Denial

Fifteen year old AJ waited impatiently in the pitch-black cupboard, checking her luminous watch every thirty seconds or so.

"Where is he?" she wondered aloud; he was already ten minutes late. She and Ron always stole their special moments together in cupboards and unused classrooms, as Hogwarts just didn't cater for couples. They weren't allowed in each others dorms and anything beyond hand-holding in the common room would receive many looks of disgust. The door soon opened and the shadow of a tall boy, panting heavily stepped in. All her annoyance drained from her immediately as he stepped forward, took her into his arms and gave her a long, firm, loving kiss. She allowed herself to be guided backwards to the wall, where he pressed up against her and kissed her passionately, his hands running down her sides. He wasn't normally this forward, in fact, normally her boyfriend was very shy, but she wasn't about to complain about the change.

He held her so close she could barely breathe, but it brought with it an enjoyable sense of dizziness, which made the experience all the more exhilarating. With his newfound boldness, he ran a hand over her shoulder and the back of her neck and held her head in place, kissing her hard and energetically. Her legs suddenly felt weak, as if her knees were turning to jelly. She had kissed boys before, but never had it provoked such a strong reaction. He seemed to know exactly what to do and how to do it. He kissed along her jaw line, then back to her lips, cheeks, neck, collarbone and anywhere his lips could reach.

It was breathtaking. She had hoped and prayed that he would have a secret, burning passion inside him and at last her dream had come true. Slowly, though the close proximity made it awkward, they moved downward until they were both lying on the floor, never stopping their kissing and caressing. His hand found the catch of her robe and he pulled it off her, kissing the length of neck now left exposed. She moaned and stroked his soft hair as he gently nipped at her collarbone. His left hand gently traced along her body, stopping at her hipbone before pushing upward and forcing its way under her top. Her hand quickly flew down to meet his and stop it – as much as she was enjoying this, she wasn’t ready to take the next step.

"Come on.... please?" he moaned against her lips, in an unusually husky voice.

"No, Ron, I’m really not ready yet," she whispered. Suddenly he pushed her away and sat bolt upright.

"Ron?" exclaimed a familiar voice. Then it dawned on her.

"Malfoy!"

---

Next morning, AJ took her usual seat in the Great Hall for breakfast, between Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil at the Gryffindor table. She felt absolutely awful. She hadn't slept all night, and she wished she had said something, anything, to Malfoy. But neither had spoken, aside from Malfoy muttering about "bloody Millicent bloody not turning up." AJ had more emotions than you could shake a stick at (although she didn't know why she'd want to shake a stick at them) regret, embarrassment and disgust to name but a few. She was also worried that word would get around, although she had taken Malfoy's silence as an agreement never to speak of it. She turned to look at the Slytherin table, wondering if they were talking about her, but Crabbe, Goyle & Co looked their usual blissfully ignorant selves.

"Whatcha lookin at?" AJ snapped back to reality as Ron sat down opposite her, accompanied by Harry and Hermione.

"Nothing," she replied, a little too lightly. "I was just looking at the decorations."

Ron looked puzzled at this. "But they're the same as they were before..."

"Oh. I thought they looked familiar." AJ busied herself with a large glass of orange juice.

Lavender giggled. "If I hadn't known better, I'd've thought you were looking at Malfoy!" Ron and Harry guffawed.

"He's probably planning another plot to take over the wizarding world, to kill all the mudbloods, all the squibs..." Harry's sentence trailed off. "...and, he's coming over here." AJ's stomach lurched; this couldn't be a coincidence. She tried to look innocently curious as she turned around. True enough, he was headed toward the table. Disguising a gasp with a cough, she swung back around and made to hide behind her orange juice again, but as she grabbed the carton for a refill it was too late.

"What do you want?" she heard Harry say with a disdainful voice, to a point somewhere above her head.

"Nothing to do with you, Potter," came Malfoy's icy voice from right behind her. "Believe it or not, not everything's about you.” She felt a cold hand clamp down on her shoulder and turn her round, forcing her to look at Malfoy's emotionless face. "A word, if you please." He indicated toward the entrance hall. "Outside."

"Now see here-" started Ron, standing up. But Harry put a hand on his arm and Malfoy waved his hand as if to 'pooh pooh' his objection. AJ looked between Ron and Malfoy, unsure of what to do.

"Of course," Malfoy sneered, "we could discuss it right here if you prefer?"

"No that's alright," AJ said, suddenly jumping to her feet. "Outside's fine." Avoiding her friends' startled gazes, she practically ran into the entrance hall.

"Again, no resistance," remarked Malfoy coolly. "Taking you from Weasley is like taking candy from a baby!" AJ grabbed him by his robes and dragged him further from the Great Hall to ensure they wouldn't be seen.

"What do you want?" she hissed. It was bad enough knowing what had happened but the idea of the whole school catching on was sickening. Malfoy guided her by the shoulders and the two of them headed out onto the school grounds.

"Aren't you worried?" he said finally.

"Worried? What about, catching something from you?"

Malfoy snorted back a laugh and continued in his slimy, Angus Deayton-esque drawl. "About yesterday. You see, I was expecting Millicent Bulstrode." Malfoy surveyed the scenery around him, absent-mindedly hexing a bird. "But as of yet she's neglected to see me of her own free will. Now-"

"You mean she's seen you against her will?" AJ interjected. Malfoy's gaze turned from the bird (which had fallen out of the sky like a stone) to AJ, whom he seemed to regard with pity. He shook his head and continued gazing out at the landscape.

"We are deviating from the point," he continued. "In fact, soon, Millicent will be out of the picture all together, for I have found a suitable replacement." Now it was AJ's turn to snort back laughter.

"So Crabbe and Goyle have finally given in to your homosexual advances?" She allowed a chuckle to escape her lips, enjoying the flushed look that possessed Malfoy's face when he was angry. He glared at her but continued nonetheless.

"You won't be laughing soon," he said indignantly, as they continued walking down the grounds. He shot her a look sideways. “For me, they'll see it as a conquest. For you...", AJ looked up at him as his voice trailed off. "Well...you gave in to Draco Malfoy." Again his face was flushed, but this time with triumph.

"No," she said, backing away from him slightly and surveying him critically. "You wouldn't tell."

"Wouldn't I?" He raised an eyebrow at her before turning his face skywards in a mock thoughtful pose. "Let's see... Ron Weasley's girlfriend gets groped and snogged senseless by his worst enemy..." He looked at her shocked expression and sneered. "I would be positively lauded over; it'd be the talk of the school. And besides," he snapped "I'd love to see the look on Weasley's face." He dipped his head slightly to look into her horrified eyes. "Not laughing now, are you?" he said mockingly.

The school bell rang in the distance, signalling the beginning of lessons. He made to go, lingering only long enough to say 'same time, same place, tonight’ before striding away.

---

AJ felt sick. At first, she couldn't believe she had enjoyed her encounter with Malfoy, but she had begun to forgive herself, seeing as she didn't know it wasn't Ron. Now she was seething that she thought she could've gotten away with it - blackmail was a powerful weapon, with Malfoy's finger on the trigger. What did he want? She clutched her stomach and strode into potions, trying not to meet anyone's eye.

They had made quite a scene as they left the hall and it hadn't gone unnoticed - everyone in the class was looking at her with prying eyes. Even Professor Snape looked mildly bemused. Malfoy, she noticed, was calm as ever, obviously enjoying the attention. Glancing round, she realised the only seat available was one next to him, and he patted it, grinning. She didn't know why she was surprised; Hogwarts’ students loved a scene, even if they had to carefully line it up themselves. It was going to be a long day.

---

She ended up spending the rest of the day hiding - potions had been an absolute nightmare. Lavender had kept questioning her intently, which distracted her and made her add too much garlic to her potion, turning it purple instead of blue. Parvati had been a little more tactful, giving her a long, boring account of her dull morning before ending the torture with "So, how was your morning?" Most people had moved their cauldrons close to Malfoy's, in case he dropped a few hints, and by the end of the lesson, Pansy Parkinson was making his potion while he lied his way through an entirely made-up version of events - even Snape seemed to be eavesdropping. AJ reminded herself to ask the details of his new story so they wouldn't get caught out.

She was now hiding in the outskirts of the forbidden forest, near the Whomping Willow but just out of its reach. It was her fifth hiding place for the day, as she had been discovered in the Gryffindor common room, her dorm, the darkest corner of the library and under the stands around the quidditch field. Did these people never go to lessons? At least no one lingered in the forbidden forest, and she finished her week's homework in one go, uninterrupted under the cover of the trees. Having thrown herself into her work, she hadn't noticed it had become dark and it was only 35 minutes until her meeting with Malfoy. The nauseous feeling returned in her stomach as Malfoy's words echoed in her head.

"I'd love to see the look on Weasley's face."

---

AJ crept silently along the corridors. She was purposely a few minutes late; firstly because she didn't want to spend a second longer in that wretched cupboard than she had to, secondly, waiting for Malfoy was about as fun as pulling your toenails out. Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, she didn't run into anyone on her way, and slipped into the cupboard unhindered.

"Malfoy?" she said quietly in the darkness. "Are you here?" She was greeted by silence. He wasn't there yet. She leaned against the wall and let out a disgruntled sigh. She hated this cupboard. It brought back horrible memories, ones she never cared to revisit. She could almost see the door open and Malfoy skulk into the room. She could practically feel his lips on hers, his hands on her body. She wished she could change the course of history as she put her hands up and pushed the imaginary Malfoy away. There was a crash as he landed on the mops and buckets on the other side of the cupboard.

"Malfoy?" she said with disbelief.

"No, it's the Easter Bunny." She heard him spit in the darkness. "Of course it’s me, I told you to meet me here." She heard him dust himself down.

"I'm sorry," she said, starting forward. "I didn't realise you were here yet." She stopped, realising she couldn't see him in the dark and not wanting to flounder around.

"What?" he said from somewhere nearer. "You must've seen me come in. Besides, you were kissing me." Suddenly he was right up next to her, his cheek brushing against her hair in such proximity that if she looked up their lips would meet. A little uncomfortable, she moved backward.

"Why were you kissing me anyway?" she retorted.

"You started it," he said, suddenly very close again. "I thought you had got the idea, Jones."

"What idea?" she asked, puzzled. Malfoy was silent for a moment, and then gave a melodramatic sigh.

"I'm going to have to spell that out for you, I suppose." He went silent again, before adding: "I don't blame you for reliving the moment though, Jones." He sidled up next to her against the wall and stroked her hair. "Who wouldn't? I am devastatingly good-looking, well-mannered, rich, hung like a-" AJ swatted his hand away from her.

"Just tell me what you want, Malfoy. Get it over and done with." She glared at him, although the darkness made it pointless. He suddenly grabbed her shoulders and pinned her up against the wall.

"You're going to pick up right where you left off." His breath was hot and damp on her face. She tried to push him off.

"What on Earth do you-" He cut her off by pressing his icy lips against hers and groping her as she was pinned to the wall. She couldn't believe she had ever enjoyed this man's touch. He pulled away just as suddenly as he had started.

"Now do you catch my drift?" he sneered. AJ gasped with realisation. "Ah yes, you get it now." She knew he was grinning that evil, malicious grin of his. "You will meet me here every Tuesday and Thursday at nine p.m. sharp. Do you understand?" Without pausing for an answer he continued. "You will obey my every whim, even, or should I say especially, if my demands are... sexual." AJ's body tensed further. "I know you enjoyed it," he hissed in her ear. She felt dirty, worse than their last encounter. She felt claustrophobic and disgusted by him.

"No, Malfoy," she whimpered, queasiness taking hold of her. "Anything else..."

"I've named my price," he said determinedly. "Of course, I could just tell everyone the truth. All your friends would be disgusted with you. I doubt you'll have any friends left." He gave a faint chuckle. She pushed him away from her.

"No one will believe you," she said with renewed strength. "Me and Draco Malfoy? With my history with Ron?"

"With your lack of history with Ron," he corrected her. "Bold, confident AJ with wimpish, whimpering Weasley?" he said, almost thoughtfully. He started pacing in a slow but slightly frightening mad-scientist style. "You two were mismatched from the start. You've been together what? Six months now? And the only way he holds you is by the hand!" He laughed one of those smarmy, smarmy laughs and then stopped to look AJ in the eye. "He's even scared to kiss you." He was right. Ron was so scared of relationships that any time he had kissed her, it had been after a hard nudge from Hermione. AJ appreciated the gesture, but she knew her relationship with Ron wasn't going anywhere fast. Not that she'd admit it to Malfoy. She opened her mouth to speak, but he continued, once again pacing. "So now you're stuck in a rut - you want more. For the love of God, you're a woman now!" he said, his hand brushing against her chest. "But you're still dating a child. So you gave in to the first man who dared take you on." AJ snorted back a laugh but he ignored her. "And what a catch you got, Jones," he said, speaking softly now. He brushed a stray lock of hair off her face. "Half the girls in this school want me - and the other half secretly do." He was so close to her, she could see his smirk. The truth was Ron wasn't her type and yes, pretty much every teenage girl who knew Malfoy fancied him.

"You disgust me," she finally growled, glaring into Malfoy's expectant silvery-grey eyes. He glowered back.

"That may be the case," he purred, "but I think you've made a decision by now - one I'd like. Well," he smiled, "I guess it works out just dandy for me either way. A tear trickled down her face. "There, there," he said insincerely, "you'll learn to love it." AJ suddenly lifted her head and lashed out at him, but the smack she had intended for his face merely bounced off his shoulder. "Oh good," he said smarmily. "I like 'em feisty!" He pushed her against the wall and stroked her shoulder and chest with his left hand. She didn't flinch, but said resolutely:

"So what did you tell them in potions?"

---

Next day, during a free period, AJ was in the Gryffindor common room telling all her friends, including Ron, what she had had her 'little disagreement' with Malfoy about.

"So you see," she said, "I owe Malfoy fourteen galleons, and he came after me at breakfast when I refused to pay." Every face around her looked astonished.

"But AJ," Ron said, wide-eyed, "Why bet that the Puddlemere United would beat the Falcons? The odds are so... far-fetched," he finished.

"Yeah," piped Lavender, "and why so much?"

"You must've needed the money," Hermione said, an accusatory glint in her eye.

"I... I... yes, I needed the money." AJ looked down at the floor, thinking fast. "I've been saving up... for a present...for you, Ron," she said, looking up. He looked startled. "I know it's a long way off, but I really wanted to get you a really great present," she lied. If Ron's jaw wasn't firmly fixed to his skull it would've hit the floor.

"But Christmas is so far away. You must need so much... what on Earth were you going to get me?" he asked. AJ looked at him. She wanted to scream 'I haven't even thought about your Christmas present, I'm just covering for the fact Malfoy's taken a liking to fucking me in cupboards!' but instead said crossly, "I can't tell you that! It'd ruin the surprise!" She was impressed by her own acting skills. "Now enough," she said, standing up. "You know too much already." She pecked him on the nose and jogged up to her dorm to fetch her books for her next lesson, wondering what on Earth she was going to buy Ron, and how to finance it.