A/N: Another apology to Mandraco. Chapter 13 was a typo. I meant to say this chapter, not that this chapter is confusing at all, but it places Malcolm in his element. The other option was Chapter 21, which is called Not Again. It may seems confusing but it really isn't. I even reread Chapter 13 after I read your e-mail. While I like the idea of tearing up the Hogwarts Express, it clearly did not qualify as a confusing chapter, unless you're wondering what happened to the trolley lady.

As I've warned people before, these notes are always written in the first half hour after I wake up. While I strive for accuracy, I hope to at least achieve coherence.

Chapter 18: School Night

"I'm tired of all this writing," Ron complained. "I've more work from one class than from all my classes last year."

"Complaining won't get it done," Hermione noted. "You really should try studying."

Harry gave them both a bemused look and went back to his potions homework.

They weren't the only one's busy. Dean and Seamus were huddled with Neville at another table, trying to get their Charms papers done. In fact, most of the tables were occupied by students and open books.

"Dennis?" Malcolm asked as the younger Creevey brother walked into the dorm room. Malcolm and his four roommates were huddled around a makeshift table. The common room was too crowded.

He's supposed to be studying with his own year.

"I just thought . . ."

"You won't learn anything by being with us."

"Please. I have money."

There were a couple of smirks, then someone said he could stay. A sixth chair was pulled up to the table.

The first year Hufflepuffs were all sitting at one table while a fifth year helped them, explaining things carefully when any of them were confused about something. The same was being done for the other years as well. Sixth and seventh years did their work then helped out if they were needed. In Hufflepuff, homework was always a group effort.

The Ravenclaw girl glared at Michael Corner.

"Last Year it was that Ginny Weasley. Now it's Cho Chang. Get your act together, Corner or get another study group. You dragged our grade averages down last year and you won't do it again this year."

"It was only about Quidditch," Michael explained. "And I've already done my share of the research."

"Then you're not slacking this year?"

Michael smiled. "Cho doesn't date slackers."

"I'll see your five, Malcolm, and raise you five," Louis called out as he threw the copper coins into the pot.

"Too rich for me," the next player said. That left Dennis and Malcolm. Dennis threw in ten knuts to match the pot and Malcolm added his five and called.

Louis laid his cards down. "Two pair. Kings and Queens."

Dennis smiled as he laid his cards down. "Aces and Eights."

"Dead man's hand," Louis said as he acknowledged the better hand.

"Excuse me?" Dennis asked.

"You ain't never heard of the dead man's hand?"

"No."

"You're muggle born, right?" Louis watched Dennis nod. "Did you ever hear of Wild Bill Hickock?" Dennis nodded again. "Well, he had a rule that he never played poker with his back to the door. Somebody might come in that didn't like him, and shoot him in the back. Then one day he was invited to join in a game but the only seat left was with his back to the door. He broke his own rule and somebody who didn't like him came in and shot him in the back and killed him." Louis pointed to Dennis's cards. "The hand he was holding was Aces and Eights."

Dennis was smiling. "Then I won with a Dead Man's Hand?"

"No," Malcolm replied, "because I've got three fours."

Dennis frowned but one of the others told him not to worry. "It IS the first hand he's won all night."

Dennis, who was up by almost 10 sickles, nodded in agreement.

Snape cast the voice amplification spell, then looked directly at Dewey.

"You remember what you have to do first?'

Dewey nodded, and the Potions Professor stepped back into the shadows of the Slytherin common room. Dewey stepped into the light of the directional Lumos spell and adjusted the lower voice amplifier, in muggle terms a microphone. He then put on his sunglasses and leaned into the upper mike.

"Good Evening, And Welcome To Blues Night At Club Slytherin. Our first number is going out to our very own Severus Snape."

Dewey began to play a blues riff on the saxophone. He paused, then repeated the riff. When he finished, he leaned into the mike to sing.

"Myyyyyy love is like a - Fi-yuh

Your looooove is like a - cigarette

Myyyyyyy love is like a - Fi-yuh

Your looooove is like a - cigarette

I saw you stomp down on it, Baby

Tell Me. Tell Me. Tell Me.

How Bluuue can you get."

He turned and nodded. A second spotlight appeared, shining on Avery as he began playing the original riff on his bass guitar. Behind him, Graham Pritchard played a background rhythm on the drums.

"I can't keep my eyes open any more," Ron admitted. "This will have to do."

"Ron's right, Hermione. I don't think I can stay awake any longer either."

"Fine," Hermione said as she stifled a yawn "Well, maybe you're right."

"Okay. That's it," the Hufflepuff prefect said. "If you're not done, leave it for breakfast."

The fifth, sixth and seventh years that were still up, closed their books and went to join the rest of their housemates in slumber.

"Must finish. Must finish. Must finish." The Ravenclaw student muttered in her sleep. She would wake up in the common room in three hours with a stiff neck. She would wake anyone else who had passed out so they could go to their beds as well.

"I'm done for the night," Malcolm said as he threw down his cards. "With what I've lost, I think I'm done for the rest of the year."

It's not that bad. I only had two sickle to start with. Good thing we're playing knut ante poker.

"Me, too," came the chorus.

"Thanks," Dennis said as he pocketed his winnings.

"How'd you do," Malcolm asked.

"I think I won back almost half of what I lost last week."

"See you next Thursday so we can get it back."

Avery was leaning into the mike, playing a mournful bass solo, singing his own version of the song:

"People got money

still got problems.

go to the doctor

and try to solve them.

anyway you look at it

it's still called the blues."

Dewey stood in front of Malcolm all glassy eyed. "I got it, Malcolm. I got the list."

"How much sleep did you get last night."

"Sleep? With all the homework I had. I think our entire house was up all night. I've got the list."

"For what."

"It's Hogsmeade weekend, tomorrow. I've got a list of stuff for you to buy."

Malcolm paused long enough to drag Dewey away from the entrance to the Great Hall.

"I thought Draco was going to buy that stuff for you."

"He gave me the money, you know, but he's been acting weird lately. It's like he has no interest in anything. I tried talking to him at breakfast and he told me he was preoccupied with his classes."

"He's a sixth year. Those guys get a lot of stuff."

"Yeah, but I heard that McGonagall gave him detention. He didn't hand in his homework. Twice."

"Draco? Maybe he's really Reese." Malcolm paused. "That would explain it. Dewey, Draco's acting exactly like Reese would. And I just heard that Reese actually got a paying job. While he's still going to school."

Naw. That can't be true. Draco would never bother to get a job. He has too much money.

Dewey shook his head. "I gave up on Reese years ago. And I'm only twelve. But Draco is acting weird. I followed him to the boys bathroom . . ."

"So? He went to the boys bathroom."

"Yeah. I heard him crying. Either that or that girl that goes around haunting the stalls has a bad cold."

Malcolm was surprised. "He's crying again?"

Dewey was surprised. "He's done this before? Maybe we should cross him off the family list. He's becoming such a wimp."

"It could be a nervous breakdown. Ginny split up with him. His dad's in jail. And some of the people that he hangs out with . . ."

"Like us?"

Malcolm stopped in surprise and thought about what was said.

"Shut up, Dewey."

"It's you," Dewey complained. "Draco's freaking out because of you. I can't get on the team because of you. And I bet you're the reason Reese got a job." Dewey stormed away.

I don't know why I got stuck with him as a brother. Oh, and I'd better tell him.

"Dewey." Malcolm called out. "McGonagall said it was cool. You can go."

Malcolm watched as his brother stopped in embarrassment, then turned around to apologize. "I'm sorry for some of the things I said, Malcolm. It's obvious you had nothing to do with Reese."

Well, it is an apology.

Draco was making his prefect rounds when he saw a shadow ahead of him. He approached and the shadow became a figure in the darkness. It was Ginny Weasley.

"Draco?"

"You shouldn't be here."

"I needed to apologize. I was wrong. All these weeks I was trying to think of how to tell you."

"It doesn't matter." Draco paused. "It's over, Ginny. It was fun while it lasted, but . . ."

"Things change," added Ginny. "I know. I didn't want us to . . . I want us to leave as friends."

"You're dating Dean, I've noticed."

A soft giggle. "He's nice. He was always waiting for us to . . . end."

A wry smirk. "But you don't really like him."

"You know who I like."

"Then tell him."

Ginny looked confused. "Draco, I was talking about you."

"No. You were only using my name." Draco leaned into Ginny. "It's time to face the world, Love. Your crush never ended. I was a good excuse. And those other boys when I wasn't around. I'm the bad boy, Ginny. You can't be around me anymore."

Ginny stood there, her face inches from his. "He doesn't want me, Draco. He doesn't even know I exist."

Light laughter filled the air. "You'll have to tell him. He doesn't know anything unless it's placed right in front of him."

A soft chuckle. "I don't believe I'm taking advice from you. How do I tell him?"

"A hint, here and there, to give him the idea. Then choose your moment. A celebration perhaps. Then tell him this."

Draco closed the short gap and kissed Ginny with as much passion as he could muster. Ginny returned the favour with full heart. They broke apart and Draco stroked her chin with his hand.

"That was goodbye. The next time you kiss like that, let it be hello."

Ginny looked at the departing figure. "You missed your calling, Draco Malfoy. You should have been a poet."

He turned back. "Thank you for that beautiful thought. If I can ever return the favour . . ."

Ginny smiled and Draco gave her a questioning smirk.

"Could you kiss me goodbye again. A few more times?"

Ginny felt like she had been stabbed in the heart. She remembered Draco's words as she heard Harry's accusations. "It had to be him." "You can't be around me anymore." "We know about the necklace." "I'm the bad boy."

Her voice was a faint whisper as she said one word. "Why?"

Draco paced the common room. It had been two days, and no one had come to question him. The only person who was insisting on questioning Draco was Harry Potter. He couldn't figure it out.

"Dewey," he said cheerfully as his cousin walked in. "Did you find out about the rumours?"

"Yeah. You made them up. I listened in on the teachers. They know it wasn't you because you didn't go into town." Dewey glared at Draco. "What's wrong with you anyway? If you did it, why would you want to be blamed? And if you didn't do it . . . why would you want to be blamed? I know this Doctor Spencer at Saint Mungo's. You might want to talk to her."

"YOU DON"T UNDERSTAND," Draco shouted. He calmed down and added, "it's important that I know what people think of me, what they think I'm doing."

"They think you're crazy, and that you're losing it. Is that good enough?"

Draco gave Dewey a strange look and stormed away. Dewey shook his head. Something was definitely wrong. Then Dewey smiled. He was still young enough to remember what it was like to spy on everyone, but this time he wouldn't snitch on them.

The red-haired girl sat atop the astronomy tower, knowing no one would bother her. She corrected that thought to almost no one as she spied a tawny owl flying in her direction. The owl landed and became a certain fourth year Gryffindor.

"Hi, Ginny."

"Harry insists it has to be Draco," Ginny hissed at Malcolm.

"Potter insists that every bad thing in the world happens because of Draco. He even blames Reese on Draco."

"Then you don't think that he . . . you know?"

It's not Draco's style. That plan wouldn't work anyway, even if everything went right.

"You know Draco. If he really wanted to bring a cursed necklace into Hogwarts, he'd have it wrapped up with some stuff from Honeydukes, then ask me to fly down and get the package."

Ginny hugged Malcolm. "I knew it. You're right. All he had to do is ask you." She paused. "If you had known it was a cursed necklace you wouldn't have done it? Malcolm?"

"That's why he would have to wrap it up with some stuff from Honeydukes."

"That WAS a joke. Wasn't it?"

"Yeah."

"I mean, honestly. You were joking."

"I said yeah. Don't you believe me?"

Ginny looked hard at Malcolm. "That's a trick question."

"Look, Draco's having problems. I can't talk about them. You know about his family and the Death Eaters and . . . You-Know-Who."

"I also know that Draco doesn't have the dark mark. He hasn't joined them . . . yet."

I don't what to ask how she knows that. Heck, yes I do.

"How do you know that? Have you two . . ."

"NO."

"Sorry." A long pause. "How do you know?"

"The sleeves of his robes were pulled up while we were . . . talking . . . the other night."

Malcolm nodded. "You must have mumbled a lot?"

Ginny smiled. "He was always a great kisser. I'll miss him."

"Miss him?"

"We broke up. Permanently. We both know now that it can't work."

"And when are you seeing him again?"

"I'm not. I told you. We broke up."

"I believe you."

"THAT was a trick answer."

"Sorry," the grinning boy said.

"No. I'm sorry, Malcolm. You just came by to say hello and I threw all my worries at you."

"Then can I ask you a real question?"

Smirking. "You? A serious question?"

No smile. "Yeah. It's just that I can talk to you. I wanted to know what you think."

"About what?"

"This."

Malcolm told her what his plan was. Ginny looked up in surprise. Malcolm was serious. And she knew exactly what her answer should be.

"I think it's a wonderful idea."