Disclaimer: J. K. Rowling owns all things Harry Potter.
*****************
Coming Home
Chapter 13: Crisis
Ginny quickly pulled a small mirror from her pocket and said, "Evan? Evan, what is it?"
Evan sounded panicky. "There's someone trying to get into the flat. He knocked first, and he was scary looking so I didn't open the door. He pulled out a wand and has been muttering things I don't understand. I think he is trying to get in."
Ginny took a deep breath and tried to keep her voice steady. "Evan, you did well not letting him in. Stay calm, hide in the broom closet or something, and I will be there as soon as possible." She turned terrified eyes to Draco. "He's there, trying to get in... Evan..."
Draco pulled Ginny out of the coffeehouse and into the alley, talking quickly as they went. "Ginny, listen to me. I want you to Apparate into your flat. Take Evan and Floo out, then contact your brother Ron or anyone you can reach at the Ministry. I will try to keep Flint busy until the Aurors can get there. Do you understand?"
She looked at him blankly for a moment, then nodded. "I understand. Get Evan out. But... But do try to be careful, Draco."
"Don't worry about me. Just go take care of Evan."
Ginny arrived in the entryway of her flat. She could hear the man she presumed to be Flint muttering from the other side of the door. What was he doing? How had he escaped? Did he have a wand? How did he get it? Why had he come here? She heard a pop and a gasp of surprise, indicating that Draco had arrived. Ginny snapped out of her stupor and remembered the plan. She ran for the broom closet and quickly pulled Evan to the fireplace. "Go to the Burrow. If I'm not right behind you, tell Mum to get Ron here as soon as possible."
Evan nodded and tossed a handful of Floo powder onto the fire. He was about to step in, but the flames didn't turn green. He tried again with the same results. "Mom! It isn't working!" Ginny could see the beginnings of terror in his eyes.
"He must have disabled it somehow!" At that moment, she heard a yelp of pain from outside the door. She couldn't tell if Draco or Flint had made the noise, but she couldn't afford to waste more time. She grabbed a scrap of parchment and scribbled, Ron--Flint is here--Ginny. She sent the note off with her owl, admonishing her, "Fly as fast as you ever have!"
She hugged Evan tightly. "Go back to the closet and stay there until I or someone you know comes for you. If someone else comes, do whatever you can to protect yourself." Ginny's tone brooked no argument and Evan disappeared immediately.
Ginny made her way to the front door, wand drawn, trying to hear what was going on outside. She didn't dare leave Evan alone in the flat, but she needed to know the situation. Would she have to save Evan the same way Harry's mother had saved him? Draco and Flint seemed to be arguing and she could hear what they were saying.
"...defending Potter's brat?" Flint's voice was deep and hoarse from disuse. "But I guess you have always had your priorities wrong."
"I had my priorities wrong? I'm not the one who just spent ten years in Azkaban for serving a half-blood loser, though, am I?" Draco was trying to keep his voice light and amused, but Ginny could hear the strain, even through the door.
"At least I'm not a bloody traitor!"
"I never betrayed anyone, Flint. I never declared my allegiance in the war. Which really turned out to be a stroke of brilliance, wouldn't you say?"
"Ah, yes, Malfoy, you always did look out for yourself first."
"And you didn't? That is the Slytherin way, after all."
"Which of course brings us to the question of why you are here right now, if you have no allegiances."
"This isn't about allegiances, Flint. This is personal."
There was some shuffling, a shout of "Stupefy!" a thud, and a pop, all in close succession. Ginny was about to Apparate out to help Draco when she heard Ron's voice.
"Malfoy?"
"Weasley." Draco sounded out of breath. "He's just unconscious. You should probably bind him before we talk." When she heard this, Ginny threw open the door, and flung herself at Draco.
"Draco! Are you all right? Did he hurt you? Oh, Ron, thank Merlin you made it in time!" As Ron tended to Flint, Ginny shepherded Draco into the kitchen and helped him into a chair. She then went to the closet to retrieve and reassure a shaking Evan, and seated him next to Draco. And then she did what came naturally following any crisis. She made tea. She was Molly Weasley's daughter, after all.
One of Ron's fellow Aurors arrived to bear Flint's immobilized body away. Once he was gone, Ron entered the kitchen, a questioning look on his face. Ginny told him everything that had happened. Meanwhile, Evan and Draco sipped their tea quietly.
Ron eyed Draco suspiciously, clearly wondering why the Slytherin had gotten involved. He seemed to be particularly interested in how Evan had contacted Ginny. She had mentioned that Flint had disabled the ward that was supposed to alert her to any trouble. Realizing that she had never told anyone except Evan about Draco's birthday gift, she showed Ron the mirrors and explained how they worked.
"I've never seen these before, but I've heard of them. Harry..."
"Yes," Ginny said, "they're like the ones Harry and Sirius had."
"They aren't easy to find," Ron said, looking at Draco speculatively. Draco just sipped his tea, impassive as ever. "So, Malfoy, why would you go to the trouble to get them for my sister?"
"I thought she might appreciate an easy way to be in contact with Evan, in case something like this happened. Though I tried to avoid letting her realize that it might," Draco answered, looking Ron steadily in the eyes.
"You thought something like this might happen?"
"Of course I did! They are clear targets. And it was only a matter of time before a Death Eater escaped, now that the Dementors are gone from Azkaban. Surely a fine Auror like yourself must have realized that."
Ron started to turn red, but he made an effort to control his temper. "And today?" he asked stiffly. "Why did you take Flint on today?"
"To give Ginny and Evan a chance to get out safely."
"But Flint was a Death Eater. He had more than a few tricks up his sleeve."
"Of course he did, and I knew most of them."
"You...?!"
"It's not like that, Weasley," Draco said, rolling his eyes. "You know I was never a Death Eater. But it wasn't for lack of effort on my father's part."
"But then, why? You could have been..." he paused, looking at Ginny briefly, then back at Draco, "hurt."
"Yes."
"But why would you risk that?"
"Merlin's beard! I already told you that. To give Ginny and Evan a chance to get out safely. And now, if you are done interrogating me, I would like to go home and rest." He stood up. So did Ron. Ginny started moving to block any hexes he might throw Draco's way, but this was apparently unnecessary.
Ron took a deep breath and held his hand out towards Draco. "Thank you, Malfoy."
After a moment, Draco reached out and shook Ron's hand. Ginny thought she might see the beginnings of respect in both of their eyes. Then they let go abruptly, and looked away from each other.
Draco hugged Ginny briefly. He said, "If there is anything I can do to help, let me know."
Ginny smiled at Draco, and whispered, "Thank you."
"You're welcome," Draco said, squeezing her tighter, then kissing her forehead. He went over to Evan and crouched down so they were eye to eye.
"Evan," he said solemnly. "Your mother has had a big shock. Take care of her, okay?" Evan nodded wordlessly, but he stopped shaking and sat taller in his chair. "Good. I know she's in good hands, then," Draco said, smiling approvingly at the boy.
Then he was gone.
***
The next morning, Ginny woke to Remus shaking her gently. "What is it?" she snapped.
"Good morning to you, too," he said wryly.
"Is it really?"
"Well, that depends on your point of view. Would you like to see what the Daily Prophet has to say about you today?"
"Argh!" she said. "They promised they wouldn't report on me!"
"Well, technically the article is about Marcus Flint, so I don't think you can hold them to that agreement."
"Oh, wonderful, just what I needed, a loophole!"
"So I take it you would rather not read the article?"
"Ooh! I knew there was a reason Dumbledore hired you that year! You're not entirely stupid!" Ginny's frustration had brought out her sarcastic side.
"Ginny, that was uncalled for," Remus admonished.
"You're right, I'm sorry. I just hate waking up to find that I am the talk of the town."
"Well, actually, Draco is really the talk of the town."
"Oh really?"
"Yes, indeed. Apparently the Prophet is reevaluating his past actions in light of his heroics yesterday."
"At least something good has come of all this."
"Well, yes. But you might want to know the full story before you say that. They won't come out and say anything directly, but they have written the article in such a way that anyone who reads it will wonder why he would do such a thing on your behalf. So you will have to be careful when you are in public together."
"We never are in public together, at least not in the wizarding world, so I guess we have nothing to worry about."
"I see," Remus said doubtfully.
"And on the plus side, after yesterday, Ron seems to be coming around," Ginny added.
"Oh! That is good news!"
***
That morning, Draco seemed to have trouble looking Ginny in the eye. She had to wave her hand in his face to get his attention. Once she had it, she wasn't sure how to begin. She decided on a straightforward approach.
"Thank you," she said, quietly.
"For what?" he asked, sounding bitter. "Now that I've gone all Gryffindor on you, you can think of me as worthy like Potter? Am I your new hero now?"
"Hero? I'm not sure I'd go that far," Ginny said, smiling a little at his discomfort, "but you did help, more than I can say."
"Hmph."
"I am grateful that you held Flint off, but..."
He looked up at her then. "But what?"
"But I am also grateful for how you were able to keep calm, and keep me calm. And most of all... Most of all, I am grateful for the mirrors."
He looked at her uncertainly, but she was no longer willing to meet his eye.
"It never occurred to me that the alert ward would be the first one an adversary would remove. But you knew. Somehow you knew that we would need to communicate at some point. And you made the effort to find the mirrors." When he looked like he was going to say something, she cut him off. "And don't argue with that because Ron told me all about how rare they are and that the Auror Corps is always trying to get their hands on some!"
He looked away. "I have my sources."
"Draco, thank you," she said softly. "Thank you for thinking of these things, and for acting on it. It was heroic, but in a very Slytherin way."
He smiled a little at that. "I... I could do nothing less."
"Thank you nevertheless."
After several minutes of silence, Draco asked awkwardly, "Did you see the Prophet this morning?"
"No. I managed to avoid it, despite Remus's best attempts to make me look at it."
"Did he tell you what it said? And what it implied?"
"More or less."
"What do you think we should do about it?"
Ginny felt as if she were under a great weight. She saw the hope in his eyes, but couldn't--or maybe wouldn't--deal with it. There would be too many questions she really didn't want to consider if she did.
"I don't know..." she said, standing up and discarding her coffee cup. "I honestly don't know." And with that, she left Draco and the coffee house behind.
***
The next morning, Remus woke Ginny yet again.
"I am beginning to regret allowing you to be able to Apparate into my flat," she groaned.
"But how else would you learn about all the important news?" he asked with mock innocence. "After all, you do refuse to subscribe to the wizarding press."
"I suppose you are the reason I can avoid the Prophet. I know you'll let me know anything necessary."
"Well, I am elated to be your excuse to avoid the press, but today's breaking news didn't actually appear in the Prophet. Apparently they are sufficiently terrified of your publicist."
"Then why are you here?"
"Today's article," Remus said with false brightness, "is in the Owl Post."
"The what?!"
"The Owl Post."
"Then how do you know about it? I didn't think you read tabloids. The Owl Post is even worse than the Quibbler!"
Remus was silent and Ginny stared at him incredulously. Then she laughed. "Oh Remus, I'm sorry! I didn't realize that you had a taste for gossip rags!"
"Would you believe that I developed the taste since you returned to the wizarding world?"
She looked at him carefully, noting his perfectly angelic expression. "No way!"
"Oh well, I guess you've discovered my weakness then. And I would have you know that they do have the best crossword puzzles. But even so, you should be grateful. Otherwise you might not know about this story in time."
"In time for what? And what is it that I should be so concerned about?"
"In time to spin the story in whatever way you wish, of course. And I do not know if it is really a matter for concern, but you and your stubborn mind will probably think so..."
"Come on, Remus, just tell me," she whined.
He held out a copy of the tabloid, folded so all she could see was a photograph of she and Draco having coffee together, engaged in a close conversation. They were gazing affectionately at each other, but there was nothing that made her too worried. She looked at Remus questioningly.
"They are purporting that you and Draco are in a romantic relationship."
"Where did they ever get that idea?"
"Well, the Prophet never said so yesterday, they know better to go against your agreement unless someone else reports first, but they did hint strongly at it. And I am sure that once they got that photograph, the Post jumped to conclusions."
"Well, we'll just have to deny it!" she said, indignantly.
Remus grinned at Ginny in a way that made her very uncomfortable. "Do you honestly believe that anyone who has seen the two of you together, much less that photograph, would believe that you don't have a romantic relationship?"
"Why not?" Ginny asked, genuinely confused.
"You really have no idea, do you? The way the two of you look at each other..." Remus said. At Ginny's look he said, "Do you mean to tell me that you still have not admitted you have feelings for him? Not even to yourself?"
"What?! What feelings?" Ginny asked in a panic.
"Oh dear!" he said, clearly exasperated. "Well, as your friend, I suggest you search your heart honestly. But do it quickly, because the press is not going to give you a break on this. You need to make a decision about Draco, one way or the other."
Remus looked at her intently, then shook his head ruefully before Disapparating. He left Ginny with her mouth open in shock. When she was sure he was gone, her mind turned to the question he had posed. What did she really feel about Draco?
*****************
Coming Home
Chapter 13: Crisis
Ginny quickly pulled a small mirror from her pocket and said, "Evan? Evan, what is it?"
Evan sounded panicky. "There's someone trying to get into the flat. He knocked first, and he was scary looking so I didn't open the door. He pulled out a wand and has been muttering things I don't understand. I think he is trying to get in."
Ginny took a deep breath and tried to keep her voice steady. "Evan, you did well not letting him in. Stay calm, hide in the broom closet or something, and I will be there as soon as possible." She turned terrified eyes to Draco. "He's there, trying to get in... Evan..."
Draco pulled Ginny out of the coffeehouse and into the alley, talking quickly as they went. "Ginny, listen to me. I want you to Apparate into your flat. Take Evan and Floo out, then contact your brother Ron or anyone you can reach at the Ministry. I will try to keep Flint busy until the Aurors can get there. Do you understand?"
She looked at him blankly for a moment, then nodded. "I understand. Get Evan out. But... But do try to be careful, Draco."
"Don't worry about me. Just go take care of Evan."
Ginny arrived in the entryway of her flat. She could hear the man she presumed to be Flint muttering from the other side of the door. What was he doing? How had he escaped? Did he have a wand? How did he get it? Why had he come here? She heard a pop and a gasp of surprise, indicating that Draco had arrived. Ginny snapped out of her stupor and remembered the plan. She ran for the broom closet and quickly pulled Evan to the fireplace. "Go to the Burrow. If I'm not right behind you, tell Mum to get Ron here as soon as possible."
Evan nodded and tossed a handful of Floo powder onto the fire. He was about to step in, but the flames didn't turn green. He tried again with the same results. "Mom! It isn't working!" Ginny could see the beginnings of terror in his eyes.
"He must have disabled it somehow!" At that moment, she heard a yelp of pain from outside the door. She couldn't tell if Draco or Flint had made the noise, but she couldn't afford to waste more time. She grabbed a scrap of parchment and scribbled, Ron--Flint is here--Ginny. She sent the note off with her owl, admonishing her, "Fly as fast as you ever have!"
She hugged Evan tightly. "Go back to the closet and stay there until I or someone you know comes for you. If someone else comes, do whatever you can to protect yourself." Ginny's tone brooked no argument and Evan disappeared immediately.
Ginny made her way to the front door, wand drawn, trying to hear what was going on outside. She didn't dare leave Evan alone in the flat, but she needed to know the situation. Would she have to save Evan the same way Harry's mother had saved him? Draco and Flint seemed to be arguing and she could hear what they were saying.
"...defending Potter's brat?" Flint's voice was deep and hoarse from disuse. "But I guess you have always had your priorities wrong."
"I had my priorities wrong? I'm not the one who just spent ten years in Azkaban for serving a half-blood loser, though, am I?" Draco was trying to keep his voice light and amused, but Ginny could hear the strain, even through the door.
"At least I'm not a bloody traitor!"
"I never betrayed anyone, Flint. I never declared my allegiance in the war. Which really turned out to be a stroke of brilliance, wouldn't you say?"
"Ah, yes, Malfoy, you always did look out for yourself first."
"And you didn't? That is the Slytherin way, after all."
"Which of course brings us to the question of why you are here right now, if you have no allegiances."
"This isn't about allegiances, Flint. This is personal."
There was some shuffling, a shout of "Stupefy!" a thud, and a pop, all in close succession. Ginny was about to Apparate out to help Draco when she heard Ron's voice.
"Malfoy?"
"Weasley." Draco sounded out of breath. "He's just unconscious. You should probably bind him before we talk." When she heard this, Ginny threw open the door, and flung herself at Draco.
"Draco! Are you all right? Did he hurt you? Oh, Ron, thank Merlin you made it in time!" As Ron tended to Flint, Ginny shepherded Draco into the kitchen and helped him into a chair. She then went to the closet to retrieve and reassure a shaking Evan, and seated him next to Draco. And then she did what came naturally following any crisis. She made tea. She was Molly Weasley's daughter, after all.
One of Ron's fellow Aurors arrived to bear Flint's immobilized body away. Once he was gone, Ron entered the kitchen, a questioning look on his face. Ginny told him everything that had happened. Meanwhile, Evan and Draco sipped their tea quietly.
Ron eyed Draco suspiciously, clearly wondering why the Slytherin had gotten involved. He seemed to be particularly interested in how Evan had contacted Ginny. She had mentioned that Flint had disabled the ward that was supposed to alert her to any trouble. Realizing that she had never told anyone except Evan about Draco's birthday gift, she showed Ron the mirrors and explained how they worked.
"I've never seen these before, but I've heard of them. Harry..."
"Yes," Ginny said, "they're like the ones Harry and Sirius had."
"They aren't easy to find," Ron said, looking at Draco speculatively. Draco just sipped his tea, impassive as ever. "So, Malfoy, why would you go to the trouble to get them for my sister?"
"I thought she might appreciate an easy way to be in contact with Evan, in case something like this happened. Though I tried to avoid letting her realize that it might," Draco answered, looking Ron steadily in the eyes.
"You thought something like this might happen?"
"Of course I did! They are clear targets. And it was only a matter of time before a Death Eater escaped, now that the Dementors are gone from Azkaban. Surely a fine Auror like yourself must have realized that."
Ron started to turn red, but he made an effort to control his temper. "And today?" he asked stiffly. "Why did you take Flint on today?"
"To give Ginny and Evan a chance to get out safely."
"But Flint was a Death Eater. He had more than a few tricks up his sleeve."
"Of course he did, and I knew most of them."
"You...?!"
"It's not like that, Weasley," Draco said, rolling his eyes. "You know I was never a Death Eater. But it wasn't for lack of effort on my father's part."
"But then, why? You could have been..." he paused, looking at Ginny briefly, then back at Draco, "hurt."
"Yes."
"But why would you risk that?"
"Merlin's beard! I already told you that. To give Ginny and Evan a chance to get out safely. And now, if you are done interrogating me, I would like to go home and rest." He stood up. So did Ron. Ginny started moving to block any hexes he might throw Draco's way, but this was apparently unnecessary.
Ron took a deep breath and held his hand out towards Draco. "Thank you, Malfoy."
After a moment, Draco reached out and shook Ron's hand. Ginny thought she might see the beginnings of respect in both of their eyes. Then they let go abruptly, and looked away from each other.
Draco hugged Ginny briefly. He said, "If there is anything I can do to help, let me know."
Ginny smiled at Draco, and whispered, "Thank you."
"You're welcome," Draco said, squeezing her tighter, then kissing her forehead. He went over to Evan and crouched down so they were eye to eye.
"Evan," he said solemnly. "Your mother has had a big shock. Take care of her, okay?" Evan nodded wordlessly, but he stopped shaking and sat taller in his chair. "Good. I know she's in good hands, then," Draco said, smiling approvingly at the boy.
Then he was gone.
***
The next morning, Ginny woke to Remus shaking her gently. "What is it?" she snapped.
"Good morning to you, too," he said wryly.
"Is it really?"
"Well, that depends on your point of view. Would you like to see what the Daily Prophet has to say about you today?"
"Argh!" she said. "They promised they wouldn't report on me!"
"Well, technically the article is about Marcus Flint, so I don't think you can hold them to that agreement."
"Oh, wonderful, just what I needed, a loophole!"
"So I take it you would rather not read the article?"
"Ooh! I knew there was a reason Dumbledore hired you that year! You're not entirely stupid!" Ginny's frustration had brought out her sarcastic side.
"Ginny, that was uncalled for," Remus admonished.
"You're right, I'm sorry. I just hate waking up to find that I am the talk of the town."
"Well, actually, Draco is really the talk of the town."
"Oh really?"
"Yes, indeed. Apparently the Prophet is reevaluating his past actions in light of his heroics yesterday."
"At least something good has come of all this."
"Well, yes. But you might want to know the full story before you say that. They won't come out and say anything directly, but they have written the article in such a way that anyone who reads it will wonder why he would do such a thing on your behalf. So you will have to be careful when you are in public together."
"We never are in public together, at least not in the wizarding world, so I guess we have nothing to worry about."
"I see," Remus said doubtfully.
"And on the plus side, after yesterday, Ron seems to be coming around," Ginny added.
"Oh! That is good news!"
***
That morning, Draco seemed to have trouble looking Ginny in the eye. She had to wave her hand in his face to get his attention. Once she had it, she wasn't sure how to begin. She decided on a straightforward approach.
"Thank you," she said, quietly.
"For what?" he asked, sounding bitter. "Now that I've gone all Gryffindor on you, you can think of me as worthy like Potter? Am I your new hero now?"
"Hero? I'm not sure I'd go that far," Ginny said, smiling a little at his discomfort, "but you did help, more than I can say."
"Hmph."
"I am grateful that you held Flint off, but..."
He looked up at her then. "But what?"
"But I am also grateful for how you were able to keep calm, and keep me calm. And most of all... Most of all, I am grateful for the mirrors."
He looked at her uncertainly, but she was no longer willing to meet his eye.
"It never occurred to me that the alert ward would be the first one an adversary would remove. But you knew. Somehow you knew that we would need to communicate at some point. And you made the effort to find the mirrors." When he looked like he was going to say something, she cut him off. "And don't argue with that because Ron told me all about how rare they are and that the Auror Corps is always trying to get their hands on some!"
He looked away. "I have my sources."
"Draco, thank you," she said softly. "Thank you for thinking of these things, and for acting on it. It was heroic, but in a very Slytherin way."
He smiled a little at that. "I... I could do nothing less."
"Thank you nevertheless."
After several minutes of silence, Draco asked awkwardly, "Did you see the Prophet this morning?"
"No. I managed to avoid it, despite Remus's best attempts to make me look at it."
"Did he tell you what it said? And what it implied?"
"More or less."
"What do you think we should do about it?"
Ginny felt as if she were under a great weight. She saw the hope in his eyes, but couldn't--or maybe wouldn't--deal with it. There would be too many questions she really didn't want to consider if she did.
"I don't know..." she said, standing up and discarding her coffee cup. "I honestly don't know." And with that, she left Draco and the coffee house behind.
***
The next morning, Remus woke Ginny yet again.
"I am beginning to regret allowing you to be able to Apparate into my flat," she groaned.
"But how else would you learn about all the important news?" he asked with mock innocence. "After all, you do refuse to subscribe to the wizarding press."
"I suppose you are the reason I can avoid the Prophet. I know you'll let me know anything necessary."
"Well, I am elated to be your excuse to avoid the press, but today's breaking news didn't actually appear in the Prophet. Apparently they are sufficiently terrified of your publicist."
"Then why are you here?"
"Today's article," Remus said with false brightness, "is in the Owl Post."
"The what?!"
"The Owl Post."
"Then how do you know about it? I didn't think you read tabloids. The Owl Post is even worse than the Quibbler!"
Remus was silent and Ginny stared at him incredulously. Then she laughed. "Oh Remus, I'm sorry! I didn't realize that you had a taste for gossip rags!"
"Would you believe that I developed the taste since you returned to the wizarding world?"
She looked at him carefully, noting his perfectly angelic expression. "No way!"
"Oh well, I guess you've discovered my weakness then. And I would have you know that they do have the best crossword puzzles. But even so, you should be grateful. Otherwise you might not know about this story in time."
"In time for what? And what is it that I should be so concerned about?"
"In time to spin the story in whatever way you wish, of course. And I do not know if it is really a matter for concern, but you and your stubborn mind will probably think so..."
"Come on, Remus, just tell me," she whined.
He held out a copy of the tabloid, folded so all she could see was a photograph of she and Draco having coffee together, engaged in a close conversation. They were gazing affectionately at each other, but there was nothing that made her too worried. She looked at Remus questioningly.
"They are purporting that you and Draco are in a romantic relationship."
"Where did they ever get that idea?"
"Well, the Prophet never said so yesterday, they know better to go against your agreement unless someone else reports first, but they did hint strongly at it. And I am sure that once they got that photograph, the Post jumped to conclusions."
"Well, we'll just have to deny it!" she said, indignantly.
Remus grinned at Ginny in a way that made her very uncomfortable. "Do you honestly believe that anyone who has seen the two of you together, much less that photograph, would believe that you don't have a romantic relationship?"
"Why not?" Ginny asked, genuinely confused.
"You really have no idea, do you? The way the two of you look at each other..." Remus said. At Ginny's look he said, "Do you mean to tell me that you still have not admitted you have feelings for him? Not even to yourself?"
"What?! What feelings?" Ginny asked in a panic.
"Oh dear!" he said, clearly exasperated. "Well, as your friend, I suggest you search your heart honestly. But do it quickly, because the press is not going to give you a break on this. You need to make a decision about Draco, one way or the other."
Remus looked at her intently, then shook his head ruefully before Disapparating. He left Ginny with her mouth open in shock. When she was sure he was gone, her mind turned to the question he had posed. What did she really feel about Draco?
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