Stripped

Ginny sighed as she stood outside of the Three Broomsticks. A fortnight ago, she had sent a letter to Malfoy agreeing to meet with him. They had arranged to meet in Hogsmeade at the Three Broomsticks. The Leaky Cauldron in Diagon Alley would have been closer for both of them, but considering how busy the Leaky Cauldron could be they had agreed on the Three Broomsticks. Plus, Madame Rosmerta could be trusted not to tell everyone that Ginny Weasley was meeting with Draco Malfoy.

Ginny had been confident until she Apparated here. Now, she felt nervous and unsure of herself. She walked inside and waved to Madame Rosmerta. The place was empty except for two tables. Ginny chose one in the back and far away from the other patrons. After a few moments, Madame Rosmerta came over and asked, "What will it be today, dear?"

Ginny smiled and replied, "A gillywater this time."

"Anything else? A scone perhaps? You are looking a bit skinnier than usual, Miss Weasley," Madame Rosmerta asked.

Ginny gave a self-conscious smile. She was always sensitive about her weight; she had been gawky as a child and a teenager and she was still thin as an adult. She replied, "No thanks, maybe next time."

Madame Rosmerta went away and Ginny let out a breath. She looked at her watch; Malfoy had five minutes. The door opened and Malfoy walked in. Ginny gasped; he looked different. His hair was longer than it had been when they were at Hogwarts, but not as long as his father had worn his. It was probably shoulder length, Ginny surmised. It was pulled back into a ponytail. His robes were black and green and of the finest quality. But what surprised Ginny was the look on his face. As Malfoy looked around at everyone else, his expression was cold, but as soon as he saw her his eyes lit up. Frankly, it made Ginny feel uncertain.

Malfoy stopped Madame Rosmerta as she walked towards the kitchen, probably to give her his order. Ginny slouched in her seat as she began to play with the locket around her neck. Malfoy reminded her of all the bad things that had happened at Hogwarts; her possession, the ostracism by all of her other classmates, and the war. Ginny swallowed and summoned up her courage.

************

Draco walked with determination towards the back of the Three Broomsticks, ignoring the curious looks the other patrons were giving him. He was used to stares; he had been receiving them since he was a child. First, it was because he was a Malfoy and everyone was afraid of Lucius Malfoy and what he could do to them. Now, it was partly because he was a Malfoy and the Malfoy name carried power no matter what but mainly because he had been away from Britain for a long time and people didn't know what to think of him.

He smirked inwardly; most had thought of him as still the boy he had been; spoiled, bratty, and completely confident that he ruled the world. The years had told him that yes, money ruled the world, but sooner or later everyone had to pay for their actions. His father paid for his sins by losing his life at the hand of the wizard he wished to use to gain more power than already considerable power that Lucius wielded.

He never really wanted the Mark. He knew what was expected of him as a Malfoy heir; hate all Muggles and Mudbloods, have an heir, and increase the coffers of the Malfoy family before dying. He had read up on the family history and he knew that they used to just stay on the sidelines and profit whenever there was some kind of conflict in the Wizarding World. The Malfoys believed in self-preservation above everything else so it was odd that Lucius Malfoy was a Death Eater. He remembered some of the portraits of the ancestors yelling at his father, some supportive, others against his being a Death Eater.

None of that mattered now. What was done was done and he didn't have a time-turner to change the past nor any desire to change the past. As he slid into a seat across from Ginny Weasley, all he wanted was to close one chapter from the past. Then, he looked at her and he knew that was going to be impossible.

He looked at her, nervous yet determined not to show it. He smirked as he saw her glare at him. The urge to taunt her was there, lurking in his mind but he refused to do so, for now.

Ginny swallowed and then said, "Good day to you too, Malfoy. Who would ever think that the two of us would be meeting today?"

Malfoy replied, "I'm very well, Weasley. This should be quick; I wouldn't want to taint the Weasley princess with my foul reputation."

Ginny narrowed her eyes as she watched Malfoy. For some reason, he always raised her hackles and she never knew why. Every time she said it was because of his insolent demeanor, his way of telling you that he was better than you but today, she wasn't that sure. She smiled at him and then commented, "Nice robes. Rather Slytherin of you."

Smirking, Draco said, "A Weasley that can notice quality. I'm impressed."

Ginny snorted, but refrained from making a retort as Madame Rosmerta came to deposit their drinks. "If you need anything else, I'll be over there," she said while pointing towards the bar, "Enjoy

Draco twisted the cap off of his butterbeer as Ginny took a sip of her gillywater. Then he said, "Do you still remember that night?"

Ginny started then she remembered where she was. She answered, "It's not the type of thing that someone just forgets."

She shivered as if she was remembering something else. Draco watched her, concern in her eyes. Everyone knew about her being possessed by Tom Riddle, but he never personally saw her deal with it. He asked, "All right?"

Ginny nodded as she took another sip of her gillywater. Then she stated, "I felt him, his presence when I saw you. It was overwhelming and I nearly freaked out."

Draco looked at Ginny, seeing her in a new light. He thought, she has a strength of character that not many have. Then he tentatively asked, "Why didn't you tell anyone? I mean, your family hated me and it would have been an easy way to get rid of a Death Eater."

Ginny sipped her gillywater as she weighed her options. She could tell him that she wanted to tell but Snape told her not to or she could tell him the truth; I should have said something, but I didn't because I felt it wasn't my place to tell anyone. She decided to tell him, "Snape told me to tell no one and originally that was why but I also didn't say anything because I felt that I shouldn't say anything. Its weird and I still don't understand why."

Draco looked at Ginny again, assessing her. His father had always told him that the Weasleys were idiots but to watch the daughter. Not only was she the only daughter but she was the seventh child which meant that she was probably the most powerful out of her siblings. But now, he saw something underneath her power. There was something about her that he wanted, an integrity that he didn't have. Slytherins didn't have integrity, but for some reason he desired it. She made him feel unworthy with merely two sentences.

But then, he never had felt quite worthy around Ginny Weasley. Ever since she hit him with the Bat-Bogey hex back in his fifth year, Draco had been in a bit of awe of her. Now, she made him feel a bit strange.

Ginny sighed as silence enveloped them. She could feel that something had just changed between the two of them that moment. She sighed and then muttered, "Don't you have something sarcastic to say right now?"

Draco looked up, confused then he smirked with the realization of what she had just said. He commented, "Actually, I don't, Weaselette."

Ginny snarled as he said her least favorite nickname. She retorted, "Good to see that you're still a git, Malfoy."

Draco chuckled, happy that he could still get under her skin. Then he looked at his watch and commented, "It's half three and I have a meeting at half four. I need to go."

He took a long swig of his butterbeer as Ginny watched him. She was sorry to admit it, but she was a bit sad that he was leaving. She said, "Good luck with your meeting."

Draco shrugged then remarked, "Shouldn't have a problem at all with it," as he stood up.

Then, in an uncustomary move, he said, "Thank you for coming."

Getting out of her seat, Ginny replied, "My pleasure."

Draco held out his hand and Ginny shook it. Then she stepped back as she felt a shock go through her body. Draco must have felt it too as he looked at her strangely. Then he just Apparated out of the pub.

Ginny blinked then she went over to the bar. She said, "Thanks, Rosmerta, for letting us come here."

Rosmerta waved her hands and said, "Not a problem for one of my favorite girls."

Then she looked around and ushered Ginny closer. "Just letting you know, I couldn't keep Rita Skeeter out of here. I tried to keep her from the back," Rosmerta said, looking around to make sure no one was listening in.

Ginny swore under her breath before saying, "I understand."

However, over in the loo, Rita Skeeter had an Extendable Ear in one hand and her Quick Notes quill in the her writing hand. She murmured to herself, "I have the story of the century right here in my hands."