Smear

Chapter Five

She could still hear Harry, Bill and the twins talking quietly as she walked upstairs to her bedroom. She slipped into her room and shut the door softly. Turning around, her eyes fell on her bed, so warm and inviting.

After she had slipped into a pair of fleece pajama pants and a tank top, she crawled underneath the covers and settled back against the pillows. With her eyes shut, she thought back to the beginning of the night, smiling slightly. Just as she felt her body relax and fall into sleep, she heard a noise.

Tap, tap, tap.

Slowly she rose and peered at the glass. When she saw nothing, she concluded it must have just been the wind, and snuggled back into her warm blankets.

Someone called her name.

She bolted up, her eyes wide with terror. She dared a glance at the window, and gasped when her eyes found a figure hovering outside. Ginny got up and opened the window.

"It's bloody cold," he said. "Move out of the way, so I can get in."

He placed his hands on the frame of the window, lifted himself from his broom and stepped inside. With his feet on the floor and his broom over his shoulder, Draco smirked at her.

"What are you-"

Her sentence was cut off, as his lips crashed against her, his arms going around her waist, pulling her against his body. He felt her body twitch when his hands crept underneath her nightshirt, his fingers sweeping across her stomach.

When he felt her body stiffen slightly in his arms, he pulled back.

"What is it?"

"What are you doing here?" Ginny asked, stepping back. "You're not allowed to be here. It's late."

"You don't want me here?" he asked, frowning.

Ginny's eyes widened slightly. "Oh, no, that's not what I meant at all! Of course, I want you here. I just-" She stopped speaking when he walked to the window and looked out into her backyard. "What is it?"

"Would you like to go for a walk?" Draco said softly.

"I...you..." Ginny stuttered, glancing at him.

"I know you said it's late," he said quietly, turning around. "I promise I'll have you back in your bed before the sun rises, and I'll be gone before anyone else wakes up."

Ginny considered this for a moment before she nodded. "Alright, but if I'm not back by the time my parents wake up, I'm holding you personally responsible, and I will turn a blind eye if my family wants to castrate you."

Draco shuddered. Then he grabbed her hand. "Come on."

Not even ten minutes later, Ginny was behind Draco as they flew away from her house. "I thought you said we were going for a walk?"

"We are," he said. "This is just transporting us to our destination."

"You couldn't have just Apparated us?"

"And leave my broom where someone could see it?" he asked, turning his head slightly. When he did a nosedive , he heard her scream, her arms tightening around his waist. "You shouldn't be scared; you played Quidditch," he reminded her, rolling his eyes.

"I didn't expect you to do that," Ginny explained, relaxing as they descended somewhere unfamiliar. "Where are we?"

"Near my home." He used his wand and muttered, "Reducio." Then he placed the small broom in his pocket and looked at her. "What?"

"Nothing," Ginny said, shaking her head. "So, where are we going?"

He took her hand, which happened to startle her. "Sorry. We're going to my house, actually. I thought you'd like to see it."

"Aren't your parents-"

"There? Yes, but they'll be asleep by now, I'm sure. Besides, my room is only meant for me to enter. We won't be disturbed."

"I thought you said we were going for a walk?" she repeated as she followed close behind him. "I don't like the way it looks around here."

Draco stopped short, and then smirked to himself. "You learn to be thankful for the darkness when the only things you hear are the screams of the people you care for; you'll be looking for a place to hide."

Ginny shuddered at his words, and instinctively wrapped an arm around his as she came up behind him. His body went rigid at her touch, which surprised her.

"I'm sorry," she said, pulling back.

When his lips brushed hers, and his arms wrapped around her waist to pull her closer, she moaned into his mouth and tangled her fingers in his hair.

Draco grunted and broke the kiss. As he moved his head away, he saw her eyes flutter, her lips still parted slightly, and he frowned.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, brushing a hand through his hair. "I should take you home now."

"But we never got to see-"

"I'll see you at the banquet on Saturday," he said as he took something from his pocket. He muttered the counter curse and watched the broom go back to its original size before he mounted it, hovering above her. "Are you coming?"

Ginny looked up at him. She didn't know what happened, what she did wrong. She took a breath. "I don't want to leave," she said quietly. "Please, whatever I did-"

"It isn't you," he said. "I'm not used to this."

"Used to what?" Ginny asked, raising an eyebrow.

He frowned at her as he descended. He lifted his head to look at her. "Feeling the way I do," he said, averting his gaze.

Suddenly, Ginny's heart felt like it would burst from her chest. She silently wondered if he meant it. She wasn't going to let him use her, and then fling her aside, just as Harry had.

"I'm not asking for you to confess anything," he said, interrupting her thoughts as he glanced at her. He looked relieved for some reason. "I just wanted you to know."

"No one thought you were capable of change," Ginny explained as she took hold of his hand. "What happened?"

He looked at her, then bent down and brushed his lips against hers once more. "My story is for another time." He nodded and grabbed her hand, leading her down the darkened street. "I think my mother will be delighted to meet you on Saturday."

"Can't she just meet me tomorrow?" Ginny asked as she walked along side him. "We have a date then, don't we?"

"Yes," Draco said. "Speaking of which, how did Potter take the news?"

"He wasn't happy."

"Of course," he hissed. "It's not enough that he has to have Granger. He thinks he can control you as well. That's not going to happen."

"It really is late," murmured the redhead.

"Shall I take you home then?" he asked as he stopped walking. "I apologize for coming into your home uninvited and kidnapping you."

Ginny giggled and slid behind him, as he mounted his broom once more. She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head against his shoulder.

When they were safely at the Burrow, and Ginny was in her room, she opened the window and stepped back.

"Do you want to come in?" she asked, smirking.

"I don't think that's wise," muttered Draco as he floated outside, staring in at her.

When Ginny leaned out to brush her lips across his cheek, he almost lost his balance. He sighed as she pulled away.

"I had fun," she said, grinning.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Draco whispered.

"It is tomorrow," Ginny said, shaking her head.

"Right then, later tonight."

When he was gone, she closed her window and crept back into bed. Warmth surrounded her, and she hoped the dream that had been interrupted when she was awoken would be waiting for her where it left off - with her in his arms.