Durmstrang, Year 5

Theme: forgiveness

Pureblood perspective character: Ginny Weasely

Prompts:

[First/last line] Once upon a time, the world ended.

[Quote] "I have love in me the likes of which you can scarcely imagine and rage the likes of which you would not believe. If I cannot satisfy one, I will indulge in the other."—Mary Shelley

[Event] Meeting a sad frog

AN: this is clearly AU seeing as it is set in the summer post-war, and characters who should be deceased are very much alive. Well, that and the ship.

Once upon a time, the world ended. More specifically, Ginny Weasley's world ended, though in a most peculiar way. This is the story of how it happened.

"Commencing Mission Expecto Malfoyum," whispered Fred.

"Expecto Malfoyum," grinned George back, making a 'shhh' motion with a finger to his lips. They extinguished their wand lights and began the process of sneaking into the hotel room in which their quarry lay slumbering. They had the most ingenious little trick planned out, of course. Their quarry wasn't even able to grab his wand before they had him Stupefied. Ah, what marvellous timing. Things were going just perfectly to plan.

"But Da, I don't want to read that stuffy old nonsense." Ginny whined.

"Ginevra! How dare you talk about our dear old William Shakespeare in such a manner? He was simply the most ingenious wizard to ever pass as a Muggle in history!"

"I don't care."

"Well, if you won't read Romeo and Juliet, then I must recommend The Taming of the Shrew, for you're being rather shrewish about this today. Just remember, it is a requisite to show appreciation of Muggle culture to be considered for an internship at the Ministry Department of Muggle Artifacts. And Shakespeare is one of the easiest ways into Muggle culture." Arthur admonished.

"Fiiiiine, Da. I guess I'll read it."

Ginny took the thick book of The Complete and Unabridged works of William Shakespeare with her as she trudged out into the garden, where she sat on a wall by the fish pond, struggling through the first several pages. The plot of romance put her mind to her own woes-since she'd rejected Potter's advances, she'd been woefully alone. There was, however, someone she'd secretly admired for years now, though he was forbidden in every way.

Exclaiming her frustrations at the slow nature of the read, she threw aside the tome, gazing out at the pond, and began to ponder.

"Why can't I have my own Petruchio? I'm a Bianca, not a Katharina. But why does he have to be so cruel? He never saw me as I see him, not once, surely. I hardly dare say his name…" she mused, not noticing a certain little green frog as it clambered onto the lily pads at her feet from the murky water.

"Oh, Malfoy. Draco Malfoy...no one can ever know. But I-I love him. I don't know why! He's been cruel to us from the start, ratted on us for pranks, and called my friends mudbloods and us Weasleys poor blood traitors...how could I love him with this? He deserves the worst in life for his behaviour, not only being an insolent little prat all these years, but for being an acolyte of the Dark Lord! How could I even think of him so? He ought to have nothing, nothing but pain and sorrow for the many lives he's hurt, the dreams he's trampled. But then what of me? Do I deserve bad things as well for my own wandering heart? If I attach myself to him, do I not deserve bad things too?

But what if in another life, he wasn't the prat he was to me? Could we be together, forever? Would we have children? Could it be, if he was only separate from his awful parents he'd have been someone else?

Oh, but I love him, and yet, I hate him so! How can this possibly be? I'd kiss him, but then strike him away in the same moment! So beguiling and yet reviling, whatever would I do? Nothing, nothing I suppose, is the answer here. I must cast these hapless fantasies of malcontent away! Why, I should sooner kiss this frog than Draco Malfoy!"

Ginny declared, picking up a certain hapless frog who'd been crying on a lily-pad.

Though scramble as he might, he could not get away, and bellowed out a mournful croak of distress before the redhead's lips met his bumpy green head. The croak turned into a scream, and Ginny's voice too rose to join it. He re-materialized in his human form on the wall, frightfully cold and damp and-oh no. Where were his clothes? Ginny was not amused. She flailed and fell off the stone wall upon which she sat into the murky water.

She surfaced to a very naked Draco summoning blankets and items to hide his shame, beet red as he began to wade into the pond to make sure she was alright.

"What are you doing here?" She snapped.

"I..I, uhm. I was turned into a frog and put here in the pond." He volunteered, scrunching the duvet he'd summoned from the wash line around himself even tighter.

"Who would do that to you, Draco Malfoy? And why should I believe you?"

"Well, I wouldn't just deign to transfigure myself into a frog…" he mumbled. "And certainly not...like this." He frowned at the dripping wet duvet he'd panickedly wrapped himself in. "I'd rather think myself a frog king, you know?"

"Of course you would." She snapped and sent a giant wave of water his way with an exaggerated splash.

"Hey! I didn't choose to be here, but…at least let me help you out of the water?"

"Why should I? So you can prattle on about it to your pureblood friends?" She crossed her arms and sat back in the mud.

"What? No. I wouldn't, and I-I don't exactly have any friends, not anymore."

"Hm. Well, who am I supposed to believe froggified you?" she wrinkled her nose in such a way her freckles stood out. It was absurdly cute, Malfoy thought, but couldn't say so.

"I...I don't want to place any blame here, but let's just say their actions were very much deserved," he drawled.

"Their? Let me guess, the twins. But...wait, you-you can't have heard all that!" She grew bright red, and tried to hide-or maybe drown herself?-under the lily pads.

Draco sighed and waded into the waist-deep water, pulling her out of the water. She fought back weakly as if she wanted him to let her drown. "Please, Miss Weasley," he implored, but she eventually began to laugh as he struggled not to drop the water-logged duvet.

"Fine, you shrew. I guess I'll not die on your watch," she said, and took a few long, graceful strokes to the edge where she climbed out. She sat back on the stone wall and stared at Draco, a pitiful sight he was dripping beneath the blanket.

"You don't look so kingly now," she observed. "You shrew."

He sighed. "You're reading Shakespeare, aren't you?"

"Yes-no-so what if I am? I don't expect you'd bother to know Muggle literature."

"Shakespeare wasn't a Muggle; he was but Muggleborn. I-I'm not my father, I think you should know. I-I know I was a most detestable child, but since the war and Severus' death, I should like to think I've changed a bit. Or, at least I've tried. I know I can't change the past, and I deserve all your scorn, but I want to be the man you imagine I could. E-even if it's without you. I don't deserve you. Not after everything I did."

He rather looked like he was melting, and she thought she saw a few tears sliding down his face with the drops of water.

"Shhh, Malfoy. You must be freezing-Merlin I am too-come here." She beckoned to him, and like a man entranced, he obeyed.

"First, you need clothes," she said, and summoned some oversized trousers and a flannel shirt a few sizes too big, which he gratefully donned, and then she dried them with a water repelling charm.

"There. Now, what do you say I kiss you again, but do it right this time?"

He grinned, and leaned down to meet her.

Their lips met, and she thought she saw whizzbangs. Just then, a jeering voice caught their attention. Draco moved to shield her, but it was only a pair of identical redheads.

"No! That was DEFINITELY not supposed to happen, George!"

"What? It's not my fault!"

"Oh, that is SO your fault, you enchanted the bloody book!"

"Well, this whole thing was YOUR idea!"

"No, it wasn't! It was yours-"

Ginny was so angry she nearly cried. She cast a silencing spell so that they couldn't continue blabbering on so.

"Let me get this straight, you kidnapped Draco, turned him into a frog, and put him in the pond…"

A twin waved angrily and yelled, though she couldn't hear him.

"No! Let me finish!" She shouted. "YOU kidnapped Draco, you forcibly transfigured him, and then enchanted my book, the one you know I have to read to get this job, and...what, you thought it would scare him away? Did you think he'd go live with the frogs in the pond for the rest of his miserable little life? Well that's not what happened. I, me myself, I chose to forgive him. And you could too, if you cared about anything more than your own egos."

Draco beside her smiled warily. "It's true I've been the worst of shrews, but I should like to try to make it up to you. To her most of all, but to all of you as well." He squeezed Ginny's shoulder.

Ginny lifted the silencing spell, and braced for the onslaught.

"Shrew? You a shrew, Malfoy? What like when Fake Moody bounced you around like the insufferable little weasel you are?"

"Ohh I just adored that look on his face-"

"Guys! You have two seconds before I Stupefy you and tell Mum what you've done. So help me, you will apologize!"

The twins' faces fell.

"Sorry lil sis," one said.

"Not to me. To him." She snapped, menacing them with her wand.

"We…." One twin said, acting like the words tasted bad as they came out.

"We're sorry," the other continued, still wincing.

"Sorry we kidnapped you, D-"

"Draco. We're sorry. But please, Gin, just don't tell Mum!"

"Alright, fine, now all of you, group hug." Ginny instructed.

The twins balked.

"You can't possibly expect us to-"

"Ohhh yes I can, or Mum finds out!"

Shrieking a little bit, the twins reluctantly hugged Ginny and Draco.

Smirking, Ginny said "Alright then, run along you two."

"Stop acting like that. You're not Mum," the twins responded in chorus, but still disappeared quickly from that corner of the garden.

Ginny crossed her arms with satisfaction. "Alright then. I doubt we'd be disturbed for quite some time. So, Draco," she said, grabbing the lapels of his shirt to tug him close.

"Why don't we have a snog?"

Draco grinned, despite himself. "My pleasure, milady Weasley," he said, kissing her hand.