"Good luck trying to keep your relationship a secret from Catherine. She's sure to recognize the building." Matthew raked a hand through his hair. "Damn it, this has got to stop. I tried to end it last night, but you didn't seem to be interested. I'm starting to think you want to keep this charade up for as long as humanly possible. Or even forever."

"I'm sorry for my behavior last night-"

"Sorry? You're sorry." Matthew laughed a little. "You keep handing out apologies left and right. Apologies don't cover the damage. The clients I lost today weren't major, but losing even one client can lead to a domino effect. People are calling into question my character. That bothers me. It hurts. Because I'm not a bad person and now, in doing a friend a favor, I'm coming off as a bad person. This is...There are no words to describe how upset I am right now."

Ginny felt very small and guilty. "I didn't mean for any of this to happen."

Matthew held up a hand. "Save it, because right now, nothing is coming through." Ginny could see the truth in his words. She could apologize all she wanted, but it wasn't something he wanted to hear at the moment. She felt as if she were losing him. She was losing Draco, she was losing Matthew, she had no idea what was going on between any of her friends...She no longer had any control over her life.

"All right," she said slowly. She stood up and fought back tears. "I'll just go then." Ginny awkwardly stumbled across the office, her blurry eyes preventing her from walking straight. Matthew started to call her back and apologize for being so hard on her, but she had already left. He sat down and rubbed his temples, contemplating how he was going to get himself out of his current mess.

Ginny headed for the elevator, but bumped into Draco as she rounded her work area. Draco smirked down at her. "Someone's late. Rough night? Couldn't get yourself up-" Draco stopped teasing when he noticed the tears streaming down her face. "What's wrong?" He hated to see her upset and for a moment, he was pained with the thought that he may have been responsible. Maybe he had pushed her too far that night before, but he knew he was right. They needed to come clean.

"I'm taking the rest of the day off. Personal time. And don't worry, I'll be here bright and early tomorrow," Ginny sobbed as she brushed by him to the elevator. Draco reached her in two strides.

"What's wrong?" he repeated. Ginny struggled to get out of his arms for a bit.

"Let go of me. You're causing a scene," Ginny said dully. Draco realized she was right when he looked up and spotted Catherine and Harry staring at them. He let go of her arm and took a step back. His nostrils flared when she stepped onto the elevator. His girlfriend, his lover, his best friend was upset and he couldn't console her. He couldn't even go after her because if he did, their secret would be revealed. He turned on his heels and entered his office. He arched a brow when he saw Matthew sitting behind his desk.

"Comfy?" He could smell Ginny in the room and quickly deduced what had happened. They had been talking, arguing more likely, about their arrangement and what happened last night. He had upset Ginny and that didn't sit too well with Draco. He moved quickly, surprising Matthew when he had him up in the air by the lapels of his jacket within a matter of seconds. "What the bloody hell did you say to her?"

"Excuse me?" Matthew grabbed Draco's wrists and tried to get him to let go.

"I know you and Ginny were in here, arguing perhaps. And whatever you said to her upset her to the point of tears. Whatever it is-"

"Close the door and I'll tell you." Draco turned around and cursed under his breath when he saw a small crowd had gathered outside of his office. He muttered a quick spell and the door closed with a charm on it, so no one could hear their conversation. After Matthew explained the situation, Draco sat back on the couch in his office and considered their options. As minutes ticked by in silence, Matthew grew worried Draco was going to punch him for making Ginny cry. He couldn't handle a black eye at the moment, though he knew he deserved it. He'd never yelled at woman before.

"I have to talk to Ginny," Draco said suddenly. He looked over at the clock above his desk and calculated how long it would be until he was off the clock. "I could take my lunch in a little bit," he said more to himself. He looked up at Matthew and escorted him out. "Don't worry, I'll make sure she does the right thing. Breaks up with you, that is."

"Ah, okay. Thanks?" Matthew walked out confused at what had just occurred. But Draco was a man on a mission. He quickly wrapped up a few loose strings and apparated to his apartment. He found Ginny sitting at the kitchen table, staring down at a bowl of half-eaten cereal.

"How did you know I was here?" she asked without looking up.

"You called this your home last night. And I've noticed that whenever you're upset, you like to talk it out with me. Right there actually, where you're sitting right now. You usually eat something while you talk, to keep your nervous hands busy." Draco tilted his head slightly, indicating he was waiting for her to respond. But she just continued to spoon up cereal. He sighed and tried again. "You have to tell her." Ginny's head snapped up. "That got your attention. And, unfortunately, it's the right thing to do. You have to break up with Matthew and tell Catherine the truth. You will feel much better afterward."

"That's not what I'm upset about!" Ginny argued. "Why should I tell anyone anything? That's not why I'm unhappy."

"Yes, it is." Draco held up a hand when she shook her head. "You're upset because Matthew and I are angry with you. You're upset because you didn't realize what was going on in your friends' lives. You're upset because things have seemed to pick up speed and race by you. It's been going on all along, but you only just now noticed. You like to be in control and the way things are now, everyone and everything seems just out of reach."

"I forgot you can read me like a book," Ginny muttered. "I just don't see how this will solve anything. It will only make even more people angry with me."

"I'm not angry with you. And neither is Matthew. We're just angry at and frustrated with the situation. Do you know how badly I wanted to run after you today? But I couldn't because there were people watching, Catherine being one of them. She's like the fucking elephant in every room. We can't be together in public because of how she may feel about it and Matthew can't date other women because he's supposed to be dating you. This arrangement isn't really fair to anyone-"

"She'll be so angry with me and I don't want her to be angry. I don't want to lose her as a friend."

"You may have lost her the instant we hooked up for the first time. It's your decision. But you know how I feel about it." Ginny rubbed her hands over her face. Torn, she looked up at Draco with pleading eyes. She could potentially lose him forever if they tried to remain the way they were. Or she could lose Catherine, hurting her in the process.

"I don't know what I want. I do know my head hurts and Matthew's yelling didn't exactly do any good to my hangover. I was late for work for the first time in who knows how long. We've been arguing over the most ridiculous things, dumb things really. I'm not feeling very well and it's just really not my day today."

"Stop making excuses. It's been nearly two years since we got together the first time and a year since I broke up with Catherine. Catherine and I weren't in love with each other. She didn't care much about me, she just wanted to get married. She seemed mighty cozy with Matthew last night. By the way, that's probably why he wants to be single again." Frustrated, Draco took the bowl of cereal from her and placed it in the sink not too gently. "You've put everyone's life on hold just so you wouldn't hurt one person's feelings."

"I haven't put everyone's life on hold. Don't you dare hang that over my head."

"You have put everyone's life on hold. I want you to move in with me, take our relationship to the next level. But hold on a second, you can't move in because we're not even supposed to be dating in the first place. Matthew has been hitting on Catherine, but that can't go anywhere because he's supposed to be engaged to you. And since they can't really get together, Harry has this false hope that he and Catherine can get together. But even if they do get together, he can never bring her over to his flat because you live there and as far as Catherine and the entire world is concerned, you live with your fiancée Matthew. And then there are the people who have to watch their tongues whenever they are around those who don't know. You know Pansy's just itching to talk about it, but she can't and now Oliver's in town so she's at her most vulnerable and instead of having nice, juicy gossip to spread so she could feel better about her impending divorce, she has to keep the best of her dirt to herself."

"Draco, that last one didn't even make any sense. Gossiping isn't Pansy's only way to cope."

"You obviously don't know her all that well. And that's all right, I know her. I grew up with her. Pureblood, bigot families tend to stick together. Pansy loves to gossip because she felt left out growing up. But this isn't about Pansy's psyche, it's about you. I don't want to be angry with you, Ginny, but you're making this situation more difficult than it has to be. You're trying to make one person happy at the expense of other people's happiness. Bloody hell, the person you're trying to make happy isn't even happy because she can't see either one of the men that are after her and she may or may not be interested in them, but she'll never know because she can't make a move in either direction and neither can they. You have to say something, Ginny."

"Fine!" Ginny pouted a bit. "I'll break up with Matthew. We can make it appear as if we've started dating immediately after the break up. A kind of rebound."

"No," Draco interrupted. "That won't work. If we just started dating, you wouldn't be moving in. And you would still feel guilty about not telling her the entire truth. The truth always comes out and as cliché as that sounds, I firmly believe it. What if ten years down the road, someone slips and word gets out? She would be even angrier with you if she heard the news from someone else."

"But by then she would have completely moved on," Ginny insisted.

"How can she move on if she doesn't know what she's moving from? Or that she needs to move on at all? And how many bloody times are we going to have the same sodding argument? It's driving me bonkers, Ginny. All we ever do is argue, have sex, and work. And when we argue, it's always about the same thing: should we tell her or should we stay the way we are? We can't go on like this, Ginny. We can't continue to argue about this each and every day. Forget Catherine for a minute. How can we move forward with this secret keeping us back?" Ginny tossed her spoon, which had still been in her hand, across the kitchen. "You seem to love throwing things," Draco commented. Ginny ignored him as she tried to think it through. He had a point that none of them could move on until the air was completely cleared. But she didn't want to be the one to break Catherine's heart.

"I can't do it, Draco. I can't sit there and tell her the reason she was embarrassed in front of her family and friends is because we were having an affair. It would crush her, it would destroy her, it would humiliate her. Do you know what that will do to her self-esteem? And working with her could quite possibly become hell after this. She'll be moody-"

"Who do you care more about, me or her?" Draco asked quietly. "Last year, I was put in a similar situation. Hurting Catherine's feelings or going after what I wanted, choosing you or Catherine. I love you so naturally I chose you. I was under the impression you shared my feelings."

"Of course I do!" Ginny shot out of her seat and stood in front of him, glaring up into his face. "You know I do. You can't be questioning that now, can you? Not after all we've been through."

"I'm not going to play the love card. It's too low. And since you aren't listening to a word of good sense and my lunch break is almost over, I'm just going to stop arguing with you about this." Draco reached behind her for an apple from the fruit basket on the kitchen counter. He rinsed it off and then took a bite. "I don't suppose there's anyway of convincing you to return to the office? I've gone without you before and let me tell you, it sucks. I can't handle meetings and the phone simultaneously for some reason. Maybe I've just gotten used to having you around."

Ginny watched him talk and eat, panic inching over her with each bite and word. She wasn't just losing him, she might have already lost him. Keeping their relationship a secret had driven a wedge between them. Of course, this hadn't occurred over night. It had been going on from the moment she had made him promise to remain secret lovers. She'd been having nightmares ever since, different scenarios of how things could end: Catherine catching them in the act, she and Draco telling Catherine and Catherine scratching out her eyes, Catherine making good on her threat and peeling the flesh off her bones, Catherine crying up a river that would rival the Nile...Neither option sounded too pretty. But life without Draco...She couldn't imagine going a single day without having breakfast with him or watching him shave or reading the paper with him or watching him sift through the mail or watching the pleasure on his face whenever he gave her a gift or going grocery shopping with him or-

"Oh my God, I am living with him," Ginny muttered.

"What's that?" Draco had heard her clear as a bell, but he decided to give her a possible cop out. He smirked to himself, however, knowing he was close to getting exactly what he wanted.

"Nothing. Er, well, that's to say...You're right." Ginny miserably sat down and covered her face with her hands. "We will tell them. Her. The world. Whoever will listen. After Matthew and I break up, which will be soon. Tomorrow, I suppose."

"Why put off for tomorrow what you can get done today?" Draco picked up the telephone he kept at home and dialed.

"You're moving a little too fast," Ginny protested, attempting to shove the phone away from his ear.

"Nonsense. This break-up is a year in the making. Talk to him, break it off today. I actually have an idea." Draco pressed the button for speaker phone when he heard Matthew answer. "Matthew, this is Draco and Ginny. We've talked it through and have come up with a plan for the end of your relationship."

"A plan? When would we put this plan into action?" Matthew asked.

"Today. In a few minutes, actually. How does that sound?" Ginny shook her head profusely, but Draco ignored her and waited for Matthew's response.

"Sounds excellent. So what's the plan?"

While Draco, Ginny, and Matthew planned how to sort out their troubles, the unlikely trio that was Pansy, Hermione, and Lavender planned the demise of yet another relationship. "Got anything, Pansy?" Lavender asked from her perch above Hermione's cubicle. Pansy looked up from the seat beside Hermione and groaned.

"Sorry, Lav. The search has thus far proved to be fruitless."

"What?!" Lavender couldn't believe her ears. "But you find out everything, Pansy. You can dig up dirt on the Minister of Magic's daughter, for Merlin's sake! I'm sure you can find something on some snot-nosed kid-"

"That's the thing, Lavender," Pansy interrupted. "She's not just some snot-nosed kid. She happens to be a billionaire, meaning people only know what she wants them to know. Her record's clean either because she's an angel or because she had it wiped. I highly doubt a girl as pretty as she spent her evenings crocheting as a teenager, but as of right now, I have nothing that confirms my suspicions." Pansy sulked a little. "The worst of it is, when I say I got nothing, I mean nothing. I'm not even sure how old she is."

"How could you not know how old she is? She's got to be at least eighteen or else Ron wouldn't date her."

"I agree with Lavender. Ron doesn't date girls, he dates women." One woman, Hermione added silently. He's only dated one woman so far. And that relationship started when the woman was a girl. So maybe... "On second thought, maybe you should dig up a birth certificate."

"Where in the hell am I suppose to find her birth certificate?" Pansy demanded. "I swear you people ask me to do the most impossible things sometimes."

"I'm sure the Ministry must have a copy. You know, know who you hired and all," Lavender shrugged.

"Ah, yes. Silly me, breaking into the Ministry's files is child's play. What was I thinking? Of course I can saunter on over into the Minister's office, riffle through his files and find one conveniently labeled Victoria Wellington. The folder will contain all we need to know about the woman and all I have to do is sneak it out of his office without anyone noticing, including his observant daughter and the cameras he has surrounding his entire floor, and report back to you two. How daft of me not to think of it before," Pansy responded dryly.

In her excitement, Lavender either didn't notice the sarcasm or chose to ignore it. "You know, I suspect that folder would contain everything we need. We just have to find a diversion that would last long enough to distract everyone while Pansy-"

"It's official: Lavender has gone completely mental." Lavender huffed, as if offended. Pansy rolled her eyes and exchanged a look with Hermione. "Look, I don't mean to get your knickers in a bunch about this, but your idea is gormless. If I were to get caught trying to steal confidential files from the Minister of Magic's office, I would take a nice homely vacation to hell. Because that's precisely where they would send me."

"Well, Azkaban-"

"Is a euphemism for hell, yes," Pansy nodded. At Lavender's blank expression, Pansy sighed. She must not know what a euphemism is, Pansy thought. "A euphemism-"

"I know what it means," Lavender snapped. "I'm tired of everyone treating me like I'm some empty-headed buffoon-"

"So stop acting like one," Pansy hissed. Lavender and Hermione both winced at her tone.

"What's crawled up your bum? You've been in a fowl mood all day," Lavender remarked. Pansy stared at her. She knew Lavender wasn't truly concerned for her well-being. She just wanted to know what was going on, wanted the latest scoop on the life of Pansy Parkinson.

"Cut the bullshit, Lavender. I'm in no mood for it." Shocked, Lavender merely gaped at her. "You have only two concerns in life: yourself and everybody else's business. You don't care that I'm upset or angry or frustrated or anything! All you want is information. You want to know what's going on before everyone else does. Well, guess what? I'm not telling you a single thing. Because I know the instant I turn my back, you're just going to whisper the news into someone else's ear. Admit it, it kills you that you don't know anything about this girl not because she may or may not be dating Ron, but because you don't know what her deal is and someone out there in the world does. It just kills you that no one's talking, feeding your damn addiction."

"As if you aren't the same way," Lavender tossed back. Hermione nervously stood up in between the two and tried to quiet them.

"Er, girls, people are staring at us," Hermione whispered. Both women ignored her.

"Don't try to play yourself off as some sort of saint, Parkinson. You were a gossip queen long before I was. Why did you make this deal in the first place? So you could get information. You can stand there and lie to my face all you like, but we both know the truth. You will keep searching until something pops up because that's who you are. That's who we are. The only exception now is that I've got more at stake than you do."

Pansy shook her head. "Unbelievable." She gathered her purse from Hermione's desk and stood up to leave. "There are bigger, more important things in life than knowing what goes on in other people's lives. I came to realize that last night. Maybe it's about time you did, too."

"You're pathetic anyway," Lavender called after Pansy's receding back. Pansy merely waved her hand as she kept on walking. "An aging busy-body whose long since lost the spotlight and is having trouble dealing with that."

"Lavender," Hermione groaned. "Could you please just shut up! She's gone. Just let it be."

"I can't let it be, Herms! Not when she's embarrassed me in front of an entire floor filled with our friends and coworkers. What will people think of me now?"

"You don't need to worry about the damage Pansy has inflicted; you did a pretty good job of embarrassing yourself just now. And me! Do you realize how shallow you came off? And I'm trying to get a promotion here! Do you honestly think having you and Pansy exchange words across my desk is going to make me look any better?"

"I wasn't thinking of you."

"No," Hermione sighed. "You were thinking of yourself, but what else is new?"

"Are you agreeing with Pansy?" Hermione was saved from answering that question when she noticed a note from Catherine on her desk.

"Oh, I've been summoned. Better go see what the Minister wants." Hermione quickly and eagerly dashed off and headed up the stairs, two at a time. When she reached the Minister's floor, she was panting but glad for the distraction and hopeful for a promotion. Another five minutes and she probably would have been fired for the noise. She reached the receptionist and handed over her note. "I've been summoned." Hermione nervously smiled and the receptionist arched a brow.

"First time?" At Hermione's nod, the receptionist took some pity. "Lucky for you, this is a silver note. Or maybe you aren't so lucky." The receptionist shrugged.

"Do the colors mean something?"

"Gold and silver. Gold notes are from the Minister himself. Silver notes like this one are from his daughter, Catherine."

"Oh." Disappointed, Hermione slouched down on a nearby chair to wait. She tried to cheer up. Maybe the Minister was just busy and couldn't handle the promotion himself so he passed the task off to his daughter. "By any chance, does Catherine handle promotions?"

The receptionist chuckled to herself. "The Minister's a bit of a control freak. Catherine's lucky she gets to do anything. She's such a sweet girl. Too bad everyone underestimates her. Including herself." Hermione nodded, not really caring or listening to a word the receptionist was saying. Now that she knew she wasn't getting promoted, she couldn't wait to get back to work. Then again, she thought, maybe this was a good opportunity for her to impress the Minister's daughter. If Catherine liked her, she may put in a good word to the Minister which would increase her chances of getting promoted within the next year-

"Catherine will see you now." The receptionist pointed her to Catherine's door. "Good luck. You're going to need it." Hermione looked over her shoulder, surprised by the woman's words. Why would she be in need of luck? She knocked on Catherine's door and stumbled back a bit when Harry opened the door.

"Harry? What are you doing here? I thought Catherine-"

"Close the door, Golden Boy. Miss Troublemaker and I have some business to sort out." Catherine stood up from behind her desk and poured them each a cup of coffee. Harry took a sip and choked on it.

"Coffee? Coffee, Kitty? The British don't drink coffee," Harry said.

"I'm not completely British, remember?" Catherine sent him a smirk before settling behind her desk. "Have a seat, both of you."

"What's this about?" Hermione asked rather impatiently. "I've got work to get to."

"Work, huh? Funny, because a few minutes ago, all I could hear was arguing coming from your cubicle." Catherine folded her hands over her desk and kept an aloof smile on her face. "Care to explain?"

"You heard that?"

"Everyone on this side of the Atlantic heard that," Harry muttered.

Hermione winced. "I apologize on Pansy and Lavender's behalf. I'm sure they didn't realize-"

"They didn't realize?" Catherine leaned forward across her desk. "I didn't call them in here, Granger. I called you in here to discuss what you haven't realized. This-" Catherine made a circular motion with her index finger. "This is an office. This is the Ministry of Magic, a place of business and politics. Does yelling sound appropriate for a place of business?"

"Don't forget politics," Harry added. He arched a brow at Catherine's bland stare, as if daring her correct him.

"I wasn't the one yelling." Hermione squirmed a little, unsettled by the fact that Catherine's tone was still pleasant and her smile was still aloof. Who the hell lectures with a smile on their face anyway? "Pansy and Lavender-"

Catherine held up a hand. "Correct me if I am wrong, but Pansy Parkinson is no longer employed here. And Lavender Brown is despicable and unworthy of admonishing. I expect something like this from her and, to a lesser extent, Pansy. But you...You're trying to work your way up the Ministry's ladder. Let's be frank a moment, shall we? The Minister is an honorable man. Honest, fair, wise beyond his years with an impeccable judge of character...Had he caught wind of the ruckus I heard about fifteen minutes ago, you would have been packing your things." Catherine stopped smiling and her voice grew cold and stern and just like that, she became more intimidating than a group of Dementors at Azkaban. "Silver usually means something bad. Like being fired, for example. The note card," Catherine explained. "I'm sure you asked the receptionist about it. Though I did tell her not to warn people what they're being called down for."

"I'm being laid off? But-but that wasn't my fault," Hermione protested.

"So that spectacle didn't occur at your desk just now?" Catherine shook her head when Harry opened his mouth. "Rest assured, Granger, you aren't being fired today. I was going to fire you, but lucky for you, Golden Boy here convinced me otherwise."

Hermione turned around to thank Harry. "Thank you, Harry. You know how Pansy and Lavender can get and I-"

"Not so fast," Catherine interrupted. "You received a silver summons meaning this is not a good news situation. The Ministry doesn't typically hand out warnings, just pink slips. But I have reviewed your record as well as Potter's recommendation and have decided to go out on a limb for you."

"Out on a limb?" Confused, Hermione looked from Harry to Catherine. "What do you mean?"

"I'm going to cover up this incident as much as possible. As long as the Minister doesn't catch wind of it, you'll keep your job. You can kiss your chances of a promotion goodbye because there is no way Malfoy nor I can recommend you after today and you need at least one of us to sway the Minister. Maybe one day, long after today, after everyone has forgotten about this and there's no evidence of what happened, Malfoy and I may consider recommending you for a promotion. But that's a long way from today, years down the road. And I have to worry about today. I'm sure something like this will never happen again, correct?" Hermione nodded her head and waited to be dismissed. She wasn't getting promoted. Over something she wasn't even responsible for. Hermione walked out of Catherine's office devastated by that realization.

"She didn't take that very well," Harry said, concerned by the crestfallen look that had transpired on Hermione's face.

"She's lucky she still has a job." Catherine stood up and retrieved a stack of files from a cabinet beside her desk. "These need to be processed by noon tomorrow."

"I'll have it done." Harry tilted his head slightly as he reached over for the files. He made sure their hands brushed and smiled when he noticed she jolted back. So she felt it too, he thought. It was good to know this desire he was consumed with wasn't all one sided. He lifted his gaze directly to hers and held it as he spoke. "I'd like to thank you for covering for Hermione. I know she appreciates this favor."

"I didn't do her a favor, Golden Boy. I did you a favor," Catherine corrected, poking her index finger into his chest. She then realized how forward her she may be coming off. "Er, that's to say, I repaid you a favor I owed you from a while back." At Harry's puzzled look, she sighed. "After the wedding, when I needed a shoulder to cry on...You didn't leave me alone in the church crying. And for that, I owed you." Catherine shrugged uncomfortably, but Harry was relishing what he was hearing. He was there for her when Matthew bolted! He had that much up on him!

"I just didn't want to leave you alone when you were vulnerable. And when I saw that even your old friend Matthew had left you..." Harry trailed off, waiting to see how she would react.

"Could you blame him? I had just gotten dumped at the altar. On top of that, he contributed to the dumping. Maybe he thought I would be angry with him. Besides, we're not that old of friends."

"Oh?" Attempting to appear nonchalant, Harry leaned against her desk. "I was under the impression you two knew each other from your Yale years."

Catherine's eyes narrowed as she rested a hand on the other side of the desk Harry was leaning on. "How do you know I went to Yale?"

Harry sent her a lopsided smile. "I've made it my business to know as much about you as humanly possible."

"That sounds stalker-like, don't you think?"

Harry shook his head. "I'm just interested in you, that's all."

"Why?" Harry blinked at the question.

"You have to ask?"

"Well, you're the one snooping around my past. So, yes, I do have to ask. What does it matter to you where I went to college or who I went there with? Last time I checked, that was my business."

"Are you picking a fight?"

"No, I just want to know why you're looking into my past. Forget it," Catherine sighed. "I don't have time for this right now."

"Maybe you will later. Would you like to go out to dinner with me tonight?"

Catherine gaped at him. What had he just asked? She must have heard him wrong. There was no way Harry Potter could be asking her out on a date. She must have heard him wrong. But the look on his face told her she hadn't misheard him. He had asked her out on a date. And he was waiting for an answer. She quickly recovered and prepared to graciously decline. "Uh, no, not really. But thank you for asking."

Annoyed and stung by the rejection, Harry grew defensive. "Well, why the bloody hell not? You're acting as if I asked you to jump into the back of some car so we could shag rather than sharing a meal together."

"Don't be ridiculous. Isn't it conceivable that I'm just not interested in you? Honestly, Golden Boy, you seem to be full of yourself. Asking about my past and then asking me to dinner! We can't go five minutes alone without arguing and you want to be alone in a restaurant? We'd kill each other. And anyone else within a three meter radius."

"That didn't make any sense! If we're in a restaurant killing everyone within a three meter radius as you say, then we aren't exactly alone."

"It doesn't matter. Even if we were to get along for a couple of hours, I'm not interested in having dinner with you."

Harry had to ask, just needed to know. "Dinner with me or dinner with anyone?"

Catherine sent him a look of disgust. "What do you think? Look, I appreciate the offer and I'm flattered that you're attracted to me, but I'm just not interested in you-"

"Who said I was attracted to you?" Harry shot back. "You assumed I asked you to dinner because I fancied you. The truth is, I wanted to repay you for the favor you've done me today."

"Oh." With her ego deflated a bit, Catherine shook her head. Why was she disappointed? Did she want him to want her? Maybe that's it. After being dumped at the altar, all she wanted was for someone to want her as Draco never did and never could. "No, that wouldn't make any sense."

"Why not? Because it doesn't involve having me worship the ground you walk on?"

"No," Catherine snarled. "Because I was repaying you for a favor. If we're just going to continue repaying each other, we will be forever in debt. Always obliged to one another."

"It's called friendship where I come from, always being there for one another in times of need."

"And taking me out to dinner is going to benefit us how, exactly? What need will you be satisfying?"

"You look stressed. A little dinner with a side of arguing is sure to take care of that."

"We're arguing now," Catherine pointed out. "And it's only making me more stressed. And since we're always arguing, you always stress me out. That's not friendship."

"I swear you bloody enjoy being stressed! You seem to pick fights whenever you're around me. And you're always deliberately ignoring what's right in front of you, what's right in front of your face. You're over Malfoy, but you're afraid to move on because you don't want to put yourself out there."

Catherine snorted. "This is rich. So you're a psychiatrist now? Tell me, Dr. Potter, why wouldn't I want to put myself out there?"

"You're American's showing again. It's Mr. Potter. In England, doctors go by mister. And I don't know why a pretty girl like you wouldn't want to put herself out there. You tell me. I've got a good guess though. Notice I didn't say out there again. Just out there. You never put yourself out there to begin with."

Catherine rolled her eyes. "What are you talking about? I was going to marry the bugger up until he decided to break up with me at the altar. By the way, thanks for contributing to that. I always like my humiliations to be made in public."

"First of all, what I did was for your own good. Do you honestly think I gave a crap about what Malfoy was going through or where his mind was? Marrying him would have been the greatest mistake of your life and you would regret it later. Trust me, I did you a favor by speaking out. Second of all, you never put yourself out there!" Harry ended on a yell. "You didn't want to marry Malfoy, you just wanted to get married. No feelings or anything. He was just a means for an end to you and that suited you both just fine because neither one of you truly cared about the other. What was it about at that point? Marriage for you and sex for him? Third of all, you said yourself just last night that you preferred public humiliations over private roastings."

Catherine ignored his last statement. "Excuse me for wanting to get married and be happy. You don't have to agree with me on this. Just like I can turn down your dinner invitation."

"You turned down my invite because you thought it was a date. And why would you want to date when you can sulk around and act like a bitch all of the time!" Harry quickly realized he had crossed a line when he saw the hurt register on Catherine's face. He quickly tried to apologize. "Catherine, I didn't mean it that way. I only meant that...Why don't I just walk out and we pretend none of this ever happened? I didn't ask you to dinner, you didn't turn me down, I didn't say any nasty things-"

"I'm through listening to this," she fired back. Harry blinked, a bit taken aback at how quickly she had recovered. Why, she didn't seem hurt at all now, just downright angry. Delighted he hadn't hurt her feelings, Harry listened to her words as if she were teaching him the meaning of life, eagerly leaning forward to make sure he caught her every word. "You should have thought your words through before you launched your verbal assault on me. Just as you should have thought of the consequences of your actions before you asked me out to dinner. We can't ignore what happened in here today and maybe I don't want to forget, did you think of that? And I don't think your psychiatric evaluation of me is very accurate. I did care about Draco or else I wouldn't have asked him to marry me just as I would have accepted your dinner invitation had I wanted to go out with you. Which I don't. Because you're so not my type and this entire day has just been one whirlwind after another and just because I act like a cold hearted bitch sometimes doesn't mean I don't have feelings and-What were we arguing about-" Her words were stopped by Harry's lips as he leaned across the chair and lightly kissed her, just as he had dreamed of doing millions of times since the moment they had met. Though the kiss only lasted a few precious seconds, he could feel her warmth, a warmth which she always kept locked away. She tasted of strawberries and rain, two of his new favorite tastes. Her lips felt soft against his, like falling into a pile of wool. He hated pulling away from her, but did so quickly out of fear that she might clobber or hex him. She surprised him by remaining perfectly still, eyes closed for a few moments.

What the fuck was that?! Where had that come from? Her mind was racing with questions, but she didn't dare voice any of them out of fear that she would embarrass herself when her voice squeaked. She hadn't been expecting the kiss, though she should have. The guy had asked her out for dinner, for Merlin's sake. She had been right when she said he was attracted to her. But what was she going to do now? Catherine looked up into his eyes and said quietly, "You shouldn't have done that." She thanked the gods her vocal chords were working properly.

"I wanted to." He never tore his gaze from hers, waiting for her to make the next move. You shouldn't have done it, he repeated to himself. What on earth had possessed him to kiss her? She obviously wasn't interested in him and she had rejected his dinner invitation. Why couldn't he just leave well enough alone? She was his ex-girlfriend's current boyfriend's ex-fiancé, for Merlin's sake. That had soap opera written all over it. He was Harry James Potter, damn it. He could handle Dementors and Death Eaters as if they were annoying flies on the wall. He'd even gone toe-to-toe with Voldemort himself a few times. And yet somehow his life had gone from action film to a bloody soap in a matter of seconds. He shouldn't have kissed her; the woman had complication written all over her! Perhaps he should apologize, throw in a light and fluffy joke and then leave. He forced the corners of his lips to curl up slightly and opened his mouth to speak. He didn't get a single word out.