Pansy Parkinson stepped out into the cool night air and took a deep, settling breath. It was a particularly pleasant evening as far as weather was concerned, especially for it being the first weekend in March. Stars were scattered across the vast clear sky, teaming up with a nearly full moon to cast a light glow across the grounds full of foliage beginning to wake from the winter months. While Pansy did enjoy the beautiful ambiance that surrounded her, what she most appreciated was that it was quiet.

Due to Gryffindor's razor-thin loss to Hufflepuff earlier in the day, which was very obviously due to the suspension of Harry Potter and the Weasley twins from the Gryffindor side after Draco provoked them after they beat Slytherin in the first match of the year, though, most of her housemates appeared to be ignoring that fact, the Slytherin common room had been nothing short of raucous all day long, and Pansy was very much over it. Slytherin hadn't even played in the match, yet nearly their entire house was celebrating as if they had defeated Gryffindor themselves, and her patience officially hit its limit when Crabbe accidently sloshed a mug of Firewhisky on her while shouting about how shit Weasley had been at defending the goalposts today. She'd cleaned herself up quickly enough, but wasn't about to stay around to see just how sloppy her fellow Slytherins intended to get this evening. Besides, it was nearly 9 o'clock, and she had somewhere to be.

Pansy passed the greenhouses one by one, both enjoying and wrinkling her nose at the various scents that wafted through the cracked windows, as she headed towards the Quidditch stadium. Barely anyone knew this about her, but Pansy actually loved Quidditch. She appreciated the finesse and tactical prowess it required, and was an avid, albeit secretive, Holyhead Harpies fan. She would have loved at least an opportunity to try out for the Slytherin Quidditch team over the past years, but she knew better than to attempt that. The Slytherin team had only ever rostered male students, and that wasn't going to change anytime soon. Besides, she could only imagine how Draco and the others would react to her, Pansy Parkinson, head snob of Slytherin house, trying out for the Quidditch team. She had no regrets about how femininely she presented herself, but she did resent the way it made people treat her. She was far more than just her immaculate looks, but that was all anyone ever saw in her. Well, just about anyone.

The steps of the wooden staircase leading into the stadium creaked as she climbed higher and higher until she was at the top of the stands centered on the circle of the pitch. She once again stepped out into the crisp night air, and found a mess of long, red hair a few rows below her. As Pansy settled into the seat beside her, Ginny Weasley didn't move. Her brow was furrowed, her eyes firmly glued to the exact location of the pitch where she'd caught the Snitch just a handful of hours prior, ending the game in a 240-230 loss for Gryffindor.

"You had no choice," Pansy said both softly and firmly. "Your brother was drowning. It would've gotten so much worse had you not ended the game there."

"I know…" Ginny muttered. "I know…"

Ginny shifted in her seat, resting her head on Pansy's shoulder. Pansy inhaled slowly, taking in the light flowery scent of the girl's shampoo. After quickly scanning the stadium to ensure they were indeed alone, Pansy wrapped an arm around the younger girl and planted a gentle, reassuring kiss on her temple.

"You, however, were incredible," Pansy spoke into Ginny's hair. "I know our section was absolutely vile in what they were shouting at you and your team, but I'm not sure I've ever heard Draco and his band of ingrates so quiet the moment you out-maneuvered Summerby to catch the Snitch. No one could come up with a single critique, you were that good Ginny."

Pansy felt Ginny shrug, and then heard her sigh.

"We would've won if Harry, Fred, and George had played…"

"I know… But sometimes it's not all about winning… You took a huge first step in your Quidditch career today. You had a fantastic showing in your first start with Gryffindor, and I'm sure that it's just the beginning of what you'll do in the future with Gryffindor and beyond."

Ginny adjusted to look up at Pansy, her bright brown eyes looking up into Pansy's light green eyes.

"You really think so? I mean, you'd know more than most. I swear, I thought I was the most Quidditch-obsessed girl at Hogwarts until I found out your dirty little secret…" Ginny smiled up at her with the mischievous little crooked grin she knew Pansy couldn't resist.

Pansy raised a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. "I thought snogging you was my dirty little secret?"

Ginny's grin grew. "Well, that too…" she said as she leaned up to plant a kiss on Pansy's lips. As Pansy sunk into the familiarity of Ginny's lips on hers, she couldn't help but smile just a little, as she allowed herself to relax into the one person she'd ever felt safe enough to completely be herself with.