Working for the Dragon

Chapter 2. To Break or Not To Break

I whistled merrily, a meaningless but happy tune spreading my joy to the rest of the world. At least, wanting to. It was no perfect day out there with the clouds having turned elephant grey and the cold mist announcing the arrival of winter. I was no weathergirl and honestly, they stink at weather prediction, but it was common sense to know that there was going to be a heavy downpour tonight.

GREAT! Curse my mouth, really.I just had to finish that sentence and it started raining cats and dogs. Brrrr… I was really starting to freeze in my thin, once again, shabby, outdated cloak. Thankfully, I realized as I turned into a corner that 'The Leaky Cauldron' was just a short walk away. Oh hey! That is funny. I checked my GPS system on my muggle cellphone, an Iphone more specifically that was given to me as a gift from my best muggle buddies for my 21st birthday. Apparently, they thought that I had no sense of direction. They weren't wrong.

It turned out that Malfoy Empire State Building was located right in the hearts of London, the central. Beside Diagon Alley, in other words. Clearly if I had done my fair share of research, I would not have taken the train. But then again, if I had researched, I would have known that Draco Malfoy was the sole ruler of the business empire I dreamt of working in. And then again, if that happened, I would have probably flooed to the Leaky Cauldron to drown my sorrow with my favorite alcoholic drink, cherry flavored martini.

Blast that! I cursed inwardly as I checked my muggle watch; it was already leaning towards evening? It was 5.45pm and I was not home yet? Boy! That interview really took the entire day. And my energy out of me, I yawned. And uh-oh, the Lupin's were invited to dinner tonight to celebrate The Chudley Cannons victory in the Quidditch Premier League, EQPL in short.

I was running late, mum would probably be throwing a fit. Hermione would probably be scuttling around in the kitchen, trying to help her. And Fleur would be forced to mash the potatoes since that was my job. And that would make her crabbier than usual.

"Vat issh dis, Ginny…. I am mashing potatoes for you… Ohhh… back in my family, a heavily pregnant woman is treated like royalty. Like the Queen Ant in a colony who just has to sit down and lay eggs. Oh Bill! "And she would probably weep like I sent her to exile or something. I pictured her mentally.

Merlin, don't ever make me throw a fit like that if I am heavily pregnant. I quickened my pace, not wanting to endure an hour lecture on the importance of punctuality. Goodness! I tried quickening my pace but had to slow down because of my broken stiletto heel.

I was really in for it. These were really expensive and were Fleur's favorite pair of shoes to wear to any social event. They were designer, Marvin Choque original. Fleur revered him, being a designer herself of a trendy brand, specializing in teenage fashion. And she was totally going to kill me! I had finally gotten used to living with Phlegm and her nonsensical need to comment over every little thing in superiority. Now, she was going to focus all that criticism on me. Thank Merlin for the job, seriously.

JOB! I rejoiced again, smiling triumphantly. But, oh goodness me, I was a mess! And I only realized that after muck was splattered all over my clothing, not to mention looking like a half drowned… weasel thanks to the gloomy weather. I looked like a girl who worked on the farm. Doing the best to look as presentable as I could with the cleaning and drying charms once I stood right outside the sheltered entrance of the pub, my mind bounced right back into the thoughts of my job.

Job! Job! Job! Ginevra Weasley is independent now! But that was not the problem, to me at the very least. It was….

To break or not to break the news to my family? I was in a real dilemma. Sure, the war between all good and evil had met its climax, and there were a few surprise packages like the least expected joining the good side. Yes, I was referring to none other than Draco Malfoy himself.

He had worked fantastically as a double agent for the Order of The Phoenix alongside the late Professor Severus Snape and his best friend, Blaise Zabini. I think, or highly assumed that Lucius Malfoy had not known until the very end and neither did the foolish, power hungry old Voldy. It was this betrayal that had thrown the victory light towards the good side. The very same had helped Harry ironically conquer the Dark Lord.

We all had to admit that had without Malfoy taking a stepping stone, Harry Potter would have probably been defeated and the world would have been no better than a shriveled up ball in Hell. He had certainly made his mother proud because despite her late, Deatheater husband's mistakes or crimes would be a better word, she still held her head high in pride amongst the crowd. And walked like the Queen, if I may add.

They were different from everyone's expectations, I supposed. And no, sadly, I wasn't there, I had to look it up after being sent into exile.

Despite the fact that Malfoy was now a prominent member of the Order of the Phoenix, the barriers of hatred had not been broken down between him and the Golden Trio. Some things never changed despite the time that flew by. Though from what I heard, they maintained a rather civil relationship by acknowledging each other's presence without the usage of vulgarities, curse words, hexes and such.

However, I knew those eleven years of enmity could not be broken down in a day. It would take ages. The Trio would always be 'Potty', 'Weasel King' and 'Mudblood' to him and he would be 'The Great Bouncing Ferret' or 'The Royal Git' or just something infantile to them.

They would definitely have a problem with me working for him. In fact, I can just imagine Ron turning purple and bellowing at the top of his voice. And since Malfoy himself wanted a curvaceous probably blonde secretary, they might actually join forces to get me fired.

Mum and Dad might not object because from what it seemed, they were alright with the remaining Malfoys. I did hear Mum remarking when she and Dad had returned from a Ministry event.

"That Malfoy boy is really charming without his father's influence, isn't he, Arthur dear?" To which, Dad sighed tiredly and agreed.

The rest of my family weren't so bad, Fleur aka Phlegm would gush over his handsomeness. Bill would roll his eyes and ask me if I truly wanted to do that. Charlie and his wife, Mikayla too. Except with a bit more of details. Percy would give me an entire unpublished biography of Draco Malfoy verbally. And Penny would swat him for lecturing me.

Fred and George and their wives Alicia and Angelina respectively would recall him from Hogwarts and invite me to blow my creative juices in their ongoing investment, 'Weasley Wizard Wheezes'.

Yeah, that's pretty much it. I walked into the Leaky Cauldron immediately greeted by the bartender, Tom. The warmth was totally inviting. I was not quite eager to get to my cosy home.

"Miss Ginny! On a cold evening? And how are the rest of the Weasely's doing? How about the usual?" He greeted me with the usual toothy grin tempting me to stay over at the thought of my delicious cherry martini.

Absentmindedly, I gave him a small smile, "Not tonight, Mr Tom, sir. I'm running late right now. I'll be seeing you more often though." I promised, cringing internally at the thought of the amount of stress that was awaiting me.

Reaching the Floo gate hurriedly, I grabbed a handful of floo powder and flunged it right into the blazing flames that were now highlighted with a mystical green glow.

"The Burrow." I said as clearly as I could even though home was really one of the last places I had in mind.

Gales of laughter and the familiar scent of burning pine wood greeted me as I exited from the floo gate or chimney. Whatever. Because, technically it was a chimney even though we wizards called it a floo gate. Oh Ginny! Stop procrastinating already. Just get it over and done with. Walk right into the hall and tell them everything truthfully. They'll appreciate the truth.

I started walking with those words of encouragement but stopped midway when another part of my conscience asked, "What if they don't?"

There was a whole world of possibilities out there but there were some things in life that just couldn't change. For example, the late, loathsome muggle dictator, Adolf Hitler liking anyone who was not an 'Aryan'. Voldemort liking muggles. The Capulets and the Montagues liking each other. Or something that was just from home, the Weasley's and the Malfoy's liking each other.

The statement 'Nothing is impossible" was a real joke. The dude who said that obviously didn't meet us, Weasley's. Now back to the impossible, if any of these were to change, our worlds would basically turn upside down.

"Ginny dear! You're home, finally. Oh but, you look a mess." Typical mum greeting as she exited the hallway having been informed of my arrival by her wizard clock.

"What happened to you, darling?"

Nothing, just went for an interview, landed a job with Malfoy and fell out of the tower. Nothing out of the ordinary at all, mum.

"Oh hello, mum." I greeted her nervously as she cleaned my cloak with just a quick flick of her wand. Continuing, "Nothing, it was raining at Diagon Alley and I fell near the dumpster at the Apothecary. So feathers…." I trailed off.

I would have thought that my mother, my very sharp mother would have spotted a lie within a ten mile radius but she just completely brushed me off. I guess that's what being busy does to you. No time for unimportant lies.

"Well, you're on time, now quick, go get yourself cleaned up before the Lupins come over. I won't have my only daughter looking like a bag of dirt." She grimaced at my unruly appearance.

"Yes, mum" I obeyed her and went to do so.

I was late to the dinner table by ten minutes thanks to all that feathers in my hair. It had taken a long time to wash it off with my favorite Herbal Essence shampoo.

"Hey everyone." I greeted each and every one of my family members and extended family members, the Lupins, sheepishly as my mother gave me one of her 'I'll-nag-at-you-about-this-later' glares.

"Sorry, I'm late. It's been a long day." I sighed, sincerely regretting being late to dinner. I mean, who wouldn't with a mother who could rival any professional chef in terms of cooking. Seriously, we should and opened an F&B business, with mum's brilliant cooking; we'd be richer than the Malfoy's. This people just never saw a potential business venture.

"Takes time to wash feather out of your hair you know." I added casually as though it was no big deal as I settled down not before giving six year old Teddy Lupin a hug. Hermione handed me the bowl filled with potatoes in gravy with a smile.

"Thank goodness you don't have hair like mine, Gin. Or else you'd end up washing it until midnight and even then not all of it would be off." Everyone laughed at her little comment. Years ago, I would have agreed with Hermione's statement. Her hair used to be bushy up until her fourth year when she first used some hair product and made it all slick and shiny.

Eventually, muggle hair treatment and constant caring for it brought Hermione's beautiful to shine. She'd been approached by tons of shampoo companies both magic and non-magic for endorsement which she politely refused. I guess sometimes a little care for your self was all it took to look good.

Thankfully though, her little attempt at humour diverted mum's attention away from me. She was entirely focused on praising Hermione's Rapunzel-like curls. I shot her a thankful look and moved forward to help myself to some of the mouth watering Shepherd's pie that I had been eyeing ever since I had first entered the kitchen.

"So, Ginny, how come you were in Diagon Alley and didn't stop by the shop?" Fred inquired trying to sound all casual but I could sense the concern in his voice, it was visible in his eyes too. George on the other hand had his attention entirely focused on me. I didn't blame them, to be honest. I made it a point to stop by their shop even for a mere two minutes. After all, Fred and George did not live with us anymore. They lived right above their shop in Diagon Alley. And they were the only brothers not living in the vicinity.

Afterall, Bill lived in Shell Cottage just a short walk away and Charlie lived at Malory Hills that was also within the area. Percy on the other hand, lived with us. I guess you could say that he wanted to make up for abandoning mom and dad when they needed him the most. That was his repentance.

Ron was overseas most of the time with Harry and Hermione and hence, they didn't feel the need to buy a place of their own. Whenever the season ended, they just came and lived for a month or two before they left once again. Although, Harry already had his own home, Grimmauld Place, the house that belonged to his late godfather, Sirius Black, he preferred to live 'where the good memories were' according to him. Oh well.

"I wasn't exactly in Diagon Alley. I was in the area though." I admitted, looking down at the table meekly. This apparently caught everyone's attention as they looked up at me sharply. Of course, what was right beside Diagon Alley and spelled 'danger'? Knockturn Alley. And one million galleons go to…. I had no purpose to visit that place unless I had a death wish. It was still as grimy, ill-reputed and dark as ever. Some things just never changed.

"Er…Gin, where exactly near Diagon Alley?" Harry asked cautiously because he knew that he would be treading on dangerous lines.

"Corporate Alley. I went to apply for a job there. And guess what? I GOT IN!" I finally showcased my excitement and happiness to my family.

"That's great, Ginny! We are so proud of you, my dear." Mum praised me in warm delight as there was a huge chorus of 'congratulations' around the table. Dad was really pleased too.

He smiled proudly and said, "My baby girl is all grown up now." Tonks and Teddy were both applauding for me. Only Professor Lupin sat in stony silence.

"Is everything alright, er, Professor?" Hermione asked tentatively. We still called him professor despite the fact that he taught us Defense against the Dark Arts back in Hogwarts nearly ten years ago and had long since resigned.

He turned to me and said, "Who are you working for, Ginny? The only open post that I know of in Corporate Alley is the job of the Malfoy boy's secretary."

There was a stunned silence at the table. Ron was the first to speak which was really surprising because he usually gobbled like a turkey.

"It's got to be someone else. Ginny wouldn't be working for that git for all the galleons in the world. Working for Malfoy is like selling your soul to the devil. Right, Gin? C'mon, tell him" Ron looked at me reproachfully as he took my side according to what he believed.

When I cringed, everyone realized that Ron was wrong; I had indeed been accepted to work for Draco Malfoy. My silence was consent.

"GINNY WEASELY! HOW COULD YOU BETRAY YOUR FAMILY LIKE THAT?" Ron cried out in an outrage. He wasn't the only one though; there was an explosion at the dinner table. Poor Teddy Lupin had already started crying in fright from all the noise that the men were making. Tonks had to bring him out to calm him down.

"You are not working for him, baby girl because, none of us here are going to have our bread and butter being provided by a Malfoy. FILTHY SCUMS!" Dad roared.

"NO WAY, GIN! I don't trust him." Bill told me seriously while Charlie and Percy agreed alongside.

"Do you know what kind of man he is…?" Percy thundered with a dramatic beginning to Malfoy's biography. Penny heartily agreed with him.

While Fleur, surprisingly had good things to say about him, the rest of my family were full of negativity. Alicia and Angelina were recalling him from Hogwarts. And Bill and Fleur had gotten into a fight because of me.

"Nu-uh, Ginny Gin. No can do." The twins told me, disgusted.

"You should be ashamed of yourself, Ginny. The shame that you are causing to our family! We have the MONEY now." Mum screamed clutching her heart. You'd think I just broke news that I was pregnant or something like that to her.

Ron probably had taken the news worst alongside the remaining Golden ones.

"Really Gin. Malfoy?" Hermione asked in disbelief.

"The ferret?" Harry looked appalled at the idea.

"DIRTY DEATH EATER SCUM! I DON'T CARE IF MALFOY HELPED US IN THE WAR. HE WILL ALWAYS BE A GIT TO ME! I BET HE IMPERIUSED HER!" Ron bellowed like a …well… I had no words to describe how he sounded. It was awful.

"We're locking you into your room until we find you a prospective groom." Ron snatched my wand. This was not fair. They did not even listen to what I had to say. It was complete injustice. I had never expected them to do this to me. But then, I had never expected them to betray me once and they did it, this was like a no biggadeal to them right?

I pounded furiously against my room door. Gosh, I really missed the days when The Burrow doors were breakable even without wands.

"No mum! NOOOOOOO!!!!!! Please don't do this…. RON! NOOO! PLEASE!" I screamed hysterically but to no avail.

BANG! I swooshed right out of the fireplace falling right onto the fall. Ouch! That hurt! I rubbed my painful butt gently trying to ease the pain away. Merlins polka dotted underpants! What was that all about? I couldn't help but ask myself, confounded.

As I looked around my surroundings, I became aware that I had just reached home. Which meant that, whatever just happened was all a figment of your imagination, Ginny. I told myself, reassuringly. Have I ever mentioned before that my imagination suffered from severe Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder aka ADHD? Yes? No? Well, it does.

I always had the tendency to see things. Relax. I'm no Seer. But for some reason, my mind made up all this mumbo jumbo which never actually made sense. Actually, in a weird way it did, I was always seeing things in my mind in a negative light but it never did happen. I guess it was my attitude, which was really weird because I was the ever going optimist.

Oh well, that was the least of my concerns right now. Since whatever happened was thankfully a dream, I guess I had to be sure that nothing like that happened. Picking myself up from the floor with whatever was left of my injured dignity today, I brushed the soot off myself as swiftly as I could.

"Ginny, darling. Good. You are home early." Mum greeted me approvingly but absentmindedly, entering the room as she flicked her wand towards a feather duster to dust of some of Percy's really thick but old books which I never understood why we had.

"…Go and freshen yourself and come down. I need your help for dessert. I was thinking that you could make that chocolate cake of yours that little Teddy loves so much. Oh, of course, the Lupins will be slightly late today. That's of course a good thing, more time to concentrate on….. GINEVRA WEASLEY!" My mother shrieked my name making me snap back into reality.

You really didn't think that I'd be listening did you. Of course, I heard every word she said, she wanted me to take a shower and make my specialty, chocolate truffle, something that everyone loved. She wouldn't use what technically was my full name, Ginevra Mollyanne Weasley because it would seem like she was screaming at herself as well. I thought to myself pitifully.

"What on earth happened to you?" She asked me looking astonished at my attire.

I didn't blame her, my mother who wouldn't rest until ickle Ronniekins had gotten the dirt from his nose cleaned away was now facing a daughter who looked, well, bedraggled. I looked like a hobo. I observed as I caught my reflection in one of the shiny frames.

"I fell down near the Apothecary." I offered a lame explanation which my mother accepted knowing that I was incapable of doing a good cleansing charm. I loved my dirt way too much.

She nodded her head, "Go and take a shower, sweetie. I need your help in the kitchen." And she continued with her dusting. My mother was so weird; she dusted those books every day.

I trudged up the stairs to the best place in The Burrow, my room. Everything about it just described me totally. I went to my muggle boom box and played the cd from one of my favorite muggle boy bands. Honestly, if there was one thing I hated about the wizarding world, it was the fact that they couldn't make music. The chick whom my mum was a huge fan of…. Aaahh… what's her name? Celestina Warbeck? Yes, Celestina Warbeck, she couldn't sing to save her life.

The last time we played one of her Christmas albums, Fleur went ballistic and all of the new crystal cracked. The high note was really that bad. Now, we cringe when her records are in sight. All of this is just crap you know, Celestina Warbeck is actually a really good opera singer, the kind where you often wonder whether she is singing or crying. But, unfortunately, the younger generation Weasley's hate her.

Fred and George charmed the records the go all haywire. That explained a lot didn't it?

Picking out a decent set of clothing, a baby blue t-shirt with a teddy bear on it and my torn denim shorts to be more specific, I went into the shower to get myself all cleaned up for later. No point procrastinating, I had to work on my truffle. At least, getting it perfect would keep me busy for a while now.

Descending down the stairs of my simple home, I felt thoroughly refreshed after a nice, warm shower. It had gotten me to think about everything that had happened today. For some reason, I didn't feel worried. I guess, it hadn't sunk into me yet.

Concentrating on achieving perfection on my dessert, I didn't realize how much of time had flown by. It was already 7.30 and the Lupins had just arrived minutes ago.

"Ginny! Ginny!" I heard six year old Teddy Lupin's innocent voice screaming out for me in excitement in the hall.

"She is in the kitchen, lad." I could hear my dad, Arthur Weasely assuring the little boy. Before he could say anything else, Teddy bounced right into the kitchen nearly knocking a glass bowl filled with salad over with a hassled looking Tonks scurrying after him.

It was not that he had earned her generic trait of being clumsy by nature. It was just that he was far too excited for some apparent reason. Oh who am I kidding? Teddy was excited to see me, his partner-in-crime. I hadn't seen him since the Lupins had decided to take a mid-autumn vacation to sunny Mauritius.

"Teddy!" I chided him gently as I pulled him into a big hug. "You've grown, my Prince." I said as I observed the little inches that he grew.

He was just a sweet, adorable little boy whom everyone in my family loved. We were not blood-related but we were sort of just bounded together by some sort of thread. I guess war did that to us.

He laughed playfully as I looked up to greet Tonk's who smiled thoroughly relieved.

"Wotcher, Ginny." She greeted me. Today her hair was raven black and her eyes were an emerald shade of green. She could have almost passed off for Harry's elder sister.

"Teddy's been a handful today." She said, shaking her head tiredly as she sat down on the wooden chair nearest to where I was standing with Teddy, distracted by raw cookie dough.

"Teddy, you'll ruin your appetite!" I pulled the bowl away from him as he scrunched up his face and pouted. I knew the waterworks were going to start soon. Tonks immediately groaned. Looks like this was what she had been putting up with all day.

"I thought big boys don't cry?" I reminded him of a conversation we had before he left for the holiday with his parents. He stopped pulling the face at once. Smiling slightly at my success, I handed him a little toy that was part of the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes creations for little children. At once, it started amusing him.

"So, what's up?" I asked Tonks casually as I concentrated on decorating my truffle.

"Nothing much. Things have just been really busy around here. I am only doing my job part time now because of Teddy's tantrum tendencies. Mother says it's possible that we may not have been spending enough time with him. And I've been away and Remus is always so busy. I thought it was just a phase you know, the whole tantrum thing, but looks like I just got out of the saucepan and landed straight into the fire." She explained the whole situation looking really exhausted.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" I offered helpfully. Tonks was like the elder sister that I never had and I really looked up to her.

She shook her head. "I guess I'll have to back out of the McDomer's case."

"McDomer? Who is that?" I asked curiously. I had no idea that she was actually working on a new case at all.

"Gerald McDomer? It was in the Daily Prophet last month. He was found brutally murdered and we suspect dark magic is involved. He used to be on the board of directors for M. Empire. We haven't gotten a lead as of now but we suspect a serial killer on the rise." She answered me thoughtfully.

McDomer? Gerald? How come I never heard of that dude before? And he worked for M. Empire, where I'd be working soon! Perhaps I could help Tonks out or something.

"You know me, I don't read the papers." I replied applying the finishing touches. Voila! It was finally perfect.

"Yeah, but it isn't good to be so oblivious to the dangers of the world, Ginny. You are innocent. But the world out there isn't." She finished, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"I have my parents to blame for it, don't I?" I said bitterly. Yes, I was still whipped over something that resided in the past which I'd rather talk about some other time. Like when we were desperate for topics or there was something more worse than the Spanish Inquisition that was going on.

"Let the past remain in the past." She advised me as my mum entered the kitchen. Giving Tonks a motherly hug, she announced that dinner was finally served and invited everyone to join us in the kitchen.

"It's too bad that the past always comes back to bite doesn't it?" I whispered softly, more to myself.

Dinner was a rather slow and painful affair. I kept to myself most of the time not wanting to stir up anything like I had dreamt, entertaining Teddy a little, here and there. I felt really guilty because I probably wouldn't be doing that anytime soon and right now I wasn't in the mood.

"Everything alright in there, Gin bug?" My dad asked me cracking one of his lame jokes at the same time. I could sense the concern though; it was hardly like me to sit quiet throughout an entire meal especially with people whom I loved.

"Yeah, dad. Just thinking about my day." I replied as truthfully as I possibly could. In fact, I was thinking about my day. The time had finally come. I guess it had sunken in after all.

"What was so interesting about your day that you didn't join in the conversation about Quidditch?" Harry asked me curiously as he helped himself to some mashed potatoes.

He had caught me there I suppose. I was passionate about Quidditch just about as much as I loved basket ball. I was rather out of my place today.

This is it! This is it, Ginny! You have no choice but to tell them now. C'mon, just do it. It can't be that bad. Worst to worst, they'd just marry you off to Seamus and hey, he is good looking.

My mind totally tried to make me feel more positive but in the wrong light. Like I could seriously care whether Seamus Finnegan was dashing or troll – ugly. I mean, of course I would care but not like right now. There was a time to swoon and this was not one of those times.

I was feeling a little nauseated.

"Are you alright?" Hermione asked me worriedly. I suppose I did look a little green.

"Yeah." I managed.

"So, you were saying…?" Harry prodded me on. I swear, if there was one quality I had previously admired in my god brother, it was the fact that he was resilient. He never gave up on anything or maybe I should say, he never backed down without a fight. A good one. Right now, that trait was just annoying.

"Well, if you must know, I went job hunting today." I declared trying to sound all nonchalant about it.

That had everyone's attention.

"Anything good?" Fred asked me while George added on.

"Yeah, if not, you can just come and work for us. We need more manpower."

"Trustworthy manpower." Fred continued.

"There is no one like you in this world, sis. I'd trust you with my life."

"Except maybe when I'm like blind or something."

I laughed feeling slightly better. Leave it to these two idiots to cheer me up over something as ridiculous as that.

"Pretty much." I replied.

"Did you get in?" Hermione asked me eagerly.

Everyone waited for my reply. There was a few seconds of silence before I finally answered.

"Yes."

There was an explosion of applause at the table. The last time I remembered being applauded like this was when I had just gotten into Gryffindor.

"Brilliant." The twins said at the same time.

"Congratulations, Ginny. May you go far on your conquest." Percy shook my hands pompously. Stupid prat!

"Cool" was all Ron had to say.

"That's great, Gin. Work hard." Hermione encouraged me.

"Awesome, Gin." Harry grinned at me, reaching over to slap high-fives.

My other sisters-in-law were pretty cool about that fact. Bill and Charlie were rather curious but didn't get a chance to say much.

Mum and Dad were the on the other hand thumping my back and saying, "Well done, Gin bug. Our baby girl is all grown up." Mum was quite tearful in fact and Dad was proud.

Tonks hugged me. And poor, cute, little Teddy couldn't understand what was going on, so he dropped the salad bowl. Which was actually a good thing because I hated broccoli in my salad.

He once again had everyone's attention as he started crying. Professor Lupin and Tonks whom were sitting beside him started comforting him. However, Professor Lupin had his eye on me when I had explained that I had been accepted to work at Corporate Alley.

He knew. I realized. Ginny Weasley, you are so in for it.

That officially ruined my dinner along with another incident. The fact that I lied to my family. Technically, I didn't lie; I just told them an incomplete truth. They knew I was going to work in Corporate Alley but they didn't know for whom. Why complete it and pop their bubble? Besides, I was old enough to take care of myself.

If all my babysitting wasn't free of charge, I'd be able to have my own place by now. And that fact really sucked.

So, to summarize, dinner reeked. My chocolate truffle tasted like dust to me. Professor Lupin kept his silence. But for how long? I couldn't help but wonder.

As I prepared for my big day tomorrow, an elegant silvery black eagle tapped obnoxiously at my window. It handed me a note and flew off after ensuring that I had read it.

The note said,

Weaselette,

I expect to see you at the crack of dawn tomorrow morning. Trainees are NOT allowed to floo. Just be there, by hook or by crook. Or else, you're fired.

Draco. M

I can bet ten thousand galleons that he was smirking as he wrote this little script. He was so intending on making my life miserable. I needed to tell someone the truth before I exploded. I decided to write a letter to my best friend for eleven years who was currently on holiday in Italy.

Dearest Channy, (pronounced as Shanny)

Hey girlfriend! How are you doing? How is Italy like right now? Everything cool? Write me the details. Anyway, I am not so great. I need you right now, love. My life has officially just gotten screwed. And I brought it on myself.

Remember how I told you that I was going job hunting? (via e-mail) Well, here is the thing. I got the job at the place I have been dreaming of for years. M. Empire. But you won't believe who the owner of the damn place is…..

DRACO BLOODY MALFOY!

You remember him from Hogwarts right? That asshole. Yeah, he is my boss. And I was clueless about it until the end. And now, he is out to kill me. Gosh!

That's not all. Mum and Dad have got no fecking clue. I mean, they know that I am working but they don't know for whom. I don't know whether to feel guilty or relieved. Oh but Lupin knows. Teddy is great by the way….! Tell me about your stuff. I need you, your advice and a distraction. SOON!

WRITE TO ME BEFORE I SEND YOU A HOWLER! :D

Love you loads and needing you so much right now! Ciao.

Ginny!

P.S: Kick me.

I wondered what awaited me tomorrow.

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