Disclaimer: - see first chapter for the usual blurb –

Author's Note: Sorry for the delay in updating. Like I mentioned last chapter, I participated in NaNoWriMo this year and...well, I tried to hit 50K before the month of November was over, but I ended up not having enough time to dedicate to it coz I ended up going on holiday last week of November. Anyway, here's the chapter update & thank you so much to all of you who are reading, reviewing & enjoying this story so far.

V. Practice Makes Perfect

THE DAYS LEADING UP TO THE BIG INAUGURAL Quidditch match was a busy and at the same time exciting one. Former students who RSVP'd to Harry and Katie's invitation started arriving, getting acquainted and reacquainted with their teammates and other former classmates. Quidditch practices were scheduled nightly and running until well in to midnight. Since time was of the essence Harry and Katie decreed that whichever team – A, B, C or D – was at the Pitch practicing at the same time can practice together, giving the students an exhibition show prior to the main event, which was fast moving along. The matches were setup as a round-robin that would start a full week prior to the actual first official school match of the year between the four houses. After the Inaugural Weekend Quidditch match, participants are welcome to remain at the castle as guests and watch the first official school match against last year's champions, Slytherin, and their number one school rival, Gryffindor.

Every night students were escorted by teachers to the Pitch to watch the exhibition matches for an hour or so at least prior to them being escorted back to the castle. Ginny's night to escort students was on Thursday; it was also the night Draco's team was on the pitch practicing with Harry's team. It had been years since the rival Seekers were seen on a broomstick at the Quidditch Pitch battling it out, even if it was just for a friendly game prior to the main event, which was starting this coming weekend. The inaugural match would just be a two-day event; Harry and Katie revised and outlined the Quidditch rules specifically just for this special match amongst former Hogwarts students.

Hermione and Ron were already at the stands watching the practice match along with their group of students. Luna and her group of students to escort were coming up behind Ginny's and together they all sat on the same side of the pitch to watch while a few other teachers and their own group of students were escorted to the pitch to watch as well.

"Do you think Harry and Malfoy will duke it out for old times' sake?" asked Luna excitedly as she sat beside Ginny at the very back.

"I hope they do," enthused a very excited Blaise Zabini who flanked Ginny's left side.

Luna glared at the other professor whose students he escorted weren't even on the stands where Ginny and Luna's students were seated.

"You're dead weight on this side of the stands, Zabini," Luna hissed.

Blaise cocked an eyebrow at the venom he heard in the blonde professor's voice. "Why? As far as I know we weren't given assigned seats," he pointed out.

"Well, you are not welcome here," Luna huffed.

"I'm not?" Blaise's raised brow rose a fraction of an inch more, but his expression looked more comical than affronted. He looked from Luna to Ginny then back to Luna before ignoring the still agitated blonde and settled for talking to Ginny instead. "Are you sure this seat is not taken?" he asked.

"As far as I know nobody saved that seat," she answered, which was not the answer Luna wanted her to give Blaise but what can she do? Although Blaise Zabini was a former house rival of theirs, still, the last how many years changed him and made him likeable enough that she didn't quite detest him.

Liking the answer he heard, Blaize smiled broadly and turned his attention to the blonde professor. "See Lovegood, there's really no reason for you to get your knickers in a knot," he teased.

Luna didn't respond verbally, but Ginny felt her friend was ready to strangle the charming former Slytherin student if she wasn't sitting sandwiched between them acting as buffer. As more students and teachers arrived to watch, the trio kept their mouths shut and just watched Harry and Draco's teams practice on their own sides of the pitch; they wouldn't start with the promised 'friendly match' until the stand's almost full of spectators. It was last night before tomorrow night's opening match that will kick-off a weekend-long Quidditch tournament against the four competing teams. Profesor McGonagall promised the students this evening that they'd be able to stay out at least a half hour later than usual to watch the friendly match before heading back to the castle and call it a night.

"Is the match starting yet?" Ron asked moving to sit on their side of the stands. He occupied the empty seat behind the trio where Hermione soon joined him once she settled her group of students down.

"Not yet," answered Luna then took a quick survey of the pitch and looked over her shoulder to address her friend's older brother, "but the stands are almost full of spectators now so I think the two teams will stop practicing by themselves and entertain us with a friendly match."

"Brilliant," Ron smiled, his eyes alight with glee as he looked across towards the pitch where Harry's Team B and Malfoy's Team D were doing heir usual pre-friendly match warm-up. Ron's Team C had the a friendly match the night before against Team A; it was a good match between the two teams, but tonight's friendly match was a much talked about since two of Hogwarts' infamous rival Seekers – Malfoy and Harry – were once again facing each other in Quidditch after how many years.

"Did you place your bet, Weasley?" Blaise asked over his shoulder.

"Of course," answered Ron proudly then groaned when Hermione's elbow made contact with his ribs. "Bloody hell, Hermione," he hissed rubbing the spot she jabbed.

Hermione glared at her best friend then turned her glare towards Zabini. "You two are disgusting! I can't believe George managed to rally everyone to bet on whose team will score first tonight," she huffed.

"Hey, it worked, didn't it? Look around you, Granger," Blaise gestured out towards the spectators gathered at the pitch this evening. "It got everyone excited and willing to watch tonight's friendly match."

"People would've watched whether there's a bet or not," Hermione argued.

"True," Blaise agreed then quickly followed it with, "but the turn out wouldn't be like this."

Hermione had no rebuttal to that. She already voiced out her complaint, but she knew deep down nobody would really care on the 'friendly wager' George Weasley cajoled students, staff and other visitors alike on the outcome of tonight's friendly match.

GINNY WAS HEADED BACK TO THE TEACHERS' WING after escorting her students back to the castle after the friendly match was over. It was an eventful night to say the least. The entire pitch was hyped up about the wager they had on who will score first: Professor Potter's team or Professor Malfoy's team. The school was divided in half as to which team would score the night's first goal or which Seeker would get their hands on the elusive Snitch first; even Professor McGonagall, who didn't put in her wager but she was also present at the pitch and was as involved as everyone else on the friendly match, was cheering for her favoured team. Now since Alicia, a former Gryffindor, was in Malfoy's team Professor McGonagall was cheering for both teams, but it was obvious which team she favoured the most. It promised to be a long night as both teams looked ready to duke it out for real as opposed to having just a friendly match to give the crowd a taste of what was to come tomorrow night. The rivalry between Harry and Malfoy was still there as they both eagerly searched and chased after the Snitch whilst Beaters and Chasers zoomed around the pitch evading the other teams' attacks.

Ginny was busy reiterating the evening's events as she walked down the brightly lit corridor of the Teachers' Wing. The guests were given a separate wing of the castle to reside in while they were at Hogwarts. Ron and Harry took off with Oliver, George, Charlie and Katie to join the others to talk Quidditch and do more catch-ups with each other. Zabini joined the others as well since he saw him catching up with Katie after he showed his students back to the castle. Luna called it a night early when the students she was assigned to look after became too rowdy at the pitch before the first goal was scored.

The corridor was quiet except for the sound of Ginny's soft footfalls. She took her time going to her room. It wasn't that late yet and she wasn't at all feeling dead tired as she should be. She was far too involved in her thoughts that she didn't notice somebody else was on the corridor with her, but unlike her slow, steady gait the other occupant of the corridor was limping and using the wall as a guide to keep themself upright. Picking up her pace Ginny speedwalked towards her limping colleague, stopping dead on her tracks when she recognized the shock of platinum blond hair on the limping person's head.

"Are you alright, Malfoy?" she asked trying not to sound too concerned.

Draco stiffened when he heard her address him. He knew she has joined him in the Teachers Wing corridor a few seconds ago, but he didn't want to attract her attention so he tried to be as discreet and quiet moving using the wall as a guide to keep himself from crumbling over.

"I'm fine," he answered trying not to hiss out the words. Draco wasn't sure if anyone noticed, but during the so-called friendly match he received quite a nasty Bludger hit on the ribs courtesy of a very vexed Gregory Goyle. Someone still hasn't forgiven him for apparently betraying the Death Eaters.

"You don't look fine," said Ginny and took a step closer to inspect him. "What happened?"

Draco didn't want to be fussed over. He has had years of looking after himself. His days of being fussed over – especially by his mother – were over. He learned to lick his own wounds and healed them himself; he didn't need to be coddled by anyone – especially this red haired minx who seemed to have wormed her way into his thoughts whether he wanted her there or not.

"Nothing serious," he lied then took in a sharp intake of breath when he tried to stand straight and something sharp pinched him. Bloody hell, he broke a rib or two.

"Oh stop being a damn martyr, Malfoy, and admit that you're not fine!" scolded Ginny. "You are obviously hurting and need medical attention."

"I said I'm fine, Weasley," he insisted but his face was starting to contort in pain. The longer he stood out here arguing with her the more he'd be aggrevating his injured ribs. "Look, just toddle off and let me be."

Ginny considered doing just that, but a part of her didn't want to leave him here to suffer. Whether she hated him or not, Draco Malfoy was still a colleague who was in need of help. Since she was able to offer it to him, damn the pompous arse's ego if she aided him.

"C'mon," Ginny made up her mind and stepped closer to Malfoy, taking his left arm and looping it over her shoulders.

Draco was caught unaware by Ginny's action thus delaying his reaction. "What in bloody hell are you doing, Weasley?" he demanded.

"You are in pain and your room's still a couple of feet away. If I leave you here to walk back to your room by yourself it will take you a full hour or so. So to save yourself the trouble, I am helping you reach your quarters in less time it would take you had you been by yourself," she said matter-of-factly.

Draco argued that he was not an invalid, but he started walking with her as well, internally grateful for the assist since he knew she was right. But he'd be damned if he admitted it out loud. They reached his room but Ginny didn't let him go nor did she make a move to leave his side.

"We're here now," he told her.

"I know."

"I can manage from here on."

Ginny cocked an eyebrow and turned to look at him. "Are you sure?" she didn't sound convinced that he'd be able to open his door without her assistance.

"Yes," he insisted.

"Then open your door."

"You don't need to wait around."

"Whatever. Until I'm convinced that you can really manage on your own, I won't leave your side," she told him.

Draco couldn't help the warm feeling that enveloped him when he heard what she said. She sounded sincere in her promise. No one has said that to him. Everyone left his side – eventually. Even those he trusted and thought loved him left him to fend for himself. But Ginny Weasley was different. She came from a loving family albeit their low stature.

"Bossy minx," he hissed under his breath and reached over to push down on Ares' arm. Draco thought the movement wouldn't aggrevate his wound, but the moment he put pressure down on the statue's arm he crumbled to the floor. Thankfully Ginny was still supporting him so he didn't quite end up on the floor as he expected.

"Sturbborn Slytherin," he heard Ginny said then reached for her wand. With a flick and whispered incantation Draco felt himself floating a few inches above the castle floor while she stepped forward and pushed down on the statue's arm to open his secret doorway. Without saying another word she flicked her wand again and he was floated in to his room with her following behind him.

"I don't recall inviting you in, Weasley," Draco said sardonically.

Ginny ignored his attempt at pissing her off. She took a quick survey of his mediocre living space and found a leather loveseat to deposit him on.

"Where were you hit?" she demanded, standing over him by the loveseat, after she settled him down.

"Why do you want to know?"

"So I can help you."

"I can manage by myself, Weasley. You already helped me plenty," he dismissed her.

But Ginny wasn't easily dismissed.

"For once will you stop acting like you can handle everything on your own and accept help when it's being freely offered to you, hm?" she sighed.

"I've looked after myself for years, Weasley. I know how to take care of myself," he insisted.

"But doesn't it get tiring?"

"What?"

"You know, for someone who was such a Mama's Boy when he was younger, you sure don't like being looked after," she scoffed.

"I wasn't a Mama's Boy," he argued. "I was close to my mother, but I was never a Mama's Boy."

"If you say so," Ginny didn't sound convinced, which only incensed Draco even more.

"I said I can manage, Weasley," he repeated his initial claim, this time he made sure he sounded firmer and gave his words more conviction.

"You can barely stand up straight let alone walk to your room unassisted, I don't think you'll be able to see to your wound without my help," she told him matter-of-factly. "I'd call for Katie, but I saw Zabini grab her for a get-together with the other players so I don't think she'd be able to see to you right away."

"It's just a nasty bump, that's all," Draco insisted trying to hide his actual discomfort at the pain caused by a broken rib or two. He'd be damned if he showed weakness in front of this stubborn redhead. He had a reputation to uphold. He didn't want word getting out of this room that he was such a wuss that he couldn't survive a Bludger hit.

"It's not just a bump."

"How do you know? I'm the one who's feeling the pain here," he snapped.

"I know. But I don't need to be a mediwitch to be able to tell if you're suffering from just a minor bump or not. Besides, I grew up with six brothers plus Harry who all played Quidditch. And I did play the sport myself, in case you've forgotten, so I know the injuries involved with the sport," she reminded him.

Draco opened his mouth to argue with her, but he closed it right away and shut up. He tried every available angle he could to get rid of his unwanted companion this evening, but Ginny Weasley proved to be as stubborn as he was; there was no way she'd leave him alone until he allowed her to check him up.

"Whatever, Weasley. I'm tired, dirty and in pain. Last thing I wanted to do is argue with you," he surrendered and slumped back in his seat.

Ginny couldn't help the victorious grin from appearing on her face as she looked down at the stubborn blond. Without another word she began administering her check-up on what seemed to be paining her colleague. She knew he was favouring his torso, but in order for her to find out what was wrong she needed him out of his practice uniform and almost naked from the waist up.

"I need you to remove your top," she ordered.

Draco opened one eye to a slit and looked at the bossy woman standing over him.

"Sorry?"

Ginny felt uncomfortable asking it of someone she barely knew, but she needed his top off and she wouldn't remove it for him herself!

"Undress please, Malfoy," she repeated.

"Are you serious?"

"I need to check your side and your uniform is filthy. I wouldn't want to touch your shirt that is caked with mud, grime and Merlin knows what else you got on it."

Draco cocked an eyebrow. She didn't mind sliding up beside him earlier to help him walk to his room, but now she was complaining about touching his filthy shirt?

"You just want to see me naked, Weasley," he teased.

Ginny's eyes widen in mortification. "I beg your pardon?"

"Yeah, yeah, just admit it," Draco slowly pushed himself to sit upright so he could remove his shirt. He supposed he could use magic to undress himself, but that would require a bit of an effort for him to reach for his wand, which was on the table by the entryway where he leaned his broomstick against when they entered his room.

"I am not admitting anything!" Ginny denied, her cheeks flaring to a nice shade of apple red. "Fine! Keep your bloody shirt on," she huffed.

"No, no. I'm already taking my shirt off might as well do it." He took his time – partly because he was in pain and another part because he enjoyed watching Ginny Weasley get flustered – taking his shirt off.

"Fine, if you insist," Ginny hissed through gritted teeth and swiftly flicked her wand at him.

Draco was momentarily surprised that the shirt he was having a hard time removing was suddenly off him. He looked up and met the redhead's glare and grinned saucily. "Like what you're seeing, Professor?" he taunted. He knew his body hadn't been in shape for years; he wasn't a Quidditch player so keeping a toned, fit body wasn't called for anymore. If he had been a Quidditch player or instructor or heck even a damn coach during his years away from England then his body might've still retained some of what it looked like when he was younger.

Ginny, however, wasn't seeing a body of a man who hadn't seen the gym in years. Hating herself for finding Draco Malfoy's body simply fit and mouth-wateringly ravishing with its slight hints of pecks and a sculpted V-torso that tapered down to connect with his pelvis hidden by his pants. Merlin, she's seen naked male chests before – okay, majority of the naked male chests she has seen belonged to people in her family including Harry – but seeing Malfoy's half-naked state was doing something to her libido that she hadn't felt in years! There was a moment in time when Harry Potter made her heart skip a beat or turn her knees to jell-Os, but as of late those said feelings weren't there anymore.

"Just lie back and let me see," she ordered after she composed herself. While her eyes were busy feasting on his half-naked glory she noticed an angry bruise colouring his side.

"Ah, the Professor wants me on my back while she—" Ginny silenced him with a glare and her wand aimed at his smirking face.

"Don't make me give you the Bat Bogey Hex again, Malfoy," she threatened, reminding him of the time back when they were students at Hogwarts and how she managed to overthrow him and the rest of his posse. Satisfied that she somehow scared the living daylights out of him, Ginny stepped closer and knelt down in front of him, gingerly reaching out to touch the angry black and blue marring his chest.

Draco flinched when she poked him. He knew it wasn't a hard poke, but the slightest contact was enough to make him take in a sharp breath.

"You cracked a rib or two," she commented. "There's a potion in Katie's office that can help with the healing, but since Katie's away with the others there's no way I can get it," she added then looked up to meet his gaze. "I can put ice on it and bandage it to keep the swelling down."

Draco was looking at her differently now. Gone was the mischievious gleam she saw in his eyes before she started checking him. Now he looked impressed and a bit shocked.

"What?" she couldn't help from asking. The way he was looking at her was kinda giving her the creeps.

"Are you sure you're not a mediwitch, Weasley?" he asked.

Ginny gave a self deprecating laugh. "I am a Charms teacher at Hogwarts, Malfoy. Do I look like a mediwitch to you?"

Draco made a face at her. "I know you're a teacher just like myself, Weasley. I'm just saying—"

Ginny cut him off before he could finish. "Do you need help getting bandaged up?" she asked and pushed herself up until she was standing over him once again.

"Why are you avoiding the subject?"

"What subject?"

"I was just going to say that you are not a mediwitch but you sure spoke like one just moments ago. Did you take lessons in becoming a mediwitch?"

Ginny didn't answer. She seldom let that side of her show, especially now that she has chosen a teaching position. After Fred's untimely death during the war against Voldemort she made a promise to herself to become a mediwitch so she could save lives. She knew there was no cure for someone who was hit by the Killing Curse; their death was instantaneous just like her brother's and Lupin's and Tonks' and all those whose lives were lost during that war. It made quite an impact on her and during her time of mourning she got it in to her head that she by learning how to heal people she'd be able to prevent losing people closest to her. She became almost obsessive in her profession until Harry pulled her out of her catatonic state before she wore herself out. She used becoming a mediwitch as an excuse to bottle up her pain and anger and loneliness at losing so many people and feeling wretched for not being able to help them.

"Weasley?" Draco prodded when she remained quiet for the longest time.

"Last chance, Malfoy, do you need help with the bandaging or not?" Ginny wanted the subject dropped. She didn't want to talk about it, especially with Malfoy who was part of the reason why she lost one of her brothers.

Draco knew the subject became too touchy the moment her expression and attitude changed. Now more than ever Ginny Weasley became even more of a mystery to him than ever before.

A/N2: Finally another chapter finished! I honestly thought Draco and Ginny would be sharing a lip-locking moment here; I had it all planned out in my head initially, but as I continued to type out the rest of this final scene, the supposed kiss just kept on drifting farther and farther away until it all but disappeared. I hope you still enjoyed this chapter even without the kissing scene part! LoL