Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but I own the plot.

A/N: Sorry bout the late update! Glad everyone likes the Titanic metaphor, but it was only after writing it that I realized The Sound of Music works better. Oh well!

Long chapter ahead. And I mean, long.

Bride of a Dragon

By: Katrina

The Last Straw

It was not hard for Colette to tell that something was amiss with Draco.

She was never a dumb woman. Intelligence was something she never lacked, being the brainiest witch in the history of Beauxbatons. And under all her aristocratic airs, her haughty and arrogant manners, and her sense of aloofness, she was incredibly observant on the details and had almost the intuition of a true Seer. Colette was much more than what meets the eye. It was all part of how she'd been raised as a young girl.

And so while she was kissing Draco, she could sense a feeling of reluctance, of subdued struggle, and perhaps, if she was not mistaken, of disguised disgust. Colette was not completely clueless, so she knew that the whole marriage business between she and Draco was nothing more than another business contract. It would help boost both of their wealth if they marry. Colette's abundant inheritance would have double interests in Draco's chain of banks, and Draco's banks would benefit from the rich source of money should he ever run into trouble. In addition, they would gain a lot of business from the media too. Colette was a famous Parisian beauty, while Draco was a handsome foreigner. By marrying they would make one heck of a couple. For their anniversaries, they could throw dinner parties, and from those they'd gain new clients and more profits.

But as perfect as this married life would sound, it was only more or less an equivalent of a business contract. Colette knew that Draco did not love her, and while she thought her fiancé handsome she hardly felt flutters in her stomach when they kiss. She did not expect Draco and her to engage in anything more than kissing to assure the public that they were well in love.

Yet even though such was how the matter really was, Draco and her had always managed to kiss intimately and very convincingly. They both pretended to make the best out of this marriage. But earlier in the evening, Colette almost had the feeling that Draco wanted to rebel against it.

Colette had also noticed weird things about Draco lately. For one thing, the other day when they were shopping, when she looked around for Draco, she could've sworn that she saw him coming out of the part of the store for the poor people with a weird expression on his face that could be described as dreamy, as if he was recalling a sweet memory. For another, according to his butler, he had been going to the same café everyday for a while. Knowing Draco, Colette knew that he would not lower his status to going to a café where "common" Muggles go.

From her place beside Draco on the large canopy bed, Colette narrowed her eyes. Why? But after a moment's thinking, the answer came pretty obviously.

It had something to do with that pestering redhead.

Colette felt her blood boil at the mere memories of that British slut, charging into the office, holding the hand of a girl who she claimed to be Draco's child, and insulting her openly. Who did she think she was? Colette knew that she could not let this news get out. Her marriage, like everything else, had to be perfect. Nobody was going to just ruin things with some toddler. Especially if that somebody happened to be her. But Draco admitted to that fact. He didn't even bother to come to Colette's aid during their brawl.

However, Colette Atort was not going to lose her own fiancé to her, some little girl who didn't even know the ways of the world. In that case, I will teach it to her.

With that decision made, Colette got off the bed. She walked over to the elegantly decorated fireplace in the bedroom chamber. It seemed quite out of place there, but Colette found that it had its uses. She got out some powder, lit a fire, and threw the powder into the cackling flames. "Jacques!" she shouted.

From the flames a head appeared, hooded, mysterious. "Oui, mademoiselle?" he said.

In fluent French, Colette made her objective clear. He and his henchmen were going to shadow Draco, and report to her who exactly he was hanging out with. She had never yet lost a battle like this, and Colette had no intention of breaking that record.

~*~

It was all a matter of whether she wanted to or not, wasn't it?

Ginny sighed and looked out into the morning sky, unaware of the surveillance of Colette's henchmen near the hotel. The main objective is to get Draco to like me, to be a good father to Molly, isn't it? Ginny asked herself. It does not require me liking Draco back.

But why was Ginny feeling so differently about the bet now?

While before, Ginny made the bet solely for Molly. She didn't really think that she'd win the bet much, but at least she could count on winning his respect and at least making a compromise with him. Visiting Molly. Money. And perhaps get Rita Skeeter's friends to stop their articles. It was five years since Molly's birth, after all. Now, she had a sense of desperation that he must like her. She found herself trying harder than she'd tried at anything else. Not even as much as when she was trying to perfect a potion for Snape or win a Quidditch match just to have Harry hugging her after the match.

Perhaps it's because I feel like I'm kissing Harry and seducing Harry whenever I'm trying to seduce Draco, Ginny tried to convince herself. She knew that whatever feeling she had for the Slytherin ferret was nothing like the overwhelming love she'd felt for Harry. Every time Harry looked her way and smiled, she'd melt; and just seeing Harry joke around had always been enough to make Ginny's day. Even now, she found herself wishing that Harry saw her more than a sister. With Draco, it was just an urge to win the bet. That was it. No strings attached. He still acted like the obnoxious boy Harry and Ron loathed so much; and even though he had never been openly mean to her he'd always insulted her precious family. Another reason to win the bet—to have her family back again.

Speaking of which, Ginny had to think of something to entertain Draco with when she forces him to come over. True, she would want to kiss him again, but she didn't want to lose herself to that sensation again. It was too frightening and surreal. And after she asked that rhetorical question, she felt herself extremely stupid and would probably start blushing if they kiss. Which would be the perfect opportunity for him to call off the deal.

But what did she have to entertain Draco with? He grew up in luxuries, after all. She doubted if he ever lacked any form of entertainment whatsoever. He probably had his private Quidditch team for all she knew! And even now, as Draco Augustus, he probably still had everything. She could see how filthily rich he was. It annoyed Ginny greatly. He'd probably just make a few snide comments on her poor living quarters and leave in a flourish.

Ginny's eyes scanned the room critically till her eyes fell on a cookbook she'd brought as comfort. A smile grew on her face. Narcissa Malfoy and Colette Atort were both known as hostesses of wonderful dinner parties, but she couldn't imagine either of these elegant women cooking for Draco. Draco probably grew up eating either Hogwarts delicacies, Hogsmeade sweets, house-elf cooking, and fancy restaurant food. She had to giggle at the thought of Colette in a chef's hat and aprons, making gingerbread for Draco when they visit each other. He'd never had any real nutritious and cozy home-cooking.

It was one of those days when Ginny was grateful to be the daughter of Molly Weasley.

~*~

Virginia better has some food planned.

It was noontime, and Draco was almost dying of hunger. The reason was obvious; with Colette having breakfast next to him with her dainty ways of handling forks and knives, there was no way he could stuff food in his mouth without feeling coarse and clumsy. Draco had to admit that it was ironic. Back when he attended Hogwarts, his table etiquette was well-known among his fans and the Slytherins. He grew up with his mother's dinner parties, so of course he knew how to manipulate knives and forks. He'd always enjoyed comparing himself with the Weasleys, Crabbe, and Goyle, feeling superior.

But Colette somehow changed all that. She handled the cutleries in pretty much the same way, and never chewed with her mouth open, but Draco just felt like a Weasley or Crabbe beside her. Not to mention that it was downright uncomfortable with her around. There was absolutely no conversation whatsoever. Even with Narcissa Malfoy there had always been forced talk about how school was going, and Draco knew that his mother actually cared some, but Colette was just a block of ice.

The worst thing was that he never dared to reach out for the croissants.

He reread the note Ginny had sent him with the directions to her hotel. He was going to be early, but he was way too hungry to care. Draco would raid her place if he had to, just for something, anything to devour. Throwing on a cloak hurriedly, Draco Disapparated and Apparated in front of Ginny's hotel room. He looked around the place. The hotel wasn't very fancy. The paint on this floor was peeling. He snorted. He gave Ginny enough money to get a decent hotel, but he supposed she wouldn't be used to the finery.

Ding dong! went the Muggle imitated doorbell.

Just open the door. I am dying of hunger. Draco stared at the door, willing it to disappear; Ginny was taking an awfully long time getting ready. One more second of waiting and Draco would barge in. No, he would Apparate in some supermarket and just charge the whole store onto his bank account. He would-

The door opened. A surprised Ginny poked her head out. "You're early," she said.

"I wasn't aware that I had to be on time," drawled Draco. Hungry or not, he had to do the Malfoy smirk before barging in. He was about to shout to Ginny, "FOOD!" when he stopped dead. He was facing the large living room, which Ginny had temporary made into a dining room. A huge table was in the middle of the room with at least ten plates of food, each of them smelling wonderfully.

He would've dove for the food if he were in his own house, but Draco was Draco. He had to acknowledge the little weasel before he finishes her lunch. He turned to face Ginny, and almost blushed at what he saw. Ginny must've been taking a shower when he came, because her long red hair was wet and limp, and she was in nothing but a bathrobe. "I greet you, Virginia," he said stupidly, averting his gaze back to the food.

Ginny rolled her eyes. "You're a whole hour early, Draco!" She followed his gaze to the food. "Keep off the lunch table, will you? I haven't finished cooking yet. Let me finish taking the shower." She pointed her wand at the table. "Nobody but the chef can take the charm off. Why don't you watch some TV?"

"Are you bossing me around?" Draco demanded.

"I'm not the one who's so eager that he had to come an hour early," was Ginny's retort as she went back to the bathroom. A moment later, the shower started again.

You'd think I offended her, Draco thought, snorting as he snapped on the TV to a French soap opera. He couldn't help listening to the running of the shower water. She's probably using that shampoo now, he thought. He tried not to think about what Ginny looked like in the shower.

~*~

To spite Draco, Ginny took extra long taking her shower. He had no idea that the spell she put on the food was a Warming Spell, so the food wouldn't get cold; and she could tell that he was extremely hungry. Ron would be proud of her.

Ginny actually thought it was pretty cute of Draco to act so hungry. He was completely adorable when he made for the food. Who would've thought that this despicable Malfoy would have this side to him? Ginny thought in mock wonder as she put on a sweatshirt over a pair of jeans. She was not about to wear the dress she originally planned to wear. For some reason, she had the vague feeling that Draco had no table etiquette when he was ravenous for food.

She took a moment to look at herself in the mirror as she used a Hair-Drying Charm. Ginny decided that she looked acceptable, and in her mind she went over what she was going to do to him. Before she could plan out everything, however, she heard the clang of a cupboard.

I think I should go out before he raids the place.

~*~

"Ahem."

Uh-oh. He was caught in mid-act, red handed, by Ginny. Draco turned around and crossed his arms over his chest as the hostess glared at him. "I was checking to see if your place is sanitary enough for me to be at," he said smoothly, arranging his facial muscles to disguise the embarrassment he felt.

Ginny's eyebrow was raised, and she wore an expression that said only too clearly that she didn't believe one word he was saying. Suddenly, a mischievous smile crept up her face. "In that case, I guess you aren't all that hungry," she said slowly. "I guess we can wait a couple more hours before we start-"

Draco glared at her. It was his famous death glare, and it worked. Ginny gestured toward the table. "It's all yours." She added wickedly, "You know, I didn't actually put a charm on it."

"You've got some nerve!" Draco said indignantly.

But the eagerness for the food fought off the vengeance. Draco sat himself down at the table and scanned the menu critically, but could find nothing wrong with anything. Everything looked and smelled delicious. It wasn't the fancy French food, just some homemade British cuisine mixed with Chinese and Japanese delicacies, but it would do for him. "Go ahead and enjoy yourself," said Ginny. "I'm going to cook a few more courses."

As soon as she left, Draco instantly reached for the plate of steaks with his hands, before realizing that he hadn't scrubbed them with soap yet. He went to the bathroom, washed them clean, and went back. But as soon as his hand neared enough to grab a steak, he remembered that it wasn't proper to use his hands. He grabbed a fork and violently put the steak on his plate. He was tempted to just eat it, but his manners wouldn't allow that. So, he was fumbling with his knife and fork to cut off a perfectly shaped piece of steak when Ginny returned with a dish of croissants and some butterbeer.

One look at him, and Ginny started to giggle. "Gee, how long does it take you to eat, normally?" she asked between laughter as she took a seat across from him.

Draco scowled. "I'm just exercising my wonderful table manners," he said. Finally! he thought as he managed to rip a perfectly sized and shaped piece off. He didn't bother to chew it carefully like he was supposed to. He just swallowed the whole thing. Didn't his stomach have those enzymes to digest the food?

He looked to see Ginny's amused expression staring back at him as she just used her fingers to stuff food in her mouth. It seemed so much more satisfying and easier. But I'm supposed to be the Malfoy here, Draco thought as his stomach growled audibly.

Ginny completely lost it. She laughed so hard that bits of food flew from her mouth and into Draco's neatly sleeked down hair. What on earth is wrong with women? Draco thought irritably. When she finally calmed down, she said, "You know, you could just use your fingers."

Draco disgustedly cleaned himself. "I will not," he said. "I am eating the food the proper way. The Malfoy way."

Still chortling, Ginny used her wand and the forks and knives disappeared.

"Hey! What's that for!" demanded Draco. "You trying to starve me because I got better manners than you?"

Ginny didn't answer. She leaned over and placed Draco's fingers on the steak. It felt oily and oozy and dirty, but Draco wasn't aware of it. He was aware of how soft and gentle Ginny's rough fingers felt, and how adorable her chewed up fingernails seemed with food stuck under the nails. "How about you eat everything the Weasley way today?" she asked.

If it were any other time, Draco would've refused straight away, but seeing that his own health was at stake. "Fine," he said grudgingly, as if he were granting her a favor.

To show his point, he stuffed the whole thing in his mouth, chewing it with his mouth open. He was flattered when Ginny grinned at him. "You're doing pretty well," she said.

It is better to eat everything this way, Draco realized after more than two decades of cutting up everything and carefully placing them in his mouth with forks, and then chewing them slowly to "taste them better" with his mouth closed. He could just stuff the food down without worrying about all these. He enjoyed eating everything this way a lot more.

And the steak seemed much tastier than any food he's ever tasted, or perhaps it was just because he was incredibly hungry. Either way, he enjoyed the steak so much that he finished the whole plate. After that, he just threw all the etiquette to the back of his mind. Draco literally dove into the lunch table, eating everything to his heart's content. Well, he didn't pounce on the table and just stuffed everything in his mouth, but it was something close to that. His mother and fiancée would faint should they ever witness it.

Draco had never eaten anything this way before, although he'd always desired to. Sometimes, he'd take some candy his mother sent and eat them in secret without the proper manners, but the fear of getting caught always diminished the joy somewhat. It was much more satisfying when he know that he wouldn't be incriminated when he was found out. He knew that Ginny wouldn't punish him by denying him supper. I should eat like this everyday, Draco decided, not realizing how comfortable Ginny had always made him feel.

"Does Colette starve you or something?" Ginny asked as she handed him a croissant, seeing him eyeing it greedily as he polished off the spareribs.

"More or less." Draco swallowed when he saw that bits of food were flying at Ginny, but she didn't seem to care. If it were Colette, she'd throw a fit and punch his nose a second time. "It's kind of hard to eat like this when someone is making sure that you eat everything the proper way." Should I compliment her? "And your cooking isn't as distasteful as I'd thought."

"I'll take that as a compliment," said Ginny with a grin. "I take it that you enjoy this lunch."

"I enjoyed the lunch. I did not enjoy you laughing at me."

"Well, honestly, if you're dying of hunger, you don't go around tampering with forks and knives when you can eat much better with your fingers. Why else did God make your hands with fingers?" Ginny asked, her brown eyes twinkling merrily.

Draco finished the croissant in two bites. She does have a point, he thought. But suddenly he found himself a bit disappointed that once he marry Colette he would never get to eat like this again. She would have a heart attack and publicly humiliate him if she ever sees him eating like this. 'You could always marry Ginny,' a voice reminded him, and before Draco could revolt at the thought he felt Ginny's oily fingers on his shoulder. "Do you have an answer for me?" she asked softly.

"What answer?"

"If I were just as rich as Colette, would you pick me?"

Draco gave this question a deeper thought this time. "If you were just as rich as Colette," he said slowly, "then I would never get to eat with my fingers, now would I?"

~*~

Ginny hadn't expected such an answer. She expected something either mean or evasive. Not this.

"I guess you won't," she agreed. Then out of curiosity, "Did you actually enjoying eating with your fingers? I don't think they're all that clean and manicured now."

Indeed, they looked just like Ron's always looked like after he finished one of Mrs. Weasley's chocolate cakes. Perhaps even dirtier, seeing the way Draco had practically raped the food. Talk about sanitary, Ginny thought, but she didn't actually mind. She was used to this with her brothers, after all, and in fact it actually flattered her that he liked his food to this degree.

"I wish you were richer, though," Draco suddenly said. Ginny's eyes widened in surprise. "You would've been one of a kind. You're always so happy and nice, and you would be one of the few upper-class ladies with a daughter who's not a stiff robot."

"I would be if you marry me," joked Ginny.

His response caught her off guard. He pulled her closer to him and put his food stained hands on the back of her neck. Ginny was surprised at the unfamiliar expression in his eyes. It could almost be called wistful. Without another word, he bent down and initiated the kiss.

Ginny's eyeballs nearly popped out from the surprise. It had always been her initiating it, but now here he was, kissing her with all his might, his oily lips pressed against hers, yet she felt no revulsion. It was just like watching Harry finish up a jam tart and turning into a Big Bird back in her sixth year, and she thought she wouldn't mind kissing his beak, dripping with jelly. Same thing as now. She wouldn't mind if bugs were crawling on his lips—actually, she would, but that wasn't the point she was trying to make.

She kissed him back with all her might, her arms tightly around him. He wasn't at all like the Harry she'd always loved, but in other ways he was like him as well. It was just like her favorite dreams, when Harry came and told her he loved her. Ginny was in paradise. Her lips opened up to his tongue, and let his explore hers as hers did the same to him. She barely worried whether people would burst in on them as Draco pushed her back into the table. He released her lips enough to say, "I wish Colette could kiss like you" before both of them just let themselves loose in the sensation they had never felt with anyone else.

Draco pushed her back into the table harder, running his hands through her red hair. Ginny sighed against his lips. It felt nice. She didn't want to disturb the sleek look of his own hair, so she just concentrated on counting the grains of rice on his forehead. He could be a sloppy eater. She was also aware that they were probably trading germs at the same time, the food in each's mouth taking a trip to the other. But it was one of those times that manners barely mattered, wasn't it?

The table, not able to support all the weight, collapsed—after all, Ginny did transform it from a pillow—and the butterbeer spilled everywhere, including Draco's expensive robes. However, neither let go of each other as they fell together into the food, and both started to laugh.

~*~

Wizarding pictures could be treated as a Muggle tape, if only one knows how to use it.

Colette knew. Colette knew a lot more than most people give her credit for. Her hands trembled with anger as she looked at the picture Jacques took. It was a complete record of what Draco and that Virginia did from the moment he entered her hotel room till the moment he left, after the kissing, after a bit of small talk about their childhood, a smile on his face. A smile he'd never bothered to give her. He even kissed that redhead goodbye on the cheek, although it seemed to be more of a joke. Colette ripped up the pieces, making sure that the heads of both Draco and Virginia were amputated from their picture bodies.

She stood up. It was time to take matter into her own hands. If she had to, she'd give up Draco for her own feminine pride. She had connections.

The room she was in seemed to be rather innocuous at a first glance. It was lavishly furnished, of course, but nobody would think that in this room alone there were five secret passages. Colette's grandparents had been the designers of Beauxbatons, experts at secret tunnels. They were also powerful mages. Powerful beyond comparison. Not even Dumbledore could match up to them, if they hadn't died before the rise of Voldemort.

Colette tapped the armchair she was sitting in. It unfolded itself and rearranged itself as a door. The same color and texture as the armchair. She opened the door and descended the marble staircase that appeared till she was in a stone chamber. The three walls of the chamber were made out of stone. Directly in front of her was a huge fireplace with serpents carved all around. On one side was a tea set, and the other was a doll-world. Both dark objects, of course. Colette went toward the fireplace and stroked the largest serpent with her only nail that was polished green. The nail polish was made especially for this purpose. The serpent opened its mouth and red powder came out.

If Harry Potter had been here, he would recognize this powder as a new creation of Voldemort's back in his dark reign, the new way of Summoning Death Eaters, even the ones unwilling to Disapparate.

"There are still Death Eaters leftover in Britain, who'd love a piece of my dear fiancé, Draco Malfoy." Colette laughed. "Did he think that I really know not his true identity?" Clapping her hands, green flames arose in the fireplace, and she threw the powder in. Before long, ten former Death Eaters appeared.

The fourth wall of the chamber appeared, blocking off the exit. In the darkness of the room, Colette's blue eyes shone darkly, meeting the frightened twenty eyes that stared at her. "Mistress Colette?" one of them gasped, as Colette pulled off her outer garment to reveal her upper arm.

The Dark Mark gleamed.

A/N: Hope the chapter's worth the wait and somewhat acceptable and that you like it—or more!

Oui mademoiselle-yes, miss

Kay, review now!

~Katrina

Thank you immensely:

sakurantokyo-I will, no worries. MelissaAdams-a bridge? Hmm, I'll try for a more painful death... Cay-this is a D/G, so Ginny will love him. You'll see, I promise. Angel In Waiting-wow, I'm so honored. Thanks very much! Enter The Red Age-I read the newest one, I forgot the name, you know, not the Seven Deadly Sins, but the other one. Doesn't matter. I'll read the other one too. Thanks! I'm glad you liked my Titanic metaphor. xo-roxynsyncgrl-ox-you're right! There won't be any more café scenes. I'm sick of them myself, lol. Colette did find out, as you see… SeZzA-thanks! And your fic is wonderful too! Sharlene-yup. But you'll have to wait till near the end, but I swear there will be D/G in every chapter as long as I can pull it off. FieryWildChild-well, Colette did something first…Draco's job is to fall in love, after all! ^^ Crystal-aww thanks for being one of my most loyal reviewers! Jocelyn Padoga-thanks! Oh, I'm sorry I couldn't go to the boards more often. I'll try to post as soon as I figure out what's going on. Gabie-thank you! I really try to update soon! meLisSa-thank you! Formerly I was a little depressed because of a boy, but now I'm okay, and this fic, esp. the reviews, helped! London-I'm really flattered you think so highly of my fic. I'm so happy! *crying* Hope I won't disappoint! Baby-thanks, that's so sweet. CrazyAboutDraco-English isn't my first language either. Yours is fine. Really. Molly? Well…not directly, but some part. *nods* Blue eyes-you got it! =) frananddragon-thank you, esp. that you're risking your life to write this review! tricklingdust-I'm really sorry. Your review must've been transferred to another page. Really, really sorry. Honeybear005-I will! Magic Girl2-mm, well, now that Colette's a DE, would you want her to get half of our dearie Draco's money? ^^ xangelcrisisx-thank you, and yupyup something hot is going on between Draco and Gin. Ditzy Spacecadets-I didn't forget you this time either! =D Lady Eros-I will! Xue Long-thank you. Pixie-interesting guess, I actually never thought of it before, but I'm afraid that mine will be a bit different, no offense. All I can say that there is only one wedding, the one between Draco and Ginny. You'll see. Thanks for reviewing. blythe-actually, those French were by another reviewer. Thanks for your help. I'll be revising all the French after I finish the fic. Adria-I found out that the plot is a tad overused after uploading the first chapter, so no insult taken, and in fact I'm really flattered that you found so many things in my fic. I felt so warm when I was reading it. azngtpai-lol! Thanks. Serpentine Jeni-Draccie has feelings too. ;P lily-wow! I never thought of it this way. No, Ginny won't die! I promise, I swear my neck on it! Sakura1287-I agree. Thanks, I think I'm fixing Chap 6 once I finish the fic. skyttles-I wanted to, but then the chapter will be too long, and then I won't be able to get Colette's D.E. thing in. miao-miao-of course I will! Ginny001-aww thanks! Don't worry, I promise you won't spontaneously combust anytime soon. =D goldenstar555-thanks! That actually came out of nowhere, but it works. OpalKoboi-*blushes* thanks! S A K U R A-now you find out! IAmVulcanLady-yeah, I heard about it too, in French when my classmates were making of the poor ole teacher. Thanks for adding me to your favorites and liking my story. daisy-thanks! Jaded*Secrets-thank you! SamiJo-I'm glad! Tempest in a Teacup-yeah, you like it!

BTW, sorry to everyone I missed all these last chapters! The reviews sometimes disappear and reappear somewhere else…

Do not take it against you if I didn't reply to your review. I'll add you when I revise chapters, if you wish I'll email you specially! Same thing with mail updates. I love all of you guys and no offense!