Chapter Six

Ginny sat out in the courtyard on the lush green grass. Ginny held her charcoal pencil steadily in one hand, her legs propping up her sketchpad. Her skillful fingers flowed swiftly on the smooth paper as her pencil drew firm dark strokes. Occasionally, the redhead would glance up from her sketchpad stare at the clear waters of the lake, scanning every feature of it and then lowering her head and focus once again on her intricate work of art.

Her prominent red hair was tied in a casual ponytail and loose strands ruffled in the wind. Her eyes were filled with passion for her art piece and her face was contorted in concentration. Closing her eyes, Ginny pictured the rose she was drawing in her head. Soon, the image came to mind, clear and sure, its lovely deep red petals, all full in bloom, and its thorns, protruding from its long stem. Ginny went back to work as soon as she'd gotten the image once again.

She was alone now, the place was deserted and the solitude was relaxing. It was just what she needed to complete a work of art, and to mull over things between her and the boy who lived. But she wasn't as alone as she thought she was.

Behind her, a charming boy was walking up to her. Pausing, he looked at her, sitting on the ground with her knees drawn up to her chin and her sketchpad resting on her legs. Taking a deep breath, he walked up to her, the grass muffling the sound of his footsteps. He walked until he was just behind her. Moving carefully and softly, so as not to startle her, he knelt down and whispered in her ear.

"Well, well, what do we have here?"

Ginny stiffened in shock at the soft silky drawl in her ear and the intruder's warm breath against her ear. Whipping her head around, Ginny turned to face Draco Malfoy, the Slytherin Prince. His blonde hair had fallen into his eyes and his stormy grey eyes seemed to pierce right through Ginny. Stumbling to her feet, Ginny clutched her sketchpad and her pencil to her chest protectively.

"What are you doing here, Malfoy?" she asked, an obvious tone of accusation in her quivery voice.

The blonde intruder of her privacy rose calmly to his feet and faced her, his strong and domineering gaze challenging hers.

"Well, little Virginia Weasley, am I not allowed to spend time with my fellow schoolmate?" he said, flashing his trademark smirk.

Just as Ginny opened her mouth to yell the obscenities that lay poised on the tip of her tongue, Draco strode up to her. He was so close to her that Ginny could actually see the little flecks of silver in his eyes. Draco raised a finger slowly and gently up to brush her soft cheek, tracing the contours of her chin. Ginny flinched slightly drew back hurriedly, spilling her tools grassy ground. Pencils of all different kinds, erasers and markers clattered to the ground with a muffled metallic sound. Ginny turned and sprinted towards the castle, leaving Draco standing where she had once stood with the same smirk on his face.

Watching her retreating figure, Draco glanced at her tools and her sketchpad, lying, as if they were unwanted, on the grass. Draco knelt down to pick them up. Flipping through the sketchpad, Draco admired the redhead's works. Grinning, Draco picked up all of Ginny's belongings and headed towards the castle. His plan was working out perfectly.

Ginny ran up to the library, hoping to find the solitude that had been disrupted ever so abruptly by that obnoxious Slytherin with his 'I'm-the-king-of-the-world-bow-to-me' attitude. Ginny snorted in disgust at the mere thought of that horrid encounter. Just as she had hoped, the library was empty. There wasn't anybody there, except for Madam Pince, the librarian.

"Good Evening, Madam Pince," Ginny greeted the elderly woman cheerily.

In turn, Madam Pince smiled broadly and waved hello. Ginny looked at Madam Pince, and felt a pang of sympathy. Madam Pince wasn't the cranky old lady that the students said she was. She was merely a misunderstood old lady craving the company of someone who understood her. Ginny often was that person. Madam Pince would help Ginny with all her problems, both inside of school and outside of school, and in return, once a month, at least, Ginny would have a chat over a butterbeer with her at the Three Broomsticks during one of her Hogsmeade trips.

After greeting the librarian, Ginny headed to her favourite spot in the library. It was actual a secret room that Madam Pince had told her about. Ginny made her way to the back of the library and immediately found the book she was looking for. il silenzio รจ dorato, which meant silence is golden in Italian, was the title of the book that she had to find in order to unlock the secret room. Pulling out her wand, Ginny stood on tiptoe and reached up to the book on the shelf.

Ginny placed the tip of her wand on its spine and whispered, "demuestreme sus secretos!" Suddenly, the wall beside her seemed to crumble into pieces with absolutely no sound at all. Ginny entered the room and relaxed visibly. The familiar sight that greeted her was indeed a sight for sore eyes.

A plush velvet couch sat at once corner of the spacious room and comfortable cushions were strewn all over the fuzzy carpeted floor. Ginny sighed in contentment as her body itched to collapse onto the couch. And that was just what she did. Ginny lay on the couch, breathing its rugged scent in. Ginny soon found herself in a deep slumber.

Soon after, Ginny awoke. Glancing at a clock situated on a bookshelf beside the couch, Ginny realized that she had been asleep for more than an hour! Jumping to her feet, Ginny dashed out of the room and out of the library.

A/N: hope you liked it : D