Apologies, apologies. We've gotten a tad lazy there [just a tad?]. We apologize? Ahaha?

But we're working on it! Yes! And we do know where this is going! So someday, we will update again! [we refuse to specify dates, as that would be jinxish…]

Disclaimer:  We do not own The Harry Potter characters or universities mentioned or orchestral music mentioned, but the violin is ours. [smile.]

~!~

Professor Lupin's classroom was a wide, lofty area. The sun's light streamed in from tall windows so there was no need of artificial lighting. There was a tall blackboard at one end and across from it, a number of desks that were arranged in a sort of awkward pattern that suggested there was no pattern. The people sitting at the desks chatted amiably with each other, quite at ease in the room, even if the professor had been among them. On this day though, it seemed that the professor was just the teeniest bit late, and the professor was rarely late, if ever.

"Good morning, everyone! How were the holidays?" Remus strode into the room, smiling brightly at his students. "Terribly sorry I'm late. I was talking with a guest speaker I've invited today and lost track of time." Remus set down his notebooks and turned to his class of twenty-three students. He swept his eyes casually over the young men and women, and his smile widened imperceptibly as he saw his godson [in all but name], Harry James Potter. The black haired boy grinned back at him from his seat at one of the too-small desks.

Remus had been initially surprised when after the Dark Lord's defeat, Harry had simply decided to quit Auror training and go back to Muggle college, but he couldn't say he was displeased. His current job allowed him to spend much more time with James and Lily's son than otherwise.

A girl in the second row raised her hand.

"What kind of guest speaker?" she asked curiously.

"I've invited a music professor, the son of a very old acquaintance of mine, to come talk about music. I know," he continued, holding up a hand to stop the girl's question. "Ms. Branley, that this is a literature class, but I figured we might as well try a different approach to learning."

Sara Branley put her hand down, and reluctantly smiled back at the professor. He in turn chuckled before taking role [roll?].

Just as he finished checking off the last person, there was a knock on the door, and he called out a welcome. The door opened slowly, and the students all leaned forward in their desks, curious to see their guest lecturer. Clear, sharp footsteps sounded in a casual pattern, and then stopped for a moment. There was a small scuffle, and they heard two voices, a low, drawling one and a higher, sharp feminine voice.

"Hurry up, don't drag you feet."

"Well, stop affecting that pose. You look ridiculous."

"It makes me look intimidating and suave. What would you know? Stand up straight yourself, chin up!"

"Go in already!"

And with that, an irritated Draco Malfoy and a glaring Ginny Weasley entered the classroom.

Almost immediately, the entire class' jaws dropped.

'Oh my,' Sara Branley thought, along with the fifteen other girls. 'Oh my oh my oh my!"

Draco was wearing a gray suit with a black tie and polished leather shoes. His silver hair was covered with an ash-colored velour hat. Gray eyes that matched the hat looked sharply at his female counterpart, Ginny, who was looking pretty, but rather too formal in a black ankle-length skirt and white silk blouse with rhinestone buttons. Her fly away curls were for once under control and tied back with a blue ribbon and she was holding a black violin case.

For a second, there was absolute silence in the classroom, and then, very loudly, and very incredulously, a voice broke it.

"Ginny?!"

The red head broke her glaring contest with her teacher and turned to look at the speaker with astonishment.

"Harry!"

"And…is that…Malfoy?! Good God. It is you." Harry looked like a child having gotten a dictionary for a Christmas present.

"Potter." Draco's voice sounded as enthusiastic as a flobberworms'. He and Harry exchanged mutual looks of dislike.

"Harry, do sit down. Class, may I introduce you to Professor Draco Malfoy- Harry, do not snort- of Julliard's and his student Ms. Ginny Weasley." Lupin sat down behind his chair, looking extremely pleased with himself, and for a second, Ginny wanted to growl at him.

Draco seemed unperturbed by Harry's presence though, and after greeting the class, smoothly launched into an improvised speech. Meanwhile, Ginny stood to the side, letting her mind wander around. She didn't really know why she was here; she would have much rather been at home keeping a careful eye on Ron, but Draco had insisted that she was vital to his speech. So clueless, but secretly flattered that he'd admitted a need for her, Ginny had consented to come. She watched him out of the corner of her eye as he spoke smoothly of his topic. He'd thrown his jacket over the back of his chair and had rolled up his sleeves, giving him almost an informal but "cool" look. Ginny bit her lip as she realized how much he reminded her of a member of the Italian mafia, with his slick hair and smooth attitude. Any moment now, and a cigarette would appear dangling from his lips and he'd say in a thick Italian accent…

"Ginny!"

Ginny jumped, surprised. Draco was quirking an eyebrow at her and was motioning to her violin.

"Would you play the Rimsky-Korsakov for the class? The simplified version would be fine."

Nodding, Ginny knelt and took out her violin and her bow. She placed the violin under her chin and while Draco gave her an "A", she mock-tuned the strings. Actually, neither she nor Draco trusted her ear, but it would do good to play-act a bit.

Finally, she began playing in earnest the memorized piece. It had been a piece she'd played three weeks into her studies, and she knew it quite well. The song was a simplified 'Young Prince and Princess' and had a beautiful tune. Ginny played it quite confidently. It was one of her favorite melodies, and she'd worked hard on it. When she finished, she bowed slightly as the class clapped and bent to put away her violin when her teacher stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't put it away yet," he instructed her, and then continued to talk to the class. "Now, my student here has only been learning for about a month and a week. The piece she just played is from a symphonic suite called 'Scheherazade', which outlines the story of Arabian Nights. It is called 'The Young Prince and Princess,' and illustrates the romance and the emotions of a young couple. However, could any of you get that feeling from what Ginny just played?"

Uncertainly, some of the class shook their heads while others nodded.

"No, you cannot. My student has not yet learned to play with feeling," Draco said a tad bit more sarcastically than was called for. Ginny positively glared at him. "From her playing, you cannot tell the rioting emotions, the raw yearning, the sad, sweet love that this couple exchanged. No! You can only derive that maybe-just maybe- these people had a sort of complicated relationship," Draco continued, gleefully ignoring Ginny's boiling glare, Harry's shocked anger, and Lupin's head-shaking. He turned to Ginny and took the violin and bow.

"This is usually how the music would sound, had it been played as Mr. Rimsky-Korsakov had intended," Draco announced before he began to play the song.

Ginny wanted to refuse to listen. She wanted to ignore him and concentrate on boring a hole through the back of his head, but then he had to go and play.

And it wasn't just a song anymore, it seemed. It wasn't a just song; it was…it was everything else that mattered. Ginny noticed vaguely that Draco was sticking to the simplified version, but it didn't make a difference. His face had changed as he played. His eyes became half-lidded and dreamy; his back, if possible, even straighter, yet still his posture seemed natural. The whole atmosphere of the room seemed to change and warp around him to suit the music that he produced, music that he gently coaxed out of each string and glide of the bow.

Clearly, Ginny's mind began to understand 'The Young Prince and Princess'. She saw the two lovers together; she saw their struggle, their love and passion for each other, and the turmoil they went through. Drawn out by the music, all sorts of emotions surfaced Ginny as she listened. Each high note produced a thrill, each musical phrase moved her so, each glide filled her with such longing, and Ginny was not surprised when a tear near fell from her eyes. And too soon, the beauty ended into one lost, hopeful note that drifted into a riveting silence.

Quietly, almost subdued, Draco lowered the instrument, deliberately ignorant of the shocked and moved faces surrounding him.

"That…is what music is supposed to be."

~!~

A/N:

Hm… that felt really short…

Oh well.

Thanks to:

Laverne de Montmorency [if you do someday learn the bagpipe, drop us a note!!], Meadow A[wishing you a long and happy stay at ff.net~], SamiJo [they show this movie is speech class? Dude, maybe I(mindo) should take that class…], Anndy Malfoy [wah! Had no intention of smearing your venerable half! .;; sorry~], Aahz [didya watch it yet? Didya? And wow, that's a crazy coincidence!], and Airiya [we honestly didn't try to make Ginny that stupid…just…er… strange… ^^;;]

Dank~