A/N- Yay, people like me!! XD so thanks to these spiffing folks:

Trancos (I loff your story!! Write more!! :D thanks so much for the reviews!) Tupper a million times (wow, serious reviewer here! Thanks for putting all that time in!) Aelys (so glad you like!) Star Dust (dude, longest review award- you rock!) Midnight Muse (^_^ yay! Tears are good! Teeheehee…) and fEEdLestEEx (Action coming, just you wait!).  You guys make my day!  

Random note- I saw the always-spiffy Jodie over break, and guess what?? SHE DREW ME A DRACO!!! XD He is SO hott! As soon as I can get it on a site of some sort I'll put in the URL for the pic.

Anyway, on with the story!

Chapter 7

Over the next several weeks, Amara slowly recovered from Danny's death.  She was still sad, and not as inclined to smile as she had been, but she no longer looked quite so pale and wan.  Ginny was becoming convinced it was at least partially due to Harry's growing friendship with her; the handsome young man had made a point of being around her more often, and when Amara seemed ready to break down, it was Harry as often as Katie and Ginny that held and comforted her while she cried. 

One day during breakfast, Amara got a small package from home.  When she opened it, her eyes widened, then filled with tears, though she wore a sad little half-smile.  She sniffed and wiped her eyes, then showed it to Katie, who was sitting next to her; the other girl seemed slightly startled, to Ginny's concerned gaze, but she looked up and waved Ginny over.

When she got to the Ravenclaw table, she noticed that the package was a piece of sheet music.  "What's that?" she asked curiously.

Amara smiled through her tears again and handed her the music; it was a four-part arrangement of "Danny Boy" for women's' voices.  "It was Danny's favorite one- the girls' choir at his school did it at a concert once and he couldn't stop raving about it."  She chuckled a little and wiped her eyes again.  "His mum sent it- she figured I'd like a copy 'just to see what he was babbling about.'" Ginny and Katie smiled back at her- it was good to see her remembering the good times. 

Amara narrowed her eyes for a second, thinking fast.  "What is it?" Katie asked.  She didn't answer for a second, then smiled again and shook her head. 

"Do you want to go riding after class?" she suggested, changing the subject.  Her friends' eyes lit up as they nodded eagerly; they were forming extremely close bonds with their mounts, and they always relished a chance to spend time with them.  As the three chattering young women walked out of the Great Hall, they did not go unwatched…

*   *   *

That afternoon, Draco sighed contentedly as he brushed Aurea's golden sides.  I can't remember being this… I don't know, non-stressed, in so long.  His quiet smile slipped from his face as he remembered.  Since Mum died.

Ever since Draco had been a small child, his mother had been the only one to love him unconditionally; she had protected him from his father's rages, sometimes at risk to herself.  Draco's brows drew together and he unconsciously brushed harder as he thought back to the number of times his mother had had to cast concealment charms before she went out anywhere.  The brush strokes came faster and faster as his eyes began to burn.

When his arms began to ache and tremble, he dropped the brush and leaned against Aurea's neck, crying silently into her shoulder as she nuzzled him gently.  He didn't know how long he stood there, but he started as a hand touched his shoulder suddenly.  He spun quickly to see Ginny Weasley backing up nervously. 

"What are you doing here?" he asked nastily, hurriedly wiping the tears away, trying to make it look like he simply had something in his eyes.  She bit her lip, then stepped forward again, eyes filled with pity.

No!  Can't let her see me cry!  He thought, panicked and unwilling to admit it.  "What, Weasley, thought you'd 'comfort' the future Death Eater?  'Turn him to the light?'" he sneered and drew closer to her, towering over her and trying to be as intimidating as he could- which was very.  He'd had practice, after all.  "You've certainly got another thing coming."

The startled girl scowled at him determinedly.  "Draco, I never automatically assumed you would follow in your bloody father's footsteps.  You're trying to intimidate me," and it's working, "But I know something's really wrong!"  She stopped and looked up at him, his face white and frozen.  "Tell me," she pleaded softly, taking one of his cold, unresisting hands in both of hers.  "I may not be able to help, but-"

Draco suddenly ripped his hand from Ginny's grasp and whirled, stalking wordlessly out of the dimly lit stable. 

Ginny sighed frustratedly and watched him leave, then went to put Aurea in the paddock with the rest of the herd.  "What in the world is with him?" she murmured quietly to the tall mare.  Aurea just snorted and shook her head until her ears flapped.  Ginny grinned lopsidedly.  "Exactly."

[A/N- WARNING- ANGST AND VIOLENCE DEAD AHEAD!]

As Draco stormed away, he was barely able to keep his burning eyes from filling again.  Starting to lose the hopeless battle, he changed course slightly and sprinted towards the nearby forest.

After a few minutes' run, he broke into a small clearing with a rock in the center.  As he leaned his back against it, he felt himself start to shake uncontrollably and buried his head in his hands to let his lingering grief run its course again.  Images flashed through his head, no matter how hard he tried to make them go away.

*His mother standing surrounded by his father's cronies, white-faced and trembling, trying to hide it-*

*His father sneering in response to its questions.  Yes, my Lord.  I'm not sure… yes, you're right.  That's exactly it.  A cruel smile.  What a marvelous idea, my Lord…*

*Himself, standing apart from the circle but still restricted by it.  What?  What was he saying?*

*Mum-*

*The Circle, shouting curses-*

*Her, screaming-* *His father, laughing insanely-*

*It, doing something- what? Something- more-*

*Always screaming-*

He flinched, curling up into a little ball of quivering nerves as his memories, imprinted indelibly on his mind, continued in their rampage to the inevitable conclusion…

*Mum, reaching a bloodied out to him as he screamed for her- Father wielding the long knife- a more horrible shriek than the ones before- longer, louder, more agonized-* *Silence-*

Draco convulsed once as she had done, then relaxed slightly as he toppled over onto his side.  His face felt scalded by the hot tears pouring down in molten rivers, and he pounded the earth beneath him in impotent rage.

*   *   *

"Are you sure?  This is not something to be taken lightly, my dear."  The voice was cold and hard, but velvet smooth.

"Oh, yes, sir," the other answered eagerly.  "It would be quite easy- and wouldn't it make a splendid impression on those fools?"

"It would, indeed," the velvety one mused.  The voice paused, thinking, then spoke again in a very satisfied tone.  "I believe My Lord will very much enjoy your little idea.  We shall have to find something- quite original, though.  After all, we can't have those idiots fixing everything as soon as it happens, now can we?"

*   *   *

On Wednesday, Ginny looked out the window to the cold, overcast day outside.  She sighed, which drew the attention of Katie and Amara, who sat next to her in the small alcove off the main halls.  "What's up?" Katie asked softly.

"It's the end of November!  Where's the snow?" she asked rhetorically. [A/N- I don't know how early Scotland would get snow, but I'm pretending it's a little earlier than we do in New England, which is sometime in December, usually.]

Amara sat up and calculated something for a moment.  "Hey, tomorrow's Thanksgiving!" she exclaimed, smiling.  The other girls looked at each other, then back at Amara with raised eyebrows.  Amara grinned at their confusion.  "My mum's American, remember?  She always makes a big turkey dinner on the last Thursday of the month, which is Thanksgiving."  The girls nodded wisely, then shrugged at each other as Amara chuckled at them.

"Your mum's batty," Katie said, grinning.

"This has been established," Amara shot back as Ginny stifled a giggle. 

"Hey, at least she helped both of us control the mops on our heads that pass for hair!" the girls heard from down the hall.  They turned to see Harry and Hermione strolling towards them.  Amara flushed just slightly; Ginny was the only one who noticed, so she stored the information away for future teasing.

Until the previous summer, Ginny's hair had been as wild as Hermione's- Amara's mother (who had hair as vivid as Ginny's and even a bit curlier than either of them) had given Ginny an ample supply of Muggle hair supplies to help tame the frizzy, curly masses.  Hermione and Ginny now sported long, shiny curls that currently fascinated a number of students who randomly came up behind them and started playing with the springy locks. [A/N- welcome to my world ^_^]

Ginny just grinned at the two older students.  "Are you guys going out riding later?" Amara asked a bit breathlessly.  Ginny's grin grew wider.

Harry made an indecisive grimace as he moved to stand between Ginny and Amara.  "It's awfully cold- don't know if Onyx would want to move from his nice warm stall."

Ginny laughed and punched his arm lightly.  "You mean you're not sure if you want to get a bit chilled.  Oh, poor young Mr. Potter," she taunted, grinning.  "Doesn't want to take the risk of getting a- gasp- cold!"

The other girls laughed hysterically as Harry pounced on Ginny and got her in a headlock, messing up her hair.  He finally let her go, everyone breathless with laughter, and they all moved down the hallway to the Great Hall for lunch.

*   *   *

Draco's eyes narrowed as he watched the group tease each other.  He flushed as an familiar emotion- jealousy- coursed through his veins.  His sight seemed to narrow to Ginny and Harry; How dare he touch her?  She's mine!  He shook himself at that thought- Dangerous ground, lad.  If Lucius-the-bloody-wanker could hear you now…

He shook himself with an unhappy frown and moved down the hallway after the Golden Gryffs and their giddy friends. 

*   *   *

Late that night, Ginny stole on silent feet out to the stables; anyone watching (that could see her) would have marveled at how expertly she kept to the shadows.  She half-smiled as she remembered Fred and George teaching her "the fine art of sneaking" as they had called it- they had been so proud of her, and utterly amazed at how good she had gotten over the past few years.  Even Harry, with his much-vaunted Invisibility Cloak, couldn't match her as long as there were plenty of shadows around.  She knew how to move literally without a sound- and with the ancient castle's occasionally creaky floors, that was quite an accomplishment.  She had dodged Filch (and more importantly, Mrs. Norris) several times in her stay at Hogwarts, simply by being absolutely silent and keeping to the darker places. 

When she finally made it out to the small stable Hagrid had erected, she breathed a sigh of sheer relief; it had been truly nerve-wracking to make a mad dash across the moon-drenched field.  She walked down the aisle to Aestus's stall, and the big stallion poked his head out over the door, eyes still sleepy. 

"Aww, did I wake you?" she asked quietly, scratching the base of his horn gently as he blew softly into her other palm.  "I couldn't sleep, so I decided to visit you.  And look!" she cried softly, pointing out his back window to the paddock beyond.  "Snow!"

Indeed, millions of flakes were quietly drifting down to the ground, already coating it with a light dusting.  Aestus whuffed again and nudged her shoulder a bit more energetically.  She chuckled and obediently opened the half-door to lead him out and down the aisle.  She walked him quietly past Hagrid's cabin to the small clearing that was just out of sight of the castle.

Ginny stood beside her faithful friend for several long minutes, alternately staring up at the sky and closing her eyes to feel the tickle of snowflakes hitting her skin.  "Butterfly kisses…" she said, half under her breath.

"What?" a voice said from quite nearby.  She started and whirled to see Draco, hands in the pockets of his Muggle-looking (what??) fleece and snow in his hair.  Aestus snorted a greeting and the young man smiled at him briefly.  "What were you saying?" he repeated to Ginny, softer this time. 

"The snow…" she said, flushing slightly and looking away.  "It feels like butterfly kisses."  She half held her breath, expecting Draco to make a cutting remark, especially after the way he had talked to her last time- but she looked up a moment later to see him smiling gently at her.  Not for the first time, she marveled at how different he looked without that Malfoy Sneer™ disfiguring his face. 

He moved a little closer to her, then looked up at the sky.  He sighed and smiled again as he closed his eyes.  "It really does," he said softly, then chuckled under his breath.  "Look what you've done to me, I'm agreeing with you on something as silly as that."  It didn't sound disgruntled at all; rather, he was actually teasing her gently.  Ginny smiled wider, then turned her own face to the clouds again. 

"I suppose blizzards are all very dramatic," she said a few moments later, keeping her eyes closed.  "But there's something very… restful about a quiet snowfall that just tucks the world into bed."

"…Beautiful," he said, half to himself, a moment later.  Ginny opened her eyes and turned to him to find him staring, not at the snow-filled sky- but at her.

Her breath caught in her throat as he slowly, gracefully closed the distance between them.  He lifted a hand to touch the side of her face, then slowly lowered his lips to hers in a gentle kiss that warmed her from the inside.

A/N- awwww!! Totally fluffy and clichéd, I know, but I couldn't help myself ^_^ Anyway- see, Draco can occasionally be sweet too!  Though he might be a bit jealous… we'll have to see what happens with that, now won't we? ^_^ anyway, see the little button??

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