When he thought about it, he knew that realistically, he had his best chance with Slytherins. Ironic.

That you always want more.

Anything to stick two fingers up at that stupid girl. Anything to make Jonquille Feloney drop her mask, for a moment, and to send her crashing down below even Crabbe & Goyle. For God's sake! Surely Slytherins were deliciously right and ambitious and cunning? The most cunning occupant of the house at that moment was clearly either him, or Bolster's mog.

"Hurry UP," Jonquille sighed into his ear.

He ignored her.

"PICK," she added.

He kept looking

"DrAco - Love-"

"That's Malfoy to you, Feloney," he replied dryly, without turning around.

"Well for GOD's sake," she spat, the flirting past its facade, "pick-"

"Ginny."

Draco's words cut through the foursome and dropped in silence before their attentive, duckling eyes.

Together, they jostled to the edge of the balcony, where five pairs of eyes rested on the cornflake girl.

"She's a Weasley, though!-"

"-That's the point, Goyle," Petula replied.

"Bloody predictable, if you ask me," Jonquille murmured, still watching Ginny.

"I didn't," Draco said. "Besides, it's bloody not. What do you think I am, children, a bloody script writer?"

They were silent again, and embarrassed.

"I picked her because of Riddle. Fools."

"Is that it?," Crabbe interjected.

"Good question." Draco's heirloom of a sneer blossomed. "no, it's not all. Yes, I admit, her ginger, bemused expressions are somewhat enchanting."

They snickered.

"And she was under a dark, dark spell around Tom you-know-who Riddle. But most importantly, she Adores Potter."

"I don't see how you couldn't pick faster, then," Jonquille sniffed, and stalked off with Petula in tow.

Draco looked down at her spicy head, tipped over school books, dilligently and Gryffindorishly making the best of herself.

*It's enough to make one violently sick. Still, not here, eh?* Draco contemplated the forthcoming two weeks of the game, and found himself strangely.. uninterested. Usually, a quick wrangle with manipulation made him feel quite warm inside, but today; nothing.

*Nevermind,* he consoled himself, as Crabbe & Goyle lolloped back to the common room, *this should be a bit different.*

-----------------------------------------------

Draco wandered in behind Ginny, and murmured into her cloudy Autumnal hair,

"Evening, Weasley."

Ginny jumped out of her skin, and spun around with wide eyes. She appeared to be considering him for a minute, 'til she turned back, pretending not to have heard anything.

Draco smirked to himself while a Hufflepuff eyed him suspiciously.

Later, at dinner, he looked over to the Gryffindor table and their eyes met. He was mildly surprised by the sparks emmenating from her warm hazel eyes, and felt drawn to her, as if she was a mysterious girl from his own house. Her dark eyelashes over her pale cheek, quickly flushing with the rose of ardour. Malfoy looked away, feeling the oddly new sense of success welling up in his fingers and toes. Ginny giggled to her friend.

*In the bag,* he smirked to himself.

"Is Malfoy giving you evils?," asked Beatrix Radiche through a mouthful of lettuce.

"Erm, possibly," said Ginny, embarrassed.

"You're going red!" Beatrix screeched.

She was.

"Beatrix, he's been acting weird-"

She cut herself short.

He'd been scowling at her like this all week, but it would be better if she didn't tell anyone; it might end up in unpresidented Weasley doom, for Ron if not for her. She wondered if Fred & George had finally managed to sneak him a Gnarley Barley - their latest experiment, a seemingly-ordinary barley sugar that screwed your face up like oak bark, painlessly; meaning, you had no idea until people ran from you screaming. It had gone down rather well with Percy - as well as something of that effect can go.

"-all evening. When we were coming in-"

She blushed further.

"-I swear he whispered something to me.. Something like, 'We've an ink, Weasley'."

"'We've an ink'?"

The girls laughed.

As they were leaving, Ginny shot him a parting glance.

*Oh, she's playing along too?*

Draco was pleased. And, all of a sudden, he felt his heart flutter. Surely not.