Rituals

The darkness of the night crept into Draco's soul like the fog that crept above the water in the dawn of the morning. He shivered with cold and blew the candle out next to his bedside. A chill wind blew through the open window and moved softly across the bareness of his chest.

"Draco?"

A gentle voice called from the other side of the room and he looked up to see his beloved standing in the doorway, her form shrouded in the shadows. She took one step forward and her body was barren in the moonlight.

"Are you just going to stand there?"

Draco's voice was filled with a rough edge to it that sent chills running up her spine. Ginny crossed her arms across her chest and took one step back into the shadows. She leaned against the doorframe.

"Why do you hide from me?"

Draco sat up in his bed and reached out a hand to her, begging her to come near. When she did not, agitation crossed his features and he stood up roughly, crossing the room to wrap his arms around her tightly.

Ginny looked up at him and opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Nothing but sensitive looks and an inner need to be closer to him. She reached her arms up to encircle his neck.

"Kiss me before I lose control," she begged.

Draco was the only one to ever make her beg for anything. She was a Weasley and they did not beg for anything, no matter how poor they were. Pride consumed her family and nothing have ever gotten in the way of that until Draco had come along.

"Sometimes it's good to lose control," Draco said as he bent down and kissed her lips softly.

Ginny moaned slightly into his mouth and moved to get at a better angle. Draco loved to tease her and so he moved back just enough to keep her lips from getting to him. She got frustrated and narrowed her eyes at him.

"Why do you deny me of my desire?" Ginny's words came out hurtful.

"I deny you of your desire because it only makes you want it even more."

Ginny smiled slightly and pulled away from Draco. She pushed past him and slipped over to the bed on the far side of the room. The silken sheets felt good against her skin as she crawled beneath the covers and inhaled the scent that was Draco. It consumed her.

The weight of the bed shifted as Draco lay down next to her. His arm slipped around her waist and she tugged it off, pretending not to want it.

"Don't play these games, Virginia," Draco said as he leaned down to whisper into her ear. He kissed it lightly before pulling back.

Ginny shivered slightly as the covers were lifted to permit his body underneath them next to hers. There was a tense moment as skin came in contact with skin and then the shock wore off as it always did.

"You know what I want," Draco said, kissing her shoulder.

Ginny turned on her back and looked up at him as he rest on one elbow to look down at her. He lay a hand across her silk-clad abdomen and stroked lightly there through the material. Ginny closed her eyes and sighed.

"You're beautiful in the moonlight," Draco said as he kissed her lips once more.

Ginny resigned and succumbed to the pleasures that he gave her. She loved to tease him as much as he loved to tease her. This was how they spent their tome together in the privacy of their own bedroom. Intimacy was something they shared with each other wholly. There was nothing that one didn't know about the other. Ginny had Draco's body memorized, and Draco had Ginny's.

Their souls were as one as well. They shared the same mind and heart, and in the softness of the moonlight, they shared the same body twisted beneath a mass of sheets and skin.

As the night wore on, they succumbed to the content sleep of lovers. The morning brought light into the room that first woke Ginny. She opened her eyes to meet the sleeping form of a pale body next to her. His eyes were shielded by his silver hair.

With her waking came his and he smiled. His slate eyes pulled up at the corners and Ginny knew he was smiling even if his mouth was buried in a pillow.

A soft kiss was placed on his forehead and he closed his eyes to receive it. This was a morning ritual that he never grew tired of. Neither of them did.

"Did you sleep well?" Draco asked.

Ginny smiled and nodded slightly. She never liked to spend much time in the morning talking. It was best to be left to the silence as far as she was concerned. Draco usually said everything that was needed to be said.

Draco reached a hand over to brush a stray lock of Ginny's hair out of her eyes. He always loved looking at her eyes. It troubled him not to be able to see what she was feeling.

"Draco?" Ginny said softly.

Draco's lazy eyes popped open. Rarely did Ginny ever say anything in the morning and when she did have something to say, it was always something pleasing to his ears.

"Yes, Love?" he responded in kind.

"If I ever die, promise me it'll be in your arms."

Draco stared at her through half-closed eyes. Sleep was trying its best to come and claim him again. He staggered around to try and find his voice, but in the end, all he could come up with were a few incomprehensible sounds that Ginny didn't hear because she had already retreated back to the land of dreams.