Wilfully Chapter 5, a harry potter fanfic

Hello, my dear readers! Thank you for the wonderful reviews on the last chapter. I am glad you're enjoying this story.

Disclaimer: Potter world belongs to J.K Rowling.

WILFULLY: CHAPTER 5

Ginny Weasley had a plan.

The sudden troubles that had circled her in the shape of Draco's awful behaviour and her family's incessant outrage were tiresome. She had hoped that if she remained silent, these problems would simply go away. That hadn't happened.

Fine. She had had enough. It was time to deal with her troubles now.

It was a Wednesday afternoon. Ginny walked into a thirty-storey building in Canary Wharf, her tote bag swinging happily at her side. If she was going to find Draco anywhere, it would be at the main offices of the Malfoy Corporation. The location hadn't surprised her one bit; only the Malfoys would have the sheer arrogance to conduct their wizarding business from the centre of the Muggle financial district in London.

The posh entrance lobby seemed quite straightforward, but then she belatedly remembered that the Malfoys had dealings with muggles, which meant that they had to keep up a non-magical appearance on the surface. Sure enough, as she got into the lift, she noticed that more than half the floors of the building were heavily warded against Muggles to ensure that the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy was upheld.

She had learned quite a bit about the Malfoy Corporation ever since she had started seeing Draco. They owned a chain of wizarding hotels and resorts across Europe, they had large investments in Muggle real estate, but their major trade was potioneering. The Malfoys owned factories that mass-produced various potions that were mainly used in wizarding hospitals all over the world and were one of the biggest names in the medicinal research sector.

"We are constantly working on not only the advancements of the art of potion-making, but also on developing newer and better potion-based solutions for diseases that are, as of yet, incurable," Draco had told her once. "Funny, how the press very conveniently chooses to ignore that when they discuss my family's history."

"You want to be branded a hero because you produce medicines for money?" she had asked incredulously.

He had shot her an amused but somewhat derisive look. "You honourable Gryffindors and your useless ideals of intended nobility," he sneered. "You demean my work because I run a charity to improve my family's image or produce potions for a price, but you fail to see that no matter what my intentions are, the Malfoy Corporation is still helping in saving lives."

It was alarming how he had the ability to make her rethink her ideas about ethics and morality just with a few, uniquely phrased sentences. Prat. She still wasn't sure where she stood on the whole 'intention vs. action' debate, but she could see that when it came to Draco Malfoy, things were not entirely black and white.

Though, the level of his piousness was hardly the problem at hand.

Ginny had given him four days to nurse his bruised pride after that disastrous night back at the Malfoy Manor. It had been going so well at first. He had opened up to her and they had gone to bed in each other's arms with a strange understanding lingering between them. But then, he had woken up screaming at the top of his lungs and it had all gone downhill from there…

She had been furious after leaving the Manor that night. How dare he treat her that way? She was only trying to comfort him in his moment of distress, and he had lashed out like a wounded dog and practically thrown her out, asking her never to return. That rude, ungrateful son of a bitch! It would be best if she never spoke to that arsehole again; he could go rot in the deepest pit of hell for all she cared.

But then, she realised that she would be damned if she let him push her away just because his petty little manly ego was bruised over a bad dream. For that was what had happened: she did not think he had acted the way he did just because of his nightmare. He had been troubled, of course, but he was also embarrassed that she had seen him in such a state. Well, damn him. She would not let him dismiss her so heartlessly.

Which is why Ginny was at the headquarters of the Malfoy Corporation; he had asked her not to return to the Manor, he had said absolutely nothing about his office.

She got off the lift at the topmost level and followed the signs to the CEO's office, only to be stopped by Greta, a short woman in her mid-thirties, who happened to be Draco's personal assistant and an avid reader of the gossip columns published in the Daily Prophet and Witch Weekly. Convincing her to let her go see Draco proved to be quite easy; who would have thought that Rita Skeeter's in-depth coverage of the Harry-Ginny-Draco romance would have its advantages?

And so, with Greta's blessing, she barged through the large double doors of Draco's office without even bothering to knock.

The room was spacious, with floor-to-ceiling windows providing an impressive view of the skyscrapers in Canary Wharf. Draco sat at a large mahogany desk, signing some parchments with a black feather quill. He looked up in irritation, no doubt he didn't like being disturbed, only to freeze in surprise when he saw her.

"Good afternoon, darling," Ginny said amicably, kicking the door shut behind her.

His eyes narrowed at her greeting. "I had hoped that even an unprincipled cretin such as yourself would know that it is rude to march into people's workplaces uninvited, or that it is good manners to knock before you enter," he said. "I stand corrected."

She shrugged nonchalantly. "I wanted to make an entrance. Besides, I wasn't sure you'd let me in if I had announced myself."

He placed his quill into its holder. "What are you doing here, Ginevra?"

This was it: time to jump off a cliff. Her instincts told her that she would find her landing, that she knew him enough to make this gamble, but there was always a possibility of falling to one's death. She wouldn't die if things didn't go her way here, but it would certainly be over between her and Draco.

"To end things formally between us," Ginny replied calmly. He had stilled at her words, and for a moment she could have sworn she saw remorse flash across his face. Or perhaps she was seeing what she wanted to see. "What we shared for the past few weeks was lovely. Special, even. But, I don't see how we can go on after what happened the other night."

"I see." Draco stood up and walked over to her. "I hadn't realised it was so easy to scare you off, Ginevra."

"I should say the same to you." Ginny snorted. "I mean, I always knew bravery wasn't your biggest trait, but the way you handled that one tiny bad dream was disappointing. Appalling, really." She had wanted to wound him, and even though he was trying his hardest to keep his expression impassive, she could see that she had succeeded.

Truth was, it had indeed been a shocking sight, to see his usual mask of composure crumble down to reveal a quivering, cowering mess, trying in vain to hide from whatever demons haunted his dreams. She could wager a guess that the nightmare had had something to do with a certain nose-less Dark Wizard, but she wasn't sure; the Malfoys had faced hardships during the war, but what would they know of true pain or loss? She was the one who had faced the brutality of the Carrows back at Hogwarts. Harry, Ron and Hermione had been hunted in the wilderness for almost a year. Her family had lost so much. What's the worst that Draco had faced, apart from a few verbal threats from Voldemort?

But then, in some twisted way, she also understood. Theirs was a generation that had suffered a horror-filled war and was now trying to live like normal. She remembered countless nights that she and Harry had spent holding each other after one of them had woken the other with their screaming. She knew that it was the same for Ron and Hermione, her parents, George and Angelina, Neville, Luna and almost everyone else she knew. The revelation that Draco, too, suffered from nightmares no longer felt surprising, but rather almost reasonable. And she had tried to help him that night, only to be shoved away by his massive, stupid, pointless pride.

"Well then, if you've said your piece…" Draco pointed towards the door.

Ginny frowned. That's it? Her plan had been to provoke him into lashing out, so that they would be one step closer to solving this ridiculous issue between them. His casual dismissal only meant that the relationship was truly over in his mind. She felt anger bubble inside of her, combined with an odd sadness. Was he really going to let this end over literally nothing? The desire to hex him for his stupidity grew stronger by the second, and her hand started to inch towards her pocket –

"Though I would like to point out that you are overreacting," he went on, causing her to pause. "The issue isn't really as big as you've made it. And if this is the kind of pea-brained, impetuous behaviour that you exhibit during temporary quarrels, then perhaps it is for the best that we end this relationship." He took a step closer to her, his eyes blazing with indignant fury. "For Salazar's sake, Ginevra! It was just one stupid nightmare."

"Exactly," Ginny said pointedly, resisting the urge to let out a cheer of victory. Her gamble had paid off, albeit a few moments later than she had anticipated.

Draco blinked, his brows drawn in bewilderment. "I beg your pardon?"

"It was just one stupid nightmare. There is absolutely no reason why you and I should break up over it," she grabbed his chin and planted a hard kiss on his lips. Once. Twice. Thrice. "No harm done. Now, then. I brought us some Chinese takeaway. Come on, I am starving." She walked over to the sleek leather couch and sat down. With a wave of her wand, she directed the food containers and disposable cutlery out of her bag and set it neatly on the glass-top coffee table. She was pleased to note that the warming charm she had put over the food had held; she was usually horrible with those.

From the corner of her eyes, she noticed with some amusement that he hadn't moved an inch. It was obvious that he was deep in thought, no doubt trying to figure out what had just happened. He was smart, he would figure it out soon.

If there was one thing Ginny had learnt about Draco Malfoy, it was that the man loved contradicting others. She had thought that if she voiced all those petty insecurities that his pride had been whispering in his head, then he would oppose those very insecurities and realise how utterly stupid he had been to push her away in the first place.

"You manipulative wench!" Draco growled as he made his way over and sat down on the other edge of the couch. There was a reluctant smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "Well played."

Ginny grinned cheekily, very pleased with herself.

It would have been easy to use his rude behaviour as an excuse to never see him again, to let her own pride and that one squabble ruin a connection that she did genuinely like. If there was one thing she had learnt, it was that relationships required work. Sure, she and Draco were not serious - truth was, she didn't think they would ever reach the level of intimacy that she had once shared with Harry - but she truly was enjoying her time with the blond and did not want it to end anytime soon.

He smiled for a moment, then all amusement left his face. "If my actions hurt you that night, it was not my intention to do so." He reached out and took his hand in hers, his touch gentle. "I know you meant well, Ginevra, but I was finding your attentions to be quite suffocating. I am used to dealing with my nightmares on my own."

"Why didn't you just say so?" she asked, noting that he spoke of nightmares as if they were a usual occurrence for him.

"Do you think I was in a state to say anything intelligible?"

"You're never in a state to say anything intelligible," she joked lightly, then squeezed his hand in assurance. "I know now. If something like that happens again, I will keep my distance."

He nodded slowly, then leaned forward to capture her lips with his. It was a tender kiss, lacking in the fervent passion that they usually exhibited towards each other, but brimming with an oddly comfortable understanding that caused her heart to thud heavily in her chest.

"I like to be held," she whispered when they parted. "When I have bad dreams, and I do have them, I desperately need to be comforted."

"I'll keep that in mind." He promised as he turned to the food cartons, clearly intent on changing the topic of conversation. "I hope one of those contains chow mein."

It did. She knew his tastes, after all, and they spent the rest of the meal talking about random things. He told her that he had finally managed to translate that Celtic rune scroll that he had been working on for months, and that he was fascinated by the ancient folk tales in it. She told him about her tough training schedule; the Harpies were due to play against the Ballycastle Bats in a week's time.

"I will not be coming to any more Holyhead Harpies games anymore," Draco declared. "Not after what you did the last time."

"Oh, please!" Ginny rolled her eyes. "You should be thanking me; I got you to the front page of the Prophet."

"And it seems we're going to stay there for a while," He told her. She shot him a curious look, and upon noticing it, he picked up a folded copy of the newspaper from the table and passed it to her.

Sure enough, there was a photograph of their kiss at the match on the front page, but it was a smaller one this time. Most of the space was taken up by a picture of Harry and Ron at the Leaky Cauldron, with half a dozen empty glasses before them. In the photo, Harry motioned to the barkeeper for a refill while Ron shook his head lightly.

HEARTBROKEN HARRY POTTER FINDS SOLACE IN DRINK
By, Rita Skeeter

Sources have revealed that Harry Potter has developed alarming alcoholic tendencies and his behaviour has become a cause of great concern among his closest friends. His spiral into alcoholism comes from a broken heart: his ex, Ginny Weasley, announced her relationship with his school-time nemesis and ex-Death Eater, Draco Malfoy, over a week ago.

"Harry's angry all the time and he goes off to the pub every evening after work," A Ministry official who wished to remain anonymous told us. "He just can't get over the fact that she'd choose Malfoy over him. Everyone's tried to tell him to move on but he is just shattered. We're all very worried about him."

While Miss Weasley has been enjoying the many lavish pleasures that the sole Malfoy heir is happily showering upon her (rumours are that he plans to surprise her with a luxurious romantic getaway to Maldives later this month), the hero of the Wizarding World has resorted to drinking himself into oblivion.

He was spotted last night at the Leaky Cauldron with his best friend, Ron Weasley, who was very disapproving of his constant reordering of drinks but was also heard expressing his disgust at his sister's relationship with an ex-Death Eater.

"Ron wasn't happy about it, said he would never forgive her for this," a customer at the bar said. "But my heart broke for Potter. He was lamenting his break-up with Ginny, saying that he should have never let her go. Poor thing. It's obvious that he loves her very much and wanted to build a life with her."

The truth doesn't seem to be far off from the observer's speculations, it seems. The Prophet has learned exclusively that there is indeed an engagement ring involved that Potter has been carrying for over a year now, in hopes of reconciling and–

"That unspeakable hag!" Ginny exclaimed angrily as she set aside the paper and fixed her gaze on Draco. "You don't believe this rubbish, do you?"

"You forget that I was one of Rita Skeeter's sources during the Triwizard Tournament," he said, clearly finding her reaction amusing. "I am well aware of her methods and I know that she is as authentic as Dolores Umbridge was unbiased."

Oh, right. She had forgotten for a moment what an arsehole he had been back at Hogwarts. The memories of those days often made her want to whack him over the head. One of these days, she knew she probably would succumb to the desire. "Good," she said. "Because Harry's not turning into a drunk over me."

"He could try not looking so forlorn when there are cameras around," he muttered. "Or maybe Scarhead is enjoying being the 'tragic romantic hero' now that he has had his fill of being the 'courageous saviour'."

"He's not," she assured him. Harry had always hated being in the limelight and had only recently accepted the fact that he would probably never be able to escape it, a realisation that had made him no happier. "He and Ron were out drinking yesterday because they had solved this complicated case–"

"If that is what they look like when they are celebrating, I'd hate to see them mourn," Draco snorted.

Ginny shot him a look. "They were probably exhausted. Ron told me that the case had been going on for months," she told him. "But they are very happy that its solved, so much so that Ron has convinced mum to have a celebratory dinner at the Burrow this Sunday."

He hummed absently as he took a bite of a spring roll, clearly no longer interested now that the topic had nothing to do with him or insulting Harry. Merlin, he truly was a condescending arse at times.

She eyed him thoughtfully, her stomach tightening into a knot as she thought of what she was about to do. The first part of her plan had worked rather well, but the second part was as dangerous as walking over to a hippogriff and slapping it in the face. "Draco," she began hesitantly. "I, um, I was thinking–"

"That's never a good sign," he commented.

Git always had to get his word in, didn't he? She ignored his petty jibe and went on as if she hadn't been interrupted. "I was thinking that you should join us for dinner on Sunday."

"Alright," he said with a shrug.

Huh?

She blinked, dumbfounded. She hadn't expected him to accept her invitation so easily. In fact, she had braced herself for insults, shouting even, but this nonchalant acceptance was mind-boggling. Maybe he had misheard her. "You agree to meet my family, then?"

Draco smiled at her. "Sure, darling."

Huh. He had heard her right, then, and still agreed to the idea. Merlin, what next, pigs learning to tap dance on their own? Maybe this was his way of making up to her for his previous behaviour, but even she knew that this was too steep a price for him. "Really?" she asked, an eyebrow raised in disbelief.

"Yes. And after that, we can go have a threesome with a Blast-Ended Skrewt." The smile vanished from his lips and he eyed her warily, as if he had just realised that she had not been joking. "Of course, I don't bloody agree!"

She found herself quite relieved at this expected reaction. His acceptance, even though fake, had been quite unnerving. And now that he was reacting the way she had expected him to, she could launch into the dialogue she had prepared. "My family still think of you as the obnoxious git you were back at Hogwarts. They've been shouting at me for days–"

"And now you want them to shout at me?" Draco demanded scornfully. "You must have lost your mind, whatever little is left of it, if you think that not only would I set foot in that dump you Weasleys call home but that I would fraternise with your loathsome family."

"They will never approve of you if they don't a chance to get to see the man that you've become."

"I suppose it is a fortunate coincidence then that I do not live for their approval."

"I know that, but I'd still like you to come." Things back at her home hadn't been very good since she had revealed her and Draco's relationship. Her parents were so disappointed in her that it was becoming hard to breathe around them. And her brothers would either ignore her completely or shout at her whenever they got the chance. Only this morning, she had received yet another howler from Charlie, in which he had demanded that she end this madness and go find some other reasonable man to date. It was all too much. "I know you cannot get along with them, but is it too much to ask that my family and my boyfriend be on civil terms, at the very least?"

"Might as well ask for Snape to jump out of his grave and start tap dancing."

"Draco–"

"Ginevra," he cut in, his voice firm. "I haven't the slightest idea what has brought this on all of a sudden, but let me assure you that I will take no part in this hare-brained scheme of yours."

She realised that reasoning was not going to work with him, not on its own; he was as proud as a bloody Horntail and asking him to play nice with her family will take more than gentle persuasion. "Mum said you'd never agree to come, that you think yourself above all of us," Ginny said as she slowly moved to sit in his lap. She had run this idea by her mother before coming here; Molly Weasley had not been pleased at the prospect, but had agreed, all the while insisting that there were better chances of hell freezing over than there were of Draco setting aside his old prejudices and visiting the Burrow. "By refusing my invitation, you're proving her right."

"Because she happens to be right."

"Maybe." She hooked her fingers around the knot of his tie and leaned forward to place a soft kiss on his lips. "Come, anyway."

Draco arched an eyebrow. "Are you planning to seduce me into submission, Ginevra? Because I would like to point out that this is the very definition of the term 'whoring yourself'." He grabbed her thigh and turned her with relative ease so that she was straddling him. "But by all means, do give it a go."

"Draco Malfoy, did you just call me a whore?" Ginny buried her fingers in his hair and pulled it back roughly. "There will be consequences if you did."

"I'm terrified," he said, his lips curled into a trademark Malfoy smirk that she had grown to sort of like. A bit. He was still an aristocratic prat, though.

"As you should be," she told him as she placed a kiss on his exposed throat. "Doesn't it matter to you what your parents think of us?"

"I shudder to imagine how my father would react when he finds out," he responded. "My mother did read the tale of our so-called love in the Prophet. She commanded me to end things with you and put an end to our 'unhealthy affair', as she called it."

That gave her pause. She wondered if that was the reason why he had almost thrown her out of the Manor the other night. If it was, then this reconciliation between them would most certainly come to an end; she could forgive his PTSD because it was beyond his control, but if he had succumbed to his mother's orders, then he could damn well go find himself some other girlfriend.

As if he could read her thoughts, Draco cupped her cheek in the palm of his hand, forcing her to meet his gaze. "I did not obey her," he assured her solemnly. She could tell by his tone that he was not lying. "And have no intention of doing so. Unless you keep on coming up with ridiculous ideas that could potentially get me killed."

Ginny leaned into his touch. "I don't want this to end either," she admitted slowly. "And I want my family to see that I'm not some foolish girl blinded by your charm and that we do have a relationship based on mutual admiration and respect, even though you do act like a lewd wanker most of the time."

"Since you've accused me already, I think it is only justified that I live up to the title." He said with a smirk as he placed his lips upon hers in a passionate kiss that caused hundreds of butterflies to flutter in her stomach. She had thought that this intoxicating effect that he had on her would go away after their first few times together, but it only seemed to grow stronger every time she felt his touch. And though she would never admit it out loud, she did like it very much.

"Draco," she sighed softly when they parted, her forehead resting against his. "Come to dinner."

"Gine–"

"For me," she insisted, her voice low. "And if that isn't enough then think how furious Ron will be to see you there." Her entire family would not be pleased to see him there, of that she had no doubt, but she had only mentioned Ron because she knew of the enmity between them; there was no way Draco would give up such a perfect opportunity to irritate him.

His blue-grey eyes were twinkling with mirth, as if he could tell the reasoning behind her words. "Your mouth has been in fine fettle today, Weasley. I think I'll have to put it to better use once I survive that thrice-damned meal with your wretched family."

Ginny felt her cheeks getting red at his words. Goodness, he had just implied what she thought he had implied. The man was arrogant, control-freak, aristocratic arsehole, but a man nonetheless; of course, his bloody world would revolve around a blowjob. And if he thought he could – Wait, what?

'Once I survive the thrice-damned meal', he had said.

"You mean…?" she asked and realised a moment later that she was inadvertently holding her breath.

Draco looked like he was bracing himself for an oncoming storm, which he probably was. Then, he said, "Yes. I will come to your stupid family dinner."

She had known that it would be nearly impossible to get him to agree, so his agreement did come as a surprise, but what caught her completely off guard was the glee she felt. It was almost pathetic that she was starting to act so soppy because of him, but in that moment, Ginny did not mind it one bit. She grabbed his face and planted a sloppy kiss on his lips, practically bouncing with giddiness.

"Pull yourself together, Ginevra," he reprimanded, though he did pull her closer and buried his face in the crook of her neck. "I will want my prize afterwards."

"Prize or price?" she asked with a laugh. "Who's the whore now, Malfoy?"

The words had barely left her mouth when the button of her jeans popped open. She blinked in surprise and looked down, only to find his fingers slowly pulling the zipper down. How had his hand managed to make its way there without her noticing? Draco's breath was warm on her ear and she could practically hear the sneer in his husky voice as he said, "Still you."

Molly Weasley had held off the announcement of Draco's invitation till the last minute and had only dropped this bomb of sorts on her husband and children when they had all arrived for dinner on that very day. It was something Ginny had been exceptionally grateful for because, needless to say, the reception of the news had been as horrible as she had imagined. The living room at the Burrow had gone silent as a graveyard for a few moments as everybody digested the information, and then angry shouts had erupted all at once.

For her father, the idea that Lucius Malfoy's condescending son was to be their guest was beyond humiliating, and he told her flatly that he was very disappointed in her. Bill once again expressed his concern about Ginny being under some sort of spell. Fleur, much to Ginny's surprise, actually seemed excited at the prospect of seeing Draco. "I know 'im," she told everyone. "He waz one of my clients at Gringotts for a little while. He speakz such good French, like a natural–" She would probably have raved about the blond a bit more, but clamped her mouth shut when she noticed the murderous glares her in-laws were sending her way.

Percy had expressed his relief that his beloved Audrey was not in town (on ministry business, of course; she was just as much of a workaholic as her husband was) and would not have to face that prejudiced, spoiled Death Eater. He was quick to point out that Draco was using Ginny for her connections and that she would be wise to reconsider her relationship with him. There were a few high-ranking ministry officials that he could introduce her to, if she was interested. George had rubbed his hands and went to his old room with a promise that he would give their esteemed guest a welcome to remember. That did not bode well for Draco, Ginny mused. Or anyone else, really.

Ron had announced that he was leaving. "There is no way in hell that I'll sit at a table and share a meal with a man who made my life miserable at Hogwarts." He shouted, his face red with fury as he glared at Ginny. "How could you?"

"He is not that person anymore," Ginny shouted back. She had tried to remain calm, but after a while, it became too hard to keep her temper in check. "You'll see."

"I don't bloody want to. How could you forgive that ferret for all the things he did to us, for all the shitty things he said about 'Mione?"

She had had no response for that. Truth was, she hadn't entirely forgiven Draco's past behaviour and he had made no apology for it, but there was an odd regret in his eyes, one that he tried to constantly hide due to his damned ego – and there was a will to do good things, like he was doing with Serenity or his work in potions. Sure, he didn't have the noblest intentions at heart, but she could not bring herself to believe that his motives were entirely selfish. Draco Malfoy had once been a horrible human being, but she had come to know him enough over the past few weeks to know that he deserved a chance.

Hermione was quick to calm Ron down and to convince him to stay – something about how Malfoy's presence shouldn't ruin their evening – but then she had pulled Ginny aside and lectured her on the wisdom, or lack thereof, of dating a Malfoy.

Perhaps the worst reaction had been Harry's. He hadn't spoken a word throughout the entire argument and he continued to remain silent even once things had calmed down a bit. But every now and then, she would feel his gaze piercing into her, his emerald eyes brimming with a feeling she recognised as betrayal. It tore her heart out, and she wanted nothing more than to run away and weep.

But she stayed and put on a brave, defiant face. Draco would arrive soon and, hopefully, not act like the utter arsehole that he was. Whether the evening went well or not, things would most certainly simmer down after a confrontation – either her family would see that Draco was not a villain anymore and would be mollified, or they would still vilify him but see that she had no intention of ending things with him.

A part of her knew that it was a rash move on her part, but this meeting was bound to happen sooner or later. Better sooner than later, she thought. She wanted to be done with it.

The mood in the Burrow continued to remain odd, for lack of a better term. Everyone was trying to act normal, joke around and express their genuine happiness for Harry's and Ron's success in the Auror Department, but the underlying tension in the air grew more and more tangible by the minute. Half the people sat stiffly, and there were occasional glances thrown in the direction of the main door.

Ginny found her own gaze flicking to her wrist watch every few minutes, wondering where Draco was. She hadn't seen him since the day she had visited him at his office – she had been drowning in practices, and he was having a busy week due to some business deal he was trying to close – but she had sent him an owl two days before, reminding him of the dinner. His reply had been short and swift:

Nobody forgets the Doomsday, darling. I will be there by 6.30 pm.
– D.M.

It was 7 pm and he hadn't shown up yet, which was disconcerting in itself because he loathed tardiness. "Five minutes I understand, but any longer than that tests my patience more than I'd like." He had lectured her when she had shown up fifteen minutes late to their lunch date. It had been a meal filled with his usual nasty taunts until she had managed to shut him up with threats of her infamous bat bogey hex.

Ginny made a few excuses and managed to hold off dinner for another quarter of an hour, but her mother would not be convinced beyond that. The Weasleys descended upon the meal with their usual fervour, and sometime after the dessert was served, her brothers decided to remind her that she had indeed been stupid to think that Malfoy would ever come to the Burrow for her.

"That's what I told her, and why I let her invite him to our home," her mother said as she held out a bowl of chocolate mousse towards her. "You see, Ginny dear, this ridiculous infatuation of yours has no future. I'm sure you'll see some sense now."

She had taken the damned mousse and kept her mouth shut, the blood in her veins burning with anger. Draco had promised her that he would come and yet here she was, listening to her family talk about how she was a fool to place her trust in a man who was very clearly a self-serving liar. She was beyond humiliated, and it was all his fault.

Ginny Weasley had had a plan.

The first part of it was to reconcile with Draco, which she had accomplished. The second part was to formally introduce him to her family as her boyfriend. It had been a big step, and she had been willing to take it for him.

But he had left her alone and embarrassed. His old petty enmity meant more to him than their relationship.

So be it, Ginny decided. She would go to him one final time, pin his arse to a chair with a sticking charm so powerful that his skin would peel off when he tried to get up, and demand an explanation of his absence. In fact, she'd use the sticking charm even if he talked willingly. The arsehole had stood her up. Now, she would make sure that he'd have trouble sitting down.

Life has been awfully busy as of late and I wrote the second half of this chapter in a hurry, which I'm sure is obvious. I'm sorry about that, but I promise the next chapter will be better. Lots of surprising stuff is going to happen!

I still hope you enjoyed this. Please, please leave a review and let me know!