Well I'm back! I know it's been a long time, but I've...been…busy. Yah that's it, lol. Well here's the chapter you've all been waiting for.

Thanks, hugs from afar, and imaginary chocolate Easter eggs to all my reviewers! (even though it's a several days after Easter, but meh)

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, or any of the material on which that story is based. I just want to write a fic! IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK?! (ok I'm calm now, lol)

Chapter 8: Hogsmeade part one

Potions was her last class on the day before the Hogsmeade trip. Draco sat in the desk across the row from her and Colin sat to her left. Snape was going on about the polyjuice potion, but Ginny already knew all about this potion from Hermione so found her mind wandering.

Ginny hadn't even talked to Draco since the incident in the Great Hall. Nor, for that matter, had she talked to Harry (who had suddenly seemed to have gone AWOL), but she didn't care about that, if no one else in the school was panicking, he was probably just staying in his room being all angsty.

But Draco she was worried about. She was beginning to wonder if his asking her to go to Hogsmeade with him had been for real, of if it was all just some cruel joke. On any other occasion she wouldn't have put it past the Slytherin's cunning and cruel demeanor to pull such a stunt. But he seemed to have changed over the few months that had passed since the beginning of the year.

"Miss Weasley do you really find my lecture's this boring?!" Snape shouted at her bringing her back from daydreaming. "10 points from Gryffindor, and although you are one of my most prized students Miss Weasley, I won't hesitate to give you a detention if I find you daydreaming again." Snape snapped.

Ginny grumbled and began to take notes off of Colin's parchment while Snape went on lecturing for the rest of the class.

"I want a scroll on the uses, ingredients, and legalities involved with the poly juice potion to be handed in at on Monday." Snape said at the end of the class. Everyone groaned as they grabbed their bags and headed out the door. Ginny felt someone slip a piece of parchment into her hand as they were leaving, but in the mad rush of students, wasn't able to make out who exactly it was that put it there. She opened the note and read it over.

Ginny,

Meet me in the hallway after dinner. We need to talk.

-Draco

Ginny read the note over just to make sure she read it right the first time. A feeling of nervousness took over the pit of her stomach.

She quickly went and put her bags in her dorm, and sat staring at the wall going through all the possible scenarios in her mind as to what the note could mean. None of which turned out good. Before she knew it, it was dinner. She rushed down to the great hall and sat down at the Gryffindor table with Colin and Tarah. Seeing that the food was already on the tables she began to aimlessly scoop mashed potatoes onto her plate. She glanced over at the Slytherin table, looking for a particular blonde. She saw him and he appeared to be in deep conversation with Pansy Parkinson. Ginny glared.

"What's up Gin?" Tarah asked, seeing the angry look on her friends face and following her gaze. Tarah smirked.

Ginny quickly averted her gaze back to her potatoes. Not seeing him glance in her direction.

"Gin, what's wrong?" Tarah said her voice filled with concern.

"Nothing, really. Just not hungry I guess." Ginny replied.

"Well than that's a lot of wasted food on your plate." said Colin as he looked hungrily at the growing mountain of mashed potatoes. Ginny blushed at her absentmindedness and pushed her plate in front of Colin who began to attack it.

"Seriously Colin, who would be able to tell you had a bottomless stomach from how slim you are."

"All in the…exercise Gin" Colin said between mouthfuls. Ginny looked across the room again just in time to see Draco turn his back on Pansy, who clearly hadn't finished talking to him. Pansy was pathetically trying to once again immerse Draco in their one sided conversation, but he shrugged her hand off his shoulder and turned around. It looked like he was yelling at her. He then got up and left. Ginny inwardly smirked.

"You know, I'm gonna head down to the library and get in some extra studying." She told her friends as she made to get up from the table.

"But Gin you haven't eaten anything yet." Tarah protested.

"And you've got …the whole weekend …to study." Colin added, still eating.

"I'm just not hungry right now. Don't worry; if I get hungry later, I know my way to the kitchens. And we're going to be spending all of tomorrow in Hogsmeade any way." Ginny put up a front by smiling. She knew that if Draco still wanted to go with her to Hogsmeade tomorrow, she had ruined everything by telling Tarah and Colin she would go with them.

She quickly tried to make up for lost ground. "And I have that scroll on polyjuice I have to do for Monday, so I don't think I'll able to stay in Hogsmeade for the whole day anyway." she said quickly. Tarah and Colin looked convinced and both gave her a quick nod before returning to their meals. Ginny quickly left to go find Draco.

She didn't have to go far. He was standing just outside the Great Hall leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets when Ginny found him.

"You said you wanted to talk?" she asked him, trying to keep the nervousness out of her voice and holding up the scrap of parchment as if it would enhance her point.

"Yah," Draco started, "about tomorrow." Ginny felt the bottom drop out of her stomach. She knew it had all been some cruel joke. There was a long awkward pause.

"What about tomorrow?" Ginny asked, finally breaking the silence.

"We shouldn't let people see us together. I know the effect it would have on my family, seeing as how my father's in cohorts with the dark lord and thinks that your family is lower than the dirt on his shoe."

"So it's back to a class thing, is it?" Ginny said furiously. "You won't go to Hogsmeade with me tomorrow, even though YOU were the one who asked me to go with you." She began closing the space between them pointing a finger in Draco's face.

"Ginny calm down, it's not like that."

"What do you mean it's not like that? It's plain as day that you think I'm too low of a bitch to be seen with you. Well you're not perfect Draco Malfoy…" Ginny's voice was rising with every word and she was on the verge of yelling when Draco put a hand over her mouth to keep her quiet.

"Quiet down! I said it's not like that. I mean think about it. Your parents wouldn't be too thrilled if they saw you with me either. Considering they hate everything to do with my family, and your brothers kind of have it in for me as it is. I haven't really been the nicest guy to them. I just think we should keep this…us…a little more of a secret." he said. Ginny immediately stopped trying to get his hand off her mouth and looked up at him.

"That's all you wanted to say?" she asked with relief.

"Pretty much yah."

"Oh." Ginny felt like the most untrusting and stupid person in the world. "Sorry. I thought it would be significantly worse."

"Really?" Draco said sarcastically. "I never would have guessed that at all, I mean you let me say everything I had to say, and you were perfectly calm. I never would have guess in a million years tha-"

"OK." Ginny cut him off. "I get the picture, I'm sorry. But it's kind of hard to go to Hogsmeade without any one seeing us. And I kind of told Tarah and Colin that I was going tomorrow." She looked down at the floor.

Draco smirked, "Well we can work around that. Hang with them for the day, make some believable excuse, and be with me for the rest of the evening."

"What kind of excuse?"

"Use your imagination. Meet me behind Honeydukes at around 5:00 tomorrow."

"It's a date then." She smiled at him, and he returned it with a genuine smile of his own.

"You should do that more often." Ginny said wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Do what?" he asked while he wrapped his arms around her, pulled her close and resting his chin on her head.

"Smile."

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They stood there for what seemed like ages. Neither one wanting to let go. That was until when they heard something clatter down the hallway.

They sprung apart and looked at each other. Ginny paled and looked at Draco.

"What if someone saw us." She looked down the hallway, but didn't see anyone. She looked back at Draco who showed no sign of having heard anything.

"Don't worry about it, I bet it was just Mrs. Norris or something." He started closing the distance between them again, but she took a step back.

"Still," she said, her face laden with worry, "I should go. People will be finished eating soon, and we can't stand here for them to ogle at us when they come out of the Great Hall." she gave Draco a pleading look. Clearly the importance of this being kept a secret had become all too apparent to her. Draco sighed, a somewhat disappointed look on his face.

"All right." he said looking her in the eyes. She looked back at him and smiled.

"Don't worry about it, you get me all to yourself tomorrow." she walked up and quickly kissed him on the lips and backed away before it could get into anything more. She smirked and turned around, making her way to Gryffindor tower. She looked out one of the windows and saw that a fierce thunder storm had suddenly erupted. But as soon as it had started, it had stopped. She stared confused for a few seconds at the window, shrugged it off, and continued on her way to her dorm.

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The carriages quickly arrived in Hogsmeade the next day and Tarah, Colin, and Ginny went straight to work window shopping in the muggle clothing stores on the edge of Hogsmeade. It was these times in which Ginny was especially happy that Colin was gay. He was a great shopper…unlike Tarah.

"Tarah you have to go in and try that dress on! It would look so good with that blue-grey eye shadow you have." Colin said as he dragged Tarah into the store. Ginny laughed and pushed Tarah from behind (Tarah had a great loathing for dresses and all dress like things).

"I'm not going to try that on!" Tarah protested. "Dresses symbolize femininity and are the style of women who only want to flaunt what they've got. First of all I don't see myself as feminine and I don't have anything to flaunt any way. So I'm NOT trying it on!" Tarah continued to protest as Colin searched through the clothing rack and found a dress in Tarah's size and shoved it into her arms. Ginny went on about how she did have a shit load of stuff to flaunt and then pushed her into the change room and (as it was a door that opened outwards from the change room) held it shut with Colin's help.

"Guys this isn't funny, let me out, I'm not putting it on!"

"Yes you are." Said Ginny as she held the door shut to a desperately struggling Tarah. "And then you'll come out and show us. We're not letting you out of this change room until you do!"

"FINE!" Tarah yelled at them. There was then the sound of swearing being muttered under her breath while she changed. Something about 'Try on this dress…I'll try on their fucking dress…they're both god damned dresses…' (A/N don't ask) and such nonsensical things to that effect.

When she was finally done changing she was let out of the room, spun around once fast and ran back in to it.

"Tarah." Colin said in a frustrated voice. She came out again and stood there for his inspection. "See," he said to Ginny, "I told you it would look great on her! Look in the mirror miss 'I hate dresses'." Ginny laughed as Tarah looked in the mirror and her mouth dropped. She did look gorgeous, and she ended up buying it despite it being the 'symbol of femininity'.

This was the way their group shopping usually went. Colin would find something, Tarah would refuse to try it on, and it would take a group effort to drag her into the store, after which she would end up buying the clothing any way. Ginny and Colin on the other hand were shopping freaks. They'd go into a store and each try on like 10 different things, even though Ginny would only buy something if it wasn't too expensive and if she really really liked it. She was picky about the things she wore. Especially when she had such little money to spend on clothes.

After their day of shopping, Tarah had the dress and a new pair of jeans, Colin had a pair of leather pants, 3 t-shirts, and a sweater, and Ginny bought a new tank top. They all headed to the Three Broomsticks for butterbeers. They sat at a table in the middle of the room (A/N: everyone always sits in a secluded corner, but not this time, mwahaha, I am…original) and were talking about nothing in particular when the dream team walked in, Harry included. He glanced over at Ginny and gave her a slight glare that only she would have noticed. It sent shivers up her spine.

"Just ignore him." said Tarah noticing her friend looking over at Harry. "He's not worth it." Ginny shot a glare of her own back at Harry and returned to her butterbeer. Colin just sat there looking confused. Ginny didn't know if he actually had no clue what was going on, or if they had told him about Harry and he just forgot. She started to think about Draco and looked at her watch. It read 5:30. Her eyes widened, she had no idea it had gotten so late. Ginny had to come up with an excuse to leave, and fast. But that wouldn't be too hard.

"What's all this about?" Colin asked.

"Tarah you can fill him in, I don't really feel like talking about it." Ginny said "You know, I think I'm gonna head back and work on that essay."

"Sure you don't want us to walk back with you? Tarah could tell me on the way." Colin said.

"No, I'll be fine by myself."

"Well if you want Gin." Tarah said. Ginny nodded her head and went out the door to go find Draco.

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Well that's the end of Chapter 8. And I already have chapter 9 laid out. As in I already know exactly what's going to happen. I would have joined it up with this chapter, but it's late and I'm tired. lol. Why is it that I always post when it's late. Ne way. Next chapter has a second encounter with Harry and…I can't really tell you anything else without giving the chapter away. I realize that both Draco and Harry are a little OOC (some to a more extreme extent than others), but that's just too bad. lol. I'm so considerate rn't I.

Don't forget to review! Like I said, I already have the next chapter laid out and if I get more reviews I'll write faster. If I don't get any, I won't write for another looonnnnnggg time. It's your descision.

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