Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to the content and material of Harry Potter.
This chapter feels shifty to me but probably because I tried to convey so many different ideas at once. Thank you to everyone who has kept up with this story and every review or alert brings a gigantic smile to my face. You are the reason I'm still writing this and you must know how much I appreciate the support.
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Chapter Twenty – As White As Snow
During the quiet of the night a storm passed through and gave Hogwarts the first official snow of the winter season. The grounds were blanketed in a soft, white powder and everything appeared frozen until the sun peeked through the thick clouds and melted some of the cold. But even then mountains of ice crystals formed snow banks across the once green landscape, beautifully pristine mounds of pure white decorating the rolling hills. The students were eager to get outside once the snow was spotted through various dorm windows and the word spread like wildfire that there was going to be a snowball fight at three o'clock. Dumbledore had no choice but to approve of their plans as all of the Houses were participating in the frivolity and all had elected a team captain for the event, who then began strategizing how to beat the others as it evolved into a game of capture the flag.
The rules were simple: each House would select an area to guard as their "base" and each fort would have a flag somewhere representing their colors. Each team would split up - some guarding the base and some fanning out to protect it within a short vicinity, while the rest aimed to retrieve the other House's flags. In order for a team to win, they had to collect all four flags and declare victory before it was too late and a flag was stolen back. All without the use of magic.
There were enough students from each House to form round about teams, though Hufflepuff and Slytherin had the least number of players. The snakes held an advantage however because a majority of their participants were in the higher Years and maintained a much more formidable defense line than the rest. Ron took it as his personal mission to lead the Gryffindors to victory when it became obvious that Harry was nowhere to be found. Dean, Seamus, and Lee Jordan were his commanders and together they huddled around a table in the common room to discuss plans of attack. During lunch the four captains met at the entrance to the Great Hall to provide the locations of their bases.
The Ravenclaws opted for the most accessible place - the Quidditch pitch. They argued with the Hufflepuffs for the entire field before Ron and Blaise surprisingly compromised for the other two teams that one could have the far end next to a set of goal posts while the other would have to take the opposite side of the stadium on the exterior of the stands. The Slytherins claimed a wide bank of snow nearest the Forbidden Forest and close to the pitch where the trees where the thinnest while the Gryffindors chose a broad swatch of land at the top of the hill, closest to the castle but it also held a critical weakness in being across an open plain from their opponents.
Each captain brought the scrap of cloth that would be used for their flag and all four students, taking the seriousness of the game to the extreme, charmed their fabric around their wrists to be released at three o'clock exactly when the event began. Once the lunch period was over, a majority of the teams assembled outside in their designated bases to build their forts and finalize any strategies. The Professors had been against the idea of so many students openly frolicking on the grounds when recent events had plagued the Wizarding society with worries of attack from Voldemort but Dumbledore held the final say and he opted to allow the teenagers a few hours of playful competition while the threat level was still relatively low.
Lucia, an aggressive Sixth year, led her team of Ravenclaws out to the Quidditch pitch and although magic was forbidden from being used during the capturing of the flags, it was not outlawed for the short construction phase and before long it sounded like bulldozers were working as the team built up their piles of snow. Kitner, a quiet but strong wizard, took a different approach with his band of Hufflepuffs but only the Gryffindors from their higher position could watch as their meek competition dug through the snow instead of building it up. Within an hour the once flat land surrounding the curve of the stadium was shoveled away and it appeared as if a trench encircled the stands as the Hufflepuffs then designed a short wall to protect themselves against their attackers.
Blaise directed his team to build an igloo of sorts that looked like a giant dome without the small tunnel for entry. The roof was carved away where they had suspended a wooden platform before solidifying the snow into ice blocks. The exterior was slippery and just high enough for an opponent to have to jump precariously high. Ron, on the other hand, did not waste time on building a large fort. He concentrated instead making sure his teammates were prepared to win.
His top priority was securing Ginny in his fold of runners. She had been dodging him for the past few weeks though and he could only hope that she was in good spirits when he found her. It was not too difficult since she had managed to sleep through breakfast and was coincidentally walking down the stairs into common room when he was preparing to go down for lunch.
"Hey Gin!" He called with a wide smile.
Ginny narrowed her gaze and looked at him suspiciously but stopped in front of him and crossed her arms over her chest as she raised one eyebrow in question.
"D'ya hear about the game later?"
"Yes, Ronald - I have only just now woken up and gotten out of bed and I have already heard about this 'game'," she sarcastically stated and he shook his orange head goodnaturedly.
"All the Houses are playing at three out on the hill by the pitch. We've got teams and everything," he enthusiastically explained.
"Okay. . ." Ginny trailed, her tone leaving him to believe she did not see what the big deal was. "And. . ."
"And I'm heading our team - the Gryffindors. I want you to help us win!" Ron blurted with an embarrassed grin.
"Ooohhh - now you want my help. Where's Harry? Why isn't he your prime angle to beat everyone else?"
"Your guess is as good as mine. I haven't seen him since breakfast yesterday." A scowl marred his freckled features but the bouncing steps of someone behind Ginny brightened his mood and he beamed as Hermione rushed between them to hug Ron. He left his arm around her waist when she pulled back and suddenly the bushy haired witch's attention was on her.
"Oh hey Ginny. You coming to the snowball war?"
"Is that what this is?" She laughed, more of a bark but it had the effect as Hermione appeared baffled at her reaction. "Ron just asked me that same question - but only because I always beat him with my fastball when we were kids."
"If it will help us win," she responded brightly but a brow cocked competitively as her lips turned up in a small sneer. "I have an equation to figure distance for throwing them as well. Maybe we'll both get to see each other's strategies work out."
"Of course we will," Ginny replied tersely, her mouth tight as she accepted the challenge and the opportunity to best Hermione somewhere else besides appearance and sports. "I wouldn't miss this game for anything."
Ron glanced between the two witches, Ginny still in her pajamas with her flaming curls still messily tied up and Hermione looking pristine in a pair of jeans and a sweater. The tension was certainly palpable and he shrugged his shoulders and rolled onto the balls of his feet, clearing his throat to get their focus as they held an edgy stare.
"Alright. Well we'll all be outside after lunch but you don't need to be there until half past two."
"Uh huh," his sister responded and Hermione grinned triumphantly as her finger slipped into Ron's hand and squeezed.
"Come on, Ronald. Let's get down to the Great Hall before all of the hot food is gone." He was instantly pulling her towards the portrait at the mention of eating and she breezed after him with a promising, "We'll see you later, Gin," over her shoulder.
And so it was decided that she would partake in the school wide snowball fight. She assumed there was more to it from the way Ron was trying to describe it but if it would give her a chance to throw a hard packed ball of ice at Hermione's face, Ginny didn't care - she would participate in any event with odds for that. Turning to run back up to her dorm to change, she nearly fell sideways when she ran into Colin who was right behind her.
"Ginny! Where have you been? We didn't see you yesterday in the library. Are you going to be joining in the game? - because I was hoping to get some action shots for the student newspaper and I thought you would be the perfect person to follow." His words came out in a frenzied rush but his blue eyes were wide with excitement and his trademark camera was slung around his neck.
"Yea, yea I am. But I can't talk right now, Colin. I have to get dressed and practice my snowball making abilities."
"But Gin!" The blonde wizard called as she brushed past him to hurry up the spiral staircase. "Can I follow you during the game?"
"Yea! Sure!" She bellowed back and he grinned happily as his thoughts ran together with visions of page layouts containing his best photographs.
Ginny disrobed and pulled out her finest winter wear as she first changed her undergarments. Next came the spandex leggings and long sleeved shirt that insulated her body heat. A pair of worn but warm thermal pants covered her legs as she retrieved another wrist length shirt that rose slightly up her neck. The only jacket she had was a deep blue and frustrated with the fact that she would be an easy target for her enemies, she charmed the outerwear into a crisp white to blend in with the fresh snow. She found a knit stocking hat to cover her fiery tresses but the color was too bright as well so she turned it a pale cream to match her skin tone. Her pants and boots would have to remain their dark ebony coloring and with her wand safely stored up her sleeve, Ginny double checked herself in the full length mirror behind their dorm door and grinned at her winter assassin attire.
No one's going to be able to stop me today, she thought cockily but nodded once to her reflection in resolute determination and opened the door as she mentally prepared to strategize and use her super stealth mode until the Gryffindors won.
The Great Hall was less crowded than usual for lunch but she assumed most of the students were outside enjoying the winter wonderland. Even still, it felt nice to sit alone and eat a meal without half of the pairs of eyes in the room staring at her. Some students still pointed and whispered about her stint in the Chamber of Secrets and Ginny knew that incident had added an air of mystery and danger to her reputation at Hogwarts. Hell - some still believed she was the Heir of Slytherin but those rumors were always glared away by current members of the snake House. It was a burden off her shoulders to know Harry was MIA and she bitterly thought that he was down in the dungeons.
That's probably why Snape has been especially irritated with me. The gears fit into place and suddenly it made sense - Harry had been either telling the Potions Master about their relationship or he had been seeing it through the boy's memories. He picks on me because I'm with Harry. Because we're dating and he wants to see him suffer through someone else's pain. Anger at the injustice of the Professor's mindset and prejudice against her boiled in her veins and Ginny swallowed the remainder of her food as she frowned and intensely stared at a centerpiece on the table. Harry knows just how to hurt me even when we're not together, she thought furiously and with nothing left to eat, she maneuvered around the bench and stood to leave.
Her limbs felt restless as she deliberately slowed her walking pace and her feet moved automatically down the main corridor. Not wanting to simply wait until her designated time, which would only give her mind time to wander, Ginny took the longest route of the castle and around to the pitch. There was still quite a commotion going on as the Hufflepuffs, and distantly the Ravenclaws, continued their building tasks and she could only grin foolishly when she finally spotted the thrown together snow fort that contained her Housemates.
Ron was standing behind the half circular wall and almost two dozen garnet and gold draped teenagers stood listening as he pointed to a crudely drawn map and explained their strategy.
"I want the seven of you here - surrounding our base with one person always next to the flag."
"What's going on?" Ginny whispered to Dean Thomas as she stopped next him and tried to look over her brother's shoulder at the piece of paper.
The remarkably tall, dark skinned wizard glanced down with a cool, confident gaze, his full lips turning up in a bright smile as he assessed the beautiful, flame haired witch. "Ron's taking his role as captain a bit far," the boy confessed and she crossed her arms as a smirk played with her mouth. "He's gone over this three times already but he'll keep repeating himself until every one of them is rolling their eyes."
"I'm surprised Hermione hasn't butted in yet," Ginny commented under her breath and Dean chuckled as he swayed to brush his elbow against her bicep.
"Oh - she has." A chocolate finger pointed discretely at her back and wiggled at the space between the bushy haired witch and Ron. "She came up with that map and she's been keen to remind everyone that we're using her plan of attack."
"Hmph," Ginny mumbled and Dean fell silent as they listened to the remaining instructions. She had always enjoyed the fellow Gryffindors company and she momentarily wished she had more time to spend getting to know him, especially if he disregarded Hermione as easily as she did. "One of these days she'll realize she's not really that bright."
The witch in question looked back when Dean coughed loudly to cover a laugh and upon noticing Ginny standing there she nudged Ron in the side and indicated behind them with a roll of her eyes. He too glanced over his shoulder, pausing his speech, and hastily told his Housemates to reinforce the fort as he turned around.
"Gin! You made it!" Ron stated, sounding genuinely surprised as Dean stood next to her with his stance wide. Her brother's jacket was slightly frayed and his red wool hat looked completely out of place but he wore a smile like they were children again and she knew that she could not blame him entirely for their growing distance.
"I wouldn't have missed it," she responded truthfully and she caught a smirk as Hermione elbowed her way into the conversation.
"Are you sure you're ready for this? We have to be quick if we want to capture the other team's flags." Her tone bore a snooty undertone and Ginny couldn't help but to reactively sneer as the other witch tilted her nose up in superiority.
"Ginny's fast as lightning," Dean interjected, one shoulder pushing forward in front of her as his face hardened. "I wouldn't worry about her bringing us down." His tone held the implications that Hermione's plan could be their downfall should they lose and her muddy brown eyes darted between the two as Ron hurried to say something as well.
"Yea 'mione - Gin help us win even if she doesn't get any flags," he assured his girlfriend but she pouted, put out that they were taking Ginny's side.
"What am I going to be doing anyways?" She questioned with mild curiosity.
"You're gonna be with us," Dean answered with a grin.
"We're the runners," Ron explained. "There's going to be nine of us going for the other flags. We just have to get around their defenses and capture the flags and if we get the other three first, the flags will burn and send colored smokestacks up to alert everyone else."
"That was my idea," Hermione added haughtily and it was Dean who very obviously rolled his eyes as she frowned sourly.
"Ok - so I'm just going to be running around, trying not to get taken out by snowballs?" Ginny confirmed.
"Pretty much," Ron commented with a grin.
"Who's going where?"
"What do you mean?"
"Who's going to Ravenclaw and who's going to Hufflepuff and who's going to Slytherin?" She asked with a slow tempo.
"Well - uh -" Ron stuttered, apparently he had not thought to give his smaller group of teammates actual directions. "Well three people will attack each one," he mumbled.
"Fair enough," Ginny reasoned, not wanting to give her brother the opportunity to deny her the choice to go into the snake's pit. "Let's see that map then - figure out how to get to each one."
Seamus and Lee Jordan joined their small circle and soon all six of them were debating the best routes to each fort. The middle men were going to be distracting the other team's guards so their best bet was to find a way to sneak around the edges of each base. An hour passed and just when they had agreed upon a final strategy, a black robed figure blew a whistle from the middle of the snowy plain to announce the imminent start of the game.
From their well-positioned fort at the top of the hill the Gryffindors formed a line in front of their base and watched as the other two visible House teams congregated before their own shelters. The grounds were silent but for the whistling wind and on the first stroke of the hour the appropriately colored fabrics released from the four captain's arms. Chaos ensued as Lucia and Kitner led their respective teams in search of the other flags but Ginny was turned, squinting into the bright sun, towards the location of the Slytherin camp. Ron was already hurdling down the powdery slope with a band of teenagers on his heels and with the opportune moment presenting itself, she twisted to run in the opposite direction for the woods.
"Gin! Over here!" Colin called and she was blinded by the flash of his camera in the short distance as he stood right behind her. "I'll get rid of that one," he promised but pulled the viewfinder back to one eye and snapped another picture. "Come on - let's go find a flag or hit students with snowballs!"
His young face was so eager but Ginny felt no remorse as she hurried past him. "Not now Colin!" She shouted but heard his footsteps in her wake.
"Come on Gin! I just need a couple action shots!"
Irritated, she glanced back at her best friend falling over himself to follow her. Looking around to make sure there was no one creeping up on them, she turned back and helped him to his feet.
"Go find Dean - I told him about you taking pictures and he said he wanted to help you out," Ginny lied but Colin's face lit up and he was steadying his stance in the knee deep snow, already moving to go back up the hill.
"Really? I better go find him. Did you see which way he went?"
"Probably towards the pitch," she answered dismissively and Colin rushed a thank you before sprinting the other way.
Now that she did not have to worry about anyone stalking her movements Ginny hurried across the rolling mounds until she met the sparse treeline of the Forbidden Forest. It was against school rules to even think about going in there but she had had enough of people telling her what to do for a lifetime and without a second thought she slipped past the thick trunks and into the woods. The Slytherins had set up camp about a quarter mile down the wooded line and she could just make out the rounded dome from her position that was within sight of the other bases.
Her plan was to go far enough into the woods to not be spotted while moving quick enough to get close to the snake's fort. With any luck they would be out protecting the land surrounding their base and she would be able to retrieve the flag. It turned out not to be as far as she thought because she spotted the iglooesque building within a few short minutes. Ginny was crouched against a tree, watching the movements of the students walking a lazy circle around their base when she swore she heard boots crunching over leaves and twigs. The forest was too dense even here for the snow to have reached it so she was at a disadvantage if she had hoped to see someone's footsteps.
Glancing around she dismissed the sound and returned to studying the Slytherins movements when she heard a stick snap closer by. She caught the feeling that she was being watched but there was no one there as she again scanned the nearby area. Standing up completely, Ginny kept her guard up but leaned her shoulder against a thick trunk to refocus on her opponents.
Then - like a wind rushing through and tearing down flimsy structures, an arm wrapped around her waist from behind and she was momentarily pulled up against a hard chest. She felt a warm breath beside her ear and something about the embrace told her to relax as a hard bulge pressed against her backside. But in a second the person was gone and Ginny swayed backwards to fall on her arse as she frantically jumped to her feet and looked around for her mysterious stalker.
"Who's there?" She bravely called, her face pinched as she searched for any movement. "Show yourself!"
There was no response but she swore she heard the faintest, throaty chuckle across the wind. What if it's Harry? She mentally worried. What if he's come to finish our conversation from yesterday?
"Harry! Is that you?" She shouted expectantly and a twig broke nearby, close enough for her to suck in a rapid breath as her eyes saw the leaves crunch under an invisible weight just two meters in front of her.
"This isn't funny, Harry," Ginny tried again and in a vain attempt to gain an advantage she narrowed her gaze and searched for a ripple in the seam of the landscape before her.
Another stick snapped and she wanted desperately to scramble away but she had just barely seen a flicker of near invisible movement. Hoping she was right in her assumption, Ginny reached one hand forward and blindly grasped for a transparent fabric.
She touched a rough surface but she was confused when the material did not give when she yanked, instead morphing into a shimmering pewter color that spread from her hold. She pulled again and as a heavy body gave way under her momentum, the face of her stalker now revealed.
"Malfoy? What are you doing out here?" Ginny questioned with a bite of fury, her anger already rising for allowing him to get under her skin without even trying and her hand released its grasp as the handsome, blonde wizard smirked and straightened his jacket. "And what are you wearing?"
His clothing was like nothing she had ever seen and appeared to be made from a material that was constantly visually shifting. As his arms crossed and he looked like he just ate the canary, Ginny's mouth turned into a deeper frown that moved into a scowl as he remained silent as if physically assessing her. His presence startled her but the shadows of the woods and the partial covering of the dark hood over his face made him even more appealing.
"Malfoy!" She cried, too easily frustrated with his behavior as she attempted to hide her anxiousness at seeing him so soon after their awkward parting the day before. "Are you following me now?"
"Like a moth to a flame, I cannot deny my desires to know your thoughts better," Draco hazily responded, his quicksilver orbs running up and down her covered curves.
"What?" Ginny agitatedly asked, her eyes squeezing shut as she shook her head and tossed her hands up dramatically. "Can you not just say what you mean without trying to confuse the shit out of me?"
Her irritation became comical as Draco merely watched as Ginny seemed to enter a nervous breakdown at his focused attention and continued silence. Her cinnamon gaze widened expectantly and she sighed loudly, her hips already turning to resume her stakeout and to ignore his presence - however tough that might be.
"Are you looking for this?" Draco tonelessly questioned and curiosity got the better of her as she glanced back to see what he was implying. Pinched between two long fingers was an emerald scrap of fabric with a silver S emblazoned on one side. The material seemed to shimmer with a magical covering and her jaw dropped at the object.
"That's cheating!" Ginny screamed, her feet already scampering to him. One hand grabbed for the flag but he held it above his head and out of her reach as a coy smirk held his lips together. "You're supposed to leave the flag on your base!"
"Ah ah - there is no rule designating that your flag has to physically be on your fort."
"Yes there is!"
"No Weasley - there is not." Draco stuffed the fabric down the collar of his jacket, leaving a tuft poking out as he took a step backwards.
"Why doesn't Blaise have it then? He is your captain."
With an overly dramatic eye roll he grinned dashingly. "Because - it was my idea. And with my camouflage gear on, no one would be able to wrestle the other flags from my grasp."
Ginny raised both eyebrows, clearly not understanding why he was so important to the Slytherins overall victory if no one even knew he was playing.
"So what - you just blend right in with your nifty jacket and everyone just allows you to win? Don't you think that's a little unfair?"
"I'm telling you our big secret, aren't I?"
If she hadn't been frustrated with him before, Ginny was now fighting with herself to remain irritated while she really wanted to marvel at his clothing choice and bask in his arrogant presence. Damn - this is weird, she thought, I actually want to be around Malfoy now.
"What is this anyways?" She asked, one hand reaching out to finger the slick material of his jacket. "An invisibility outfit?"
Draco chuckled and leaned his chest into her light touch, his warm breath fanning across the space between them. "Something like that. My father procured it for me a few years ago when he started taking me hunting. The fabric blends in to its surroundings to make the wearer invisible so you can sneak up on your prey before killing it."
"Now that - sounds like cheating," Ginny replied and for the first time, a small smile pulled up one corner of her chapped lips.
"More like a dignified means of assistance when you are running from a wild animal that intends to eat you."
"Well when you put it like that -" and again her lips turned up further as Draco took the slightest step forward.
"But if I do recall correctly, the Forest was banned from play. . ." His words trailed off and one ashy eyebrow rose as his arms unfurled and his hands clenched at his sides, his fingers eager to touch. "You, Weasley, are then cheating too."
"I can assure you, Malfoy," Ginny began with a flirtatious smirk, "that my intentions are pure. I am only here to scout your base."
"You're looking in the wrong direction then," he replied in a thick whisper as his grey eyes darted to the igloo in the distance and he took another step so her neck tilted back to keep his gaze.
"I think I like my view just fine," she huskily stated and she laid her hands against his chest as their tandem movements brought their bodies together and their mouths closer.
Draco placed a palm on either side of her hips and his fiery touch ignited the motions as their lips slanted at different angles and they leaned in to be kissed. Quick to advance their lip lock, Ginny ran her hands up to his shoulders to hold his neck around the fringe of downy hair at his nape and he pulled her closer as she sighed at the bulge in his pants against her hip. The kiss was possessive and demanding, as if they had spent too much time apart after many years, but after a prolonged handful of minutes, her hands retraced their path to lightly grip the flag under his collar. With a hurried flourish she yanked it from its place and flung herself backwards from his embrace, the emerald fabric waving in front of her as Draco appeared shocked but then sneered mischievously.
"You always want something that I have, little one," he taunted and her hands balled into fists against her waist as she mock scowled.
"But - what is it that you now have that I desire?" She replied with another wave of the flag and like a fox in the hunt, she turned and dashed off with a tinkling laughter.
Draco could only hesitate for the prolonged second it took to still his body for the camouflage outerwear to respond to its surroundings before his invisible legs leaped through the forest after her. Ginny's flaming ponytail was swaying briskly and he kept his eye on it as he weaved through endless trees until she was just within his reach and they were almost out of the woods. She was running and bounced off her feet to jump over a log when he lunged forward and wrapped his arms around her waist. Squealing immediately her legs curled towards her chest and her hands gripped his strong forearms as she was turned in his embrace and pressed against a now visible body. The flag was tucked precariously in her front pocket but Ginny knew he was not looking to retrieve the fabric.
Her back met the rough bark of a gnarled trunk and she licked her lips breathlessly as he planted his hands on either side of her ribcage and leaned in. The hood on the pewter jacket concealed all of his platinum locks but only intensified his beauty as she blinked several times.
"I don't think it is proper procedure to run from someone who saved your life yesterday," Draco murmured, his gaze straying to her mouth.
"Good thing it wasn't a life or death situation then."
"We'll never know now," he commented throatily. "Will we?" And his lips descended once more as Ginny gave up on trying to evade her emotions and met his kiss with a fervor.
.
His trip down the hill had been messy but after failing to find excitement with the other camps, he had decided to retrace the path she had taken in his absence. Crouched behind a tree just meters away, Colin eagerly snapped picture after picture, suddenly understooding why his friend had abandoned her borderline commitment to his quest for newspaper worthy photos. He had the sneaking suspicion that Ginny had been seeing someone else and his rendezvous to find her pressed up against a tree and making out with some bloke confirmed just that. He pulled back from his viewfinder and stepped sideways, careful of his footing, to find a better angle to see the face of this mystery man.
But he did not have to move much because seconds later the emerald flag in her pocket burst into a pillar of green smoke and the pair pulled apart, coughing loudly at the unexpected intrusion. And it was then, as Draco turned his head to the side to clear his lungs, that Colin got a good look at the wizard who had been slowly shifting his best friend's demeanor towards, at least partial, happiness. And with no surprise, it was not Harry Potter.