Ginny stood in the dungeons, staring at the entrance to the Slytherin common room, realizing that she hadn’t thought this through properly. She didn’t have a clue what the password was, and the last Slytherin she had asked, politely, to help had told her had told her to get stuffed and had emphasized his comment with his middle finger. Ginny had not asked politely again. Instead, she had threatened a first-year, but apparently first-year Slytherins were made of tougher stuff than the first years in the rest of the school. He had sneered and closed the portal behind him with a deafening bang. The little twerp.
Ginny then decided that something sneaky was in order. However, being a Gryffindor, she was still pondering what exactly that sneaky thing would consist of when Blaise Zabini stuck his head out of the portal. The head was quickly followed by the rest of his lanky body. He paused delicately when he saw Ginny.
‘Let me guess. You’re looking for Draco,’ he said with a faint sneer.
‘Um, yes. I need to return his book.’
‘I knew I was right,’ muttered Blaise to himself. ‘His book? Why would you have Draco’s book? Unless you were studying together,’ Blaise mused aloud. ‘And you know what they say about study buddies, don’t ‘cha, Weasley?’
‘No, I don’t, Zabini. Why don’t you enlighten me?’
‘They never stay only study buddies for long,’ said Blaise in a sing-song voice. ‘Watch your heart, Weasley.’
‘My heart is none of your concern, Blaise. Would you please let me in?’
‘Of course. Who am I to stand in the way of true love?’
‘You’re such a prick, Blaise.’
‘But a big prick, my dear Weasley,’ said Blaise before he leant into the door and whispered something Ginny couldn’t quite hear. ‘You only get the password when you and Draco are an actual couple.’
‘I don’t have time to listen to you, Blaise. Can you please move and let me enter?’
‘Of course.’ With a gallant bow, Blaise moved to the side and gestured Ginny into the Slytherin common room.
When Ginny entered the common room, the first thing that hit her was that, accepting the colour scheme, it looked nearly exactly the same as the Gryffindor common room. The noise, the furniture, the people. It made Ginny wonder what she had subconsciously been expecting. Did she think that it would be a torture chamber or covered in snakes? Really, she thought being around Draco had broken her of most of her Slytherin preconceptions. It seemed she had more to work on there. Then the noise level changed. The room went utterly silent. It appeared that the Slytherins were not used to well-known Gryffindors dropping by to return books on a Sunday morning. Ginny stood, unsure of what to say, as every person in the room turned to stare at her.
She cleared her throat. ‘Umm, I’m looking for Draco Malfoy. Where he is?’
Nobody answered at first. Then a seventh year stood up. ‘Why do you want to know?’
Ginny wrinkled her face at the rude question. ‘I need to return a book. Is that a crime?’
He paused, evaluating her. ‘His room is the last up those stairs,’ he said finally, with a gesture to a nearby staircase.
‘Thank you.’
The voices started up hesitantly as Ginny started to make her way up the stairs. Ginny distinctly heard her surname.
At last, Ginny came to a door marked ‘seventh-years’. She knocked gingerly upon the door. ‘Blaise, I told you to fuck off,’ came a voice from inside the room. Draco’s voice.
Ginny smiled and bit her lip. She pushed the door open. ‘I said fuck off,’ Draco repeated. He was sitting on his bed, shirtless, reading a book. Ginny couldn’t read the title from the door (possibly because the room contained way more interesting things to look at - that is, Draco’s chest). He didn’t raise his eyes from the page.
‘It isn’t Blaise,’ said Ginny quietly. ‘He left a while ago. Actually, he let me in.’ Draco’s head came up so fast Ginny was scared he hurt himself.
‘Ginevra,’ Draco said in shock. And for the first time ever that Ginny had seen, Draco turned a delightful shade of red. Ginny thought it was very cute.
‘Yes, Ginny. Sorry to impose on your morning, but I just wanted to return your book. I must have picked it up yesterday.’
Draco said nothing.
‘When we were studying,’ Ginny added nervously to fill up the silence.
‘Oh, I hadn’t noticed.’
‘I gather you didn’t need it then. I got it back so fast because I thought you might need it. But I guess you didn’t,’ said Ginny feeling the most awkward she had in her entire life.
Draco nodded his head.
‘I guess I’ll go then.’
Ginny started to turn but Draco shook his head violently. ‘Don’t go. We can…talk.’
‘Okay,’ said Ginny as she perched herself on the end of his bed.
‘I might just put a shirt on.’
Ginny smiled. ‘You don’t need to do that for me.’
Draco smiled. ‘Yes, I do. I feel strange.’
Then he laughed. Then Ginny laughed. And the awkwardness dissolved as easily as it had begun.
Draco went to the cupboard and pulled out a shirt which he swiftly buttoned up before joining Ginny on the bed.
‘Thanks for the book. I would have been lost without it on Monday.’
‘It was nothing. What are you reading?’
‘It’s called Pilgrim’s Progress. It’s by some Muggle called John Bunyan. I like it.’
‘I haven’t heard of it.’
‘Not many wizards have. I can lend it to you when I finish it.’
‘I’d like that.’
‘Ginny, I have to ask you something. Blaise sort of brought it up and I can’t stop thinking about it, especially since you came here this morning. I know it seems sort of quick since we only really started talking yesterday but… you said that thing about if we had gone to Hogsmeade, it wouldn’t have been a date. Yet. And I just wondered…’
‘You can say it, Draco,’ encouraged Ginny.
Draco was twisting his hands together in his lap.
‘Do you like-like me, Ginevra.’
‘I think I do, Draco Malfoy. I think I do,’ said Ginny quietly.
Draco’s hands stilled.
‘I like you too, Ginny. I have to tell you, though, I don’t do very well in relationships. Girls tend to want to change me, and I don’t like change, Ginny. You might have noticed that.’
Ginny smiled. ‘Just a little, but that’s you, Draco. I like you as you.’
‘Then, would you like to be my girlfriend, Ginevra?’
‘I would like that, Draco. Very much.’ With that Ginny launched herself across the bed and hugged Draco hard before kissing him softly on the lips.
After a while, Draco pulled away and said, ‘Can I measure you, Ginevra?’
‘Measure me?’
‘Yes, measure you. I like knowing the measurements of the people that are important to me, and I think you may well become one of them.’
‘It would be an honour.’
Solemnly and quietly, Draco went to his bed-side table and picked up a measuring tape and a small notebook. He gestured for Ginny to stand up, and then he moved toward her, holding the tape. He started at the top by pulling a length of hair out and placing the measuring tape beside it. He flicked his wand and the numbers were recorded in his book. Next he measured the length of her arms and legs, width of her waist and length of her fingers.
‘It tickles,’ complained Ginny as Draco held the tape beside her body.
Draco smiled and shushed her. Lastly, he measured her entire length. ‘You’re so small. I forget that most of the time.’
‘I’m small, not delicate,’ chided Ginny.
‘After playing Quidditch with you, I know that for sure,’ Draco laughed. Draco glanced at his clock. ‘Do you want to go and sit with me in the common room? I have to do that now, but you don’t have to come.’
‘I’d like to.’
‘People are probably going to whisper.’
‘Let them whisper. I don’t care, Draco. I don’t care what they think,’ Ginny said as she reached up to wrap her arms around Draco’s neck. ‘We are the only ones who matter.’
Draco leant down slightly and joined his mouth to Ginny’s, and they stood in the middle of his room kissing until Ginny glanced down at the watch she had decided to wear that morning. ‘It’s time to go downstairs, Draco,’ she said as she led him out of the room to face the Slytherins and the rest of the school.
Ginny then decided that something sneaky was in order. However, being a Gryffindor, she was still pondering what exactly that sneaky thing would consist of when Blaise Zabini stuck his head out of the portal. The head was quickly followed by the rest of his lanky body. He paused delicately when he saw Ginny.
‘Let me guess. You’re looking for Draco,’ he said with a faint sneer.
‘Um, yes. I need to return his book.’
‘I knew I was right,’ muttered Blaise to himself. ‘His book? Why would you have Draco’s book? Unless you were studying together,’ Blaise mused aloud. ‘And you know what they say about study buddies, don’t ‘cha, Weasley?’
‘No, I don’t, Zabini. Why don’t you enlighten me?’
‘They never stay only study buddies for long,’ said Blaise in a sing-song voice. ‘Watch your heart, Weasley.’
‘My heart is none of your concern, Blaise. Would you please let me in?’
‘Of course. Who am I to stand in the way of true love?’
‘You’re such a prick, Blaise.’
‘But a big prick, my dear Weasley,’ said Blaise before he leant into the door and whispered something Ginny couldn’t quite hear. ‘You only get the password when you and Draco are an actual couple.’
‘I don’t have time to listen to you, Blaise. Can you please move and let me enter?’
‘Of course.’ With a gallant bow, Blaise moved to the side and gestured Ginny into the Slytherin common room.
When Ginny entered the common room, the first thing that hit her was that, accepting the colour scheme, it looked nearly exactly the same as the Gryffindor common room. The noise, the furniture, the people. It made Ginny wonder what she had subconsciously been expecting. Did she think that it would be a torture chamber or covered in snakes? Really, she thought being around Draco had broken her of most of her Slytherin preconceptions. It seemed she had more to work on there. Then the noise level changed. The room went utterly silent. It appeared that the Slytherins were not used to well-known Gryffindors dropping by to return books on a Sunday morning. Ginny stood, unsure of what to say, as every person in the room turned to stare at her.
She cleared her throat. ‘Umm, I’m looking for Draco Malfoy. Where he is?’
Nobody answered at first. Then a seventh year stood up. ‘Why do you want to know?’
Ginny wrinkled her face at the rude question. ‘I need to return a book. Is that a crime?’
He paused, evaluating her. ‘His room is the last up those stairs,’ he said finally, with a gesture to a nearby staircase.
‘Thank you.’
The voices started up hesitantly as Ginny started to make her way up the stairs. Ginny distinctly heard her surname.
At last, Ginny came to a door marked ‘seventh-years’. She knocked gingerly upon the door. ‘Blaise, I told you to fuck off,’ came a voice from inside the room. Draco’s voice.
Ginny smiled and bit her lip. She pushed the door open. ‘I said fuck off,’ Draco repeated. He was sitting on his bed, shirtless, reading a book. Ginny couldn’t read the title from the door (possibly because the room contained way more interesting things to look at - that is, Draco’s chest). He didn’t raise his eyes from the page.
‘It isn’t Blaise,’ said Ginny quietly. ‘He left a while ago. Actually, he let me in.’ Draco’s head came up so fast Ginny was scared he hurt himself.
‘Ginevra,’ Draco said in shock. And for the first time ever that Ginny had seen, Draco turned a delightful shade of red. Ginny thought it was very cute.
‘Yes, Ginny. Sorry to impose on your morning, but I just wanted to return your book. I must have picked it up yesterday.’
Draco said nothing.
‘When we were studying,’ Ginny added nervously to fill up the silence.
‘Oh, I hadn’t noticed.’
‘I gather you didn’t need it then. I got it back so fast because I thought you might need it. But I guess you didn’t,’ said Ginny feeling the most awkward she had in her entire life.
Draco nodded his head.
‘I guess I’ll go then.’
Ginny started to turn but Draco shook his head violently. ‘Don’t go. We can…talk.’
‘Okay,’ said Ginny as she perched herself on the end of his bed.
‘I might just put a shirt on.’
Ginny smiled. ‘You don’t need to do that for me.’
Draco smiled. ‘Yes, I do. I feel strange.’
Then he laughed. Then Ginny laughed. And the awkwardness dissolved as easily as it had begun.
Draco went to the cupboard and pulled out a shirt which he swiftly buttoned up before joining Ginny on the bed.
‘Thanks for the book. I would have been lost without it on Monday.’
‘It was nothing. What are you reading?’
‘It’s called Pilgrim’s Progress. It’s by some Muggle called John Bunyan. I like it.’
‘I haven’t heard of it.’
‘Not many wizards have. I can lend it to you when I finish it.’
‘I’d like that.’
‘Ginny, I have to ask you something. Blaise sort of brought it up and I can’t stop thinking about it, especially since you came here this morning. I know it seems sort of quick since we only really started talking yesterday but… you said that thing about if we had gone to Hogsmeade, it wouldn’t have been a date. Yet. And I just wondered…’
‘You can say it, Draco,’ encouraged Ginny.
Draco was twisting his hands together in his lap.
‘Do you like-like me, Ginevra.’
‘I think I do, Draco Malfoy. I think I do,’ said Ginny quietly.
Draco’s hands stilled.
‘I like you too, Ginny. I have to tell you, though, I don’t do very well in relationships. Girls tend to want to change me, and I don’t like change, Ginny. You might have noticed that.’
Ginny smiled. ‘Just a little, but that’s you, Draco. I like you as you.’
‘Then, would you like to be my girlfriend, Ginevra?’
‘I would like that, Draco. Very much.’ With that Ginny launched herself across the bed and hugged Draco hard before kissing him softly on the lips.
After a while, Draco pulled away and said, ‘Can I measure you, Ginevra?’
‘Measure me?’
‘Yes, measure you. I like knowing the measurements of the people that are important to me, and I think you may well become one of them.’
‘It would be an honour.’
Solemnly and quietly, Draco went to his bed-side table and picked up a measuring tape and a small notebook. He gestured for Ginny to stand up, and then he moved toward her, holding the tape. He started at the top by pulling a length of hair out and placing the measuring tape beside it. He flicked his wand and the numbers were recorded in his book. Next he measured the length of her arms and legs, width of her waist and length of her fingers.
‘It tickles,’ complained Ginny as Draco held the tape beside her body.
Draco smiled and shushed her. Lastly, he measured her entire length. ‘You’re so small. I forget that most of the time.’
‘I’m small, not delicate,’ chided Ginny.
‘After playing Quidditch with you, I know that for sure,’ Draco laughed. Draco glanced at his clock. ‘Do you want to go and sit with me in the common room? I have to do that now, but you don’t have to come.’
‘I’d like to.’
‘People are probably going to whisper.’
‘Let them whisper. I don’t care, Draco. I don’t care what they think,’ Ginny said as she reached up to wrap her arms around Draco’s neck. ‘We are the only ones who matter.’
Draco leant down slightly and joined his mouth to Ginny’s, and they stood in the middle of his room kissing until Ginny glanced down at the watch she had decided to wear that morning. ‘It’s time to go downstairs, Draco,’ she said as she led him out of the room to face the Slytherins and the rest of the school.
Author notes: It's finally finished. I hope everyone was happy with the rather overly sweet ending.
Please review. It will make me very happy, and making somebody else happy is one of the most worthwhile things you can do.
The End.
Januarybaby is the author of 10 other stories.
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