Chapter Six

Ginny took a deep breath as she stood before her mirror. It was almost three years since she last gave any real attention to the girl she saw there. Looking at herself now, it wasn't hard to believe. Her hair was uneven and had the dull sheen that said she hadn't washed it in a few days. Her robes were too big by several sizes and her clothes too were big and worn, having suffered through many generations of Weasleys.

She looked down at the list of suggestions that Pansy, Daphne and Millicent had all given her. She bit her lip. There were over three pages of the suggestions, varying from small things to sever steps. The girls had told her not to do all of them at once. The change would be too drastic and there was no way Ginny would be able to manage to keep them all up.

She scanned the list as she thought about why she was doing this. Part of her knew she was doing this mostly to get back at Harry but she also thought about the look in Malfoy's eyes when she had found out. He looked... upset. Why? Because he wasn't ready for the game to end or because he genuinely didn't want her to get hurt?

Ginny shook off thoughts of him and settled on a decision. She would take it one step at a time. If Malfoy liked her... well she'd burn that bridge when she came to it.

She pulled out her wand and muttered a spell she had learned from her mother years ago. Her hair became sleek and clean and she pulled it back into a messy bun as usual. She leaned over the dresser to see herself better in the mirror. After consulting with the notes the Slytherins had given her, she pointed her wand at her face. Hoping it wasn't some cruel Slytherin joke, she muttered the spell.

She opened her eyes and stared at herself in the mirror. Before she had had a light smattering of acne amid her freckles. The freckles hid it well, but Ginny had always secretly wanted to get rid of them. Now they were gone. It wasn't much of a difference, but Ginny felt better for some reason.

Daphne's notes said the spell was best used once a week. Ginny drew a quick star beside the note, indicating to herself that this suggestion was a good one.

Ginny studied herself again in the mirror. It was enough for now, she decided. She grabbed her bag and headed to the great hall.

888

Draco knew there was something different about Ginny this morning. He was at a total loss for what. She appeared more confident, but that wasn't terribly surprising. She had just broken up with the most eligible bachelor in the school. The girls seemed to know it too, for they kept wavering between awe and condeming her.

No, there was some tiny physical thing different about her.

More than that, it was the confidence. She seemed to positively shine. Draco looked around, surprised to find he wasn't the only one at his table who was watching Ginny. Pansy, Daphne and Millicent were grinning like banshees as Ginny took her usual seat in the great hall. He got up from his seat and went over to them.

"Okay, spill, what is it?"

They smiled charmingly at him. Daphne had used a curling charm on her blonde hair and she looked impish and doll like. Pansy and Millie looked less regal, but still managed a cuteness combined with their ability to be pure evil that should have had half the school after them.

"What do you mean?" Pansy asked, flicking her bangs out of her face.

"You got Ginny to do something. I know it."

"So what if we did?" Millie chimed in, twirling a piece of her own mousy brown hair around a finger.

"How the hell did you get her to?" He hissed.

"Maybe it's just the fact that she has two of the hottest guys in the school fighting over her." Daphne said.

"We weren't fighting over her!" He protested.

"Gee, you just convinced them to break up by showing her he was only after her as a prize. Sounds like fighting to me. What do you say girls?" Daphne asked rhetorically.

"Daphne, fighting over a girl means both guys are interested in the girl. I'm not interested in Weasley and neither, apparently is Potter."

"So says you," Daphne began, "But you went out of your way to break her from a relationship that would have hurt her more in the long run. Was it because you were the reason she was in that relationship in the first place?"

"You came to us and asked us if we could get her to become pretty. Was it cause you wanted to see how she looked, or do you already know?" Pansy chimed in.

"You haven't stopped staring at her since she came down. Is it because she had the balls to break it with Potter, or because she'll never go back to him and you know you might just have a chance?" Millicent finished.

Draco stared down at them for a moment. "Fine. Don't tell me."

He huffed off and the girls exchanged amused smiles as he sat down and proceeded to watch Ginny as he ate his breakfast.

888

Ginny looked up from her book as Pansy, Millicent and Daphne sat down at her table.

"Let me guess, the acne," Daphne said.

Ginny smiled shyly. "Is it that obvious?"

"No, but you've been holding yourself like a movie star since this morning. You know you look better and it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks."

"Thanks."

Daphne shrugged and Pansy replied, "You were spurned by a guy. We've all been there."

Daphne sniffed, "Speak for yourself."

Pansy rolled her eyes.

"Do you really think he cares?" Ginny asked.

"Take it from me, he ain't worth it."

Ginny sighed, "I know. I think I've known for a while that he doesn't like me like that but I've always hoped I could convince him otherwise."

"Acting like a hermit isn't going to help," Millicent commiserated.

"Besides," Daphne chimed in, "Someone else noticed your confidence today."

Ginny's head snapped up, her hazel eyes wide.

"Who?"

All three girls put fingers to their lips. "Nah uh! We won't tell!"

Daphne leaned forward, serious this time.

"So what are you going for in the long run?"

Ginny frowned, "What do you mean?"

"Pimple care, hair cuts, even a change of wardrobe are all well and good, but if you ever have your heart broken again, you'll fall back into your old habits pretty easily. You need friends to help you. They'll keep you up."

Ginny bit her lip,"Well, what about you three?"

The girls smiled.

"I'd love to Gin, but if you make Slytherin friends before you make Gryffindor friends, you're going to stick out like a sore thumb and what with that business in your first year, no one's going to like you much." Pansy supplied.

Ginny nodded. It made sense. "Any suggestions then?"

"Make some solid friends and some aquaintances."

"Hermione Granger and Luna Lovegood are safe bets," Millicent said.

"After they're pretty good friends, which shouldn't take long, given their dispositions, get some aquaintances. Ask Lavender Brown or either of the Patils what they think you should do with your hair or something trivial. They'll be delighted to be included in your make over scheme," Pansy said.

"After that, we'll come to you for some help in classes and you can slowly instigate us into the set," Millie said.

"What would you need my help with? Aside from Daphne, you're all a year older than me."

"Potions," all three girls said together.

"It's no secret you have perfect grades in that class," Pansy said, looking envious.

"Luna doesn't have great grades in there and Hermione would love to be part of a study group. When one of us asks you, you can invite both of them to come along. You'll cement your relationship with them while introducing us into the fold," Daphne said triumphantly.

Ginny looked at them suspiciously. "You've put a lot of thought into this, haven't you?"

The Slytherins laughed and after a moment Ginny joined in.

(A/N: Wow! Super long chapter to ring in the new years! Happy holidays everyone! I'm gonna try to get back to normal updates after today so wish me luck!

To tiddlywinx- Glad you like this version of Draco! I like him too!