A/N: Long chapter! I'd also like to thank you guys for the great response to my cry for validation XD I really appreciate it. I have a few notes to pick up from where I left off, but won't be posting another chapter until I've written some more. Also - sorry to say this - I am starting classes next week, which might slow me down a bit. But who knows, maybe it will speed me up? We'll see! In the meantime, enjoy!


Chapter 26: Nothing is Wrong. Seriously.

"Ginny… what was that?" Nat was looking at the redhead as though she had suddenly grown a third tit.

Ginny raised an eyebrow, unsure what exactly her friend was talking about. "You mean that?" She jerked a thumb over her shoulder, gesturing to where they'd just left their Transfiguration class. "Just putting Malfoy in his place." She shrugged.

Malfoy, being in the NEWT-level Transfiguration class following Ginny and Nat's every other day, had shown up just as the girls were leaving.

"Weaslette, you look just as charmingly grotesque as usual."

"Go wank a skrewt, Malfoy."

It was the usual exchange of barbs.

Except…

"You just…" Natalie hesitated, unsure of what she'd witnessed. "You two were so… nice."

"Nice?" Ginny snorted, and continued sociably. "Nat, I don't think you understand: I don't just tell all of my friends to perform sexual activities with explosive monsters." Her tone was so casual, she wasn't even considering any possible validity of her friend's statement.

"Yeah, but…" The brunette's forehead was creased with a look akin to worry. She pursed her lips, but then seemed to gain the courage to continue. "You used to look so pissed every time you saw him. Anything he said was enough to have you spitting hexes."

Ginny felt her own doubt beginning to niggle at her consciousness. "…I'm in a good mood today," she shrugged, although her smile had faltered and there was an edge of defensiveness in her tone.

"You guys were smiling at each other."

Ginny balked. "Smirking is not smiling- there's a big difference!" She protested, though her hands tightened on the strap of her rucksack.

Was she being nice to Malfoy? She hadn't really thought about it, but now that she was… they were still insulting each other every chance they got, that was for sure. But Nat was kinda right – there wasn't the same hatefulness behind it. It was just routine. She barely listened to his words, breezing past with a smirk, and he did the same. It was just like a (very unorthodox) greeting.

The realization made her uneasy. She didn't like change, even if it made things more pleasant.

At least Nat dropped the issue.


For Draco's part, he was feeling oddly self-satisfied. Weird as it was, he enjoyed trading insults with the Weasley girl. He'd actually been finding himself adjusting his schedule by a minute or two just to get the opportunity. Not going seriously out of his way, just noticing when they ran into each other and giving himself a little more time the next time instances of that ilk rolled around again. Some part of his mind was not happy about this decision, but it spoke with an edged anxiety Draco disliked, so he scoffed at it and rationalized his behavior. Since the regular tauntings had begun, the unwelcome urges he'd been subjected to by her presence in the weeks before had lessened. And the guilt she'd been causing in him had lowered significantly, so there was that. Then again…

"You've been celibate nearing on two weeks." Blaise observed as they lounged in the Slytherin common room. "Is something wrong?"

Draco had been working on his Transfiguration homework as he sprawled across one of the many intricate lounges, a small smirk playing lightly upon his lips, but as Blaise spoke he looked up from his task, and the smirk faded as he processed what his friend was saying. Celibate? Had he? …Hmm, he hadn't noticed.

As he realized this fact, the corners of his mouth turned down in a concerned frown. That was problematic. Perhaps not the celibate part, but the not noticing signaled a real lack of attention on his part. "Been busy," he shrugged, looking back to his work.

The black-haired boy stared for a moment or two, but let the issue drop.

But Draco couldn't return to his work. The question had begun to burrow into the depths of the blond's mind, instilling a stubborn need to prove that nothing was wrong. Because it wasn't. Nothing was wrong.

It wasn't like he was so fixated on the redhead that he couldn't confidently pursue other girls. No way, definitely not that.

It most certainly had nothing to do with the self-doubt over his supposed entitlement. Nope.

And it was definitely unrelated to the nonexistent warmth that most assuredly did not grow in his chest following every friendly back-and-forth. Not that there were friendly back-and-forths.

No, no, nothing was wrong. It must have just been the effort he'd been putting into not tearing her down. It took a lot of control to keep himself from bringing the poor girl to tears. Maybe he'd only been thinking it was easy to communicate so casually with her because he was just so good at it. Surely, the energy going into controlling his vicious wit, that was why he'd been so distracted. Surely. Nothing was wrong.

He could prove it.

Checking the time, Draco began to pack up his things, remaining casual. By no means was he going to let Blaise realize he was moving in response to the other boy's words. Even if it was somewhat obvious. The audible sound as the blond cleared his throat may have given him away, but he kept his face calm and blank as he nudged his class supplies back into his rucksack, and Blaise's curious glances were ignored.

Once his things were packed, Draco excused himself for his room, a plan already beginning to form in his mind.

Zabini had been at least partially right, after all: Draco needed to get laid.


While never before one for redheads, Draco found himself, the next afternoon, slumming it in an abandoned classroom with some strawberry blonde Ravenclaw 5th year. If he got her in the right light (or lack of light) and squinted his eyes, and insisted she keep her face on her work, he could almost trick himself into believing it was the mouthy bitch herself. And mouthy was right; the blonde had suction like a—well, she was worth the guilt. Not that he had guilt. Because he didn't.

Oh fuck, not again.

He pulled the strawberry blonde up from her knees, towing her toward the door of the abandoned classroom, robes falling over his still open fly. "Right, well, thanks Amanda-"

"-Abby-"

"-You should get to class."

His dismissal was punctuated by the closing of the door behind her, as Draco zipped himself up again. He rested one hand on the door and sighed. It was like she was his burden now. The unfortunately sexy, irritably demanding, outspoken firecracker of a girl, constantly questioning everything he did, instilling him with doubt… how could he possibly find her attractive?

Blaise's words echoed back to him: "I like a challenge."

Apparently, so did Draco. And who could possibly be more of a challenge than the golden trio's sidekick herself. (It did not, even for a second, pop into his head that one of the golden trio was also his preferred gender. Hermione Granger was no more female to Draco than a snail.) He just had to find out how to use their new semi-peaceful agreement to his advantage.

The blond rolled to put his back against the door, and slid himself down to the floor. He had the very uncomfortable recurrent urge to just ambush and snog her into oblivion – purely to rid himself of the uncomfortable obsession, of course – but he couldn't get that night at the party out of his head. This whole 'asking permission' thing was not his forte. He wasn't used to having to seduce stubborn conquests. …Well, at least not having to seduce them without already being in very close proximity, and with lots of skin-to-skin access. A challenge which he would've gladly taken, if he thought he could do so without being maimed by the girl.

Rubbing his wrist, remembering their electric encounter, Draco's lips pursed in annoyance. He'd felt close, when he'd moved his hand down her throat, up her thigh… but then she'd gotten all riled up, and not in a good way. So what could he do to make it clear that he wanted her without also making it… well… He cringed as he remembered her word for it: assault. As she claimed. As he firmly disbelieved. Just the thought that he'd 'assaulted' someone made him feel uneasy.

Which, of course, was why he never should've boarded this train of thought.

The blond sighed and shook his head. This was a very confusing time to be Draco Malfoy.

He couldn't bring himself to ask permission to see her, it felt wrong to even think it, so he had to hope that one day they'd be stuck in the same room. …Like last week's detention. Surely, the girl's penal record must be ridiculous at this point, the amount of detentions she'd had within the first three months of term. One more couldn't hurt, could it? And once he got her there… then what?

Letting out a huff of air, Draco resolved to put it out of his mind. He'd keep an ear out for an opportunity to catch her alone, take it, and then try to keep his distance once they were in the same room. Try. With a goal set, he stood, straightened his uniform, and went back out to the halls.