Beware of the Slash

Chapter 3-Ginny's Veracity

"Weasley!" snapped Professor McGonagall as Ginny let her head slip, yet again, to the hard wood table, causing a loud clunk to disturb the session.

"Sorry Professor," Ginny said as she lifted her head lazily off the desk.

"Miss Weasley, the next time that happens, you will find yourself in detention. Now, do pay attention, before you find yourself regretting your next slumber session." McGonagall's voice edged on back into the lesson and sooner rather than later, the lesson was over.

Ginny grabbed her books hastily and shoved them into her book bag, glad the lesson had finally dispersed. She stored out of the classroom as quickly as possible, avoiding the meeting she was destined to have if everyone left the classroom before her. But Professor McGonagall called after her.

"Weasley, please come back in, if you please," she said, apparently forcing her with kind words. Ginny turned back and walked into the classroom, her hair flopping behind her.

"Yes Professor McGonagall?" she asked cutely, trying to avoid any hidden woe McGonagall might bark.

"I know you will be late to your next class if I don't make this snappy. So I will try to make it as quick as I can, but you'll probably be late anyway." Professor McGonagall ran what she had said over in her head and shook it. "Sorry, I'm a bit disoriented. Please ignore what I just said. Do feel free to sit down. This might take a while."

Ginny found a seat in front of Professor's desk and sat, glad she was missing Potions.

"I'm sorry I keep falling asleep in your class. I'm quite tired when I get here. It's so early in the morning when I get here." Ginny stared at McGonagalls frustrated eyes. This wasn't about snoozing in her class.

"Miss Weasley, I would like to make this as quick as possible. I don't believe a word of what Dumbledore or Ronald have reported to me, so let me clear this up. Please name five friends." She took out a roll of parchment and ripped off a bit, then dipped a quill into an ink bottle.

Ginny was dumbfounded and ambushed.

"What are you talking about?"

"Just name five of your friends for me. I suppose Miss Ackart is one of them." She began to jot down the name. A light clicked on in Ginny's head and she scoffed.

"I understand. I don't have any friends. Emma would definitely not be on the list if I did..." She stopped. Having said too much, she picked up to leave. "Look, I know what you're getting at. I'm not anti-social...I just don't enjoy the company of giggling school girls crowded around me while they bring me into the cesspool that is the bathroom to talk about...well, nothing important," said Ginny, quickly and coolly.

Professor McGonagall laughed. "You're a smart girl, Ginny Weasley. One wishes you could stay as you are but on orders I must do as Dumbledore says. You need friends, Ginny. Every girl your age has friends, and being one without them is like a dragon without loads of wizards to stupefy it. Please Ginny, you must become more social or Dumbledore will have a word with you...and you shan't want that," she said sternly, standing up and grabbing a book Ginny had forgotten she was holding.

"I don't want to see you reading in the halls. One hopes you pay heed to Dumbledore and myself. Go on, Miss Weasley and good luck," McGonagall said and shuffled her out of the room. Ginny stared at her book. She had just reached the climax.

****

"Friends?" Ginny said to herself as she walked to Gryffindor Tower alone after dinner. "Friends!"

She walked faster, ignoring a drawl that followed her anyway.

"I've already stopped to peeve you're ugly brother...looks like I'll get all the Weasley's in one day. I suppose you're twin brothers'll get the arse of the jokes when I beat Gryffindor miserably in our first Quidditch match in October. Nice." The drawling voice continued, to Ginny's dismay. But she dared not turn around when she was so close to the common room.

"Trying to get away? Wouldn't help. You haven't got any friends to find solace in anyway..." At this Ginny turned around in a flurry of heat.

"SHOVE OFF, MALFOY!" she yelled, half annoyed, half proud of herself. She hadn't spoken a word to Malfoy since second year, when they had been in Flourish and Blotts, and he had so willingly stepped into her path.

"I'm not going anywhere, Weasley. This is the perfect set up. Let's say I throw a few insults at you, you cry and run away, then I run after you and make you cry some more?" Malfoy laughed, apparently happy with himself.

"Then I run off and plot some ways to murder you," said Ginny coolly, allowing herself to walk away from Malfoy. He wasn't having that.

"Nobody walks away from me, you stupid Weasel," said Draco, anger raging in his voice.

"Don't you have batteries to put into those two cohorts you call friends?" Ginny asked, satisfied with herself.

"Shut up. Besides, they're chargeable," Draco said mockingly and followed her as she continued walking away.

"Sod off, jerk," she said, as she turned to walk up the first marble staircase that would lead her to second floor. Only several more staircases and she'd be out of Malfoy's face, and in Gryffindor Tower.

"Is this how you strike up a conversation? No wonder you haven't got any friends. You're a stupid little joke," said Malfoy, jogging up the stairs ahead of her.

He stopped at the top of the fifth staircase and blocked Ginny's way.

"What do you want?" Ginny asked.

Malfoy let his gaze fall to the floor and smiled, "Perfect."

"What?"

"You take this. I don't need it. I've got about millions more than your family is worth," Draco said, shoving a golden coin into her hands. It was a galleon. Ginny let it fall to the floor. Sure, she was dying for it, but she wouldn't give Malfoy the benefit of the doubt.

"Really funny there Draco, don't kill me with your humour. I've got to get on now. 'Bye." And she left Draco standing there, but not without the insult he'd been wanting to spit at her so bad.

"I wouldn't drop that...you might need it...you know...to buy yourself a boyfriend, or a friend. Of course, even Creevey's worth more than that...and Voldemort knows how much I'm worth!" Draco said, laughing loudly and proceeding downstairs. (A/N-Voldemort is Draco's way of using Lord...like "and Lord knows how much I'm worth")

'Bloody fucker,' Ginny whispered as she reached the Fat Lady.

But Ginny had to admit that it was quite impressive, the comebacks that jumped into her head once she was around him; and also the way she handled herself, not taking that coin.

That reminded her, she had to get it back; maybe Draco was right...Ginny needed a boyfriend....or a friend for that matter.

*

Ginny stayed up that night letting her thoughts jump around her head and run around. Just so long as they were in her head and not in anyone else's. Ginny decided she'd wake early in order to get to breakfast the next morning at top speed; she knew how many people actually woke early. Maybe she could make a friend...

Time went all too fast. Ginny had only been asleep for a half an hour before her alarm clock had ticked off; the alarm clock she had set on purpose.

She dressed quickly and made her way downstairs, morning books in hand. Someone had roughly pushed her from behind sending her flying forward. Her chin hit the cement Hogwarts floor and she yelled out in pain. Laughing was what filled her ears as she scuttled to pick up the fallen books. Only, something had fell out of it. Before her hand touched the parchment, someone had picked it up. Scared to look up, she picked up her last book and stood, head down.

"Excuse me, could I have that?" she asked innocently, holding out a hand.

The person silently placed the parchment down onto the palm of her hand and walked away, a bit too quiet for Ginny's liking. She forced her head to look up.

Draco Malfoy had picked up that parchment.