Ginny's head was pounding the next morning, but she didn't dare go to Madam Pomfrey for a potion. She had stumbled back to Gryffindor Tower late last night, her mind racing and her stomach churning, and had barely made it to bed. She had had the foresight to transfigure one of her old sweaters into a rubbish bin, and she was glad of it this morning as she was sorely in need of it.

"Ughh," Kathleen moaned from bed, her hands over her face. "Don't puke in here, you're gonna make me puke too."

"Gross," Ava grumbled, pulling half-heartedly on the curtains of her four poster.

"Too late," Ginny said. "Evanesco."

"I wish I was half as good at Charms as you," Lydia said; she surprisingly looked perfectly alert, reading a book in bed. "I always leave a little bit behind when I try that spell."

"Well, just the same, I think I'll be throwing this-" Ginny turned the bin back into a sweater "-into the garbage." Cautiously, she got to her feet, and found that her stomach was feeling much better. She reached into her trunk to grab some clothes for the day and shuffled toward the girls' bathroom, taking a moment to glance back at Kathleen, who appeared to have passed out again.

I hope she wakes up soon, Ginny thought with a frown. I need to talk to her.

Drunk-Ginny had fervently hoped that sober-Ginny would be able to make more sense of the events of last night, but so far she wasn't having any luck. She mulled it over once again as she brushed her teeth.

Malfoy basically admitted that he's a Death Eater, with some weak but plausible deniability. In fact, he went out of his way to admit it, and tell me the Death Eaters - him? - are looking for a weapon to kill Harry. But why? Why would he tell me? And at a Valentine's Day dance of all places?

The only thing that Ginny could think of was that maybe Malfoy really didn't want to kill Harry, but he couldn't come right out and say it. Maybe he was counting on her to get the information to the right people, to Dumbledore and the Order. But as Kathleen had pointed out last night, while the reveal itself was huge, he had basically said next to nothing, certainly nothing that Harry hadn't already tried reporting to Dumbledore. And really, how would this be any different than him telling Dumbledore himself? Dumbledore would certainly question Malfoy about it if she told the Headmaster in his stead.

Oh hello, Professor, yes, you're quite right, I do want to run away from the Death Eaters and help the Order. But I figured Weasley was a better person to tell you than me, even though I'm talking to you right now. Why all the subterfuge? Well, it just adds a bit of mystery, you know?

No, it didn't make a lot of sense, she thought as she spat out her toothpaste and grabbed her mouthwash. Maybe he hadn't meant to tell her at all? He had been drinking... but even as she entertained the thought, she knew in her gut it wasn't right. He had went out of his way to tell her, and even to hint about telling her more in the future. If he let something like that slip when he was drunk, then he was the worst Death Eater Ginny had ever heard of, and while Malfoy was many things, she knew he wasn't stupid.

Thinking so much about the last moment of the night kept her from thinking too much about all the moments that had led up to it. And her reactions to them. She should have been disgusted to feel Malfoy's hands on her waist, to feel his breath tickle her cheek. But she hadn't been, and she was very much in doubt that she could blame it entirely on the alcohol. Shame surged, hot and sickly, in her core as she spat out her mouthwash. What if Malfoy really was a Death Eater, plotting to kill Harry, and she was over here reminiscing about the way his laugh made her stomach flip?

Ugh. I need to talk to Kathleen. Sober Kathleen. Ignoring the tightness in her stomach, she changed her robes, ran a brush quickly through her hair, and tossed it up in a ponytail. She threw the puke-sweater in the garbage and picked up her pajamas to take back to the dorm. Maybe Kathleen would be awake now and they could get breakfast. Talk things out.

Unfortunately, Kathleen was not awake. Her face was pale and sweaty, and a small frown marred her usually cheerful features. Could she be having a nightmare?

Maybe she really did drink too much last night. I didn't even get a chance to ask her what the hell was up with her and Ernie.

A bit disappointed, Ginny turned around and headed for the Great Hall. The other girls weren't in their beds anymore and had apparently started their day without her. The Great Hall would be good, though- she needed something to settle her stomach, and greasy breakfast food sounded like just the ticket.

As she made her way downstairs, she couldn't shake the feeling that people were staring at her. People stopped talking as she approached, or else started whispering behind their hands. Ginny shot one group of third years a dark look, having a sinking feeling she knew what this was about.

It hadn't occurred to her that other people could have noticed her and Malfoy last night. When it was all happening, she had had...

-eyes only for him, she thought glumly. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I'm never drinking again.

Despite the whispered chatter, Ginny made it to the Great Hall unscathed. Spotting a familiar pair of overalls, she hurried over to the Ravenclaw table and sat down across from Luna Lovegood.

"There you are," Ginny hissed. "Where were you last night?"

"I had food poisoning," Luna said blithely as she stirred some brown sugar into her oatmeal. "I do hope my stomach settles after this, though. My Gobstones tournament is this afternoon. Are you coming?"

"Oh!" said Ginny, who had quite forgotten about Luna's tournament. "Er, maybe. Listen, something happened last night..."

She proceeded to launch into the story of the Valentine's Day party, skipping over her own discomfort with how things had turned out.

"A weapon?" Luna asked before taking a bite of oatmeal, looking supremely unconcerned. "How intriguing. I wouldn't think You-Know-Who would need any extra weapons. Makes him look a bit weak, don't you think?"

"How do you mean?"

"Well, it's like saying his magic by itself isn't enough. That he needs something more. I probably wouldn't tell my followers that I thought I needed a special weapon to kill a teenager, but maybe it's a clever ruse."

Ginny frowned as she turned this over in her mind, more confused than ever. "Maybe it has something to do with the prophecy?" she asked, piling some potatoes onto her plate.

"Maybe - oh, hello Harry," Luna said with a smile. Ginny looked over her shoulder. Harry was standing right behind her, his mouth set in a thin line.

"Hello Luna," he said without looking at her. "Ginny, can I talk to you privately please?"

Well this works out, I suppose. I can talk to him about what Malfoy said after all.

Ginny got to her feet, her steaming plate of food calling her name, but she ignored it and followed Harry out of the Great Hall and down the adjoining corridor.

"I was meaning to talk to you about last night," she said once they stopped. "I went to the Hufflepuffs' Valentine's Day party and-"

"Oh I heard all about the stupid party already," Harry interrupted, his voice filled with a surprising amount of venom. "Three different people told me about it before I could even sit down to breakfast."

Realizing this conversation was taking a different turn than she had anticipated, Ginny started, "I-"

"When the first person told me, I thought no, no way, she wouldn't do that, even if she was really, really pissed at me," he continued as though he hadn't heard her. "But then the second person told me, and then the third person told me, and they were all telling me the same thing. Pretty big coincidence, right?"

"And what is it I'm supposed to have done, exactly?" Ginny said coldly, the back of her neck tingling. Harry had never talked to her like this before, never.

Harry shook his head in disgust. "This is low, Gin, even for you."

"Even for me?" Ginny demanded. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You bloody well know what it means!" Harry said, near shouting now. "You kissed Malfoy, that's what the bloody hell it means!"

"I did absolutely no such thing!" Who the fuck was saying she kissed Malfoy?

"Then why is everyone saying you did?"

"I don't know, Harry, maybe you should have asked me first instead of just assuming! But that would require treating me like a person, just like anyone else, which is apparently so hard for you-"

"If you're trying to make me jealous-"

"Jealous?" she snorted with derision. "Don't make me laugh."

"Pissed off, then. You know Malfoy would jump at the chance to see me-"

"Why do you assume everything is always about you?" Ginny shouted. "Nothing happened between me and Malfoy last night, Harry, nothing, but anything that did happen certainly wasn't about you." Realizing that she wasn't making a lot of sense, Ginny growled in frustration and pulled out her wand.

"Volamucus!"

Harry shouted and clutched his face as great flying bat-bogeys shot out of his nose. Several people nearby gasped and started laughing, but Ginny ignored them. She turned her back on Harry and stormed away, her breakfast quite forgotten.

So much for trying to talk to him... Kathleen was right. Damn it, Harry! Why do you have to be so stubborn?

"Remind me not to get on Weasley's bad side," Blaise said as he and Draco walked through the first floor corridor toward the library. "That Bat-Bogey Hex was downright nasty."

Draco, having been on the receiving end of said hex the previous year, shuddered. "Yeah, I don't envy Potter on that one."

He hadn't seen the casting itself, though he wished he could have. Word of his dancing with Ginny had not only spread, but mutated overnight into quite the tall tale. He had heard four different versions already and it was only noon. For his part, he had refused to confirm or deny the truth of any claims (even a couple quite silly ones), preferring to let the rumors run wild. It would only help the general atmosphere, he figured, particularly given Potter's overblown reaction that morning.

"Hopefully she's not too upset with Potter," Blaise was saying. "She still has to like the bloke in order for all of this to work."

"Don't worry on that account," Draco said, ignoring a whispering group of fourth year girls as he passed them. "You're forgetting our number one criteria - a pure heart. And someone with a pure heart will always do the right thing, even if they don't like it. Even if she ends up hating Potter's guts-"

"Malfoy!"

"Speaking of Potter," Draco said with a grimace before turning around. "Yes?" he asked in an exaggerated tone. "What can I do for you, oh most great Chosen One?"

Draco had stopped walking, letting Potter catch up to him. He was vaguely aware of the other students in the hallway, clearly stopping to watch what they were hoping would be an epic fight.

Best to give them a show.

Potter stopped in front of him, eyes blazing. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Going to the library, obviously," Draco replied, looking over his shoulder for a moment toward the library doors. "I do have to study, you know. We can't all have a Mudblood freak for a best friend-"

Potter pulled out his wand in an instant, pointing it right at Draco's chest. Draco held up his hands in mock surrender, reminding himself irresistibly of last night.

"Easy there, killer," he said with a smirk. "Wouldn't want you to do something you'd regret."

"Cursing you would be the last thing I would regret," Potter said, and Draco believed it. He scanned his eyes over the growing crowd in an exaggerated way, cueing Potter in to the fact that they had an audience. Blaise snickered loudly, adding to the effect.

"I don't know, you wouldn't want to tarnish your precious reputation," Draco said with a sneer. "Cursing an unarmed student, who's done absolutely nothing to you..."

"Leave Ginny alone," Potter said in a low voice, quiet enough that only Draco could hear. "I know you live for nothing more than to piss me off, but it's cruel-"

"What wild rumors you've been listening to," Draco interrupted, letting his voice carry over the crowd. Potter wasn't going to get to keep this quiet. "What exactly is it you think I've done?"

Hopefully he's heard the one where I pinned her up against the wall and snogged her senseless. That would be hilarious.

"More than you should have," Potter said, shoving his wand tip against Draco's chest. "Leave her out of this."

Draco laughed. "Oh, I'm sorry, I apparently missed the memo," he said as Ron Weasley walked up. "I didn't see your name on her, Potter. My mistake. Everyone, did you hear that? If you want to talk to Ginny Weasley, you have to go through Potter first-"

"Shut up, Malfoy," Weasley said, drawing his own wand. "What do you think you're playing at, kissing my sister and-"

"There go those wild rumors again," Draco said with an exaggerated sigh. "I can assure you both, I didn't kiss Weasley last night."

Wait for it. He smirked.

"On the mouth," he whispered.

The effect was instantaneous. Potter's face went white, while Weasley's turned a shocking shade of red. Their wands quite forgotten, Weasley tackled Draco, giving Potter the angle he needed to punch him right on the nose. Pain bloomed through his face as he heard his nose crunch.

I suppose that's payback for the train, he thought distantly.

Weasley punched him in the stomach and while he angled to block the blow, he made sure not to make any aggressive movements back, keenly aware of the gasping crowd.

"Enough!"

Oh no. Not you, Draco thought as Potter and Weasley were magically flung off of him. Professor Snape swooped into view, sneering down at Draco.

"Get up," he hissed. Draco did so, albeit slowly. His nose felt like it was on fire.

"So let's see," Snape said, turning to face Potter and Weasley, who were both out of breath. "Fighting in the corridors, two against one, and attracting an audience. That last part, at least, isn't surprising for you, Potter. And as for the odds... well, your father never liked to fight fair either."

Potter was absolutely fuming. Draco bit his cheek to hold in his smile. Maybe if he was just very quiet, Snape would forget Draco was there...

"So that'll be twenty points from Gryffindor, each," Snape said, "along with detention with me this Saturday."

"But Professor, there's Quidditch this Saturday-" Weasley said.

"You should have thought of that before you started throwing punches like a common street thug. Poor Team Gryffindor, how will they recover?"

Potter looked like he wanted to throw a common street punch at Snape. His hands were clenched into tight fists, and Draco was amused to see he was shaking a little bit. Not quite amused enough to ignore the agony that was his face, but it helped.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Snape snapped. "Back to your dormitories, now."

Potter grabbed Weasley's shoulder and yanked him away from the scene. The students in the hallway deliberately avoided eye contact with them, clearly not wanting to be seen as complicit in Snape's eyes.

If I just back away slowly...

"Not so fast, Mr. Malfoy," Snape said loudly, turning to face him.

"Please, sir, I need to go to the Hospital Wing-"

Snape put up his hand to indicate that Draco should stop speaking. Irritated, Draco stopped. Snape was also taking advantage of the crowd. He couldn't publicly defy a professor without inviting serious trouble.

"You may go in a moment. While I can appreciate that Potter and Weasley were out of line to attack you the way they did, even Potter would not start randomly throwing punches unprovoked."

"But sir-"

"As such, you will also serve detention with me," Snape said. "On Friday evening after class. If you should fail to attend I will be forced to write a report home regarding your...poor performance. I don't imagine the consequences of such a report to be pleasant, do you?"

Draco glared at him, not caring about the crowd anymore. He understood the double meaning in Snape's words perfectly.

Poor performance, yeah right. You're just pissed I've been ignoring your summonses. Feeling left out, I take it?

"Of course not, Professor," Draco replied, reaching up to hold his nose, which was still bleeding. "I'll be sure to attend, and I'll let my mother know as well. No need for any report. Can I go to the Hospital Wing now?"

Or would you like me to bleed out right here? He pushed the thought in Snape's direction, unsure it would land, but judging by the sneer on Snape's face, it found its mark.

"Certainly. Run along now, and stay out of trouble."

Draco brushed past Snape, his plans to go to the library now derailed by having to visit the Hospital Wing.

"Some help you were," he muttered to Blaise, who fell into step beside him.

"Sorry mate, don't much fancy getting bloodied up myself. I'm no Crabbe or Goyle. I prefer to be a behind the scenes kind of person, know what I mean?"

Draco punched Blaise on the arm, which only made Blaise laugh.

Draco held the door open for Kathleen, ushering her into the Room of Requirement. Always anticipating his every need, the room was flooded with candlelight. The Hogwarts grounds looked like a sea of black outside the window - it was after sunset. The fire was blazing warmly in the grate. If this were any other room, if he and Kathleen were any other people, it would be the perfect place to cozy up with a good book and a cup of tea on this cold winter night. But as it stood...

"Take a seat," Draco said, waving absently at one of the armchairs near the fire. Kathleen did so, though Draco could feel the tension radiating down their mental link. Looking back, he supposed he should have anticipated this - last night was the first time he had instructed Kathleen to do anything other than passively observe Ginny and report back to him. It only made sense that her resistance would be stronger against a more active command.

He fiddled absent-mindedly with a broken clock before moving to sit down. Channeling his father, he crossed one ankle over the opposite knee, reclining back in his seat.

Best to get this over with.

"You did well last night," he said. "You were a great help - thank you."

Kathleen said nothing, though her eyes weren't as foggy as they had once been. She was definitely here.

"Speak freely," Draco commanded in an irritated voice, waving his hand at her.

"What are you going to do to Ginny?" she asked in a hoarse whisper, her leg bouncing a bit as she spoke.

Draco scoffed. "I'm not going to do anything to her. I need her help. But she's not very likely to help me if I just come out and ask, now is she?"

"Please don't hurt her," Kathleen said, her shaking hands clasped in her lap.

Draco slammed his foot to the ground and leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. "Look at me. I would never hurt her, do you understand? Never. But there's more at play here than you can possibly imagine...the future of our world. I can't leave it to chance."

Kathleen said nothing, though her eyes took on a hard look that reminded him of Ginny. She held her hands tight to stop them from shaking. "Leave me out of this," she said, her voice growing stronger. "I don't want to help you with whatever horrid plans you're making."

"Sorry, not possible," he said, though he knew he didn't sound very sorry at all. "Stand up."

He stood and turned to walk away, only to realize that Kathleen had stayed seated. This was the first outright command she had disobeyed since he had first cast the Imperius on her several weeks ago.

I knew it was wearing off. Shit.

"Fine," he said in a tight voice. He roughly pushed the coffee table out of the way and knelt down so that he was face to face with Kathleen, his hands resting on the armrests, blocking her in. For all her momentary bravado, Kathleen flinched and pulled back into the seat, getting as far away from Draco as possible.

"I tried to be gentle with you, you know," he said. "But maybe that was weakness." He grabbed her chin with his left hand and held her still. Closing his eyes for a moment, he focused all of his willpower toward his wand, toward the spell he was about to cast.

"Imperio."

He could instantly tell the difference in the magic. What had once been a warm trickle down his arm surged like a river of heat, flowing through his wand and into Kathleen's mind. She gasped as her eyes instantly clouded over. There was no little tug of resistance now.

Very good. You're doing so well. Now, listen to me. You will obey any command I give to you to your utmost ability, without protest, without looking for loopholes or trying to cross me. You will not tell Ginny Weasley, or Harry Potter, or anyone else other than myself and Blaise Zabini about your work for me. You want to help me succeed. You want me to fulfill my mission. You don't have to worry about anything - I will protect you, I will take care of you. You want to help me.

He pulled away from Kathleen, who was smiling now. Her eyes cleared, the commands over, and she unclasped her hands.

"Better?" he asked.

"Much better," she said. "Thank you."

Draco winced as he stood up again.

"Don't thank me."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be sor- ugh, never mind. One more thing and then you can go."

Kathleen looked up at him expectantly. Draco couldn't decide if this version of her or the glassy-eyed one was more unnerving.

"Why were you snogging Ernie Macmillan last night?"

Kathleen frowned. "I don't know."

"Did you want to?"

"No."

Now Draco frowned. "I didn't tell you to do it - why did you?"

"I don't know. You told me to stay out of the way, to flirt with a boy."

Draco blanched. "I didn't mean - ugh. My fault for not being more specific, I suppose. Don't do that next time - don't add on to my commands. I will give you more clear instructions, and you're to follow them and only them. Understood?"

"Yes, I understand."

"Ok good. Meet me here again on Wednesday night at 8 o'clock. Act as you normally would until then. Now go back to your dormitory."

"Ok," she said and rose to her feet. "Good night, Draco."

Draco sucked in a breath, surprised to hear her use his first name. "Good night," he whispered.

"You know, I think this is my favorite thing you do," Ginny said as she leaned back in the vanity seat. "My mum was always so rough with my hair. I guess that's to be expected though, after raising six boys. She never got any practice."

Kathleen laughed quietly so as not to disturb the other girls, who were in various stages of falling asleep. The dorm was dark, save for a small candle on the vanity.

"It's nice to be taken care of, isn't it?" she said. "My mum was always doing something or other with my hair - any time she would have a new idea for the salon, she would try it out on me first."

"I bet that was lovely," Ginny said as she closed her eyes.

"Downright scary a couple of times, but mostly lovely, yes," Kathleen said with another laugh. "The week I had green hair was not fun."

Ginny smiled. "I would like to meet your mum. Are you sure she won't come to Hogsmeade just once?"

Kathleen slowed down in her brushing. "No, I've tried asking. But you know her - she wants nothing to do with the wizarding world."

Ginny's smile faded. "Yeah. I can't believe you almost didn't get to come to Hogwarts - we would never have met!"

"I can't even imagine," Kathleen said, heaviness filling her voice. "Missing out on you, this place, everything I've learned... Magic is wonderful. I wish Mum would remember that."

"Surely she still uses magic occasionally?"

"In the salon every once in a while, and Dad's always trying to coax her to use some around the house, but mostly, no." She cleared her throat and started brushing Ginny's hair with a bit more force again. "Enough about my silly parents though - have you decided what you want to do about last night? We didn't really get a chance to talk about it."

Ginny sighed. "No, not really. The jury is still out on if I'm ever speaking to Harry again, so that option is off the table for now. Going to Dumbledore feels...right in some ways but extreme in others? I don't know, I can't tell if I'm overreacting or underreacting or what."

"I still think we should try to get more information," Kathleen said as she put the brush down and started to braid Ginny's hair. "That way you have something more substantial to tell...whoever you tell."

"Yeah, that makes sense," Ginny said. "But information where? Information how?"

"You could always just ask him. He said he would tell you more later. It's technically later."

Ginny snorted. "And have him bite my head off? No thanks. Drunk Malfoy is one thing, but Malfoy out in the daylight is quite another. Besides, he didn't say he would tell me later. He said I guess that will have to wait till the next party, whatever that means," she said, doing a silly imitation of Malfoy's voice. Kathleen laughed.

"Fair, I suppose," Kathleen said. "When's the next party?"

"I don't know, but I'm not going. I'm never drinking again. Hmmmmmm. He said the weapon would be something historic, something proven. Maybe we could try the library?"

"We could," Kathleen said, though she sounded doubtful. "But historic weapon doesn't exactly narrow down the thousands and thousands of books in there. We could be reading for ages, and how would we even know we were on the right track?"

"Hmm," Ginny said again, trailing off into thought. Just as Kathleen was finishing the braid, Ginny gasped and sat upright. "Kathleen, you know what's better than a library? Hermione Granger!"

"Oh!"

"Yes, that's perfect," Ginny said as she stood up. "If anyone will have heard of anything like this, it's Hermione. She's read all the books already, so we don't have to. And she knows Malfoy better than we do, maybe she-"

"Yes, that's a wonderful idea," Kathleen said as she stood up and turned away from Ginny. Her voice sounded...sad? Kathleen moved to get into bed, pulling the comforter back on her four poster.

"Did I say something wrong?" Ginny asked in a small voice. Kathleen wasn't usually very sensitive, but she had been so out of sorts the past couple of days. Maybe she was feeling more emotional than usual.

"No, no, it's nothing," Kathleen said as she crawled into bed. "I just... Harry has Ron and Hermione, you know? They're always off saving the day together. They're practically inseparable. You said yourself you never really felt like you totally fit in with them, at least not all the time. I guess I was just kind of hoping that this time, it could be just...us. That maybe I could help you the way they help Harry. But it's probably silly of me, I shouldn't have said anything-"

"It's not silly," Ginny interrupted. "I didn't know you felt that way. We'll have to tell someone eventually - whether that's Harry or Dumbledore or who knows - but for now...yes, of course it can be just us."

Kathleen smiled at her from bed. "Thanks Ginny. You're a real friend."

Ginny smiled back before blowing out the candle and climbing into her own bed.

"Oh wait, I forgot to ask you - what was up with you and Ernie last night?"

Kathleen laughed. "Oh, you know. Alcohol makes people do funny things sometimes. Nothing to worry about - it won't happen again."