A/N: Sorry for the wait! Thank you guys for all your kind reviews. You All ROCK!

Chapter Nine: Hyperventilating Is A No-No

"Must not hyperventilate. Must not hyperventilate."

"Must Kill Blaise."

"Must Un-Imperious Hermione."

"But Must Not Hyperventilate."

Those two, married. There had to be some kind of rational reasoning behind it. Hermione hadn't dated in the longest time. Why would she suddenly get married. No, there must be an explanation. What she really needed, was an explanation for the jealousy surging through her. After slapping Blaise, she'd fled before she tackled Hermione. Gods. What an interesting year it had been. First Malfoy shows up, all the bad out of him, that was a plus. Then Blaise shows up, troublesome as ever, and now..Hell. What she needed was some time on the pitch.
--
There's just something about flying that frees your mind. Ginny would take flying over muggle drugs, any day of the week. She zipped from one end to another, careful to dodge bludgers. She'd been in such a rush to fly, that after her final class for the day she'd interrupted the Hufflepuff's quidditch practice. After scaring the poor dears off the pitch, she'd blasted the quaffle into bits, and was working on the bludgers at the moment. If they would stay still long enough, anyway.

"YOU STUPID PIECE OF CRAP BLUDG-AGHHHH!" She cried as the bludgers wooshed back and forth, and then suddenly decided to head straight for her.

Executing a swift escape from the blasted balls, and diving behind the Hufflepuff stands.

"I TAKE IT BACK! STAY AWAY"

"Problem there, Weasley?" A calm voice shouted up to her. She squinted down.

"Harry?"

Forgetting about the bludgers completely, she aimed her broom straight towards Harry. Before she could even reach the ground she leapt from the broom and into his arms.

"Hello to you to, Gin." He grinned, hugging her back. She pulled back, eyes narrowed.

"Harry Effing Potter. How dare you not keep in touch. Surely letter writing was a required course in your auror training"

"Of course, but you know me, I failed it because of my penmanship or some rot like that." He replied, winking at her.

"Hmph. Don't patronize me Potter"

"Wouldn't dream of it, Weasley"

Ever since Ron's death, Ginny had taken to messing with Harry as Ron would have, and of course enriching it with a little Ginny charm here and there. Harry, likewise, had taken to bothering and pestering Ginny as her brother had. Compared to Ron they were both sorry replacements, but it helped them cope, anyway.

"So, what's got you so riled up, Ginny Dear"

"Bah. I'm not riled up, it's just a nice day for flying"

"Liar. I haven't seen you fly like this since our 7th year, after you broke up with that bloke, Larry or something"

"Ick. He was such a scuzz ball"

"I agree. Now back to the subject, you brat"

Ginny rolled her eyes, and started making some daisy chains.

"Well, I don't know if you heard, but I've got a new roommate"

"Really? Now who might that be"

"Blaise Zabini, ring any bells, Harry"

Harry sprung up from the ground he'd been lying on. Was he the one they were after? He was rooming with Ginny!

"What in the bleating Hell is he doing here, and why would Dumbledore allow him to stay with you"

"Harry. Breathe. In. Out. Don't give me that look"

"Explain Ginny"

"I didn't have any choice, Harry. Apparently Zabini will be teaching here in the Winter term, but he needs a place to stay until then, and for whatever reason, it's with me. Anyway, so now to add to these problems, he's gone and"

"Gone what, Ginny"

"Gone and been an ass, that's what Harry"

He studied her carefully. She was pointedly ignoring his questioning gaze and working on her daisy crown. Giving up he sighed.
"Well, you know there's always room for you in Hogsmeade if you'd like to commute, you could even use the secret passage"

"No thanks, Harry. It's only a few more weeks"

"Yes, thank you, Potter, but as Dumbledore has these stupid bracelets on us, we have to function together wether we like it or not." Blaise spat as he joined their interlude on the pitch. "And I assure you," He added, " I don't like it"

Looking at each other, Harry and Blaise held each others gaze for a moment longer than necessary, before looking away, each wondering why the hell the other was there.

"Zabini." Harry nodded stiffly in his direction.

"Jerk." Ginny snarled, mimicking Harry's nod. She gathered her daisy crown, and other various daisy jewelry, and stood. "Well, Harry, I suppose you need to excuse us now, we've got to spend two hours, trying not to kill each other"

Harry raised a brow. Just what was Dumbledore playing at?

"And I think I'd rather watch Wrestlemania, it's a little more safe and a lot less melodramatic." He replied, earning a glare from both parties. Leaning in to Ginny, he pecked her cheek lightly, "Well I'll see you at Breakfast tomorrow morning, Gin"

"See ya around, Zabini." He added, knocking into Blaise slightly as he left.

Clenching his fists, and counting backwards from 100 in Mermish, he restrained his impulse to pound the nancy boy into the ground. Ruddy boy who lived. More like the Self Righteous Prat From Hell. Turning back to Ginny, he found, unsurprisingly, she was no longer there. He swore that freaking girl could have been in a disappearing act.

"I'm up here, idiot." She said, staring down at him from the Hufflepuff quidditch stand.

Maybe not.

"I knew that." He murmured, as he climbed the stairs and into the seating area.

"How'd you find me, Zabini?" She questioned, currently in the process of transfiguring her daisy crown to sparkle, talk about au natural bling.

"Well, you see, I was down there, and you said 'I'm up here', And then-" He said, imitating her in a high voice.

"No. How'd you know to come to the quidditch pitch at all?"
"Oh." He shrugged. " Well, you always used to come to the pitch to fly out your tensions. So I figured you'd be here"

Her eyes snapped up to his. "How'd you know that"

"Well, you did it when we were in school. I mean I think the best I've ever seen you fly was after you broke up with that skeaze Larry Bolton."
Her mind was racing, he kept tabs on her? Even after their, for lack of a better word, falling out?

"Though if you ask me there are better ways to work out your tensions." He purred.

"Like marrying my best friend"

All humour drained from his eyes. Replaced by cold fury, they engaged in yet another staring contest. Though, unlike the previous trivial ones, Ginny's narrowed brown eyes finally got to him. Giving up, he looked away as he spoke, refusing to look at her.

"Yes, like getting smashed because I can't sleep at night because I think of how I've screwed my life up so much and how no one wants anything to do with me. So yes I like to get smashed sometimes. And consequently, Weasley, when your smashed you have little control over your actions, and sometimes you do stupid things. Like marrying your best friend, for example"

She stared at him, surprised at his honesty and some of her anger diffused. But he still wasn't off the hook, not by a long shot.

"That doesn't excuse it"

"No, it doesn't"

He turned back to her, his gaze even more penetrating, "But that doesn't mean I don't regret it, either, Ginny"

At that remark, the fight went out of her. He was essentially right, everyone screwed up sometimes. And after all, she really shouldn't care that much. Chewing on her bottom lip, she fiddled with the now very gaudy daisy crown. He seemed to sense her temper subside, and took the daisy crown from her hands gently.

"What have you done to this, Weasley? You always were good with charm work"

Going along with his attempt to lighten the mood, she explained the sparkling charm she'd placed upon the daisys.

"If you're really that interested in my crown, Blaise, you can have it." She joked, though she was actually surprised when he put it on his head, and posed.

"How do I look?"

"Definitely ready for your close-up, Mr. Zabini." She laughed. "Since when did you get a sense of humour?"

"Since I fell in love with your brother's joke shop. They really are quite brilliant, you know"

"Oh I agree, now if only they could harness that to do good, and not evil."

"How'd you get interested in their shop?"

"Well, despite popular misconceptions, I do enjoy this thing called fun," Ginny feigned a gasp, and he gave her a half-hearted glare," And even more than that I enjoyed screwing with Malfoy by using your brother's products."

"Oh? Do tell." With Ginny's undivided attention, Blaise spent the next two hours discussing various pranks he'd pulled on Malfoy.
--
"YES!" Hermione shouted as she emerged from the Ministry of Magic with Blaise.

It'd taken a week, but they'd finally got an audience with the Ministry of Personal Affairs, and after a tense hour discussion, the counsel had agreed to annul the sham of a marriage.

"Geez, Granger, you do wonders for my ego." Blaise muttered, following her out. He blinked to adjust to the sun, on the inside he was dancing, though. How could he not be happy? At least this was one screw up that had been fixed. Now what? He wondered. There was nothing for him to do at Hogwarts until his and Ginny's session this evening.

"Blaise"

He turned to his right, "You still there?" He asked Hermione.

"Yes, you jerk, now come buy me a drink and let's celebrate"

"As long as it's not Firewhiskey, I'll buy you any drink you want, Granger"

She'd honestly considered going off on her own, but he just looked so..lonely. So, hooking her arm around his, she started half skipping, half dragging him down Diagon Alley. She would cheer him up yet. He glared down at her with what he hoped was a menacing face.

"I don't skip, Granger."

"And you don't marry mudbloods either, Blaise. And please, now that we've been married and annulled, it's Hermione"

Grumbling about snarky Gryffindors, he obliged and followed as she skipped to the Leaky Cauldron.

"Go find us a seat, I'll get the Butterbeers." She said.

Once seated, he looked around. It'd been a long time since he'd been here. The summer before his last year at Hogwarts, to be exact. His watched Hermione as she waited on their drinks, talking with Tom. She really wasn't all that bad. Few would have taken a mistaken marriage as well as she did. He'd have to be on the look for her now, he decided, besides maybe he could talk with her about things. And someone needed to make sure she didn't get into trouble, that know-it-alls like her usually got into. Great. Now things were getting interesting, he was making friends with Hermione Granger. Who was next, Harry Potter? Nah, there wasn't enough firewhiskey in the world to make him think twice about that git.

A few hours, and several butterbeers later, they emerged from the Leaky Cauldron considerably less depressed about their lives, and skipping arm in arm with one another.

"I thought you didn't skip, Blaise."

"I'm not skipping, Hermione. I'm walking with pizazz."

Chuckling, they continued to their apparation point making jokes with one another. After a few mishaps, they finally managed to apparate to Hogsmeade.

"Well, guess we'll be parting ways here, Zabini, I'm meeting Harry at Three O'Clock."

"Bah. Good Riddance, to you then." He sneered, wrinkling his nose. "Be sure to decontaminate yourself afterwards."

Rolling her eyes, she watched as he started towards the castle. She had to, it was just to hard to resist.

"Blaise, a tip on Ginny," She called, her grin widening as he stopped dead in his tracks, "Don't let her bottle things up"

Well, if a know-it-all Gryff couldn't resist, then he sure as hell couldn't. He was doomed from the start.

"Thank you Dr.Phil," He smirked, feeling her surprise even with his back turned,"A tip for Malfoy, though, don't let him skate on stuff, make him explain himself. Oh, and his favourite colour is Pink, and he enjoys long walks on the beach."

"Ass."

"Know-It-All."

Oh yes, this was the start of a beautifully dysfunctional friendship.

--

And things were definitely getting interesting.

A/N: Coming Soon: Harry talks with Dumbledore, runs into Malfoy, and more strange occurences.