Hide Away

Hide Away

Chapter 3- a boring weekend

When I opened my eyes the next morning, I saw the dots on my ceiling.

I got up and fell out of bed. I screamed and then got up. I glanced at myself. I was still wearing my robes and my boots, hence the dirt on my sheets. I grabbed my glasses from my side table and put them on.

I swayed and almost fell over. I took a deep breath and sat on my bed rubbing my eyes.

My heart was beating very fast and my breath ragged. I was starving and I knew I had to eat something; otherwise I would faint.

I couldn't walk to the kitchen so I found my wand (in my pillow for some reason) and summoned some food to my room.

I crunched my apple and drank some juice. I ate some more and had gained some energy.

I took off my boots, cursing myself. I really should stop this; I mean the next time I crash like that I might not wake up ever again.

A shower seemed like a good thing for a time like this.

I swished my wand and warmed up the water, then undressed. I locked the door to the bathroom and stepped into the warm water.

It was almost natural for me to lock the bathroom door I realized, even though there was no one who could invade my privacy.

The warm water breathed life into me and I started feeling better. I seriously need to stop this. I have to start eating right.

I snorted, sending water up my nose, which took ten minutes to get out.

I had snorted because I had said that I would start eating countless times, but I never heeded my own word. I never had time to eat during the day and sometimes, very rarely, got drunk off sugar.

But I knew I would have to start taking care of myself, or Ron and Hermione would start to get suspicious. They already insisted that I was too skinny.

I stepped out of the shower and dressed. I had picked out a pair of jeans and a t-shirt.

I stepped in front of the mirror and stared at myself. There was nothing special about me.

I was only 5''4, with stumpy legs, long hair and a small nose. I had become increasingly thin since I had been diagnosed with diabetes, a disease that even wizards had no cure for.

I had brown eyes that were nothing too special, with a small mouth. My eyes were always hidden behind my black plastic framed glasses.

I looked like some teenager the way I was dressed. I didn't have any exciting clothes and never wore any revealing clothes.

I stuck my tongue out at myself, and then went outside.

I cleaned my living room a bit, and then had a proper breakfast, counting all the calories and my sugar intake. I checked my sugar and found it to be 8.5, an OK number for me.

After breakfast, I cleaned up my flat a bit, and then sat down on my couch.

After sitting there for several minutes, I realized there was nothing to do.

I groaned and swore countless times at myself. Since I was to transfer from one department to another, and yesterday had been my last day at work, I had no work to do.

I usually came home with tons of work to do and would spend the whole weekend finishing it.

This was the first weekend, in a long time that I did not have work to do.

I had no friends to do anything with, except for Hermione, Luna and Medea. Hermione and Ron always had a million things to do on the weekend, and Harry and Luna were always going to exotic places.

As for Neville and Medea...they were always busy doing their own thing.

I decided to go explore London.

I changed into black pants, a white sweater, and then grabbed my long coat.

As I stepped out of my building, I saw that the sky was grey and it was starting to snow.

I walked around London for hours, just visiting some of the Muggle tourist attractions.

Around four o'clock I went to a coffee bookshop and sat down.

I rubbed my hands together and got out my muggle money, careful to keep my wizard change in my pockets.

I ordered a hot chocolate and started reading a book.

I stayed there until six o'clock, and then I trudged home. It was so lonely at home as well.

I suddenly decided that I wanted a cat. It would keep me company, as well as deliver my messages.

I made myself a healthy dinner, and then sat down to eat it.

After that, I ventured out to Diagon Alley to look for a cat.

I walked around the shops, recognizing lots of people, and stopping to talk to them.

I walked into a pet shop and looked around. Something white caught my eye.

I squealed with happiness and ran to the kitty. It was the prettiest kitten I had ever seen. She (I assumed) was small with white fur and bright blue eyes.

I ran to the counter and paid the man his money. The man told me that indeed, she was a she.

I took the kitty with me, and apparated home.

I sat down on the couch and thought about what to name her.

I saw the drifting snowflakes, so I decided to call her Snowflake.

I smiled and gave her some of the food that I had bought. I played with her for the rest of the night, and then went to sleep.

The next day I sent Snowflake on her first mission. I sent a message to Ron and Hermione and a few minutes later, she returned with their answer. They had invited me over.

I eagerly apparated there, taking Snowflake with me.

Ron and Hermione were happy to see me and tried to feed me until I was satiated. They gushed over Snowflake having found her to be cute.

Eleanor and Arthur were a bit frightened of her, but in the end they started playing with her too.

They were so nice that they let me spend the whole day with them.

After a delicious dinner, that Hermione had cooked, we sat down in their living room to talk.

They lived in a large and expensive house, with many bedrooms. They always told me I was welcome anytime and that I could always stay over, but I always refused.

It felt so great to be around people again. All through dinner I felt so happy and couldn't seem to stop smiling.

"Are you all right, Ginny?" asked Hermione.

I blinked and remembered that I was sitting in Ron's living room, talking with him and Hermione.

I didn't know what she had asked, so I asked, "Uh...sorry?"

"Are you all right?" she asked me again.

I nodded and said, "Fine... why?"

She glanced at Ron and said, "Ron and I..." Ron shook his head behind me. "All right, I feel that you look really thin. Are you eating all right?"

I gulped and said, "Yes, I'm fine." I sometimes wanted to tell them about the disease, but I was scared they would want to rule my life and start supervising everything I did, so I didn't.

She glanced at Ron again and then said, "Ginny are you absolutely sure? You know you can tell me anything. You can even tell me in private and I won't tell Ron if that's what you're afraid of."

I sighed; she probably thought I had anorexia or bulimia or something. The problem was that, even though diabetes was a disease, it wasn't supposed to make you skinny. I was always skipping meals, not eating for days straight, but that was because I was busy, not because I was sticking a finger down my throat and forcing myself to throw up.

"Hermione," I said gently. "I'm fine. I just run around a lot at work and don't get that much time to eat. That's all. But that will change soon, since my job changed. I got transferred to Muggle Relations."

Hermione and Ron's faces burst into smiles. They clearly had no idea I was changing the subject, since they didn't know me that well.

"Really?" squealed Hermione, reaching over to hug me. "That's great! I'm so proud of you!"

Ron patted my back and smiled. "That's really great, Gin. You'll have some stability now."

I nodded and the conversation continued.

Later that evening I apparated home and got ready for bed. I changed into my pajamas and brought Snowflake to bed with me.

I turned off the light and lay in bed for a few hours. I was excited about my job and couldn't wait to see who my new boss would be.

Chapter 4- Ginny meets her new boss!

My alarm woke me up again the next day and Snowflake jumped into the air.

I laughed and caught her as she fell. I tickled her and then stretched.

Even though I had gone to bed pretty early (nine o'clock), I was still tired because I lay awake worrying the whole night.

That was the way I was, a worrywart. If it was raining outside, I worried that my clothes might get wet. If I had a report due, I worried if I had gotten everything right. If there was nothing to eat I worried. Anyway, you get the picture.

I warmed up the water and then stripped my clothes. I shampooed my hair and then reached for the conditioner, realizing there was none.

Like any normal person, I could have gone out and taken it out of the cupboard, but was too scared of dripping water everywhere (which could've been magic-ed away, but I was too caught up to even consider that) so decided to grab my wand from on top of the toilet, which was beside the tub.

Looking on the toilet, I saw that it was there and that I had probably left it on my bed.

I cursed myself and stomped my foot, raging as usual. I slipped on some of the water and hit my head on the tap.

I screamed louder this time, seeing stars as I lay on the floor of the tub as water poured down onto me.

Twenty minutes later, I was clean and had not broken or done anything else stupid. I was proud of myself.

I dried my hair magically and then stood in front of my (small) closet, looking for something to wear. Today was my first day on the job and I wanted to look good, as well as presentable.

I finally picked my favourite black pants with thin white stripes and a white blouse. I then picked out a black robe and slipped it on top.

I brushed my auburn hair and tied it back into a ponytail. Over the weekend, Hermione had found the spell for cutting hair and had trimmed mine, so now it cascaded just above my lower back.

I brushed my bangs and left them on the side and then applied some pinkish lip-gloss.

I was done, but hadn't thought about what to do with Snowflake while I was at work.

Hmm...I stood and thought for a minute.

She purred at my feet and I picked her up. I cuddled her and decided it would be all right for her to stay home. It wasn't like an intruder could come in anyway.

When I had moved into this flat, I had charmed it and placed spells of protection around it, so she was safe.

After I ate some breakfast, I put some kitty food out for her, just in case.

I was about to apparate to the Ministry when the owl with the Daily Prophet pecked at my window.

I quickly paid him and then apparated.

In less than a minute, I had reached the Ministry.

I made my way to Muggle Relations, my new office and on the way I read the Daily Prophet.

I groaned out loud. Three guesses on who the headline featured- again! It was Draco Malfoy, no surprises.

'Draco Malfoy raises hundreds of millions of gallons for wizard orphanages,' it read.

I was so tired of hearing about the accomplishments of that git! I mean, didn't the paper have anything better to write about?

I had reached my new office and was so mad about the headline that I took out a quill and scribbled on it.

When I was done, I was quite pleased with the result. I had crossed some things out and had added some in, making the headline now read, 'Pratco Maffoy raises hundreds of millions of gallons for Wizarding Sewage Solutions."

I read it out loud to myself, "Pratco Maffoy raises hundreds of millions of gallons for Wizarding Sewage Solutions." I cracked up laughing and didn't notice that the whole office stood up and went, "sir."

I was so busy laughing that I didn't notice someone standing before me. I was laughing so hard that I had to lean against a bookshelf. There was no picture in the article, there never was when he was the headline news, otherwise I would've drawn on his face.

I suddenly noticed that the whole office was quiet and that everyone was watching and listening to me laugh.

I stopped laughing and looked up.

Standing before, was none other than.... Draco Malfoy himself. I screamed and toppled over the bookshelf, making it fall with me.

I screamed as a ton of books fell on top of me. Finally it stopped, but I didn't want to come out from under the heap. I was so embarrassed; I was ready to cry any second.

I had just insulted my new bossy to his face and had fallen over, taken the bookshelf with me. It didn't help that my new boss was my enemy either.

Suddenly the books disappeared and stacked themselves back on the bookshelf.

I opened my eyes and found myself on the floor with tons of employees watching me.

Draco Malfoy had been the one who had done a spell with his wand to put the books away. He stood exactly where he had and his eyes drank me in.

I got up and gulped and stood before him, tears welling up in my eyes. Shit, I felt like the biggest freak ever.

He continued to stare at me while I chose to stare at the floor. Finally I heard his deep voice say, "That's enough. All of you get back to work."

They all shuffled back into their cubicles and then he said again, "Follow me."

I looked up and saw him leading the way to a door. I followed him and sat down on the chair he gestured to.

He sat down in a big chair and crossed his legs.

He stared intently back at me, until I said, "I assume you are my new boss Mr. Malfoy?"

The classic (oh how much I hated it) smirk crawled on his face. "Assume what Weasley?" he said. "We went to school together, remember, in case your brain fell on the ground with those books. If that's the case I suggest you retrieve it."

I stared at him with my mouth open in disgust. I couldn't believe he was my boss. I fell like smacking myself, I knew that he was the head of Muggle Relations, but I forgot all about it when Mr. Zabini transferred me here. I cursed myself for being so forgetful and him for being so fine.

There were very few men I thought were good looking, as I wasn't interested, but a person would have to be blind not to see how hot he was.

I blushed, a cursed habit, and glanced at him. He was looking at me with those eyes of his. Oh how I hated those eyes. They looked as if they knew everything and I knew nothing. They were deep grey framed with long thick lashes.

He had matured quite nicely; I'd like to think. Apart from his eyes, there was his nose. His nose was long and he had high cheekbones. His lips were full and open slightly.

His light blond hair was gelled as usual, with a bit falling into his eye. He was wearing a black Armani suit complete with a black tie.

I noticed his height the first time since I had seen him; he was tall and had broad shoulders.

I blushed again, but felt anger now. "What the hell? Aren't you supposed to be professional with me?"

He smirked again. "Think of it this way, Weasley. Me not killing you is professional."

I felt like throwing something at him, but stared at him in distaste. I had to work with this guy?!

The smirk disappeared and was replaced with a frown. "Don't think I'm pleased to work with you, Weasley. I'm just as horrified by this as you are."

I rolled my eyes and said, "Then why'd you pick me for the job?"

He shrugged. "I had to pick someone, and the rest of the people who applied didn't have the qualifications. Besides, I'm OK with throwing a few insults your way during work hours, as long as you keep your attitude."

I stared at him, gritting my teeth; wishing looks could kill. I hated him. I didn't know how he made the headlines for doing such good deeds. To me, it looked like he didn't even have any manners. He was just the same as the last time I had seen him, which was five years ago.

Whoa, I thought. The last time I had seen him was at his graduation ceremony and never after that. I always heard about him, but I never saw him again. For some reason, his pictures were never displayed with the headlines, but I always heard about how successful he was.

I groaned, remembering the torment I had suffered during my time at Hogwarts. He had just made it clear that things were going to be pretty much the same.

I remembered a time when he was actually nice to me, during the end of his seventh year and the end of my sixth.

We had 'pretended' to go out to humiliate each other and ended up doing so. He admitted that to me and we broke up, after getting what we wanted.

I don't exactly remember my feelings during the whole thing, on account of my horrible memory, but I'm sure I was sad about everyone not talking to me.

That was the summer Fred died and my life changed. After he died, I tried so hard to become an auror but failed. That was why I was sitting in this office today, while Draco Malfoy snapped a finger in my face.

I blinked and looked at him. He stared at me and then said, "This is not your dream land, Weasley. Where you can drift in and out of your thoughts and not pay attention to what I say. You had better be more focused, or you will lose this job."

I took a deep breath and kept my fingers clenched; to resist the itching they were getting to pick something up.

When I didn't say anything, he smirked. "Good, well, as my secretary, you'll..."

"Your secretary?" I asked. "What the hell does that mean?"

He raised an eyebrow at me and said, "Basically, you do what I tell you to. Get my coffee, run my errands, schedule my meetings, etc. Get the picture?"

"Mr. Zabini told me I was to be a Muggle Magic Watcher," I said, confused.

"Well, Zabini must've gotten mixed up," he said. "Are you staying or not?"

I thought about it. Even though I hated the slimy git and he was already annoying me, I had to keep it; otherwise I wouldn't have a job and I wouldn't have any money.

I sighed and wanted to strangle myself before these words came out. "Yes, I'm staying."

The smirk made an appearance again. "Well, well. All right then."

"What do you want me to do Malfoy?" I asked.

He shook his finger. "That's where you're wrong, Weasley. You'll address me as 'sir' or Mr. Malfoy. Is that clear?"

I rolled my eyes and said, "Yes, 'sir'."

He got up and I got up as well. He looked at me for a minute, surveying me and then saying, "I also like my employees to have a positive attitude and not roll their eyes at me. So look like you enjoy the work."

I made a face, and then his long eyebrow went up. I sighed, smiled my most fake smile and said, "Yes, sir."

He smirked and said, "Good. Now follow me to your desk."

He led me around the large office and then to small room with large glass windows and a large mahogany desk. Hm, maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all, I thought.

"This is your office and this is my office," he said, leading me out of my office and pointed to a door right beside it.

"You tell anyone who wishes to see me to make an appointment, and then call me up," he said, pointing to a machine on the desk. I had no idea what it was, and by the look on my face he seemed exasperated.

He rolled his eyes and said, "I also require the employees in my office to use my Muggle technology, such as a phone and a computer."

When I still had the blank look on my face, he said, "I expect you to take a course on muggle technology, Weasley. Otherwise you won't be able to perform the job and will have to leave."

I groaned loudly, inside. God, why was this job sounding more and more appalling by the second. I had not used any muggle technology before, and hadn't a clue on how it worked. I felt like smacking myself, or rather him. Here I was panicking and all he could do was look so calm...and hot too.

"That's all right," I said, remembering that Medea was muggle born. "I think my friend can teach me."

He tilted his head and looked at me. Why did he have to look at me? I mean, why did he always look at me in that way. I felt so strange under his cool gaze; it was like I was being analyzed.

"That's fine," he said. "I also expect you to wear muggle attire, no more robes."

I stared at him; OK ...was it just me or was he going a little overboard with the muggle things?

I just nodded and went, "Yes...sir."

He smirked and led me on a tour of the office. The rest of the day was a hectic one, as I had to follow him around everywhere learning what to do.

Basically, I was supposed to schedule his appointments and answer his calls on the...telephone or whatever. I had to follow him everywhere having background information on all his cases and make inquiries. This basically meant, do as he said.

He also told me that I didn't really work at Muggle Relations. I was a small part of all his departments (quidditch, Wizengamot, etc.), since I had to follow him there. So I did have a desk in Muggle Relations, but I would be in and out all day.

I went home tired that night and called Medea about learning how to use Muggle technology. She agreed to help me and within a week I had learned everything, since I was a fast learner.

I found muggle technology interesting and was fascinated with it, just like my dad.

I didn't work long during the week because I had to learn everything before I could officially start. Monday was to be my first day.