Title: More than Mrs. Potter
Author: Joy
A/N: Sorry it took me awhile to put this out but I kept feeling like there was something missing. It's longer that most chapters so...be happy.
7.Nerves
Things functioned on almost an even keel for two whole weeks but then Draco slipped into bad habits and everyone went on guard. At first it was his perpetual flirting, then kissing several girls around the castle. Eventually it seemed the king was back in action.
This was a mystery to most but not to Hope. This unfortunate string of events occurred because Ginny left early from one of their meetings one night. Her leaving wasn't the problem, it was Draco's infatuation with Hope that was.
"What's wrong Draco?" Hope asked kindly.
"Nothing...Why do you ask?" Draco answered in a flirtatious manner.
"I can feel your anxiety about something," she contended.
His face fell and he looked away, "It's nothing."
That was when the mistake happened, because that was when Hope reached across the table and took Draco's hand. Hope quickly let go drawing her hand away. She stared at him in absolute shock. "D..."
"I have to go," was all he said as he fled the room.
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Two weeks later the trend came to a height when it became obvious that Draco was at least in part flirting with Ginny actively during their work sessions. Harry would pick Ginny up from research, Hope would be fine although avoiding Draco's looks, and Gin would immediately come to Harry happy and giggling. The third time in a row that Harry picked Gin up and she had obviously been laughing with Malfoy. It was a Friday night; there were no grand study plans that needed to be acted upon, so he decided to use some of that proprietary behavior Ginny was so found of.
"Hello luv," Harry purred ignoring Draco's presence entirely having naively believed that it was Ginny Draco was attracted to.
"Hello handsome," Ginny purred back coming into his arms immediately, wrapping her arms around his neck.
Harry ran his hands down Gin's sides on the inside of her robes so no one could see him caress her breast as he kissed her completely before squeezing her bum. Ginny let out a happy little squeal and drew one leg up over his hip. Harry and Gin were both panting as Hope let out a wolf whistle and clapped.
Ginny and Harry both tipped their heads to avoid looking at the other people in the room.
Gin looked deeply into Harry's eyes, "I certainly hope you don't think you are allowed to get away with that and not make good."
"Whatever do you mean Miss Weasley?" Harry feigned innocence and bat his eyes.
Ginny attacked his mouth again ran her hands down to his bum and pinched him. When he groaned she pulled away saying. "I have plans for you Mr. Potter...and you will be my willing slave. Got it?" she teased.
"Anything you say...Master," he played back.
Malfoy was glaring at Harry as the couple headed for the door. Harry looked at the other boy and gave him a smug smile.
"Don't come looking for us tonight," Ginny tossed over her shoulder, "unless evil comes calling."
With that the couple was out the door and Draco was done playing...Harry Potter was not allowed to have everything.
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After that evening the meetings were no longer any fun. Draco refused to speak to either girl for some odd reason. Despite her better judgment, Ginny had gone out of her way to talk to him but he just completely ignored her. Finally one evening she had enough. After Hope had headed out, Gin grabbed Draco's arm and wouldn't let him go, "D." He said nothing. "Draco... what's going on? Why are you freezing me out?"
His brilliant blue eyes flashed at her, "Whatever do you mean Ginevra? You froze me out... I was merely working."
"You won't talk to me," she stated.
He looked oddly innocent as he said, "There is nothing to discuss."
"Why not?" she pled.
"Because you are Harry Potter's girlfriend...end of story," he responded.
"This is about Harry?" Ginny questioned.
"This is about knowing with whom you truly belong," Draco stated icily.
She looked him over carefully, "Are you selling us out D?"
He smirked at her, "Why? Don't you trust me, Ginevra?"
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"I don't know what to do? He won't talk to either of us anymore. I swear we are loosing him," Ginny said in a frantic tone to her boyfriend.
Harry did his best to be supportive but in general he was glad that Draco wasn't coming on to his girlfriend any longer. "Have you tried to talk to him about it?" Ginny didn't respond at first. "Gin, I am not going to be mad if you tried to get him to come clean with you. The last thing we need is Malfoy to use whatever you are working on against us."
She lowered her head and nodded. "I tried...he won't talk."
"Then maybe its time to see Dumbledore," he offered...trying to be as supportive as possible.
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Later that same week, Professor Dumbledore arrived walking slowly to Harry and Ginny as they studied in the Gryffindor common room. One can only assume they were studying in there, because in Harry's room there was too much temptation...but that is a different aspect to this story.
Ginny looked up first, "Good evening Professor. Was there something that you needed?"
"Yes Miss Weasley. If you and Mr. Potter could follow me I would appreciate it."
Harry and Ginny followed Dumbledore blindly into a room near the Gryffindor common room...into the room Ginny had been attacked in the previous year. Harry noticed shortly after Ginny did but neither commented on the strange location selected to meet.
"Miss Weasley, I regret to inform you that Mr. Malfoy has pulled out of the project. He stands by his decision to honor the alliances he has made...not exposing Snape and all... but apparently he doesn't feel his presence is helping at all in the group. He asked for me to deliver this to you."
Harry was suspect of the situation because of the choice of room and that they hadn't been merely summoned to the Headmaster's office...it was also odd that Harry himself was there at all. He soon heard Ginny sniffle and wrapped his arms around her. "What's wrong luv?"
"He's asked me and Hope to 'save him' but that he can't continue to work with us... Harry, I don't understand," she mumbled.
Harry shook his head, "I'm sorry Gin. I hoped he was serious. I can't believe he'd do this though. This makes no sense. This was his only time to talk to you...I don't understand why he would cut you off entirely like this?"
Dumbledore's face contorted a moment in a very un-Dumbledore way but remained silent.
"I know...It doesn't make sense. He knows I promised you I wouldn't start up writing with him..."
"Gin..." Harry tried to interrupt, "maybe he needs you to come after him? Maybe you should try to..."
"No...I screwed up this summer. I know that. I've faced that. And I have tried to make it better. I told you what the lines were that I laid down. I told him what the lines were I laid down... Now I tried talking to him at the meetings and nothing. I tried talking to him alone and he does this. He just cut me off." Ginny shook her head, "Guess I know how important our friendship was to him after all?"
With those words Dumbledore all but stormed from the room without a word.
"That was not typical Dumbledore behavior," Ginny observed.
"No, it wasn't," Harry concurred.
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Feeling as though somehow he had deprived Ginny of a friend, Harry attempted to be as attentive as possible. He would get nervous whenever Ginny got a letter but she simply got into the habit of telling him whom her owls were from and always reading them beside him. She had even gone so far as to pick a 'typical' Draco letter she had received over the summer to show Harry they were innocuous. Quickly Harry stopped by so insecure and they started to behave like a couple again.
Hope and Ginny continued their project. Harry, Ron, and Hermione all offered to help but were turned away. Hermione was trying her hardest to deal with her hurt over how close she and Ginny were over the summer and now she had been dropped for this new friend. Ron was furious that his little sister cared so much about a couple of Slytherins.
They both were pissed at Harry for the whole situation. But Harry couldn't complain. With Draco out of the picture he felt much more secure in his relationship with Ginny.
"We used to work together. You used to trust us," Hermione snapped at the other couple but the comment was definitely geared to Ginny.
"I'm sorry Hermione but I can't tell you about what we are working on...not yet... Harry doesn't even know so don't get angry with him," Ginny stated.
"What the bleeding hell is going on with you? You have been spending so much time with those snakes I don't even recognize you. You are missing practices and classes... You are so worried about Draco Malfoy, a guy that you actually hexed not terribly long ago... and this new girl? Why do you care?" Ron chided his sister.
Ginny grit her teeth and turned bright red. "I was slated to be one of those snakes Ron. Did you know that? But the sorting hat gave me a choice... I knew my 'tolerant' family would never accept me if I was in Slytherin, so I asked for the default choice... You have no right to judge them...to judge her... 'cause whatever you think of them Ronald you have to think of me," she snapped at him in a cold voice.
Ron was in shock, as it appeared was Hermione. Harry took the opportunity to wrap an arm around Ginny's shoulders, "Close your mouth Ron. I was supposed to be there too, but you had scared me so badly against the house that I just kept wishing to be in any other house. The hat still insists I would have done well in Slytherin."
"I can't believe it," Ron muttered.
Hermione turned her head, "So this is how it is now? You are with her and not me?"
Ginny shook her head, "No Mione. Don't think of it like that. I had to deal with you lot always running off and having your adventures together. This is my adventure...I'm sorry its hurting you to be left behind."
"Me too," the brown haired girl said before she left the common room.
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Things soon went from bad to worse as rumbles began that Voldemort was beginning to gather forces again, far from Hogwarts. Problems then compounded when Draco started dating a blond Slytherin named April. The girl was known for being pretty loose with guys. April wasn't exactly girlfriend material... she was exactly the kind of girl Draco had said he wanted to avoid.
Ginny got very concerned during dinner one night when it became obvious that Draco was getting a hand job at the table. Poor Hope just sat there looking crushed.
"I can't believe he is doing this," Ginny hissed.
"Why does it matter to you?" Harry had asked her out of fear.
She looked at him like he was nuts, "If you couldn't talk to a close friend of yours and you knew they were doing something they said they didn't want you would be concerned too."
"She's beautiful and a Slytherin. What do you expect from the 'Sex God'?" he asked.
"More," she snapped.
The argument was left there and Harry tried to put it from his mind. But in the end, he always wondered if Ginny was jealous.
TBC...
A/N: WARNING! Next chapter is going to be hell. Have fun... Oh and wouldn't you love to know what Hope saw when she touched Draco?
If you want to know what that means then feed me...oh you know how... REVIEW.
So please REVIEW. Please REVIEW.