Disclaimer: the characters and settings in this story do not belong to me,
they belong to J.K.Rowling. I am not making any money out of this story,
and no copyright infringement is intended. Aren't I official?
Dedicated to my beta Dom
*** To Ginny And Neville ***
Ginny was sitting on the bed crying when Draco returned. He carried with him a glass of water and a cold flannel.
"Lie down." He ordered, and she obeyed. Since she had first heard Tom's voice in her head, Ginny's temperature had soared, and none of the healing spells she knew would lower it. In the end they had had to resort to Muggle methods, "Put this on your forehead."
"He won't stop talking." She whispered, obeying, "Before, at least I knew I could get away, but now he's in control, and he won't stop talking."
"What's he saying?" Draco asked.
"He's using my thoughts against me." She told him, "He can see all of them, and he's replaying every unkind thought I've ever had, every moment of weakness. He's trying to drive me insane, make my mind weak so he can take over."
"Can he hear me?" He asked. She closed her eyes for a moment and then opened them again, nodding, "Ok Tom, this is the deal. If you don't stop, I'll kill Weasley thereby killing you in the process."
"He doesn't believe you." Ginny said, fear in her voice. But when Draco looked at her, he knew that she didn't believe him either. But that was because she thought that deep down he was a good person. She could go on believing that, but Tom wasn't so innocent, wasn't innocent at all, it wouldn't take much to convince him.
"Can he see what you see?"
"Yes."
"Then look into my eyes." She did as she was told. Instead of looking at her eyes, he tried to look within them, trying to find some sign of Tom. Doubt flickered over Ginny's face when she saw his expression, "You can see me Tom? I will kill Weasley if it means stopping you. All she has to do is show the slightest sign of weakening, and I'll kill her." His eyes unfocused, and now he was looking at Ginny, "What's he saying?"
"He says that he likes you." She paused, and then continued, "And that it's a shame that he'll have to kill you. But also that he believes you and that he'll stop."
"What a good obedient child." He said darkly, "Come on Weasley, we should go."
"Malfoy...?" he knew what was coming next, and cut her off.
"Yes Weasley, believe it." He told her, "If it came down to letting him out and killing you, I know what I'd have to do." She met his eyes, but he didn't see any hatred or fear or distress in them. He saw understanding.
"That's good to know."
***
Once Tom had stopped shouting at her, Ginny's temperature had gone down. She wished that she could wash, but the bath was in no way fit for use. She convinced Draco to allow her five minutes in the bathroom, where using the flannel she scrubbed her face, hands and arms. She stared into the grotty mirror, and felt a great sadness fall over her. She was beginning to hate her reflection, hate seeing a stranger look back at her.
"You ready?" Draco called impatiently.
"Yeah." She muttered, coming out. He was waiting by the door, and passed Ginny her bag before walking out. She followed silently.
WELL, DON'T YOU TWO GET ALONG WELL? Tom asked, his voice filled malicious glee.
"We get on fine, thank you very much." She whispered, her voice brittle.
"What was that?" Draco asked ahead of her.
"Oh, I was talking to Tom." Ginny explained, "I'll talk quieter."
"Try not to move your lips." He advised, "So people don't think your crazy. Then again, maybe you are. Why else would you want to talk to him?"
YES VIRGINIA, WHY ELSE WOULD YOU WANT TO TALK TO ME? Tom asked.
"You damn well know why." She whispered, gritting her teeth.
YES, BECAUSE YOU'RE IN LOVE WITH ME. He voice was kind, a mask for his true feelings, I'M QUITE SURE JUST A FEW DAYS AGO YOU INSISTED THAT YOU WERE NOT IN LOVE WITH ME, THAT YOU HAD GOT OVER ME YEARS AGO.
"I was wrong, I'll probably never get over you." She told him, "But just because I couldn't kill you, doesn't mean I wont find another way to get you out of my head. I can't kill you, but Malfoy can."
HE'LL KILL YOU TO DESTROY ME. Tom reminded her, AND THIS IS THE BOY YOU CHOOSE TO PROTECT YOU. WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO THE GREAT HARRY POTTER?
"Well, Harry didn't rescue me from Lucius Malfoy; Malfoy did, so I'm not complaining." She told him, "How did you get this powerful Tom? How comes you can talk to me now? While I'm in the real world I mean."
AFTER YOU TRIED TO... GET RID OF ME... I DECIDED THAT IT WAS OF GREATER URGENCY THAT I GAIN POWER OVER YOU. He told her, SO I TRIED TO FORCE MY WAY OUT, AND ENDED UP HERE. WELL, I FEEL MUCH MORE INVOLVED NOW.
"Well bully for you." Ginny mumbled to herself, and Draco smiled back at her.
ARROGANT CHILD, ISN'T HE? Tom noted, but Ginny ignored him.
***
At breakfast neither Harry nor Ron ate much. They were about to play their first Quidditch match of the season, and it was against Slytherin. The Slytherin captain, Montague, had replaced Draco with a small rodent faced boy, and as the first game of the season had been between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, no one knew if he was any good except the Slytherins.
"Hello." Came the dreamy voice of Luna Lovegood from behind them, "I've come to wish you good luck."
"Um, thanks." Harry said uncertainly, grateful that she wasn't wearing the lion hat.
"How are the two new Chasers?" She asked, referring to Seamus Finnigan, and a third year girl called Mirabel O'Lenner.
"They're good." Ron told her, glancing nervously at Mirabel, who had a habit of dropping the Quaffle when a bludger came too close.
"Well, I do hope you win, you did so well last year, even though you didn't have Harry or your brothers." Luna said, "You're a very good Keeper."
Ron was silent, and Harry felt that it might have been a mistake to mention last years match to him. He had indeed been the hero of the match; but everyone had agreed that Ginny's catching of the Snitch had been spectacular. And Ginny had intended to try out for Chaser this year.
"Well, Quidditch runs in the family." Ron said finally, and Harry smiled, relieved.
"Come on team, time to get changed." Katie Bell said finally. She was the team captain this year, and although she was just as strict as Oliver and Angelina had been, she was much less aggressive.
They changed into their Quidditch robes in silence; all wandering what the match would be like. They then waited patiently for their names to be called out. This year's announcer was Justin Finch-Fletchley, who seemed to take the role much more seriously then Lee ever had. As they flew on, his voice sounded over the pitch.
"And we have Bell, Finnigan, O'Lenner, Kirke, Sloper, Weasley and Potter!" He shouted, as the seven-team members flew onto the pitch. The landed in the middle, just in time to see the Slytherin players fly on. Katie shook hands with Montegue, and Harry saw her wince as he squeezed her fingers tightly.
"And they're off!" Shouted Justin, as the players took to the sky. Harry immediately flew as high as possible, in order to get a good look of the field, "And Bell has the Quaffle, passes to Finnigan, who passes back to Bell, look at them go! Bell passes to O'Lenner...who drops the Quaffle. That was some very good work by Beater Crabbe. So Pucey has the Quaffle, passes to Warington-"
Ron saved a goal, and Harry did a little victory loop, beaming down at his best friend, who was looking very proud. He then quickly glanced over at the Slytherin seeker, whose name was Falkner Clay. Clay was circling the pitch very slowly, his rodent-like eyes twitching from side to side, trying to spot the snitch.
Not while I'm alive, Harry thought to himself, and did a quick sweep of the pitch, looking for the glint of gold.
"And Finnigan scores!" Justin shouted, "Making the score ten-nil to Gryffindor! Now Warrington has the Quaffle and-"
Harry tuned out again, still searching for the snitch. Clay was moving closer and closer to him, undoubtedly in the belief that if it came down to race between them he'd win. Harry glanced at his broomstick, and almost fell off his own. A Firebolt 2000! He hadn't even realised they'd been released yet. Could he win if they raced?
And then he saw it, a tiny glint of gold right next to Ron's ankle. But would he get there first? Breathing deeply he firmly grasped his brooms handle, pulled it up, and turned around in the opposite direction, towards the Slytherin post. Clay took only a moment to do the same, and Harry let him take the lead, knowing that he wouldn't see Harry turn back around. He was nearing the post when he heard Clay swear, and knew that the younger boy would be right on his tail. Ron looked surprised when he saw the two seekers rushing towards him, but then looked down, and also saw the snitch. Harry saw him shout something, and was vaguely aware of Clay giving a small noise, that sounded slightly like 'omph'. But he knew not to turn around and check, instead holding out his arm and grabbing the snitch.
"And Potter's caught the Golden Snitch!" Justin's voice called, and there was a chorus of cheers, "Gryffindor wins, one hundred and sixty to zero! Sorry Slytherin, you just aren't up to scratch this year!"
When Harry finally looked over at Clay, he saw the boy was nursing a heavy nosebleed, where he had obviously been hit by a bludger. He landed next to Ron, who was grinning.
"That little twat was about top grab hold of the end of your broom!" He told harry, "So I shouted for Sloper to send a bludger his way. Did you see me save that goal against Warington? He was so pissed off."
"Yeah, you did a good job." Harry told him, pleased that Ron finally believed in himself.
"But the way you tricked Clay into going the other way? That was great!" Ron grinned, but Harry was unable to make any response, as the rest of the Quidditch team had landed, and they were all congratulating each other.
"Great goal." He told Seamus, who reddened. Mirabel, on the other hand, looked miserable.
"What's up?" he asked her.
"I can't believe I dropped the Quaffle." She said, looking at her feet, "I don't know why the bludger's scare me so much. I don't think I'm cut out to be on the team."
Katie had overheard, and was coming to comfort Mirabel, "You did great." Harry heard as they walked away. Ron, who was standing next to Harry, watched them go, and sighed, shaking his head.
"It should have been Ginny out there today, not Mirabel." He said quietly, "I'm not saying Mirabel's rubbish or anything, it just...it just should have been Ginny."
"Yeah." Harry agreed, and found that he needed to close his eyes to keep back the tears. But a moment later Hermione was bounding over to them, hugging Harry and kissing Ron, and both boys smiled.
***
WHERE ARE WE GOING? Tom asked.
"France, I think." Ginny murmured, bowing her head. They were walking towards Covent Garden Floo extension, through Muggle London.
AND WHY?
"To see some centaurs. Surely you know this Tom, you can see inside my mind."
OF COURSE I DO, BUT IF I ACT LIKE I DO, DON'T YOU THINK THAT IT MIGHT MAKE CONVERSATION A LITTLE CONSTRICTED? He asked, and Ginny felt herself sigh slightly, out of frustration.
"I can't believe the men in my life." She muttered, "Harry never noticed me, Michael liked me just fine unless I was showing any talent, Dean thinks I'm dead, Malfoy is only helping me so that he won't be taken back to his father, and you'll kill me first chance you get. Life is so unfair."
OH MY DEAR VIRGINIA, LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE. He told her, AT LEAST YOU HAVE A BODY.
"Which I have to share with a murderer."
WHOM YOU LOVE
"Don't remind me." She muttered angrily, "My insanity knows no bounds."
"What are you and his Royal Pain talking about?" Draco asked her. They were almost at the Covent Garden Floo extension now, and he looked eager to go. He had enjoyed Muggle London, but had no intention of staying longer than he had to.
"Boys." Ginny told him.
"Will you be curling each other's hair next?" Draco smirked.
"Tom doesn't have hair, and my hair doesn't need any help curling." She laughed, and he couldn't resist a smile.
"You ever been to France?" Draco asked.
"No, I've only ever been to Egypt, and that was to visit Bill." Ginny admitted, "But Hermione has, and she told me that it's really nice."
"I suppose that she's only been to Muggle France, not Wizarding France." Draco sneered, "So any information she's given you won't be very useful."
"I still have the transophones, and Mum taught us all a bit of French and Spanish." She snapped, "So don't get all high and mighty."
"French Witches and Wizards are very...touchy about some subjects." Draco told her.
"Well, when I said I know a bit of French, I meant I can say who I am, and where I come from, so I won't really be able to offend anyone." Ginny conceded.
"Yeah, I'm actually more worried about someone offending you." He said, frowning.
"How so?" Ginny asked slowly.
"French Wizards don't...like...Muggles." Draco told her, "And you get angry easily, so I thought I should warn you."
"Don't like Muggles how?"
"Well, about seven years ago, the French Minister passed a law saying that Magical people can't marry Muggles."
"He what!" Ginny shouted, feeling her face go red.
"Well, obviously some of our kind still married Muggles, but they had restrictions." Draco explained.
"What kind of restrictions?" She asked; sounding more and more disgusted.
"Well, they can't tell their husband or wife that they're magical, and they have to leave the magical world." He told her, "They're only allowed to do magic in emergencies."
"What!" Her moth hung open, eyes wide, "What about their children?"
"They don't get told either, they're just raised as Muggles." He shrugged "Muggle Borns aren't taught magic either."
"Isn't that dangerous? All these magical people walking around without any idea of how to control their powers?" Ginny asked.
"Tabs are kept on them, and any unintentional magic is dealt with by the French Ministry." Draco told her.
"What I don't understand is this, why didn't You-Know-Who try and gain power over there?"
"The French have already found a solution for the 'Muggle Problem', they don't need anything else." He explained, "Besides, the French may think the Muggles are below them, but they're very peaceful, they wouldn't like You- Know-Who's violent way of doing things."
"So they agree with his ideals, but not his methods." She said bitterly, "That's not any better."
"I just thought I should warn you, they're not very nice about Muggles." Draco told her, looking troubled.
"And what about you?" She asked, "What do you think about Muggles and You- Know-Who?"
"You-Know-Who is a mad man and a fool, someone who I have no intention of serving under." His voice was filled with malice.
"But what do you think on his take on Muggles?" Ginny sounded half-fearful, half-angry.
"I...You know I don't like Muggles." He said finally, "I don't think they're as far below us as before, but I still think they're slow and stupid and barbaric."
"Some Muggles think they're better than others because if a difference in skin colour or religion." She told him, "And that's barbaric. But it's no different than us thinking we're better than they are because we can do magic and they can't. We're the barbarians, because while they've made such behaviour illegal, we've made it a symbol of a high standing society. While they work to create a world where everyone is equal, our kind treats Purebloods with old money as the elite, and Muggle Borns and Half Bloods with no money as scum. It's us who are slow and stupid and barbaric."
Draco could say nothing to this, although Ginny knew he wasn't convinced. They walked the rest of that way in silence or at least in silence for Draco.
WASN'T THAT A ROUSING SPEECH? Tom said snidely. Ginny ignored him, but he continued anyway, SO, IT LOOKS LIKE YOU AND YOUNG DRACO AREN'T AS PERFECT FOR EACH OTHER AS YOU WOULD HAVE ME BELIEVE. IT IS YOUR FOOLISHNESS THAT PREVENTS YOU FROM BEING SUCH AN ADORABLE COUPLE.
Ginny said nothing, although she thought to herself that had no intention of being a 'couple' with Malfoy.
WHY ON EARTH NOT? Tom asked, and her mouth formed a small 'o' of surprise, OH VIRGINIA, DID YOU NOT REALISE THAT THERE WAS NO NEED FOR YOUR MUTTERING, THAT I COULD HEAR YOUR THOUGHT'S JUST FINE?
'Why didn't you say so then?' She thought to him.
BECAUSE IT AMUSED ME TO SEE YOU TALKING TO YOURSELF. He told her.
'How lovely of you.' She thought bitterly, 'And here I was feeling bad about trying to kill you.'
MY DARLING GINNY, YOU WILL NEVER KILL ME, YOU WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO LIVE WITH YOURSELF. But before she could respond Draco turned to her.
"Are we there yet?" He asked. Ginny looked around quickly, to get her bearings, and then pointed to the Covent Garden Floo extension, which she could just see five minutes up the road. Tom didn't say another word, and they paid the assistant and flooed to the Diagon Alley Floo Hub.
***
Harry, Ron and Hermione sat around the common room fire, chatting happily. It had been a short game, but it had lifted everyone's spirits, and everyone hoped that it was a sign of what was to come.
"Hey, Harry, Ron!" Came a cheerful shout with a lilting accent, "Can we sit with you? We have Butterbeer!"
It was Seamus, followed by Dean. Seamus was grinning broadly, obviously still pleased at being the only chaser to score during the whole game.
"Sure, pull up a seat." Ron said, pulling his own seat over to make more room. Hermione offered her chair to Dean, choosing instead to sit on Ron's lap. The tall boy grinned, and his face blushed a red that almost matched his hair. Seamus handed out the bottles he was holding, and everyone took a swig.
"That was a good first game." The Irish boy said when he was seated, and Harry and Ron let out a big 'here, here'.
"How's Mirabel?" Harry asked, thinking of how miserable she had looked.
"She's fine." Seamus told them, "Katie was telling her how terrible she was when she started on the team, that seemed to cheer her up loads. She didn't do too badly, she just got spooked."
"Yeah, seeing Crabbe's face will do that to you." Ron agreed, and Harry choked on his Butterbeer.
"Well, you were very good." Hermione told Ron, and blushed again, "I don't enjoy Quidditch as much as you all do, but that was very good, the way you saved that goal. Montegue looked very angry with Warrington."
"And the way Harry tricked that new Seeker!" Seamus added, "Wasn't that good Dean? The way he faked it and then turned around, and how Ron got Sloper to whack him with a Bludger? Wasn't that good Dean?" Dean mumbled something unintelligible, "What was that?"
"I wasn't there." He said quietly.
"You weren't...why not?" The sandy haired boy asked.
"It was just..." Dean shook his head, looking upset.
"Ginny." Ron finished. The black boy nodded, looking relieved that he hadn't needed to say it, "Yeah, I felt it too. She was supposed to be playing, but..."
"It wasn't just Ginny." Hermione said, "I'm so used to watching you play with Neville next to me, and having him explain the different moves to me. He couldn't play very well, but he loved the game so much."
"It's just...too much." Dean agreed.
"Dinah Rosenfield's brother, Aaron, didn't come back to school." Ron told them, "One of the Ravenclaw prefects told me his mother had transferred him to Beauxbatons, so he'd be safer."
"Safest place in the world is here, under Dumbledore." Seamus said, and a small part of Harry wanted to say 'you hadn't always believed that'.
"They should have been there." Ron said, "Ginny, Neville, Dinah, all of them. They should have been there today, playing and cheering. It's not fair."
"Then let's dedicate the game to them." Hermione suggested.
"Yeah, to Ginny and Neville." Ron said.
"To Ginny and Neville." They all chorused.
***
"Do you wonder what our friends are doing now?" Ginny asked, as they walked over to a Floo assistant.
"Crabbe and Goyle? Probably walking around in circles." He smirked, "Honestly, without my guidance, there isn't much else they can do."
"I don't want Ron to be miserable." Ginny told him, "But I'd like to think that he's thinking about me. Who do you want to be thinking about you?"
"Everyone's probably thinking about me." Draco told her, "You died months ago, I've only been missing for a week or so. Who do you think is more important?"
"They probably all think you got sick of having a psycho for a father and did a runner." She snapped, "It's my birthday next month, do you think there's a chance we'll be back by then?"
"Well, if we can get the centaurs to help us, we might be." He frowned slightly, "So, you're birthdays in December. Do your parents get you a joint Christmas and Birthday present? To save money?"
"No they do not!" She exclaimed, offended, "Do you know what? I thought you might be alright deep down, I've changed my mind."
"Ah come on Weasley, you can't give up on me that easily." He grinned, "I thought you were trying to redeem me."
"What gave you that impression?" She asked coldly.
"Well, you've been encouraging me to be a better person." Draco pointed out.
"And failing." Ginny added.
"We were getting on yesterday."
"You weren't insulting my family yesterday."
"Look, I...I...I don't want you to give up on me." He admitted, looking embarrassed, "I like it when we get along. And I'm s-sorry for insulting your family. It's just habit."
"I can't believe you stuttered when saying sorry." Ginny said with a grin, "You literally find it difficult to say the word. That's pitiful."
"I'm not used to it!" he exclaimed.
"Well, at least you're making the effort. So you're forgiven." She looked around. "Um, where are we going?"
"This way." He pointed, and they walked over to the grate. They paid the assistant, and walked through the fire, arriving in France.
***
A.N.: Still searching for anyone interested in doing any fanart for this story. E-mail me if you're interested.
A.N.2: If you wanna read a humour fic, and don't mind some mild slash, check out one of my other stories, 'What's your childhood trauma'. I have a pitiful amount of reviews for it.
Thank you to:
Reven Eid: Hm, I actually found the bit about the moon more funny, the automatic doors was just a random whim
UntitledN'stayinthatway: Um, thanks! Especially appreciative of the words 'rocks' and 'ass'
Ohepelss Oramtnci: Tom: No *baps back* Tom! Apologise to the nice reviewer right now! Tom: No *baps Ducky* Oh.
MelissaAdams: I had to do so many re writes in order to get Draco into character, I hate it when he's all nice and sweet and muggle loving
Keep on reviewing!
Dedicated to my beta Dom
*** To Ginny And Neville ***
Ginny was sitting on the bed crying when Draco returned. He carried with him a glass of water and a cold flannel.
"Lie down." He ordered, and she obeyed. Since she had first heard Tom's voice in her head, Ginny's temperature had soared, and none of the healing spells she knew would lower it. In the end they had had to resort to Muggle methods, "Put this on your forehead."
"He won't stop talking." She whispered, obeying, "Before, at least I knew I could get away, but now he's in control, and he won't stop talking."
"What's he saying?" Draco asked.
"He's using my thoughts against me." She told him, "He can see all of them, and he's replaying every unkind thought I've ever had, every moment of weakness. He's trying to drive me insane, make my mind weak so he can take over."
"Can he hear me?" He asked. She closed her eyes for a moment and then opened them again, nodding, "Ok Tom, this is the deal. If you don't stop, I'll kill Weasley thereby killing you in the process."
"He doesn't believe you." Ginny said, fear in her voice. But when Draco looked at her, he knew that she didn't believe him either. But that was because she thought that deep down he was a good person. She could go on believing that, but Tom wasn't so innocent, wasn't innocent at all, it wouldn't take much to convince him.
"Can he see what you see?"
"Yes."
"Then look into my eyes." She did as she was told. Instead of looking at her eyes, he tried to look within them, trying to find some sign of Tom. Doubt flickered over Ginny's face when she saw his expression, "You can see me Tom? I will kill Weasley if it means stopping you. All she has to do is show the slightest sign of weakening, and I'll kill her." His eyes unfocused, and now he was looking at Ginny, "What's he saying?"
"He says that he likes you." She paused, and then continued, "And that it's a shame that he'll have to kill you. But also that he believes you and that he'll stop."
"What a good obedient child." He said darkly, "Come on Weasley, we should go."
"Malfoy...?" he knew what was coming next, and cut her off.
"Yes Weasley, believe it." He told her, "If it came down to letting him out and killing you, I know what I'd have to do." She met his eyes, but he didn't see any hatred or fear or distress in them. He saw understanding.
"That's good to know."
***
Once Tom had stopped shouting at her, Ginny's temperature had gone down. She wished that she could wash, but the bath was in no way fit for use. She convinced Draco to allow her five minutes in the bathroom, where using the flannel she scrubbed her face, hands and arms. She stared into the grotty mirror, and felt a great sadness fall over her. She was beginning to hate her reflection, hate seeing a stranger look back at her.
"You ready?" Draco called impatiently.
"Yeah." She muttered, coming out. He was waiting by the door, and passed Ginny her bag before walking out. She followed silently.
WELL, DON'T YOU TWO GET ALONG WELL? Tom asked, his voice filled malicious glee.
"We get on fine, thank you very much." She whispered, her voice brittle.
"What was that?" Draco asked ahead of her.
"Oh, I was talking to Tom." Ginny explained, "I'll talk quieter."
"Try not to move your lips." He advised, "So people don't think your crazy. Then again, maybe you are. Why else would you want to talk to him?"
YES VIRGINIA, WHY ELSE WOULD YOU WANT TO TALK TO ME? Tom asked.
"You damn well know why." She whispered, gritting her teeth.
YES, BECAUSE YOU'RE IN LOVE WITH ME. He voice was kind, a mask for his true feelings, I'M QUITE SURE JUST A FEW DAYS AGO YOU INSISTED THAT YOU WERE NOT IN LOVE WITH ME, THAT YOU HAD GOT OVER ME YEARS AGO.
"I was wrong, I'll probably never get over you." She told him, "But just because I couldn't kill you, doesn't mean I wont find another way to get you out of my head. I can't kill you, but Malfoy can."
HE'LL KILL YOU TO DESTROY ME. Tom reminded her, AND THIS IS THE BOY YOU CHOOSE TO PROTECT YOU. WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO THE GREAT HARRY POTTER?
"Well, Harry didn't rescue me from Lucius Malfoy; Malfoy did, so I'm not complaining." She told him, "How did you get this powerful Tom? How comes you can talk to me now? While I'm in the real world I mean."
AFTER YOU TRIED TO... GET RID OF ME... I DECIDED THAT IT WAS OF GREATER URGENCY THAT I GAIN POWER OVER YOU. He told her, SO I TRIED TO FORCE MY WAY OUT, AND ENDED UP HERE. WELL, I FEEL MUCH MORE INVOLVED NOW.
"Well bully for you." Ginny mumbled to herself, and Draco smiled back at her.
ARROGANT CHILD, ISN'T HE? Tom noted, but Ginny ignored him.
***
At breakfast neither Harry nor Ron ate much. They were about to play their first Quidditch match of the season, and it was against Slytherin. The Slytherin captain, Montague, had replaced Draco with a small rodent faced boy, and as the first game of the season had been between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, no one knew if he was any good except the Slytherins.
"Hello." Came the dreamy voice of Luna Lovegood from behind them, "I've come to wish you good luck."
"Um, thanks." Harry said uncertainly, grateful that she wasn't wearing the lion hat.
"How are the two new Chasers?" She asked, referring to Seamus Finnigan, and a third year girl called Mirabel O'Lenner.
"They're good." Ron told her, glancing nervously at Mirabel, who had a habit of dropping the Quaffle when a bludger came too close.
"Well, I do hope you win, you did so well last year, even though you didn't have Harry or your brothers." Luna said, "You're a very good Keeper."
Ron was silent, and Harry felt that it might have been a mistake to mention last years match to him. He had indeed been the hero of the match; but everyone had agreed that Ginny's catching of the Snitch had been spectacular. And Ginny had intended to try out for Chaser this year.
"Well, Quidditch runs in the family." Ron said finally, and Harry smiled, relieved.
"Come on team, time to get changed." Katie Bell said finally. She was the team captain this year, and although she was just as strict as Oliver and Angelina had been, she was much less aggressive.
They changed into their Quidditch robes in silence; all wandering what the match would be like. They then waited patiently for their names to be called out. This year's announcer was Justin Finch-Fletchley, who seemed to take the role much more seriously then Lee ever had. As they flew on, his voice sounded over the pitch.
"And we have Bell, Finnigan, O'Lenner, Kirke, Sloper, Weasley and Potter!" He shouted, as the seven-team members flew onto the pitch. The landed in the middle, just in time to see the Slytherin players fly on. Katie shook hands with Montegue, and Harry saw her wince as he squeezed her fingers tightly.
"And they're off!" Shouted Justin, as the players took to the sky. Harry immediately flew as high as possible, in order to get a good look of the field, "And Bell has the Quaffle, passes to Finnigan, who passes back to Bell, look at them go! Bell passes to O'Lenner...who drops the Quaffle. That was some very good work by Beater Crabbe. So Pucey has the Quaffle, passes to Warington-"
Ron saved a goal, and Harry did a little victory loop, beaming down at his best friend, who was looking very proud. He then quickly glanced over at the Slytherin seeker, whose name was Falkner Clay. Clay was circling the pitch very slowly, his rodent-like eyes twitching from side to side, trying to spot the snitch.
Not while I'm alive, Harry thought to himself, and did a quick sweep of the pitch, looking for the glint of gold.
"And Finnigan scores!" Justin shouted, "Making the score ten-nil to Gryffindor! Now Warrington has the Quaffle and-"
Harry tuned out again, still searching for the snitch. Clay was moving closer and closer to him, undoubtedly in the belief that if it came down to race between them he'd win. Harry glanced at his broomstick, and almost fell off his own. A Firebolt 2000! He hadn't even realised they'd been released yet. Could he win if they raced?
And then he saw it, a tiny glint of gold right next to Ron's ankle. But would he get there first? Breathing deeply he firmly grasped his brooms handle, pulled it up, and turned around in the opposite direction, towards the Slytherin post. Clay took only a moment to do the same, and Harry let him take the lead, knowing that he wouldn't see Harry turn back around. He was nearing the post when he heard Clay swear, and knew that the younger boy would be right on his tail. Ron looked surprised when he saw the two seekers rushing towards him, but then looked down, and also saw the snitch. Harry saw him shout something, and was vaguely aware of Clay giving a small noise, that sounded slightly like 'omph'. But he knew not to turn around and check, instead holding out his arm and grabbing the snitch.
"And Potter's caught the Golden Snitch!" Justin's voice called, and there was a chorus of cheers, "Gryffindor wins, one hundred and sixty to zero! Sorry Slytherin, you just aren't up to scratch this year!"
When Harry finally looked over at Clay, he saw the boy was nursing a heavy nosebleed, where he had obviously been hit by a bludger. He landed next to Ron, who was grinning.
"That little twat was about top grab hold of the end of your broom!" He told harry, "So I shouted for Sloper to send a bludger his way. Did you see me save that goal against Warington? He was so pissed off."
"Yeah, you did a good job." Harry told him, pleased that Ron finally believed in himself.
"But the way you tricked Clay into going the other way? That was great!" Ron grinned, but Harry was unable to make any response, as the rest of the Quidditch team had landed, and they were all congratulating each other.
"Great goal." He told Seamus, who reddened. Mirabel, on the other hand, looked miserable.
"What's up?" he asked her.
"I can't believe I dropped the Quaffle." She said, looking at her feet, "I don't know why the bludger's scare me so much. I don't think I'm cut out to be on the team."
Katie had overheard, and was coming to comfort Mirabel, "You did great." Harry heard as they walked away. Ron, who was standing next to Harry, watched them go, and sighed, shaking his head.
"It should have been Ginny out there today, not Mirabel." He said quietly, "I'm not saying Mirabel's rubbish or anything, it just...it just should have been Ginny."
"Yeah." Harry agreed, and found that he needed to close his eyes to keep back the tears. But a moment later Hermione was bounding over to them, hugging Harry and kissing Ron, and both boys smiled.
***
WHERE ARE WE GOING? Tom asked.
"France, I think." Ginny murmured, bowing her head. They were walking towards Covent Garden Floo extension, through Muggle London.
AND WHY?
"To see some centaurs. Surely you know this Tom, you can see inside my mind."
OF COURSE I DO, BUT IF I ACT LIKE I DO, DON'T YOU THINK THAT IT MIGHT MAKE CONVERSATION A LITTLE CONSTRICTED? He asked, and Ginny felt herself sigh slightly, out of frustration.
"I can't believe the men in my life." She muttered, "Harry never noticed me, Michael liked me just fine unless I was showing any talent, Dean thinks I'm dead, Malfoy is only helping me so that he won't be taken back to his father, and you'll kill me first chance you get. Life is so unfair."
OH MY DEAR VIRGINIA, LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE. He told her, AT LEAST YOU HAVE A BODY.
"Which I have to share with a murderer."
WHOM YOU LOVE
"Don't remind me." She muttered angrily, "My insanity knows no bounds."
"What are you and his Royal Pain talking about?" Draco asked her. They were almost at the Covent Garden Floo extension now, and he looked eager to go. He had enjoyed Muggle London, but had no intention of staying longer than he had to.
"Boys." Ginny told him.
"Will you be curling each other's hair next?" Draco smirked.
"Tom doesn't have hair, and my hair doesn't need any help curling." She laughed, and he couldn't resist a smile.
"You ever been to France?" Draco asked.
"No, I've only ever been to Egypt, and that was to visit Bill." Ginny admitted, "But Hermione has, and she told me that it's really nice."
"I suppose that she's only been to Muggle France, not Wizarding France." Draco sneered, "So any information she's given you won't be very useful."
"I still have the transophones, and Mum taught us all a bit of French and Spanish." She snapped, "So don't get all high and mighty."
"French Witches and Wizards are very...touchy about some subjects." Draco told her.
"Well, when I said I know a bit of French, I meant I can say who I am, and where I come from, so I won't really be able to offend anyone." Ginny conceded.
"Yeah, I'm actually more worried about someone offending you." He said, frowning.
"How so?" Ginny asked slowly.
"French Wizards don't...like...Muggles." Draco told her, "And you get angry easily, so I thought I should warn you."
"Don't like Muggles how?"
"Well, about seven years ago, the French Minister passed a law saying that Magical people can't marry Muggles."
"He what!" Ginny shouted, feeling her face go red.
"Well, obviously some of our kind still married Muggles, but they had restrictions." Draco explained.
"What kind of restrictions?" She asked; sounding more and more disgusted.
"Well, they can't tell their husband or wife that they're magical, and they have to leave the magical world." He told her, "They're only allowed to do magic in emergencies."
"What!" Her moth hung open, eyes wide, "What about their children?"
"They don't get told either, they're just raised as Muggles." He shrugged "Muggle Borns aren't taught magic either."
"Isn't that dangerous? All these magical people walking around without any idea of how to control their powers?" Ginny asked.
"Tabs are kept on them, and any unintentional magic is dealt with by the French Ministry." Draco told her.
"What I don't understand is this, why didn't You-Know-Who try and gain power over there?"
"The French have already found a solution for the 'Muggle Problem', they don't need anything else." He explained, "Besides, the French may think the Muggles are below them, but they're very peaceful, they wouldn't like You- Know-Who's violent way of doing things."
"So they agree with his ideals, but not his methods." She said bitterly, "That's not any better."
"I just thought I should warn you, they're not very nice about Muggles." Draco told her, looking troubled.
"And what about you?" She asked, "What do you think about Muggles and You- Know-Who?"
"You-Know-Who is a mad man and a fool, someone who I have no intention of serving under." His voice was filled with malice.
"But what do you think on his take on Muggles?" Ginny sounded half-fearful, half-angry.
"I...You know I don't like Muggles." He said finally, "I don't think they're as far below us as before, but I still think they're slow and stupid and barbaric."
"Some Muggles think they're better than others because if a difference in skin colour or religion." She told him, "And that's barbaric. But it's no different than us thinking we're better than they are because we can do magic and they can't. We're the barbarians, because while they've made such behaviour illegal, we've made it a symbol of a high standing society. While they work to create a world where everyone is equal, our kind treats Purebloods with old money as the elite, and Muggle Borns and Half Bloods with no money as scum. It's us who are slow and stupid and barbaric."
Draco could say nothing to this, although Ginny knew he wasn't convinced. They walked the rest of that way in silence or at least in silence for Draco.
WASN'T THAT A ROUSING SPEECH? Tom said snidely. Ginny ignored him, but he continued anyway, SO, IT LOOKS LIKE YOU AND YOUNG DRACO AREN'T AS PERFECT FOR EACH OTHER AS YOU WOULD HAVE ME BELIEVE. IT IS YOUR FOOLISHNESS THAT PREVENTS YOU FROM BEING SUCH AN ADORABLE COUPLE.
Ginny said nothing, although she thought to herself that had no intention of being a 'couple' with Malfoy.
WHY ON EARTH NOT? Tom asked, and her mouth formed a small 'o' of surprise, OH VIRGINIA, DID YOU NOT REALISE THAT THERE WAS NO NEED FOR YOUR MUTTERING, THAT I COULD HEAR YOUR THOUGHT'S JUST FINE?
'Why didn't you say so then?' She thought to him.
BECAUSE IT AMUSED ME TO SEE YOU TALKING TO YOURSELF. He told her.
'How lovely of you.' She thought bitterly, 'And here I was feeling bad about trying to kill you.'
MY DARLING GINNY, YOU WILL NEVER KILL ME, YOU WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO LIVE WITH YOURSELF. But before she could respond Draco turned to her.
"Are we there yet?" He asked. Ginny looked around quickly, to get her bearings, and then pointed to the Covent Garden Floo extension, which she could just see five minutes up the road. Tom didn't say another word, and they paid the assistant and flooed to the Diagon Alley Floo Hub.
***
Harry, Ron and Hermione sat around the common room fire, chatting happily. It had been a short game, but it had lifted everyone's spirits, and everyone hoped that it was a sign of what was to come.
"Hey, Harry, Ron!" Came a cheerful shout with a lilting accent, "Can we sit with you? We have Butterbeer!"
It was Seamus, followed by Dean. Seamus was grinning broadly, obviously still pleased at being the only chaser to score during the whole game.
"Sure, pull up a seat." Ron said, pulling his own seat over to make more room. Hermione offered her chair to Dean, choosing instead to sit on Ron's lap. The tall boy grinned, and his face blushed a red that almost matched his hair. Seamus handed out the bottles he was holding, and everyone took a swig.
"That was a good first game." The Irish boy said when he was seated, and Harry and Ron let out a big 'here, here'.
"How's Mirabel?" Harry asked, thinking of how miserable she had looked.
"She's fine." Seamus told them, "Katie was telling her how terrible she was when she started on the team, that seemed to cheer her up loads. She didn't do too badly, she just got spooked."
"Yeah, seeing Crabbe's face will do that to you." Ron agreed, and Harry choked on his Butterbeer.
"Well, you were very good." Hermione told Ron, and blushed again, "I don't enjoy Quidditch as much as you all do, but that was very good, the way you saved that goal. Montegue looked very angry with Warrington."
"And the way Harry tricked that new Seeker!" Seamus added, "Wasn't that good Dean? The way he faked it and then turned around, and how Ron got Sloper to whack him with a Bludger? Wasn't that good Dean?" Dean mumbled something unintelligible, "What was that?"
"I wasn't there." He said quietly.
"You weren't...why not?" The sandy haired boy asked.
"It was just..." Dean shook his head, looking upset.
"Ginny." Ron finished. The black boy nodded, looking relieved that he hadn't needed to say it, "Yeah, I felt it too. She was supposed to be playing, but..."
"It wasn't just Ginny." Hermione said, "I'm so used to watching you play with Neville next to me, and having him explain the different moves to me. He couldn't play very well, but he loved the game so much."
"It's just...too much." Dean agreed.
"Dinah Rosenfield's brother, Aaron, didn't come back to school." Ron told them, "One of the Ravenclaw prefects told me his mother had transferred him to Beauxbatons, so he'd be safer."
"Safest place in the world is here, under Dumbledore." Seamus said, and a small part of Harry wanted to say 'you hadn't always believed that'.
"They should have been there." Ron said, "Ginny, Neville, Dinah, all of them. They should have been there today, playing and cheering. It's not fair."
"Then let's dedicate the game to them." Hermione suggested.
"Yeah, to Ginny and Neville." Ron said.
"To Ginny and Neville." They all chorused.
***
"Do you wonder what our friends are doing now?" Ginny asked, as they walked over to a Floo assistant.
"Crabbe and Goyle? Probably walking around in circles." He smirked, "Honestly, without my guidance, there isn't much else they can do."
"I don't want Ron to be miserable." Ginny told him, "But I'd like to think that he's thinking about me. Who do you want to be thinking about you?"
"Everyone's probably thinking about me." Draco told her, "You died months ago, I've only been missing for a week or so. Who do you think is more important?"
"They probably all think you got sick of having a psycho for a father and did a runner." She snapped, "It's my birthday next month, do you think there's a chance we'll be back by then?"
"Well, if we can get the centaurs to help us, we might be." He frowned slightly, "So, you're birthdays in December. Do your parents get you a joint Christmas and Birthday present? To save money?"
"No they do not!" She exclaimed, offended, "Do you know what? I thought you might be alright deep down, I've changed my mind."
"Ah come on Weasley, you can't give up on me that easily." He grinned, "I thought you were trying to redeem me."
"What gave you that impression?" She asked coldly.
"Well, you've been encouraging me to be a better person." Draco pointed out.
"And failing." Ginny added.
"We were getting on yesterday."
"You weren't insulting my family yesterday."
"Look, I...I...I don't want you to give up on me." He admitted, looking embarrassed, "I like it when we get along. And I'm s-sorry for insulting your family. It's just habit."
"I can't believe you stuttered when saying sorry." Ginny said with a grin, "You literally find it difficult to say the word. That's pitiful."
"I'm not used to it!" he exclaimed.
"Well, at least you're making the effort. So you're forgiven." She looked around. "Um, where are we going?"
"This way." He pointed, and they walked over to the grate. They paid the assistant, and walked through the fire, arriving in France.
***
A.N.: Still searching for anyone interested in doing any fanart for this story. E-mail me if you're interested.
A.N.2: If you wanna read a humour fic, and don't mind some mild slash, check out one of my other stories, 'What's your childhood trauma'. I have a pitiful amount of reviews for it.
Thank you to:
Reven Eid: Hm, I actually found the bit about the moon more funny, the automatic doors was just a random whim
UntitledN'stayinthatway: Um, thanks! Especially appreciative of the words 'rocks' and 'ass'
Ohepelss Oramtnci: Tom: No *baps back* Tom! Apologise to the nice reviewer right now! Tom: No *baps Ducky* Oh.
MelissaAdams: I had to do so many re writes in order to get Draco into character, I hate it when he's all nice and sweet and muggle loving
Keep on reviewing!
