Chapter 29: (There Will Be Parties) aka Attempting the ABCs

It was weird to Ginny, but somehow she'd managed to stay true to her this never happened mindset as she traveled with Stephen. And after a few minutes of awkward chitchat they were back to speaking like regular people and she remembered why she'd been his friend in the first place: he was smart, he was funny, and he talked about interesting things. He wasn't a bad person. And any thoughts to the contrary were thoroughly buried in the 'not thinking about it' place in her mind. By the time they reached Blaise's place, she almost felt guilty for not patching things up sooner.

After admittance through the front door, they were both stopped by a grinning Blaise, clad in a gladiator skirt made of neckties and some tea plates that had been curled over on themselves to form a mockery of a scalloped armor arm guard - and a whole lotta nothing else. Ginny had to wonder if he'd planned this entire party concept purely as a reason to go topless (though she suspected it had more to do with the girls who were – undoubtedly – having a harder time covering all their bits within the dress code, though she couldn't see from this side of the 'dress code admittance' barrier). Blaise gestured for them to disrobe, and Ginny watched with amusement as he first lifted his chin in a nod to Stephen, "Hey Cornfoot," and then turned to her, his eyebrows raising as her robe dropped, "-And hello, gorgeous."

She smirked. Considering the first time he'd said that to her she'd been… at least somewhat less clothed, the words actually put her a bit more at ease. He'd seen her in more embarrassing situations than wearing an apron as a dress. Or… at least, maybe? Whatever the case, she didn't dwell on it.

Stephen, on the other hand, looked between the two of them, bemused by the whole interaction. His own costume was fairly typical for a first-timer: a toga. His appeared to be made from a shower curtain, so at least is wasn't quite as bad as the 'let's use a bedsheet and avoid any creativity at all' folks. But still, Blaise gave a heavy sigh as he conceded admittance to the party.

Following behind Stephen, Ginny was stopped by Blaise's hand around her waist. "And where do you think you're going, Red?" His voice was low enough that Stephen didn't catch it, and he was through the barrier in a fraction of a second, leaving the two alone in the entryway.

If Ginny ever claimed she wasn't distracted by Blaise's bare arm on her bare back, she would be lying wholeheartedly. It was even worse when he shifted so his hand came to rest around her waist right where the apron was securely charmed against her skin. If it hadn't been, she realized with a little shiver, he would most definitely be attempting to slip his hand under it. And for that, she shrugged him off with a jokingly suspicious glare. "Don't you try to keep me from enjoying the party just cause you're stuck verifying the dress code." As authoritative as her voice was, she couldn't help but smile.

Blaise placed a hand on his chest, eyes wide. "Who, me?" She started to grin. "Why would I-" But at that point she was biting her lip, and he knew that signal and interrupted himself to pull her against the wall with him – Ginny catching herself with her hands against his chest - and quickly captured her lips with his.

She pulled away long enough to joke, "So impatient-" but couldn't finish her chastising before he had a hand thoroughly tangled in her hair as the other held her against him – against a very bare him – and his lips were back on hers and teasing hers open.

It was only once his mouth began wandering down her neck that Ginny had a chance to speak again. "Shouldn't you-" she bit her lip as he nipped at her throat, and tried to sound a little less like a puddle of girlish swooning, "shouldn't you be – watching – the door?" She managed, a little breathless despite her best efforts. She wasn't sure if she was happy or disappointed when he paused and straightened.

"Right. Yeah. I probably should." It was as though the thought had completely left his mind. She glanced up at him to find him looking toward the door wistfully. But he still didn't make a move to leave their current position. His lips twitched upward as he caught her eyes, "Are you sure you don't want to continue this-"

Ginny laughed and pushed away from him, and he dropped his grip with a cocky grin. "You have a job to do," she reminded him with a mocking glare, "and I have a party to enjoy." When he shrugged (an inaudible 'your loss' message), she risked another step closer. Lowering her voice to a conspiratorial murmur, her arms looping around his neck, she asked, "Just how long are you gonna have to be here, anyway?"

"That depends…" his sly smirk resurfaced, hands moving up her back, "what's your alterna-" he was cut off by her joking swat to the (temptingly well-sculpted) chest as she stepped away again. "Doors close in an hour or so," he answered.

Ginny didn't let the disappointment show, instead deciding tormenting him would be more fun. "Well then," she started to back through the barrier with a wicked grin, "see you in an hour or so."

The world past the barrier was… she would've said it wasn't what she'd expected, except she wasn't entirely sure what she'd been expecting. Not quite as much skin as she was seeing, that was for sure. Then again, she'd thought the same about the Halloween party. Now that she thought about it, probably every party was an excuse for Blaise to-

Blaise. Holy shit, Blaise. She shouldn't have been surprised to discover that under those well-tailored uniforms was a body that – was it bad that the first word that popped into her head was 'yummy?' It was probably bad. But bad in a way that made her never want to be good again. Bloody hell, she should've got his shirt off sooner. She'd have to keep that in mind. Not like she could get it out of her mind if she tried-

She was distracted from her train of thought (of sexy sexy thought, damn it) by someone she'd never expected to see being nice to her: Tracey Davis, the Slytherin seventh year. "Weasley-" the older girl (clad in a two piece plush animal monstrosity) was handing her a cup, "Never expected to see you here. Welcome to the party."

Ginny took the drink gratefully, "Zabini invited me," she explained, taking a large gulp from the cup. Immediately, she was glad she did. Whatever the punch was, it was delicious. She took another sip.

Davis was giving her an odd look, somewhere between confusion and amusement. "Hey, you don't have to make excuses to me. If you're here, you got the invite for some reason or another. I don't question Blaise's judgment." She smirked, and corrected herself, "-most of the time."

Ginny hoped her smile wasn't too confused as she nodded. "Nice costume," she lied.

Davis gave her a wry smile back, but Ginny was surprised to find it lacking any of the usual animosity she'd come to expect from Slytherins. "Thanks, you too." The girl gestured to the apron, "Very sexy housewife, I like."

"Thanks." Ginny wasn't sure what else to say, but was saved the awkward small talk as Davis glanced over the redhead's shoulder, looking distracted.

"Well, enjoy the party," the older girl excused herself, gently moving Ginny aside to go past her.

That was weird. She'd never had such a… civil conversation with a Slytherin before. Well, except for Zabini, but he was a very particular exception. The interaction, while confusing, gave her a little boost of confidence to get out there and socialize, and that's exactly what she did. It was weird to have so many people touching her bare back – putting an arm around her to scoot by in a crowd, or touching her shoulder to get her attention – but she started to get used to it. It wasn't so bad, really, this whole ABC thing. She was by no means the most naked person there – there were plenty of guys completely topless, and Ginny was sure she'd seen at least one girl wearing only minimal nipple coverage. She could deal with it. She'd be fine.


A/N: I realize that the last segment of this chapter is a bit awkward. I promise it will make sense in time.

Meanwhile: ABC Blaise is delicious. And in other news I'm (potentially) writing a sex scene for chapter 34. We'll see how that goes. ;D

I'd also like to mention that, if anyone is interested, I've been working on a new genre of FF: Life With Derek (yes, that abc family/Disney show that played in the early 2000's, the one with obvious undertones of step-shipping). It's called Repaid (currently, though I've never been good with titles) and I'm really looking for feedback on it. Similar to a good D/G fic, it focuses on two characters who hate each other so much that they kinda want to jump each other's bones. Which means plenty of back-and-forth and name calling and moments of utter UST (unresolved sexual tension). Even if you aren't a big LWD fan, or Dasey shipper, I'd appreciate the support over there.

And the next chapter of The Detention will include some thanks for all of the support you guys have been giving me here. I've been pulling up everyone's profiles that review and I'll be checking out your stories or your favorites to see if I find any hidden gems. After I've gone through reviewers, I'll move on to faves/follows. So far I've already found some great ones, so thanks!

Thanks for everything, and please keep reviewing! I was hoping to hear more thoughts after the ominous chapter 28, but maybe I need to wait until some action picks up in chapter 32? ;) It's a personal favorite of mine, at least. Chapter 28 meanwhile was... a little nerve-wracking to write, but rather... cathartic.