A/N: Here's the next chapter! You get to see a little bit of Draco's thought processes…and a little progress in the D/G arena. More comments & thanks at end. Please read & review!!!

Chapter Three

And he has his minions

With no real opinions

Cause they all walk on glass

And your lies become the truth

And give me the proof

That you really care

Draco sat in the corner of the Slytherin common room, his eyes focused on the huge Potions text in front of him as he prepared for Snape's test the next day. He had been trying without success to remember the ingredients for an advanced healing potion, but the components all seemed to run together in his head.

He looked up and around the room. Crabbe and Goyle were on one of the sofas, appearing to study, but closer examination revealed Crabbe's book to be upside down and Goyle to be staring into space. Neither of them spoke. They really weren't bad guys, Draco thought, almost warmly, just a bit slow on the uptake.

He slapped his book closed with a clap, drawing apprehensive stares from several nearby first years. It was no use - he knew why he wasn't able to focus. It was that damn Weasley girl!

He had been meeting up with her for two weeks now. To his shock though, the lessons were becoming less and less bothersome and more and more enjoyable with every day. They never really spoke, other than his instructions, but every now and then she would surprise him with a random question: why he was always with Blaise, why he bothered Potter, why he was a Slytherin. He usually rolled his eyes and changed the subject back to Quidditch. But a few times she had caught him off guard and he found himself wondering what exactly she wanted to know about him.

Another thing bothered him too: she didn't really annoy him. If it hadn't been for her fiery red hair, he wouldn't even remember that she was a Weasley. He almost found himself thinking of her fondly sometimes when he looked down at her determined expressions. He started to think that the girl really would have made a good Slytherin: she was cunning enough, that was certain, considering that she was using him. And she definitely was sly, sneaking in all those little personal questions. It was times like those that he had to remind himself that she was, indeed, a Weasley and a Weasley who was blackmailing him at that.

"Hey Draco," two voices said, suddenly wrenching him out of his thoughts. Blaise Zabini plopped down in the chair next to him, while Pansy Parkinson slid into the chair across. "Are you ready for this Potion's exam?"

"Yeah, I think so," Draco lied.

"Of course you are," Pansy said in frustration, opening her Potions book. "I'm still trying to learn that stupid Confusing Concoction from last week."

Draco smirked. "Are you sure it didn't work?"

Pansy looked up at him questioningly, then realization dawned in her eyes. "Oh," she grumbled, throwing her quill at him. "Just because you're Potions Genius Boy doesn't mean you have to get on me about my lack of skills. I'm way better in Care of Magical Creatures."

"That's because I don't care," Draco said smugly.

"That's because you're terrified of Magical Creatures."

"Shut up, Blaise," Draco mumbled, his cheeks going a bit pink. Ever since that incident with the Hippogriff in his third year, he had been a bit reluctant to get near anything bigger than a Flobberworm.

Blaise just smirked. "I need to talk to you about something, Draco," she said, standing up. "Let's go for a walk."

"I really need to finish studying," Draco replied, not wanting to listen to Blaise's idle chatter.

"Liar. You don't even have your book open."

"I was about to open it," he lied again.

"No, because I just saw you close it like five minutes ago."

"Why is everyone always bloody watching me?," Draco cried in frustration.

Pansy mumbled something that included the words "damn" and "sexy", before turning her attention back to her book.

"Come walk with me," Blaise repeated and stood up. Reluctantly Draco stood up and followed her out the gap in the stone wall.

"What do you want?," Draco asked as they wandered through the dark hallways.

"Just wanted to talk, really," Blaise replied. "How are your little flying lessons going?"

Draco shrugged. "Fine, I guess." Blaise looked at him carefully and Draco felt her scrutinizing him. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason, really," she replied. "I just haven't heard you whine about having to go in a while."

"Well, it's something I've got to do," Draco replied. "My father would skin me alive if he knew some of the things that I've been up to."

They walked in silence together, finally climbing the steps and emerging into the main entrance, where magical light cast eerie shadows around them. "You're starting to like her, aren't you?," Blaise said quietly.

Draco looked at her in shock, sputtering indignantly. "Like who? Weasley?"

"I don't mean you're in love with her," Blaise retorted, looking scandalized at the very idea. "But you don't hate her, do you?"
"What's it to you?," Draco mumbled, not meeting her eyes.

"It's nothing," Blaise shrugged.

"Okay then," Draco said impatiently. "I'm going back to the common room." He turned and walked away, not bothering to wait for her.

"It's just-," Blaise began. She hurried after him. "It's just that you're changing, Draco."

He looked over at her questioningly, his gray eyes revealing nothing. "What do you mean?"
"Well, you haven't been disappearing and coming back reeking of smoke in almost a week," she began. "You don't pick on Potter and Weasley, the older one, nearly as much anymore. You don't complain about having to teach a Gryffindor to fly…You're just acting very un-Slytherin."

Draco shrugged again. "Maybe I'm growing up," he finally said.

---

Draco skipped dinner the next day. His Potions test had gone surprisingly well and the rest of his classes that day hadn't been too stressful, but all he wanted at that moment was to go out to the Quidditch pitch and fly around for a while before Weasley arrived.

He entered the pitch and dropped the Nimbus on the ground, then kicked off and soared off. He had only risen about thirty feet when he looked down to see a body sprawled in the middle of the Quidditch pitch. With a start, he realized it was Weasley. She looked so serene there, her red hair fanned out around his face, that he almost hesitated before flying back down and landing beside her. She didn't move.

"Hey, Weasley! You dead?," he shouted, looking down at her.

Her brown eyes burst open and she sat up. "Malfoy! What are you doing here already?"

"Skipped dinner. Wanted to fly a bit," he muttered. "What are you doing here?"
"Skipped dinner. Wanted to get away from everyone a bit," she replied. "Well, you can go fly if you want. I won't bother you."

Draco was about to kick off again when he decided, much to his own surprise, to sit down next to Weasley. She looked at him in surprise. He didn't say anything, only stared straight ahead. "Well?," he finally asked, looking over at her. She was still staring at him in confusion.

"Well what?"

"Aren't you going to ask me a million questions about my life?"

"You would just tell me to mind my own business," she replied truthfully.

"Good point," Draco agreed. He felt as confused as she had looked. Why was he even bothering to talk to her? It was quite mystifying.

"Well…erm…," Weasley began. "Okay, I have a question."

"What's that?"
"Can I call you Draco?"

He looked at her, startled. "You want to?"

"Yeah…well, if you'll call me Ginny," she replied. "I just hate when you call me Weasley. I'm not my brother and you call him Weasley too."

"Well…okay, Ginny," Draco replied.

"Okay, Draco," Ginny replied, the name sounding very odd indeed coming out of her mouth. "You don't hate me, do you?" It came out as a statement, not a question, and Draco looked at her in surprise. He and Blaise had just been having this same conversation the day before.

"What?"
"You don't hate me," she said again. "I mean, I thought you did, but you don't."

Draco just shrugged. "Come on. Let's fly."

---

Their flying lesson that night lasted much longer than usual. Draco was trying to teach Ginny how to fly steadily with one hand. He had found out from her that she wanted to become a Chaser, having much admired the three girls who had played Chasers when her older twin brothers had played on the Gryffindor team. He hadn't even realized that it was so late until he noticed that many of the lights in the castle had started to flicker out, signifying that many people were going to bed.

"Quintaped," Draco muttered and waited for the stone wall to slide open. He stepped into the common room and tossed his two brooms onto the sofa and then collapsed in an armchair.

"You're back late," a voice said quietly. Draco was startled, but didn't show it, and looked over towards the corner where the voice had come from.

"What's up, Blaise?"

"Nothing," she said innocently, sitting on the couch across from him, next to his brooms. "I was just waiting up to see if you wanted any…erm…cigarettes," she finished with a small scoff.

Draco stared back over at her, a platinum eyebrow arched. "Nope," he replied airily.

Blaise looked back at him as if he had just grown another head. "No?"

"No."

"Why not?," she asked, as if he had insulted her.

Draco stood up and picked up his broomsticks. "I don't need any." He started walking towards the corridor that led to his dorm room, then turned back to look at Blaise. "And don't bother offering again."

"Boys," Blaise muttered moodily, sneering at his retreating back.


A/N: Wow! I am soooooo flattered by the amount of reviews I've received for the last two chapters. I'm actually only ten reviews below what I got for my ENTIRE last story. How is that for crazy? I love it!

Anyway, just wanted to thank the following wonderful, fantastic, awesome reviewers:

Gohansfan (sorry if I confused you), frananddragon, ice angel, animalcrackers, Orothoroniel aka Celena, Eleoopy, stokely, ManicalLaughterofaManiac, Rebuky, Dramaqueen (of course Hermione will get nosey…it's what she does…hehe), The Dragon's Angel, karen, QueenOfTheRouge, cat, Ace Of Spades, crazy lil bitch (it affects people different ways and for Draco, it just calms him down - plus Ginny always catches him before anything can kick in), Kelsey McCartney, Ginny Yvette (I like to call in Wizardjuana), Crystal, Addicted2UrAllure, and Kitycat87.

And just so you all know, I in NO way encourage drug use. Just because Draco does it doesn't mean you should too! ; ) He is a fictional, evil character after all.

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