Title: Happy? Me? Of course.
A/N: It's just edited.
Disclaimer: No, I don't own these characters.
Chapter 2
"Ginny?! Ginny?"
Ginny turned her head and tried to make the voice that disturbed her nice dreams go away. She was lying on a couch in the library and had been waiting for her friends there for hours, but when they never came, she had fallen asleep.
"Ginny?" the voice said again. She felt two hands on her shoulders, shaking her. Finally she opened her eyes and looked right into Harry's big green eyes. She felt how her cheeks turned red. If only he would go away! She sat up and looked around, uncomfortable.
"W-what is it?" she asked confused and rubbed her tired eyes.
"Well, for one thing, you've been here all afternoon!" Harry said and sat down next to her, not aware of the frightened sparks in Ginny's eyes. "Ron. err.we've been worried about you" he said and looked around the room.
'You couldn't have cared less' Ginny thought sadly and started to gather her things.
"I. we should get back to the common room then," she said quietly and looked around again. "Um. have you seen Desdemona and Miranda?" she asked and blushed. If he only knew how embarrassing it was to always have to ask where her friends were, when they should be right there with her!
But Harry didn't seem to notice Ginny was even there. All he could notice was the beautiful black-haired Ravenclaw girl that just walked into the library. The 17-year old Cho Chang who smiled and winked at Harry before she went to sit with her friends.
"She's so beautiful." Harry mumbled as he watched her.
"Harry, we should go" Ginny said again and started to walk out of the library with Harry following her, still watching Cho with big eyes.
As they walked through the dark hallways, Harry happily talked about his Quidditch team. At least Ginny thought that's what he was talking about. She didn't listen. She was too caught up in her own thoughts.
Desdemona and Miranda have let me down. Again. Why does it still surprise me? Oh, when did my life get so wrong? HOW did it get so wrong?
She sighed and looked out of the dark window. So dark it was outside. It matched her mood perfectly right now.
". And then Lavender said that she wanted to change the colours on our robes! She wants them to be orange, you know, like Chudley Canons. But I think she was just hitting on Ron. Right, Gin?"
Ginny looked up confused.
"Huh? Oh, yeah... sure... that sounds like fun..." she mumbled and looked down at her books. "Oh, Harry, I forgot my Potions book in the library. I'm just gonna go back and get it." She said and ran back to the library, leaving Harry alone in front of the Fat Lady's portrait. He shrugged and mumbled the password before entering the crowded common room.
*~*~*
Ginny grabbed her books from the couch where she had been sitting just a few minutes ago, and slowly started to walk up to her common room again. She didn't want to go there to see her friends sitting there, laughing. Laughing at her for how stupid she was.
NO! She silently protested inwardly, of course they didn't! They would never do that to her.
"Well, look, if it isn't the Dream Team's little sister!" Ginny looked up to see who was talking to her, and immediately stopped. She felt how her face turned red and the fear came over her. It wasn't that it was someone intimidating; it was just that all Slytherins scared little Ginny.
"W-what do you want, Pansy?" Ginny tried to sound calm, but obviously failed.
A big sneer appeared on Pansy's face as she watched the scared little fifth year.
"Oh, nothing, just wanted to check how you were doing this fine evening." She said and started to pick up her wand. Ginny was too busy looking around that she didn't noticed that Pansy was now standing much closer to her with her wand in duelling position.
*~*~*
In another corridor, not far way, our own little ferret boy was out walking with big and serious thoughts in his mind.
"The world would be a better place. The world would be a better place." Somehow that didn't seem as right now as it had just a few days ago. What was wrong? What the hell was happening? "Damn that Weasley, now I'm all confused. Why did she look so sad? She normally just looks afraid. as all the others, but NEVER sad. It's just so much easier to handle fear, but sadness? It wasn't even so much the sadness, as it was the hopelessness. That's something different.. that's something I feel." Draco suddenly stopped his thoughts at this point and looked around. He heard voices, no, not voices in his head. He wasn't crazy ... yet. But he recognized these voices...
"...not gonna cry are you? We wouldn't want that!" Then there was a cold laugh followed by a quiet sob.
Draco silently walked closer and looked around the corner, just to see Pansy pointing her wand at the female Weasley. And she had that sad look in her face again. Those sad eyes, he knew them so well. That's what he saw whenever he looked at himself in the mirror nowadays. He wanted to get a better view so he hid behind a big statue and watched them.
"You're awfully quiet Weasel. What's wrong? Feeling a bit sad, are you? Now that's too bad, 'cause I really don't care!" Pansy kept on talking, not aware of her audience. Ginny just stood there, not able to move. Her mind was blank, but she knew she would spend the night at the Hospital Wing, she just didn't know why.
Then Pansy raised her wand and started to scream out her charm, but someone got there before her.
Draco felt a wave of panic wash over him as he raised his own wand her mumbled a reverse spell at Pansy. Ginny, who had her eyes closed waiting for the curse to hit her, slowly opened them again when nothing happened. Shocked she watched how Pansy's arms started to grow, and soon they were lying in two big piles on the floor. Pansy, who was now very pale, started to scream and tried to pick up her arms, but of course they were too heavy. Panicked, she looked up at Ginny and started to scream even more.
"You... you BITCH!" she hissed out while trying to understand what was just happening to her, her arms still growing.
"Um... d-do you need help to the Hospital Wing?" Ginny asked unsure if it was the right thing to be asking at that point.
Draco, still hiding, mumbled another charm that made Pansy's arms a lot easier to carry.
Pansy looked at her arms that were now floating beside her and started to run away from there. Away from that scary girl that somehow seemed to be doing magic without a wand.
Confused, Ginny turned around and walked back to the Gryffindor common room with a thoughtful Draco looking at her.
* * *
The next day Draco woke early and went down to the Great Hall without Crabbe and Goyle for once. He thought his head would explode any minute now from all confusing thoughts in his head.
He sat down at the empty Slytherin table and slowly began to eat his cereal. The Great Hall was almost empty except for a bunch of over- enthusiastic Ravenclaw girls who were studying for their Herbology class.
"Pathetic... " he thought as he watched them. One girl with long blonde hair made a joke and the girls broke out in hysterical laughter.
Draco sighed and looked away. "I bet those girls never have to worry about anything but their grades... and who said the world wasn't fair?"
"Life sucks... " he muttered and stood up to leave when he heard something behind him. He turned around and saw his three best friends.
"Where are your two bodyguards, Malfoy? Did they, like the rest of us, get sick of you?" Ron asked and his face turned into an amazing shade of red that matched his red hair perfectly. Somehow his face always turned this colour whenever Malfoy was around - it was like some sort of allergic reaction.
Harry and Hermione just stood behind him, both glaring at Malfoy.
Draco sighed and while Ron's face turned red, Draco's always turned into a horrible sneer whenever Ron & Co was around. "Well, actually, I gave them the day off. Nothing you would do, surely." Draco said and raised his eyebrows at Hermione and Harry's direction. "You always have Potter with you. Could it be that little Weasel can't take care of himself?"
Before anyone could stop him, Ron was all over Draco trying his best to hit him as hard he could. Harry and Hermione rushed to them and tried to pull away Ron, but they, just as Draco, had a little problem with it. While Draco escaped another hard fist from Ron, he suddenly saw Ginny stare at them, with a hand covering her mouth as if trying to hold back a scream.
He saw her eyes widened in horror, and next second he felt a burning pain over his left eye. Shocked, he stumbled back and felt another deep pain in the back of his head as he hit the hard stone floor. And then everything went black...
* * *
"Miss Weasley, I would appreciate it if you paid attention in my class!"
Ginny looked up and met the angry eyes of Professor Flitwick. She felt her cheeks turn its usual shade of red and noticed that everyone in the classroom was now looking at her.
"I-I'm sorry professor... " she mumbled and looked down at her books, trying to avoid Flitwick's gaze. They were all looking at her... Couldn't they just stop? She wasn't interesting! She just always managed to make a fool of herself.
"Miss Weasley, as I said while you were busy staring out the window, you never handed me today's homework." Professor Flitwick said, but he didn't sound angry anymore. No, he sounded more... concerned. Ginny felt the panic coming over her. She hadn't got the time last night to do her homework. She had spent all night doing Desdemona and Miranda's homework!
But she couldn't tell the professor that because then her friends would get in trouble... but if she didn't she would be in trouble... 'If you tell him the truth Desdemona and Miranda will never talk to you again! And then you'll be even more alone than you already are.'
"I'm sorry professor, but I... I forgot about it." She could hear some of the Slytherin girls trying to hide their laughs in the back of the room, and she wished she could've just Apparated herself away from there, away from life.
Professor Flitwick sighed and looked at the little girl sitting in front of him. "I'm sorry to hear that, Miss Weasley, and I'll have to take 5 points from Gryffindor. I want you to do me a favour though, and then maybe I won't give you a detention.
"Of course, professor." She really didn't care if he gave her a detention. She just wanted him to stop talking to her. Couldn't he see that everybody was looking at her? Couldn't they just stop? Just stop?!
"Ok, Miss Weasley, just take these books to Madame Pomfrey. I borrowed them from her last week." He said and handed her a couple of books.
Relieved, Ginny took the books and ran out of the classroom. The classroom from hell.
* * *
". Look at him."
". So sexy."
"... And his hair..."
"...Even sexier..."
"... Those lips..."
"... Makes you want to throw yourself at him..."
"... And just kiss him until he's not so pale anymore..."
Draco opened his eyes and noticed by just looking at the warm white ceiling that he was in the Hospital Wing. He tried to sit up, but his head felt like a Bludger and he decided to lie back down on the pillow. He turned his glaze to the left of him where he had heard voices just a second ago. He saw Pansy laying in a bed and her friend Millicent sitting on a chair next to her. They were both looking at him, trying to look sexy.
"Good morning, handsome." Pansy said and smiled at him. "You know, you looked like Sleeping Beauty lying there. I was just about to wake you up with a kiss."
"Why? An aching head isn't enough? You want me to throw up too?" Pansy was just about to answer when Madame Pomfrey noticed he was awake.
"Oh, good, you've finally woken up. Then it's time for your medication!" she gave him a small bottle with some orange liquid and told him to drink it. She turned to Pansy and Millicent and started to lead Millicent towards the door. "Out! Out you go! My patients need their rest! Now, out!"
Millicent winked at Draco and then walked out. Draco sighed and closed his eyes.
Damn Weasley... the guilt is one thing, but a black eye too? This is insane. I hate that family even... it's all their... if she hadn't...she could've just...why did she... Argh! What's happening to me?!
He sighed again and looked out the window. If he had been confused before, it was nothing to what he was right now. That damned redheaded girl's eyes just wouldn't leave him alone! When he closed his own eyes all he could see was her sitting on the floor, tears stream down her usually very red cheeks, or the look of horror in her face when that damned brother of hers punched him. Sure, he'd done a lot of, well, evil things in his life, and even though he may deserve this, it was killing him!
"What's wrong, handsome? You've been acting weird the last couple of days!"
"So? You've been acting weird the past six years, but do you see me complaining?" Pansy snorted.
"Aren't you even going ask why I'm here?" She asked in a much more irritated voice.
"I already know, Pansy. You were 'fighting' with a certain Weasley girl last night and 'somehow' she reversed your spell without even using a wand!" Draco said sarcastically. Pansy sat up in her bed a gazed him suspiciously. "How do you know that?"
"I don't know, maybe because I was the one who did the reverse spell"
"You did what?!" She stood up and walked over to him. Draco looked at her and tried to come up with an excuse that she might accept.
"She's making me feel so guilty, you know, with those sad eyes of hers..." Yeah right
"You're so stupid. If you're gonna harass someone, do it good! What you tried to do would only give you a detention, and you would make Slytherin look like fools. And we wouldn't want that, now would we?"
Pansy just stood there quietly and looked at him, as if trying to understand what he said.
'She believe you, she has to believe you. Otherwise you'll be in so much trouble.'
Suddenly her face broke out into a big smile and she threw herself around his neck, hugging him tightly. "Oh, Draco! I knew you loved me! This cold attitude towards me, it's just an act isn't it? You didn't want to show me your true feelings!"
Draco lost it for a second but then pulled himself together and pushed her off him "And my true feelings would be disgust, now get off me!"
"But it's okay, Draco! I love you too!"
"How sweet, now leave me alone!" Draco yelled and closed his eyes to show her that he was serious.
With a happy smile Pansy got back into her bed and soon fell asleep. She dreamt about how she and Draco were running over a sunny meadow, laughing and very much in love...
* * *
Shocked, Ginny stepped out of the Hospital Wing.
Draco? Was he the one who saved me last night? She couldn't believe what she had just heard inside the Hospital Wing. But why? Even though he said it was to save Pansy from detention she knew that wasn't the reason. Draco only cared about himself; everybody knew that, well, except maybe Pansy. But she wasn't exactly known around the school for her bright mind. But Ginny didn't have time to think about that for the moment, she heard footsteps down the corridor, and they were coming closer.
She looked down and saw that she was still holding the books she was supposed to leave in there, so she slipped them inside and closed the door just a second before she could here the footsteps right behind her. She turned around and saw Desdemona and Miranda standing there, with big smiles on their faces.
"Hey Gin! What's up?" Desdemona asked and looked at Miranda.
"Thanks for not telling Flitwick earlier, he would've killed us you know!" Miranda said and put an arm around Ginny's shoulder as they started to walk down to the Great Hall.
"I-It's okay... He let me get away with it quite easy, right?" Ginny answered and forced a smile.
"Yeah, that's cool. Um, he gave us more homework though. He told us to tell you that we have to write an essay about our house's history. I really can't see what that has to do with charms class, but you'll come up with something, right Gin?" Miranda said and sat down at the Gryffindor table.
Ginny sighed, but covered it with her usual smile "Of course Miranda. That's what friends are for..."
Desdemona laughed and looked at Ginny "Yes, and you're a really good friend Gin! I don't know what I would've done without you!" See, they like me! Just as much as I like them! They must be the best friends ever... right?
* * *
A couple of hours later Ginny was sitting down by the lake with five books about Gryffindor's history and tried to write a second essay, this one was for Miranda. It was already 10 o'clock and she was getting really tired now. Desdemona and Miranda's Divination homework had taken her about an hour to finish, Desdemona's essay had taken 30 minutes, and she hadn't even started her own homework yet!
She stopped writing and looked out over the lake. It was so beautiful in the moonlight. She wished she had more time to just sit there and watch it, but if she wanted her friends to care about her she had to forget about her own interests for the moment. She sighed and got back to work. She still had a lot left to do!
* * *
Up in the castle Draco had just been released from the Hospital Wing and was headed back to the Slytherin common room. But just as he stood outside the big statue, he found himself hesitating. He didn't want to go back there. He wouldn't be able to think in there, so he turned around and started to walk towards the entrance instead. Once outside he started to walk down to the lake.
At first he didn't notice her even though she took up quite a lot of space with all her books spread around her. But when he was only a couple of steps away from her, he finally noticed. He looked down at her and before he knew it, he was sitting next to her on the cold ground.
"Aren't you up a bit late doing your homework?" He didn't mean to sound so mocking, but it was an old habit. He couldn't just push an "off" button to and make it disappear. He didn't work that way. He saw how she stiffened as she heard his voice and she looked at him, shivering.
"W-what are you doing here?" she whispered.
He sneered and leaned back on his elbows. "I could ask you the same."
"No, actually you couldn't. You already know what I'm doing here" she answered, and looked surprised over the way she talked to him.
Draco raised his eyebrows and his sneer grew bigger. "Well, now, little Weasel knows how to talk without s-s-stammering. That's something."
Ginny hesitated and then she looked up at him "W-why did you save me last night?" She saw his eyes widened in surprise, but he controlled himself pretty quickly "I didn't save you, but just out of curiosity, who told you that?" his voice didn't reveal the surprise he felt.
Ginny blushed, and was very thankful that it was dark outside so he couldn't see it. "Y-you did, in the Hospital Wing" she mumbled and almost hoped he didn't hear her, but he did. He heard every word and every breath she let out. He could even see that her cheeks had turned somewhat redder then it had been just a few seconds earlier. He could see the confusion in her eyes.
She's probably wondering why I'm not mocking her. Why am I not mocking her? I should... I really should, but I won't. It's not right. I think... God, this is annoying!
"So Weasley, when did you start your career in eavesdropping?" Draco asked and tried to change subject. He couldn't exactly tell her why he had saved her, he couldn't tell anyone. No one can ever know, hell, I don't even know!
"I-I wasn't eavesdropping... I was just leaving some books... Madame Pomfrey needed them... and Professor Flitwick told me to return them... I-I just happened to hear your conversation with Pansy... I-I swear I didn't mean to!" Ginny's voice was trembling and she tried not to start cry again. That would only make everything worse. Draco would tell the whole school and they would all look at her, watch her, laugh at her, and talk behind her back...
Draco noticed the panic in the little girl's voice and his sneer grew wider, but he decided to change subject. After all, he didn't want her to cry again.
"So, if you heard me in the Hospital Wing, you should know why I played Hero Potter last night." He expected Ginny to start stammer again, but to his surprise she looked him straight in the eyes and the fear in her voice was gone.
"No, I don't buy that detention excuse. It's just not the Malfoy-way. There's something more to it, and I'd like to know what. But not now, I'm busy." She turned back to her books, and put down her quill to start write again. But she was really tired now, and she could hardly keep her eyelids open, and before she knew what was happening she dropped her quill and fell asleep on the cold ground.
Draco watched her sleep for a couple of minutes, before he grabbed his wand and muttered a seven-hour warming spell over her. "Damn guilt..." he muttered as he walked up to the castle and to his warm bed in Slytherin dungeon.
***
Chapter 2
"Ginny?! Ginny?"
Ginny turned her head and tried to make the voice that disturbed her nice dreams go away. She was lying on a couch in the library and had been waiting for her friends there for hours, but when they never came, she had fallen asleep.
"Ginny?" the voice said again. She felt two hands on her shoulders, shaking her. Finally she opened her eyes and looked right into Harry's big green eyes. She felt how her cheeks turned red. If only he would go away! She sat up and looked around, uncomfortable.
"W-what is it?" she asked confused and rubbed her tired eyes.
"Well, for one thing, you've been here all afternoon!" Harry said and sat down next to her, not aware of the frightened sparks in Ginny's eyes. "Ron. err.we've been worried about you" he said and looked around the room.
'You couldn't have cared less' Ginny thought sadly and started to gather her things.
"I. we should get back to the common room then," she said quietly and looked around again. "Um. have you seen Desdemona and Miranda?" she asked and blushed. If he only knew how embarrassing it was to always have to ask where her friends were, when they should be right there with her!
But Harry didn't seem to notice Ginny was even there. All he could notice was the beautiful black-haired Ravenclaw girl that just walked into the library. The 17-year old Cho Chang who smiled and winked at Harry before she went to sit with her friends.
"She's so beautiful." Harry mumbled as he watched her.
"Harry, we should go" Ginny said again and started to walk out of the library with Harry following her, still watching Cho with big eyes.
As they walked through the dark hallways, Harry happily talked about his Quidditch team. At least Ginny thought that's what he was talking about. She didn't listen. She was too caught up in her own thoughts.
Desdemona and Miranda have let me down. Again. Why does it still surprise me? Oh, when did my life get so wrong? HOW did it get so wrong?
She sighed and looked out of the dark window. So dark it was outside. It matched her mood perfectly right now.
". And then Lavender said that she wanted to change the colours on our robes! She wants them to be orange, you know, like Chudley Canons. But I think she was just hitting on Ron. Right, Gin?"
Ginny looked up confused.
"Huh? Oh, yeah... sure... that sounds like fun..." she mumbled and looked down at her books. "Oh, Harry, I forgot my Potions book in the library. I'm just gonna go back and get it." She said and ran back to the library, leaving Harry alone in front of the Fat Lady's portrait. He shrugged and mumbled the password before entering the crowded common room.
*~*~*
Ginny grabbed her books from the couch where she had been sitting just a few minutes ago, and slowly started to walk up to her common room again. She didn't want to go there to see her friends sitting there, laughing. Laughing at her for how stupid she was.
NO! She silently protested inwardly, of course they didn't! They would never do that to her.
"Well, look, if it isn't the Dream Team's little sister!" Ginny looked up to see who was talking to her, and immediately stopped. She felt how her face turned red and the fear came over her. It wasn't that it was someone intimidating; it was just that all Slytherins scared little Ginny.
"W-what do you want, Pansy?" Ginny tried to sound calm, but obviously failed.
A big sneer appeared on Pansy's face as she watched the scared little fifth year.
"Oh, nothing, just wanted to check how you were doing this fine evening." She said and started to pick up her wand. Ginny was too busy looking around that she didn't noticed that Pansy was now standing much closer to her with her wand in duelling position.
*~*~*
In another corridor, not far way, our own little ferret boy was out walking with big and serious thoughts in his mind.
"The world would be a better place. The world would be a better place." Somehow that didn't seem as right now as it had just a few days ago. What was wrong? What the hell was happening? "Damn that Weasley, now I'm all confused. Why did she look so sad? She normally just looks afraid. as all the others, but NEVER sad. It's just so much easier to handle fear, but sadness? It wasn't even so much the sadness, as it was the hopelessness. That's something different.. that's something I feel." Draco suddenly stopped his thoughts at this point and looked around. He heard voices, no, not voices in his head. He wasn't crazy ... yet. But he recognized these voices...
"...not gonna cry are you? We wouldn't want that!" Then there was a cold laugh followed by a quiet sob.
Draco silently walked closer and looked around the corner, just to see Pansy pointing her wand at the female Weasley. And she had that sad look in her face again. Those sad eyes, he knew them so well. That's what he saw whenever he looked at himself in the mirror nowadays. He wanted to get a better view so he hid behind a big statue and watched them.
"You're awfully quiet Weasel. What's wrong? Feeling a bit sad, are you? Now that's too bad, 'cause I really don't care!" Pansy kept on talking, not aware of her audience. Ginny just stood there, not able to move. Her mind was blank, but she knew she would spend the night at the Hospital Wing, she just didn't know why.
Then Pansy raised her wand and started to scream out her charm, but someone got there before her.
Draco felt a wave of panic wash over him as he raised his own wand her mumbled a reverse spell at Pansy. Ginny, who had her eyes closed waiting for the curse to hit her, slowly opened them again when nothing happened. Shocked she watched how Pansy's arms started to grow, and soon they were lying in two big piles on the floor. Pansy, who was now very pale, started to scream and tried to pick up her arms, but of course they were too heavy. Panicked, she looked up at Ginny and started to scream even more.
"You... you BITCH!" she hissed out while trying to understand what was just happening to her, her arms still growing.
"Um... d-do you need help to the Hospital Wing?" Ginny asked unsure if it was the right thing to be asking at that point.
Draco, still hiding, mumbled another charm that made Pansy's arms a lot easier to carry.
Pansy looked at her arms that were now floating beside her and started to run away from there. Away from that scary girl that somehow seemed to be doing magic without a wand.
Confused, Ginny turned around and walked back to the Gryffindor common room with a thoughtful Draco looking at her.
* * *
The next day Draco woke early and went down to the Great Hall without Crabbe and Goyle for once. He thought his head would explode any minute now from all confusing thoughts in his head.
He sat down at the empty Slytherin table and slowly began to eat his cereal. The Great Hall was almost empty except for a bunch of over- enthusiastic Ravenclaw girls who were studying for their Herbology class.
"Pathetic... " he thought as he watched them. One girl with long blonde hair made a joke and the girls broke out in hysterical laughter.
Draco sighed and looked away. "I bet those girls never have to worry about anything but their grades... and who said the world wasn't fair?"
"Life sucks... " he muttered and stood up to leave when he heard something behind him. He turned around and saw his three best friends.
"Where are your two bodyguards, Malfoy? Did they, like the rest of us, get sick of you?" Ron asked and his face turned into an amazing shade of red that matched his red hair perfectly. Somehow his face always turned this colour whenever Malfoy was around - it was like some sort of allergic reaction.
Harry and Hermione just stood behind him, both glaring at Malfoy.
Draco sighed and while Ron's face turned red, Draco's always turned into a horrible sneer whenever Ron & Co was around. "Well, actually, I gave them the day off. Nothing you would do, surely." Draco said and raised his eyebrows at Hermione and Harry's direction. "You always have Potter with you. Could it be that little Weasel can't take care of himself?"
Before anyone could stop him, Ron was all over Draco trying his best to hit him as hard he could. Harry and Hermione rushed to them and tried to pull away Ron, but they, just as Draco, had a little problem with it. While Draco escaped another hard fist from Ron, he suddenly saw Ginny stare at them, with a hand covering her mouth as if trying to hold back a scream.
He saw her eyes widened in horror, and next second he felt a burning pain over his left eye. Shocked, he stumbled back and felt another deep pain in the back of his head as he hit the hard stone floor. And then everything went black...
* * *
"Miss Weasley, I would appreciate it if you paid attention in my class!"
Ginny looked up and met the angry eyes of Professor Flitwick. She felt her cheeks turn its usual shade of red and noticed that everyone in the classroom was now looking at her.
"I-I'm sorry professor... " she mumbled and looked down at her books, trying to avoid Flitwick's gaze. They were all looking at her... Couldn't they just stop? She wasn't interesting! She just always managed to make a fool of herself.
"Miss Weasley, as I said while you were busy staring out the window, you never handed me today's homework." Professor Flitwick said, but he didn't sound angry anymore. No, he sounded more... concerned. Ginny felt the panic coming over her. She hadn't got the time last night to do her homework. She had spent all night doing Desdemona and Miranda's homework!
But she couldn't tell the professor that because then her friends would get in trouble... but if she didn't she would be in trouble... 'If you tell him the truth Desdemona and Miranda will never talk to you again! And then you'll be even more alone than you already are.'
"I'm sorry professor, but I... I forgot about it." She could hear some of the Slytherin girls trying to hide their laughs in the back of the room, and she wished she could've just Apparated herself away from there, away from life.
Professor Flitwick sighed and looked at the little girl sitting in front of him. "I'm sorry to hear that, Miss Weasley, and I'll have to take 5 points from Gryffindor. I want you to do me a favour though, and then maybe I won't give you a detention.
"Of course, professor." She really didn't care if he gave her a detention. She just wanted him to stop talking to her. Couldn't he see that everybody was looking at her? Couldn't they just stop? Just stop?!
"Ok, Miss Weasley, just take these books to Madame Pomfrey. I borrowed them from her last week." He said and handed her a couple of books.
Relieved, Ginny took the books and ran out of the classroom. The classroom from hell.
* * *
". Look at him."
". So sexy."
"... And his hair..."
"...Even sexier..."
"... Those lips..."
"... Makes you want to throw yourself at him..."
"... And just kiss him until he's not so pale anymore..."
Draco opened his eyes and noticed by just looking at the warm white ceiling that he was in the Hospital Wing. He tried to sit up, but his head felt like a Bludger and he decided to lie back down on the pillow. He turned his glaze to the left of him where he had heard voices just a second ago. He saw Pansy laying in a bed and her friend Millicent sitting on a chair next to her. They were both looking at him, trying to look sexy.
"Good morning, handsome." Pansy said and smiled at him. "You know, you looked like Sleeping Beauty lying there. I was just about to wake you up with a kiss."
"Why? An aching head isn't enough? You want me to throw up too?" Pansy was just about to answer when Madame Pomfrey noticed he was awake.
"Oh, good, you've finally woken up. Then it's time for your medication!" she gave him a small bottle with some orange liquid and told him to drink it. She turned to Pansy and Millicent and started to lead Millicent towards the door. "Out! Out you go! My patients need their rest! Now, out!"
Millicent winked at Draco and then walked out. Draco sighed and closed his eyes.
Damn Weasley... the guilt is one thing, but a black eye too? This is insane. I hate that family even... it's all their... if she hadn't...she could've just...why did she... Argh! What's happening to me?!
He sighed again and looked out the window. If he had been confused before, it was nothing to what he was right now. That damned redheaded girl's eyes just wouldn't leave him alone! When he closed his own eyes all he could see was her sitting on the floor, tears stream down her usually very red cheeks, or the look of horror in her face when that damned brother of hers punched him. Sure, he'd done a lot of, well, evil things in his life, and even though he may deserve this, it was killing him!
"What's wrong, handsome? You've been acting weird the last couple of days!"
"So? You've been acting weird the past six years, but do you see me complaining?" Pansy snorted.
"Aren't you even going ask why I'm here?" She asked in a much more irritated voice.
"I already know, Pansy. You were 'fighting' with a certain Weasley girl last night and 'somehow' she reversed your spell without even using a wand!" Draco said sarcastically. Pansy sat up in her bed a gazed him suspiciously. "How do you know that?"
"I don't know, maybe because I was the one who did the reverse spell"
"You did what?!" She stood up and walked over to him. Draco looked at her and tried to come up with an excuse that she might accept.
"She's making me feel so guilty, you know, with those sad eyes of hers..." Yeah right
"You're so stupid. If you're gonna harass someone, do it good! What you tried to do would only give you a detention, and you would make Slytherin look like fools. And we wouldn't want that, now would we?"
Pansy just stood there quietly and looked at him, as if trying to understand what he said.
'She believe you, she has to believe you. Otherwise you'll be in so much trouble.'
Suddenly her face broke out into a big smile and she threw herself around his neck, hugging him tightly. "Oh, Draco! I knew you loved me! This cold attitude towards me, it's just an act isn't it? You didn't want to show me your true feelings!"
Draco lost it for a second but then pulled himself together and pushed her off him "And my true feelings would be disgust, now get off me!"
"But it's okay, Draco! I love you too!"
"How sweet, now leave me alone!" Draco yelled and closed his eyes to show her that he was serious.
With a happy smile Pansy got back into her bed and soon fell asleep. She dreamt about how she and Draco were running over a sunny meadow, laughing and very much in love...
* * *
Shocked, Ginny stepped out of the Hospital Wing.
Draco? Was he the one who saved me last night? She couldn't believe what she had just heard inside the Hospital Wing. But why? Even though he said it was to save Pansy from detention she knew that wasn't the reason. Draco only cared about himself; everybody knew that, well, except maybe Pansy. But she wasn't exactly known around the school for her bright mind. But Ginny didn't have time to think about that for the moment, she heard footsteps down the corridor, and they were coming closer.
She looked down and saw that she was still holding the books she was supposed to leave in there, so she slipped them inside and closed the door just a second before she could here the footsteps right behind her. She turned around and saw Desdemona and Miranda standing there, with big smiles on their faces.
"Hey Gin! What's up?" Desdemona asked and looked at Miranda.
"Thanks for not telling Flitwick earlier, he would've killed us you know!" Miranda said and put an arm around Ginny's shoulder as they started to walk down to the Great Hall.
"I-It's okay... He let me get away with it quite easy, right?" Ginny answered and forced a smile.
"Yeah, that's cool. Um, he gave us more homework though. He told us to tell you that we have to write an essay about our house's history. I really can't see what that has to do with charms class, but you'll come up with something, right Gin?" Miranda said and sat down at the Gryffindor table.
Ginny sighed, but covered it with her usual smile "Of course Miranda. That's what friends are for..."
Desdemona laughed and looked at Ginny "Yes, and you're a really good friend Gin! I don't know what I would've done without you!" See, they like me! Just as much as I like them! They must be the best friends ever... right?
* * *
A couple of hours later Ginny was sitting down by the lake with five books about Gryffindor's history and tried to write a second essay, this one was for Miranda. It was already 10 o'clock and she was getting really tired now. Desdemona and Miranda's Divination homework had taken her about an hour to finish, Desdemona's essay had taken 30 minutes, and she hadn't even started her own homework yet!
She stopped writing and looked out over the lake. It was so beautiful in the moonlight. She wished she had more time to just sit there and watch it, but if she wanted her friends to care about her she had to forget about her own interests for the moment. She sighed and got back to work. She still had a lot left to do!
* * *
Up in the castle Draco had just been released from the Hospital Wing and was headed back to the Slytherin common room. But just as he stood outside the big statue, he found himself hesitating. He didn't want to go back there. He wouldn't be able to think in there, so he turned around and started to walk towards the entrance instead. Once outside he started to walk down to the lake.
At first he didn't notice her even though she took up quite a lot of space with all her books spread around her. But when he was only a couple of steps away from her, he finally noticed. He looked down at her and before he knew it, he was sitting next to her on the cold ground.
"Aren't you up a bit late doing your homework?" He didn't mean to sound so mocking, but it was an old habit. He couldn't just push an "off" button to and make it disappear. He didn't work that way. He saw how she stiffened as she heard his voice and she looked at him, shivering.
"W-what are you doing here?" she whispered.
He sneered and leaned back on his elbows. "I could ask you the same."
"No, actually you couldn't. You already know what I'm doing here" she answered, and looked surprised over the way she talked to him.
Draco raised his eyebrows and his sneer grew bigger. "Well, now, little Weasel knows how to talk without s-s-stammering. That's something."
Ginny hesitated and then she looked up at him "W-why did you save me last night?" She saw his eyes widened in surprise, but he controlled himself pretty quickly "I didn't save you, but just out of curiosity, who told you that?" his voice didn't reveal the surprise he felt.
Ginny blushed, and was very thankful that it was dark outside so he couldn't see it. "Y-you did, in the Hospital Wing" she mumbled and almost hoped he didn't hear her, but he did. He heard every word and every breath she let out. He could even see that her cheeks had turned somewhat redder then it had been just a few seconds earlier. He could see the confusion in her eyes.
She's probably wondering why I'm not mocking her. Why am I not mocking her? I should... I really should, but I won't. It's not right. I think... God, this is annoying!
"So Weasley, when did you start your career in eavesdropping?" Draco asked and tried to change subject. He couldn't exactly tell her why he had saved her, he couldn't tell anyone. No one can ever know, hell, I don't even know!
"I-I wasn't eavesdropping... I was just leaving some books... Madame Pomfrey needed them... and Professor Flitwick told me to return them... I-I just happened to hear your conversation with Pansy... I-I swear I didn't mean to!" Ginny's voice was trembling and she tried not to start cry again. That would only make everything worse. Draco would tell the whole school and they would all look at her, watch her, laugh at her, and talk behind her back...
Draco noticed the panic in the little girl's voice and his sneer grew wider, but he decided to change subject. After all, he didn't want her to cry again.
"So, if you heard me in the Hospital Wing, you should know why I played Hero Potter last night." He expected Ginny to start stammer again, but to his surprise she looked him straight in the eyes and the fear in her voice was gone.
"No, I don't buy that detention excuse. It's just not the Malfoy-way. There's something more to it, and I'd like to know what. But not now, I'm busy." She turned back to her books, and put down her quill to start write again. But she was really tired now, and she could hardly keep her eyelids open, and before she knew what was happening she dropped her quill and fell asleep on the cold ground.
Draco watched her sleep for a couple of minutes, before he grabbed his wand and muttered a seven-hour warming spell over her. "Damn guilt..." he muttered as he walked up to the castle and to his warm bed in Slytherin dungeon.
***