Chapter Two: Starfish and Stick
After what felt like an interminable amount of time, Neville finally felt his feet touch ground and he skidded to a stop. Beside him, Pansy grinned with excitement. On his other side, Ginny missed her landing and went careening into Malfoy. Neville stepped back from the Portkey, waiting almost instinctively with his arms out for the moment that Malfoy shoved Ginny away from him. Malfoy staggered backwards, taking care to keep Ginny upright.
Neville didn't know why Ginny was there. He hadn't known that Ginny was going to come; he'd assumed that the fourth they'd waited for at Malfoy Manor was another Slytherin. He should've been happy when she'd burst from the fireplace, but instead he'd been dumbfounded. What was she, of all people, doing in Malfoy Manor? One one hand, having her present was a boon – he'd braced himself for travel with another enemy and now the only malevolent presence he had to deal with was Malfoy – but the sheer unexpectedness of the situation filled him with unease. Ginny was friends with Malfoy? Friendly enough to Side-Along with him? He was an ex-convict, for Merlin's sake! And one of the things he'd been convicted of was breaking into her house! If he remembered correctly from trial coverage in The Quibbler, she'd testified on his behalf. That part had never made sense to him. (The Quibbler had also reported that she'd been wearing faded yellow robes. He didn't know why The Quibbler felt compelled to report on wardrobe choices, but at least they told the truth.) Now Ginny was sagging in Malfoy's arms, looking decidedly green as Malfoy smoothed a stray wisp of hair out of her face and bent his head to whisper to her. Neville was having a hard time processing the scene before him; it was like watching a panther comfort a baby bird. Ginny nodded weakly and as Malfoy rearranged himself around her, the expression on his face gave him away. Well, that explained why she was invited, but it didn't necessarily explain why she was there. Porters had appeared to detach their luggage and Malfoy was waving them away from Ginny. "Get our bags," he snapped and ushered Ginny out of the chamber.
"So what, he expects me to be a pack mule?" Pansy growled.
"I'll get them, just take your bags," Neville said, still mollified by his new knowledge and eager to check on Ginny.
"All of them?" she whined, but she was reaching for them.
She'd been in a right snit since Ginny had arrived. So much for the rest and relaxation she'd promised him. "Did you know she was coming?" he asked.
Pansy scowled in the direction of the exit. "No."
On the concourse, Malfoy had sat Ginny on a chair and was pressing a damp handkerchief to her forehead. "Stop it," she mumbled, pushing at his elbows.
"Are you okay?" Neville asked her.
She nodded, successfully pushing Malfoy away.
"Not used to international travel?" Pansy inquired, her voice syrupy-sweet.
Ginny shot her a dark look. "I don't know what happened," she muttered, making to get to her feet. "Stay away," she warned Malfoy when he stepped in, and she stood.
"We can grab a Portkey to our hotel on Olympus now if you're alright," Malfoy said. "Or just Floo," he suggested hastily as Ginny paled.
"Would you mind if we just Floo?" Ginny looked to Neville and Pansy.
"That's fine," said Neville. Pansy sighed loudly to show that she did indeed mind before turning to the Floo queue. "Here's your suitcase, Malfoy." He took it with a small nod.
"And mine?" Ginny asked. Before he could answer, she read his answer in his face and frowned. "I'm fine, Neville, really," she assured him, snatching her bag out of his hand before he could react.
The hotel was something out of a travel brochure, all gleaming white and blue, open enough to allow the sea breeze to waft through the lobby and flutter the large Quidditch World Cup advert hanging on the wall. "Wow," Pansy breathed, setting down one of her suitcases so she could grab Neville's hand. "It's like a dream, isn't it?"
Neville had to agree as he looked down at her, radiant in the torchlight, her bad humour forgotten. It was like seeing the sun after a storm. "Rest and relaxation," he reminded her, nuzzling her dark hair.
"Not too much relaxation," she amended, her eyes twinkling mischievously. When he grinned back at her, she gave him an impulsive kiss.
"We can go to our rooms now." When Neville looked towards Ginny's voice, she was shuffling her feet and looking like she wanted to disappear into the lobby's mosaic floor. Malfoy was beside her, gaping openly at Neville and Pansy.
"Trying to attract Chizpurfles, Draco?" Pansy asked airily as she snuggled closer to Neville. "You look like Vince."
Malfoy's mouth snapped shut and he turned on his heel. Pansy was right; she was able to handle him. Neville picked up Pansy's suitcase and they marched after Malfoy, Ginny trailing behind them. Malfoy was composed once again when he stopped in front of two adjacent wooden doors. "Now what?" he asked.
"...Now we drop off our bags and go get something to eat?" Pansy ventured, giving Malfoy a puzzled look.
There was a small smile on Malfoy's face, and his eyes were altogether too bright. "Whose bags go where? Two beds per room. Is it witches and wizards? Play Hogwarts and we go by houses? Or," he continued, turning to Neville, his grin twisting into something unpleasant, "would you like some time alone with your lady love? What do you say, Longbottom?"
Pansy maneuvered her bags through the doorway and Neville barely felt the hand between his shoulder blades before he was propelled into his hotel room. Air rushed past him as the door closed forcefully but soundlessly, doubtless a concession for the other hotel patrons. "You are, without a doubt, the most useless excuse for a wizard I've ever had the misfortune to meet," Malfoy seethed as he swung his suitcase onto the bed by the window, the one Neville had been about to claim.
Neville wished that Pansy was there. He hadn't had Malfoy's full fury turned on him for...oh, years, and it was making him feel like a stuttering first-year all over again. Which was ridiculous, when he thought about it. Malfoy was an inept criminal and a Hogwarts dropout. Neville had a job and his NEWTs. And a girlfriend. Malfoy's girlfriend. "You didn't really expect me to room with Pansy, did you?" he asked, doing his best to keep his tone mild. "It's improper."
Malfoy folded his arms and gave him a disbelieving look. "Improper."
"Yes." He wanted nothing more than to be in the next room enjoying some precious solitude with his girlfriend.
His adversary stepped forward, his eyes flashing. "You are supposed to be with Pansy," he hissed.
"If I'm supposed to be with her, why didn't you just say so?" Neville asked. "You've been controlling everything else."
"Because I'm the bad one!" Malfoy exclaimed. "You know that as well as I do. Anything I decide is suspect. If you decided to stay with Pansy, it would be different."
Neville decided to cut to the chase. "Look, I wasn't going to make Ginny stay with you."
Malfoy pursed his lips, lost in thought for a moment. "That was your problem? Ginny doesn't mind, for future reference."
"You're best mates now, are you?" Neville snapped, the sarcasm he'd picked up from Pansy bleeding into his words. "Funny, she's never mentioned you. Ever." This outburst only seemed to amuse Malfoy. The smugness made Neville want to cut deeper, to tell Malfoy how much Ginny loved Harry and how Pansy was so much happier now than she'd ever been with him, but thoughts of the witches next door were the very thing that made him hold his tongue. Malfoy was Pansy's ex, but for better or for worse, they were still friends and Neville was going to have to get used to his presence. And if Ginny was really friends with Malfoy, an improbable proposition that was looking more likely with every passing moment, antagonizing Malfoy was only going to perturb her. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that."
Malfoy snorted. "I don't expect you to understand."
"Can we call some sort of truce? We're sharing a room now, and Pansy's just going to turn on both of us if we keep fighting."
"Begging for mercy already?" Malfoy jeered.
"I'm serious. It's pretty obvious that Pansy didn't tell you I was coming and it was an unpleasant surprise."
"She was cagey. I guessed she was bringing Zabini. I'm trying to figure out what she's doing with you in the first place."
"Maybe you ought to ask her that."
"Funny, she's never mentioned you. Ever," Malfoy added with a smirk.
Neville sighed. "Look, the girls are probably waiting for us."
"You really don't know Pansy, do you?" Malfoy chortled, throwing open their door. The hallway was deserted.
