Brown Eyed Girl

Chapter 3: In Which Things Begin to Heat Up

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Draco sat in his armchair again, thinking about what had happened just after lunch. He had not only found a pretty girl to perhaps have a little fun with, but at the same time it would aggravate one of his biggest enemies. Draco smirked - no, two. He had noticed how Potter's eyes had followed the redhead out of the hall, even if the girl herself had not.

Draco sat back in his chair and thought for a while. Draco, you have a really good opportunity here. Not only is that Weasley girl exceptionally attractive now, she also seems to be really important to both Potter and the Weasel. This is good, very good.

Draco smirked as Blaise sat down across him. "What are you up to now, Draco?" Blaise asked, his brown eyes exasperated, but his smile giving away his anticipation for some fun.

"Well, I think I'm gonna capture myself a Weasley," Draco said slowly.

Blaise frowned. "That, um, Ginny? Do you really think she's your type?"

Draco raised his eyebrows. Gorgeous, a Quidditch player and a way to get back at Weasel and Potter? Definitely his type.

Blaise rolled his eyes. "Whatever floats your boat, Draco." He stood, shrugged his shoulders and walked away to their dormitory.

Watching the fire Draco thought; yes she "floats my boat" she is amazing. He was quite satisfied with the way things were going so far this term.

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Ginny had carefully set her alarm for quarter to eight the next morning and sure enough, as fate would have it, she slept right through the annoying beeping that the Muggle alarm her dad bewitched for her produced.

"Umm, Ginny?" Ginny heard Joy's light voice penetrate her sleep. "Its quarter past eight, you may want to, well, get up maybe?"

Ginny sat up straight in bed, nearly thwacking Joy on the head with her own. "Oh no!" Ginny yelled as she threw the covers off. "I'm late, AGAIN!"

She showered in record time, and was running down the stairs of her dormitory in under fifteen minutes. She stopped outside the Fat Lady's portrait to run her fingers through her hair; a little precaution in case Harry was anywhere nearby.

She hurried rather briskly down the hall, going at a near-illegal pace. As she turned to corner outside the History of Magic classroom she ran, literally, into someone who had been coming the opposite direction.

Ginny sat on the floor, holding her head in her hands and planning, mentally, what exactly she would do to the person who knocked her over.

"Wow, Ginny, I'm sorry. I didn't see you coming down the hall." Ginny stopped formulating her plan and looked up at the boy offering his hand to her to help her to her feet.

"Oh, Malfoy - I mean, Draco - hello." She stuttered out the words, not only because her breath had been knocked out by the fall, but because he looked so gorgeous, standing in the hall that way. She took the hand he had offered to her and he pulled her to her feet. She couldn't help but notice how close he had pulled her to him, or how his robes caught on his chest, or how he smelled of shampoo and a slight touch of aftershave.

"Ginny, I was wondering all last night," Draco's voice was husky; it sent a shiver up Ginny's spine. "That maybe -" he pulled her closer to him, so close Ginny could see the flecks of blue in his steel-grey eyes, "- maybe you would want to go out with me." He looked down at her and a smirk spread across his face.

Not a rude smirk, Ginny noted, but one like he just got a Christmas present in July. Ginny smiled back and did what seemed to be impulse at that time. She pressed her lips against his, not only noticing that she had to stand on tiptoes to reach his mouth, but that his lips felt amazing against hers.

They broke apart and Draco flashed his nice smirk again. "I think I'm going to take that as a yes."

"She smiled coyly and nodded, only to glance down at her watch and cried, "Gosh darn it! I've got to go - I'll be late for History of Magic!"

Draco nodded and stopped to pick up her books. Ginny smiled as he handed them to her saying, "Have a good day."

"Now I will," Ginny said, kissing him on the cheek before she walked down the stairs leading outside.

Draco smirked once again as he stuck his hands into his pockets. That was easier than I would have though, he thought to himself, I have her, and it's still first week.

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Draco sat in Transfiguration, idly tapping his wand against his book. He wasn't paying attention to Professor McGonagall; he was busy thinking up the best way to aggravate Weasel, while still making it seem to Weaselette that he liked her.

"Mr. Malfoy do you agree with the definition Ms. Parkinson has just provided us?" McGonagall's sharp voice broke his daydream into a thousand pieces.

"Well, sure, Pansy's always fairly right about these things," he drawled, while looking at Blaise for a little help. He merely smirked at him and raised his eyebrows.

"Thank you Mr. Malfoy," McGonagall said, "Now, class please turn your books to page 275, From Flora to Fauna."

There was a rustling of pages and the Draco was free to go back to his daydream. I'll take Weaselette to Hogsmeade, the first weekend trip. Okay, then I'll somehow kiss her when Weasel and Potter are there, but she can't see them there.

He frowned thoughtfully, earning an accusing glare from Blaise. Maybe it should be in the Three Broomsticks, although just outside in the street is fine with me.

Draco remembered how small Ginny was, how she had to stand on tiptoe while he had to bend over. Maybe I'll trip her - magically of course - and she'll sprain her ankle. Then I can carry her, easier to kiss her that way, and it seems more "intimate."

Draco smirked at his book - he was going to have fun with this.

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After a double Herbology class Ginny was starving. She led the class up through the grounds to the Great Hall. Eagerly Ginny took a seat and piled sausages on it.

"Hungry, Ginny?" Bella asked, a sparkle in her eye, "Did someone wake up a little late ... again?"

Amy laughed and Ginny blushed. She swallowed the chunk of meat in her mouth and answered, "Well, yes, although I ran into someone in the hall, so I was delayed even further."

Bella's eyes grew wide, "Ooh, tell us who!"

"Just Draco, not a big deal," Ginny said calmly, although she quietly moved her hair to cover her ears, which were turning red - a sure sign that she was embarrassed by all this.

"Oh," said Joy quietly. "Did he say anything, well, mean?" She alone knew about how much Draco had tormented Ginny in the past. Ginny had always gone to quiet, kind Joy for condolence.

"No, amazingly, he didn't." Ginny smiled at them as she returned to her food, unaware the three were exchanging glances, and that someone else had been listening in to the conversation.

At that moment an owl landed on Ginny's shoulder. "Oh!" Ginny said, startled. "I thought the owls only came during breakfast."

"It probably came now because you missed breakfast," Joy said, logical as always.

Ginny untied the letter from the bird's leg and gave it a bit of sausage. The owl gulped it down, hooted in thanks and took off. Ginny slid the letter open at the seal and eagerly read the contents.

Dear Ginevra,

Please accept my formal invitation to Hogsmeade next weekend,

Saturday the 14^th.

I would be very much obliged if you could make it.

Sincerely,

Draco Malfoy.

Ginny blinked as she re-read the letter. He was inviting her, formally? Ginny made a mental note to find him and tell him that she accepted. She folded the letter back up and slipped it into her bag.

"Who was it from?" asked Bella eagerly.

"Oh just my mum, wanting to know if I was still okay and healthy and all that motherly stuff." Ginny smiled; that was an excellent excuse. It sure seemed to be enough for her friends. They returned to eating their lunch as Ginny thought about what exactly she was going to do in Hogsmeade to get Harry to notice she was no longer Ron's little sister.

Well maybe I'll kiss Draco... I've already done it once; how hard could it be to do it again in front of a bunch of people?

Ginny smiled; in no time she would have Harry, instead of Draco.

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That night, after dinner, Ginny and her little group walked in a cluster as they made their way up to the Gryffindor common room, Ginny in the middle of them all. She was laughing and talking on the outside, but once again her inside thoughts had turned to Draco. She remembered how his lips felt, and the press of his chest against hers. She shook her head firmly, she was not going to think about Malfoy that way; after all, she had Harry, he was going to be the one for her.

Ginny laughed at something Bella said and led the way into the common room through the entrance hole behind the fat lady. Ginny sat in one of the chairs in front of a table. "I'll see you guys later," she said, indicating that they could go up to the dormitory. "I've got a ton of homework to do."

Bella nodded and led the other girls upstairs as Ginny pulled out her textbooks. She didn't realize that a piece of parchment had slipped out of her bag and onto the floor.

"Hey, Gin?"

Ginny looked up at the sound of her brother's voice.

"Can I sit here?" he nodded at an empty chair next to hers.

Ginny nodded and opened up her copy of "The Standard Book of Spells: Grade Five."

"Gin, I just wanted to apologize. I know you have a reasonably logical explanation for why you were talking to Malfoy. I mean, there's nothing going on between you two, obviously."

Ron laughed nervously. "And I overreacted, I guess that's what I'm trying to say - hey, what's that?" He pointed to the folded parchment on the floor. Ginny shrugged and wrote down the cure for a mackled malaclaw bite.

There was silence as Ron opened the parchment. "Ginny!" he yelled, standing up and pointing at the paper. "What do you call this?" Ginny flicked her eyes towards the paper and gave a little gasp. It was Draco's invitation to Hogsmeade.

"Well -" Ginny started before Ron cut her off.

"I sure hope you didn't say yes to this!" his eyes blazed and he started pacing. "Because that would be - that would be - how could you?!" His face had gone an odd puce color and it seemed to be very hard for him to breathe.

"Ron, are you okay?"

Ginny hit herself on the forehead with the palm of her hand as Harry walked over to the two of them.

"What's going on?" he asked. Ron merely shoved the parchment in Harry's face, angry even beyond words.

Ginny remained quiet as Harry read the letter. "Well, Ginny," he said after a moment, looking up at slowly. "What did you say?"

Ginny stood and stuffed her books back into her bag. She slung the bag over her shoulder and went up to Harry, her ears turning almost as red as Ron's face. "Why - " she grabbed the letter from him, " - does - " (she stuffed it back into her bag), " - it -", she looked into his emerald eyes with her blazing hazel ones, " - matter?"

Ginny watched Harry's face for a second. Then she turned and walked up the girl's staircase to her dormitory.

She didn't see Harry look down at his hands, or the way he bit his lower lip, or hear him quietly say, "Because I care about you."

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