"You know Ginny, I'm surprised you haven't snapped yet." Commented Astoria idly as she watched her best friend go through the 5 stages of grief right there in front of her very eyes.

"Trust me. You aren't the only one." Matthew reassured her, looking up briefly from his book to look at her .

"Oh shut it. The both of you." Muttered Ginny as she tried to breathe in deeply to control her anger but failed to do so.

"You know you can always hex him. We won't tell!" and Matthew looked far too eager at the prospect of his best friend hexing someone.

"I'm about to hex one of you in a minute." she treated but they both knew it was a lie.

"Mhmm. Sure you are, love. And whilst you're at it you can also clump Malfoy into it." said Astoria, flicking through her magazine casually but it was clear that her patience was also getting tested when the piece of paper that Malfoy had been throwing at Ginny landed on her.

"What!?" Ginny finally exploded, turning around to glare at Malfoy.

A couple of the first years jumped at hearing her shout but quickly went back to what they had originally been doing once they caught sight of the murder in her eyes.

"What?" Malfoy returned mockingly, eyes filled with fake innocence but his tone quickly changed when Ginny pulled out her wand on him. "Merlin." he muttered as he finally pulled himself up and made his way to Ginny's group.

"So I heard you're going to the ball with Potter?" And with anyone else Ginny might have been more warm but this was Draco Malfoy. Like hell was she going to spare him an inch of kindness.

"And what about it?" Frankly, she had been as surprised as everybody else to find out that Harry had asked her out but she hadn't particularly cared. She had an opportunity to go to the ball and she was going to take it.

"Didn't think little do gooders were you type, Weasley" sneered Malfoy but the little ferret didn't realise that he left a perfect opening for her.

"Yes, quite strange that I agreed to a date from the guy who saved me after I got possessed by an evil diary after a particular blonde arsehole gave it to me when I was 11. Yes, very weird." Ginny sarcastically replied to him and took vindictive pleasure when Malfoy flushed and the people surrounding them let out little titters.

Astoria and Matthew held nothing back and exploded into mocking giggles.

"Well I think that this is an amazing idea. Ginny can go attend the ball and spill all the juicy gossip to me and Matt." Said Astoria.

Malfoy looked at Astoria for a fraction of a second but Ginny could still see the pining and she repressed a sigh. Idiots, both of them.

"You have got to admire the bravery Potter had to just ask you out in front of everyone." said Matthew and if you didn't know Matthew as well as Astoria and Ginny did you would have thought that was real admiration in his voice.

"Oh it was hardly everyone." Astoria tried to defend but even she let out a little giggle, remembering how red Harry's face was and how he looked like he was facing death when a seventh year glared at him. Slytherin House was quite protective of the younger ones.

"Even Weasley could have gotten better than Potter. Doubt she would have gotten far but it would have been better." Malfoy of course had to input with the other two first years

"Okay then." Ginny said loudly, finally having enough. "Does anyone else wanna input into my love life or are we all good here?" Ginny asked around and she was met with heads shaking, everyone either too smart or too disinterested to answer or care. Until one little first year put their hand up.

"Umm, what are you going to do if he ends up being really persistent?" they asked shyly and they immediately looked down after asking.

"I hex him." Ginny replied simply, ignoring Matthew's snort. "I could care less if he saved my life. No one is ever forcing me to do shit I don't want to do. Not anymore." Ginny replied firmly and the first year seemed pleased enough and went back to whispering to their friends. "And you don't get to talk about who I'm taking to the dance." Ginny said, turning back to face Malfoy, wiping away the smug grin on his face.

"Whatever." he muttered petulantly, folding his arms dramatically before suddenly a look crossed over his face and turned back to her. "Is he coming to pick you up or are you meeting at the doors?"

"We're going to meet up at the doors." answered Ginny with no small amount of suspicion.

"Okay." Malfoy said, nodding his head in agreement before heading over to his group, a crazy look on his face.

"Do I even want to know?" mumbled Ginny, as she flopped uselessly to the side, laying her head on Astoria's shoulder limply.

"Probably not. It would probably end up causing you way too much stress and we don't need you to gain wrinkles this young and so close to the ball with the Harry Potter." Matthew said, pretending to swoon and merely cackled when she gave him a half hearted glare.

"Look on the bright side. The ball is in a week. Perfect time to relax and lay back." Astoria said, cheering her up.

"True. Could probably do with more relaxation." agreed Ginny, resisting the urge to mess with her hair.

"And the Hogsmeade trip is in like, two days. You can always go and buy a new dress and not wear one of those abominations that your mother finds pretty." said Matthew, a faint look of disgust on his face as he remembered how ugly the own dress that Ginny's mother had tried to point at when they had all gone shopping on her birthday.

"Thank Merlin I saved most of my money from my birthday." mumbled Ginny, slumber slowly taking over her.

"Yeah. Now sleep sweetheart." said Astoria, rubbing her shoulders soothingly and before Ginny knew it she had fallen asleep.

Matthew and Astoria stared at their best friend, relishing in seeing her so calm before they both looked at each other, a determined look on their face.

" We are both going to beat up and hex Potter if he tries shit, right?" asked Matthew but even he knew the answer to that.

"Duh." Astoria replied before using her strength and height to lift Ginny uo to carry her to their dorms. "No one lays a single finger on any of us and gets away with it." Astoria says, a fierce look in her eyes.

After all, no one messes with a slytherin.