A/N: So, silly old me forgot to put an author's note in the beginning welcoming you guys! so...welcome! I don't write angst really well, but I'm trying to work on it. I love constructive crit, and i LOVE reviews. anything but flames are completely appreciated. I have a better idea of where this is going than i did with my last one (if you read that, welcome back! please stay! i love you guys!), so I think/hope it'll be better. The ideas just kind of fell into my head...lots of randomness.
So, without further ado, here's chapter two! (that wasn't on purpose...promise.)
Chapter Two, Somewhere in Between
Ginny wandered the halls, roaming dazedly from class to class. The first two weeks had passed by quickly, and they were now in week three. This week began her Healer training with Madam Pomfrey, but she wasn't too excited about that. She couldn't understand why people underestimated her so often. Sure, she'd been the one to open the Chamber of Secrets, but that was so not her fault. Voldemort was the most powerful Dark Wizard EVER - you, too, would've fallen prey to his boyhood charms and seemingly sincere interest!
She scowled as she made her way to the Hospital Wing that night, trying to think up more ridiculous reasons to keep her away from the fighting. All she could come up with was that she was the youngest in the family and she was a girl. Both completely absurd. She was one of the best deulers of her age, she'd participated in the DA, and she was at the top of her class. There was no reason to keep her sheltered anymore, no reason to try and protect her - it just made her angry.
She walked quietly through the doors and looked around the stark white room. Beds with white sheets and blankets, white walls, white chairs. It wasn't foreboding, but it wasn't exactly welcoming. She needed, and loved, color in her life. Maybe that was why she should go into Healing - she could spruce up the place.
"Ah! Miss Weasley, you're here!"
"Yes, Madam Pomfrey," Ginny said, trying to fake a sincere smile.
"Good, good. Well, tonight there isn't much to do, I'm afraid. I suppose you already know most of the simple Healing spells?" The middle aged witch inquired. Ginny winced inwardly, she hadn't done her research.
"Not really, I've been kind of busy lately..."
"No matter, I have a more useful book here anyway." Madam Pomfrey looked up at her bookshelf, behind her desk, and gingerly extracted a medium-sized white book. "Here we go, 'Simple Spells for Simple Wounds'. It's what made me go into this business," she smiled. Turning back to Ginny, "It's very concise, and gives different situations for the different spells. Then it goes into how to combine them for a more complete result, or for more coplex injuries. Now, this is my only copy, so don't lose it." she finished sternly. Ginny nodded and took the book accordingly. She sat down to read it as Madam Pomfrey turned to her paperwork. "Oh! I almost forgot. Your mother wanted you to get acquainted with the different parts of the Hospital Wing, so feel free to roam about until it is time for you to leave, but don't misplace anything."
Ginny didn't feel like 'roaming about', but knew Madam Pomfrey was reporting back every move to her mother, so did as she was expected. She walked down, past the white beds, with white sheets, and white curtains. She noticed the white walls and chairs again, and a white door at the end of the room. She opened it, and it revealed another, smaller - more private - white room with white curtains and sheets. Well, at least it didn't matter if you got the sheets mixed up.
After two hours, Ginny tucked the white book under her arm, and - feeling almost spooked by the bland nature of it all - husteled out of the room. She was cutting it very close to curfew, but Headmistriss McGonagall knew what was going on, and wouldn't let her get in trouble for it.
She lost herself in her thoughts yet again, finding that the only person she could trust not to judge her was, in fact, herself. She debated about the lessons, homework, Quidditch, and her brother and his friends. She'd dated Harry towards the end of last year, but he'd gone kind of nutters over the summer. He talked to himself, and almost no one else. Ron and Hermoine, of course, talked to him, and still hung out with him, but he would have nothing to do with Ginny. That was fine, if he was going to snub her for as stupid a reason as "it'll make you a target," that was fine with her.
She abruptly turned a corner, and fell into a tall, blonde Slytherin (who somehow had made Head Boy) again.
He scowled at her fallen form, and reluctantly reached down a hand to help her up. She was almost in tears from the inner turmoil, but Heaven help her if she'd let it show. So she did exactly as he did - she let an icy facade drop, and hid it all.
"Not even going to thank me?" He shot, half-jokingly.
"Thank you." She muttered with contempt. A different sort of look crossed over his face, but Ginny was too far gone to notice.
"What's wrong with you?" Apparently she sucked at hiding her emotions.
"Nothing. Why do you want to know?" She shot, a bit too quickly. Staring agressively at his face, she saw him recoil a bit in surprise, but too quickly he dropped his own facade and resumed normalcy.
"I don't want to know, you're the one who keeps running into me. I'd like it to stop." Ginny crossed her arms in frustration and looked away. The reason she didn't move away was unbeknownest to her, but the fact of the matter was she didn't. She just glared at the wall, tears threatening to fall every second. This schedule, this war, this everything - it was all getting to her. She felt it her duty to keep it up, but it was getting to her.
"I can't help it if I turn a corner and you're there!" She shot, still glaring at the wall. She knew that if she looked at him, she would probably cry from the icy taunts being shot out of his eyes. She couldn't take humiliation at this point - it was just too much. What she needed was a hot shower and a good night's sleep. A few nights like that and she would be back to normal.
"Where are you coming from, anyway? It's almost curfew."
"Not that it's any of your business, but I was coming from the Hospital Wing."
"Potter injure himself again?" Draco said with disdain. Ginny nearly snorted.
"No, I'm training as a Healer." This information surprised Draco, and he seemed to have decided there was no harm in letting it show.
"Well that isn't right," he commented. She eyed him suspiciously. Of course she wanted someone to agree with her, but not Malfoy.
"What makes you think you know anything about what's right?" She shot, not caring about how insulting that comment sounded. It was supposed to be insulting.
"More than you do," he sneered. She shot him a daring look, and he just glared back at her. "This war," he spat, "it isn't about who's right versus who's wrong. It isn't about light versus dark. It isn't about purebloods versus mudbloods." His words were harsh, and they made her flinch with their venom. He was speaking with such rage and bitterness that she'd never experienced. "Hell, it isn't even about Potter versus Voldemort!"
She couldn't tolerate any more of it, "Of course it is!" she interjected, "It's about doing the right thing, even if it's not the easy! It's about standing up for what's good and right! About not taking the easy way out just because it's easy!" She spouted off the speech word-for-word. It'd been ingrained in her head from every angle since the Order had reformed.
He just sneered at her, "You're naiive."
"And you're bitter!" She shot back.
"Being bitter won't get me killed." Everything stopped at that statement. The conversation, Ginny's breath, the breeze - even time seemed to stand still for a moment. And with that simple statement, Ginny realized that she was naiive. And it was going to get her killed.
But that wasn't possible. She needed to stand up for what's right! For what's good! For everything she believed in...
But she certainly couldn't let Malfoy have the upper hand.
"So? So what if I die standing up for what's right? It would be noble! I would die knowing I did what was best for me!"
"Wouldn't 'what's best for you' be staying alive?" he countered. She considered this for a split second, but again, refused to let Malfoy have the last word. She was as stubborn as they come, and wasn't about to forget that.
"What's best for me is staying with the people I love. What's best for me is doing the right thing. Naiive or bitter, whatever. But doing the right thing is just that - doing the right thing!" Her volume increased gradually, as she gained more confidence in her words, "If everyone took the easy way out, Voldemort would be ruling the world! But Lily didn't run! She stayed and protected her son! She LOVED him! And that's more important than self-preservation!" It was Draco's turn to be surprised at a statement. He froze for a moment, but - being just as stubborn as his opponent - didn't let it on, and didn't stop.
"That kind of rhetoric is what's going to kill you, you stupid Gryffindor. Just like a Gryffindor, too...all ready to run out and die. At least a Slytherin knows a lost cause when he sees one!"
"I'm not ready to 'run out and die', but I AM ready to fight for what's good and right in the world! It is NOT a lost cause! Harry can fight him! We can fight them!"
"You don't even know who 'they' are!" Draco spat.
"THEY are the bad guys! Voldemort! The people who run around trying to create pain and suffering! Who kill innocent people! THEY are the ones who started this war!" She cried. Draco just shook his head, a calmer expression crossed his face as his posture and body language all relaxed.
"You're so naiive." He stated simply. "You're a naiive little girl." He said, with a bit more venom.
"Yeah?" She said incredulously, "Well at least I'M not a murderer!" The relaxed expression fell off of Draco's face, and he advanced on her with ice in his eyes.
"You don't know what you're talking about." He whispered fervently, as he glared right at her. She, being just as stubborn as he could be, glared right back. They stood there glaring at each other - silently daring the other to speak - until they heard footsteps approaching the corridor they were in. The sounds startled them both, and they looked up over at the corner, just in time to see Hermoine come around.
"Hermoine!" Ginny said as she turned around. Hermoine apparently hadn't noticed that anyone was in the corridor, and jumped back in surprise.
"Ginny! Draco? What are you two doing out here? It's after curfew!" She said with authority, hands on her hips.
"We were...uh...just discussing some things." Ginny said, not wanting to go into the argument she'd just had. Hermoine looked like she knew it was a bad lie, and raised her eyebrows.
"What, Granger? I'm on patrol, too, you know." He stated, puffing out his chest to make the silver badge more noticeable. Ginny just rolled her eyes.
"You know, Gin, I'm going to have to take points from Gryffindor...it's after curfew and all..." Ginny rolled her eyes again as she trudged towards Gryffindor Tower, muttering inaudible things under her breath. Hermoine took ten points from her House, and as Ginny rounded the corner, she was startled to see an unreadable expression on Draco's face. She'd expected a triumphant smile, he always loved it when Gryffindor lost points. And here he was...whatever it was, on his face, he was not happy. But he didn't seem sad, either...maybe somewhere in between?