Faint

‘I am what I want you to want

What I want you to feel

But it’s like no matter what I do

I can’t convince you

To just believe this is real

So I turn away, watching you

Turn your back like you always do

Face away and pretend that I’m not

But I’ll be here cause you’re all that I’ve got’

-Linkin Park-

                                            

Breathe.

Slow, deep breaths.

Inhale. Exhale.

She lets her vision absorb the red hangings around her four poster bed. Remind herself that four other girls are sleeping on the other side of those crimson curtains. Concentrate on the cool air that is flowing through the open window.

It was only a dream.

He is gone.

She is safe.

But she is still trembling. Drinking in the oxygen as though it is water and she has been alone in a desert for months. His voice still ringing in her mind, chilling her to the core.

She knows from experience that she is not going to be able to fall asleep again tonight.

With a final sigh, she tosses the covers away and softly puts her feet to the floor.

 know someone who will be awake.

*

"Imperius Curse."

She mutters the rather unpleasant password to a portrait of a haughty looking young man. He still seems rather suspicious of a disembodied voice, as she is under the Invisibility Charm, but she supposes that he has become accustomed to it. He simply swings back to allow her passage.

            She tiptoes through the jade and silver common room, up a winding staircase. It still amazes her how similar this common room is to her own. Of course, Gryffindor tower is not located in the dungeons. Nor is it this large or luxuriously furnished. She suspects that the rich decor has a lot to do with the well known fact that most Slytherins are wealthy. She continues down a very long hall, lined with grand oak doors on every side. She stops in front of the last door to the right. It is slightly ajar, as she expected. If she had to knock, it might awaken one of the others. If they found her here, it would be positively scandalous. She slips inside, gently shutting the door behind her. He lies in his large bed, seemingly asleep.

"Finite Incantatum," she whispers, and she is visible again.

 She smiles to herself and makes her way over, crawling onto the bed beside him. Her hand finds his tousled hair, silver in the darkness. She leans her face down and softly brush her mouth over his. When she begins to pull back, however, he stops her. He captures her lips between his own and kisses her deeply, rolling over so that he is on top of her.

When they break apart, she smiles up at him, and he gives her a smirk in return.

"You really are very good at pretending to be asleep, you know. How many times have you done that to me?" she says teasingly.

His gray eyes dance with amusement. "I did no such thing. Is it my fault if your damned kisses interrupt my sleep?"

"Oh, come on. You know you love it."

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I do. I have to say that a beautiful girl snogging me is not a half bad wake up call. Even if that girl is a Weasley."

The smile drops from her face and her beautiful brown eyes regard him coldly. He can’t hear the words passing through her thoughts, and before he can even blink, he is thrown forcefully aside. She is up in a heartbeat, standing a good four feet away.

"How the hell did you do that? I didn’t see a wand," he demands. She can tell that he is angry, but his voice remains level and his expression impassive.

"That’s because I don’t have my wand with me. I never bring it here," she explains impatiently.

"But you arrive under the Invisibility Charm," he says. "And I know that no Gryffindor can do wandless magic. I don’t even know of a Ravenclaw that can."

She glares at him. "Well, apparently you’re wrong. Now, I’m going back to my room. Goodnight, Malfoy."

"Leaving so soon, Virginia? But things were just getting good."

"Why do you care? I’m just a Weasley," she says sarcastically.

"And a damn good kisser," he adds with a smirk.

Rolling her eyes, she says, "I’m leaving. Now."

True to her word, she walks to the door.

"Virginia?"

"Yes?"

"Shall I leave the door open tomorrow night?" His tone is mocking.

She clenches her jaw, then answers in a tight voice. "That remains to be seen." Then she disappears, and the door slams loudly.

Alone in his bedroom, he stretches his arms behind his head and chuckles to himself. She will be back. She always is.