Just One of Those Days - A Draco/Ginny Detective Story

DISCLAIMER : This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros. Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

Author's notes I : My brilliant Betas Ellen and Kioko once again deserve my deepest

gratitude. They actually manage to bring out the best in me. Virtual hugs

to you :-)

Author's notes II : Feedback is appreciated but not expected. Enjoy the story :)

~*~*~*~PART 01~*~*~*~*~

The morning sun shone brightly on the red stone of the old house. The lush wind carried over the laughter and screams of playing children from Hyde Park, which was only a short walk away. The green and yellow leaves on the trees rustled gently in the breeze while nearby a couple of birds were engaged in a heated argument.

Draco Malfoy consulted the parchment once more - yes, he had found the correct house - and anxiously stepped onto the small staircase that led to the front door, whose bright green wood sparkled in the sunlight. He reached out to ring the door bell as said door suddenly opened in his face, revealing a woman clad in piercingly bright colours.

"Hello there," she purred in a voice that spoke of long years of intimate relationships with several bottles of liquor. "Got lost, handsome?"

Draco straightened himself and gave her a condescending look. "I am here to speak with..." Malfoy frowned as he recalled with a start that he hadn't even bothered to look at the identity of his witness. Quickly he pulled out his parchment once again and checked the name. Then he looked at the woman in front of him. Back at his parchment. Back at the woman. Draco opened his mouth but no sound came out of it the first time he tried to speak.

"Miss Virginia Weasley?" he finally squeaked out.

The woman threw back her head, sending her enormous golden earrings flying. "Yes?"

"You have...changed."

"That I did," she smirked, bright pink curls dancing around her round, friendly face. "You on the other hand are just as..."

"Eliza!" A voice from inside suddenly interrupted them. "What's this commotion out there?"

"You have a visitor, Ginny!" Eliza yelled back. "You didn't tell me that you expected someone." She shot Draco an appreciating look which was returned by a cold one from his steely grey eyes. "Come in, then, Mister -"

"Malfoy," he introduced himself as he regally stepped into the dim lit corridor. "Draco Malfoy."

~*~*~

Ginny Weasley froze. Had she heard right? His name was Malfoy? Eliza had allowed a Malfoy to come into her home? The famous Weasley temper chose this occasion to flare up violently, making the petite redhead tremble in anger. An unbidden series of memories, dating back from her traumatizing experiences in her second year at Hogwarts to the present day, flooded her mind. Ginny slammed down the books she had been holding and stomped into the corridor, looking angry enough to make a mad Hippogriff pause.

"Malfoy!" Ginny hissed in a voice that barely resembled her usual one. "Get out of my house!" She drew her wand and advanced on the still man, carelessly shoving Eliza out of the way. "Get out or I swear - I'll hex your inbred behind into the next century!"

Eliza raised a perfectly groomed eyebrow at Draco. "Old lovers? What did you do, handsome? Cheat on her?"

Ginny actually choked on her next words, too stunned and disgusted to even consider herself even coming near a Malfoy. The last time that had happened she had nearly ended up being eaten by a giant Basilisk. That experience had been enough to teach the former Gryffindor to keep away from Malfoys. Nevertheless, Ginny noticed with some satisfaction, Malfoy looked just as shocked as she felt. But she still wanted him OUT OF HER HOUSE! She raised her wand once more...

"Accio wand!"

Malfoy had been faster. Draco sneered down his pale aristocratic nose at her, carelessly holding her wand in his hand. "That," he stated in a carefully controlled voice, "was not very polite. Apparently your parents couldn't afford to buy you any manners, could they, Weasley?"

What happened next took even the experienced Auror at surprise. Eliza's hand (complete with incredibly long bright fingernails) lashed out and slapped him hard across the face, leaving an angry red imprint on his cheek. The pink-haired woman fixed Draco in a stern gaze, reminding him eerily of Professor McGonagall and making him feel like a schoolboy all over again. Any second now she would surely threaten to deduct points from Slytherin. Then Draco sighed, reminding himself that he no longer attended Hogwarts but was a full-grown Auror, who had just acted less than professional. He sighed again, fighting himself while looking down on the small Weasley girl who seemed to be unsure whether to attack him or break out laughing. Draco rolled his eyes. What an immature creature.

"I apologize, Miss Weasley. That was uncalled for." 'There,Â' Draco silently congratulated himself. He had said it. He had demonstrated that a Malfoy did indeed have some manners. Unlike other people who happened to be cursed with that infernal red hair. Even if it looked quite fetching on her. 'Whoa!Â' the young man admonished himself, 'Where did that come from?Â' Fortunately, Eliza chose this exact moment to resolve the tension.

"Why are you here, Mister Malfoy? I have trouble believing that this is a social visit."

"You are correct," he stated in his best 'I'm-too-important-to-waste-my time-with-your-nonsense-voiceÂ'. "I am here to represent the Department of Magical Law Enforcement." Draco was satisfied to hear a gasp from Eliza, but the Weasley-girl stubbornly refused to be impressed, which irked him for some reason.

"So you're here to question me, right?" Ginny stepped up to him, a defiant glare in her eyes.

"Yes."

"I'll cooperate with the Department, of course," she replied coldly, gesturing towards the living room. "Let's go over there and sit down."

~*~*~*~*~*~