Disclaimer: Don't own ('cept my own characters), don't sue.

A/N: Sorry for lack of updates. There will be fewer seeing as NaNoWriMo's taking up my free time.

Thanks to Victoria Humblydum for reviewing!


BETRAYAL OF THE HEART


Chapter One

I Hate To Admit It


It was another Saturday afternoon in the Gryffindor Common Room. Quidditch tryouts had only just started, so there was really no official practicing, and everybody was too lazy to bother practicing anyway. Despite it nearing the middle of October, the sun was still shining brighter than ever – blame it on global warming – and made for a humid atmosphere in the large room. Ginny leaned against a window frame, staring out the open window onto the Quidditch field and beyond, grateful for what little breeze passed by that day. Every few moments or so, the light wind would flutter by and whip her scarlet hair into her face. Then she'd have to brush it out with her fingers and it became a bit of a routine for the afternoon. Wind, hair, fingers…wind, hair, fingers…

Meanwhile, her brother and his best friend lazed on two gold and red striped chairs nearby, too tired to chat and too tired to haul themselves up to their dormitory to sleep. Not that they were tired enough to sleep though; they were just physically and mentally exhausted. Practically the worst kind. Hermione also sat near her friends, opting to lie on her stomach on a golden rug, humming lowly to herself as she flipped through a book on the magical properties of flying carpets and why they had been banned; it seemed fairly interesting to her.

Ginny glanced around the still room, which was unusually quiet that day. She hadn't even heard Lavender Brown's somewhat annoying high-pitched voice harping on about this boy and that boy and this trend or that trend. Despite how bothersome Ginny found it, it'd become a comfort to her over the years. It reminded her of her second home. Looking back out the window, Ginny wondered why she never truly got homesick when she was at Hogwarts, and then she realized that she felt just as much at home at Hogwarts as she did at the Burrow. She wondered if other students got homesick though.

Feeling the need to ask someone about it, Ginny went over to Harry and Ron and sat on the armchair of Harry's chair. The two boys looked up at her expectantly, but didn't say anything. "Did either of you ever get homesick when you came to Hogwarts?" Ginny asked curiously.

"No," Harry answered flatly. He never truly had a home before Hogwarts, so there was nothing to feel sick for, nothing to miss. He didn't say anymore on it, but Ginny understood everything through that one word.

"Not really," Ron shrugged, although it looked like it took a great deal of effort from him just to do that. He too said nothing more on the subject and Ginny quickly realized she would get nowhere with the two boys. Rolling her eyes and sighing, Ginny jumped down from the armrest and moved towards Hermione's spot on the rug. A look passed between Harry and Ron and the boys shrugged before resuming doing absolutely nothing.

Ginny settled down cross-legged on the rug in front of Hermione. Hermione didn't look up from her book, which was a usual thing. Most people knew not to bother Hermione Granger when she was engrossed in a book. Depending on Hermione's mood, the disruption could lead to disastrous results. But Ginny knew Hermione didn't stay very angry at her for very long, so she often took the chance. "Hey Hermione," Ginny started in a sing-song voice, smiling down at her friend.

Hermione blinked before tearing her chocolate eyes away from the tiny print on the page in front of her. "Yes, Ginny? What's wrong?" Hermione immediately assumed the worst when someone interrupted her in the middle of reading. Nothing short of a crisis should interrupt Hermione Granger's reading.

"Oh, nothing…" Ginny admitted, shrugging nonchalantly. Hermione's eyebrow twitched slightly at this; she positively hated being interrupted for trivial things. "I was just wondering if you ever got homesick at Hogwarts."

Hermione shook her head, quickly dismissing what Ginny had said. "No. Never. Hogwarts has become my –"

"Second home," Ginny completed the sentence, and Hermione nodded. "Yeah, I know the feeling. I'll just let you go back to reading then…" Hermione smiled gratefully and wasted no time in continuing her reading. Ginny gave a light sigh and got up, heading for the portrait hole. Hermione tore herself away from her book once more to give her friend a curious look.

"Gin, where are you going?" Hermione asked, cocking her head to the side. Ginny shrugged half-heartedly, not really sure where she was headed.

"Out." She opened the portrait and climbed out, waving politely to the Fat Lady before heading off to the Quidditch Field. For some reason, she desperately wanted to go there. She did feel a small connection with Hogwarts just being on the Quidditch Field; that field held good memories for her and so did Quidditch. Besides, she had a good feeling about this year and Quidditch. As she made her way to the field, she noticed how empty Hogwarts seemed to be that Saturday. All the students seemed to be holed up in their common rooms and there were no teachers scurrying around in their business. Everything seemed still and calm, like there was a raging storm to come. The feeling made Ginny eerily uncomfortable.

When she arrived on the field, she was disheartened to find several Slytherins already on the field, although none of them were flying around. Ginny hadn't come to fly either, but she came for closure and she knew that with Slytherins out, she wouldn't get that. Settling down on a bench near the entryway, she made sure not to glance towards the Slytherins, who seemed to be being directed by Draco Malfoy. Ginny decided to concentrate on other things, like how the breeze was so much more generous out here on the field than it was from the Gryffindor Common Room. She closed her eyes and took in the fresh air and soon lost herself in meaningless thoughts, placing her palms flat on the bench on either side of her and leaning back slightly. She felt so at peace there. The eerie stillness of the castle couldn't reach her while she was out here.

All of a sudden, a great coldness engulfed her despite the heat from the sun, and Ginny felt as if a huge cloud had just overshadowed the earth. She opened her eyes to find Draco Malfoy standing over her, a smug smirk on his face for no reason at all. She inwardly groaned, angry at him for disturbing her internal peace.

"What are you doing out here all alone, Weasley?" Draco demanded, looking down at her somewhat haughtily and yet with interest. She couldn't detect any immediate contempt in his voice like she usually heard whenever he mentioned a member of her family, but Ginny still imagined it to be there.

"I could ask you the same question," Ginny mumbled, closing her eyes and willing him away so she could relive the serenity and bliss she'd just felt. She wished it were only that easy. She opened her round, doe-like caramel eyes and was greatly disappointed to find Malfoy still towering over her. She sighed and rolled her eyes.

"I am Slytherin Quidditch Captain, you know," Draco bragged, his smirk growing wider. "I was holding tryouts."

"Oh wow, you can make yourself useful," Ginny quipped, wondering why Malfoy was still there. She was of no interest to him and he didn't really have anything on her to make fun of besides her heritage. And Merlin knows she only heard enough snide comments about that from him. "Jeez Malfoy, why don't you just disappear and slither back into the dark hole you came from?"

"Why so eager to be rid of me, Weasley?" Draco asked coolly, settling down next to Ginny on the bench. "I thought maybe we could spend some time together, just you and me…"

"Ha, not in this lifetime," Ginny scoffed, abruptly getting up. As sad as it made her, she knew she'd have to go back to the common room now that Malfoy was bugging her. Things never went the way she planned them, did they? "Have fun spending time with your near-exploding ego."

Ginny was about to turn to walk back through the entryway when she felt Malfoy's hand encircle her wrist gingerly. She looked back at him in surprise and found him giving her a pleading look. "Please…stay?" He almost asked her, his tone unlike anything she'd ever heard from the likes of him. Raised to be sympathetic, kind and forgiving, Ginny couldn't help but rejoin Draco on the bench. She gave him a curious glance out of the corners of her eyes.

"You really are desperate for company, aren't you?" Ginny asked and Draco shrugged, trying to regain his composure. A small smile crossed his lips before he answered her.

"No…just yours," Draco said, winking. Ginny shook her head but offered him a small smile in return. She didn't understand why Draco wanted her to stay outside with him so badly, but the least she could do was be civil to him. "Well, it's just that Hogwarts is so…odd today. Nobody's acting like themselves. It's so –"

"Still," Ginny completed his sentence and Draco nodded in agreement.

"Exactly," he breathed, and the two sat in silence for a few moments, the wind whipping lightly through their hair.

"Malfoy?" Ginny began softly, wondering if Draco could possibly feel such a human emotion. It was worth asking. Draco turned his head towards her as acknowledgement and Ginny continued on. "Did you…did you ever feel homesick at Hogwarts?"

"I…I don't think that's possible," Draco admitted and Ginny found herself staring at him in astonishment. Did Draco, like most people, appreciate Hogwarts and think of it as a second home? She stared at his eyes although he was looking away from her, and she could recognize the unparalleled love in his silver eyes. Maybe he felt the same way about Hogwarts as she and countless others did. Maybe they had more in common than Ginny had assumed. Perhaps Draco was capable of feeling human.

Countless thoughts swarmed her head and Ginny felt odd. Had she really just had a successful conversation with the Draco Malfoy? A snicker from nearby brought her out of her thoughts and she refocused her attention on Draco, who was now staring back into her eyes. His intense stare gave her a bit of a shock and sent a current down her spine.

"I know what you're thinking," he chuckled knowingly, getting up. "You'll come to find that I'm more like you than you ever imagined, Weaselette. Ciao, love." Smirking cheekily at her, Draco left the same way Ginny had come. Ginny however, was still on the bench, her cheeks burning and feeling weirder than she had when she was walking through the deserted castle. And what Malfoy had said didn't help her one bit; she had no idea what he meant by that statement, and now it was terribly bothering her.

"So much for relaxing," Ginny sighed, reluctantly getting up to return to her common room.