Disclaimer and Author's Notes: see last chapter, I'm lazy today.
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Ginny rummaged through her robe pockets and unearthed a few more coins. Triumphantly, she dropped them in her moneybag and slid onto the floor, along with everyone else sans Crabbe and Goyle. Fred and George seemed to have taken over this particular operation, kneeling side by side at the head of the circle with a large, empty moneybag and some parchment.
"Does anyone have a quill?" George asked to the group. Everyone shook their heads, but then Pansy squealed and happily brought out a midnight black quill from her pocket, handing it to George. He nodded at her and then there was a thoughtful pause before he started writing. When he was finished, he folded it carefully and dropped it in the moneybag. "Now, I'm going to pass around the parchment and quill and you write down a question…make them sort of serious at least, or we'll never get out of here." Everyone agreed and got comfortable in their positions. Around the circle it went: George, Fred, Hermione, Ron, Harry, Ginny, Draco, and Pansy. This meant of course, that Ginny had turned some sort of permanent lobster red. Hermione waited patiently as Fred wrote down his question and pulled off her jumper, revealing her to only be wearing a white tank top underneath. Thankfully, no one noticed the look of apparent disbelief Ron wore. Ginny saw Hermione and decided it was a very good idea, as it was starting to get uncomfortably hot in there, and took off her robes and jumper, throwing them behind her on the seats. She too was only wearing a tank top, but hers was a forest green. Pansy saw Draco's eyes widen and then flick away to the floor and her eyes narrowed.
"Done," Fred said happily, dropping his in the moneybag and handing the moneybag to Hermione. This went on until it had gone to Pansy, who was last. She handed the bag to George and leaned back, still scowling at Draco darkly.
"Right then!" George said in triumph, taking the bag from Pansy and putting it in the middle next to the Sneakoscope. Who's going first?" Silence. "Oh come on!" he said impatiently, waiting. There was a sigh, and then-
"Fine, I'll go."
"That a boy Harry!" Fred said in delight, handing him the bag. "All right then, take out a question!" Harry rolled his eyes and stuck his hand in the bag, finally taking out a small piece of parchment. He opened it and read the neat handwriting with apprehension.
If there is one person you'd really like to slowly torture and then kill in this carriage, who would it be?
Everyone waited impatiently as he gulped. "Well what does it say?" Hermione asked with annoyance. He read it out loud.
"Right then, bets in for those who want them!" Fred said cheerily, taking out two gold coins. "Two Galleons on Malfoy!" Draco smirked.
George snorted. "One Galleon on Ginny." Ginny's jaw dropped.
"What?!?" George ignored her.
Hermione took five Sickles out. "Five Sickles on Crabbe." No one looked confused or surprised at the name. Ginny spoke up.
"4 Galleons on nobody. Well, what's the answer then Harry?" Harry looked up. He thought hard.
"Erm….I guess Malfoy."
"Brill!" Fred exclaimed, starting to take the other's coins, when the Sneakoscope went off. Fred stopped dead. Harry looked at it, startled.
"Oh. Well then, maybe…oh blast it; I couldn't do that to someone, even Malfoy!" They watched the Sneakoscope. It had stopped squeaking, and everyone looked at Ginny who was grinning.
"Cough it up then!" Mumbling to themselves, they handed her their money and she put it in her bag.
"Of course. Perfect Potter, not wanting to cause ill harm to anyone," Draco muttered, crossing his arms. Harry rolled his eyes and chose to ignore it.
"All right," said Ron, breaking the silence, "Who's next?"
"How about you Weasel?" Pansy said looking at her index fingernail, bored. Ron shrugged.
"Why not?" He grabbed the bag and stuck his hand inside almost roughly, and came out with a larger piece of parchment. He looked at it, trying to decipher the messy handwriting. Fred looked at him.
"Need help with that?" Ron nodded gratefully and handed it to him, reading it out loud.
Who do you think in this carriage is would be most likely to be the best Playwizard model?
Ron went ghost white as everyone else snorted. "Who wrote that one?!?" he asked furiously. George looked up at the ceiling whistling innocently. "You-"
"Oh come on Ron it's not a big deal!" Hermione said, laughing nonetheless. "Just answer the question and then…and then I will!" Ron groaned but agreed.
"OK, fine. Erm…" He was turning a very lovely shade of fire engine red by now.
"Wait wait bets!" Fred said in utter delight. "Oh I forgot how much I love these questions!" Ron scowled deeper than ever, but everyone ignored him as they took out their money.
"10 Galleons on Granger," Draco said, throwing the 10 gold coins on the floor. Hermione went purple, and Ginny started giggling shrilly.
"5 Galleons on Pansy," Harry said, tossing his on the floor too, and mouthing an apology to Ron who was looking murderous. All of a sudden Ginny burst out laughing and they all turned to her, astonished.
"Who do you think then Gin?" She clamped her hand to her mouth and tossed ten silver coins on the floor before they heard a barely audible 'Malfoy' come out. There was a shocked pause before they all burst out laughing again, partly at how hysterical Ginny was and how thunderstruck Ron was. Draco was torn between scowling and laughing.
"GINNY!!!!!!" he bellowed. She shook her head apologetically and turned so that she wouldn't laugh at the look on his face.
"Well then Ronniekins," George cut in, chuckling, "what's your answer then?"
"Pansy! Pansy all right?" he said, looking around at them all and mentally blowing them apart. Just as Pansy started to look very smug, the Sneakoscope went off again. "Oh no, now what?!?" Ron said in exasperation looking at the spinning top.
"Just admit it Ron, you want to see Malfoy in the magazine now don't you?" Hermione said grinning mischievously. Ron's face contorted in disgust.
"Oh that's sick-fine then. Hermione!" The Sneakoscope stopped and Hermione's jaw dropped.
"What, wait excuse me?" she spluttered, too shocked to go through with her earlier promise of taking her turn after him. Draco swept up all of the coins smirking broadly. Ginny saw the terrified look on Ron's face and she grabbed the bag.
"All right, I'm not going now but who will?" she interrupted, looking around. There was only a second of hesitation before Draco took it from her impatiently.
"I will. For God's sakes, I just want to get out of here and go on with my life!" Everyone gaped as he took out a piece of parchment glaring at them all and read it out loud without really absorbing what it said:
If you're a girl: which guy in here would you most like to have as your boyfriend? If you're a guy: same thing, but out of the girls and girlfriend?
Everyone looked at him warily and he read it over twice again, before scowling. "For the love of- "
"Go on then Malfoy," Harry said, grinning. "Which one is it? Bachelorette number 1, 2 or 3?" He motioned to the girls, Ginny and Hermione looking utterly repulsed and Pansy looking hopeful. Draco snarled.
"Whoever wrote this question, I swear I'll-"
"Shut it already and answer the bloody question!" Pansy said, breathless with anticipation. Draco looked down at her and shrugged.
"All right then. Pansy."
The Sneakoscope went off with a loud and shrill scream of disagreement. Everyone's jaws dropped.
"Not Pansy?" Ron said his voice dangerously low. "So help me God Malfoy, your last choices are my best friend and my little sister…"
Draco's usually indifferent expression was panicked and everyone saw it. "What Ferret, scared?" Draco's head snapped up at Harry's comment.
"No way."
"Then give us the right answer!" They glared at each other for a minute before Draco sighed and leaned against the wall again.
"Er…Granger?" In the second that Hermione looked utterly and totally revolted and that Ron lunged at Malfoy, hands outstretched and Fred and George both flung their hands out to stop him, the Sneakoscope kept on whistling. Ron stopped; Hermione looked confused, and Ginny went pale as she realized what that meant. Draco went even paler than usual, and Pansy's eyes narrowed into dangerous little slits. Draco's undeniably panicked voice came through the silence. "It's faulty. The bloody thing's broken! You all, out of anyone, know that I wouldn't date anyone out of Slytherin!" Harry raised an eyebrow.
"This thing's been pretty accurate so far. So…you want a go with Gin?" It looked like he was trying to hold back laughter. Ginny narrowed her eyes at the expression on Harry's face.
"Maybe he does. So I've grown. Just because you haven't noticed doesn't mean he hasn't!" Harry looked shocked at the outburst.
"I wasn't saying that at all, I was just saying-"
"Oh yes. You were 'just saying'. Everyone 'just says'. But after years upon years of trying to get everyone to notice me, no one believes I can get any sort of positive attention whatsoever! This is bull." Harry looked at Ron and mouthed 'what's her problem?'. Ron shrugged, and both Draco and Ginny saw it. They both scowled, and as Ginny opened her mouth to say something, Draco beat her to it.
"I'm a Malfoy, and Malfoys don't lust after Weasleys," Ginny's face fell, "but let's say I did, for argument's sake." His tone was completely unconvincing, and Hermione tilted her head slightly. "What kind of a difference would that make? I mean, you've basically had her for you to enjoy all this time and you never took advantage of the situation, so I reckon you'd deserve to have a great git like me come and sweep her off of her feet then, eh?" Ron bellowed with rage and leapt where Draco was sitting. Draco smirked and rolled over out of the way; Ron went crashing into the wall.
"Ow…" Hermione ran over.
"Are you all right?" she asked anxiously, lifting up his head. Draco was smirking very largely now, and didn't notice that he had rolled over into Ginny's lap. She looked down and went scarlet.
"Err….Malfoy? If you don't mind?" Draco's eyes looked up and a pink tinge came into his pale cheeks. He sprang up as though electrocuted.
"Watch it Weasley."
She smirked a tiny bit. "Ah, but I wasn't the one who said you'd go out with me eh? Tell me Draco, when did that come into play?" He smirked right back.
"And since when do you call me Draco?" They both glared at each other, unaware of the audience they now had. Ginny shrugged and broke the joint glares.
"Since now I guess. Draco," she added for effect. He narrowed his eyes.
"Fine then. Ginny." And they both sat down on their heels angrily.
Fred raised an eyebrow. "Look you two, if you want to bonk so badly, who are we to stop you?" His mischievous grin was wiped off of his face when two very well aimed Galleons were chucked furiously at him.
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A/N: I know that was a cliché chapter, Truth or Dare and all that, but I think this was different. I think. Flame me if you think otherwise, I want to know. =)
~Raven Black~