“Pride and dignity would belong to women if only men would leave them alone” – Egyptian Proverb

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Ginny Weasley is a proud girl, when you get right down to it. She believes in herself and doesn’t take shit from anyone.

Except Draco Malfoy, for some reason. And she does not approve of that, but she’s not sure how to fix it, exactly.

You see, in the end, Ginny can’t do it. She lasts all of fifteen minutes before Astoria gives her this adorably crestfallen look and says, “Are you mad at me, Ginny? Did I do something wrong?”

Really, damn her. Because in the end Ginny knows it’s not Astoria’s fault. The girl has a bit of a crush on Malfoy, and it’s not like Ginny ever set a claim or anything. Astoria was just excited to have the older boy’s attention at all, but it’s not as though it’s some big love affair. And most endearing of all, she’s actually refrained from talking about her date despite this, because she knows Ginny and Malfoy don’t get along.

If Ginny didn’t already know that half the time Astoria is consciously using her looks and innocent reputation to manipulate people, she’d call her a saint.

Actually, all things considered, everyone should count themselves lucky that Astoria doesn’t want much – she’s too nice to really manipulate people beyond cutting her some slack (at least that she’s aware of; it never occurs to the girl that the number of Valentines she gets is anything but normal). If she ever did try, she could easily replace Pansy as Queen Bee. Well, perhaps in another year, when she’s fifteen and a bit more mature.

For now she’s too nice, and Ginny can’t help but forgive her. That doesn’t mean that she’s no longer angry, mind you – she most definitely is. But it’s simple enough to relocate most (if not quite all) the animosity to aim directly at Malfoy. When you get right down to it, he is the cause, after all.

Which is why she’s having a problem now.

Draco Malfoy, after their little altercation several days ago, has been almost constantly shooting Ginny glances. This would not bother her most of the time; in fact it would normally make her feel rather flattered. But as it is, these are not appreciative glances so much as they are calculatingly smug, and a very uneasy feeling has begun to rise in her gut.

Professor Trelawney forecasts that she will experience heartbreak today. She also says that Ginny is going to be trampled by a centaur stampede at the tender age of twenty-two, but that’s slightly less relevant at the moment. Especially as Draco Malfoy is walking right at her in the otherwise empty corridor, smirking furiously, and she is on her way to meet Astoria right now. She can see suddenly that Draco doesn’t plan to let her get away and will likely even follow her, and there’s suddenly no avoiding it (as she has managed to do so far with little effort, considering that together they span three different years and schedules).

Something tells Ginny that Draco has planned this.

Especially when he grins and waves a hand at her. “Why hello there, little Weasley. How are you faring lately? Gaining Gryffindor any points?”

Ginny takes a deep breath, raises her head high, and keeps walking. Draco swivels around as she passes him, and continues to walk right next to her, smiling down at her in what actually takes her by surprise. Because the smirk is gone, and he looks genuinely glad to see her.

Ginny is not stupid. She knows that he is up to something. But at the same time, she likes this boy quite a bit, and that has been known to interfere with anyone’s reasoning faculties. Right now her attraction messes with her in the form of slowing her steps slightly, and not quite looking entirely away from her Malfoy-shaped shadow.

But even so, she resolves, nothing he says or does will get to her. She will just keep on walking.

“I just wanted to apologize, Weasley, for the other day.”

Okay, screw walking. She spins on him. “What?”

Draco, the shameless twit, is completely – well, shameless. “I’m saying sorry. For making you angry.”

“Okay, who put bugs in your pumpkin juice this morning? Since when do you ever apologize to me?” Or anyone for that matter, Ginny thought but didn’t say.

Draco’s lips twitch, and Ginny hates him because that half-genuine-half-mocking smile is completely too attractive. “Well, I noticed how down you were looking lately. It only makes sense. I know how much my opinion means to you, and obviously you were upset.”

Disaster suddenly looms in Ginny’s stomach but it’s too late already, and his smirk explodes as he leans in slightly and enunciates clearly: “It won’t do you any good to be jealous, Ginny.”

Red spreads –no, erupts over Ginny, first coloring her cheeks, then her ears and her neck and she must look like a gigantic tomato saying spot on, Draco!

“I was not jealous of Astoria,” she grits out, and she’s just done something wrong because Draco’s eyes flash with triumph.

“Who ever mentioned Astoria?” he says, and Ginny is – lost.

Several moments of silence follow, and Ginny gets the feeling that he is looming over her even though neither of them is in actuality moving. Then she decides to protect her dignity and do absolutely the worst thing she could have then done: she stutters. “I-I didn’t… I’m not, I mean y-you said…”

If Draco’s mouth gets any wider, it will cut his head in half. “It’s alright, little Weasley,” he says consolingly, “you’re not the first to fall victim to my charms. But please, don’t let it destroy your friendship.”

“I- B-but – ”

Draco makes everything worse by leaning in closer and placing a finger over her lips. He takes a quick step closer and twirls a strand of her hair in his fingers, leans his head close and whispers seductively in her ear: “I wouldn’t like to see my girlfriend looking so upset any longer.”

Ginny’s eyes go wide and yes, she knows something isn’t right here but again the attraction takes over and she gasps a little against his finger. “You – you mean you –”

Draco leans even closer, so that he is whispering in her ear, and she can feel his warm breath puffing as he draws out his words. “That’s right. I’m asking… Astoria to be my girlfriend.”

Ginny goes cold.

Draco, laughing, steps back. “I’m fairly certain she’ll accept – in fact I’m on my way to see her right now. But why do you look so shocked, Weasley? Oh!” he gasps in amusement. “Surely you didn’t think it was you?”

Ginny… –stays silent. She stonily stares forward, and after a moment Draco shrugs. “Well, I’ll be on my way, then,” he says, and continues to walk in the direction she had been headed. After a few moments he turns a corner, but it is still a while before Ginny can breathe.

Ginny Weasley is at heart a proud girl. But Draco Malfoy can easily destroy that, and she wants to make sure it never happens again.