Disclaimer: I do NOT own Harry Potter or any of the characters.

Note: So I saw that this series was first published over a YEAR ago...hard to believe, but I'm going to be updating this a lot more often because I want to finish. Yes, lucky you x] but it'd be REALLY appreciated if you reviewed.

Special Thanks:to those who decided to continue reading this story despite the long hiatus. :]

Please Read and Review. Hope you like it.

Don't Tell Me What I Am

RECAP: She resisted the want—no, the need to turn around, so she just picked up her pace and lifted her skirt, jogging back towards the castle instead.

21. Trouble with Misconceptions

Ginny made a hasty excuse to Theo about her being shaken by what she saw before bidding him a good night and retreating to the dorms much earlier than she had anticipated.

Tears stung at her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. Her mind had a little trouble wrapping around exactly what she had seen. Maybe I'm misunderstanding.. or I saw wrong..

Shaking her head as she headed towards Gryffindor tower, Ginny couldn't stop the first few tears from falling. Before long, she was full out crying silently with the occasional sniffle.

But she stopped caring at some point, since everyone was still in the hall. Her vision was watery and clouded and she cursed when she saw that one of the moving staircases had caused her to make a wrong turn.

She continued letting out a string of profanities to herself as she made her way back around and passed a cloaked figure that was heading the opposite direction.

Once back in her dorm, she changed out of her formal wear, blinking back the remaining tears before getting ready for bed, despite it being pretty early.

Mione would tell me... wouldn't she? Why didn't she...I wouldn't judge her.. and I told her about Bla—Zabini...consumed by her bitter thoughts, Ginny hugged herself, feeling very alone.

She lay in her four-poster, curled up and upset when she heard someone come in. A glance at the clock on her bedside told her, it was half past 10.

"Ginny?" Hermione's familiar voice called to her, "I didn't actually expect you to be back.. I was just checking... Gin? Are you awake?"

Ginny closed her eyes, kept her back turned, and stayed silent. After a few moments, she heard Hermione fix her drapes and murmur a soft, "Night, Gin," before exiting.

She didn't get it, Hermione wouldn't keep things from her.. they were extremely close. And that small gesture of care just then proved her point.

Ginny sighed in frustration, wondering why she was in this situation. First, Mione had that date with... him.. and she had been hesitant to tell her.. and now this?

Just because she hadn't reacted the best way when she found out about Hermione's new.. friend, it didn't mean that she would judge Malfoy... maybe I would.. but not anymore than she expects... why couldn't she tell me?

A surge of jealousy flooded Ginny for a second when she thought back to all the events. She bit her lips and sighed, trying to get comfortable and waiting for sleep to claim her so her thoughts would leave.

The next morning, Ginny was up a good hour earlier than usual. She left the dorm, not wanting to face Hermione and headed down to the Great Hall, quickly finishing breakfast before the morning rush.

She was just about to exit and head to wait in her first class when Hermione, Ron, and Harry came in and sat opposite of her.

"Morning Gin," Hermione greeted with a smile, "I saw you slept early last night."

"I'm going to class guys," Ginny said tonelessly, ignoring Hermione's statement and got up, gathering her stuff.

She didn't miss the hurt that crossed the older girl's face and hurriedly left when the guilt started to form in the pit of her stomach.

Halfway towards the greenhouses, Ginny groaned aloud when she realized it was the weekend. And why didn't I realize that? The formal ended late.. of course there wouldn't be class on a Sunday.

Sighing, she decided to head out to the grounds anyway, perhaps she could visit Hagrid. A quarter of an hour later, and halfway to the groundskeeper's hut, Ginny groaned aloud again and figured that Hagrid would probably still be asleep.

Turning around, she decided to go back and grab her broom so she could head down to the Pitch. When she reached the corridor before the first moving staircase, she heard Hermione's laughter around the corner and decided it would be better to apologize.

"Blaise! I'm not kidding," it was her familiar lecturing tone, but Ginny quickly stopped in her tracks and shrank back into an alcove when she realized just who Hermione was with.

The footsteps came closer and she took a breath, mentally thanking Merlin when they paused at the fork between the stairwell to the towers and the dungeons.

"She has to know." Has to know what? Is Mione talking about me?

"Hermione, I told you I don't want to hear it. She'll know eventually." It was Zabini's voice this time.. and it sounded rather agitated, Ginny noted curiously.

"I don't want to keep it from her," Hermione's voice bit back cuttingly. Ginny's eyebrows shot up, she has only heard her use this tone when she was talking serious business... during the war.

"She doesn't need to know!" Ginny couldn't help but flinch when he raised his volume. It would seem Hermione felt the same since she didn't reply for a moment.

After a stretch of silence, she heard Hermione's voice saying softly, "Ginny's one of my closest friends, Blaise, and she has a right to know.."

So they were talking about me...I knew Mione wouldn't keep anything from me, Ginny thought as her suspicions were confirmed. She smiled to herself, but her face fell when she heard the older girl's next statement.

Hermione sighed, "But I gave you my word... I won't tell her."

What? She would listen to that slimeball and keep something from me? I wouldn't care if she has something with Malfoy though, Ginny thought angrily. Bloody git, Zabini, who in Merlin's name does he think he is, turning Mione against me.

Feeling the familiar prickling behind her eyes, Ginny quietly made her way away from the pair before she started bawling her eyes out once more.

She took another way to the common room and headed towards the pitch, refusing to allow Zabini continue to get to her. She already apologized for the earlier encounter, and there was no way she was going to continue to grovel until he forgave her. Watch out Zabini, I'm done playing the honorable role.

Hermione walked through the halls aimlessly, frustrated with Blaise. It was obvious that he had long forgiven Ginny.. but he insisted on being so stubborn.. or prideful. Bloody Slytherins.

What only added to her frustration and distress was the fact that her mind kept replaying the night before. Not in an angry way.. but to her surprise—a way that made her dwell on it with a fluttering feeling—one she couldn't place her finger on.

What had happened last night? It was just another round of their normal banter...then suddenly, the tension became so dangerously unbearable and she had felt genuine fear. But no.. that wasn't what she was focusing on at all.

Her mind decided to further her emotional turmoil and cause her stress as it continuously played one—one—moment repeatedly. Hermione groaned aloud and held her forehead in her palms, feeling a small migraine coming on.

Stupid git, she thought as yet another variation of the same scene played in her mind.

She shut her eyes for a second before opening them, slowly, looking up at him from beneath her lashes, coyly yet in confidence. Carefully, she lifted her hands and placed them gently on his chest,her heart speeding up just a bit when he glanced down at her and held her gaze.

She gulped slightly before mentally slapping herself. Her eyes turned calculating and she gave a small, playful smirk as she lightly traced patterns on his torso. Hermione knew she had to do this before she lost the upper hand, but for some reason, it wasn't him that looked perturbed.

Now it was really too late to quit, she couldn't help but think dryly. Hermione was only too aware of the small tingles she felt and she did not like it one bit. And he wasn't even doing anything!

"Can't keep your hands off me either, Granger?" Malfoy drawled, his voice barely a whisper as he leaned down slightly to look her directly in the eyes.

Hermione lifted her chin a bit defiantly but immediately felt her heart accelerate when his eyes trailed instantly to her lips. Out of nerves, she unknowingly began to nibble at her bottom lip all the while trying to look cool and collected when she was maintaining eye contact.

She saw his fingers hesitantly brush a stray hair away from her lips before they trace so lightly across her chin.. softly caress her jaw, and teasingly danced down to her bare shoulders. His fingers trailed painfully slow down her arms, and without looking, Hermione knew without a doubt that they had goosebumps on them.

She shuddered involuntarily and felt him shift closer. Now she knew for a fact that it wasn't because of the breeze—because the current heat was enough to make her feel lightheaded.

Hermione shuddered for real and snapped out of her reverie, her heart pounding inexplicably. She felt flustered and almost giddy before sighing aloud. This can't be healthy..or normal.. she thought, shaking her head and walking towards the bathroom.

Splashing her face in the sink, she considered for a second, what if someone had slip her some sort of love potion? To make her think and feel those (albeit unreal) moments with... Malfoy?

She shivered slightly again as she was reminded of her most recent.. vision. However, subconsciously, Hermione knew the shudder wasn't from disgust—this was probably supported by the tingles pulsing through her vein.. and the slight flutter from her non-cooperating heart.

Ginny saw the ground coming at her fast and for a moment, she didn't know what to do. She was used to bracing for the impact, but this time she tugged fiercely at her handle and urged the broom upward, a feeling of euphoria flooding her when she felt blades of grass lightly brushing across her ankle.

She pulled it off. She couldn't believe it, but she pulled it off! And for a moment, absolutely everything was just right and not a thing was wrong in the world.

Ginny laughed out loud in disbelief at the Wronski Feint she managed to do and the relief as her earlier stress rolled off of her. She sank into the grass wanting to laugh and cry at the same time.

Maybe it was her time of month coming close.. but within minutes, she was sitting in the middle of the grass right in the center of the pitch, clutching her broom tightly and holding on to it like it was the last thing she had.

Everything she had been feeling rushed through her mind and it wasn't a surprise that she was laughing dryly at the irony of the situation and choking out sobs as fat tears continued to roll uncontrollably down her cheeks. She couldn't tell if she was laughing more or sobbing more.

By the time she had regained her composure, her throat was sore and dry as were her eyes—they were probably red and puffy too. Ginny stood slowly and made her way sluggishly back towards the castle, ignoring the ache she felt in her head.

Making her way back to the common room, she was acutely aware of the curious looks on her classmates' faces and in the back of her head, Ginny knew it wouldn't be long before they began to gossip. In the moment though, she didn't care.

For some reason, the route back to Gryffindor Tower felt immensely longer than normal and she concluded that Merlin did not like her today. From her dazed eyes, she vaguely noticed that people moved out of her way and so she was shocked when a voice cried disbelievingly, "Ginny?"

She glanced up, a little curious, her eyes searching in a lost trance, before they finally landed on the person a few yards in front of her. That's when it happened.

Ginny couldn't mistaken the concern, worry, and care she saw. She felt her lip start to tremble.. her eyes start to water, and before long, she was crying quietly again. It only got worse when she saw the look of alarm flash across his face.

With everything that had occurred, it just felt..so nice to see someone care. Maybe it really was her time of month, but Ginny was being extremely emotional and seeing this, she felt immensely touched and threw her arms around him, crying into his shoulder.

He stiffened for a second before wrapping his arms around her in a tight embrace. It wasn't until her subsided a bit that she felt someone brush past her.. not rough, but not gentle either. She looked up, sniffling a bit, her head hurting more than ever.

"Y-you were with someone," Ginny croaked out in confusion, not having remembered anyone besides her current companion.

"Feeling better?" Theo asked softly, looking down at her and ignoring her question. At her blank face and questioning eyes, he sighed, before mumbling. "It was just Zabini."

Ginny felt a tiny ache when she heard his words, wincing before her demeanor turned cold. She didn't mind trying to figure him out when she was in the wrong, but during her time outside, she had somehow come to the realization that Hermione wasn't the one she should be mad at—that slimeball was.

How could she ever blame Hermione? As far she knew, the git could have given her best friend something to prevent her from telling—or he could have her under some sort of bewitchment. But for now, Ginny needed to talk to her.

She sighed, turning and giving Theo a weak smile, "Thank you. I.. should probably go.."

He smirked teasingly in return and returned her good bye, with an odd look in his face, before rushing away. That was.. weird.

It was another two hours before the redhead finally got rid of her headache, cleaned herself up, and headed down to dinner a good half hour later than she normally did. So when she took up her normal seat, everyone already there (including Hermione, Harry, and Ron) looked up.

She saw Hermione hesitate before saying, "Are you alright.. Gin?"

Ginny smiled weakly, murmuring something she didn't even comprehend herself, and nodded. She saw Hermione visibly relax a bit when she responded, but the frown that graced her lips told the younger girl that she had questions, but didn't want to push anything.

"You seem a little out of it," Ginny heard her say carefully while eying her.

She let out a sigh, and said tiredly, "Just a long day, Mione. I'm fi.."

Ginny trailed off when she saw a familiar albino approach the Gryffindor table behind the older girl. Noticing her trail off, Hermione followed her eyes and whirled around and Ginny saw her jump slightly in surprise.

"Malfoy!" She exclaimed, drawing the attention of Harry and Ron, whose heads immediately snapped up at the name of the Slytherin. But their eyes were less analytical than her own as Ginny was busy observing their interaction.. for any hint of the night before.

"What are you—" Hermione started before cutting herself off as he said something to her that Ginny couldn't hear. However, she didn't miss the small flush on the brunette's neck when he spoke to her.

And if her eyes weren't as sore, she'd be more sure of the words "We need to talk" that formed on Malfoy's mouth. If she hadn't been paying such close attention, Ginny doubted that she would have been able to read his lips at all.

Ginny saw Hermione's troubled look and her furtive glances between Malfoy and herself. Her eyes narrowed when she saw Malfoy direct a pointed look at her.. with something else in his eyes before Hermione sighed.

Turning, she gave a forced smile before muttering out, "Pre..pre-fect duties."

Ginny didn't miss the guilty look that Hermione sent her and the apologetic expression that seemed to be urging her to understand.

She didn't miss the fact that Harry and Ron accepted the excuse with no questions, and she definitely didn't miss the flash of hurt and pain that soared through her when Hermione got up.. once again picking the Slytherin over herself.

A/N: I thought about how to make Ginny and Blaise come together, but then I realized there's too many personal issues between them. I'm thinking about Theo maybe beginning to like Ginny? As a way for Blaise to feel the passion he has for our favorite redhead! Anyway, I wonder what Malfoy wants... but please REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW and we'll find out sooner. x]