A/N: Thanks to everyone that reviewed. You're all so amazingly supportive! Thanks for sticking with me. I've been fairly stressed out recently because of school, and I'm stuck for choosing which program to go into next year for university. Ok, you see, at the beginning of the year (by that I mean December), I had no idea what I want to do after I graduate, so I applied to a variety of programs. I got in everywhere but I've narrowed it down to two. I only realize now how stupid that was of me! Right now I'm stuck between going a really prestigious university for English, and going to the local university for Information Technology, where I would get a dual degree and it's based on multimedia and design, which I like. Opposite ends of the spectrum, if you hadn't noticed. It's about 50/50 right now but I have to choose in a few weeks, and it's killing me. Anyway, sorry for ranting. Hope you like this chapter! Please read and review if you like or dislike something. Constructive criticism is always welcome too. Thanks guys! Enjoy.

On a side note, if anyone's in the mood, go check out Catnipob's story Ferrets and Weasels. It's post-HBP also. It's pretty good and she updates regularly. Catnipob: there's a bit of publicity for ya ;)

Keep The Faith

Chapter Seven

She was running; sweating; gasping for breath.

Her muscles were burning, hair whipping in her eyes, adrenaline pumping through her system.

It was dark; but there was a light. She was running away from the light.

Shouts and loud footsteps were behind her. She knew they were close. The stone hallways seemed to stretch longer and longer as she fought to keep ahead and out of sight.

Finally she found her goal and ran straight into the strong arms of the familiar figure. He caught her and led her into further darkness. When they were hidden and silence surrounded them, the man wrapped his arms around her tightly and nestled his face in her hair. He was quite a bit taller than her. They stood there for a timeless moment before he pulled back, though his hands stayed on her waist. He leaned his head against her forehead. Are you alright? He whispered, his eyes capturing hers. She didn't answer, but nodded unconvincingly. She leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder and he responded in kind.

Her heart still pounded; his strong body was warming her and protecting her, but the uneasiness plagued her still.

A loud noise in the distance startled them both. A jolt of fear shot through her body as the sudden light of a wand blinded her in the darkness .

Ginny sat up in her bed, heart pounding. She lifted a hand up to her eye level, blocking the early sun from her eyes. She was trembling violently. She clenched her fist and put it down.

The light of dawn was beginning to shine through the window, and the room was lightly gilded with the golden yellow of sunrise.

Ginny hugged her knees to her chest. She felt incredibly uneasy. She'd had recurring dreams before, but never one quite so vivid. It was the feeling of being chased that had her so shaken up. That was mixed in with plenty of emotions she didn't understand. She had butterflies in her stomach, making her feel nauseous, which was certainly not what she remembered feeling only moments ago.

Ginny dragged herself out of bed, knowing she'd never get back to sleep. She didn't even know how she'd fallen asleep to begin with. There was only a few hours until they had to leave anyway. Ginny left her room quietly, and closed the door gently behind her. The house was serene and unearthly. She went into the bathroom and took a long shower, letting the hot water rain on her skin, massaging out the tension.

As the time was inching closer to their departure, Ginny felt a mix of feelings; hope and distress. Ginny had no idea what would happen. She wanted to help Draco, but not his father. She would get to see her own dad, but Draco wanted her to lie to his face.

Ginny didn't know how she would react. She no longer had a steady hatred for Draco Malfoy. Sure, he was still the same: an mean, annoying prat most of the time, but there was obviously more to him than she'd ever imagined. Ginny was getting used to everybody's lives being turned upside down because of this war, but she found that Draco's situation was a little harder to comprehend; she couldn't imagine what it was like for him.

Ginny finished with her shower and stepped out, wrapping a large fluffy white towel around herself. Her reflection in the mirror was pale, caused by the contrast of the dark red of her wet hair, and her light dusting of freckles stood out.

Ginny walked out of the bathroom and straight into something hard.

She lost her balance and a pair of hands caught her in and steadied her. He stepped back, but kept his hold on her arms. She looked breathlessly up and Draco stood there with a strange expression on his face as he looked down at her attire.

Ginny blushed and held the towel up securely. She cleared her throat. "Thanks, Malfoy." She said, embarrassed, and averted her eyes.

Draco's eyes shot to her face. He had an almost surprised expression.

She was still frozen in place by the touch of his hands that still hadn't left her bare arms, but he suddenly took them off, as if touching her had burned his skin.

"I don't understand you, Weasley." Draco said, more to himself than to her, and Ginny thought he looked very frustrated by his own words.

"You don't get told 'thank you' very often, do you?" Ginny joked. Draco rolled his eyes.

"I'm not a nice person."

"So?" she challenged, though she didn't know why. "Can't I say thank you for not letting me fall down when I walked into you? Even if you didn't consciously decided to do it?" She rolled her eyes.

Draco smirked. He paused, then said, "Are you always this clumsy?"

"No." she told him indignantly. "I'm just distracted."

But he still smirked. "Whatever you say, Weasley." Ginny glared half-heartedly, a half-smile playing on her lips. "You should probably get ready, we're leaving at eight-thirty now, not nine." Draco informed her.

"Um…ok." She said, narrowing her eyes in thought, wondering for the first time how exactly he planned to do this. "I guess I'll just be going then." Ginny told him. After an awkward silence, during which Ginny studied Draco, wondering about his plan, Draco nodded.

She started to leave, but suddenly he called her back: "Weasley!"

She turned around, holding the towel again so it wouldn't fall. Ginny watched as Draco's eyes lingered on her scantily clad body before snapping up to her eyes again. Ginny's blood froze in her veins. A pair of eyes flashed prominently in her mind; the eyes from her dream. They were the same ones that were looking at her now. Ginny felt like she had been struck.

They watched each other, but seeing her reaction, Draco frowned. "What's wrong?" he asked. Ginny suddenly realised that her eyes were wide and her jaw was slack. She made herself relax, shook her head, and cover it with a smile. "Nothing."

Draco didn't take his eyes off of her, searching her for the real answer, his expression unchanging. Ginny knew that he didn't believe her, but she was grateful he didn't say anything else about it.

Draco looked away, to a point down the hall. "Are you still…?" The question rang through the silence. There was a definite note of uncertainty in his voice, which disconcerted her.

"I'll convince my dad, don't worry." She told him.

Draco nodded, satisfied. "Good." Draco looked worn, as though this meeting was going to be as tough for him as it was for her. The dark circles around his eyes told her that he'd gotten about as much sleep as she had.

Ginny sighed and walked into her room.

What a great start to the day, Ginny thought sarcastically, hardly registering her own movements as she got dressed. She realised that the man in her dream, with whom she remembered feeling intimate and safe, was Draco Malfoy; it almost made the fact that he'd seen her in a towel seem insignificant.

But why him?

(((KTF)))

Draco needed to concentrate. He had the notepad in his hands, and was trying to memorize the instructions written down. Draco hoped to hell that this was going to work.

He looked in the mirror and ran a hand through his hair. He cast the words another long look, before putting it down and walking out of his bedroom.

Ginny was already downstairs waiting for him. Draco's eyes automatically trailed up her legs, remembering how good she looked in nothing but a towel. She was a Weasley, but he pegged it on normal male instinct. She was now dressed in jeans and a black sweater, but oddly enough looked just as good. Shaking himself, realising once again that this was not appropriate to his purpose, Draco went to the closet and pulled out a coat which he handed to her, and one for himself. He found a winter hat and handed that to her also. "Your hair is too noticeable, Weasley, anyone ever tell you that?"

Ginny gave him a furtive glance, accompanied by a smirk as she played with putting the hat on.

"Let's go." He said, with a nod toward the door. It opened effortlessly, and Draco watched as Ginny's eyebrows shot up.

"I thought you weren't supposed to do magic?" she asked suspiciously. Draco raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't."

Ginny raised her eyebrows in question, but he ignored her.

Draco stepped out, waiting for Ginny to follow. He closed the door behind them both. He watched as Ginny breathed in the cool fresh air. He breathed deeply himself, not having breathed fresh air in quite some time. He reached out and took Ginny's hand in his.

Ginny jumped and tried to take her hand away, but he held on tightly. "What are you doing?" she asked, her brown eyes full of surprise.

Draco smirked, but inside he felt strange that he was touching her. "It's completely necessary, Weasley." He told her, as he pulled her along down the street. "I can't take any chances here, you know that. If I keep contact with you, you can't run away." As an afterthought he added, "So don't bother to disapparate." He glanced back to look at her, and gave her a devilish half-grin. "Try not to look so frightened, Weasley. It would not be good that any muggles suspect something strange. Just act like this is normal, ok?"

"You mean you want us to look like we're a couple or something?" Ginny asked doubtfully, before finally relaxing and lacing her fingers tightly with his, rather than just being held.

Draco cleared his throat. "Yes."

"Oh, alright." Ginny said nervously. "I suppose I could try."

They stopped after about a kilometre. A transit bus skid to a stop beside them and Draco led the way on, giving the driver money. He led them to the back of the bus and they sat down amidst numerous muggles.

They rested their hands between them, not quite sure where to rest them. The monotony of everyday life surrounded them with men and women reading newspapers or drinking coffee on their way to work. In the rumbling silence, Draco's mind contantly strayed to the warmth of her hand. Her skin was soft, and she adjusted her fingers to better fit his. Draco tried hard to imagine that it wasn't a Weasley he was touching, but oddly enough, it didn't really bother him as much as it should have, and that made him uneasy.

Twenty minutes later he said quietly, "We're getting off here, come on."

Ginny stood up with him and the bus jerked to a stop, and Ginny fell into Draco. Oof! "…Sorry." She said, pushing herself off of him, and walking off the bus with him and a few other people, looking overwhelmed.

Draco tried to suppress a smirk. "Not used to buses, are you?"

"Ha ha. What made you guess?" she replied sarcastically. "At least it's not as bad as the Knight Bus." Following Draco's lead, they stood in place as people dispersed until they were alone.

Another bus pulled up and they got on.

Ginny was quiet; she looked like she was deeply in thought. Draco supposed she knew he wouldn't tell her where they were going, so she wasn't going to ask. Their hands were still clasped together. Ginny didn't even seem to notice anymore, or if she did, it didn't show.

This bus was less full, and it pulled into a dead neighbourhood, where they were the only two passengers to get off.

"Pull your hood up." He ordered, pulling up his own.

He waited until she'd adequately covered her hair, and was satisfied that her face was hidden from the light of the sun, and then started walking.

Draco led the way down the street.

(((KTF)))

Ginny was nervous. She'd had butterflies in her stomach all morning that were only amplified when Draco had elected to hold her hand in his strong grip, which had really freaked her out because of the dream.

From the beginning of the trip to the end, her nervousness had evolved into the anxiety of meeting with her dad. She knew it must have been at least nine-thirty by now, and she could sense that they were getting close to their destination. The neighbourhood was deserted and they approached an old, run-down, two story building.

Draco led Ginny around the building to a door at the back. He pulled it open and let her go first. When the door behind him was shut, Draco let go of Ginny's hand, and she flexed it. She followed his tall form down the hall.

"Can I assume that I'm unable to disapparate here too?" she asked him lightly.

Draco looked back at her with a eyebrow raised in suspicion. "Yes."

"Don't worry, Malfoy, I hadn't planned on ditching you." She guessed at his thoughts. "Believe it or not, I don't even have my liscence yet."

"That doesn't mean you're unable." He pointed out.

"True. I only learned in the summer from Tonks, but I'm not very good."

"Nymphadora Tonks?" he asked, surprised.

"Yeah. Why?" Ginny frowned, then it dawned on her. "Oh! I'd forgotten you were cousins."

Draco looked at her strangely with those piercing grey eyes, his mouth in a firm line, before continuing.

Draco led her through a maze of doors and they ended up in front of a blank wall. Ginny watched curiously as Draco stared at the wall with a look of concentration.

"What –" she was cut off by a sideways look of annoyance. She stood back, crossing her arms, the nervous feeling overtaking her.

He took his wand out of a pocket inside his robes and tapped it on one spot on the wall, then another beside it, and finally on top, forming a triangle. Ginny knew that this form of magic would not be traced by anyone, and technically it wasn't even magic being cast, but she was still surprised by it.

Draco turned around and grabbed her hand once again. He walked toward the wall, and disappeared through it. Ginny followed close behind.

The room they appeared in was empty, with two wooden doors in opposite corners and a big window looking into another smaller room.

Ginny stood awkwardly in the middle. "Is this it?" she asked, her voice anxious.

"Yes. We have a maybe twenty minutes to wait." He said, leaning back against one of the walls with his hands in his pockets and looked up at the ceiling. "This used to be an old muggle police station. That window there," he pointed to it. "is actually a one-way mirror. We can see into that room, but when he comes, your father will only be able to see his reflection from that side." He informed her.

Ginny studied Draco. How had things suddenly become so casual between them? She wrapped her arms around herself.

"You must have had someone arrange all of this for you." She stated, watching Draco with focused attention. Draco's narrowed eyes flicked to hers, holding her gaze.

"What's your point?" he inquired in a bored tone that was betrayed by the anxious look in his silver eyes.

"Nothing. I'm trying to figure out who it is that knows about all of this. I was thought you were doing this alone."

"I did plan everything, Weasley," he told her warily. "but I needed assistance with the preparations."

Ginny frowned, and sank into her own thoughts as to who it was. She had no idea.

A door creaked open and startled Ginny. A figure appeared in the other room. Ginny gasped and ran forward to the window. "Dad!" She watched as he tried to open the door that joined the two rooms. It didn't budge.

"He can't hear you." Draco spoke quietly. He was observing Ginny's behaviour, feeling very annoyed with himself. Now that she was here, she wouldn't cooperate. It was obvious that all she wanted was to go home with her dad. She would probably do what she could to help herself. It was what he would do in her situation, in any case.

Arthur paced around a little bit and stood still in the middle of the room, his wand out in front of him, as he observed his surroundings. His mouth was set in a thoughtful frown. Ginny recognized a look of understanding on his face that was out of place for the situation. He turned his head, and seemed to look straight at her for a moment.

Draco strode up beside her and purposely pressed a button on the wall. "Arthur Weasley." He spoke into a box on the wall. Arthur suddenly looked frightening. His stance became offensive and his face bore a dangerous look. Arthur was so easy going that he hardly ever got angry, and it frightened Ginny to see it.

"Draco Malfoy." He said back, not taking his eyes off the window. "I know you're in there." His clear voice rang loud and clear. "Where is she?"

"Right here dad!" Ginny said into the box, pushing up beside Draco, who swatted her away impatiently. Arthur's look softened considerably as he heard his daughter's voice.

"She's here." Repeated Draco, coldly. "Put your wand down, and walk through the door."

They watched as he put his wand down slowly, and moved toward the door again. Ginny's heart leapt as it opened. As soon as Arthur walked into the room and the door shut behind him, Ginny flew into his arms. Arthur stood in shock for a split moment before returning the embrace. "Ginny! We were so worried about you! Are you okay? Did he hurt you at all?" he pulled back and looked into her face worriedly.

Ginny shook her head. "No. He –" Ginny stopped herself, remembering she was supposed act afraid. "I mean… yes."

Ginny pretended to glance back at Draco fearfully, before burying her face in her dad's robes.

Arthur's look hardened as he glared at Draco, who stood half-way across the room, staring right back, impassively.

He pulled Ginny back again and bent down to look at her. "Ginny, dear, what did he do to you?" he demanded.

Ginny closed her eyes. She hated lying to her father. "He –" she began reluctantly. What would she say? "He beat me, dad." She said quietly, trying to act like it was true. "And he told me he'd kill me." She looked back at Draco with a helpless look. He looked back at her with a grim look in his eyes. Ginny guessed that Draco didn't particularly like being laid out as a potential murderer as much as she didn't like saying it.

Arthur tensed up, not taking his eyes off of Draco, he asked her harshly. "Did he touch you?" They all knew he was asking if he had raped her. Ginny watched Draco's eyes harden almost imperceptively.

"No!" she said before she could stop herself. Ginny pushed the palm of her hand against her forehead in frustration with herself. What happened to her acting skills? She was knew she was sending contradictory signals all over the place, and that her dad would catch on soon.

Sure enough, Arthur looked suspiciously between the two teenagers. Ginny knew her dad was always cool-headed, and that was why he never got caught up in emotions, and could look at things objectively.

"Ginny." He said after a minute. "What's going on?"

Damn She knew he'd see right through her. Ginny observed her dad for a moment.

She looked back and caught Draco's eyes with her own, willing him to understand her. She watched as Draco narrowed his eyes at her. Ginny gave him a semi-apologetic look and turned back to her dad.

"Dad," she started, taking his hands and bringing his eyes back to her. "He hasn't hit me, and he hasn't touched me. That was all a lie." She said, telling the truth.

"Ginny, what are you talking about?"

"He's been treating me well considering I'm a hostage." She added.

"Weasley – " Draco growled and she turned back to him to see anger and betrayal in his face. And fear – there was a definite sign of fear hidden behind his grey eyes. Ginny realised he probably thought she was condemning him to his death.

"Trust me, Malfoy." She said quietly to him.

"Ginny –" Arthur cut in. "What the hell is going on here."

Draco was suddenly beside them, Ginny's arm in a vice grip. "That's it. This is over." He said icily, and began to pull her away.

"Get off of her. Malfoy." Her father's icy tone scared her. He stepped between Draco and Ginny, shielding his daughter.

The two men glared at each other, eye to eye. They were nearly the same height. Draco was slightly taller, but her dad was broader all around. She sincerely hoped this wouldn't become a fist fight. She didn't know who would be the strongest, but she would have put her money on her dad.

"Make me." Draco spat menacingly.

"I'm not letting her go back with you, Draco Malfoy. So you might want to forget about that."

"You don't exactly have that choice, Weasley." Draco scowled. Ginny found herself completely ignored. She bit her lip and made a quick decision by placing herself in the line of fire.

"Stop it!" she yelled, placing a hand on either man and pushing them apart. "I am not leaving yet!" she yelled to Draco, who glared at her but didn't move, and she turned to her dad. "Dad, stop it!" she pleaded with him. "I am not going back with you either!"

Both men looked down at her, surprised. "What?" Arthur demanded, confused.

"Weasley, don't." Both redheads looked at Draco, but his attention was focused on Ginny. She pleaded Draco with her eyes.

"Draco's been running from Voldemort, dad." She said loudly, getting their attentions. She felt Draco tense under her hand. He suddenly turned around and stalked off to the other side of the room, standing with his back to them angrily.

Ginny turned to her dad. "Look, dad." She started, bringing his attention back to her. "I know this is going to sound strange."

Arthur watched his daughter with confusion written on his face. "What is it Ginny?"

She didn't know where to start. "I need you to help him, dad." Draco whipped around to look at her. "I know what is at stake here. If it's a choice between life and death, I'd want him to live." She told him. "I was serious when I said he hasn't hurt me, you know. Haven't you always been one to reserve judgement? Please, dad, I need you to help him. And if you don't want to do it for him, do it for me. Please." She begged him with her eyes.

Arthur could see the earnest emotion in her eyes. He'd always been able to tell when his daughter was being sincere or if she was lying to get out of trouble. He watched her looked back at Draco, who was staring at her, stock still, with an unreadable look.

"Ginny," Arthur began sharply. "Do you even know what you're asking me to do?"

"Yes." Ginny said hesitantly. She sighed and whispered so Draco wouldn't hear. "I know, dad, but I would rather Draco live and let Lucius out of Azkaban than the other way around."

"Are you sure, Ginny?" Ginny felt a twinge in her chest at the emotion in his eyes.

"Yes." She pleaded with her eyes. As Ginny watched her father, she knew she had convinced him.

Arthur stood up straight and with one last look at Ginny, walked over to where Draco stood. Ginny wrapped her arms around herself and watched.

"Is she telling the truth?" Arthur asked. Draco shot a glare in Ginny's direction, but nodded briskly to Arthur.

"I'm assuming you'll be headed out of the country?"

"Yes." Draco conceded.

They studied each other for a minute or so, neither one looking remotely friendly. Ginny felt like she could cut the tension with a knife.

"It might take a couple of weeks to arrange." Arthur said finally. Ginny watched Draco's eyes change to surprise from behind his icy exterior.

"Fine."

"What about your mother?" Arthur asked, out of the blue.

Draco blinked. "Excuse me?"

"Your mother, is she going to be safe? I'm assuming you had planned to bring her with you, wherever it is you're going." Arthur guessed.

Draco stared in disbelief at the man. "She's – she's fine for the moment." He said warily, no-doubtedly trying to find the ulterior motive to the question.

Arthur nodded. "Alright. I'll notify you of the release date on further notice." Arthur terminated the converstation, walking back over to Ginny.

"Ginny," he gave her one last hug. "If he does anything to you, anything at all, I will hunt him down myself."

"Okay dad." She said. "Thank you."

Suddenly he turned serious. "I don't know why you are so insitent about this, Gin, and I don't like it, but I'm going to trust your judgement. Are you absolutely certain about this?" he asked her gravely.

Ginny looked back at Draco and nodded, hoping she wasn't wrong.

Arthur left the room through the door he'd come through, after saying goodbye. Ginny stood still, watching him leave.

Draco was suddenly by her side. "We have to go, now." He said, taking her hand and pulling her through the wall where they had come in. This time, however he led them through a slightly different route, that was shorter and opened to the outside from a different door. When they were outside, Draco pulled her behind him and ran through a couple of dark alleys and abandoned streets. After about five minutes they made it onto a crowded street, and slowed down to a walk. Ginny stopped, trying to catch her breath. "What the hell are we doing?" she demanded. Draco rounded on her.

"We had to get out of there before your dad made it back in case your precious Order is around and looking for you." He told her.

"What?" Ginny frowned. "They're not…" she trailed off as her eyes focused on something in the distance. Draco whipped around and his eyes landed on their old professor, Remus Lupin, in the distance. Giving Ginny a dangerous look, he pulled her briskly in the opposite direction, down the crowded sidewalk. Draco pulled his hood up to cover more of him, and Ginny did the same.

"Don't say anything." He told her. About a kilometre down the road, Draco stopped and looked at his watch, looking anxious. "We have about ten minutes to wait." Draco looked around, making sure the area was clear. "See anyone you know?" Draco asked her.

Ginny shook her head. "No."

With another look around, he pulled her into a dark alley between buildings. "What are you doing?" she asked. He didn't answer her.

They stood just inside the dark alley for about a minute, when suddenly she felt Draco tense.

"…I can't find her…"

"…Neither can I, I've looked up and down the street…"

"…they must have left already…"

The voices got louder and louder. She recognized them as Tonks and Remus and she panicked. "Draco-" she whispered urgently, tightening her grip on his hand.

"Be quiet." He shushed her and pushed her up suddenly against the brick wall. He captured her eyes with his. "Play along, please." He whispered. Not letting go of her hand, he moved into her. Ginny looked at him with wide eyes. "Put your arm around me." He ordered gently. Ginny suddenly understood. No one would bother them if they thought the two of them were a random couple doing something inappropriate. Ginny wrapped an arm over his shoulder and Draco put his face by her ear. "Don't let them see your face. Or your hair for that matter." he whispered. Ginny swallowed and nodded. His breath on her ear was making her stomach do flip-flops. His free hand went to her waist.

In her peripheral vision, Ginny saw the two figures stop right in front of the alley. Ginny felt Draco move his hand down her side to her thigh at the same time she saw Tonks look at them for a split moment before blushing and looking away, taking Remus' arm and walking him just past the alley. Ginny breathed a sigh of relief, and knocked Draco's hand off of her, giving him a look. He just smirked in return, and Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Look." She heard Tonks say. "They're not here. We should probably just get back…" Ginny loosened her grip on Draco, realising how tightly she was holding on. They were out of sight, so Draco pulled back gently until he could look at her.

Ginny looked up at him. He had a solemn expression on his face.

"Why are you helping me?" he asked quietly.

Ginny looked up at him in surprise. She knew he meant everything, not just playing along. Ginny was all nervous again. This was getting all too much like her dream. She even felt safe in his arms. Safe from my own people, she thought ironically, what in Merlin's name is wrong with me?

"Because I'm on your side." She whispered back eventually.

"What?" his brow furrowed and his eyes searched hers.

"Believe it or not, Malfoy, I don't want you dead." The corner of Ginny's mouth twitched up.

Draco's silver eyes were a pool of emotion for the first time she'd known him; not of anger, but of doubt and gratitude. He obviously wasn't used to kindness. Though, she didn't really know why she was being so kind to him; she was just compelled to. Neither looked away.

Suddenly a loud bus schreeched to a stop right across from them. Draco jumped back suddenly.

"Damn it. That's our bus." He told her quietly. Gripping her hand tightly, he pulled her to the sidewalk, stopping just before the others were in sight. "Shit." He swore.

Draco pulled his hood down over his face as much as he could, and peered around the corner discreetly.

"Oof!" Ginny heard, and peered around the corner also. Tonks was on the ground, and it looked like she'd tripped over a rock on the sidewalk. Remus was already bent down to help her up, chuckling. Before she knew it, Ginny was being pulled out into broad daylight. They hopped onto the bus just as it started to move. Ginny gripped onto Draco's robes to keep herself steady and watched as the two Order members receded in the distance, completely oblivious to what just occurred.

This trip back went by fast. Ginny's mind was reeling. Draco Malfoy was turning out to be so different than she'd first imagined. She's been driven by curiosity at first, but now that he had revealed so much more of himself to her, Ginny found that she didn't hate him, quite the opposite. She was intrigued by him, she was attracted to him, though Merlin knows why, and she wanted to help him. Ginny looked down at her hand entwined with his. She couldn't get her mind off of the feel of his hand. She looked up at his face. Draco was leaning back on the seat with his eyes closed. She studied the smooth skin of his face. The perfect arch of his eyebrow and the line of his jaw.

Ginny knew that he was an arrogant prick, she even knew that he would probably never change. Who was she kidding? Ginny knew that she should shut out the feelings and not get attatched, because in a couple of weeks, if her dad was right, Lucius Malfoy would be released and Draco Malfoy would disappear forever.

But Ginny didn't want to think of that just yet.

They didn't speak the rest of the way, and walked through the doors silently. Ginny let go of his hand as he turned to lock the door. His tall, strong figure turned back to her and they stood looking at each other awkwardly.

Ginny raked a hand through her hair.

Draco watched her. He'd been fairly quiet all day. True enough, he didn't know what to say. Her behaviour was so unexpected, which he should have been used to by now, he thought sarcastically, but she just kept surprising him all the time. He hadn't been angry at her all day, which was unusual, but maybe that was only because he was no longer trying to scare her. Even just the touch of her skin against his made his calm. She was a Weasley for Merlin's sake! Draco cursed himself. He didn't get it.

Ginny watched Draco also, and guessing what he was thinking but would never say, she gave him a smirk, and said, "You're welcome, Draco." With that, she turned around and walked back into the house, leaving Draco there, frowning.