Even though it had been nearly two weeks from that night in Shock, Ginny could still remember every detail. Every movement, every breath, every unspoken word. She hadn't even seen Draco since that night; they were so busy now, what with Christmas approaching fast and their own jobs. Plus, it seemed like it was an unspoken agreement to not mention the tango again. Yet all she could think about was that tango. Or more importantly, what happened after.
Draco pulled Ginny back up after he had dipped her, drawing her close to his chest. She wound her arms around his neck, his hands still held onto her waist. Their noses were almost touching.
Draco spoke softly, "Where has all that been hiding?"
"What?" What was Draco talking about?
"Your passion. It's like you've been tamed, somehow. Everything that was you got bottled up." It seemed so surreal, what he was saying.
Draco leaned down to Ginny.
"Let's give it up for these pair of lovers; they really know how to tango!" The DJ announced. Draco and Ginny pulled apart, both blushing slightly, now becoming aware of the cheering and questions aimed at them, as well as the people who didn't appreciate having to stop dancing for a couple dancing the tango.
"Where'd you learn to dance like that?"
"Oh, just get off the dance floor."
"Can I have your number?"
"That was hot!"
"That was just weird."
"Who tangos in a club?"
"I want a picture!"
"That was totally amazing; they must have been together so long."
Draco pulled Ginny out of the crowd and said, "I think we should go." Ginny nodded. Everything still seemed unreal. She took his hand and they left. They didn't notice an angry looking Ron running toward them, pushing people out of the way.
Hermione and Harry just appeared by Ron's side when Draco and Ginny left. Harry, knowing what Ron was about to do, grabbed Ron around the shoulders to prevent him from running after Ginny.
Hermione stared after the closing doors. "Was that Ginny holding Draco's hand?"
"It can't be." Ron was still in denial.
"It was." Ron and Hermione turned to Harry. "And she looked happier than she has in years."
"But it's MALFOY." Ron was nearly yelling now.
"Look, Ron, Harry's right. Did you actually look at Ginny when she was dancing with Malfoy?" When Ron shook his head, Hermione smiled. "Then leave her alone for now. She's smart."
"But Malfoy's a vile, ferret-faced seducer."
Harry was tired of Ron's lamentations, "Ron, just leave her alone, like Hermione said. If she's hurt, you can go beat up Malfoy." Ron looked happier at the prospect of beating up Malfoy.
When Draco and Ginny arrived at their building, they walked up the first flight of steps. On Ginny's landing, they looked at each other awkwardly. Neither wanted to speak about what happened when they danced together. Everything seemed different between them, somehow.
Ginny was the first to speak "I had a great time. Thanks." She turned to the door, opening it with her key. She was about to go in when Draco called her name. He was still standing there.
Then he spoke, "Me too." He crossed over to her quickly, and whispered in her ear, "Remember what I said to you after we danced. Don't hide within yourself."
Ginny had been wondering about that phrase. Was she hiding within herself? Why didn't anyone else see that, or if they did, why didn't they do something about it?
Then it occurred to her that she had never let them.
Why was it that she listened to Draco?
Gods, this was confusing.
_._._._._._._
Draco was extremely busy. He wanted to get the Silver Arrow line out in time for Christmas, but it seemed impossible now that the test broomstick now stopped chasing birds and was chasing squirrels instead.
An owl flew in his office, dropping a letter and swooping out. He knew immediately whose owl it was. Only Pureblood's had owls that were so stuck up that they didn't stay around in hopes for a treat. The letter itself was also fancy, encased in pure white parchment.
Draco dear,
I had a great time horseback riding with you last Saturday. We're still on for coffee tomorrow, right? But there's a charity ball that one of my cousins is holding this Friday, and I was just wondering if you would like to go. It would be a great time to meet my parents too. Write back soon!
Love, Charlene
_._._._._._
Ginny was walking down from her flat when she saw Draco. He caught sight of her since he was walking up the stairs. Her hair is down, he noted with satisfaction. Looking at the load of stuffed animals, candy, and toys she held, he asked, "What are you doing?"
"Why don't you come with me and see?" That came out of her mouth before she could even think.
Draco followed her back down the stairs and onto the street. She was struggling to hold some of the bags. His mother had raised him to be polite to the ladies. "I'll just take some of those bags, if you don't mind." he said, taking the bag with toy cars and trucks. "Please don't tell me this is for you nieces and nephews."
"Nieces and nephews? I only have one nephew and one niece. Bill's boy and Percy's girl."
"What happened to having more kids than you can count in the Weasley family?" He teased.
She shrugged. "Fred and George are still dating, and Charlie's going to be a bachelor forever because of his job. Ron and Hermione are getting married in June, so I hope they don't have a baby now." She laughed.
"So Weasley finally got Granger." He chuckled. "It was rather a pitiful sight in sixth year, both of them trying to make each other jealous. Gave me lots of insults."
"You're plain evil. But we're here." She stopped in front of a shabby building that had definitely seen better days. He could make out the sign, 'St. Agnes Orphanage for Boys and Girls'.
"We're going to an orphanage?"
"I do this every year."
Draco was stunned. He felt guilty, a foreign emotion for him. He was supposed to go to a charity ball this Saturday and here Ginny was, taking it a step further and meeting the kids. He might have given money to the orphanages, but he was positive that they would like an actual visit better. While he was still feeling guilty, Ginny was bombarded by a hoard of kids of all ages.
"Miss Ginny!"
"Hey Miss Ginny!"
"Will you read us a story this time?"
"And let us play with your makeup?"
"Did you get us toys?"
"Let's hope she has dolls!"
Then they noticed Draco standing awkwardly off to the side.
"Miss Ginny, is that man your boyfriend?"
"He's so tall."
"And handsome." The girls sighed.
"Alright children," said a matronly lady coming into the room. "I'm sure Miss Ginny will explain everything." She beckoned to Draco to follow them into another room.
Ginny had dropped her bags and was carrying a small child in her arms, talking to it and cooing. All the boys in the room were rummaging through the bags, and finding nothing but dolls and stuffed animals, they groaned.
Pulling on her skirt, they asked her, "Miss Ginny, don't you have anything for us?"
"Of course I do, it's over there with Draco." She directed her attention to Draco. "You do have the manlier toys, right?"
He walked over to Ginny and the boys. "Here you go." he told them, handing them the bag, which they promptly grabbed and ran off.
A young girl was tugging at his hand. When he looked down at her, she said, "So are you Miss Ginny's boyfriend? Samantha was telling me that you were." She pointed to a slightly older girl near the back of the room.
Draco knelt down beside her. He didn't have much experience with children, being an only child and having very few cousins. He was spared answering by Ginny's arrival. She was a lot more comfortable with the children. "No Anne, Draco's just a friend."
"But you never brought any other friends before." Another girl said. Not even Seamus? Draco thought.
"And he's very pretty." Draco stiffened, Pretty?
Ginny laughed. "C'mon pretty boy. There are a lot of kids here and they want their gifts. Help me?"
Draco only answer was, "I'm NOT pretty!"
Draco was amazed at Ginny's expertise with children. She even managed to get the boy's attention, playing tag with them or hide and seek. Well, she did have six brothers.
The girls were mesmerized at her storytelling. She read them both wizarding and muggle fairy tales. She managed to make them interesting, with changing voices for the different characters. Even Draco was intrigued, never having heard muggle fairy tales before.
"Oh, no Miss Ginny!"
"Bad bad witch!"
"So then, the Prince was transformed into a monstrous beast. He would be cursed forever, unless..."
"Unless he killed the witch!" That was one of the boys sitting nearby, crashing two cars together.
"No, Simon. Unless he could find a girl whom he loved and she loved him in return."
The girls smiled knowingly. Draco wondered if all girls were born having some intuitive thing about love. Ginny saw Draco standing in the doorway, listening.
"Draco, would you like to read to them?"
He hesitated. "I really can't –"
"You'll be reading from a book."
"Alright." He took the book from her and sat next to her. Ginny smiled at his shyness. Who would have thought that Draco was actually nice when he wanted to be? Draco, though he was unsure of how to do everything, ended up doing a great job. The girls ooed and ahed at all the right parts, and they loved how he growled the Beast's lines.
"And the Prince and Belle lived happily after ever. The end." The girls sighed contently. The matronly lady was back again. "Children, it's time for dinner. Would you two like to stay for dinner?"
"That would be wonderful."
Draco and Ginny stayed until the kids went to bed, hugging their stuffed animals or clutching their toys. They started cleaning up the room, gathering Ginny's storybooks and makeup accessories.
Ginny was holding the Beauty and the Beast book that Draco had read, about to put it in a bag. She glanced at him. "If only life was a fairy tale. There would always be a happily ever after." She smiled sadly.
He waited till they were outside and walking toward their building to respond. "Ginevra, life isn't a fairy tale, but it's what you make of it. That's the best thing about life, I think, that everything isn't perfect. My mother always said, 'We couldn't say that we are happy if there is no such thing as sadness. We wouldn't feel proud about doing the right thing if we never sinned. You wouldn't be so excited that someone liked you if everyone did. Joy wouldn't feel so good if it weren't for pain. A kiss couldn't feel so good if we always had that feeling."
Ginny thought. "You're right. Or your mother is, at least."
They were silent for a moment.
"Do you want kids?"
Ginny turned to look at him. "What?"
"It's a fairly simple question, Ginevra. Do you want kids?"
"Yeah, sure. Why are you asking?"
Draco shrugged. "It's just that you're so good with kids, and you'd make a good mother."
"Well, not to fulfil the Weasley dogma or anything, but I want lots of kids."
Draco had a sudden image of little red haired children running everywhere, with a laughing Ginny in the middle of them. Ginny expected some sort of scathing remark. Instead, she got a...
"Nothing wrong with that."
_._._._._._
It was the day after, and Draco met Charlene for coffee as they planned. She was so unlike Ginny, he noted, watching her put a cloth napkin in her lap and call the waiter for something. So proper, so neat, so...stiff.
She had greeted him with the customary kiss of each cheek as expected of 'their kind of people' as his father used to put it. He pulled out her chair for her. They weren't even at a Starknuts. They were at some upscale place in the richer part of Diagon Alley.
Charlene was chattering about some couple that had problems because the wife chewed her gum too noisily and it drove the husband insane, but Draco wasn't listening. Usually her cases were fascinating, but Draco couldn't keep his mind on whatever she was saying. Instead, he looked at her shinny straight blonde hair. It was so different from Ginny's hair. Ginny's hair was wavy and thick, with so many subtle colours he couldn't name them.
He suddenly interrupted Charlene when she was just saying, 'So I told them to have their alone times, because it's really not good when you're driving your husband insane' and said, "Do you want to have children?"
"Children?" She pronounced it like she was saying the word 'sewage' instead. She lifted her eyes to meet Draco's. Her blue eyes were shrewdly calculating, searching his. Draco shifted uncomfortably, and then the moment passed. "Maybe just one."
"Only one?"
"It's only to continue the family name, right? My figure will be ruined if I have any more. And I've heard of getting stretch marks. They're horrible!" She continued to ramble on about stretch marks and pain, then switching to talking about a couple that she had counselled whose marriage had broken apart because they had too many children.
Draco just sat there, stunned by her answer that was totally contradictory to what Ginny had said the day before.
Ginny was contemplating something very important. She kept remembering everything that happened the day before, voices echoing in her head.
"Miss Ginny, is that man your boyfriend?"
"Life is what you make out of it."
"Well, not to fulfil the Weasley dogma or anything, but I want lots of kids."
She did want to have children, she always had, but there was no future for her if she continued to hang onto the past. Ginny took a huge box and thirty minutes later, was carrying it to the trash disposal behind the building. She didn't even look back once at the clothing, pictures, and mementos in the box titled 'Seamus' Things'.
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