Undivided

Chapter 12: We Can't Choose

Author's jibberish: I just finished Half-Blood Prince. Frickin mother-effer…

Oh yeah, and Narcissa's history, I just made up.

With her eyelashes fluttering, Ginny opened her eyes. At first glance, it seemed as if the room was on fire. She took a deep breath, her vision cleared and she looked at the roses directly in front of her. But it wasn't just one bouquet. The room was a garden of red roses of all different sizes. The walls were lined with the glittering bouquets.

"Look, she's awake!" Ron exclaimed.

She scanned the people around her. "Mum…Dad…Ron…Harry…Where am I?"

"St. Mungo's," Harry answered.

Molly smiled with Arthur. "Let's go and tell the boys. We were so worried about you, Ginny!" They embraced her tightly, nearly constricting her of needed oxygen.

"Sorry," Ginny smiled, coughing for some air.

"You're well, that's all that matters," Molly said. She and her husband left to find their other sons. Soon, she was reunited with her other brothers and was washed with worries and concerns. She insisted she was alright and insisted on sleep because she was so tired.

"It must have been a rough experience," Bill said. "Ron told us all about it."

Ginny, for some reason, could tell her family members were stealing glances at the card stuck in the red bouquet closest to her.

After a while, she managed to find some peace when they all left for lunch.

Curious, Ginny reached over and pulled out the small card from the bouquet. It read:

To Virginia, Get well soon. Draco Malfoy

That was probably as sentimental as he would get.

The door opened and Ginny looked up. Hermione Granger walked through the door with a little doctor teddy bear in her arms. Hermione looked around, eyebrows raised. "Oh my… look at all this," she turned to Ginny and smiled. "Someone is devoted…"

Ginny blushed a light pink.

Hermione handed her the bear as she sat down beside her. "Here."

Ginny smiled and laid it on her lap. "Thank you."

"So," Hermione started, looking around. "You and Malfoy seem awfully close. It is Malfoy who gave you these, right?" she asked, gesturing to the abundant flowers. "Ron and Harry explained to me what happened, so I assumed…"

Ginny shook her head. "Hermione, it's not like that. We care for each other. We're friends. We're not in…"

"Love?" Hermione finished.

Ginny nodded.

"Why not?"

"With Draco? Not him of all people."

"Why not? Maybe I should become his friend. If this is how he treats friends, imagine how it would be to be his girlfriend."

"Confusing as hell. Besides, Draco is far from my type."

"Really? What is your type?" Hermione asked.

"Someone who's sweet, understanding, responsible, smart… he doesn't have to be incredibly good-looking or rich. But Draco," Ginny compared, "is spontaneously moody, unbelievably biased, mostly arrogant, inconsiderate--." Ginny stopped herself. "Well… maybe not entirely. I mean, he did try to protect me, and he did save me. And when he hugged me then, it was so tight… like he needed me." She looked up to Hermione. "How did you know you were in love with Harry?"
"Honestly, I was asleep when I realized it," Hermione fondly looked back. "He and I fell asleep on the couch next to each other. I woke up early that morning and the first thing I saw was his face, sleeping peacefully. And then I realized that I would like to be his peace. With everything that happens to him, it would mean so much to me if I caused him tranquility."

Ginny nodded. "When he held me like he needed me, something inside me was yelling at me. I figured that I would do anything to be around if he needed me."

Hermione softly smiled. "We can't choose who we love."

A daze ran across Ginny's eyes and then she stared down at the bear. "What about him? How does he feel?"

"Maybe you should ask him when he comes--," Hermione was interrupted by the opening of the door.

A thin, ghostly-pale, beautiful woman walked in the room. "Good afternoon, Miss Weasley." She looked to Hermione and then back to Ginny. "I was hoping to speak with you--."

"Oh, I can leave," Hermione said, standing. "I should really wait for the others outside." She gave a quick thumbs-up to Ginny and left the room, closing the door behind her.

"Well," Narcissa said, placing down a bouquet of a dozen white roses at a nearby table. "I see my son wasted no time."

Ginny swallowed nervously. "I suppose." This was the first time she ever spoke with this woman. She knew that Narcissa Malfoy was in the same year as her father, a Slytherin, and married Lucius Malfoy right after Hogwarts. She apparently was a very good mother to Draco. Whenever Draco spoke of her, his eyes became a little softer as if he was remembering a fond memory.

"How are you?"

"Fine, Mrs. Malfoy. How are you?"

"Very well, thank you." She remained standing beside her bed. "I actually came by to talk to you about my son."

"Your…son?" Ginny swallowed.

"Yes," Narcissa nodded. "I'll be frank with you, Miss Weasley. My son was supposed to be raised into the very image of his father. They may not have been aware of it, but I know what business they dealt with. For a 16-year-old to have killed five persons is very life altering. I watched as my son changed, from a hotheaded youngster to a quiet, indifferent young man… and it pained me. He didn't care whether he lived or died. But then, something happened last year."

Ginny gulped. "Re-really?" she played dumb.

"Yes."

"What happened?"

"You, apparently."

Ginny paled, her freckles on fire. "Me?"

"My son found a reason to live, simply put. He found someone to protect and to live for. Do you understand, Miss Weasley?"

"Who's in there?" Harry asked his girlfriend. He and Ron had returned and were standing outside the door with Hermione.

"Narcissa Malfoy," Hermione answered. "She wanted to speak to Ginny alone. Probably planning the wedding…" she giggled.

"Don't joke about that," Ron seethed through his teeth.

"I thought you didn't have a problem with her," Harry asked.

"I don't. It's the excess baggage that comes along with her: Death-eater and Death-eater Jr."

"Uh, Ron," Hermione interrupted.

"Like I really want Ferret-breath as a brother-in-law--."

"Ron," Harry warned.

"Satanic, dark sacrifices every Malfoy holiday--."

"I assure you we don't have blood ceremonial sacrifices during Christmas. Maybe a rabbit's foot every Easter… but tradition could change," said a smooth voice behind him.

Ron went wide-eye and took a deep breath. "He's right behind me, huh?"

Harry and Hermione nodded.

"Is Virginia sleeping?" Draco asked.

"No, she's talking to you mother," Hermione informed.

It was Draco's turn to go wide-eye. "What!"

"Somewhat," Ginny answered.

"He's not very good at saying or letting out his feelings. He needs a very understanding, patient woman in his life. Or someone who's not afraid to kick him about," Narcissa told Ginny.

Was this seriously the advice of a mother, Ginny pondered to herself.

The door flew open, almost off its hinges. Draco stood in the doorway, having a noticeably fake unfazed expression on his face. "Mother…" he spoke.

"Hello, Darling," Narcissa greeted, achieving an almost innocent tone. Almost.

"What are you doing here?" Draco asked casually.

"Talking to Miss Weasley, what does it look like?" Narcissa asked. "Honestly, please restrain yourself from jumping to horrible and false conclusions."

"Well, it's quite awkward when my mother is talking with my…my…"

"Yes?" Narcissa prompted.

Ginny was growing red.

"Student," Draco quickly filled in. "Pupil. Friend. Yes."

"Well," Narcissa walked towards her son and put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sure you two have much to discuss." She turned to Ginny. "Miss Weasley, I wish you a speedy recovery."

Ginny nodded. "Thank you. Er, t-take care of yourself."

Narcissa left the room, leaving Draco and Ginny alone. Draco turned to Ginny, awfully quiet. They hadn't spoken since he took her to the hospital. He just dropped her off and left.

"Won't you have seat?" she invited him to the chair beside her bed.

Hesitantly, Draco took a seat. Silence.

"I like the roses," she said.

"I'm glad."

Silence again. Both of them looked around the room in the opposite direction.

"So…" they both said in unison.

"Um…" Draco turned his eyes to the floor.

"Well… how's your cheek?" Ginny asked. She could barely see the trace of scarring on his face.

"It's fine. How's your leg?" he asked.

"Mending. Almost done, I suppose."

"Good," he nodded. "Good."

Silence again lingered between them. "So…" they said again.

"For goodness sake, Draco, we sound like idiots!" Ginny huffed.

"Well, I wouldn't necessarily say idiots," Draco corrected. "More like a mute weasel--."

"And a tongue-tied ferret," Ginny added.

Draco smirked. "So what did you and my mother talk about?"

"Your emotional problems," she joked. "She says you may have trouble expressing your feelings."

"Well, I'm not a very wordy person--."

"You protected me from your vengeful father, gave me a love-proclaiming poem, tried to keep me safe compared to killing me, and risked your life to save me," Ginny smiled. "I think it took your mother for me to finally realize something."

"And that was?"

"I don't always need words to understand what you're thinking of."

Draco looked away from her.

"So, is You-Know-Who really dead? Is it all over?"

"Take a look for yourself," he pulled out a rolled-up Daily Prophet from his inside pocket.

Ginny frowned. The front article was about the death of a Ministry official, with a picture of the Dark Mark formed above his house. "But I thought Harry--."

"I know. But it would make sense that he's still alive. I mean, you didn't die," Draco pointed out. "He probably disapparated because according to Potter, his body wasn't found."

"Do you think the spell on me still holds?"

"The medi-wizard said there was no trace of it."

Ginny sighed in relief. Then she took a deep breath. "It seems I never escape You-Know-Who."

Draco sat back in his seat, eyes to the wall opposite of her. "First, it was due to my father planting the diary. Maybe if you stay away from the Malfoy line, you could find some peace."

Ginny placed the paper aside. "So what will you do now? It's not like you can still be a Death-eater."

Draco shrugged. "I don't know. I'll probably keep my day job. Who knows, I may be the first DADA teacher to stay more than 3 years."

Ginny looked down to his hands lying on his lap. "And us? What about us?"

Draco stood, scratching his forehead for a moment, and then slowly sat right next to her on the bed. Bravery washed over him as his fingers moved up from the sleeve of her white dress gown to trail up to her cheek. "I…" he tried to answer as his fingers played with the hair at the nape of her neck.

Ginny leaned forward and he could feel her bangs brushing against his forehead. She kept her eyes closed for a moment, and then opened them: coffee met steel. "You have no idea… do you?"

A chill ran down his spine. He heard those words before. Where is this déjà vu coming from? "I… I don't…"

She took the hand that was lost in her hair and grasped it in her own. "Are you willing to wait?"
"What?" he pulled away slightly.

"Come June, things will change. Right now, we're student and teacher. But after graduation, I'll be Virginia Weasley… a girl… and you'll be Draco Malfoy… a boy…" Ginny swallowed, tears welling in her eyes. "Would you give this a try?"

Draco closed his eyes, and then looked directly her eyes.

…to be continued.