Railroad Encounter

"Oy, Ginny! Hurry it up, will you?" Ron yelled up the stairwell.

"Well, if you'd help me with my trunk," she yelled back, "it wouldn't take so long! Give me a hand and quit your griping!" He ran up the stairs and with the help of Arthur, they lugged the heavy trunk down the stairs and into the car.

"Bloody hell, Gin, what's in this thing?" Ron demanded, his face pink with exertion and temper. His face reddened more so at a look from his father about his language.

"I have to agree with Ron on this one, Ginny. This must weigh as much as a house. What have you got in here?" Arthur asked curiously. Ginny grinned impishly and blushed ever so slightly.

"Well," she started as she, Ron, Harry Potter (who always seemed to be with her family at the end of the summer), and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley climbed into the car, "there's my robes, my school supplies (books, cauldron, quills, ink, and parchment), some extra clothes, and a few other necessities."

"Like what? Your entire room, maybe?" Ron muttered, rolling his shoulders as though they ached. Everyone knew he did it more for show than actual pain. That was just Ron. Harry chuckled, smiling at Ginny. She smiled back and enjoyed the rest of the ride to London.

They were hustling through the barricade to platform nine and three quarters when Hermione Granger stuck her head out of one of the train windows.

"Ron! Come on! We need all the Prefects up front!" she yelled upon spotting him. He waved and nodded to show that he acknowledged her. After a quick goodbye to his parents and assurance that Harry would make sure his trunk and Pig (his owl) were stowed onto the train, he hurried off. Arthur helped, since Harry had his own trunk and owl to worry about.

It took quite a long time to get Ginny and Harry situated in the usual compartment towards the back of the train. Hermione's things were already neatly stashed away, and before they had finished putting away all of their own things both Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood had joined them. Ginny was glad of the fact, because she had always been a little anxious around Harry. It wasn't because she liked him, and it wasn't hate either. It was a sort of cold indifference coupled with the fact that she didn't feel safe around him, especially after his violent mood swings last term. Having six older brothers, Ginny was used to feeling well protected; Harry took away from that feeling and she didn't like it. She had felt safer with Tom Riddle than she ever had with Harry Potter.

Ginny kissed her Mum and Dad good-bye, and settled in for the long train ride. She looked out the window, daydreaming, until Luna let out a gasp. Luna was reading The Quibbler as usual (an interesting piece of literature for a Ravenclaw, but she was justified because her father was the editor). Luna tended to gasp and go bug-eyed quite often when reading The Quibbler, so Ginny didn't think much of the occurrence, and seeing how she was the only other one awake, decided to humor her.

"What is it Luna? Did you reading something interesting?" Ginny asked, knowing perfectly well that she had.

Luna jabbed her finger at the article. "You knew that Sirius Black is in fact Stubby Boardman from The Hobgoblins right? Well, it has just leaked out to Quibbler sources that he has died, but the weird part is that it was in the accordance way he predicted on the hidden track of their last CD!"

"Really, Luna?" Ginny asked disinterestedly. She knew that The Quibbler was never on target. All their stories were as far from the truth as it was possible to be without being completely made up, except in the cases where they were flat-out made up.

"Honest to God! It says right here that their song, 'Through the Veil,' was-"

"Wait! Luna, could you… hold on… I mean…" Harry had perked up out of his dreamlike state and was a bit flustered, trying to figure out what Luna was saying. He crossed the compartment and sat next to Luna, fumbling with his glasses all the while. A startled Ginny stood up for fear of being squished and would have just moved across the compartment, but the moment Harry moved Neville had lain down properly and was now taking up the entire seat.

Luna and Harry were both now thoroughly engrossed in the article about Harry's late Godfather and since Ginny was feeling like an extra wheel she decided that now would be a good time to stretch her legs in the corridor. She exited the compartment quickly, sure she wouldn't be missed for a long while.

Sighing, she made her way slowly down the corridor and ran smack into someone.

"Watch where you're going." They both snapped from their respective positions on the ground. Draco was surprised to be spoken to in that tone of voice…until he realized it was Ginevra Weasley doing the speaking.

That certainly explains the poor manners, he thought snidely, glaring at the young woman who glared right back. "Why don't you keep your head out of the clouds and pay more attention to where you're going, Weasley?" He growled, insulted at how she had spoken to him when she had been the one to run into him.

"I was about to ask you the same, Malfoy." she asked, getting to her feet. "I'm sure you can help yourself up." She added angrily, while he glared at her from the floor.

"As If I'd need help from you." He muttered, getting to his feet, as well. "You and your whole family are ruddy blood traitors." He added, still glaring at her.

Ginny had her wand out and pointing at Draco's face faster than he would have imagined possible. "Speaking ill of my family, are you Malfoy? Never insult them in front of me. Or did you like that Bat Bogey Hex last term?" Ginny almost laughed in delight, remembering Draco dodging about Umbridge's office trying to avoid the flying bogies. Draco just looked at her in his usual bored manner, almost as if he didn't believe that she knew how to use a wand properly. She was immediately vexed at his nonchalance and said the meanest thing that would come to her mind, "At least my father is not in Azkaban!" As soon as the words left her lips, she realized her mistake. Even if it was Malfoy she was talking to, it was no excuse to hit so far below the belt. What she had said was just cruel and she knew it. She saw the reward of her spite as a glimmer of hurt in Draco's eyes. It was gone as quickly as it came, masked over with intense hatred, but she knew she had cut deep with that remark. She wanted to apologize but Draco was in no mood to hear it. He pushed her up against the wall and though he hurt her, she did not cry out, feeling in some way that she deserved this.

"You told me not to speak ill of your family… and then you speak ill of mine? Do you know what, Miss Weasley? They are blood traitors, the lot of them. Fortunate enough to be purebloods and then pretending not to give a rip about it. But tell me this: have any of your family ever married a Muggle? Or even a mudblood? You're just a bunch of hypocrites. A Malfoy isn't afraid to say what he thinks of those with dirty blood. We don't hide it." He turned to walk away, he hadn't gone more than two steps when he pivoted, wand drawn, "And don't you ever threaten me again." With that, he stalked off.

Ginny slumped to the floor, replaying the encounter in her mind. She was ashamed of herself; she never tried to hit people where she knew them to be vulnerable. She decided not to dwell on it. It was only Malfoy after all. So, ignoring pangs of guilt, she got up and went in search of the sweets trolley to buy a few snacks for herself. But she wouldn't forget being called a hypocrite; she knew she would wrestle with those words in the future. His logic made sense, didn't it? If the Weasleys are so fond of Muggles, then why are we still a pure-blood family?