“In love, as in gluttony, pleasure is a matter of the utmost precision” – Italo Calvino

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Draco is damn clever.

Really, he ought to have been in Ravenclaw, except for his cunning, self-serving, ambitious approach towards life in general. And the fact that Ravenclaws are all school-obsessed geeks who couldn’t get a date if their wand depended on it. Sort of like Granger actually, except she’s just an unusual Gryffindor.

Honestly, they’re all losers, especially Hufflepuffs (who aren’t really even worth mentioning most of the time). That isn’t the point.

The point is, Draco’s cleverness and other Slytherin attributes are all extremely helpful to him in situations such as these – that is, when he somehow finds himself, against all odds, beaten by a pair of little (or at least, littler than he is) girls, and humiliated in front of the entire school.

Needless to say, Draco did not eat dinner that day.

And while it should also be needless to say that Draco immediately came up with a complicated but foolproof plan for revenge – it isn’t. Because he sort of didn’t do that. No, that first night, he has to admit that he finally succumbed to teenage angst and sulked.

In privacy. No one knew. But it was still humiliating, and had Draco not been too busy sulking, he would have put quite a few people in their place the next morning.

But just because he sulked for a brief time does not mean Draco was defeated. How could he be? He is first and foremost a Malfoy, and Malfoys never lose (especially to Weasleys).

Draco forgot that for one night, perhaps. But he remembers it clearly enough the next morning when Ginny Weasley dares to try to goad him into another fight. In that moment, staring down at the living image of his defeat, Draco’s cleverness and determination come to his rescue.

It happens a bit like this: oh, he thinks, pictures. How lovely. I expect I’m supposed to say something now? I really don’t see that it’s worth it.

Then, as he turns to look at the face of the girl who somehow beat him, Draco’s lethargy is hit by his brilliance, and from that emerges a rather mature conclusion: If he just stays quiet for a little longer, he can turn this into a game of endurance. Ginny is clearly not done with him (which is rather heartening actually) if she is still trying to provoke him. In fact, she’s technically kicking him when he’s down, which clearly speaks of a lingering romantic attachment. And while Draco admires her spirit, he also is aware of her character faults. Among these is patience.

Rather, a conspicuous lack of patience.

In the short moments that he stands staring at his gleeful tormentor, Draco’s (next-to-) top-of-the-class mind runs speedily through this, then churns out the following: then it’s simple. I’ll just ignore the Weasley until she can’t stay away. And then – then I will end it all. She will think that she is being forgiving and letting me off easily, when in reality I will be the one playing her.

A true Slytherin doesn’t need to advertise himself to the world. It is highly satisfying to do so, yes, but not strictly necessary. And in this situation, not revealing his plan will win Draco the frustrating girl with the added bonus of being able to feel smugger than she whenever she gloats about being magnanimous and forgiving the sulking boy. The cost is minor – a few days of slouching, perhaps. And his revenge on that gormless Creevey will have to wait for a bit. It’s certainly not much to pay for what he will get in return.

Draco is superbly clever, you see, so he comes up with this all in one instant as he stares at Ginny, then puts it in action the next. He hands it over, resists the strong urge to say something biting, and then –just walks away.

He can already tell it’s killing her, and it takes more effort than expected not to smirk.

Honestly. As if Draco Malfoy would ever mope about for three days without an ulterior motive. People really should know better.

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To be honest, despite knowing that this method would not only allow him to win in several ways and yet not perpetuate the petty feud between him and the little Weasel (see, that’s that mature bit, there) Draco has been tempted more than once to just forget his plan, specifically when he has spied the two conspirators against him conspiring again, or noticed Ginny being particularly pleased with herself.

Still, once committed to this course it would only be foolish to break from it, so Draco waits.

In the end, it only takes three and a half days; Draco expected a bit longer. He also didn’t expect Ginny to come barreling down the hall at him and to leap into his arms when it happened, which is not to say that he doesn’t enjoy it (which itself is not to say that he makes any inappropriate feels or grabs, tempting as the thought may be; it would instantly lose him any advantage the past three days have gained him).

To be fair, it seems like Ginny didn’t expect to fall on him either, if her expression is anything to go by. Her startled exhalation of a greeting is the confirmation Draco doesn’t really need: “Oh,” she says suddenly. “Hi.”

It is perhaps impossible to put into words just how much Draco wants to smirk and say, “Miss me, Weasley?”

But these things require precision, and if Draco gorges himself on Ginny’s delectable appetizers now, he will never get to taste the main course, let alone dessert. And that just won’t do. Draco intends to acquire as much of her as he can, and if it requires some restraint in the short term, so be it.

This being so, he lets go of her and tilts his head down slightly. Now to strike just the right balance of insolent and despondent… “Watch where you’re walking,” he mutters, and moves to keep on walking –

–And a hand on his arm stops him. Draco’s lips twitch, a minuscule motion. Weasleys, even the female ones, are really just too easy.

“Wait!” she blurts. Draco sighs, calculating exactly the amount of breath exiting his lips and at what velocity – too much or too fast and it will sound forced, aggravated. Too slow and it will just frustrate her. This really must be precise, every bit of this exchange.

Just enough, and he sounds weary and perhaps a teeny bit irritated. “What is it, Weasley?” Draco turns around to – not snap. Ask.

Now that she has him, she looks uncertain, biting her lip (Draco’s eyes flicker to follow the motion of their own accord, but that’s alright; if she believes him madly attracted to her as well, it will only increase her misdirected pity). For a few moments, they stand in suspenseful silence, and then she finally blurts out, “You’re a git!”

Draco’s gape is not feigned.

“I – I’m a git?” he asks. “After what you did to me, you have the nerve to say I’m a git?”

“You dated my friend just to mess with me!”

“At least I didn’t bloody make your private life the whole school’s business!” Although to be fair, everyone is obsessed with his private life anyway. How could they not be? – Draco does not mention this, however, in favour of ranting on. “Everyone in this entire castle is laughing at me, Weasley!”

Somehow, Draco has lost control, and his hard three days’ effort is going to be for naught, unless he can somehow recover. He is aware of this, but at the same time Ginny is standing here insulting him. That is not what is supposed to happen.

She snorts. “You deserved it, you arse.”

Draco is infuriated, he is about to yell – and then he notices the edge of doubt in her voice. She is, if only a bit, guilty. She feels sorry for him, can’t believe that she hurt him badly enough to affect him so much and – Draco sees it suddenly – wants to make him normal again. She is defensive (which in this girl’s case means offensive from the get-go, a trait they have in common) because of this crushing guilt.

Those bloody wonderful Gryffindors –

“Forget it!” Draco snaps. “Just – just forget it, Weasley. I don’t care what you think I did or did not deserve, alright?” He leans in close, feels her breath on his face (and notices when it speeds up). “I am through. I don’t bloody care anymore, okay? Just leave me the hell alone.”

And just like that, Draco spins on his heel and walks away.

He is a bit hesitant about this approach. It’s rather all-or-nothing, and he would prefer something surer. But even though such a statement would crush most girls, most girls also would not have been able to provoke such a statement in the first place, and Draco has confidence in Ginny. She will refuse to lose. Or at least, she will think she’s refusing to lose, since in this case all her efforts to win only give Draco more and more room at the top.

She will follow him, and the moment she does, this will be over. Draco knows this, is sure of it, and his utter faith in Ginny Weasley is the only reason he keeps walking without a single hesitation.

Sure enough, her stubbornness does not disappoint, though she still manages to put an unexpected spin on things. This is what Draco likes about this girl.

Well, that and the way some of her plot twists turn out. Such as this one: Draco doesn’t usually enjoy being shoved places, but when it is a littlest Weasley racing up to push him with both hands into a supply closet, bolting in behind him, and slamming the door on them both – he is willing to make an exception.

“You are a git,” she insists from somewhere generally in front of him but too dark to pinpoint, and then she kisses him.

Bon appétit.