Disclaimer: All that you recognise belongs to JKR.

Warning: None.

A/N: I know it has been so long. I ended up having very little time to write in the holidays, and when I actually did have time, I couldn’t write a single sentence for this story at all. I truly am sorry for making you wait for all so long, and I hope that this chapter can give me some saving grace.

A Civil Agreement

Ginny sighed for what must have been the hundredth time. Her eyes flickered about the dimly lit room and fell on her companion, who was currently leaning forward with his elbows propped on his knees, running his hands through his silky blond locks in an agitated manner. She could see the creases forming on his pale brow, and wondered what was running through his head. He had not spoken to her since his grand declaration that he regretted the engagement, and while that was neither comforting nor upsetting, it did certainly make her wonder just what he was thinking. After all, if he was so quick to regret choosing her as soon as problems started arising, then why did he choose her in the first place? Surely he did not think that she would graciously accept him as her fiancé, let alone that her parents would take to the engagement without complaint?

“Mal-” She broke off suddenly, as if changing her mind on something, and then tried again. “Draco.”

He looked up quickly, his grey eyes flashing with surprise. Ginny herself felt a little awkward calling him by his given name, but she had something of a delicate nature to say to him. It seemed fitting to make this conversation more personal by using his first name, rather than the distant nature of calling him by his surname. Besides, she told her mind sternly, they had agreed to use each other’s proper names.

The frown deepening on his face, Draco allowed his hands to drop to his lap and then sat up straighter in his seat. “Yes?”

Shifting somewhat uncomfortably in her chair, Ginny glanced down at her freckle sprinkled hands and then looked back up to his questioning gaze. Somehow this had seemed so much easier to ask in her mind when he was not looking at her. His eyes, which had always struck her in how very grey they appeared, were hard to face when one wished to ask a potentially embarrassing question. They were just too piercing, as if his eyes could search beyond the walls of her flesh right into her heart.

“You, um— well, you never did tell me why you wanted to marry me,” Ginny began in a disjointed voice that seemed a far cry from the businesslike tone she had been hoping to achieve. “And, um-” she tugged on the skirts of her green dress and stared fixedly at her moving hands, purposely avoiding his piercing gaze- “I was just wondering, since you said that you didn’t want to marry me and all, why did you ask me?”

For a moment he said nothing, causing Ginny to squirm even more with discomfort. Her eyes flicked back to his instinctively, hoping to catch some sort of insight into his feelings. He held her gaze silently; so many emotions racing through his metallic eyes that she could not pinpoint what he was thinking or feeling at all. His expression, as usual, was unreadable, but for once it was not because he was purposely trying to make it so. There just seemed to be so much going on in his head that his face couldn’t decide just what to do. Should he smile, frown, or grimace? Should his eyes narrow or widen? It seemed to Ginny that he could not make up his mind at all, and that confusion was showing clearly on his face. She just wished she knew why. Normally he was so calm, so why this sudden lack of control?

His eyes suddenly dropped to his lap, shielding his emotions from view. “I would have thought it was obvious,” he said slowly, as if carefully choosing his words. “My mother wished me to marry you.”

Ginny wasn’t sure why she felt disappointed, but so it was that her stomach seemed to sink at his words. Even her heart began to feel a little heavier than usual. “I see…” was all she could manage to say, and promptly looked the other way to hide her confusion.

“It doesn’t matter now, anyway.” Draco muttered bitterly. “We’re stuck in this engagement whether we like it or not, and I just hope to Merlin that your parents aren’t stupid enough to try stop it. I have no desire to be connected to you until our wedding.”

Ginny murmured something unintelligible in agreement. She was doing some quick thinking, and was too absorbed in her own thoughts to really pay much attention to Draco’s sour mutterings. She knew that he was right in saying that they had no choice but to go through with the wedding now, and agreed wholeheartedly in not wanting to be attached to him because of her parents’ interference. The only thing for it was to prove to her parents that she was happy with the engagement. The thought was sickening, but she was not one to shrink from an unpleasant task if it was worth it.

“Perhaps, if we pretended to care about each other?” Ginny mused out loud. “My parents would never force me to do anything against my will, and if you and I pretend that we love each other, then they would have no choice but to accept the engagement.”

His eyes, which had been smouldering darkly at the wall, now flicked back to hers; the same unreadable expression racing through the swirling grey of his piercing eyes. A faint frown lingered on his mouth, and Ginny could tell by the creases forming on his smooth skin that he was doing some deep thinking.

“You want me to pretend to be in love with you?” he asked a little sceptically, the frown deepening on his face.

“What’s worse, Mal- Draco? Being attached to me for Merlin knows how long, or pretending to be in love with me for a few minutes to satisfy my mother and father?”

He looked like he was going to argue the point, but just at that moment the doors to the parlour opened, and the three people Ginny had been dreading to see walked in. She never thought she would see the day that she wished her parents were a long, long away, but so it was that Ginny felt a stab of annoyance to see her mother and father come into the room. It was clear that Narcissa had failed in her task, for her mother’s owlish expression could not possibly be considered pleased. If anything, she looked more worked up than ever.

Narcissa’s eyes flickered towards Draco, but Ginny could not see what look had passed between them, for she suddenly found herself being pulled rather roughly to her feet. She glanced at her mother in surprise; shocked at being manhandled so brusquely by her own mother.

“I thank you for taking care of my daughter, Narcissa,” Mrs Weasley said in a cold voice that was anything but grateful, “but I cannot let Ginny be forced into a marriage she does not wish to be a part of. You and your son may find another bride, but you will not have my daughter.”

“You know just as much as I that you cannot stop the marriage now,” Narcissa replied smoothly, not a trace of frustration on her face. “It would be better if you just accept it with good grace.”

“Over my dead body!” Mrs Weasley screeched, her brown eyes flashing and her bosoms heaving. “I will never allow my daughter to be joined with your son!”

Narcissa’s lip curled up haughtily, and her own blue eyes froze to two chips of ice. “And what have you got against my son?”

Her voice was smooth, but there was a frosty bite to her tone that made Ginny shiver. It was clear that Narcissa Malfoy had finally reached her limit. Ginny could only hope that her mother would not say anything to make it worse.

“He’s forced my Ginny into a marriage she doesn’t want, that’s what! My girl would never go with him!”

Narcissa instantly took umbrage at this, and soon both women were arguing, though admittedly it was more Ginny’s own mother who was doing the yelling. Mrs Malfoy had a tendency to be insolently calm in her fury, (much like her son, uncannily enough) which, of course, only riled up Mrs Weasley even more.

Ginny shifted her gaze to her father, silently pleading for him to help her. Surely he could stop her mother from doing something foolish that would wreck everything? If she and Draco were stuck together until their marriage, Ginny didn’t know how she would ever forgive her mother.

Mr Weasley, catching the imploring looks his daughter was giving him, tried to place a calming hand on his wife’s shoulder. “Molly, perhaps we should—”

“Quiet, Arthur!”

Ginny inwardly sighed. Her mother was working herself into a rampage, which meant that soon no one would be able to stop her. Already her face was going red and splotchy, and if Ginny were a more imaginative girl, she had no doubt that steam would soon be coming out her mother’s ears. She had to do something to stop this now.

“Mum, please,” Ginny begged, turning her face earnestly up to her mother’s, and wrenching her wrist free from her mother’s slackened grasp. “Just let us explain!”

“Explain what? I think we’ve heard enough explaining. It’s clear that all the Malfoys are mad!”

“Ha! That’s rich coming from you.” Narcissa retorted tartly, giving a snooty look at the redheaded woman. “We’re not the ones tinkering with muggle objects and getting plastered all over the newspapers.”

“Well I’d rather be disgraced over having bewitched muggle objects in my house than to be embarrassed by owning dark artefacts!”

“How dare you!” Narcissa cried in outrage, and for the first time that night Ginny could see that the marble woman had finally cracked. She looked shaken and upset, and Ginny knew that her mother had gone too far this time. Everyone knew the Malfoys were not innocent of the crimes that had been charged against them, and Ginny doubted that she or her parents would ever understand the pain that the Malfoys had suffered in trying to piece their lives together after the shame they had faced. They had switched sides at the last minute, and though they had helped rebuild the Wizarding World after the war, there were those who still held prejudice against them because they had once been with Voldemort. Judging by the haunted expression in Narcissa’s eyes, the wounds were very much still fresh.

“Molly, please. I don’t think it is necessary to argue like this,” Mr Weasley tried again in a placating voice, but this time both women turned furious gazes on him, silencing any other feeble admonitions he might give.

“I will not be silenced!” Mrs Weasley shouted, tears forming at her overly bright eyes. “Our daughter has been stolen from us, and it is all their fault! A toadstool can’t change its spots, and it’s clear enough that the Malfoys haven’t changed theirs!”

“ENOUGH!”

Mrs Weasley finally fell silent, but it was not Narcissa who had yelled. There, standing rigidly on the other side of the room, stood Draco: pale faced and fists clenched, with his piercing eyes narrowed directly on Ginny’s mother. Ginny thought he looked rather frightening in that moment.

“Excuse me,” Mrs Weasley began in a coldly dignified voice, but Draco cut her off short with a stony glare. Never had Ginny seen her mother so easily silenced, and for a moment she could only stare in awe at her fiancé and the prowess of his glaring, grey eyes.

“Don’t ever talk about my family in that way again!” Draco ground out in a deep, furious voice. “You don’t know anything about the situation, so I suggest that you take your daughter’s advice and be quiet so that we can actually tell you what is going on!”

Ginny waited for the bomb to explode, knowing that never would her mother allow someone to talk to her in that way, but Mrs Weasley simply opened and closed her mouth silently for a moment. Not being able to find her voice, she then looked to her husband for his verdict.

Mr Weasley pushed his glasses up more securely on his nose, his expression placid. “Let the children talk, Molly.”

Knowing that she had been defeated on both counts, Mrs Weasley finally stepped down from her pedestal of fury and stared at Draco with a mutinous expression on her face. “Very well,” she said in a resigned voice. “Explain.”

Draco’s eyes narrowed in annoyance, but instead of saying anything back to her, he marched over to Ginny and took her hand firmly in his. Ginny’s eyes flickered up to his in surprise, but he only squeezed her hand reassuringly- which she returned, if a little convulsively. She was not sure what he was going to do, but she sure hoped that it worked.

For a moment Draco just glared at everyone, but then he took a steadying breath and levelled his gaze on her parents’ startled faces. “I’m in love with your daughter, and she is in love with me.”

The effect of these words was rather comic. Molly gasped loudly, Arthur choked and started coughing, and Narcissa seemed to be pondering something that made her eyes light up with a secret twinkle. Ginny herself was rather stunned by this bold declaration, but she knew that she too had a part to play in this charade if it was to work.

“He’s telling the truth,” she stated firmly, turning slightly in order to face her parents better. “I love him, and I want to marry him. I know you think that I was forced into this, and maybe I was upset when it first happened, but Mal— Draco is a good man.” She turned her face up to her fiancé’s, while still gripping his hand, and met his silvery, grey eyes with her own. A smile passed over her face that was slightly more than the fake smile she had intended, and her grip on Draco’s hand tightened just a fraction. “ I know he’ll take care of me.”

Draco gave the smallest of smiles in return (so small in fact that Ginny had to wonder if he had even smiled at all) and then looked towards her parents’ stunned faces. A rather mocking look crept into his expression, his grey eyes glinting in that insolent way of his, and causally he let go of Ginny’s hand and instead looped an arm around her waist to pull her close to him; sealing the act of a ‘happy couple’. Ginny had to fight the blush that instantly came to her cheeks, and tried very hard not to dwell on the fact that her body was now pressed snugly up against his side, or that his warm hand was now resting on her hip.

“So you see, Mrs Weasley,” Draco began calmly, once more turning his attention to that shocked and slightly red-faced woman. “Trying to stop this marriage won’t achieve anything. Not only does the bonding magic not allow us to break the engagement, but you must see that your daughter is happy with me.” He tightened his grip on Ginny’s waist at that; shooting her a quick speaking look, which made Ginny instantly plaster a smile on her lips. She could only hope that her parents would buy it.

Satisfied, Draco looked back to her mother. “W-Ginny loves me, and even though you may not like it, and even though you may not like me, you really do have no choice but to accept it; unless, of course, you wish to make your daughter unhappy, for that is all you will achieve here.”

“Is this true, Ginny?” Mrs Weasley asked in a faint voice, not quite able to believe her ears.

Ginny solemnly nodded her head, and took the opportunity to break away from Draco’s hold. It had been very awkward being so close to him, and she didn’t like the way he had put his arm around her so naturally. He was acting like she belonged to him already, and even though she knew that he was probably just pretending for the sake of appearances, she couldn’t help but feel uneasy all the same.

Mrs Weasley drew herself up to her full height and walked purposefully towards Draco. Ginny felt him tense up next to her, but much to the surprise of all (and Draco more especially) that formidable woman merely enfolded him in her affectionate arms and gave him a great, smacking kiss on the cheek. “Well, why didn’t you say so?” she cried out cheerfully, and then gave him another bone-crushing hug, which made his eyes nearly start out of his head.

Draco glanced at Ginny with pleading eyes, begging her silently to rescue him from her mother, but Ginny could only laugh. As was typical in the female line of Weasleys, her mother had gone from one extreme to the next. Instead of shouting at the poor young man, she now cooed all over him just like she would a favourite son or child. Draco didn’t seem to know how to react, and just stood there like a wooden plank, stiffening from every affectionate pat to his shoulder, and every exuberant smile she threw his way.

“Oh, I’m in all a flutter!” Mrs Weasley declared rapturously, holding a hand to her heart. “I don’t think I’ve ever felt so silly in my life! Only think how awful I was being to you! You poor thing, you should never have let me treat you in that way.” She beamed at Draco again (who looked very much like he wanted to flee for the hills) and then laid an imperious hand on his shoulder. “Come now, dear, you must tell me what made you first fall in love with my daughter. I’m very curious to know how this came about.”

Draco stuttered something barely intelligible, looking more than a little panicked at the prospect of a tête-à-tête with Ginny’s mother. Mrs Weasley only smiled and led him over to a cosy seat, but Ginny never quite managed to find out just what lies he had created for her mother’s fancy, for a gentle tap on her shoulder caused her own attention to shift from the unlikely duo. She turned to see her father looking down at her and instantly her face lit up with a smile, as she impulsively threw her arms around him and pulled him into a tight hug.

“Oh, Papa, I’ve missed you so much over this month,” Ginny whispered feelingly into his chest; revelling in the feeling of his arms around her, and the old, homely smell of his robes. It was a unique smell that she only associated with him, with just a hint of burnt fabric from his tinkering with muggle objects, and also the slightly spicy smell of his old potion cologne.

Mr Weasley patted her back soothingly, and pulled himself away to give her a nice, fatherly smile. “I’ve missed you too, Ginny. You’ve had your mother and I worried sick about you, and that letter of yours gave us quite a fright, I can tell you. We were beginning to fear that you had been forced into this marriage, or worse.”

Ginny blinked away the tears that had formed at her eyes and gave a shaky laugh. “I’m sorry. You know me; I always like to make a drama out of everything.”

He frowned slightly and tilted her chin up so he could see her face better. His gentle, blue eyes found hers, silently commanding her to look at him. Ginny found that she could not look away.

“Are you really happy with this engagement, Ginny?” He asked quietly.

She went to say yes, as was expected, but for some reason she found herself hesitating. It was hard to lie to her father, and a small part of her wished to tell him the truth. She was by no means as depressed about the engagement as she had first been when Draco had proposed to her, but she would only be kidding herself if she said that she was truly happy with her situation. She had no wish to marry Draco, and it was only out of resignation that she allowed herself to play along with the charade she herself had concocted.

Her eyes instinctively glanced towards Draco, almost as if she was hoping that looking at him would give her the words to reply to her father’s question without completely having to lie. Her mother was still talking rapidly away, and Ginny could see his expression becoming more and more uncomfortable by the second. His grey eyes were slightly panicked, and the forced, fake smile on his face was growing steadily edgier, until it resembled more of a grimace than a smile. It was amusing to see him so out of his element, and for a moment Ginny just found herself smiling as she watched him awkwardly make a reply to her mother.

“Ah, I see…” Arthur said slowly, a small smile of his own coming to his face.

“What?”

Ginny turned a startled gaze back to her father. She had barely realised that he had even spoken to her, and she had certainly not said anything in reply to give him an answer.

“Never mind,” he replied with another smile, though this one was much broader. “I’m sure you will be happy with young Malfoy.”

Ginny frowned to herself, not quite sure what her father had meant by that, but before she could ask him about his strange words, Narcissa Malfoy came walking regally over towards them. It was clear by her gracious smile that she had softened up considerably towards them, having now realised that neither the Weasleys nor her son was going to destroy her matchmaking schemes.

“Your wife seems to be quite taken with my son,” she remarked in an amused voice. “Though I fear I cannot say the same for him. He is not used to such exuberance.”

The two Weasleys looked back towards where Draco and Mrs Weasley were seated cosily (though perhaps not so cosily in Draco’s mind) on one of the couches, and Ginny had to try extremely hard not to laugh. By the looks of things, her mother was recounting a story of her romance with Ginny’s father. She had her hand on Draco’s arm and kept sighing wistfully. Draco himself was eyeing the hand on his arm with some misgiving, and occasionally shooting uneasy glances at the rapturous redhead beside him. They could not have made a more comic picture; she, with her romantic sighs and smiles, and he, with his stiff posture and tense expression.

“I’d better go rescue him,” Ginny said with a grin, and excused herself from her father and Narcissa to go save her soon-to-be husband from her mother’s clutches. It was clear that Draco needed it.

“Stop hogging my fiancé all to yourself, Mum,” Ginny accused cheekily, once she was in front of them. “If I didn’t know any better I’d say it is you who wants to marry him.” 

Mrs Weasley laughed loudly and disclaimed any such inclination, but she did pinch Draco’s pale cheek and told him that if she were younger she would certainly have given her daughter a run for her money, for one couldn’t deny that he was a handsome lad. Draco could only goggle in disbelief at Ginny’s mother, his cheeks faintly tingeing with pink, but that smiling woman only patted his cheek again and then excused herself from the two of them before making her way back to Arthur and Narcissa. 

Giggling slightly, Ginny sat down next to Draco on the seat; watching him with her eyes still twinkling in friendly mockery. “You should see your face right now; it’s quite amusing.”

He closed his mouth and tried to regain some semblance of composure, though his cheeks still had the lingering touch of pink. “How would you look if your fiancé’s parent started flirting with you?” He demanded, much put out.

Ginny burst out laughing. “Oh, that would be something indeed, but I really doubt that Lucius Malfoy will be flirting with me anytime soon.”

She saw his mouth quiver in amusement, a tiny, reluctant smile lifting the corners, and felt her own smile widen on her face in response.

“So tell me,” she said in a business-like manner, abruptly changing the subject now that she was satisfied that she had managed to get a smile out of him. “What do we do now that we have declared to my parents that we are madly in love with each other?”

“What a charming way to put it,” he commented with a somewhat amused smile, and then gave an elegant shrug. “This was your idea; you tell me. I just did what you told me to do.”

She bit her lip and started tugging on the loose curl hanging over her shoulder. “To tell you the truth, I never really thought that far.”

He scowled at that, but Ginny only held her hands up in surrender. “Hey, I never said that I had everything figured out. I only got so far as finding a way to placate their tempers to save us from being literally stuck together. I was kind of hoping that you would figure out what we do from here, because I don’t know about you, but I don’t particularly feel like pretending to be in love with you for the rest of my life.”

“I could think of nothing worse,” Draco agreed with some feeling, looking very much like he would be sick at the thought. Ginny felt only faintly annoyed at that. She certainly cherished no wish for Draco to love her, but her pride would not stomach his words without some irritation.

“Right,” she said calmly, deciding to say nothing in reply to his rude comment. “So we need to decide what we are going to do from here. Obviously my parents need to think that we are still in love until we are married, and I think that they have every intention of staying in London until then, which means—”

“Lovely,” Draco interrupted in anything but happy tones. “I can already picture how delightful it will be.”

“Which means that we will have to keep up the charade at least until then,” Ginny continued firmly, completely ignoring his sarcastic remark.

“Why do I get the feeling that I am going to regret all of this by tomorrow?” He asked no one in particular. “I should never have let myself be persuaded into thinking you actually had some sense. I must have been a complete idiot to think that you had a plan when you demanded I pretend to be in love with you.”

Ginny threw her hands up in frustrated resignation. He was absolutely impossibly. No wonder they could never have a civil conversation, and to make things worse, she had actually been enjoying his company too. He always had to go and ruin it!

“Fine! Complain like you always do, but don’t expect any sympathy from me! In case you have forgotten, Malfoy, you were the one who allowed your mother to persuade you to get engaged to me. All of this is on your own head, and if you can’t see that, then I guess I’ll just wash my hands off the whole affair and leave you to deal with my parents and their tempers yourself!”

Draco looked genuinely alarmed at her words, and stared at her suspiciously for a moment, as if trying to determine whether she was actually being serious or not. He seemed to decide that she was not, for he merely rolled his eyes.

“You don’t need to take everything I say so seriously, you know? I’m not going to break our bargain. I do, however, want to know what it is that you’re expecting of me with this.” He glared at her suspiciously. “I’ll pretend to be in love with you if that is what it takes, but I refuse to hang all over you just because your parents are around. Pretend or not, I’m not kissing you for anyone.”

Ginny didn’t know why she blushed at the mention of kissing, but so it was that she could feel her cheeks heating slightly, and could only hope that they were not too red. “I don’t think we really need to go that far,” she said somewhat awkwardly, trying fruitlessly to regain her composure again. “I’m sure just being nice to me will be enough to satisfy them…”

“Merlin, Weasley. Are you blushing?” Draco suddenly demanded, eyeing her in some bewilderment and yet amusement at the same time. It was clear that he had no clue as to why her cheeks would be flushing a brilliant shade of pink, and his puzzlement only increased her embarrassment, causing her to blush even more.

Mentally cursing her unruly cheeks for their sudden fascination with turning pink, Ginny held a hand to her heated cheek. “No!” she replied defiantly, even though she could still feel her face burning. It was just her luck really.

He laughed (causing Ginny to feel even more mortifyingly embarrassed and angry) and then gave her a rather mocking smirk that just oozed with arrogance. “Yes you are.”

Ginny folded her arms crossly and glared darkly at him. “Well, so what?” she snapped waspishly. “I can blush if I want to. It’s not like it means anything. Girls blush all the time.”

She saw that infernal eyebrow rising and let out an irritable huff. He was so annoying sometimes, and unable to bear that mocking expression, Ginny turned completely in her seat so that she was glaring at the wall. Somehow he always managed to put her out of countenance, and Ginny hated it with a passion. If he didn’t have to be so irritating she was sure she could stomach being engaged to him. After all, for a moment there she almost had found herself softening towards him, but once again he proved himself to be no more than an insufferable idiot. There simply was no tolerating him.

Draco started chuckling softly. “Are you going to turn into the maiden of outraged virtue on me now?”

When Ginny said nothing and showed every sign in continuing her glaring contest with the wall, Draco placed his hand on her shoulder, forcing her eyes to flicker darkly to his. She really was not sure why she was getting so furious over such a trivial matter (possibly it was more at herself for blushing in the first place) but Ginny was never practical, and nor was she feeling up to admitting that she was being silly.

“Weasley,” he said in a low voice, keeping her eyes locked with his. “I don’t know why you blushed, and frankly I don’t really want to know either. Merlin knows I’ve had enough with women telling me their fantasies, and I’d rather not hear yours. In any case, if you don’t start lightening that scowl on your face, your parents are going to start to get suspicious, and then all of that pretending to be in love with each other will be a total waste.”

“I do not fantasise about you,” Ginny gritted out through her teeth, pushing his hand roughly off her shoulder, “And if you want me to stop scowling, then stop being such an insufferable pig!”

His eyes narrowed. “I wasn’t the one acting like some missish twit! Merlin, you act like I’m some big, bad wolf for asking why you’re blushing. I’ve treated you with nothing but respect!”

“Respect?” Ginny retorted with a snort of laughter. “You call the way you’ve treated me respect?”

“Yes, I do, and I’ve treated you with far more respect than you deserve!” He shot back bluntly. His eyes glared hard at her. “You should be thankful that I have enough damn respect not to force myself on you like some men would. I didn’t barge into your room and yell at you when you wouldn’t talk to me for two days after I had proposed. I haven’t tried to touch you, or kiss you, and I certainly haven’t beaten you for your impertinent outbursts like I know other men would have done. You’ve got it pretty damn lucky with me, Weasley; much more so than other women in your situation do.”

Ginny could not bear meeting those hard, grey eyes any longer, and lowered her head from his harsh gaze to stare at her lap. She felt oddly like crying. Perhaps it was because she had realised the truth in his words, or maybe it was because for the first time he seemed sincerely and justly angry with her. She could give no witty retort to his words, and there was no hope in justifying her actions. She was defeated in every possible way.

“I’m sorry,” she mumbled in a very small voice, still not looking at him. She looked absurdly youthful right now in her shame, and even the nice dress and all the jewels she was wearing could not disguise her childish appearance. It was a testament to how hard she was taking his rebuke.

He just let out an exasperated breath and looked the other way. “Forget it.”

Ginny felt her stomach sink at his words, and her eyes instinctively lifted to search his face for some sign of the Draco she was used to. She could only see his side profile, and what she could see of that was not comforting. Just from the tightness she could see around his jaw, she could tell that he was still angry with her. It was upsetting, and not just because she felt justly rebuked by his words, but also because she had come to realise that she did not like it when he was truly angry with her. She could handle him when he was being arrogant, snarky and sarcastic, for then she could reply in kind, but this dignified anger was so hard to deal with. This made her feel cold and somehow more foolish than she had ever felt in her life. She didn’t like it one bit, and she just wanted things to go back to how they were before. She didn’t want this horrible strain between them. Things were hard enough between them without this throwing a rub in their way.

However, Ginny knew this wasn’t completely her fault. If he didn’t always push her temper to its limit she would not get so defensive all the time. He had shown her respect, that much she could admit, but he had not exactly been ‘nice’ to her. He knew just how to grate on her nerves, and the situation they were in only made matters worse. Still, she had been acting foolish- she realised that now- and knew that it was up to her to make this right. She was in the wrong here, and as painful as it was for her pride to admit, she would not be happy until she knew that he had forgiven her. She just could not bear to have him so angry and offended by her.

“Draco.”

“What?” He snapped harshly, turning his face back to glare at her.

Ginny blanched slightly at the hardness in his eyes, but she knew that she had to do this.

“I really am sorry,” she said in a small, subdued voice. “I know that you’ve only treated me with as much respect as I have deserved, and I know that I have not made it any easier for you. I’ve been a right idiot, and I know you’re just as much a victim in this as I am.” She tentatively reached out and touched his hand, causing his dark scowl to flicker as a flash of surprise passed over his face. “Can you forgive me for being so immature?”

He just stared at her in stunned silence, seeming to be at a complete loss for words. His eyes glanced down at her hand resting on his, and then they quickly shifted back up to hers. Ginny was relieved to find that the harshness that had disturbed her so much in his eyes could no longer be found. He just looked surprised and more than a little confused.

Draco frowned at her for a moment and then slowly nodded his head.

She smiled in relief, but before she could say anything more, Narcissa interrupted by demanding to know if either of them planned on coming back to the dining hall any time soon. There were still guests waiting after all, and if they hoped to have any sort of respect from their peers, it was imperative that they come now before the gossipmongers started to really get carried away.

Ginny rolled her eyes and let out a heavy sigh. “I guess we have no choice, though I’d rather not have to face those harpies right now.”

Draco chuckled to himself; the sound like magic to Ginny’s mood. “What did you call them?” he asked curiously, now watching her in some amusement. It was as if their argument had never happened.

She smiled a little ruefully. “I called them ‘harpies.’ It’s all I can think of when I see them.”

“You seem to have a knack with coming up with degrading nicknames for people. I’m still trying to hide my shame at the one you so graciously gave to me.”

Ginny let out a peel of laughter and almost choked, she was laughing so hard. For a moment she could only pat her chest to get her lungs working properly again, and then once she could breathe normally, just stared at him with her eyes brimming with amusement.

“I had almost forgotten about that! I’m surprised you remembered!”

Draco shrugged. “One doesn’t easily forget being called a terrier. I assure you my ego was quite blighted.”

She smiled cheekily. “Perhaps I did you a favour then.”

“Ginevra, Draco, what are you two doing?” Narcissa demanded, looking quite scandalised that her commands had not been obeyed straight away. Ginny’s parents had already left the room, and so it had just been the two of them left; they had not even realised.

“Oops,” Ginny muttered, and then stood up from the seat. She glanced down at Draco, a rather impish smile settling on her lips. “Coming?”

He stared at her for a moment, the faint traces of a smirk creeping onto his face, and then stood up after her. “I suppose so. My mother might have a fit otherwise.”

Ginny giggled and took his proffered arm. “As much as I like your mother, Draco, she really is the most oddest woman for expecting everyone to do as she says.”

“Really? I thought all women were like that,” he said innocently, earning a light swipe on his arm from Ginny.

Narcissa turned and stared haughtily at the both of them, firmly cutting short any more conversations or arguments that might have ensued. It was clear that she was not impressed with their behaviour. No doubt she expected them to be acting just as emotionless and dignified as she was. Ginny didn’t think that was quite possible for someone like herself.

“I have never met a more sillier bunch of children,” she scolded them. “You’d think the two of you actually want to be the talk of town.”

Ginny and Draco both shared a smile, knowing that each was thinking the same thing about his mother, and then quietly walked past Narcissa back into the dining hall. Every head in the room turned to look at them, causing Ginny to freeze in panic from the anger she could see in most of their eyes. She had never faced such cold glares in her life; well, except from her darling fiancé, of course.

Draco gently guided her forward, murmuring into her ear, “Just ignore them. They’ll soon grow tired of glaring at us.”

The glares only intensified after that. No doubt those women thought that he had just given her a lover’s whisper. Ginny could have snorted at the thought. The day Draco did that would be a very odd one indeed.

Draco released her arm and pulled out a seat for her. Ginny smiled and thanked him, (earning even more glares) and then took the seat next to her mother. Draco sat down next to her, while Narcissa resumed her seat at the head of the table. Some people were whispering amongst themselves, but Narcissa’s chilly eyes found them, and those people soon fell silent.

“My friends,” Narcissa said smoothly, though her eyes glinted icily. “Perhaps you have taken to the notion that my son and his fiancé are not happily engaged. I would dispel that foolish notion right now. The Weasleys, unfortunately, were misguided by a letter, but all has been righted now and I can assure you that the wedding will be still happening.”

Mrs Weasley beamed at Draco, who valiantly forced a smile back, and then started talking to her husband. This display of friendliness seemed to settle most people’s curiosity, and soon the collection of Purebloods were back to talking in their own groups, though a little more quietly. Ginny had no doubt that they were still discussing her upcoming marriage with Draco.

Daphne Greengrass suddenly started sniggering. Ginny stared at the blonde curiously, for Daphne was seated directly opposite herself.

“Oh, I can’t wait to tell Alexia about this,” Daphne exclaimed with a wicked smile. “She is going to be so jealous.”

Everyone surrounding her stared at her, but that flirtatious damsel only flicked her long blonde hair over her shoulder and winked at Ginny. “You’ve stolen a march on us all, Weasley, but I don’t fault you for it. It’s about time that French snob realised that not everyone is in love with her.”

Blaise Zabini rolled his eyes. “No doubt you believe that’s you’re role, right Daphne?”

“Of course,” she replied candidly. “I’m the only beautiful blonde allowed.”

Ginny could only blink. The men all seemed to be used to such remarks though, for not one of them battered an eye-lid.

“I’m glad you’re a redhead,” Daphne continued, now eyeing Ginny appraisingly. “I would have to hate you if you were too beautiful, of course, but you’re not.” She then nodded her head decidedly to herself. “Yes, I have quite made up my mind to take you under my wing. I’m sure that we’ll be the best of friends.”

Once again Ginny was stunned into silence. She looked to Draco for some sort of explanation. “Is she actually serious?” Ginny whispered to him, not quite daring to believe it herself. Surely no one could be so fickle?

Draco smiled wryly. “Daphne has probably realised that it would make her look more foolish to hate you. I would say that she is quite serious.”

Ginny looked back at the smiling blonde a little uncertainly. “Uh, thank you, I suppose.”

Daphne giggled. “Oh I know you probably hate me for the way I was treating you before, but don’t worry, love, you’re in the mode now. Only an idiot would still hate you now that you’re engaged to Draco.”

“How lucky for me,” Ginny remarked dryly, now finding the whole situation ridiculous.

Daphne didn’t seem to notice Ginny’s sarcasm, but judging by the way Armande was trying not to spit out his drink, he had. Draco gave him an exasperated look, saying just as dryly as Ginny had, “Try to have some finesse, cousin.”

Armande apologised, and the rest of dinner went past quite smoothly without any more hiccups. By the time Ginny had collapsed on her bed later that night in utter exhaustion, she had come to realise that Narcissa had been right. There were benefits in being with Draco, for her night had taken a decidedly more pleasant turn. Only a few of the women remained stubbornly angry with her, and the males were more than willing to talk to her now. They were all curious to know what had made Draco choose her, and so Ginny had found herself the centre of attention for the whole night. She would be lying if she did not admit that she had enjoyed it.

Ginny stared up into the darkness of her room. There were still things to trouble her. She had discovered from Daphne that Julian had left three days ago for Italy and had no intention of returning any time soon. Ginny knew that she still had feelings for him, but she was glad that he had left all the same. She hoped that not having him near her would allow her to move on.

Sighing, Ginny closed her eyes. Things were so strange now. She had never thought when she had come to London for her first time in society that she would end up being engaged to Draco Malfoy. Who knew what was going to happen now? At least her parents were happy, she consoled herself, and she and Draco were beginning to develop an understanding of each other. Maybe things wouldn’t be so bad?

“I guess I’ll have to wait and see.”

A/N: So this chapter has been hell for me. I’m sorry if that comes across, but I tried to do the best I could with my writer’s block. I hope that things will be easier for the next chapter.