Change the world
If I could reach the stars
Pull one down for you,
Shine it on my heart
So you could see the truth:
That this love I have inside
Is everything it seems.
But for now I find
Only in my dreams
That I can change the world,
I will be the sunlight in your universe.
You would think my love was
really something good,
Baby if I could change the world.
-Eric Clapton
Ginny sat across from
Colin and Luna in the library, staring down at her DADA textbook but not really
reading it, not even seeing the words.
She was wondering about Draco's sudden absence from
all his classes the past three days of the week.
Colin had decided that he was still suffering from the ghastly effects of a
hangover. Luna and Ginny knew otherwise.
There were so many questions marks about Malfoy.
First there was still the unknown reason behind his crying. Then
his sudden breaking up with Pansy.
Then he being nice to her and Harry and then getting
exceptional drunk, which even for a Malfoy was a bit
too crass.
Then now his unexplained absence.
The biggest question mark of all was her sudden sympathy for him, which was the
reason for all this pondering about him.
Gees, she had better stop this. She had her N.E.WT.S coming up!
"There she goes again." Colin joked, breaking into her thoughts.
Luna smiled wryly as they both looked at Ginny who looked back up at them
startled.
"Lost in that mind of yours?" Luna teased.
Ginny grinned, nodding.
"What else." She murmured more to herself.
"Well I've got detention to serve.."
Luna made a face standing up with her books in her arms. She had been late for
transfiguration lesson that day.
"I'll walk you to Macongall's classroom."
Colin offered standing up as well.
Ginny glanced at him, noticing his neck going all red as Luna smiled at him a
tad gratefully.
"It's on the way to Quiddtich practice." He
offered as a feeble excuse seeing Ginny's questioning glance.
Ginny had quit the quidditch team to focus on the
school newsletter of which she was sub editor.
They left a minute later. Ginny felt the silence of the library settle on her,
its stillness seeping into her soul.
She went back to writing her essay totally oblivious to the owl that had
swooped into the middle of the library much to the dismay of Madam Pince.
The gorgeous black eagle owl landed on her table, wings fluttering all over,
clicking its beak proudly as if demanding to be noticed.
Ginny looked up at all that noise and drew back in utter surprise at the sight
of an owl on her table in the library.
What was this? She could see the disapproving stares Madam Pince
was giving her from the counter.
Other students were also staring in her direction some of them admiring the
owl.
The owl held its leg out, a note attached to it. Ginny glanced around seeing no
one else the owl could be pointing to.
Besides curiosity was getting the better of her. This
owl looked very unfamiliar and could not be belong to anyone she knew.
The moment she took the envelope, the owl took off, swooping gracefully out of
them room.
The envelope had her name written on it, her full name
'Vrigina Weasley'
Fingers trembling slightly with anticipation she slid it open, staring down at
the note with disbelief before reading it three times in order to let it sink
in.
There were only four words written on it, the handwriting expressively cursive
but its writer's identity not revealed.
'Thank you once again'
It could only be one person who had sent this note, only one very likely
suspect but yet in a sense unlikely to be capable of such an act of gratitude.
It could only be Draco Malfoy.
Ginny slipped the note into her pocket before standing up and gathering her
books. She needed the privacy of her dormitiory very
badly.
She had to think over this. She wondered if she should show it to Luna but what
was the big deal anyway?
She was just being thanked for helping him.
But this was Draco Malfoy
she was talking about here, someone who would never thank her in the first
place.
But had he not done so just the other day as well? Ginny shook her head, hoping
it would clear her tumultuous thoughts.
-----------------------------------------------
It did not but things
returned to the normalcy before all this strange chain of events, well as
normal as it could get for Ginny at least.
Malfoy only seemed to be civil to her in class
nothing more, nothing less something, which she was grateful for.
He had not called her aside or talked to her personally and Ginny wanted it to
be kept that way.
He did seem rather distant and distracted in all his classes though. This was
according to Luna.
Ginny was too busy ignoring him and focusing on her potions and her upcoming
Newts.
Christmas was fast approaching and Ginny had been rather excited looking
forward to a wonderful Christmas back home in the Burrow but her hopes had been
shattered when she received an owl from her parents two weeks before the
Christmas break.
They were going to France to visit Fluer and
her family with Bill who was going to propose to her.
Ron and Harry were going along as well for a vacation.
Ron was trying to get Harry to ask Hermione to come along as well but Harry,
according to his letters, had outright refused telling Ron to go ask her
himself if he wanted her to come that badly.
So Ron was fuming mad with Harry and that would be quite unfortunate since they
would be spending their entire vacation in France together.
Ginny had to contend herself with spending Christmas in Hogwarts with Colin for
company.
Then two days before
Christmas break when Ginny was just beginning to think that her
last year at Hogwarts was going to be a peacefully uneventful one Potions
lesson took an unexpected turn.
They had entered the lesson five minutes early because Malfoy,
as all the seventh year Gryffindors called him in
private for he was only a year older than them, was a stickler for punctuality
despite his recent restlessness.
However he was not there as he usually was.
The rest of the class filed in and fifteen minutes later Malfoy
still had not arrived. There seemed to be no relief teacher arriving to take
over like the last time he had been absent.
"Must be in his room drunk." Colin joked
grinning smugly.
Ginny laughed, the laugh not reaching up to her eyes
for she wondered if he was out cold somewhere.
And so what if he was? What was it to her? He was a Malfoy
after all, bad attitude and all so why was she worrying about him?
Because he appeared to have a heart enough to thank her?
Twenty minutes passed. The class was getting loud and raucous with no signs of Malfoy arriving.
'I suggest we go find him." Ginny leaned towards Colin who was in an arms
lock with a Slytherin and was obviously losing.
''WHAT? Are you mad! I'm just about to beat this guy."
Colin grunted as he tried to push the boy's hand down but only got his twisted
back even further.
His face contorted in pain. Ginny grimaced for him.
"Look, the class is getting out of hand and I mean in a bad way. They're
hexing one another already."
Ginny pointed to a couple of Slytherin and Gryffindors who seemed to be having wizard duels.
Colin glanced around in the direction Ginny pointed, losing his focus and
having his arm promptly twisted back on the table with a loud 'thump'.
"Ow!" He cried out, trying to glare at the Slytherin who walked off to his seat smirking.
Giinny gave him a pointed 'I told you so' look.
"Fine! Fine ! Let's go
find him!"
Colin threw his hands in the air exasperated as he followed her muttering about
unfair cunning Slytherins and crazy Gryffindors. Ginny knew which category she fell in.
She walked towards Malfoy's room, knocking on his
door.
Colin stood behind her silent with tension.
She could hear voices coming from within but there seemed to be no one
answering the door.
Just as she was about to raise her hand to knock the door again, the door was
flung open as Malfoy stood there looking strangely
different.
Ginny realized why instantly.
His hair was not slicked back but disheveled and his robes looked like they had
been just thrown on and looked crumpled and bedraggled.
"Miss. Wealsey." He stared down at her, not with anger though
but with great relief.
Relief so great that he smiled manically scaring the wits out
of Colin who murmured something about maniacal Slytherins
into Ginny's ear.
Malfoy however hardly noticed. In fact with the way
he was looking at Ginny it seemed as if he barely even noticed that Colin was
standing there.
Not that Ginny herself had heard what Colin had been muttering.
The way Malfoy was looking at her, as if the whole
world at the moment was filled with her and her only.
It made her feel as if it was getting harder to breathe, as if she had just run
around the whole castle.
This was Malfoy, she reminded herself and her Professor as well. She was
just being delusional.
Thus, controlling the direction of her thoughts, she spoke up,
'Professor, you have a class-"
"I know." He interrupted, impatiently and suddenly very anxious as if
he had come to his senses, which he just had.
Those brown eyes never failed to entrance him especially when they were looking
at him with such great concern just like that day at Hogsmead.
Had he just thought that about a Weasley's eyes in
that way? Come to think of it, he had been thinking about her in that vein
during the past few days.
Was he finally going mad? Oh well, no time for than now. There were matters of
greater urgency to deal with.
"I have a family emergency of some kind." He continued, glancing at
the fireplace inside his room.
Ginny following his glance realized that somebody's head was in it, no one she
could recognize though.
"I need to leave for a while to attend to it." He explained,
"So could you- could you, you know-" He seemed to be struggling very
greatly to ask what he wanted to ask.
Ginny saw the nervousness in those murky gray eyes and knew what he wanted.
Deciding to not to beat around the bush since this seemed to be a matter of
great urgency for him.
"You want me to cover for you?" She asked outright.
He was grateful for her directness as it saved a lot of precious time. Colin
however was taken aback by the direction of the conversation.
First all Malfoy seemed to be more than civil to
Ginny. Colin could be dense but this was not one of those times. He got the
distinct sense that Malfoy seemed to be treating
Ginny as more than a student or even an enemy but as a friend.
"Yes, please could you disperse the class and tell them this
a free block and could you pass this note to Professor Dumebledore. He'll understand."
As Draco was giving instructions to Ginny, he stepped
back into his room, scribbled something on a piece of parchment and passed it
to Ginny.
"That's all?" She asked ignoring Colin who was watching all this with
his jaw nearly scraping the ground.
Draco nodded. Before he could say anything more or
even thank her, she was off, striding down the corridor Colin at her heels.
"Colin, go give this to Dumebledore." She
thrust the note in his hands as they neared as the stairs leading up to the
potions classroom.
"I'll handle the class."
Just as she were about to walk off, Colin grabbed her by her arm stopping her.
"Gin? What's all this about? Why are you helping Malfoy? Are you alright?" He asked, concerned, putting
a hand to her forehead as if to check if she had a fever.
She shrugged pushed his hand away.
"I'm fine. He's our professor and he's been nothing but civil to us if you
were to think about it." She explained, her voice
tinged with exasperation.
Colin was not satisfied. He still had a dubious expression on her face.
"I'm just being a civic minded student." She added. Colin was not
convinced but she was already walking away leaving him in his numerous doubts.
-----------------------------------------------------
"I'm telling you,
Lu. Something is going on." Colin insisted two nights later as he helped
his friend carry her bags down to the Grand Entrance.
Luna was going home for the Christmas break while he and Ginny stayed behind.
Most of the school population were all getting ready
to leave.
Students bustled each other along the corridors,
calling out greetings of 'Happy Christmas' as they passed each other giving the
whole place a festive air.
"Nothing is going on, Colin." Luna insisted for the hundredth time.
They had been having this exact same conversation numerous times since that
day. Colin had told her all about what had happened.
"She just feels sorry for him and is trying to be kind to him. You know
how Ginny is right? She's got a heart of gold beneath all that sass." Luna
went on, trying to ease Colin's incessant worrying.
"Talking about me?' Ginny asked, smiling sweetly as she joined her tow
friends.
Luna grinned at her as Colin blushed.
They stepped out into the frigid cold winter night, carriages already lining up
the path.
Colin helped heft a piece of luggage into the one of the carriages. He had
developed pretty nice muscle thanks to all the quidditch.
"Well, see you then Gin. Take care and be good." Luna emphasized the
last word as she huuged her friend tightly.
Ginny grinned, as they broke apart.
Luna turned to Colin and hugged him as well much to his delight.
"Keep an eye on Ginny and don't nag her to death." She murmured into
his ear before breaking apart.
Colin gave her an indignant look.
Suddenly loud popping noises filled the air.
At first all three of them assumed that it was someone letting off Flitzworks Fireworks in the spirit of the moment.
But a trail of iridescently bright sparks shot up into the clear yet starless
night sky with a crackling sound.
Everyone gathered in the entrance stared up watching and wondering. Excited
murmurs spread through the crowd.
The trail of sparks made a few pretty swirls in the air and exploded into a
bright flash of multi colored sparks attracting gasps of awes from everyone.
Even some of the professors had come out to watch this surprise display that
they assumed they had not been informed about.
The show was not over though; the bright trial of sparks burst again with a
flurry of color this time forming huge words in the sky, words that probably
meant something to the one person it was meant for.
'Happy Christmas and Thank You!"
A Ravenclaw girl nearby read the words above
glittering brightly in the sky out loud. The words hung in the air for a few
minutes before fading away.
There was scattered applause among the crowd below. Up in the towers, people in
the different common rooms had their faces glued to their windows having been
watching the display.
Everyone assumed it was done by some boy for a girl he obviously liked quite a
bit.
Luna however thought differently.
She turned to Ginny standing beside her, smiling delighted by the beautiful
display and absolutely clueless as to who it was meant
for.
"That was the work of Malfoy." Luna
murmured loud enough for only Colin's and Ginny's ears.
Colin gaped at Luna catching her drift immediately. Ginny however was a bit
slow on the uptake this time.
"What? For who?" She asked bewildered.
Luna looked at her disbelieving. How could someone so clever be so dense at
times?
"For you, of course." Colin spoke, taking
the words right out of Luna's mouth.
Now it was Ginny's turn to gape at them.
"Don't be ridiculous you two! He's our professor for Merlin's sakes! Luna, you and your stupid theories." Ginny argued, her Weasley temper flaring.
The idea of Malfoy doing something
for her of this magnitude even if it was out of gratitude unnerved her quite a
bit.
"Fine, don't say I didn't tell you so though." Luna said, not wanting
to leave with her best friend angry with her.
Ginny nodded, claming down instantly.
"You will see how wrong you are." She insisted stubbornly as Luna got
into the carriage.
Unfortunately Ginny would never really find out if that beautiful display was
meant for her, not just yet anyway.
Otherwise her whole world would have turned upside down, but that is exactly
what love does. It changes everything.
--------------------------------
A/N please review review please.
DawnieAngel76: I am
glad you found it funny..the
fluffiness wont start anytime soon I don't know really but do keep on reading..its reviews like yours
that keep me wiriting.
Nostamoon: There was no other suitable way to call Harry..im glad you liked it..Id rather Draco be all agnsty and mellow..you'll
find out the reson for his sudden change soon enough.
Wizzabee: Thanks mate your are my most loyal reviewer..and could you tell me
how do I retain the same format I type my chapter in when I upload it..like the italics and the bold laters and even the spacing.. Do you know?
Write-on3108: Glad you liked it this time and thanks for the constructive critsicm the previous time..hope its inst so confusing..just some unanswered questions that Ginny muses about
in this chappie..keep
reviewing..
Oh and I am looking for an wonderful beta reader.any
volunteers please email me..thank
you..
Please review,,if I get
lesser and lesser reviews I might stop wiritng..hehe..blackmail again..always works..no flames.. dun think my
tender heart can handle it..
