I apologize for the long wait. My flash drive freaked out and deleted my entire story. Fortunately, I back up regularly. But I did have a major bit of work I had to rewrite. Here it is for your viewing pleasure.

I love the fact that you guys don't like Julian. I designed him to be an annoyingly perfect character – a foil for Draco Malfoy – and boy does it seem to be working.

Thank you again for reading and reviewing. I love hearing your feedback.

Hats off to Vaughn.

Harry quickly made his way through the halls, hoping he did not run into Professor Snape or Filch. He was on his way to his Occlumency lesson with Professor Spellsinger, but had no desire to deal with those two in the mood he was in. He was confused and a bit worried. Ginny's behaviour, as of late, had been extremely odd. She came to him tonight before he left, requesting the usage of his Invisibility Cloak for a few days. What she could want it for he had no idea, but the look in her eyes told him it was very important. He intended to ask her about it later, but for now, there was no reason not to lend her the cloak. Merlin knew she was far less likely to get into trouble with it than he was.

Hopefully, whatever it was worked out.

His instincts told him it had something to do with the situation between her, her secret admirer, and Julian. Part of him held out hope that she would get back together with the handsome Gryffindor. They seemed to be very happy together, and it was obvious to anyone with eyes that their separation was affecting them both severely. However. Ginny's secret admirer was most certainly a major factor in things, and Harry got the feeling she was far more attached to him than any of them realized. He just hoped the boy was worthy of her. Ah well. If not, he and Ron would make sure they had a bit of a chat with him.

Professor Spellsinger's office was open when he arrived, but she was nowhere in sight. Having learned his lesson previously, Harry sat down near her desk and waited. As the time passed, he found himself thinking more and more of the woman he loved, Hermione. Sometimes, when he saw how much pain he was causing her, he wondered if it was worth it to separate himself from her. Then he would dream of Voldemort and the terrible things he and his mindless lackeys were doing. He realized he could never place her in that much danger. She was already in danger for being who and what she was – a brilliant, muggle-born student whose very existence disproved everything the dark wizard preached. On the other hand, however, she was not the focus of the Dark Lord's attention like Harry was. If his feelings for her became known, however, that would quickly change. Death Eaters would actively hunt her, putting her in danger, no doubt, from the very students at this school. House would not be a consideration, since he was fully well aware that not all Death Eaters came from Slytherin.

"Nor are they cut from the same cloth, Harry." Professor Spellsinger smiled as she entered the office.

Harry whirled, wand in hand, and then relaxed as his thoughts caught up to his actions. "Sorry, Professor."

She chuckled. "Do not be. Reflexes such as that may save your life one day, Harry." The raven-haired professor took her seat and gestured for him to sit. "How have you been?"

He sighed. That one question asked for so much more than the state of his wellbeing. "Er… things are alright, Professor. I… I've been doing a lot better controlling my temper. I've only used the Voice twice in the past three weeks, and one time was slightly purposeful."

A delicate eyebrow arched.

"Uh… Crabbe and Goyle were picking on a second-year and I was the only person around. I didn't want to get in trouble for hexing them, so I told them to stop and get back to class."

"Did it work?"

He nodded excitedly. "Yes, it did. They blinked stupidly and then walked off like they had no idea why they were there in the first place. It was incredible! I mean, it's nice to be able to actually help people, Professor." He gazed at her earnestly. "Sometimes I look at my abilities and wonder why I have them. Why is it me that has to defeat Voldemort? Do I only have this capability because of it? But then I remember what you said about not wishing my destiny on anyone else, and it hits me that I am probably going to need these abilities. That yes, I probably do have them so I can defeat him, but they probably won't go away, will they?"

Ryselle shook her head. "Such gifts are part of you, Harry. It is part of the privilege and part of the responsibility."

"But that means I can keep helping people long after Voldemort's dead. Assuming I survive," he muttered.

"Harry James Potter! Do not think such a thing! Death comes when it will and there is little you can do about it except strive to live as long as possible."

"Sirius didn't get to…"

"Yes he did, Harry. Sirius died doing exactly what he wanted. He was charging to your rescue. Do not think that because Sirius died it means that you have the right to give up on living past Voldemort's defeat." She clasped his hand. "He would kick you in the arse if he heard you speaking this way."

Harry could not help but chuckle. "True."

"Besides, Harry, do you wish to leave Hermione?"

Soft chocolate eyes appeared in his mind, filled with love and trust. He shook his head. "No, Professor. I could never do that to her if I had the choice."

"Then think positively, Harry. You will succeed and you will survive. Believing anything else will simply sabotage your efforts."

He nodded.

"Now, anything else?"

"Er…" he blushed. "I… uh… I think I've been… uh… seeing into other people's minds."

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Er… yeah. I… uh… well… uh…" How the bloody hell was he supposed to have this conversation with his Defense Against the Dark Arts professor? "I… uh…"

"Harry…" she began warningly.

"S..Sorry. Er… let's just say I've been seeing things that are… rather embarrassing… and I could probably tell you who is… er… with who in the entire school."

He was offended when Ryselle started laughing.

"What?"

"I am sorry, Harry. No! Do not leave. I apologize. It is just… the look… your face…" She smiled at him fondly. "You are so young, Harry, and this is a very difficult thing to deal with."

"What the hell is 'this'?"

Ryselle quickly got up and fetched a book from her rooms. Flipping to a specific page, she sat next to Harry and pointed to the chapter title. Telepathy.

"You mean Leglimancy?"

"In a manner of speaking. Leglimancy is a form of telepathy, Harry. What you are experiencing is telepathy in its purest form. Leglimancy can be learned by anyone with a strong enough mind, but is activated through a spell like the Patronus or Shielding Spell. Telepathy by itself is the means by which a person sees into another's mind using only the power of their will."

"Can it be blocked?"

"Occlumency is used to block any form of telepathy. At some point, it becomes a matter of will versus will if an Occlumens is mentally invaded."

Harry looked confused. "What is the difference?"

"The difference, Harry, is in the focus. Leglimancy requires the focus of a spell. Telepathy requires nothing but the mind. It is a far more difficult discipline to learn, requiring great control and strength of will."

"Can you teach me?"

"Honestly, Harry, Professor Snape would be far better at this than I. My talents are in other areas, but, fortunately, Occlumency is one of them. Telepathy is something I have never truly desired to master."

He looked at her curiously. "Why not?"

"I am far too empathic."

Suddenly Ryselle's isolation from her peers made so much more sense. "Er… how is telepathy different?"

"Telepathy is a much more powerful experience. Not only do you get thoughts, but emotions, intentions, and depth. Voldemort, from what I understand, is a very skilled telepath. Empathy allows me to sense emotions, but it can be overwhelming. I do not like the idea of reading people's minds."

"But you can, can't you? You never said you couldn't do Leglimancy. You just said it wasn't something you mastered."

Ryselle cursed silently. "True." She sighed. "Harry, just because I am capable does not mean I am good at it. I can use it, as much as I hate it, but I try not to." A fond smile lit her face. "I am like my grandfather in many ways. There are many things I can do. Many things we all can do. But I am master of only a few."

"I'd rather have you teach me than Snape."

"Professor Snape," she corrected absently. "We will discuss this later. There will be no telepathy until you have mastered Occlumency. Is that understood?"

Harry nodded reluctantly.

"Good. Now let us begin."

The session that followed was, Harry felt, particularly brutal. Not only did Ryselle read his mind, but she manipulated his thoughts and emotions as well. By the time she was done, he felt as if Professor Snape had been rummaging around in his head. At least she was kind enough to give him a potion for the headache, and a compliment on his efforts.

"You are doing well, Harry. It is only a matter of time before you have mastered Occlumency."

Harry left, and headed directly back to Gryffindor Tower and his dorm room. All he wanted was a hug from Hermione and a much needed rest. All else could go hang until tomorrow.

Ryselle Spellsinger, meanwhile, headed to Albus Dumbledore's office for a conversation she had been meaning to have with him for some time. Tonight was the first night she had delved so deeply into Harry's mind, and what she found concerned her even as it gave her hope. The young man was powerful – far more than he realized. He also had a healthy dose of temper, which made her leery of training his more destructive abilities until his personal life was in order. Unfortunately, she doubted Voldemort would be willing to wait to confront the boy until he was in a good mood.

"Toffee tentacles." The gargoyle moved aside so she could hop on the upward moving staircase. It did no surprise her to see Albus Dumbledore waiting for her, but Minerva McGonagall's presence was unexpected. She lifted an eyebrow in inquiry.

"Ah, Ryselle, my dear. We've been expecting you. Lemon drop?"

Eyes twinkling in amusement, she took the proffered treat. "Thank you, Albus."

"Have a seat, my dear, and tell us what brings you here on this fine evening."

She chuckled. "Oh, Albus, I am sure you have an idea of my purpose here. But," she said, raising her hand to halt his objection, "I will state it for Minerva's benefit. You are aware, of course, that I have been tutoring Harry Potter in Occlumency since the beginning of the term. He is making good progress, and I have confidence that he will have mastered closing his mind by the end of the school year."

Minerva looked surprised.

"His training is being made more difficult by three things. One, he is linked to Voldemort. There is no way to truly close that link, so he is constantly struggling to keep Voldemort from reading his mind. It drains him, Minerva, and makes him more vulnerable in our lessons. I am honestly impressed he as improved this quickly. I wonder at Professor Snape's report of his lack of progress."

"They have never gotten along well, Ryselle," responded McGonagall, "Harry does not trust him and Severus… has issues with Harry."

"I figured as much. Fortunately, we have no such difficulties." Ryselle leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. "The second issue has to do with him personal life. He is having the emotional issues of a normal sixteen year old. Combine that with the threat of Voldemort over his head and over the wo… people he loves and you have a recipe for potential disaster. Especially with the third issue."

The elderly witch and wizard looked interested.

"He is a telepath. Even more than that, he is a natural. He has been seeing into the minds of his peers, as of late, and it is making him unbalanced. Someone needs to teach him how to control his telepathic abilities."

"Aren't you…" began Minerva.

Ryselle interrupted. "I am not naturally talented at telepathy, Minerva. My mind has been trained very differently, and there would be little I could do to contain such a powerful gift as Harry possesses." She looked at the headmaster. "I would suggest either you or my grandfather teach him what he needs to know."

Albus nodded. "It has come to this point, then?"

"Yes. It will not be long before he begins to influence others."

"Then I will make time for this."

"Albus! You don't…"

He raised a hand. "Yes, Minerva, I must. Harry is in need of mentoring that only I or another very powerful telepath may give. I appreciate what you are doing to help Harry, Ryselle. Do you think you can continue teaching him Occlumency?"

"Yes, Albus. That will not be a problem."

"Then I will need you, Minerva, to take some of my duties for the next two weeks. I believe Harry will be able to master this particular gift far more easily than Occlumency." His blue eyes settled on the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. "Will you be there to help him, Ryselle?"

"If you wish, Headmaster."

"I will contain his mind while you teach him control. I believe your empathic abilities will be very helpful in that instance."

Ryselle nodded in agreement. "I will do my best."

"Splendid! Bring Harry to my office tomorrow night and we will begin."

"I will."

Taking her leave of the headmaster and his deputy, Ryselle headed back to her office to finish grading the third year essays. It promised to be an entertaining experience. Yesterday's lesson was on the Boggart and she was curious as to what odd spin her students would put on the topic. Teaching was so amusing sometimes.

The next morning found Draco Malfoy sitting in his room contemplating the events of the past few weeks. He feared he had miscalculated Ginny's reaction to her breakup with the Gryffindor. It had been his hope that she would turn to her secret admirer for comfort, confiding to him that things could have been a lot better and that she needed to find someone more like him. He was prepared to come heroically to her rescue by proposing that they exchange some more personal letters and then dramatically reveal himself when he felt the time was right.

Reality, unfortunately, did not live up to his imagination.

Two weeks had passed and he still had yet to hear from her. Admittedly, his last letter was less than friendly, but really, she had to care for him enough to get over it. Right? Did he screw up? His mood grew darker as the time passed without a word. She hated him. He had not even revealed himself to her and she hated him. It was difficult for him to acknowledge the fact that contact with her had become far more important than the bet. She was now more than that. As much as he hated to admit it, he realized he was falling for her.

How could he not?

She was beautiful, intelligent (without being irritating like Granger), mischievous, strong-willed, cunning, brave, gifted, and most important of all, seemed to genuinely like him. He stopped hiding behind the romantic "secret admirer" identity some time ago in all but name, and still she continued to write him, to care for him, and from what he saw, to want him more than even the bloody Gryffindor prat who had been her boyfriend. He felt a stab of guilt at that. It was doubtful that the two would have stayed together for a long time, he thought, but he could tell they would have been happy and probably stayed friends even after they parted ways. Now, it was unlikely they would be anything other than housemates.

He was glad Aldread no longer hung around "his" woman, but he was saddened to see how upset Ginny was as a result. It was odd to feel such remorse over something so Slytherin. He leaned back in his chair, deep in thought. What could he do to rectify the situation? Not that he cared, but if SA managed to smooth things over with Ginny and Aldread, she would probably be very grateful and far more inclined to start writing him again. Yes. Now that she was no longer with that prat, he needed to concentrate on making her want him instead. It was time to go back on the offensive, only this time, he would be sure to make things better for her.

Excellent.

Granger mentioned not too long ago that Ginny was very loyal to her friends. The first thing he needed to do was get on her good side and place himself firmly in the position of "friend" before moving forward. He nodded to himself. Yes. She would be very grateful to him if he did something to help one of her friends out. If the Aldread boy was that friend, so much the better. He could win her trust and get her to stop moping all in one fell swoop. Now, how to manipulate things so he could "help" the Gryffindor studmuffin…

Draco absently grabbed his books and headed to his first class of the day – Herbology. He would have to think on this for a while.

Ginny was sitting with Potter, Granger, and her brother when he arrived at the greenhouse. Professor Sprout bustled around, twittering about snakeroot and its various uses. He mechanically copied down the list of types and their specific properties while examining Ginny. She was pale and drawn, with her hair pulled back into a severe tail, slouched posture, and an unhappy frown on her beautiful face. The twinge of guilt was stronger this time.

Bugger. What the hell was wrong with him? His plan worked exactly the way he wanted it to. Blaise cast the spell on her three times a day, once per meal, and he manipulated her interest in SA to drive her away from that Gryffindor prat. How could he feel guilty for succeeding where lesser men would have failed? Like the Weasel king. His pathetically transparent plans to keep Granger and Potter apart were about as successful as his pursuit of fame. He frowned. He had her exactly where he wanted her – sad and vulnerable – yet he could not bring himself to take the final step. Doing so ran the risk of making her even sadder.

Draco threw down his quill in frustration. How was he supposed to fix this without handing her to Aldread or breaking her heart?

"Mr. Malfoy?"

His head shot up. Oh crap. He forgot he was in class. "Yes, Professor?"

Several girls giggled. "Are you alright, Mr. Malfoy?"

"Er… yes, Professor. Thank you."

"Is there a reason you are upset with your quill, Mr. Malfoy?"

More giggling. He sighed. "No, Professor, I was simply… frustrated because it keeps… er… leaking on my fingers." He held up ink-stained hands.

"I see, Mr. Malfoy. Perhaps Miss Granger will agree to lend you one of her special pens. They do not leak at all, from what I understand."

His nose wrinkled in disgust. "No thank you, Professor. I would prefer not to… associate myself with such… devices."

"Very well Mr. Malfoy. If we can continue? Now, snakeroot is commonly found in forested areas…"

Draco felt the need to bang his head on his desk. That was the most pathetic excuse he had ever come up with in his life. He used dragonspine quills. They were under warranty for life. Guaranteed not to leak or dull and all that. He could not believe Sprout fell for it. Okay, maybe he did. She was a Hufflepuff after all. He turned his attention to the rest of the lesson, aware that far too much attention was still on him.

He sighed. This was turning out to be a lovely day.

After class, Draco watched as the Golden Trio went off to slave away in the Library while Ginny made her excuses and headed back to Gryffindor Tower. He fought the urge to follow her, comforting himself with the thought that soon he would be back in her good graces and able to be with her when he wished. Hopefully, she would be feeling better by dinner.

Ginny returned to the tower and made her way upstairs. Frustrated, she threw herself on her bed, dropping her books and schoolbag nearby. This week is going swimmingly, she thought. Julian was moping around like… well… like his heart had been broken, which she supposed it was, and she felt incredibly guilty every time she saw him. Which was nearly every bloody class. She was still angry at SA for his little stunt two weeks ago. After a long talk with Hermione, she came to the conclusion that he was jealous and had been trying to make her feel the same. On one hand, she was livid that the little bastard ruined her relationship with Julian, but on the other, she was thrilled he seemed to care so much. He aroused in her an excitement she never felt with Julian.

Bloody hell. There went that pang of guilt.

Julian really deserved better than to be the victim of her uncontrolled temper. Hermione mentioned the Tempero Charm to her and she had to admit it made a great deal of sense. She hated the fact that he suffered for her doubts, though. If only she had talked with him earlier. Her frustrations would probably have been a lot less and things could have gone better. Unfortunately, she kept quiet and someone took advantage of that. After all, she never would have lost it that badly if she had been in her right mind. Now who would want to break her and Julian up in such a way that he would hate her?

Blaise Zabini.

Yes. That bitch was panting after Julian like a dog in heat and Ginny would not put it past her to sabotage their relationship just so she could get a shot at him. Unfortunately for her, she seemed to have underestimated the noble Gryffindor. Julian was paying no more attention to Blaise than he had before the breakup. In fact, he was beginning to avoid going to meals or doing anything other than study in order to escape his starry-eyed admirers. Hermione was really the only person he talked to anymore.

Blast it! Why did she have to go and get so obsessive over her bloody "Secret Admirer"? Julian was wonderful. Sure, they had issues, but she had planned on talking with him about her doubts and her feelings of inadequacy before things got too bad. Now it looked like she had lost a friend in addition to a boyfriend. What was she supposed to do? SA had yet to write her, and she was damn well not going to write him until she got a letter informing her that he was no longer enamoured with his mystery girl. Again, it appeared Blaise Zabini was standing firmly in the way of her happiness. She could hex the bloody bint.

"Ginny?" Hermione stood in the doorway, gazing at her friend uncertainly.

She rolled over and made room on the bed for the older girl. "Yeah, Hermione? What is it?"

"I thought I might ask the same of you. Are you okay?"

Ginny laughed bitterly. "What do you think, 'Mione? I drove my boyfriend away with my temper over a guy I've never met and am not even sure is real. I hurt him more than Ron hurt you, and I can't help but think all this is some sort of game to someone out there. I feel like I'm being played with, but I don't know who's doing it!"

"Maybe… I don't know, Ginny. I can see your point."

"It's got to be Blaise, 'Mione. She's the only common thread in all of this beside me and Julian."

"And SA. Don't forget him. He's the reason all this started in the first place."

The ginger-haired girl snorted. "Don't remind me. He's the reason I broke up with Julian."

Hermione was silent for a moment, and then she turned to gaze curiously at her friend. "Why?"

Such a simple question for such a complicated situation, Ginny thought. Hermione had a good point, though. She needed to figure that out. The younger girl was silent for a moment. "I guess part of it is that I always felt so… inadequate, you know? Undeserving. Like I was reaching far above my head to touch something too good for me."

"Ginny…"

"Julian's amazing. He's like Harry only without the insane madman chasing after him and all the angst that goes with it. I guess I've always liked the idea of being with a hero. My Prince Charming, I guess." She smiled, remembering the time they were together. "We could talk about anything. He loves Quidditch, but is also interested in Charms and Potions like me. He thinks Divination is interesting, but that Madame Trelawney is funny. He likes Transfiguration, but prefers Professor Spellsinger's teaching style over Professor McGonagall's. I… he's an amazing kisser and an incredible gentleman. He refused to go any further than I was willing to let him." She giggled. "It was rather cute, actually. He's so shy and uncertain in private, but projects such confidence to everyone else."

"I thought his shyness was something you hated."

"I… no, I didn't hate it. I just hated the fact that he didn't share his uncertainty with me. I was perfectly willing to help him get over it. If only he'd trusted me."

Hermione sighed. "It wasn't trust, Ginny. It has to do with how he was raised." She briefly told her friend about the conversation between her and Julian, and how he had not wanted to trouble her with his insecurities.

Ginny was silent for a while, thinking about what Hermione told her. "Ugh! Why couldn't he just tell me that he… wasn't experienced? I don't care about that, you know. I just wanted someone to be with me… accept me… I…" She threw herself into her friend's arms and began to weep. "Oh Hermione! I totally buggered things up. He hates me," she wailed.

Her reaction, though startling, was not completely unexpected. Hermione held her friend and rocked her gently as she wept. It was only when she began to hiccup that she pushed her away and met her eyes.

"Shhhh. It will be okay, Ginny. We can talk to Julian. You can write SA. We'll fix this."

Ginny's eyes were wide like a child's. "Promise," she sniffed.

"We'll do our best. I promise." Knowing her friend was in no shape to join them for dinner, Hermione helped her get ready for bed and promised to have the house elves bring her something to eat. Professor McGonagall would understand.

"Thanks, Hermione," whispered Ginny, as her friend left the room.

"Goodnight, Ginny. Sleep well."

Harry and Ron were waiting for her when she went downstairs. Both of them looked worried, but it was Ron who spoke first.

"How is she?"

Hermione sighed. "Upset. She thinks Julian hates her."

"Why would she care what that prat thinks of her?"

"Ron…" Hermione began warningly.

"I don't think Julian was responsible for their breakup, Ron," said Harry.

"What do you mean?"

"Ron," said Hermione, "Julian and your sister broke up because she… well… she kind-of freaked out on him."

"Well, he obviously must have deserved it. The bloody git."

Hermione shook her head. "Not completely. She… misunderstood something he was doing and he was simply trying to be a gentleman."

Ron's face reddened. "I'll kill him."

Harry grabbed Ron as he prepared to storm out of the tower to go looking for Julian. "No! Ron, wait!" Hermione stepped in front of the portrait hole. "It's not what you think."

"Then what is it, Hermione?" She hated it when he used his calm yet angry voice. It usually meant he was about to do something extraordinarily impulsive, violent, and/or stupid.

"She… er… uh…"

"Oh just spill it already!"

"Fine! She wasn't happy with how hesitant he was about things, all right? She wanted him show himself to be less than perfect, and to confess to her how shy and uncertain he was."

"What?" Ron looked confused. "You mean he didn't… er… do anything to her?"

She let loose a sigh of frustration. "No, Ronald! He was a perfect gentleman and did everything he could to treat her like a princess."

"Then what was the problem?"

"Me." They whirled to see Ginny walking slowly down the stairs. "I was the problem, Ron. I had everything any sane girl could want and I pushed it away because I felt unworthy. And I…"

"You wanted your secret admirer instead."

Ginny gaped at her brother.

"Oh bloody hell, Ginny. I may be a bit dense, but I'm not stupid. You've been over the moon for that blighter since you first started receiving his letters. At first, I figured it was Julian, but it just didn't sound right when I talked with him. He had no clue. You wanted to be with this other guy but settled for Julian."

They were all shocked at his perception.

"What, you didn't think I knew? You guys really need to hone up your observational skills." He gently moved Hermione away from the portrait hole. "I don't know about you all, but I'm starving. I'll see you in the Great Hall." Ron sauntered out of the tower, leaving behind three very astounded Gryffindors.

"Well I'll be damned," said Ginny.

"No kidding." Hermione looked at her friends. "We've really underestimated him, haven't we?"

Harry nodded. "We do that a lot. I guess that's why he's constantly beating me at chess."

Ginny shrugged. "I'm glad he's good at something. He's right, though, I'm starving."

"But I thought…"

"I'm not going to stick around here and mope forever, Hermione. I needed that cry. Thanks for being there. But now I need to be around people. And food. Definitely around food."

Harry and Hermione grinned as the red-haired girl darted out of the tower. "Yup, she's a Weasley."

The two cheerfully followed their friends, walking slowly to enjoy each other's presence. Harry quickly kissed Hermione's hand before they headed inside.

"I love you," he whispered.

Draco's eyes shifted to the minor commotion at the Gryffindor table. It appeared Weasley and his sister finally arrived for dinner. The Weasel king quickly pounced on the food, piling his plate high before stuffing his face like the pig he resembled. Ginny, on the other hand, took generous portions, but ate with acceptable table manners. Hmmm. He would need to teach her better than that if she was going to be with him. Potter and Granger were late, but quickly took their seats and began eating before anyone said something. By the blush on Granger's face, he figured Potter had made some sort of Gryffindorish attempt at romance.

Pathetic.

It was sad how the boy mooned after the girl, somehow thinking that people were unaware of his feelings for the Mudblood. He cursed. The muggle-born. He doubted Ginny would appreciate him referring to her best friend by a term that cost him a bloody nose his third year. He rolled his eyes. Why did everything have to be so bloody complicated? In a perfect world, he would be able to walk up to Ginny, offer her a reasonable number of Galleons to accompany him to the Ball, and then part ways afterward without any gratuitous displays of romance or emotional commitment. Of course, if it were a perfect world, Acheron would be back in Greece and he would be free to do whatever he wanted. His eyes slid to the arrogant Slytherin. He sat at the other end of the table, surrounded by his sycophants, basking in their meaningless adoration.

It was disgusting.

"Draco," said Thanos, turning his dark eyes to the silver-haired Prefect.

"Yes, Acheron?"

"So what happened with your quill in Herbology today? I thought you had one of the dragonspine quills. Or did you get a cheap knockoff?"

Draco glared. "I don't get 'cheap knockoffs,' Acheron. I leave that to you," he replied eying Pansy. She gasped as she realized what he was implying

"Draco Malfoy! How dare you say such a thing?" she demanded shrilly. It made him wonder how he ever put up with her. Her voice sounded like a dying pig caught in an ironworks.

"I didn't say anything, Pansy darling. I was merely commending on your boyfriend's… taste… when it came to… quills."

Several students snickered at that. Any Slytherin worth their house knew exactly what he was implying. Pansy stood up.

"You take that back, Draco!"

His cold, grey eyes rested on her, bored with the whole scene. "Oh, my mistake, Pansy," he said sarcastically, "your boyfriend seems to prefer hand-me-downs instead."

She gasped.

Thanos stood up and reached for his wand, ready to defend his girlfriend.

"Is there a problem, here?" The silky voice came from behind Thanos Acheron. He turned to face his professor.

"Uh… no sir. I was just…"

"We were chatting about wands, sir. Thanos was simply going to show me how much longer his happens to be."

"I believe, Mr. Malfoy, that the size of the wand has very little to do with its functionality."

Draco smirked. "That was my thought, Professor. But I thought it prudent to consider all the facts."

Snape eyed them sternly. "There will be no wand size comparisons taking place here or anywhere else, is that understood?"

The two Slytherins ignored the snickers around them. "Yes, sir."

Black robes billowing dramatically, Snape returned to the Head Table and sat down. A feminine chuckle caught his attention and he glanced over at the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. One look at her made him want to bang his head against a wall or hide in mortification.

"Wand length, Severus? My goodness. I was unaware you were so well-versed on the particulars of wand functionality." Her eyes sparkled mischievously even as her smile touched his heart.

He fought the urge to flush. "It is something any proper wizard is aware of, Ryselle. Misters Malfoy and Acheron are young, however, and needed to be reminded that the Great Hall is not the place for such a discussion."

She arched her eyebrow. "It is something better done in private, eh Severus?"

"Ryselle," he said, exasperated, "please cease the innuendo. It is difficult enough to deal with… that… as it is."

"Two young bucks wrestling for dominance?"

"Essentially."

She touched his hand. "I am sorry, Severus. I do not mean to make things more uncomfortable for you."

He ignored the rush of warmth at her touch. "It is… I was brought up to be a gentleman, Ryselle. One does not discuss such things with a woman."

"Forgive me," she murmured.

He found himself trapped by her gaze. "Always," he whispered. "I…"

"Gypsies have a very different view of the world, Severus, and certain parts of human behaviour. We do not find discussions such as this to be… ungentlemanly."

"There is a certain coarse vulgarity in innuendo, Ryselle. A lady of your caliber should not be exposed to such… filth."

She blushed. "Thank you, Severus. I… I am honored by your noble behaviour.

"No true wizard would be anything but noble in your presence, my dear."

She smiled at him, gently squeezing his hand.

"I apologize. I promise I will be more considerate of your feelings. I will respect your upbringing." She smiled shyly. "It is rather refreshing to meet a man who has such a proper aristocratic bearing."

"For you I could do nothing less."

Ryselle wondered if she would ever stop blushing. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Neither professor was aware of the spectacle they were presenting at the Head Table. Minerva McGonagall and Eurydice Vector were shocked at the way their Slytherin colleague was acting towards the youthful Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. He had been at the school for nearly twenty years, and in all that time, none of the teachers could remember him behaving with anything less than derision. Headmaster Dumbledore's gleefully twinkling eyes nearly lit up the room as he observed the increasing closeness between the man he thought of as a son and his oldest friend's granddaughter. Hope swelled in his heart that the Potions master would finally allow himself to be open to the caring of another.

The intensity between Ryselle and Severus lessened, but was still present as they changed topics and began to converse about the properties of the Wolfsbane Potion and how it might be changed for greater duration. The Potions master had an encyclopedic knowledge of the ingredients and their properties, as well as the experience to know how they interacted. Ryselle marveled at his brilliance, hoping she was up to the standard of having this conversation with him. It was refreshing to feel so challenged.

Severus was thrilled to be talking with a person, a woman, who understood the majority of what he was saying and even had the occasional insight to the topic. Potions was not Ryselle's forte, but she was extraordinarily intelligent and knowledgeable about forms of magic he possessed only passing familiarity with. Like ritual magic. The Dark Lord was the only other person he knew with such a deep understanding of the rare magical art. Hmmm. It occurred to him that the answer might be sitting right in front of him. Perhaps a combination of a ritual and potion might succeed where mere charms and potions failed.

He mentioned his thought.

"It is possible, I suppose," she mused, still absently holding his hand. "Rituals typically combine facets of all forms of magic, and are especially good at manipulating life energy. Most major healing spells are a form of ritual magic."

"Do you think a ritual could be created to suppress lycanthropy, or even cure it?"

"I do not know, Severus. According to legend, there are rituals to accomplish everything from winning a person's heart to bringing one back from the dead. Anything is possible."

"Perhaps that would be the best angle to work from. Assuming you are interested in working on such a thing with me," he said hesitantly.

Her smile lifted his heart. "Of course I would be interested. Remus could benefit so much from such a spell!"

He frowned, puzzled at her apparent familiarity with the werewolf. He removed his hand. "How well do you know Remus?" He thought they had just met for the first time at the Order meeting.

"Uh… I… not very well. I just… want to help anyone with such a condition, Severus. He is, after all, one of us."

She was lying. He could tell. She was not being remotely honest with him. Suddenly, all his benevolent feelings vanished. He would not be played for a fool. He stood up. "Yes, he is. Very well, I shall expect you to be in the laboratory at ten o'clock." His voice turned cold. "Do not be late."

Ryselle watched with wide eyes as Severus swept out of the room.

What the bloody hell just happened?

Dinner ended without further incident, and the students returned to their dormitories. Ginny made her excuses and headed up to her room, deep in thought. Julian was beginning to come out of his funk, but he still refused to even look at her. She felt slightly irritated, but then she remembered what she said to him, and how Hermione told her she was his first girlfriend, and she felt terrible all over again. What was she going to do? It was all fine and dandy for Hermione to say they were going to make things better, but another thing to actually accomplish it. First she would have to get Julian to associate with her. She was not sure even Hermione would be able to do that.

The soft hoot of an owl greeted her as she entered the room.

Ginny halted in the doorway, shocked at the sight of Icarus on her bed holding a scroll with SA's distinctive seal. Hands shaking, she carefully removed it from his leg and produced an owl treat. Part if her was afraid to open the parchment, but she needed to know what he had to say for himself.

Dearest Ginny,

I'm sorry. I hope you can forgive me for being a royal prat. I'm afraid I have not been entirely honest with you in my past letters. Please, don't stop reading until you reach the end of this letter. I was jealous, Ginny. Julian seemed to be everything I never could be and I was afraid you would not give me a second thought once the two of you were together. In a way I was right. The tone of your letters changed – you were obviously quite smitten with him – and I wished it were me instead.

I know we do not know each other outside of these letters, but please believe me that everything I have written was true and I have gone out of my way to be honest with you. There is a lot we don't know about each other, and all I wanted was to continue down the path we had taken when we began our correspondence. I truly care for you, Ginny, and I want you to be happy, but I am too selfish to want it to be with anyone but me.

Forgive me for hurting you. I was a jealous berk and should never have implicated that Blaise and I had any sort of relationship outside a distant association from being housemates. Yes, Ginny, you are correct. I am from Slytherin House. I faked an interest in Blaise so I could make you jealous in hopes that you would turn back to me. I never expected things to go so badly. I find myself curious as to what happened. I honestly thought I had driven you away with my transparent scheme for your attention. Why were you so angry? Did he do something to you because you seemed to have another interest?

I only meant to get your attention, not to completely destroy your friendship with Julian. Forgive me for my part in what happened. They say that 'The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing.' If there is one thing I have learned from this, it is to talk with you about my fears and insecurities. I should have told you I was jealous. I should have asked you to give me a chance to be for you what he has been.

I'm sorry.

I hope you will be able to forgive me someday, Ginny. I took something wonderful and destroyed it out of jealousy, and then cast aside the reason I did it in the first place. All I can say is that I was afraid of losing you to someone far more worthy of your affections. Don't let my mistake end your friendship with Julian. I'm sure he will listen to you if you take the chance.

Should you wish to continue corresponding with me, Ginny, I welcome it, and I promise I won't do anything like that again.

Love,

SA

Ginny found herself seated on her bed. Who would have thought? SA confessed to her that he was jealous, and even apologized for being a prat about it. Maybe he was not the bastard she thought him. She was curious, however, as to what happened with the Tempero Charm. If Hermione was right and she was under the charm, it sounded like it had to be someone else since SA seemed to have no idea why she was so upset. Was Blaise simply taking advantage of the situation? She would not put it past her. The girl was a menace.

She needed to talk with Hermione.

The trip to the Library gave Ginny time to think about the situation and come to a series of decisions. She still had a lot of unanswered questions about what happened, and really needed the older girl's advice on how to handle it. Was she simply being a fool by even considering giving SA another chance?

It was not terribly hard to separate Hermione from her two shadows. Harry and Ron actually seemed relieved to be let off the hook for their current study assignments. Before they left, Hermione reminded them that they had tests in Potions and Defense Against the Dark Arts on Friday, and they both needed to study for the written part of the exams. The boys were still assuring her they would continue studying in her absence as Ginny dragged her away.

"Be back before curfew!" called Harry.

Ginny stuck out her tongue as the door swung shut.

"Bloody wanker," Ginny muttered.

"They're not going to complete their studies," Hermione complained worriedly. "They both need to do really well this year if they want to get into the Auror program. I can't believe they're still being so irresponsible."

Ginny listened politely, knowing that her friend was grousing more than anything. Harry, at the very least, was doing a lot better this year. Not that he would be turned away from anything he decided to do. Ignoring her friend's muttering, she pulled Hermione out to her favorite tree by the lake and made her sit down.

Hermione sighed in exasperation. "Honestly, Ginny, what's gotten into you? You're being…"

"Pushy?"

"Yes! What's going on?"

Ginny mutely handed her the letter.

With a curious look, Hermione opened the letter and quickly perused the contents. Her face remained impassive, to Ginny's irritation, so there was no real clue about what she thought about it. Ginny was not terribly concerned, however. She knew her friend would give her a very honest opinion.

"Rubbish."

"What?" Ginny regarded the older Gryffindor in surprise.

"I said 'rubbish.'" She gestured at the parchment. "It's too simple. He says he's in Slytherin, but the scheme he came up with was very straightforward. He told you he found someone else in order to make you jealous, and then used Blaise to turn your attention back to him? That sounds like something we might come up with. There's always something more with a Slytherin. He's not telling the truth."

"He said…"

"Okay, he's not telling the whole truth. This entire letter is a carefully constructed set of facts, slanted a particular way to make it sound the way it needs to for whatever result he wants."

"Which is?"

"You. What else. He wants you to choose him, sight unseen, and was willing to push you to jealousy to make it happen."

"What about the Tempero Charm? He said he didn't cast it."

"No, Ginny, he didn't. Come on. You should know this. You of all people should be able to see the Slytherin logic in this letter."

Ginny's face darkened in anger. "So you think he did it?"

Hermione sighed. "At the very least he took advantage of it." She thought for a moment. "But I doubt it was him."

"Why?"

"There's a risk associated with casting the Tempero Charm. Sometimes the charm backfires, causing a magical backlash to affect the two people involved – victim and caster. If he was the one using the charm, he would have run the risk that you would come to hate him. No Slytherin would be willing to take that risk."

"Do you think he arranged it?"

"It's possible." Hermione sighed in exasperation. "I don't know, Ginny. You know this guy better than I do. Do you think he might have done something like this?"

Ginny reluctantly nodded.

"So what are you going to do about it?"

That was the question. Ginny was ashamed to admit she was flattered by the idea that someone liked her enough to fight for her – even if it was in a very underhanded, Slytherin way. She did get the feeling that he was not truly lying to her. His letters, for the most part, felt honest and she trusted her instincts. It was only the tiny voice in the back of her mind that was uncertain, but was willing to find out more. And that was the issue.

Despite all the time they had spent exchanging letters, there was still so little she knew about him. She could not help but be disappointed that he left so much of himself out of them. She felt as if she were getting to know an image as opposed to a person. She got the feeling he wanted her to see only certain things, and found herself curious as to why. How could he be so afraid of being honest with her? It was starting to bother her more and more. Especially considering that she broke up with Julian for not being open with her.

Ginny sighed. Every letter they wrote was like an intricate combination of dancing around the truth and sharing as much of themselves as possible without revealing anything to significant. In all honesty, she was sick of it. She broke up with her boyfriend for this bloke and he had the nerve to want her to keep "seeing" him through owlmail. She frowned. The mind behind the letters intrigued her, and she wanted to meet the man behind the words.

She wanted something real, not fantasy. She wanted to be able to look around the Great Hall and see him during meals. She wanted to go with him to Hogsmeade on the weekends and to the upcoming Yule Ball. She wanted to dress up for him in hopes of seeing his eyes bug out when he saw her beauty, or be able to appreciate him for whatever he looked like. Unless it was Crabbe or Goyle, which she highly doubted, it was a good bet he was probably handsome. One thing he had to give pure-blood families was that they were a pretty bunch. Take Malfoy, for example. He was a prat, but he was a good-looking prat.

Ginny thought about it for a while, then decided the time for pretense had come to an end. Either he was going to introduce himself, or she was going to move on and stop writing him. Her attraction for Julian had not faded, and she got the feeling that once she talked to him, he might be willing to give things another go. The idea was very attractive, but she could not go back to him until she found out how she truly felt about SA. If he was the man she talked to with the letters, then Julian was going to have to find another date to the Yule Ball. Julian was nice, but SA suited her in a way the Gryffindor never would. She looked at Hermione.

"I know what I need to do."

Hermione studied her for a moment, and the nodded, apparently finding whatever it is she was looking for. "Good luck, Gin."

"Thanks, 'Mione!" Ginny ran back to her room. Excited that she was finally going to do something about resolving the impasse between her, Julian, and SA, she threw herself on the bed after grabbing her keepsake box and writing set. She stuffed the letter in her keepsake box with the others, and the pulled out a scented piece of parchment to write the first of her letters for the evening. She really hoped this worked.

Ginny was fortunate that Harry Potter was such a good and trusting friend. For several days now, she had been plotting on how to find out who SA was, and it occurred to her that she simply needed to follow Icarus when he delivered her letter. Until she talked with Hermione, she had been planning on doing it. She changed her mind, however, when she thought about how Slytherin the man seemed to be. It had to be his house. There was no way he was anything but. Unless SA was Crabbe or Goyle, it was highly likely that he was protected from plans such as hers. Being confounded by an owl was not on her list of "Things to Do Before the Holiday."

Instead, she was going to write him a very special letter.

The next few days passed uneventfully, except for the frantic scribbling of a certain, youthful Gryffindor. She wrote and rewrote her letter, finally deciding to send it after the eighth revision. It was better than letting Hermione do it. After sending Icarus off with her latest letter, Ginny rushed downstairs to grab breakfast and find some way to distract herself.

If things went well, tonight would be an eventful evening.

Christmas was just around the corner and Draco Malfoy was dreading every moment of it. He was considering asking for permission to stay at Hogwarts for the holiday, but that would be tantamount to admitting his father scared him. He refused to be intimidated by an intellectual defective who was incapable of seeing how he was being used by the Dark Lord. Lucius honestly thought he would be sitting at the right hand of the greatest power in the wizarding world. Too bad he never read any of those books he forced his son to. He might learn something.

After a great deal of thought, he became confident he could manipulate his father into waiting to give him the Mark. They would never let him continue school at Hogwarts if he were a Death Eater. He should have thought of it sooner. He was only in his sixth year. Even his father was not so foolish as to prevent him from graduating. Voldemort needed more than just dumb muscle to rule the wizarding World.

Maybe he would check into the option of staying. It was always best to have a backup plan. Perhaps Ginny would be staying…

Mentally slapping himself for being a git, he sat back in his chair. His mind had been so frazzled lately, and he could all trace it back to Ginny Weasley. Ginevra. She disturbed him in a most pleasant fashion. Their letters were the highlight of his day, and he considered himself fortunate that he managed to secure her attention. Merlin knew she was stunningly beautiful. He certainly was not the first boy in the school to notice. He prayed she would end his suffering and respond to his letter.

Icarus fluttered against the window demanding Draco let him in before he froze. A chilly gust followed the owl as he flew into the room causing his master to slam the window shut. It was bloody cold outside. The Slytherin cast a warming charm on the owl's feathers and fed him a treat before removing the scroll from his leg.

The familiar scent of Ginny's floral perfume embraced him, and for a moment he indulged himself in the fantasy that she was really there. A mental slap brought him back to reality. He had been getting entirely too prone to dream about what it would like to be with her in truth. It was only a bet, he told himself, but even he was having difficulty believing that. He was in trouble with a capital "G."

Draco kicked back on his luxurious bed and opened the letter. He wondered what she had to say this time. There were few things he looked forward to anymore, but a letter from her was one of them.

SA,

I can't say I'm very happy with you right now. Julian and I were getting along quite well, and you took it upon yourself to manipulate the situation for your own benefit. That is, however, a very Slytherin thing to do so I feel I must give you some leeway for your inner nature. That is not to say that I approve of your actions. Just that I understand them.

I'm sure you understand that your last letter left me with my curiosity raging all the more. I find myself wanting to meet the man behind such strong emotions. Which is the purpose for this letter.

Uh oh, Draco thought.

The time has come for me to say something I should have said a long time ago.

I understand your desire for anonymity. We are all afraid of rejection and not being accepted for who we are. And if you are who I think you are (Who does she think I am?), then your have multiple fears of rejection from me and those in your House. But at some point we have to take our courage in hand and do what we want anyway. I'm not saying I want you to stroll through the school grounds with me on your arm, but I would like to finally meet the man behind the words. There is only so well we can get to know each other with our current writing habits and I am no longer satisfied with a secret admirer.

I want to know more about you. More than just the evasive hints you slip into your letters. I may not be wealthy, but every once in a while it would be nice to be able to send you a gift in return. I can't do that if I know virtually nothing about you. From your letters, I can tell you are an extraordinary person and it is that extraordinary person that has made me stop to look closer, despite my association with Julian. I can look past the opposition of our Houses for a chance to feel in person what I feel from your letters.

There is a secret room, one of the old music rooms, which can be found on the third floor under the revolving staircase. It is near a picture of Nana Grizwald, and can be opened by telling her you are there for lessons in music. Meet me there at 8 pm tonight. If you are not there, I'm going to assume that you never want to meet, and will cease writing you. This is not because I'm angry with you, but I have a life to lead outside of my bedroom. I'd like for you to be a part of it, but I need to know who you are. Dreams are wonderful, but reality is better.

I look forward to seeing you.

Ginny

Draco sat back in his bed, stunned. He had not expected this. It seemed as if he had her stringing along so well and his plan was working beyond expectations. He had intended to ask her to the Spring Ball with him and arrange to meet her then. That way he would win the bet, since she would not go back on her word, and then they could part ways. His heart gave a tiny lurch at the thought. But now things have changed. It appears he did his job too well. He interested her so much that she insisted on meeting him. Bollocks, he thought. This is going to be an unmitigated disaster. He had not had time to soften the blow; gently point her to the fact that no only was he was a Slytherin, but he was her friends' hated nemesis. He had been unable to do anything to prepare her. And now he had to meet her tonight. He idly wondered if he could quickly procure a Polyjuice potion and use one of the younger Slytherins as a replacement. But that won't get me my date for the ball, he thought. Blast it. He was cornered. The time had come for him to reveal himself. Tonight promised to be interesting. I just hope she doesn't bring Potter, he thought.

Eight o'clock came quickly, and before she knew it, the time had come for Ginny to meet her secret admirer. She had a frightful moment when she ran into Harry on her way out of the portrait hole, but he seemed to understand when she evasively told him she needed to take care of something. It was nice that he trusted her enough to let her go without questions. He had not been terribly surprised to see her. It made sense, since he knew about her usage of the cloak. Harry surprised her when he simply wished her luck and promised to keep her brother distracted. Hermione must have told Harry about the situation with her secret admirer. Ginny knew Harry was perceptive enough to figure out what was going on. His final look to her told her he would expect a full story later, however.

She quickly made her way to the music room without being seen and settled down to wait. Thirty minutes later she was still waiting, and wondered if SA was ever going to show. It was almost half past eight, and still no sign of him. She sat down at the piano and diddled with the keys. It was a good thing Harry had not insisted on coming with her. He would probably be getting ready to hunt the man down. She loved him like a brother, and knew he was very protective of her. Not as bad as her brothers, but if this bloke was who she thought he was, Harry was the last person that needed to be here. Besides, she wanted to meet him on her own.

A small sound caught her attention. As she watched, the door opened long enough for someone to slip in, then closed. An Invisibility Cloak, she guessed. She saw motion come from near the door, and a person appeared in the shadows. He hesitated for a moment, and then stepped out into the light.

Schnuff – yes, it is a bit soaplike, isn't it? It's supposed to be that way for now. I hope you are at least slightly enjoying it.

Nurray – thank you for your constructive criticism. I'll definitely bear it in mind for future use. Don't worry, you'll see more of Harry and his uncontrolled powers. I've just been focusing on getting the other stuff resolved first, and it's hard to work it in at times.