Draco sat down at the dinner table and avoided eye contact with his parents. His mother exchanged a worried glance with his father, but remained silent. After the meal was over and they were sipping coffee, Lucius cleared his throat.

"Is Ginevra quite all right?" Draco nodded curtly.

"She had a headache and went to lie down."

"Perhaps I should check on her," Narcissa said, rising from her seat. When she was gone, Lucius turned back to his son.

"Did something happen between the two of you? Your first fight, perhaps?" Draco sighed.

"I don't know exactly what happened," he admitted. "Her brother came to see her, and I was- I mean, I thought she might-" his voice faded, and his father smiled.

"You were frightened she might decide to leave, is that it?" Draco nodded. "Well, it's obvious that she hasn't left. What happened after her brother left?"

"She somehow got the ridiculous idea that I wanted her to leave, and that I'd wanted her brother to take her away. I told her how stupid that was of her to think, and she got mad."

"What did you say then?"

"I didn't say anything," he said, his cheeks burning. "I kissed her." His father spluttered, choking on the sip of coffee he'd just taken.

"You did what?" he asked, dabbing at his chin with a napkin. Draco stared at the tablecloth.

"I kissed her."

"Was she angry?"

"I don't think so – I mean, it's not the first time I've kissed her, it's the fourth, but this time was different from the others. I could almost feel myself losing control, and I didn't want to take advantage of her, or force myself on her, so I stopped." Lucius nodded his approval.

"That was very wise of you. You were protecting her honor."

"But after I said that we should stop, that's when she turned red and said she had a headache. Should I not have kissed her?" he asked, concern etched on his face.

"It seems to me that if she had been upset by the kiss, she would have ended it herself. It may be that she was embarrassed."

"How so?"

"What did you say when you stopped? Did you tell her how you felt, or why you were stopping?"

"No, I just told her that I thought we should stop."

"Perhaps she misconstrued your reasons for stopping. She may have thought that you didn't want to kiss her, after all." Draco's jaw dropped.

"But that's not- I mean, I didn't- it was quite the opposite, actually," he said, shaking his head.

"You know how I feel about sexual relations outside of marriage, Draco," Lucius said sternly. Draco nodded.

"Trust me, I learned my lesson with Daphne. But Ginny is different – I didn't just want to bed her. I actually –" he struggled to find the words, but before he could complete his thought, his mother came back in and sat down in her chair.

"Is the girl well?" Lucius asked. Narcissa nodded.

"She's fine. She was sleeping when I knocked, poor thing. I asked if she wanted the house elves to bring her something to eat, and she said she wasn't hungry." Draco's face paled, and Lucius frowned.

"Draco, I suggest that you speak to her first thing tomorrow morning." Narcissa glanced between them.

"Has something happened?" Draco repeated what he'd told his father. When he stopped speaking, Narcissa clucked her tongue at him. "Darling, the poor girl is probably embarrassed!"

"That's what I said," Lucius agreed.

"It sounds very much unlike you," Narcissa continued. "To get so carried away, I mean."

"I don't know what happened," Draco confessed. "I did stop before it went any further, though."

"Yes, you did," his mother beamed. "Not many young men would have been able to. Isn't that what got your friend Marcus in the trouble he's in?"

"What?" Draco asked, startled.

"Marcus Flint," she said, sipping her coffee. "Didn't he get into all of that trouble with the Greengrass girl because he couldn't control his urges around her?"

"No, they married because they were supposedly in love," Draco said, surprised that he didn't feel any of the bitterness he was usually overcome with while mentioning Daphne or Marcus.

"Codswallop," his mother said, shaking her head. "They married because the girl was with child."

"Narcissa!" Lucius chastised gently. "That's hardly suitable conversation for the dinner table!"

"Of course, you're right, darling," she agreed. Draco sat up straighter, his interest piqued.

"Daphne was pregnant?" Narcissa looked at Lucius, who sighed.

"Oh, very well, then. Discuss it if you must."

"As far as I know, yes. Her mother was at tea with Ornella and I last month, and she was telling us that she thought the boy was about to leave her daughter, and she found out she was pregnant right before he told her. When she told him the news, he was terribly excited, and did the right thing by her and married her. It was only after they were married that she told him that she wasn't sure if the baby was his or not."

"What?" Draco gasped. Narcissa nodded. "So that's why he added the unfaithfulness clause in the prenuptial agreement."

"And now they're divorced, aren't they? It just goes to show how much better off you are without that trollop. You didn't need the heartache of a woman who would take any man to her bed. You need a good girl."

"And I suppose you have someone in mind," he said dryly, though the glimmer of a smile began on his lips. His mother laughed.

"Oh, darling! How wonderful it is to see you happy again, after all this time." Draco was quiet for a moment as he thought.

"Mother," he began slowly. "Might I ask you for a favor?"

"Certainly, my sweet."

"Since you went shopping with Ginny, you know what size clothes she wears, right?"

"Yes." Lucius looked up from his brandy.

"When I went to retrieve her for breakfast this morning, she answered the door in her nightclothes."

"And?"

"And they were horrible," he said, wrinkling his nose. "Baggy sweatpants and a baggy shirt. Would you please do me a favor and buy her something more…"

"Feminine?" she offered. He nodded vigorously, and she giggled. "I'd be more than happy to, darling. I agree; her bedclothes were decidedly unfeminine."

"Are the two of you quite finished?" Lucius asked, laughing. "After all, it's getting late, and I'd like to get to bed early tonight, since I didn't get much sleep last night."

"Of course, Darling, I'm sorry," Narcissa said, standing. She turned to Draco and kissed his forehead. "I'll send an owl out to the boutique I frequent, and instruct them to have something ready for pickup tomorrow morning. Perhaps you can give it to her as a peace offering."