With you in my Arms

67. "I know, mate, I know. It's all totally insane."

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Draco stood in the living room of their Edinburgh home and looked outside, lost in thought. Which were harshly interrupted by somebody stumbling out off the fireplace. As he turned he discovered that it was Blaise.

"Blaise! What are you doing...?" the rest of his question got stuck in his throat as he saw the bruise covering the left cheekbone and eye of his friend. "Has Potter got a hold of you again? Mate, seriously, what have you been thinking? Kissing Potter's..."

"It wasn't Potter, it was her."

Silence greeted this announcement. Then finally, "Come again?"

"It was Ginny who thumped me, not Potter."

It was obvious that his friend tried to get his head around the information he was presented with.

"Ginny Weasley, Potter's fiancée, the girl you kissed at my wedding, she did that?"

"Yes."

"Why!"

"I got her to kiss me. Kiss! She snogged me, mate. She snogged me!"

Draco felt the need to sit down. Blaise joint him a moment later.

"And why exactly would she do that?"

"Don't know."

"Yeah, right!"

"Okay, I met her in Diagon Alley and just thought I try to explain why I did what I did at the wedding."

"But?"

The dark skinned wizard seemed to turn a touch darker.

"Blaise?"

"I couldn't resist her. She felt so wonderful in my arms, so warm and full of life."

"In your arms? I think I need a drink."

They were both quiet as two large glasses of Firewhiskey were poured.

"Okay, mate, now you're gonna tell me exactly what led to that black eye of yours."

The events in the small apothecary were relayed, accentuated by several groans of the listener.

"You know what he'll do to you once he finds out about it, don't you?"

"She won't tell him." it was a very quiet statement, but full of conviction.

"Why wouldn't she? What should stop her to give Potter the perfect excuse to drag your sorry arse into Azkaban."

"Draco. She kissed me. She wanted me to..."

"What did she want you to do?"

Embarrassment was laced through his words, but also pride as he answered.

"It was her tongue in my mouth first."

The images this statement conjured in the mind of his friend were unsettling to say the least. The Weasley girl had come on to him? It had been her to demand... No, better not think about that.

"What now, Blaise? What are you going to do?"

A heavy sigh was the only answer.

"Are you going to seriously try to get her off of Potter? You're insane, if you think that he'll just let her go."

"I know, mate, I know. It's all totally insane."

"You can say that again!"

They were both trying to reign in their thoughts as not to get lost in total lunacy.

"So? What are you going to do?"

"I'll just have to forget her. Except if you tell me your secret."

Draco looked at his friend. He seemed absolutely sincere. There wasn't a hint of mischievousness in his gaze.

"What secret would that be?" he asked cautiously.

"How to convince a girl to leave her Griffindor boyfriend and go with a Slytherin instead."

A moment of contemplation followed.

"I'd really loved to tell you that secret, but the truth is, there isn't one." sorrow and compassion for his life long friend clouded Draco's eyes as he continued, "I only got Hermione because she chose me. There would have been nothing I could have done or said to convince her to change her mind, if she hadn't been prepared to take me."

Astonishment showed on the dark features of the other man.

"It was her? She chose you?"

"Yes. If she hadn't been prepared to forgive me, if she hadn't been willing to trust and follow me that night, I would have been left standing." he extended his arm around the other wizard's shoulder. "It's the females in a pride that call the shots, not the males. We're accepted, chosen, tolerated, but if she decides it's time for us to move on, we better do."

"Slytherin girls are so much easier."

"They're too easy. No challenge."

"Who needs a challenge?" it was supposed to sound defiant. It wasn't really convincing.

"You obviously do, mate." Draco grinned. It was hard to believe but here was his best friend and he was on the verge of seriously falling for a girl that would as soon kiss as punch him, quite literally.

"Let her go, Blaise. This is all going to end in disaster otherwise."

"But what, if she does want me? What, if she is prepared to choose me?" he sounded desperate now, "What, if I just have to make her talk to me. Let her see that it wouldn't be so bad to be with me instead of Potter."

"Blaise! You're my best mate and I'm telling you, let Ginny Weasley go! Even if it was her that snogged you senseless, Potter will kill you. And I don't mean that metaphorical! He'll find a way to kill and bury you. Or have you killed. He's her chosen man, you'll never get her to change her mind."

'Even, if she would want you...' Draco thought to himself. He couldn't tell this to his friend though. It would fan hopes that shouldn't be encouraged. Better Blaise got her out off his system before somebody got killed. Which most likely would be him.

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Ginny Weasley in the meantime was sitting in her room at the Burrow, crying her eyes out. She had made sure to cast a silencing charm around the room, but had forgotten to magically lock her door. Luckily for her it was George that finally came looking for her and made sure that the door was locked as he saw the state his sister was in.

He gently pulled her into his arms. Stroking her hair he wondered, if she and Harry might have had a fight, but he had seen his brother-in-law to be moments earlier in the kitchen discussing some Muggle topic with his father. He had seemed relaxed, had been joking. IT was unlikely that he would have been like that when he had just had a fight with his girlfriend.

"What has happened, Ginny?"

She sobbed and mumbled something unintelligible.

"What?"

"I kissed him!" she wailed, "I... I kissed him!"

Her brother looked at her a bit bewildered.

"Whom have you been kissing?"

"Blaise Zabini."

Shock and disbelief flashed over the wizard's face. His little sister was engaged to Harry and had kissed Zabini? A Slytherin?

"Why, Ginny? Why would you do something like that? Don't you... Harry..." he for once was lost for words.

"I met him in Diagon Alley and he was after me for giving him a kiss, just one and then I would never see him again. He's been doing that at the wedding as well. Said it was tradition."

"And you did?"

"He kissed me first and he was so... gentle. It was different from Harry kissing me. Or Dean, or..."

"I get the picture! Different."

"I just... lost it and kissed him back."

He waited for her to continue.

"I snogged him, George. I really snogged him, tongue and all."

The older Weasley groaned. The images invading his mind would cause him nightmares no doubt. These damned snakes! First Hermione and now his little sister? Not, if he could help it.

"I'm going to beat..."

"No, you don't!" her voice was raised, "I've already giving him a souvenir he isn't' going to forget any time soon."

The male ego in her brother knew all too well what this could mean. If he had just let her hit him, he was in it up to his neck already. No Slytherin would allow himself to be struck publicly. Except... He just hoped that his sister didn't realise it as well. That could instigate some real problems between her and her fiancé.

"Does Harry know?"

"Merlin! NO!"

"Okay, okay. Just checking."

"George, swear on Fred's grave that you're not going to tell Harry. Swear it!"

He sighed, but did as she asked.

'What is it with the Snakes all of a sudden? Why are they hell bent on getting themselves a nice, little Griffindor?' he wondered as he held a yet again sobbing Ginny.