Romeo III
Ginny wandered into the stands on the quidditch pitch and sat beside Hermione in the Gryffindor cheering section.
"Hey Ginny!"
"Hey. Who's winning?"
"Um... Whoever has more points..."
Ginny laughed. "Thanks, Herm."
Hermione chuckled and said, "I'm athletically challenged. I simply have no clue when it comes to sports!"
"Why do you bother going to games then?"
"Harry and Ron are my best friends. There's also the fact that I've had a crush on Ron forever and he was always there. Plus he's my boyfriend now."
"Yeah, but you don't even like quidditch that much!"
"It makes them happy. I love seeing them happy. It used to be very rarely that I got to see them smile, but since Voldemort and his deatheaters have been defeated, they're almost always happy and stress free. I want to savor that as much as possible."
"You have a point," Ginny said, sighing.
"There's just one more person I wish I could see happy," Hermione added, eyeing Ginny.
"I know. I try, 'Mione, I really do."
"I know you do, Gin." She wrapped an arm around her friend's shoulder. "And I promise, some day you won't have to even try. The happiness will just come. I know it will."
"I wish it would hurry up," Ginny half-joked.
"I have an idea!" Hermione exclaimed, jumping up.
"What?" Ginny asked, startled.
"Next Friday, you and I could have a girls' night out!"
"Out?"
"Not literally out, but a sort of muggle slumber party thing. How does that sound?"
"Like fun."
"Really? Or are you just saying that?"
"Really!" Ginny assured her.
"Okay, well-"
"We're finished!" Harry yelled in Ginny's ear.
"We're not deaf!" Ginny yelled back.
"How did it go?" Hermione asked, innocently.
"You mean you weren't watching?" Ron asked, crestfallen.
"Sorry, Ron. We got to talking," Ginny said, full of guilt. "She watched most of it though, if you guys are through and already up here," she reasoned.
"Yeah," Hermione agreed. "I mean, you guys probably only played less than a minute after we started talking."
"Oh. Okay."
"Let's go get washed up for supper," Harry said.
Ron left, followed by Harry and Hermione. Ginny started to leave, but someone roughly grabbed her arm.
"Ow!" she exclaimed, turning around, but no one was there. Then, Draco Malfoy appeared out of nowhere, holding a silver cloak.
"What do you want, Malfoy?" she asked, irritably.
"I just need to know something, Weasley."
"What?" she snapped.
"Do you really think I'm as bad as my father?" There was something weird in his voice, but Ginny couldn't decipher it. It sounded like a mixture of hurt and confusion, but she assumed she was imagining things.
"You followed me up her to ask a question as ridiculous as that?" she asked in disbelief, turning to go. Draco grabbed her arm a second time.
"Just tell me, Weasel."
"Of course I do!" she exploded. "You're a nasty, rude git who needs the exact same thing done to him that was done to his father!"
His mouth dropped open for a split second. He narrowed his silver eyes and turned his glare to the pitch. Ginny turned on her heel and ran quickly back to the castle.
'If the little bugger had it coming, why do I feel so bad about what I just did?' She growled to herself. Something was bugging her, but she didn't know what it was, exactly.
At supper, Ginny deliberately sat on the side of the Gryffindor table facing the Slytherin table.
Every once in a while, she would glance up at the Slytherin table to find a pair of menacing, silver eyes staring daggers at her. She finally had enough and excused herself to her dorm.
Juliet was perched on the window sill and Ginny had a sudden urge to write a letter.
MM
Even though I'm pretty sure you deserve to be told off, you didn't deserve what I said. I'm sorry and I ask that you accept this box of chocolate as a token of my sincerest apologies. It's the least I can do.
Ann
Ginny hesitated before sealing it up. 'Should I really send this? I mean, I do feel bad about what I said, but he'll just think I'm apologizing because he's so menacing,' she thought, rolling her eyes. She finally decided against her better judgement and went with the gut feeling she had to send him the letter.
She laid down on her bed and slowly closed her eyes. She didn't know how sleepy she actually was until then. She yawned and took a short nap before Juliet woke her up about 5 minutes later, with a letter tied to her leg.
Ann
How very clever to use your middle name. I don't accept your apology, but I do, however, except these delicious chocolates. And yes, Ann, I did deserve what you said. I deserve every word of it. And I also think it's best if you don't write me again. I don't want to have a guilty conscience because I write letters back and forth with a filthy, disgusting Weasley. Send Juliet my best, Weasel.
YS
P.S. In case your wondering, YS means Your Superior, Weasel-bee.
Ginny growled in disgust. 'I can't believe I felt sorry for that jerk! I'm so flipping stupid!'
She quickly threw the letter onto the floor and growled again. Laying back down on the bed, she quickly fell into an uneasy sleep.
"Ginny!" someone screeched.
"Shut up!" Ginny yelled, throwing her pillow over her head.
"Ginny! What in the world is this?!" MacKenzie asked, holding up a piece of parchment.
"I don't know! Let me sleep!"
"'I don't want to have a guilty conscience because I write letters back and forth with a filthy, disgusting Weasley?! Send Juliet my best, Weasel?! Your Superior, Weasel-bee?!' Gin! Are you writing letters to Malfoy?!"
Ginny's eyes snapped open when she realized what her friend was talking about. She quickly sat up.
"Of course not! Do you really think I'm that stupid?!"
"What is all this about, then?"
"It's nothing! Hermione and I were wondering what it'd be like if Malfoy had ever written a letter to one of us, so I tried it out. Pretty convincing, huh?" Ginny just prayed that she was convincing.
"Okay, whatever," she snapped. MacKenzie stormed out of the room quickly, throwing the letter down.
'That stupid idiot! Why did he use names like Weasley and Weasel?! Now everyone knows who it's from and who it's to!'
Ginny jumped out of bed, realizing that she was still wearing her clothes from the day before. She took a quick shower, changed into some baggy pants with holes all in them, and a baggy lime green shirt, throwing her hair up into an upside down bun.
She quickly grabbed the letter MacKenzie threw on the floor and stuffed it inside her book bag, along with the other letters Draco had written her.
'I'm going to burn these stupid letters!' she decided furiously. She started a fire in a wastebasket that was sitting beside her bed and grabbed all the letters.
Ginny,
I'm very sorry to hear about the death of your parents. It must have been devastating. Take this rose as a token of my deepest sympathy. Also, take this owl as a present from me to you for your loss.
'Rubbish!' she thought angrily. However, she placed it on her night stand instead of throwing it away. 'I'm only keeping it to remind me of the day I got Juliet,' Ginny tried to reassure herself.
Ginny,
No need to thank me. Of course you deserve it. Your parents died. It was on purpose that I didn't sign my name. I don't think you'd appreciate it as much if you knew who the gift came from. I got the rose from my private garden at home. The only appears in the coldest part of the world, but we cast a special freezing charm on it. It doesn't need watering but the charm needs to be cast on it once every two months. Send Juliet back to me October 8 with the rose. I will be honored to cast the charm for you.
M.M.
'Also a load of rubbish!' She placed it carefully on top of the other letter. 'It reminds me of the beautiful rose,' she once again tried to reassure herself.
Ginny,
No, those are not my initials. It stands for Mystery Man. Now, I have to go. I'm studying to be an auror, but this is known only to me and my head of house. It takes a lot of time and energy, so I'll be going now.
M.M.
A third time, she place the letter aside instead of burning it. 'I have to be sure and ask Malfoy if he really is going to be an auror. This will surely remind me.'
Ginny,
Told you so.
M.M.
P.S. Send the rose back December 8.
Ginny stared at the letter for about 10 minutes, her mouth wide open. 'Why in merlin's name did he write Ginny if he knew that I already knew who he was?'
She stuffed the letter in her back pocket, put out the fire, and grabbed all the letters and stuffed them into the bottom of her trunk, with the exception of the one in her back pocket. She quickly stood up and looked around the room for Juliet.
'She must be sleeping.' Ginny ran all the way to the owlery, even after the warnings of Hermione trailing after her.
"Juliet!" she hissed, not wanting to wake any of the other owls. She looked hard for Juliet up in the rafters, but didn't see her anywhere. "Juliet!" she hissed again.
"Looking for your bird, Weasley?" Ginny stiffened, then turned around, finding Draco towering over her, with two owls on his right arm: a pure, white snow owl and a pure black owl.
"Malfoy, give me my bird," she said backing up for breathing room.
"It's not your bird, Weasley."
"That won't work this time, Malfoy! I know it's her!"
"Fine, Weasley. Here you go." He let Juliet fly over to Ginny's extended arm. Ginny gently stroked the bird and it hooted in delight.
"Who were you going to write?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow at her and obviously trying to hide a smile.
"What's it to you?" she asked, defensively.
Draco shrugged. "Merely asking an innocent question. Aren't I allowed to ask a simple question?"
"Not one that intervenes with someone's private life."
"You don't have a private life, Weasley. I know exactly who you were going to write. It's that handsome, charming, young man in 7th year, isn't it?"
"No, I was not going to write Harry, for your information," Ginny replied, trying her hardest not to giggle. His reaction made her forget the humor she saw in it.
Draco's eyes, which were filled with humor at first, were now narrowed and cold. He patted the white owl on his arm, fed it an owl treat, and let it fly off into the rafters.
He turned and started to leave but said menacingly, "I meant what I said in my last letter, Weasley. Don't send anymore." He left, mumbling something that sounded to Ginny like, "You're an idiot, Draco."
Ginny brought Juliet to her room and sat her on the window sill, stroking her.
"Juliet," Ginny purred at the owl. "I love you." The owl nipped affectionately at Ginny.
"Gin, I got a letter!" MacKenzie exclaimed, running into the dorm, apparently forgetting her anger with her from earlier.
"Great for you," Ginny grumbled.
"Not for me, you silly goose! For you!"
"M-me?" Ginny stuttered. She walked over to the letter MacKenzie was holding.
"Yeah! This owl came to me and I don't think it will leave until you write a letter back!" she said, grinning. "I think you have an admirer! It could be MM, but I don't know."
Ginny quickly opened it and read it.
G.W.
Please take this rose.
Y.S.
Ginny glanced up and noticed that MacKenzie was holding out a rose almost identical to the one Draco gave her with Juliet, with the exception the rose was purple and pink swirled with silver trim. She also noticed that the owl MacKenzie was talking about. It was a pure, white snow owl.
Blood rushed unwillingly into Ginny's cheeks.
"Ooh! Someone's blushing!" MacKenzie gushed.
"I w-wonder who it could be," Ginny choked out, knowing perfectly who it was.
"I don't know...." MacKenzie sat and pondered it for a moment. "You should write him a letter back, though. Otherwise someone," she nodded towards the owl, "won't leave."
Ginny grinned and quickly ran down to the Common Room, MacKenzie on her tail. They sat down at a table and Ginny began scribbling away:
Y.S.
What's the rose for, exactly? What does Y.S. stand for? Who is this? An admirer perhaps?
G.W.
Ginny giggled as she folded it and wrapped it around the owl's leg.
MacKenzie suddenly jumped up. "Oh no! I'm supposed to meet Misty at the library in 5 minutes! Bye Ginny!"
Ginny watched her friend dash out of the portrait and crumpled the letter up and wrote a different one:
D.M.
What's the flipping rose for? I thought it best not to 'write letters back and forth with a filthy, disgusting' you-know-what I am... What happened to that? And I refuse to write you as long as: 1. You're still the biggest git in the world and 2. You use the initials Y.S., because you are no one's superior.
Ann
Ginny tied the letter to the owl's outstretched leg and noticed something. It had a black collar with a gold tag on it. Curious, Ginny flipped it over, read the back, read the front, then gasped.
On the back, Draco Lucius was inscribed above a green emerald. Below it was inscribed Malfoy.
On the front, Romeo III was inscribed in beautiful, cursive writing, exactly like Juliet's tag.
Author's Note: Sorry it took so long for the update, but here it is! I think the last chapter and this chapter are by far the best in this story so far! Don't you think so, too? Anyways, that's my opinion! Also, thanks to the following:
Damia - Queen of the Gypsi's- Oh my gosh! Thanks! And I know, D/G rox!
Cinnamon Angel- LoL, thanks! Sorry the update wasn't that fast!
beckysue2- LoL, it will come. Eventually.... ::snickers evilly::
Fireylove- Thank ya's!
MaRz- Thanks! I know you said this wasn't your pen name, but oh well! And here's the next chapter!!! You like?
LunarianPrincess- Well, thank you!
wishing4more- Well thank you! And sorry I didn't update fast!
zenni- I know, doesn't D/G just rock?! Thanks!
I'm in English now! Yay! But all we're working on is diagraming and charting parts of a sentence... ::sigh:: Oh, well. I hope this chappy was good!
Oh yeah, this story will also be on FictionAlley in about a week! So I'll post the link up here for it in case you have a name there! Luv yall!
Hb