CHAPTER 9
Ginny sat in the Leaky Cauldron, munching on a sandwich and chatting with her friend Neville Longbottom.
Well, Neville was doing most of the talking, catching her up on the newest developments going on in his life. He told her about how he still kept us with his plants and that, although he briefly considered being a botanist, he finally decided to follow in his parents' footsteps after the war.
He paused, sipping his Butterbeer, and looked at Ginny worriedly. "He really got to you, didn't he?"
"Hmm?" she asked, her mind miles away.
Neville smiled at her. "Ginny, you know he didn't mean it."
Her head snapped up, looking into her old friend's kind face. "Oh, Nev, I don't know what to do anymore. I just don't understand him. One moment he'll be kind... well, as kind as someone like him can be, and the next... Argh!" She folded her arms on the table and rested her head on them, muffling her scream of frustration.
Neville watched her for a moment, choosing his words carefully. She was still riled from earlier and it wouldn't take much to switch her anger from Malfoy onto him.
"Draco-- Well, he's not like us."
Ginny snorted.
"What I mean to say is-- I think it's hard for him to get close to people. He generally just pushes them away. Remember him in school? He didn't have very many friends. Sure, he was popular, but no 'real' friends."
Ginny looked up at her friend questioningly. "I don't understand."
Neville smiled his boyish smile and took her hands in his, rubbing at her knuckles gently. "Just give him time. I think he doesn't know what to do with you. You have this way about you that makes everyone comfortable, this gift that makes people want to get closer to you, and I think that Malfoy is having a hard time fighting against that."
She grinned, squeezing his hand. "Neville, you're so full of it," she said, laughter bubbling out of her, causing him to laugh as well.
When they both calmed a bit, he looked at her seriously, searching her face. "You don't have to believe me, Gin. But I'm telling the truth, you're very alluring in many ways. I should know. I fell under your charms years ago."
Ginny quickly pulled her hands out of Neville's grasp. "Oh, Neville... I..." she said, shaking her head.
"Go out with me, Gin."
"…"
"Ginny, just give me a chance... just one date. If it doesn't work, that's fine, we'll go back to being friends."
She looked at him, her good friend from all those years ago, so hopeful. She hadn't dated in a long time and she wasn't sure that she even remembered how, but looking at his face…
"I'm not asking for marriage! Just a date," he said, throwing his hands up in the air playfully.
She laughed and before she knew what she was doing, she agreed. One date.
((((0))))
Draco stood at his desk, breathing heavily. In his anger, he had sent the paperwork from his desk flying.
And he watched, pulling a hand roughly though his hair, as the papers fluttered to the ground. He wanted to punch something, anything, to relieve his frustrations.
The training rooms.
With out bothering to clean up, he walked out of his office and toward the training area, scaring new recruits as he quickly walked past.
When he reached the room he wanted, he pushed the door open hard, letting it bang against the opposite door, as he walked inside.
He looked around quickly. He was alone.
Good.
He waved his wand and two of the targets at the back of the room became animated, one of them immediately sending a hex his way.
He fell to the ground, rolling forward into a somersault. He came to land on his feet once more as the second target aimed a Jelly-Leg jinx at him.
"Protego!"
He braced his arms against the shower walls, letting the water cascade between his shoulder blades and down his back. He let the warm spray relax his tense muscles and tired body.
He had gone into the training area to relieve tension and take his mind off of things. It had worked for a few moments, while the adrenalin was overruling his thoughts.
Now that he was here, however, his thoughts came back to the forefront.
What was he doing?
He knew it wasn't really her fault that Nott had gotten away, but he had blamed it on her anyway. She was right, he had been an asshole the last few weeks from the stress of the new case and being around her so often…
She was intoxicating.
He grabbed the soap, gathering a thick lather between his hands and then rubbing the lather on his chest. He slid it down his body, washing away the sweat and grime from his training.
Ginny.
She was funny and as quick to laugh as she was to anger. Strong willed but kind.
She was passionate, and it was that passion that shined through, making her so attractive. The attraction he was feeling went against everything he had ever been taught, everything he had ever known and despite himself, he was drawn to her.
Her. A Weasley.
A woman with deep chocolate eyes, cinnamon freckles, soft curves, full lips... oh gods, her mouth…
He washed lower, down his abdomen and reaching the tuft of curly hair between his legs. He growled as his fingers brushed against his hardening member, sending a shiver down his spine.
Her lips, pink and pouty, as they licked and nibbled down his cock, taking him in fully, enveloping him in her wet heat and sucking deeply. Her big brown eyes looking up at him under long eyelashes... He groaned.
I 'Ginny…' /I
(((0)))
He finished his shower, drying himself off and making his way back to his office. When he opened the door, Ginny was already there, picking up the papers he had knocked over and trying to organize them.
"You don't need to do that," he said as he walked over to his desk and took a seat. "They're my papers. I should be doing that."
She bit her lip, looking over at him, and placed the papers into his outstretched hands. She watched as he began to organize them quickly.
"Mal-- Draco... I wanted to say that I'm sorry," she started, playing with the non-existent lint on the arm of her robes. "I shouldn't have lost my temper."
He stared at her for a moment and snorted. "I don't think I've ever even seen you keep your temper for longer than a few minutes, Weasley. But you were right. I have been a prat for the last two weeks. It was wrong of me to try and place the blame on you."
She nodded her acceptance of his apology, recognizing both what it was, and that it was all she was going to get from him.
She was silent a moment and then smiled, looking up at him with a cheeky expression. "Prat was not the word I used."
"Don't push it."
"Oh!" She threw her hand over her chest in mock indignation. "I wouldn't dream of it!"
He laughed and she grinned, feeling as though a weight was lifted from her shoulders, and the tension between them had dimmed considerably. They were back to being more comfortable (with each other), for now.
(((((0)))))
They had been filling out paperwork for the last three hours, chit-chatting while they pored over the files and filled in what they already knew.
They had just finished the last of their papers for the day when there was a knock on their office door.
"Come in," Draco yelled, and a few moments later, a very nervous looking Clara had stepped into the room.
"I was sent to tell you that the forensics and surveillance departments want to see you," she said, ignoring Ginny and staring straight at Draco.
"Why didn't they send an elf?" he asked. Ginny watched as the girl fidgeted. It was obvious that she had wanted to come.
"I--," the secretary began.
"Thank you, Clara. We'll be up shortly," Ginny said with a smile at the girl.
Clara bowed her head and left the room quietly. As soon as the door had clicked closed, Ginny turned back to her partner. "Bad date?" she asked.
"Can it, Weasel," he said, glaring at her.
"Turned you down, eh?" she asked, walking towards the door.
"Weasley..." he warned with a growl.
"Or couldn't you get it up?"
"Weasel..." he growled.
"It's fine, Draco. I've heard that it happens to most men."
"Come here!" he yelled, lunging for her as she squealed and ran out the door.