Studium in Caritate
Chapter 3
"Mr. Warrington, if I have to ask you again to put that away, I will confiscate it and destroy it," Ginny said bluntly, pointing at the noisemaker he had brought to class. "I'm sure you would miss it at the Quidditch game next weekend."
"It's just a bit of noise Professor," Warrington protested.
"And it's just twenty points from Slytherin if you don't put away," Ginny countered. "Now." Warrington rolled his eyes, but shoved it in his bag and slouched in his chair. "As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted," Ginny said, making her way up the isle of desks, "Please break into groups of three by your school year and last name to begin our lesson this afternoon."
She noticed Scorpius standing awkwardly with two girls from his class. The girls gossiped next to him while he stood silently, arms folded across his chest.
"Professor," one of the sixth year girls interrupted her thoughts. "What if we don't like our group?"
"I'm sure you'll survive, Ms. Sharp," Ginny said. Once the groups were divided she gave them their assignment and stood back to watch them practice. She couldn't help but notice Scorpius nervously eyeing one of the girls in his group. When the girl turned to talk to him, he turned a bright shade of red and promptly dropped his wand. Ginny had to smile at him. Scorpius had originally been that way around Lily as well, but as the week went on they seemed to hit it off rather nicely. Lily regularly attended their tutoring sessions now and Scorpius seemed to enjoy her company.
When her class was over, Scorpius stayed behind to help tidy the room. Lily soon joined them and Ginny made them all some tea.
"Scorpius," Lily said, blowing on her mug, "Would you like to come to my mum's for dinner tonight?"
Ginny stared at her daughter, shocked. "Lily, I'm sure he has other plans. He doesn't want to spend his Friday evening with you and your brothers."
"Come off it, Mum," Lily smiled, "You were just complaining about how you made too much pie for the four of us."
"I wouldn't want to intrude on your family," Scorpius said quietly.
Ginny smiled at how polite he was, but noticed the soft look of longing on his face. "Nonsense. You are more than welcome to come if you so wish. I can have the headmistress owl your father for permission."
That seemed to settle it and, before she knew it, Scorpius was seated at her dining room table next to Lily with Albus and James glaring at him across the table. Scorpius didn't seem to notice the other boys scowling at him and happily ate his stir-fry.
"James, I was telling Scorpius how much you enjoy playing Quidditch and he says they have a pitch at the Malfoy Manor! He even invited us to come play sometime!" Lily said excitedly. James grunted in reply, not taking his eyes of Scorpius. Confused, Lily turned her attention to Albus. "He's also taking Muggle Studies like you, Albus!"
Albus didn't respond.
"Um, James," Scorpius said nervously, his voice barely filling the room, "Your sister says you are a – um – Weird Sisters fan."
That got James' attention. "Uh – yeah. Mum's a big fan, so I grew up listening to them."
"My dad's a big fan as well," Scorpius said, "He's got all their records."
"Has he?" James asked, genuinely interested. "Has he seen them in concert? Mum did when she was at Hogwarts, but not since."
"I think he saw them when they played London last year," Scorpius answered. "I was in school so he wouldn't let me go." Ginny stared at Scorpius, taken aback. She had tried desperately to get tickets to that show, but they had sold out in minutes.
"That's rubbish," James said sympathetically. "The Hobgoblins had a reunion concert a few years back and Mum and Dad wouldn't let me go either. Said my studies were more important." He made a face.
"They are more important," Ginny said sternly.
"Whatever you say, Mum."
"Is it a full Quidditch pitch, or a half?" Albus asked abruptly.
"At the Manor?" Scorpius asked, confused. Albus nodded. "It's a full pitch."
"Do you play often?" Albus asked.
"Not really," Scorpius shrugged. "My dad plays more than I do, but there's not really anyone around to play with. We mostly stick to ourselves."
"Sounds like an awfully big house for just two of you," Lily said quietly. Scorpius didn't answer, just looked down at his hands.
Ginny cleared her throat, "Well, now that we're done with dinner, we can finally start on desert. I hope you're hungry for some pie!"
§
When Ginny walked them all back to Hogwarts after pie and a game of charades, she was surprised when all three of her kids hugged her and said goodnight, even James. After dropping them off, she accompanied Scorpius to the dungeons.
"Thank you for inviting me," Scorpius said honestly as they approached the Slytherin common room. "I had a good time."
"You are welcome to join us any time," Ginny said.
Scorpius grinned up at her and hugged her tightly. She hugged him back, squeezing him tightly against her. When they broke apart he said, "Goodnight, Professor."
"Night, s-Scorpius," she caught herself before she called him sweetheart. He smiled at her and entered the common room.
Ginny meandered back out of the castle and back home. She had just settled in for the night when, once again, she was disturbed by a soft knocking on her window. Upon opening her window she was pleasantly surprised to see Neville's owl, Cedar perched on the sill, patiently waiting for her. She offered him her arm and he hopped on, happily. After shutting the window, Ginny moved to her bed and set him next to her on the comforter. He politely held out his leg and she took the letter. She grinned at the simple lines of text:
It's a girl. Hannah was brilliant.
Neville.
Turning to Cedar, she was surprised to find him curled up on her spare pillow, snoring contentedly. She decided to leave him be and turned off her light.
§
Ginny was rudely awakened the next morning by yet another sound at her window. This wasn't as nice as Cedar's from the previous evening and resembled more of a banging than a tapping. She groaned and rubbed the sleep from her eyes before pulling the window open.
Draco's overlarge black owl flew in and perched regally on her dresser before elegantly extending a leg for her to remove the letter. Ginny shut the window, cutting off the wave of cold air, and removed the letter.
She barely had time to glance at it before the large owl went berserk and started flying around the room heatedly, scattering feathers around the room.
"What the hell?!" she exclaimed as he dived towards her bed.
Cedar, who had still been asleep, was jolted awake by the weight of the other owl on the bed. He jumped to his feet and peered around the room. When his eyes landed on Draco's owl, he let out a cheerful hoot and tottered over to the bigger owl. Poor, innocent Cedar let out a squawk as the black owl pounced on him. Draco's owl was obviously not as friendly as Neville's.
"Oi, get off him!" Ginny used the letter from Draco to hit the larger owl over the head. He hissed at her and went back to strangling Cedar. Finally, Ginny grabbed the big owl around the body and lifted him up. She pushed the window open and tossed him out before pulling the window closed again.
Cedar let out a pitiful hoot and he hopped towards her as she sat down on the bed beside him. She gently settled his ruffled feathers. "Do you want a bit of bacon for breakfast?" she asked him. He perked up at the word bacon and insisted on riding on the top of her head into the kitchen.
Over breakfast, she read the letter. She expected it to be from Draco, but to her surprise, she found Scorpius' careful handwriting.
Professor Weasley,
Thank you for having me for dinner last night. I had a fun time with you and your family. Your stir-fry was really good.
My father sends his regards,
Scorpius.
§
Monday found Ginny back in her classroom, grading essays from her third year students. Her door swung open and she was surprised to see James.
"Hey, Mum," he said.
"Hey," she stood up and hugged him, "How was the rest of your weekend?"
"S'fine," James muttered.
"What can I do for you?" Ginny asked, genuinely curious why he was at her office. She loved James, but he had inherited her stubborn mindset. It had been hardest for him when she began teaching at Hogwarts. He had already made friends and settled into his life without her constant presence.
"I –uh – I need your help," he said, blushing slightly and refusing to make eye contact with her.
"Ok," Ginny said slowly. She perched on her desk.
"I –," he cleared his throat. "I sort of have a – um – date. This weekend."
"Oh!" Ginny exclaimed, surprised that he was telling her about it. "That's wonderful James."
"Yeah," James gently scuffed the floor with his shoe, still not looking at her. "I – um – I don't really have anything to-," he paused and sighed. "Mum, I don't have anything to wear."
"Oh, sweetheart," Ginny grinned. "I can give you a few galleons if you'd like to go to Hogsmeade and get something."
"I was kind of hoping you might come with." James said quietly. "I don't know what girls like."
Warmth spread through Ginny, "Of course. We can go on Wednesday after my last class." He finally looked up at her with a smile of relief.
She couldn't resist the urge to hug him. He protested, but let her wrap her arms around him tightly. After a minute he shrugged her away, "G'off, Mum. I'm not a baby."
"I love you," she said, kissing his cheek.
He wiped his cheek with the back of his hand, but said, "Love you too."
§
After a long week, Ginny had hoped for a relaxing Saturday, but instead she spent the whole day worrying about what to wear for her date with Draco. Promptly at 5:30 there was a knock on her door. She scampered around the house, tugging shoes on, and second-guessing her outfit before pulling the door open.
"Hi," she said, smiling and stepping back so he could come in.
"Hey," he stepped into the house and looked around at her small living room. His eyes finally landed on her and he asked, "Are you ready?"
"Yes. Let me grab my cloak." She found her wool cloak hanging over one of the chairs in the dining room. To her surprise, he helped her pull it over her shoulders before he lead her out the door.
As they walked down the softly lit street of Hogsmeade he said softly, "You look lovely."
She hoped the darkness of the hour helped hide the blush that crept up her neck to her cheeks. "Thank you." It had been such a long time since she had gone out socially, she wasn't sure she was dressed appropriately.
"So, it's up to you where we go," he offered as they reached the middle of town. "I know Madam Puddifoot's is open late this evening, but I am rather fond of the butterbeer at The Three Broomsticks. Now, the Hog's Head is also an option, but you should know the bartender there likes to give me free whiskey, which could take our evening in a rather interesting direction."
He was flirting with her. Ginny was completely caught off guard by it, so it took her a moment to say, "Um, Three Broomsticks has a great dinner menu."
"Three Broomsticks it is," he smiled at her and turned to the pub. She followed him and was thankful for the warmth as they entered. Draco gestured at the waitress that there were two of them and they were lead to the back of the pub where they pulled off their cloaks and hung them up. Ginny was surprised to see him in a nice pair of jeans and a black button up. He looked so relaxed. They ordered and then fell into an uncomfortable silence. Finally he cleared his throat and said, "Scorpius owled me and said he went to dinner at your house last weekend."
"He did," Ginny confirmed. She took a sip of her butterbeer. "He and Lily have become rather good friends."
"So I've been told," Draco nodded. "He said he had a good time with you. I think he enjoyed being around a larger family. Gives him a different perspective, being an only child."
"Of course," Ginny smiled, thinking of the night before. "He seemed to fit right in. He and Albus beat the rest of us at charades." She paused, "You never thought of having another child?"
Draco smiled gently, "Astoria and I talked about it a few times, but she was so fixated on Scorpius that I'm not sure how another child would have fit in."
"They were close?"
"Incredibly. Practically inseparable," Draco went on. "Astoria always wanted kids. I think when we finally had Scorpius she was so thrilled by him that it was it."
"There's something special about the bond with your first child," Ginny said knowingly. Draco looked at her questioningly and she continued. "Don't get me wrong, I love all of my children, but knowing that James and I made it through the unknown together is really powerful." She laughed to herself. "I learned everything from him, so by time I got to Albus and then Lily, I was more confident in myself. James was there when I had no idea what I was doing."
"I can understand that," Draco agreed. "We barely slept the first month after we brought Scorpius home. We were both so worried something was going to happen to him."
They both fell silent again until Ginny asked quietly, "How did she die?"
"She got sick," Draco said slowly, playing with his hands. "We took her to St. Mungo's, but there wasn't anything they could do, so we just watched her go."
Surprising both of them, Ginny reached across the table and covered one of his hands with hers. "I'm sorry."
He smiled over at her and gently squeezed her hand before they both pulled their hands away. "She would have liked you, you know." He took a drink of his butterbeer.
"Oh really?" Ginny asked.
"Definitely. Not many people will stand up to me when I lose my temper." He chuckled, "That day in your office, you held your own. I was impressed."
"I grew up with six brothers," Ginny shrugged, "You don't scare me."
Draco laughed and they fell into comfortable conversation for the rest of the evening.
§
"39?" he asked, shocked, opening the door to the restaurant for her.
"Yes, I'm 39," Ginny repeated. "I don't know why you're so surprised. You knew I was just a year below you in school."
Draco chuckled and asked, "Can I walk you home?"
"That would be nice."
He turned in the direction of her house and they meandered slowly down the street.
"I had a really good time tonight," Ginny said.
"Don't sound too surprised," Draco teased. He gently bumped his shoulder against hers.
"I am surprised!"
"You expected to loathe me?"
"Honestly, yes," Ginny said blatantly, making him laugh. She did love when he laughed. It seemed so natural for him. "It does seem to be rather common amongst the Weasleys to loathe you," Ginny joked. "Must be genetic."
"Makes sense," Draco conceded. He paused, "I had a really good time as well." They stopped at her door and he turned to face her. "A really good time." Ginny was hyperaware of how close they were.
"Are you going to kiss me?" she asked quietly, looking up at him with her big doe eyes.
"I was thinking about it," he murmured.
"Alright," she whispered. They were dangerously close now. She could feel his breath against her cheek.
"Alright, it's alright that I'm thinking about kissing you, or alright, I can kiss you?" he teased, smirking down at her.
"Both." She barely had to tilt her chin up before their lips met. She felt his hands on her waist and she cursed the layers of winter clothing between them. His lips moved slowly against hers, giving her control of where it went. She eagerly deepened the kiss. He fervently responded, pulling her body closer to his. When they broke apart a while later, chests heaving, Ginny couldn't help but smile up at him.
"Brilliant," he said breathlessly. Ginny grinned up at him and he tilted her chin up to plant another searing kiss on her lips.
§
A/N: R&R as you wish!