A/N: Thank you to those who reviewed…I'm trying valiantly to keep everybody in character and also trying not to rush the relationship between the two, so let me know what you think as usual.

Another Chance

By Spirit Of Euphoria

Chapter 2

It was a while before Ginny allowed herself to surrender to sleep that night; she tossed and turned, the crisp sheets tangling themselves around her limbs and doing nothing to ease her comfort. With a frustrated sigh, she sat up and pushed her hands despairingly through her hair. She hadn't been sleeping well as of late, that much was true. But this was beyond a joke…she counted herself lucky if she could snatch a couple of hours of sleep these days, let alone the average eight hours.

Languidly, she swung her willowy legs out of her bed and got up, stretching as she did so. It was a warm night, which hadn't exactly helped the situation either. She glanced enviously at the other girls in her dormitory, all sleeping soundly, their duvets hugged tightly to them. They were lucky…they didn't have half the worries she did.

Ginny didn't confide in many people for various reasons. For one thing, she didn't really trust any of the other sixth year Gryffindor girls to keep a secret. They were friendly enough, but Ginny didn't feel like she could truly confide in them and hope that they could keep what she told them quiet.

The other reason that was firmly fixed in her subconscious was that the last time she'd truly confided in somebody, she'd almost ended up dead.

She tried not to think about her first year too much; it was a part of her life that she'd sooner have forgot, but often came to haunt her memories and dreams. She hadn't been able to sleep for weeks, months after. That high-pitched laugh, ringing in her ears, taunting her from afar…she still had nightmares now.

Even Hermione didn't know everything. True, Ginny had told her about Neville, Harry, even the beginning of her periods…but never about Tom. Tom had bent her to his will, had made her set that Basilisk on her classmates…her friends. Hermione could have been dead by now, and it would have been her fault.

Ginny dismissed the thought quickly from her mind. She'd been stupidly naïve to trust a complete stranger. But at least nobody was dead as a result of it. She didn't think she'd have been able to cope if there had.

She glanced at the clock on her bedside table. One o'clock in the morning. With a sudden feeling of impatience and frustration, she flung her sheets and duvet away from her, and stood up. She had to get out of here. Where, she didn't know.

She picked up her bathrobe and wrapped it around herself, and tiptoed carefully to the door of the dormitory, opening it gingerly so as not to make a noise. One of the girls stirred slightly as the door creaked a little, and Ginny squeezed through the gap, not wanting to wake anybody else.

She tiptoed down the stairs, into the empty Gryffindor common room, and through the portrait hole.

"And where might you be going, Virginia?"

Ginny swung round to see the Fat Lady glancing questioningly at her. Damn! She'd forgotten all about her.

"I can't sleep," she said, truthfully. "I just wanted a bit of fresh air away from the dormitory."

The Fat Lady nodded, satisfied, and Ginny breathed a soft sigh of relief. She hadn't realised how risky sneaking out was. How Harry, Ron and Hermione managed it, she didn't know.

But she stopped thinking about that. Thinking of Harry only served to make her miserable now. Normally she'd have wanted any excuse to think about him. But she knew she couldn't have him, and that was what hurt the most.

She padded softly down the stairs, and stopped at the bottom. Where should she go? She could go out in the grounds, like she had done that evening. It was a warm night and she needn't stay out for long if she didn't want to.

Her mind made up, she slipped down a little side passage. She couldn't go out of the main doors at this time of night. It'd be safer to use one of the side doors instead.

She opened the door cautiously, and sighed in relief as the cool night air washed over her. As she stepped outside, she realised she wasn't wearing any shoes or slippers. But she didn't care; it wasn't cold and she wasn't going to be outside for long.

She made her way down towards the lake, the moonlight illuminating her figure, throwing it into soft silhouette against the inky skyline. She could see the giant squid propelling itself across the lake, its huge tentacles visible above the water's surface.

She sat at the water's edge for some time, sad eyes fixed upon the stars. She'd seen so many shooting stars in her nocturnal strolls, and had wished for so much. She'd wished for Harry so many times, and had waited in eager hope for the older boy to notice her.

And yet, she was never rewarded. But she never gave up hope; she would cling to it desperately in the hope that one day, something might happen…that Harry would view her in a different light.

A star suddenly shot across the skyline, startling Ginny slightly. The night had been so still that the sudden movement had startled her.

"All I wanted was to be loved," she murmured miserably, her eyes still fixated upon the moving star. She turned her head away slightly, trying to blink away the sudden tears.

There's no point moping about it, hissed a spiteful voice at the back of her mind. Harry probably doesn't even find you attractive.

Ginny hated that spiteful voice. Mainly because it was her own thoughts. And she didn't want to admit them to herself. She'd sooner carry on kidding herself, thinking that there could be a chance for her and him.

She gasped in terror as a firm hand clasped hold of her shoulder, and swung her round to face the opposite direction.

It was Professor Snape.

* * * * * * * *

"So, Miss Weasley," said Snape, closing his office door. "I catch you out of bounds yet again. Tell me, what do I have to do to make you understand? What do I have to say to you to impress upon you the seriousness of such an offence? You know yourself the dangers. Or is this perhaps just a pathetic demonstration of your childish insolence?"

Ginny stared miserably at the floor, unable to answer for tears welling up in her eyes. Snape clicked impatiently and sat in his chair opposite Ginny.

"Well?" he continued. "I'm waiting for an answer, Miss Weasley. Why were you out of bounds yet again? And at one thirty in the morning, no less?"

"You wouldn't understand," whispered Ginny, miserably. "You don't care. You just want to take points from Gryffindor."

Snape was surprised at the girl's frankness. It seemed there was a lot to be said for Gryffindor courage.

"I just want to know why you were wandering the grounds at one thirty in the morning," he said. "As I told you only several hours ago, Miss Weasley, it is not safe to be alone at night wandering the grounds. Plus the fact it is breaking school rules."

"I needed to be alone," she said, softly. "If you knew, you'd understand."

Snape's eyes widened slightly in an expression of surprise. "Knew what, Miss Weasley?"

"Like I say, you wouldn't understand," she repeated, her coppery hair tumbling in front of her face, obscuring her expression from Snape. She heard him get up, and started in shock as she felt a hand brush ever so slightly against her face, tucking her hair behind her ears. He returned to his chair behind his desk, and looked at Ginny.

"I do like to see who I'm talking to," he said, dryly. Ginny smiled slightly at the comment, then realised exactly what she was smiling at. Dear Lord. She was smiling at something Professor Snape had said. And it hadn't felt bad when he'd pushed her hair behind her ears, either. It had felt quite…nice.

"So, am I to find out exactly why you were wandering the grounds past midnight?" he continued, his dark eyes fixated upon Ginny's.

"I'm sorry, Professor," said Ginny, meekly. "It won't happen again."

"And yet, you assured me of that the last time it happened," replied Snape, feeling impatient. "Twenty points from Gryffindor and a detention."

Ginny started to her feet in alarm. "Professor…please…"

"No arguments." He waved his hand towards the door. "Eight o'clock tomorrow night. No excuses."

Ginny stared at him, dumbstruck. "But…"

"You may go, Miss Weasley," he said curtly, not looking at her. Ginny bowed her head slightly and retreated from the room, closing the door softly behind her.

Snape sighed in frustration and pushed his hands despairingly through his hair. He couldn't let that happen again. But when he'd touched her, she hadn't flinched away from him. It was a long time since he'd had intimate contact with a woman. What if this was his chance for happiness at last?

Stop it, he told himself firmly. She's your student, for goodness' sake! She's what, twenty years younger than you?

But she was attractive; not stunningly so, and not so that people would be naturally struck by it. It was more in an unobtrusive manner; she had a simplistic beauty about her that made her attractive. He wished he hadn't noticed it now. He'd never be able to do anything about his feelings because of the situation; he was a teacher, and she his student. She probably wouldn't be interested in him anyway. Ha! The very thought was laughable. Him? Yes, that was right…the 'ugly duckling' of the family. Bless Cousin Ophelia's black humour, he thought wryly to himself.

Oh, he knew what everybody called him. Greasy, cruel, sarcastic, to name but a few. Greasy wasn't strictly fair to him anyway…his hair was naturally oily and working in the environment that he did didn't exactly help the matter. Anyway, was it any of their business? Had he ever cared about their asinine opinions before? Teachers weren't supposed to care, anyway. He had a job to do, and personal feelings didn't come into it. That was all there was to it.

* * * * * * * *

Ginny felt miserable as she made her way back to the Gryffindor common room. Twenty points from Gryffindor and a detention? How could he? How she could have thought that Professor Snape was mellowing was beyond her now. Hateful, nasty…

Now you don't mean that, said the voice at the back of her mind. You like him really, don't you?

Ginny pushed the thought firmly out of her mind. Of course she didn't. He was her teacher, for Merlin's sake! He was also a nasty, sarcastic, cruel…

She found herself unable to finish the sentence. Did he really deserve that? After all, she had been out of bounds…and after curfew as well. He'd been quite lenient with her, considering all that. And…dear Circe…the way he'd touched her that night had been enough to melt away the bitter resentment she held towards him. She'd never imagined him to be so gentle, nor to be able to touch somebody so tenderly, almost like a lover would. She shivered at the recollection.

But he probably didn't mean anything by it, she told herself firmly. She was probably just reading too much into it.

All the same though, she wasn't looking forward to her detention. At least two hours in a freezing cold dungeon with Snape, probably doing some sort of gruesome task. Neville had told Ginny before of Snape's ideas of punishment; disembowelling a barrel full of horned toads. He'd still had intestines under his nails a week after.

It wasn't a prospect that Ginny found attractive at all.