Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns all, except for Lori Kendrick. She's mine. *evil laughter*
Author's Note: The fic is D/G, but there is a plot line not involving the romance between them. But it's there, and it was my main reason for writing the fic. I swear.
Chapter One: Candied Departure
My quills! Ginny thought frantically as the family, including Harry and Hermione, started to leave the Burrow. It was Ginny's sixth year and she was still forgetting her things. Apologizing hurriedly, Ginny flung the door of the car that the Ministry lent the Weasleys open and sped towards the house. She ran up the crooked staircase to her small room and spotted the quills, lying innocently on her small desk. The quills were snatched and thrown into a bag in less than two seconds before Ginny returned to the car once again.
"Everyone here?" Arthur said, scanning the car for missing faces.
Years ago, the departure for school was much more chaotic. But Fred and George, the main reason for chaos, graduated from Hogwarts. The only Weasleys still in school were Ron and Ginny. Harry came and stayed with the Weasleys at the end of every summer so he could leave for school with Ron and Hermione. Ginny missed the fun they had all had when the scene was much more disorganized. There were still mishaps and laughter, but things were so much quieter.
"Yea, all here," Harry said, his green eyes sparkling as he watched Ginny clamber back into the car gracelessly.
"Sorry about that!" Ginny said brightly. Her father chuckled.
Molly sniffled from the front seat. "Oh, this is your last year, you three. Next year it will just be Ginny."
"I know," Ginny muttered. The prospect of being the only one going to Hogwarts next year saddened her.
Hermione seemed to notice her displeasure at the comment. "Don't worry, Ginny. You'll be a seventh year, and you've got loads of friends in the other years and yours."
Ginny smiled. "Thanks, Hermione."
The car ride to King's Cross Station seemed to take quite a short while when the friendly conversation and chitchat went on. When Molly announced their arrival at the train station, they all looked around in surprise.
Ron heaved Ginny's suitcase out of the trunk. "Jeez, Gin, what on earth did you pack?" he huffed, struggling to keep the overstuffed luggage upright.
"Just a few things," Ginny said innocently. She grinned at his struggle.
Ron, Ginny, Hermione, and Harry heaved their heavy trunks onto the train and turned to the Weasleys.
"Well…" Hermione started, standing a few feet away from Molly.
"Oh!" Molly exclaimed, gathering Hermione into her arms and hugging her. After a minute-long embrace, she grabbed Harry and hugged him just as she did Hermione. Arthur, meanwhile, was holding Ron by the shoulders and talking to him in a low voice, a small smile playing on his face. Molly had finished hugging Harry when she turned to Ginny and smiled at her.
"You're my last one, love," Molly said, tucking a couple strands of violently red hair behind Ginny's ear. She wrapped Ginny in a tight hug and soon released her.
"The train is going to leave," Harry remarked suddenly, pointing at the clock. They all nodded silently and started to leave.
"See you at Christmas!" Arthur yelled after them. The four waved as they boarded the train.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
It was the last year.
This is what Draco Malfoy thought as he arrived at the train station ten minutes before it left.
Last. Year.
No more classes, no more stupid teachers, no more listening to that idiot Dumbledore, no more…no more Potter. This, he thought, was the best part of it all. No more Potter. No more Weasley, either, or that Mudblood Granger. He wouldn't have to feel nauseous every time he saw them skipping happily together down the corridors, as if nothing in the world was scary, or dangerous, or sad. It was sickening.
"Draco!" a voice said sternly.
Draco was snapped back to reality. "What?" he asked, annoyed.
"Take your trunk and get on the train. We don't want to be here the entire day," Lucius said coldly, staring down at his son as if he was stupid.
"Fine," Draco muttered, grabbing his suitcase. He had just started to walk off when his mother laid a hand on his shoulder. He tried to shake her off. "Don't touch me," he demanded shortly.
"Draco." Her voice sounded so pleading, that he stopped and turned to her. Instantly, a waif-like human swooped upon him in an attempt to embrace him. "See you come Christmas."
He stood there, letting his mother hold him for a few moments before he heard Lucius mutter angrily. She released Draco immediately.
"Mind you remember our deal," Lucius reminded him warningly. Draco remembered the deal, all right. He just never agreed to it.
"Sure." Draco smirked and left to board the train.
He had just entered his compartment when Pansy Parkinson entered. She was dressed in Muggle clothing – a pair of jeans and a tiny pink tank top.
"Hello, Draco," she crooned in what she obviously thought was a sexy voice. "I've been thinking of you."
"Really," he replied monotonously. He was busy waiting for Crabbe and Goyle – where were they?
"Uh-hmm…" she murmured, sliding into the seat next to Draco clumsily. "So…what did you do this summer?"
"Nothing."
"Hmm…" Pansy replied, staring at Draco. When she realized she could not capture his attention, she pretended to lose her balance and toppled over onto his lap. "Whoops, sorry."
She hovered for a moment above Draco before picking herself up. Pansy tried to catch his eyes, but he was staring out into space, clearly uninterested in whatever she was trying to accomplish. Draco merely dusted himself off and looked out the window.
"Honestly, Draco," she huffed, before stomping out. He was quite pleased with himself.
A moment later, Draco's two cronies lumbered into the compartment.
"Pansy said you were in here." Crabbe collapsed onto the seat across from Draco.
"She said she's mad at you," Goyle added.
Draco looked at them. "So?"
Crabbe and Goyle shrugged simultaneously.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Three long hours on the train had passed.
The four students sat in the compartment, voices filling the room. Ginny did not join in on the conversation – she was commonly ignored when these happened – so she sat and stared out the window, thinking. Her best friend wasn't on the train, strangely enough, so she was left to sit with her brother and his friends.
It had been her fifth year in school when she finally fully got over Harry. Her crush had begun fading in her fourth year, but she realized when Harry finally dated Cho that she would never have a chance with him. She no longer became a complete klutz around him and she regained her talkative quality after she became more comfortable around Harry. It was easier to be more sociable and stop looking like an idiot.
"You wouldn't mind, would you, Gin?" Ron's voice cut through her thoughts.
"What?" she asked, confused. She hadn't been paying attention.
"We didn't get anything when the woman with the cart came by. Would you mind getting some for us all? She's gone up front with the driver," Hermione asked.
Ginny was glad to leave. She was left to find her own amusements for three hours, so being sent off was a mere godsend. They were basically using her to fetch them food, but she was happy to go anyway. They all handed her a few sickles and sent her off.
She was halfway up to the driver when a drawling, bored voice floated out from one of the compartments.
"So Father said I could make a deal. It was pretty foolish on his part, considering my lack of trust with him. He actually believed that I agreed with him."
"What deal?" a slow, dull voice grunted in reply.
"Well, he said –" Draco was going to answer, but the train made a sudden turn and Ginny was throw sideways into the sliding door. It slid open with the pressure from her body, and she tumbled into the room.
The three goons looked down at her, startled. Ginny lay crumpled on the floor for a moment before she quickly stood up and froze. Draco, Crabbe, Goyle. All looking at her. In their compartment. Oh, no.
"What do you want, Weasley?" Draco sneered.
"I…nothing. Sorry for disturbing you," she shot back sarcastically, before leaving and slamming the sliding door back into place.
Ginny could hear the voices resume as if nothing happened. Sighing, she reached the driver and found the lady with the food. She politely gathered the candies and cakes and, overloaded with food, tried to make her way back to the compartment. But someone had other plans.
"Weasley. Sent you out for food, did they?" Draco said derisively as he stopped her on her way back to the compartment.
"None of your business," Ginny muttered. She tried to get past him but he blocked her path. She stamped her foot in annoyance. "Get out of my way, Malfoy."
Draco pretended to consider this. "Hmm…no."
"And why not?"
"I think we're having such a nice chat. Why don't you come and sit with us in our compartment? You can put down the food." He glanced at the food, and with a malicious glint in his eyes, knocked every single sweet out of her arms. They fell to the ground, scattered around.
Ginny was going to bend down and pick them up, but held her ground. She glared at Malfoy – how dare he?
"You'd better pick those up, Malfoy," Ginny growled quietly.
"I don't think so, Weasley. I think you should." Before Ginny could react, he had his wand out and muttered a quick spell that had Ginny knocked down on her knees. She tried to stand, but her legs denied her requests.
"You better stop this!" she shrieked, panicked. Again she attempted standing, but her legs were nearly cemented into the ground. Malfoy and his friends were laughing at her. Ginny was humiliated.
"No, I don't think I will. I'm really enjoying this. You, on your knees before me." Crabbe and Goyle laughed sluggishly.
Suddenly another person appeared. It was Pansy Parkinson.
"I heard yelling and I came…oh, what's going on?" Pansy asked, her voice growing in delight as she saw Ginny. "Little Weasley on the floor."
Ginny didn't have her wand; it was back in her compartment, on her seat. She had taken it out to test something and didn't take it with her. Stupid on her part, really. So she did the only thing she could – yell for help.
"RON!" she screamed, hoping with all her might that he would hear her.
The Slytherins laughed at her screech. Two seconds later, Ron, Harry, and Hermione appeared on the scene. When they saw Ginny on the ground, looking up at the seventh year Slytherins, they reacted instantly.
"Furnunculus!" Harry yelled. A jet of light hit Malfoy square on the nose. He fell backwards, moaning, and clutching his face. Boils sprouted up all over his skin and he was fuming.
"Draco!" Pansy cried, clasping a hand over her mouth. She hurried over to him and tried to drag him into the compartment.
Hermione quickly undid Draco's spell on Ginny and she stood, finally, red in the face. Ron was staring at Malfoy with utmost hate.
"If you…ever…come near my sister again, I'll kill you," Ron said slowly. He was furious.
"You do that, Weasley. You do just that." Malfoy, still covered in boils, shot a nasty glance at Ginny before disappearing inside his compartment. It chilled her to the bone.
Hermione escorted Ginny back to their compartment, abandoning the abundance of sweets on the floor. Ron and Harry followed, throwing abhorrent looks at Crabbe and Goyle, who were watching them retreat, cracking their gorilla-sized knuckles.
When they reached their compartment, Ron swooped down on Ginny.
"What happened? What did they do? Did they hurt you? Did you do anything to provoke them?"
Ginny covered her ears. "Ron, shut up!"
Hermione laid a hand on his arm. He looked at her, then back at Ginny. "Sorry, Gin. I…you know how Malfoy…"
"I know. He's like that with me too. Don't worry about it." Actually, Ginny was mortified and wanted to kill Malfoy. Maim first, then kill.
Oh, she'd get Malfoy back. She would show him she wasn't a helpless little girl that needed Harry Potter and Ron and Hermione to save her. No…she'd beat Malfoy at his own dirty little game.
Draco, disgusted with Crabbe and Goyle's feeble attempts at ridding his face of boils (for Pansy had taken his wand, claiming that he was too weak to use magic at this point), had to enlist in the help of Pansy, who did a nice and thorough job. She inspected his face carefully after clearing Draco's perfect skin, and made a point of cradling his head for a few moments before Draco finally tore himself off of her.
Draco was infuriated. That Potter actually cursed him! In front of his friends, no less! He'd get him back, and those Weasleys and that Mudblood.
"I'll kill that little Weasley girl," Pansy snarled.
"Don't bother, Pansy," Draco muttered. He'd get her back anyway, and he didn't need some burly girl to do it.
"Now don't worry, Draco," Pansy purred. "It'll all be all right." She smiled at him and left the compartment.
Draco looked towards Crabbe and Goyle. They were busy eating the sweets that Ginny had dropped – well, that Draco had flung out of her arms. Lousy pigs, Draco thought. They're useless.
With nothing better to do, Draco dropped off to sleep to wait for the arrival at Hogwarts.