Ginny Weasley and the Heirs of Darkness

Chapter Ten: When the Dragon-minder Comes

Thursday of the week following the first day of classes, Gryffindor House was still buzzing with all the recent gossip: Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley had had a fight, and didn't seem interested in making up anytime soon; Ron Weasley had caught Hermione Granger kissing Draco Malfoy in the Potions hallway, so the two of them were now broken up; Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil reported that Hermione had spent every night after she returned from the Hospital Wing crying herself to sleep, as none of her close friends would speak to her; Ginny was eating all of her meals at the Ravenclaw table; and Katie Bell had been murderous since Saturday, when she discovered that half of her Quidditch team now hated each other.

In fact, the entire school was enthralled by the drama that the Gryffindors seemed determined to play out in as public a way as possible. Ron was very obviously and determinedly chasing both Hannah Abbott of Hufflepuff and Lisa Turpin of Ravenclaw; when Harry was forced to acknowledge Ginny's existence, he would refer to her as "The Gryffindor Keeper" or "Ron Weasley's sister;" Hermione would occasionally run from the Great Hall in the middle of dinner; and the death glares Ginny sent in the direction of the Slytherins could have melted steel.

For his part, Draco Malfoy kept quiet about the entire affair. He hadn't been seen with either Hermione or Ginny since the incident, but the observant few who had noticed his original interest in Ginny Weasley also noted that he still sent the occasional covert glance her way, though it was received very frostily.

Gryffindor/Slytherin Defense Against the Dark Arts class had become an ordeal. Ginny no longer paired with Bronwen Zabini- though the two girls continued to speak, their conversations were hesitant and reluctant, initiated only by Bronwen. Dean Thomas, who Ginny had conscripted as her new partner (much to Neville Longbottom's chagrin), told an eager Lavender Brown that he'd overheard one of the conversations between them:

"Ginny, please talk to him."

"I detest him." Doggedly, Ginny kept her nose buried in her text.

"Gin, you do not. He just meant to annoy Ron; I'm sure he didn't intend for things to go this far."

Ginny's eyes angrily met Bronwen's. "I can't believe you would take his part in this, Bron."

"He's a housemate, Gin, I-"

"And I'm your friend," Ginny replied tonelessly, once more burrowing into her book. "But it's clear which one matters more to you."

Dejected, Bronwen gave Ginny one last pleading look before she returned to the desk she now shared with her sister. Ginny spent the rest of the class period in self-enforced silence, speaking only to Dean when absolutely necessary. As soon as Professor Gillund indicated that class was over, Ginny gathered her books and shot out the door. She intended to spend the hour before dinner in the library, and that evening, she and Fiona planned to work on their Transfiguration homework. She'd spent the last week burying herself in her schoolwork- it was her only escape from the gossip.

"Ginny!" called a wonderfully familiar voice.

She turned, eyes alight- in all the drama during the past week, she had completely forgotten about her brother's visit. "Charlie!" she cried, running to him. He swept her into a big bear hug, and as Ginny inhaled his light, foresty cologne, she felt better than she had in ages. "Is it Thursday already?"

Charlie grinned, ruffling her hair. Ginny knew she should have been embarrassed; all the Slytherins were filing past, and she was engaged in a very public display of family affection, but she really didn't care. Let Draco Malfoy laugh at her, the bastard. His opinion didn't matter anymore. "Indeed it is, Gin. Oh, hello, Ron."

Ginny turned to see her other brother behind them in the corridor. The two of them had been very careful around each other of late. For obvious reasons, Ron no longer thought Ginny was secretly seeing Malfoy, and Ginny was no longer annoyed with Ron for making anti-Slytherin comments, since she had recently made quite a few herself; however, Hermione was a touchy subject between them. Ron was still furious with his former girlfriend, and wouldn't listen to a thing Ginny said on Hermione's behalf. Ginny saw the whole incident as entirely Draco's fault, and strangely, she had become Hermione's sole source of support, since neither Ron nor Harry would speak to her. "Hullo, Charlie," Ron greeted, giving his sister a wary smile.

Charlie glanced from one sibling to the other. "Do either of you have plans right now?" The two youngest Weasleys shook their heads. "Good," Charlie continued. "We're going to Hogsmeade for an early dinner."

Both Ron and Ginny exploded into words. "Hogsmeade? Do we have permission to go during the week?" Ron asked, finally making himself heard over Ginny's excited outburst.

"I've already spoken with Professor Dumbledore, and yes, he says you may." Charlie grinned. "It's a spectacular day outside, you don't need your cloaks, so let's go."

They were halfway down the sloping lawn on their way to the village when Charlie stopped dead in his tracks, slapping his forehead. "How thoughtless of me!" he exclaimed. "Well, it's not too late- did you two want to invite Harry and Hermione along?"

"No!" Ginny and Ron said emphatically.

Charlie raised an eyebrow at his younger siblings, but wisely let the topic wait until they arrived at The Three Broomsticks. "So," Charlie began, taking a sip of his oddly-scented drink, "I'm sensing a little bit of trouble in Hogwarts romantic paradise. What's the matter?"

Ron and Ginny glanced at each other uneasily. "You first," Ron said. "Harry won't talk to me about you, so even I don't know what's wrong."

Ginny squirmed in her seat, hiding momentarily behind her mug of butterbeer. "Must I?" Both her brothers nodded sternly, in that very irritating and yet rather endearing 'we know what's best for you' sort of way. She sighed. "Very well, if you must know." A pause. "I broke up with him," she squeaked in a very quiet voice.

"You what?" Ron demanded, causing several heads to turn in their direction. He blushed brightly, lowering his tone to a furious whisper. "You what?" he repeated.

A second sigh escaped Ginny's lips as she fidgeted under the scrutiny of her two brothers. "I'm not seeing Harry anymore, Ron," she said in a firmer tone.

Charlie remained silent, but Ron's face was still bright red, and it was clear he was at a loss as to why his sister, who had doted on Harry for an eternity, would suddenly break up with her hero. "Why?"

Ginny met Ron's eyes. "For a far better reason than the one you have for callously ditching Hermione," she said, exasperated.

"You're not with Hermione, either, Ron?" Charlie asked, finally breaking his self-imposed silence. "Why not?"

Ginny raised an eyebrow- so Charlie wasn't surprised by her news, but he was shocked about Hermione and Ron? Irony tinged her thoughts as she wondered exactly what that said about her month-long relationship with The Boy Who Lived. More like The Boyfriend Who Was Short-Lived, Ginny snickered to herself.

Now it should be Ron's turn to fidget, but to Ginny's annoyance, he didn't look the least bit discomfited; apparently he still felt that his was the cause of righteous indignation. "Caught her kissing Malfoy in the Potions hallway."

"Malfoy?" Charlie asked, eyes as wide as saucers. "That's disgusting!"

"That's what I think!" Ron declared, triumphant.

But Charlie wasn't finished. "He's got to be at least forty years old-" At this, Ginny dissolved into a fit of giggles.

"Not Lucius, Charlie. His son- Draco."

Charlie had the grace to look embarrassed. "Oh. Guess I didn't know that man had been allowed to procreate," he said snidely. Ginny smiled behind her hand. That had been a prime example of the classic Weasley defense mechanism: blush a brilliant shade of red, then make an amusing remark to divert attention from oneself.

Ron harrumphed. "Well, he shouldn't have been. Malfoy's the biggest prat to ever set foot in Hogwarts, and-"

"Oh, he is not," Ginny replied hotly before abruptly clamping her mouth shut. She hadn't meant to defend Draco-

"Sticking up for him, are you?" Ron snapped, turning on his sister. "It figures- there were rumors during prefects' training about the two of you." His eyes narrowed. "Expect that's why you broke up with Harry, isn't it?"

Charlie had been watching the fight with an expression of paternal amusement, but now he seemed concerned. "Ginny," he said in a warning tone, "nothing good can come from mixing with a Malfoy. You know how much trouble Lucius Malfoy has given Dad at work."

Suddenly, in spite of her adept maneuvering of the conversation, Ginny once again found herself uncomfortably in the limelight. She groaned, hiding behind her hands. "I don't want to talk about Draco."

Ron shot a glance at Charlie. "See?" he demanded. "Calls him 'Draco' now, like they're the best of friends." He made a face. "Or more than friends."

Ginny's hands slammed down on the table, causing Ron's very full mug of butterbeer to slosh over its edges and onto the rough wooden surface. "Ron! Why on earth would I be dating someone who, just last week, was seen kissing your girlfriend in the Potions corridor?" She turned to Charlie, as if she couldn't bear speaking with a dolt like Ron for another moment. "This is what Hermione told me: she and Draco were doing some extra-credit work for Snape, and they had an argument." Ginny paused, frowning. "Though she wouldn't say what about. Anyway, then Hermione leaves Snape's classroom, but Draco follows her, and they snap at each other. Draco hears Ron coming, and out of sheer mean-spirited git-ish-ness," Ginny smiled faintly at her newly-coined word, "he kisses her.

"But this idiot," Ginny jabbed a thumb in Ron's direction, "won't believe the words of his own girlfriend, preferring to think that she was sneaking around with his worst enemy. Which," Ginny finished, tone rich with irony, "he also thinks his little sister is doing. For all that you hate Draco, Ron, you certainly have an inflated opinion of his skills with women." Rant finished, she took a sip of butterbeer, hiding a smirk behind her tankard.

Ron's mouth opened and closed, but no words issued forth, and Charlie was snickering behind his own glass. "Well said, Gin," he managed when he surfaced, giving his younger sister an appreciative grin. "I'd say you're pretty close to convincing 'this idiot' that he owes Hermione an apology."

Flushed with embarrassment, Ron turned the subject back on Ginny. "Enough about me. You still didn't say why you broke up with Harry, Gin."

Ginny looked down at her nails. In a moment of foolishness over the weekend, she had allowed Parvati Patil to paint them, and they were now a bright Prussian blue- Ginny kept forgetting to ask for the removal spell. "Er, well..." Another sigh. "Over the years, I had built him up so much in my mind- but then, once I finally had him, I realized he wasn't what I wanted at all."

"Because you want Malfoy instead," Ron muttered. She snapped her head toward him, eyes ablaze.

"And what if I did, Ron?" She shook her head. "Never mind. That subject is closed." Ginny turned a bright smile on Charlie. "Let's talk about a Weasley family relationship that is going well- how's Jenica?"

Charlie chuckled. "Funny you should phrase it that way, Gin- we're not together anymore, either."

"Oh, no. What happened?"

An inelegant roll of the eyes. "Her family decidedly did not approve of her dating a young English guy who spent all his time camping in the woods and chasing after dragons, and Jenica made it fairly clear that I had to choose between her and my job." He smiled down at his callused hands, which had more than a few scars and scorch marks. "It wasn't a very difficult choice."

"I'm sorry, Charlie," Ginny said, meaning it. "She was a nice girl."

He shrugged. "That she was. But she obviously didn't understand me very well. I gave up Quidditch for the dragons; giving up Jenica was easy by comparison." He winked at his siblings, who were both fanatical about playing Quidditch, and Ginny and Ron laughed. The conversation turned to other things (like how the Cannons had been faring recently, and how much everyone missed Mrs. Weasley's home cooking), and they passed a pleasant meal together.

To Ginny's surprise, it was dark when they stepped outside. "How long were we in there?" she asked. Ginny didn't own a watch, a piece of information that would not have surprised Cho Chang in the slightest, considering how often the youngest Weasley was late for meetings. Ron glanced at his wrist.

"Couple hours; it's seven. Gives me an hour to do homework in the Prefects' Room - I have rounds tonight." He wrinkled his nose.

"Oh? Who with?"

A shrug. "I don't know; I've already had two sets with Pauwlonia," Ron replied, referring to his mentoring partner, Pauwlonia Smythe, an energetic Hufflepuff fifth-year who also played Chaser for Quidditch. She and Ron had hit it off in a very comfortable, platonic way, not dissimilar to Ginny and Cho. He looked askance at Ginny. "Are you sure I don't have them with you, little sister, you paragon of timeliness and preparation?"

Ginny chuckled. Their earlier harsh words were forgotten, and it was wonderful to be on good terms with Ron again. In spite of everything, he was still her favorite brother. "I'm positive it's not me. I've only had one set with Cho, so if you're on tonight, she and I can't possibly be up. Ha." Ginny's eyes shimmered with an evil mirth. "Maybe your rounds will be with Draco!"

"I'd turn my own wand on myself," Ron muttered, glowering at his sister.

Charlie coughed. "Heard you've done that before," he said with a snicker.

Ron looked blank, but Ginny giggled, knowing exactly the incident to which Charlie referred. "Does 'eat slugs' ring a bell, Ron?" she asked sweetly. Ron gagged, rolling his eyes, and Ginny turned to Charlie. "Oddly enough, Draco Malfoy was involved in that little altercation as well. I'm amazed you could have gone so long without knowing of his existence, Charlie."

Charlie shrugged. "George just mentioned that the problem had stemmed from 'some second-year Slytherin prat,' and didn't say who it was." He made a face. "Shouldn't really be surprised that Lucius managed to produce a child as miserable as himself."

Before Ginny could reply, Ron cut in. "It was George who told you?" he demanded. His expression darkened. "I ought to send him a Howler..."

Ginny giggled. "Only if you want to receive one from Mum in return. She'd kill you for sending a Howler to the house."

"True enough." They reached the front hall of the castle, parting ways with Charlie. He promised to eat with them at the Gryffindor table the following evening, and then show them around his new apartments in the castle.

Together, the two youngest Weasleys trudged up the main staircase. "I'll walk you to the Prefects' room," Ginny offered. "I left a book in there that I need for Transfiguration."

They entered the room, Ginny in the lead, and she was forced to quickly stifle a giggle when she saw who else was there. So her jest had come true, then...

Draco looked up from his Herbology homework, the tiniest of pleased smiles on his lips. "So, I have rounds with you tonight, Weasley?"

Ron cleared his throat, drawing Draco's attention to the fact that he was standing directly behind Ginny. "Regrettably, Malfoy, yes, you do."

"Well," Ginny interjected breezily, grabbing her battered copy of A Guide to Advanced Transfiguration from a nearby table, "it's time for me to meet Fiona, Ron." Feeling more positive towards her brother than she had in quite a long time, she reached up to give him a quick embrace. "Have a fun night!" she finished evilly.

"Take my rounds for me tonight, Gin," Ron whispered in her ear before she pulled away. "You don't hate him as much as I do."

"I don't think so," she said with a glance at Draco, who was eyeing them sullenly. "I promised Fiona I'd study with her, and besides, I've only had one set of rounds with my mentor, remember?"

"I bet you'll get so much studying done," Ron replied dryly. "You two never shut up."

"Well, I'm sure it'll be just the same for you and Malfoy," Ginny said sweetly. "Do have a lovely time." With a wink at her brother, she slipped out the door.

Taking a seat three chairs away from Draco, Ron eyed him warily. "So, Malfoy. Where has Filch assigned us?"

Draco consulted the piece of paper in front of him. "Greenhouses, Great Hall, Hospital Wing, library, Astronomy Tower, and Charms corridor." He paused, considering. "Look, Weasley, I'll make you a deal. I'll take the first three and check them, you take the last three, and that way we spend as little time in each other's presence as humanly possible."

Ron hesitated. Technically, the agreement rendered the entire point of taking rounds in pairs absolutely useless, but avoiding Malfoy was worth it. "Agreed." He checked his watch. "Time to go."

Draco nodded, tucking his Herbology exercises inside his book. Ron raised an eyebrow, suddenly realizing why Draco wanted the first three- taking the greenhouses might help him cheat on his homework. "Actually," Ron said abruptly, "I want the first three."

"Whatever, Weasel," Draco said irritably, expression exasperated. "But are you absolutely certain?" he queried in a placating tone. "Wouldn't want you to get halfway to the Great Hall only to realize you really, really, really wanted the Astronomy Tower instead."

Ron gritted his teeth. "I'm certain."

"Good," Draco snapped, annoyed. "Let's go, then, while it's still our sixth year." Stalking out of the room, he took a right, deciding he'd check the Charms corridor first. He could hear Weasley behind him, but then the other boy turned in the direction of the Great Hall. Good. He didn't need Ron on his heels all night.

It took him about half an hour to check all of the Charms classrooms, then he went in the direction of the Astronomy Tower. He'd hoped to pawn this one off on Weasley, but no such luck- the moron had figured it out at the last second, and it hadn't been worth arguing. Draco just wasn't particularly enthused about breaking up all of the cuddling Hufflepuff couples who snuck up there in the evenings. Irritable, he stomped up the stone steps to the tower.

"Ouch!" said a loud, feminine voice as Draco's foot landed on something that felt suspiciously like another foot.

"Lumos," he said automatically, filling the dark stairwell with wandlight. His eyes widened. "Bronwen? Julius? What are you two doing here?"

Bronwen glared at him, stamping her foot against the stone floor to bring the feeling back into it. "What do you think, Draco? Honestly." She and Julius had clearly been trying to sneak past him, not realizing that the on-duty prefect was one of their housemates.

Draco scowled. "Obviously. But I assumed you two had better taste than the Astronomy Tower."

Julius looked annoyed. "Nowhere else to go tonight. Bron's friends are in our spot in the library, common room's no good, and people are studying or sleeping in both of our dorms. Where are we supposed to go?"

Any other classroom, Draco thought, but he decided not to comment. He noted with interest, however, that Ginny and Fiona must be studying in the library. "What's 'your spot' in the library?"

Bronwen shot him a look of disbelief, but then realization crossed her face, and she grinned. "Study room two. The one with no windows, in the back near where the Restricted Section used to be." Knowing Draco owed her one for telling him where Ginny was, she continued, "You're not going to take any points off us, are you?"

Draco shook his head. "No. Just get back to the common room before Filch or Weasley catch you."

Bronwen smiled. So that was why Draco was patrolling alone- he was on duty with Ron. An idea occurred to her. "Actually, I need to talk to you about something, Draco." She turned to her boyfriend. "Julius, why don't you go back, and I'll catch up with you later?"

As soon as Julius was out of sight, Draco frowned at Bronwen. "This had better be quick- if I get caught with you, I could lose my badge."

"Just call me 'Blaise' if Filch comes across us," Bronwen suggested. "He's so near-sighted that he'll believe I'm my sister."

"And Weasley?"

"Ron's not a problem," Bronwen said firmly. "I have plenty of dirt on him from Gin."

"Like what?" Draco asked, instantly curious.

Bronwen snorted delicately. "I don't think so." She started down the stairs.

"Wait, I have to check the tower."

"There's no one else up there." Bronwen grinned evilly. "For some reason, four Hufflepuffs and two Gryffindors now think the Bloody Baron has moved out of Slytherin House and into the Astronomy Tower."

An amused smile on his face, Draco joined Bronwen at the bottom of the steps. "So, what do you want?" He had a fairly good guess, but he would let Bronwen bring up Ginny and Hermione.

Bronwen's expression turned unpleasant. "I want to know why the hell you pulled that stunt with Hermione Granger last week."

A fluid shrug. "Because it amused me." Draco gave her an odd look. "Since when do I need a reason to harass the Gryffindors?"

Bronwen glowered at him as they walked down the corridor. "It was more than just harassment. Kissing someone else's girlfriend, particularly when they both hate you, is just plain disgusting." She took a deep breath, knowing her next comment would bring Draco's full wrath down on her head. "Especially when you're actually lusting after Ginny Weasley. It was a cheap move, Draco, and very un-Slytherin."

Draco stopped in the middle of the hallway, and Bronwen could see in the torchlight that his normally pale face was flushed with a feverish anger. "I'm sorry to see that spending so much time with that Gryffindor brat is wearing off on you, Bronwen. That was a very brave but very, very stupid thing to say." His mouth quirked into a mockery of a smile. "And very un-Slytherin."

Though she had heard stories from Blaise about how terribly Draco treated the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs in his year, Bronwen had never personally seen Draco at his worst. She shivered to see the cold rage in his eyes, but she held her ground. "Don't be mad at me because you can't get what you want, Draco," she said coolly. She tilted her head, examining him shrewdly. "Or are you just afraid you won't be able to live up to her last boyfriend?"

The very implication that he wasn't as good as Harry Potter was enough to infuriate Draco; Bronwen had played her cards beautifully. Draco's flinty eyes were blazing with such bright anger, Bronwen was certain that real sparks would fly from them momentarily. "If I wanted to, I could make her forget Potter even existed," he snapped.

Bronwen smiled, delighted that he'd risen to her challenge. "Then do it," she called to him as she walked away.

Fuming, Draco made his way toward the library, already wishing he could change the outcome of his conversation with Bronwen. His fellow Slytherin had meant well, but there were so many extra circumstances that she didn't understand; in particular, the need to squeeze information out of the Belleton twins. He absolutely could not make any real progress with Ginny until he figured out Frédéric and Georgine.

"Damn French," he muttered to himself as he pushed through the double library doors. Oh, well, so the Ginny thing was going nowhere for the moment. He still knew where she was, and if what Ron had said was at all accurate, she and Fiona would be gossiping, not studying. And if Draco's luck was with him, he just might be the topic of their conversation. He positioned himself outside of study room two, smiling in satisfaction when he heard voices drifting out from underneath the door.

"You need to talk to Bronwen, Gin. She's been really upset."

There was a moment of silence. "But I can't talk to her, Fiona. Her sole purpose lately has been to get me with Draco, and I just don't see that happening anytime soon. Maybe not ever."

Draco frowned, a hollow and altogether unfamiliar ache settling itself underneath his sternum. Ginny couldn't see herself with him? He glared at the study room, as if his irritation could reach her right through the heavy, solid-core mahogany door.

"Why not?" Fiona asked. "I thought you were interested in him."

Another hesitation. "I thought I was, too," Ginny replied hesitantly. "But after what he did to Hermione-"

Silently, Draco cursed. The incident with Granger had been perfect in the sense that it had royally pissed off Weasley, and it had shifted public attention away from his interest in Ginny. But if even Ginny no longer thought he fancied her- perhaps it had worked too well.

Fiona's smooth alto interrupted his thoughts. "Well, think about it logically for a moment," she suggested. Draco exhaled in relief- maybe Fiona would talk Ginny around. He was suddenly thankful that hot-tempered Gryffindor Ginny had sought friendship with a level-headed Ravenclaw. "You don't honestly think Malfoy's interested in Hermione, do you?" Draco gagged at the very idea; just kissing Granger had been painful. Five minutes afterward, he'd utterly depleted Crabbe's supply of Tooth-Flossing Stringmints, hoping to erase the moment from his sensory memory.

"No," Ginny replied reluctantly.

"So we agree that he's probably still interested in you, then?"

"He's certainly poor at showing it, if he is." Ginny's voice was tinged with a childish sullenness.

Fiona laughed. "Oh, really? Odd- I seem to remember a verbatim repetition of a conversation you had with him, in which he insinuated he'd rather like to have you for a girlfriend. But correct me if I'm wrong- my memory could be faulty, after all."

Draco grinned; one point scored for Fiona.

Ginny heaved a loud sigh- it was audible even through the thick door. "No, your memory is fine. But-"

"No 'buts.' I don't think that what happened with Hermione was even remotely related to you."

Not exactly correct, Draco thought, but close enough.

"And," Fiona continued, "I agree with Bronwen- there's still hope for you and Draco- but only if you're cooperative. So," she concluded, "you need to start speaking to Bron again, and you need to pick up where you left off with Malfoy."

Ginny giggled. "Yes, ma'am!" A pause. "But not yet," she added seriously. "I need time for things to come to a close with Harry- that situation is so awful right now."

Draco smiled, pleasantly surprised by what he'd heard. Fiona had talked sense into Ginny, and Ginny seemed content to wait on things, which would give him time to check out the twins. Not interested in taking points off of Gryffindor or Ravenclaw at the moment, he left the girls to their conversation and made his way back to the Prefects' Room, feeling even more smugly pleased with himself than usual. Even Weasley couldn't ruin this good mood.

***

Ron hummed atonally to himself as he searched the greenhouses. They checked out; no students were in the vicinity. On his way to the Great Hall, he passed Mrs. Norris, resisting the usual urge to give the mangy cat a solid kick in the ribs; they were theoretically on the same side now. Her lamp-like eyes passed over him coolly, as if she didn't like the situation any better than he, but their paths crossed without incident.

The Great Hall was clear- Ron extinguished the fire in the main hearth, closing and locking the massive double doors behind him as he exited. The first floor corridor was also considered part of the territory labeled "Great Hall," and so Ron walked the passage slowly, his mind on other things- Hermione, mostly.

He was just wondering how he was going to phrase an apology that avoided admitting his own culpability when he heard a loud noise from the nearby girls' toilets. Ron groaned. He should have let Malfoy take this end after all- Ron had been in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom more times than he cared to enumerate, and he had no desire to investigate the noise.

Cautiously, he poked his head in the door, instinctively bracing himself for an onslaught of Dark Arts spells; Ron Weasley really had spent a ridiculous percentage of his adolescence helping Harry Potter save Britain from evil. "H-hello?" he called. "Anyone here?"

His eyes widened in shocked horror at what he saw- a face, horrifyingly familiar, was hovering in the middle of a bright green fire, and on the floor, a girl knelt before the flames, her head bowed. Ron froze, terrified, when the evil red eyes of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named turned to meet his own.

"My beloved servant," the Dark Lord hissed at the prostrated girl. "Deal with him."

She rose, leveling her wand at Ron, brown eyes- eyes he knew and trusted- full of apology. "I'm so sorry," she whispered. Her voice trembled, not at all the confident one with which he was familiar. "Obliviatus Temporarum," she murmured.

A blinding light flashed before his eyes, and he crumpled to the ground, struggling desperately to recall why his heart had been pounding so painfully.

***

Frédéric Belleton woke Friday morning with a miserable feeling lodged in the pit of his stomach- unlike most fifteen-year-old boys, who regarded Fridays with an awe bordering on holy, Frédéric despised them, because Fridays meant double Potions.

With the Hufflepuffs.

For the most part, Hufflepuffs were harmless enough, at least the ones in his year. But the fourth-year class... There was a girl, he couldn't remember her name, but he hated her. Hated her. And she had the entire class wrapped around her little finger.

It had all begun with a snide comment from her about France clearly having low education standards, since a fifth-year was in the fourth-year class. This had spiraled into a nasty war of insults and underhanded pranks, spoiled potions and small, well-aimed missiles made of Drooble's Best Blowing Gum and sharp Stinger-Snappers.

Though he would not have admitted all this to any of his Slytherin fellows, most of whom thought Hufflepuffs were about as noteworthy as a rotten cabbage, Frédéric still felt the right to complain about the girl in general terms.

"And she's just such a bitch," he groused to Damian as they made their way to the Great Hall for breakfast. Normally he would have told the whole saga to Georgine, but she was up ahead with Pansy Parkinson, giggling and shooting glances at Dmitri Baxr, a seventh-year prefect. Though Pansy had sulked and pouted about Draco Malfoy for weeks, she'd stopped fairly quickly when she realized it wasn't getting her anywhere, and Dmitri was now the unlucky boy on whom she'd set her sights.

"A fourth-year Hufflepuff, huh?" Damian asked. "What's her name? My sister's a Hufflepuff, maybe she knows her and could get her to leave you alone."

Frédéric raised an eyebrow, doubting that any other Hufflepuff would be even remotely capable of controlling this girl. "Lara or Laurel or something. I don't know, but she's absolutely hideous. One more lesson and I just might kill her." He smiled nastily. "How many points would a murder cost Slytherin?"

He glanced at Damian, wondering why his friend hadn't responded. Damian had stopped in the middle of the corridor, causing Millicent Bulstrode to run into him. Her already sour expression worsened.

"Bloody hell, Godswift, move or get out of the way," she snarled.

"What's the matter with you?" Frédéric inquired of his friend. Damian's face was buried in the sleeve of his robes, and his shoulders were shaking.

"Laurana?" he managed to gasp. "Is her name Laurana?"

Frédéric snapped his fingers. "Yes, that's it."

Finally, Damian brought himself under control. "Do you know her last name?"

"No," Frédéric replied cautiously, wondering what Damian was getting at. Maybe it was something really awful, like Toadlicker- extra ammunition to use against her. "What is it?"

Damian grinned. "It's Godswift."

Frédéric stared blankly at his friend. "The bitch? She's your sister?" In spite of himself, he grinned. "I should have figured."

Damian glanced at the Hufflepuff table as Frédéric scanned for good seats at the Slytherin one. "Want me to say anything to her? You know, tell her you're a mate of mine?"

A scowl as Frédéric considered. "I don't know. Normally, I like to fight my own battles." He gave his friend a rueful grin. "But I would feel a little bad proceeding with my plans, knowing she's family of yours."

"Plans?" Damian asked, curiosity piqued.

"I don't think so," Frédéric grinned. "Now I know you're biased."

Damian started as he plunked a heap of fried eggs on his plate. "Hardly. I'd love to see you get a good one past Laurana; she's always so smug."

Frédéric chewed thoughtfully on a bite of sausage. "Well, alright," he said finally, leaning forward conspiratorially. "Here's what I have in mind..."

***

In spite of her reconciliation with Ron, Ginny was still taking her meals at the Ravenclaw table; she wanted to steer clear of Harry until that situation had cooled considerably. She had just finished her porridge when Cho Chang took the seat across from Fiona. Cho looked exhausted- her skin was even paler than normal, and the hollows under her eyes were tinged with black.

"Cho, are you alright?" Ginny asked, immediately concerned for her friend.

Cho nodded distractedly. "Has Dumbledore made the announcement yet?"

Fiona and Ginny shared a nervous glance. "What announcement, Cho?" Fiona queried, gray eyes worried.

Cho hesitated, then sighed. "Well, I suppose you'll know soon enough, and Ginny has a right to know." She lowered her voice. "A prefect was attacked last night."

Ginny's heart dropped to her stomach- Ron and Draco had been on duty. "Which one?" she whispered, automatically scanning the Slytherin and Gryffindor tables for the familiar shocks of platinum- and flame-colored hair. Now that she thought on it, she hadn't seen either of them when she entered the Great Hall for breakfast that morning.

"Ron," Cho said wearily, pushing her hair out of her face. "Dumbledore woke me and Jaron at four o'clock this morning, just as soon as Mrs. Norris found him." She looked angry. "He was found alone."

"But why wasn't his partner with him? Aren't prefects meant to patrol in pairs?" Fiona demanded.

Cho's scowl deepened. "They're meant to, yes. But the other prefect last night was Draco Malfoy, and from what I understand, they agreed to patrol separately, in order to avoid each other."

Ginny nodded. "They certainly weren't happy to have duty together," she confirmed. "Cho, why did you put them together?" Her heart was still thumping nervously- what could have happened to her brother?

"Jaron scheduled the duty sheet for this week," Cho said defensively. "He must've forgotten. Anyway," she continued, "Draco claims he finished his duty at two and returned to the Prefects' Room to pick up his things, and that when Ron wasn't there, he assumed that 'Weasley was taking his time.' So Draco says he went to bed." She sighed. "Dumbledore can't prove or disprove his story, and after exhaustive grilling-"

"Cho," Ginny interrupted, unable to hold the question in any longer, "is Ron alright? Can I see him?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, Ginny," Cho said tiredly. "I haven't got my head on straight this morning. Yes, Ron's fine, although he has no memory of what happened to him. He took quite a nasty whack to the head, so Madam Pomfrey is keeping him yet today for rest, but you should be able to see him tomorrow."

Ginny nodded, relieved. "Thank you," she said. "I'm sorry I interrupted- what were you saying?"

"Oh, don't worry about it. I'd be terrified if something were to happen to my sister," Cho replied, patting Ginny's hand sympathetically. "I was just saying that Professor Dumbledore asked Draco a million questions, but his story seems accurate, so he's not being blamed for what happened." She frowned. "He has, however, been warned that he'll lose his badge if he's caught breaking a prefectural rule again. Honestly, taking rounds alone at a time like this!"

Ginny and Fiona glanced at each other again. "A time like this?" Ginny demanded, examining the Head Girl curiously. Due to her position, Cho was probably privy to information unknown even by the other prefects. "What do you mean?"

"Nothing," Cho said firmly, an air of authority about her in spite of her exhaustion. "Forget I said anything."

And from that statement, she could not be budged.

No announcement was forthcoming from the head table during the meal, but the school was nevertheless buzzing with the news during morning classes. The Slytherins had heard the entire story from Draco, and the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws guessed that something was wrong, since the Head Boy and Girl had been roused from their beds so early that morning. It didn't take the Gryffindors long to realize that one of their number was missing, and the classes that were doubles soon pieced the whole story together, or at least an approximation. By lunchtime, Ginny was receiving sympathetic glances in the halls during passing period, and by the time dinner arrived, she was about ready to snap under the stress. It made her glad she still took her meals with the Ravenclaws; out of all the houses, the logical Ravenclaws were the least prone to gossip and speculation.

Seating herself next to Fiona, she leant her head tiredly against her friend's shoulder for a moment. Fiona smoothed her hair. "Rough day?" she asked.

Ginny nodded, straightening. "A bit," she sighed.

"Things will be fine, Ginny," Cho assured her from across the table. "Eat something, you'll feel much better."

Ginny laughed weakly. "Now you sound like my mother."

"That she does, Gin," said a voice from behind her. "Did you forget about our dinner together?"

Ginny spun around in her seat. "Oh, Charlie, I'm sorry, I did forget."

Charlie nodded, taking the empty seat next to Cho and giving his sister a reassuring smile. "It's alright, it's been a trying day."

Cho giggled. "Trying day or not, Ginny is physically incapable of being on time or remembering any meeting," she joked, trying to take her friend's mind off of what had happened to Ron.

"This is true," Charlie replied, turning to the pretty girl next to him. He smiled at her. "I'm Charlie Weasley," he said, introducing himself.

"I know," Cho said smoothly. "You were Gryffindor Seeker during my first year." She grinned. "I thought you were brilliant. Oh, and I'm Cho Chang."

Charlie's eyes shone with pleasure. "You remember me? I'm flattered." Ginny smothered a smile, amused to see her older brother caught off guard. Glancing from Cho to Charlie and back again, an idea germinated in her mind. Charlie and Cho were both Quidditch Seekers, and both excelled at Care of Magical Creatures. Charlie was no longer with Jenica, but Ginny had noted that he tended to prefer intelligent, elegant dark-haired girls. And Cho had said she'd like someone older- Charlie was twenty-three to Cho's seventeen. Ginny glanced at Fiona, and was pleased to see her friend nod- so the idea had occurred to Fiona as well.

Cho smiled at Charlie, much more animated than she had been at breakfast. It might just be that she had taken a nap before dinner, but Ginny decided that Cho was interested in Charlie. If she could fix up the two of them.... She struggled to pay attention to what Cho was saying. "-admired your abilities on the pitch," she commented. "I play Seeker for Ravenclaw, but-"

"But nothing," Fiona interrupted. "She's very good." She paused thoughtfully, then, as if the idea had just occurred to her, "You should come see her play! First Quidditch match is in three weeks, Ravenclaw versus Gryffindor."

"So I could see my baby sister in her first game as Keeper, too, hmm?" Charlie asked, winking at Ginny when she blushed.

"Oh, Charlie, you must come," Ginny insisted. "Do you think you'll still be here?"

Charlie smiled. "Well, yes, actually." He lowered his voice so only the three girls could hear him. "I was hoping to share this news with you and Ron first, but- well, things are going so well with Madam Maxime that Hagrid has decided to stay in France indefinitely, meaning that I've been offered the Care of Magical Creatures job."

Ginny's jaw dropped. "You're staying?" she asked, shocked. "But, Charlie, what about Romania, what about the dragons and living in tents in the woods and all that nonsense?"

He laughed. "Oh, don't think I'm not going back, because I am. But Hagrid intends to stay for the remainder of the year, so I'll be here until June."

Ginny beamed, about to congratulate her brother, but Cho spoke first. "You work with dragons in Romania?" she asked, tone awed. Charlie's eyes lit, and he proceeded to tell his most avid listener everything about his beloved work. Ginny and Fiona exchanged glances, pleased. Ginny had a feeling Cho was now going to be the one getting the tour of Charlie's apartments after dinner, not his younger sister.

Ginny and Fiona dawdled after dinner, waiting outside the Great Hall for the Slytherins to file out. "Might as well get it over with," Fiona had reasoned to her.

Grumbling, Ginny had agreed. "Bronwen," she called as her friend sauntered past, accompanied by Damian Godswift, Moira Quinn, and Frédéric Belleton. Ginny frowned to see Bronwen with Georgine's twin brother, but she didn't comment.

Caution scrawled obviously on her face, Bronwen approached hesitantly, her three Slytherin fellows waiting for her a few feet away. "Yes?" she asked, tone cool.

Ginny sighed, knowing her past behavior merited the chilly response. "I wanted to apologize, Bron. I've been pretty unpleasant this last week, and I want to tell you that I don't think it's your fault."

Bronwen's green eyes lit with pleasure, and she threw her arms around her friend. "Gin, I'm so glad you understand!" she cried, beaming at Fiona from over Ginny's shoulder. "I've got so many things to tell you about Draco," she whispered in Ginny's ear. "When are you free?"

"Um, whenever," she replied, mentally rolling her eyes. She should have known Bronwen would be on about Draco just as soon as they'd made up.

Bronwen glanced at her Slytherin friends. "Well, Moira, Damian, Frédéric and I were going to play Exploding Snap for awhile; want to come?"

Damian cleared his throat, noting Frédéric's uncomfortable expression. "Not such a good idea to invite them to the common room, Bron. Last time it was just Ginny, and we had Draco and Blaise's support behind us. I'm a prefect, but to bring two non-Slytherins to the common room all by myself isn't very feasible."

"So let's play in the Great Hall, then," Bronwen suggested. She brightened. "Then we could invite Laurana, too."

Ginny and Fiona nodded eagerly. Laurana Godswift was a good friend of theirs, but they didn't get to see her very often, since she was a year behind in classes.