Hanging by a Moment

He took her hand in his and pressed his lips to it lightly, but not after giving her eyes a compliment. She had a pair of the prettiest brown eyes with little stars of gold scattered in their depths. Besides, seeing her blush was really self rewarding. There wasn't a way he could compliment her fine, coppery-red hair; all her family had orange to fire-red hair and he made too many crude remarks to compensate for it now. Nor would he praise her skin, too many brown blemishes much like her older brother's. He allowed his eyes to look over her admirably well-fitted dress. The deep-purple colored cloth fitted her every curve. She had a poor family -- he made sure each of her brothers that attended Hogwarts with him knew that -- and wore hand-me-downs and second hand robes. They had patches and re-stitching, were worn and re-worn but this dress showed no sign of a previous owner, which is why it was admirable. She had have saved years to afford the dress.

He kept hold of her hand and guided her out to the lanai. The graduation party the two were attending had grown dull.

She smiled as he kissed her hand; he always acted the gentleman even if he couldn't control some words he said. The compliment left her in a sort of stunned state and she wanted to give him praise but, for once, the clothes he wore didn't suit him. The cloak, made of a heavy black material, had all but hidden his body beneath it; the shoulder pads were much too large for his tall, slender frame. He called himself lanky, although many would beg to differ. They sat on a bench that was far from the castle and sat across from each other.

The crescent moon and twinkling stars filled the dark blue, night sky. The summer wind would pick up little wisps of silver and copper until it fled into the forest. Pixy lights hummed in bushes of rose and lilac while ivy crept up the castle walls slowly. She breathed in the fresh air and sighed. The following day had a bleak promise for her. He wouldn't be coming to Hogwarts next year for this graduation is his.

They spoke about books, and the world, and life decisions. He still didn't know what he was going to do yet but he did know where he wanted this conversation to go. Many times while they were talking things came up that she wasn't comfortable with. Of course, she wasn't going to tell him if she had a sex life before him, or if her family knew about them. She loved her family but what they knew about the youngest child was enough.

Turning the tables on him, she attempted to open him up by asking the same questions, yet she seemed less merciful than he.

A question lingered in his head. He could tell her the truth but only be laughed at. She wouldn't believe him, not after all the rumors floating through the cliques. Even he couldn't prove them wrong, he really couldn't. He could lie, but couldn't bring himself to do so, not to her at least. It was easy to lie to anyone else though, Potter, father, any teacher, and any student, but it was so difficult for him to lie when it came to her...chasing after you...

He pressured her to do things she wasn't ready to do. Sometime it would happen and he knew sooner the better. She wanted to keep their relationship secret, like they had been doing. He took her hand again and answered her questions quickly as not to sting himself on the truth and laced it all with a kiss.

*How*, she thought, *after all these years can he prove the rumors wrong? He can't still be a virgin, can he?* She pulled suddenly away from her stupor by they castle's lights looming upon them. Sometimes, the affect of him kissing her and holding her scared her.

He had to tell her family, starting with Ron. Possibly, the fantasy of living a secret relationship and the smallest amount of time they had was the only thing keeping them together but he was ready to risk it. Her family can be forgiving, and if things came to the worst, there was always plan b; he always came prepared. Their hands remained linked together without departing presences as the two usually did in public events.

The seventh year students and their specially invited guests were all gathered in the Great Hall. They were all dressed in extravagantly colored robes. An orchestra sat on stage playing soft melodies. Candles swiveled in circles to the songs above small tables lining the walls.

She became aware of his hand moving to the small of her back and gripping her tightly. At first nobody noticed until the song finished and the crowd stopped to applaud the musicians. Her breath hitched when a pair of familiar blue eyes caught hers. Suddenly the owner of those eyes, her brother, lost the smile he wore and stormed over to the couple. Ron rolled up his sleeves ready to kill. She tried to move but was held firmly to where she stood next to him....standing here until you make me move...

Harry and Hermione watched as their best friend verbally fought with the silver haired graduate. Harry glared at the boy standing next to her. He couldn't believe, after all the insults and all the fights between hers and his families, this was actually happening. They couldn't be going out. How could she; she hated him!

*Maybe Harry's jealous now that he knows Ginny won't be pinning after him, or maybe he is just severally infuriated --no*, he thought; *Harry is jealous*. He could see the green eyes darken when he walked in side-by-side with her. She had liked him, he knew that but didn't think Harry would reciprocate or even perceive her feelings. A smile played at his mouth, a very in-character smile, as if to say 'look what I have Potter, something you actually lost...to me!'

Ron was losing his temper and one more second of hearing about his 'good intentions' would destroy any resistance he had over his own two hands. His sister couldn't be in the right mind; honestly a Malfoy! *He has to be using one of those illegal curses on her*, Ron decided just before throwing a sucker punch at Malfoy's smirking face.

Ginny was watching Hermione desperately try to keep hold of Harry. He looked absolutely furious. Never had Ginny seen Harry so mad in her life, and really she couldn't blame him. But then she could. If he had actually looked at her and saw who she really was and not 'Ron's twerp for a little sister' he'd of saw a beautiful young woman full of life and love, who's passionate about the world around her and not self absorbed like someone she once liked. But no, he saw Ron's little sister and went for the only girl who could stand him. Thus ending her crush and suddenly shinned a whole new light for her to see through. In stepped the young man, who now sat on the floor with blood seeping from a slash on his chin and a bruise creeping around it, but also stole her heart.

She stooped down next to him taking his hand to help him out of the castle, mildly surprised that he did not retaliate. All the way to the door, she threw many nasty comments to her brother and asked many questions in which he answered with a blank stare. Of course her happiness meant nothing to Ron; why would it? He never saw more than what his eyes allowed him.

They walked to the lake's edge, a grassy slope that from the top over looked the entire body of water. It held calmness that night. Even the giant squid didn't disturb the peaceful waters. The sky above reflected in the water down to the smallest white star.

They sat on the soft grass; Ginny rested in between Draco's legs to get close enough to mend his jaw with a healing spell.

She was almost in his lap and when she tried to stand up he pulled her right onto it. He knew where situations like these usually ended up. It was like Quidditch, the comparison may be clichéd but Draco was a Seeker. In these typical games, he would spot the snitch at the opposite end of the field then race forward. The distance between his hand and the golden ball narrowed. They were so close that the hum of the wings could be felt in his hand. Then, out of no where the bludger would cut its way between him, and the snitch was lost. Who sent the bludger? Why no other than the girl who sat in his lap.

This analogy irked him; it never failed to happen when they were physically close. Her heart raced and she had some difficulties keeping her hands off of him. This was just as agitating. She wanted it; he wanted it but she acted frightened every time. *Of what*, he wondered. Not of the pain, you can't be afraid of something you've never felt. There wasn't any intent in him of purposely harming Ginny. He hadn't any intent of leaving her even if he did say he was going to run away from home after the final year of Hogwarts. He concluded that she didn't want him to leave, but why?

She decided he wouldn't understand. If he was ready to make that sort of leap in their relationship then he should be ready for the consequences. She already made one mistake, she wasn't about to repeat it. It was only out of pure luck nothing concluded from it, well besides that she knew her feelings for Harry had all but disappeared. What's more, Draco'd kill her first boyfriend if he did find out; there wasn't a shadow of a doubt about that.

Being persuasive and manipulative didn't work on Ginny like it did on other people. That's probably why Draco even noticed her. She challenged his wit and ego, and he has graciously admitted she looks gorgeous; Weasley genes or no. She always had something smart to say whether or not people listened to her, though he appreciated every sarcastic thing that slipped from between her lips. One thing he learned, when you have Ginny on your side, the world didn't matter. He told her those words and waited with baited breath...falling even more in love with you...

*It's all another plot*, she told herself as his tongue ravished the inside of her mouth. *He'll leave you just like the last one,* said a voice not unlike Mrs. Weasley's while her own fingers slipped with the clasp on his oversized cloak. Finally, her brain stopped fighting against her body and felt no regrets. Sure the romantic aspects were missing; candles and soft music but the smiling moon and the winking stars shined brighter than any amount of candles and the whispers of wind provided more than enough music...closer where I started, chasing after you...

Purposely, he acted awkward all the while knowing exactly what to do and holding his dignity. The buttons on his white shirt parted with their openings and was torn away. The show he put on about fumbling with her bra was convincing enough but when the warmth of her bare skin came in contact with his all acting ended there. He was truly dubious about what to do. His fingers curled around the thin strap of her panties and he was about to pull them away when suddenly, he wanted to talk. *Why?* he thought dismally as he tried to overcome his lewd urges. *She'll leave with you*, said a voice in his head, finally managing to disentangle himself from her. It was a hard task; she glowed deliciously under the moon.

*Just ask her to and she will. Love is special...to her and, well, she'll do anything for you now...* the voice hissed.

She let out a mortified cry when he stopped kissing and touching her. *Tell her*, the voice hissed, louder this time.

Ginny dressed quickly, absolutely fuming that he stopped. She would have gone through with it this time. Really, she would have. But then he stared talking and she couldn't help but cling to every word he said.

*Running away, what an interesting proposition*, she thought. Where would she run to? Who would she be running from? Why? A guy with a pretty face asked her to; no. Because a young man with fervor and honesty whom she loved had asked her to; he said if she really wanted answers she could be running to freedom and be leaving the life she knew. From being ignored? ...don't know what I'm diving into...

The words were out of Ginny's mouth before she knew and her head scarcely realized that he had gotten her onto her feet. *Escape*, she thought. Something warm tingled inside her; it felt good.

In the Great Hall, the number of attendants decreased steadily. The graduates had other plans besides being watched by their professors throughout the night. Even the so-called 'law-abiding' Hermione Granger made plans to ditch but that was before things went out of hand. Harry pouted in a corner while Ron went upstairs to throw his tantrum in private. Hermione hoped Ginny would have kept her relationship with Malfoy quiet another week...or month or for the rest of her life. Hermione knew of the couple shortly after they started secretly seeing each other. But she didn't think anything would happen besides a few ventures to a broom closet. Nor did she know why Harry is behaving so...out of character. By no means did Hermione accept Malfoy as worthy enough for her friend when Ginny made her privy to them, but if he made Ginny happy...but Harry shouldn't be so upset. She didn't understand something for the first time in her life; she was desperate to know everything that she didn't know that was going on between her friend and Malfoy.

Hermione watched from over her new dancing partner's shoulder as Harry left the room. He took long steady steps and had his face set. *Oh dear, this isn't good*, she thought, knowing Harry's 'I'm-out-to-save-the-world-because-nobody-but-I-can' look too well. It was the same one when he thought Sirius was out to get him when they believed he was a cold-blooded murderer.

Harry had watched Ron leave and wished he could do the same to but knew very well that Ron would use both the common room and their dorm to vent his anger as though punching Malfoy wasn't enough. Harry sat hunched up in a chair clouded by shadows and although he had tried earlier to have fun dancing with Hermione, his good mood was sucked away by the silent announcement. *She was supposed to be mine, always*, he thought selfishly, *someone no one could ever touch because she loved me...Malfoy has a spell on her*, Harry decided, *and I'm going to prove it*.

Harry marched outside, ready to expect anything. That is, ready to find them groping each other and a bit of clothe-shed or plotting to go inside the castle with a bunch of junior death eaters and kill a few muggleborns or whatever the two did for fun. But they weren't doing anything Harry had imagined but were actually walking away from the castle. Before he could control his mouth, before he could get near them, they turned around and looked at him expressionlessly.

Losing his control all together, Harry accidentally let slip of his escapade with the girl. By coincidence, of course, he remembered his rivalry with Malfoy. Accusation after accusation and a fist never flung out, a sneer never given in a slow, malicious drawl that Harry was use to, a spiteful comment never uttered, not even a blink of surprise. Harry went numb. *She didn't actually tell him, did she?*

*Blah, blah, blah, Potter*, Draco thought growing bored; *do you honestly think this matters to me?*. He could feel her hand shake in his arms and she bit her lower lip; *disgraceful cowardice* tutted a voice in his head. Malfoy decree number 172: no show of weakness. All the decrees were burnt into his memory and sometimes they just found their way to remind him of the pressures of being a Malfoy. Awhile ago he broke number 17: don't love. He was told many times to always follow the code, never stray from the decrees. It was difficult for the first eleven years of his life to not get caught doing something wrong. Hogwarts changed everything; you need an enforcer to make sure the 'rules' were followed but during the school year the 'rules' changed...He shook number 172 out of his mind. Harry was making her hurt; Harry had to pay.

Draco's fingers loosened just as Ginny grabbed his arm. She wouldn't let him get in another fight especially now when there weren't any witnesses around. *This is stupid!*, she thought to herself sanely. The two young men however stared at each other, their eyes watering but they continue without blinking.

Without even taking his eyes off Malfoy, Harry warned her about him, his family, what his future would be if he listened to Lucius Malfoy, and what would happen to her if she ran away with Malfoy. Harry acted as though his eyes were focused on nothing but thin air; like as if he weren't actually glaring at one of his enemies. A moment passed in silence, even the crickets and frogs stopped making their calls.

Every word Potter spoke finally came crashing down around Draco. It was all he could think about when he was alone or at night when the thought of following Voldemort kept him awake. He developed a very horrid conflict between Lucius and what to do when the time--when tomorrow came and he had to choose or.... Running seemed alright for her but growing up rich had its faults, like not knowing how to survive with only the clothes on your back and the wand in your hand. His time was ticking. Every thing he held onto was in a very fragile balance...hanging by a moment...letting go of all I've held onto...

Knowing her actions had repercussions, knowing Draco would get angry and turn his icy glare on her. Ginny pinched Draco hard on the arm. It worked; he broke his eye contact with Harry and set his sights on the red head looking up at him with worry. He could see her white teeth gnawing on her lower lip, turning it a red color. She watched his eyes soften, felt his hand close around hers and give it a soft squeeze...desperate for changing...take your invitation...

Harry's insides squirmed; then wriggled to find a way out, and suddenly they were gone. His insides just dried up like the last chance he had to get Ginny's head back on track. He watched them, disbelief creasing his face as Ginny attracted Draco's attention and Draco taking Ginny's hand in his. They were saying things he couldn't hear, but really he chose not to. Draco's head descended to Ginny's; Harry closed his eyes immediately, not wanting to see them anymore

Draco and Ginny were unaware of Harry's sick, dead nausea. Ginny knew only of Draco's lips on hot against hers; his hands firm but also gently pulling her close and his soft, silken hair slipping between her fingers. When Harry left, sick of hearing slurps he couldn't block out, they neither knew nor cared. But all too soon Ginny realized Draco pulling away. She barely glimpsed the slightest of smiles on his face.

She knew instantly were tonight was headed. She knew he had accepted it -- everything and she so owed him an apology for taking it all so well... forgetting all I'm lacking...not quiet sure where to go...here with you...

Desperate for changing
Starving for truth
Closer where I started
Chasing after you

I'm falling even more in love with you
Letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until you make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with you

Forgetting all I'm lacking
Completely and complete
I'll take your invitation
You take all of me

Now, I'm falling even more in love with you
Letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until you make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with you

I'm living for the only thing I know
I'm running and not quite sure where to go
I don't know what I'm diving into
Just hanging by a moment here with you

There's nothing left to lose
Nothing left to fly
There is nothing in the world that can change my mind
There is nothing else
There is nothing else

Desperate for changing
Starving for truth
Closer where I started
Chasing after you

I'm falling even more in love with you
Letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until you make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with you

I'm living for the only thing I know
I'm running and not quite sure where to go
I don't know what I'm diving into
Just hanging by a moment here with you

Just hanging by a moment
Hanging by a moment
Hanging by a moment
Hanging by a moment here with you