Stole

STOLE

CHAPTER FOUR

Countdown - 9 Days

A whole weekend lay out before us. And to me, it seemed a whole weekend without Draco. I woke up thinking exactly that. I rolled over to look at my clocks. One my mum had sent me in my first year. It was like a miniature version of the clock we had in our kitchen back in The Burrow, but instead of just showing general places, it showed all the general places in the school. I still don't know why she sent it to me, the only people it was good for was Ron, Fred and George. But lately, I had found a new use. I would check where Ron was. And remember - wherever Ron was, Harry was. It helped me avoid him. The other clock was just a regular alarm clock. Not that I ever used the alarm. I checked my clock for where Ron was. Ron was still in bed. This meant I could sneak down and grab breakfast, before the trio came down. Then I glanced over at my regular clock - 6:30am!!! I had NEVER woken up this early before. No one in the entire castle would wake up this early. But unfortunately, as always, when you're awake, you can't get back to sleep. So I decided just to get up and have a nice hot shower and head down to breakfast. I got up and grabbed my clothes and headed into the shower. As the heat washed over my body, I couldn't help but wish that Draco was with me. This then made me excited. I realized it was only 9 days until the Yule Ball. 9 Days until I could be with Draco. I hate waiting. I turned off the water and grabbed my towel. I quickly got dressed and preceded down the Gryffindor stairs to the Common Room. As it was only 6.45am, not a soul was down there. So I walked out the portrait and down to the Hall. I stepped into the Hall, expecting to find it empty. Well, it was; except for Draco. Obviously, he was well enough not to stay in the Hospital Wing. He didn't even look up as I walked into the hall. He looked like he was reading something. It could have been a letter, it was hard to say. But he looked involved none the less. I wanted to leave him to it, but from where I was standing, he looked almost upset. So I quietly walked over to him, carefully letting him not see me, careful not to distract him. I walked over and sat in the one place I didn't belong - at the Slytherin table. He still hadn't noticed me, so I placed my hand on his leg. He jumped slightly and glared at me. Until he realized it was me. Then he sighed and reached over and gave me a kiss.

"Well is it that much of a chore, Draco?"

"Oh no. No. I'm sorry Ginny. It's just that I can't be angry at you. I've always been taught to have constant vigilance. But you always seem to catch me off guard."

"So in one way or another - I defeated a Malfoy?!"

I laughed at the stupidity of it all, and Draco smiled slightly.

"You know that I'll never let you win. Not a Weasley."

I was shocked that he said it. But he placed his hand on my cheek and gave me another sweet kiss, the kind that leaves you wanting more.

"Hunny, I was only joking. I'm going against everything I was taught to believe in, and for some reason, it feels right."

I smiled and looked down at the letter he was holding in his hands.

"Should I ask?" I said, pointing to the letter.

"I'd rather if you didn't, because then I wouldn't have to lie to you."

He folded the letter and placed it under his robe.

"Draco, I'm not one to pry, but you do know you can trust me. I'm here for you 100%..."

"I know Ginny, but this is different. I know I can trust you. And I do with all I can. But you're too innocent to be getting involved with such evil..."

"Obviously you have forgotten who you're talking to Draco. Remember -first year Ginny? The one that was part of such evil, the kind of evil, no one even speaks about?"

"Ginny, no. You misunderstand. I don't want to upset you..."

"Listen Draco, I'm not in desperation to know what the letter says, but I am in desperation for you to understand that I'm not the little girl people think I am..."

"I realize that Ginny..."

"Well maybe you need to put some of that realization into practice, Malfoy."

He stared at me with definite sadness. And I realized why. I had brought in a reminder of our past. Of how he was going against everything he believed in, all because he liked me. And I had reminded him of that, all by saying his last name.

"Draco, I'm sorry. I just got caught in the heat of the moment and I wasn't thinking..."

"It's fine..."

"No, I shouldn't have..."

"Ginny, shh. Come with me."

He reached and grabbed my hand and stood up. We walked out of the hall, with Draco in the lead. I had no idea where he was taking me, but the trust that I had in him, made me follow.

We climbed what felt like a thousand steps, until we reached the top of a tower I had never even seen before.

"Um Draco... Where are we exactly?"

"Shh."

"But I have no idea..."

"Ginny! Shh!"

I was bursting with questions, and a little afraid. But I had a feeling that Draco wouldn't take me somewhere where I would be afraid. I guess it was that trust thing again.

We stopped in a dark room with only a small slit for a window which produced a tiny sliver of early morning light through it.

"Can I ask where we are now?"

"Well Ginny, this is where I come to think. You have you're lakes garden, I have my dark tower."

"But I thought... I mean I went down to my spot that day, and you were there. If you have this place, why did you come down to mine?"

He didn't reply with words. Instead he simply grabbed my hand again and let me to the window.

"Look down there." Draco pointed.

I looked in the direction his finger was pointing. I saw my spot by the lake. It looked so beautiful and peaceful in the early morning light. I looked at Draco again and I met his grey eyes that looked almost inviting.

"You went down every day at around 12.30. You always walked over to that big rock and sat and would think until the bell rang for the next class."

"Forgive me Draco, for being a little freaked out by this..."

"I came up here one day, and looked out and saw you crying by the lake. That's the time when I realized that you weren't a little girl anymore. You weren't like the rest of your family, who thrive on companionship. I watched you every day from then on. I saw you cry and think, and every day I grew more and more intrigued by you. But I never let on anything. A Malfoy intrigued by a Weasely? So I secretly just watched you grow up everyday. And then one day you came by the lake, and you didn't cry. You simply just sat there and thought silently. That was the day that I knew you had changed. So, the next day, at 12.30, I went down to the lake. And who should I meet, but you. I had intended to tell you that I had seen you, and that I knew you weren't the little girl everyone thought you were, but your Weasely instinct kicked in, and forced me to put on the Malfoy hostility."

"Draco. I had no idea. I'm sorry..."

"Ginny. This is my turn. Let me use it?"

I allowed myself to be silenced by him. I just stared at him and watched as he moved in to kiss me.

His kisses were hard and demanding, completely opposite to Harry's. His hands slid slowly down my face to my body and rested at my hips. Never faltering, never pausing. He slowly backed me up, until I felt my back connect with the cold stone of the wall. He moved from my lips, which were now slightly swollen, to my neck, placing white hot kisses along my collarbone and down my chest. His hands had found their way into my cloak and inside my sweater. They too were roaming freely around, until they found my bra. He played with the small of my back before they expertly undid my bra. He then moved to my front and I gasped slightly as his cold hands found my breast. He moved back up from my neck to my face, but before he kissed me, he looked deep into my eyes. I stared back and almost gasped again as I realized something. His eyes weren't grey anymore. They had gone a very pale shade of ice blue.

"Draco...Your eyes... They aren't grey anymore."

"No more words, Ginny."

He placed a single finger on my lips and silenced me once more. He leaned in again as we lost ourselves in each other.