Draco Malfoy lay on his bed, eyes to the ceiling. His slivery gray gaze outlined the sketch of a dragon done above his bed. The dragon’s teeth were bloodied and gaped from its mouth in a truly menacing fashion. Underneath was inscribed the Hogwarts motto: Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus. Never tickle a sleeping dragon. This saying had been part of Draco’s education from day one...
"Son, a situation that is delicate is like a sleeping dragon. Can you tell me why?"
The five year old boy looked at his father with his face screwed up in concentration, trying to remember his lesson. "Because it’s better to leave it alone," the boy finally answered triumphantly.
"Very good, Draco. Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus, my boy: Never tickle a sleeping dragon. Don’t ever forget it: that phrase encompasses the entirety of what it means to be a Malfoy."
And the heir to the Malfoy millions never forgot that lesson. It got him through Hogwarts and launched him into the world. Now, at 25, he was lying on his bed in the Master Bedroom, a snoring Pansy next to him, hating his life. It had taken on the qualities of his namesake: a roaring dragon that had only just fallen asleep. The question was... did he risk waking it up, or did he leave it to go on hating his existence?
His decision made, he took his wand and looked over at Pansy. "This trash is the FIRST thing to go." He cast a Sleeping Charm on her and then muttered, "Mobiliuscorpus." He levitated the girl out of his room and Apparated her to her own bed. He brushed his hands off decisively. "And that’s that." He immediately wrote three letters and sent them out, then fell asleep, a contented smile on his face.
~*~
"Miss Weasley, there’s been another Kappa murder."
"Miss Weasley, an Ashwinder fire has burned out half of the farms."
"Miss Weasley, the Muggle Emperor wants a report on those Mooncalf patterns he thinks are aliens."
"Miss Weasley, your brother called..."
The Head of the Far Eastern branch of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical creatures sighed and pushed her hair back from her face.
"Call in sub pest division A, send the Ministry Fireouters, tell His Majesty that those reports will be on his desk on Monday, and WHICH brother, Padma?"
Padma wrung her hands. "It was the British Minister of Magic, Miss Weasley."
Ginny sighed to herself. Ever since Padma had been on the wrong end of a Memory Charm, Ginny had taken her on as her secretary, and often forgot that this wasn’t the Padma she had gone to school with.
"Ron? What does he want?
"He wouldn’t say. All he said was to tell you to expect a visitor from his branch of the DRCM."
"Really?" Ginny frowned. Why would Ron send someone to her part of the world from the British DRCM?
"Here... he’s on the glass."
Ginny turned to see her brother on real time.
"Hi, Ron."
"Lo, Ginny. How goes it?"
"Fine, and you?"
"It’s all good, Gin... Herm and I are expecting again." Ron looked properly sheepish.
"Ronald Arthur Weasley! That’s the 3rd baby in four years! You’re going to kill her at this rate!" Ginny laughed. "Between the lot of you, I’ll be a new Aunt every year until I’m 350!"
"Speaking of... when’s my favorite sister going to settle down?"
"One: I’m your only sister, and two: I haven’t the faintest bloody idea."
Ron looked at his youngest... and, as previously stated, only... sister with apprehensive eyes. If she knew who he was sending her, she would hate him. Bully for her.
"Now, what’s this about you sending me someone?" Ginny asked with a raised eyebrow.
Ron looked suspiciously shifty eyed. "Oh... just someone who put in for a transfer. He’s actually very good at what he does, despite my reservations, Gin... You’ll benefit from it, I assure you."
Ginny knew her brother well enough to know she would get nothing else from him.
"All right, Gin?"
"All right, Ron. Love you."
"Love you, too."
"Send my love to Mione and the kids!"
"As always." Her brother winked and was gone.
~*~
Draco looked up at the Far Eastern Ministry building with a grin. The hair that fell across his tanned cheek was deep silver now, and his gray eyes no longer held the devious hatred and depression they once had. He had started life over, and this life was pretty damn fine.
Ron Weasley was a pretty odd guy... but, he had gotten Draco here, and that was all that mattered. Draco knew that Ron disliked him at first, but Hermione had immediately seen the change in him. She had welcomed him into their home, and eventually the British Minster of Magic had come around. Why was he there? It was the LAST place Pansy would look for him.And THAT was the reason he had put in for this transfer. For some reason Ron had been VERY reluctant. It had taken a firm look from Hermione and some fast-talking... along with a restraining order against Pansy... in order to convince him.
Draco stopped his reminiscing and entered the building, feeling the appreciative glances thrown his way and not caring as he once had. He purposefully made his way to the DRCM’s floor and approached the witch at the front desk. His eyes widened for an instant before he schooled his expression to that of professional chill. ~Padma Patil? Here? And she doesn- oh. Right. ~ He had forgotten.
"I’m here from the Brit-"
"Oh! You must be Mr. Weasley’s friend!" the oblivious girl chirped, leaping up. Draco raised an eyebrow at being called Ron’s friend, but wisely didn’t comment as Padma bustled away for an instant. She came back smiling. "There you go. She’s ready to see you."
~She?~
Draco sighed and steeled himself for whomever he was about to face. Some prissed up version of Cho Chang, perhaps? He walked through the door and froze.
The woman behind the desk was staring at him with eyes wide. Her curly red hair fell down her back, framing her peaches and cream face and setting off her dusting of freckles. She was already on her feet, mouth agape.
"MALFOY?!"
He managed a weak smile. "Long time no see, Weasley."
"Bu-bu..... RON. I’m going to kill him," Ginny muttered. She seated herself and regained her composure. Draco flopped on a chair as if he’d been doing so in her office all his life.
"Don’t look so distraught, VIRGINIA. I’m not the bad ass I used to be."
~ Coulda fooled me,~ she thought with a grimace, glaring out from under her eyelashes at him. Draco grinned. Any deeper, and that glare would be fatal.
"I'm only here until Pansy Parkinson gives up hunting for me, Weasley."
"Oh, so you're here until the fourth Sunday from never?" Ginny asked wearily.
"Pretty much. Aren't you happy?" Draco asked sweetly.
"Oh, joy. Rapture," she said in a toneless voice.
"Look at it this way, Weasley: You get to boss me around." As he walked to the door, he let out his parting shot, "Since I know your an "on top" kind of person..."
"Fuck off and get out, Malfoy."
"Since I have no intention of doing one and every intention of doing the other, I bid you good day, Virginia." Draco closed the door and stopped in the hallway. He had forgotten how refreshing it was to goad a Weasley. And this goading had so many possibilities...
~*~
"RON!"
Ginny’s brothers winced as they heard her voice issuing from the fireplace.
"Oh, RONNIKINS..." Fred called up the stairs. "It’s GINNY!"
Ron groaned and pulled his pillow over his head. "I can’t deal with her bitching now, Mione..."
Hermione glared at her husband. "You big baby! Between the kids, you, our brothers..."
"Nag, nag, nag," Ron quipped as he kissed his wife good morning and got up to face the music.
"Yes, Ginny... Yes, Ginny...Yes, Ginny... Drop dead, Ginny...Yes, Ginny..." Ron rolled his eyes at his children, who laughed as Ginny continued to rant.
"YOU ARE AN UNBELIEVABLE GIT..."
Little Molly immediately turned to her Uncle George and laughed, "Git!Git!Git!Git!Git!Git!Git!Git!Git!"
Ron frowned. "Virginia Marie Weasley, I’d thank you to watch your mouth around my daughter."
"I’LL CALL YOU WHATEVER I BLOODY WELL PLEASE!"
"Bloody well!" Molly squealed. Noticing the footsteps that signaled Hermione’s descent down the stairs, George took the giggling Molly into the living room.
Ron looked at his sister with a smile. "Virginia, you are too distraught to discuss this. When you have calmed, we’ll talk." With that, he doused the fire.
"Ron? RON?! THAT SODDING TWIT!" Ginny growled at her fireplace and threw her book across the room...narrowly missing Draco Malfoy as he poked his head into her office.
"Quite an extensive vocabulary you have there, Virginia."
"Oh, you are the LAST thing I need!" she shouted. "OUT!" This time, the book she threw was accurately aimed; it hit Malfoy square between the eyes, and he cursed loudly.
"See if I try to be nice to you now," he muttered, leaving.
She sat down, suddenly realizing how childishly she was behaving. She calmed herself for a few minutes, and then paged Draco.
He entered warily, his left eyebrow swollen by the purple lump forming under his skin.
"You should go to a MediWizard," Ginny stated matter of factly.
"Are you kidding? This is a battle scar! I’m going to tattoo the words, "I survived an encounter with Ginny and all I got was this bloody bruise" across it."
Ginny looked at it critically. "You’d never fit it all."
They both realized how ridiculous they sounded and began to laugh. Finally Ginny looked at him. "I thought you’d be more concerned."
"About what?"
"The way it looks. In school..." she shrugged. "Actually, from all the attention you paid Harry, I thought you were gay."
"What?" Draco sputtered. ~Ah. Weasley- 1, Malfoy- 1. ~
His next remark unevened the score again. "Ah, Weasley, you have to remember something."
"And that is?"
"A worthy adversary is worth a thousand whores." At her startled look, he laughed aloud.
"I would have rather spent my time plotting Potter’s demise than whoring around, Weasley; my focus was different then."
"Ah. Different. I don’t know. You seemed to pursue both with enthusiasm."
"I didn’t come here to fight with you."
"Now THERE’S a new one."
"No, seriously. It’s already... Great Merlin, it’s 11:30 at night. I know you haven’t eaten yet... would you like to grab something?"
Ginny blinked. "As in...GO eat?"
"Don’t Weasleys eat?" he asked smartly.
"Well, yes... but..."
"Anything after but is bullshit, Virginia. So, come on."
He picked her cloak up off the chair and tossed it to her. Stunned, she caught it.
He opened the door and made a big mockery of bowing. "Ladies first."
She gave him a malicious grin. "Then, by all means, after you."
Before she knew what was happening, he had scooped her up and practically thrown her across the doorway.
"Ow! Malfoy!"
"What?" he smiled innocently at her. She rolled her eyes and said, "Come on, let’s go eat."
Two of the men still in their cubicles looked at each other in dismay.
"Dude, we’ve been trying for Gin Girl since forever, and this Brit sped comes flouncing in to take her?"
The other man rolled his eyes. "It’s gotta be a Brit thing."
~*~
Ginny eyed Draco warily as he pulled her chair out for her and then took his seat. "Draco Malfoy the arse I believe, but Draco Malfoy the gentleman?"
He shrugged, an elegant movement of his shoulders under his cloak. "It’s an affected behavioral pattern."
"Malfoy, what are you really doing in Asia?"
He kept his eyes on the menu and answered off handedly," Oh, Pansy is stalking me."
"Stalking you?"
"I believe I mentioned that before?"
"Yes, but- why HERE?"
"Pansy cannot enter Asia due to a slight... misunderstanding... back in our 7th year with an Asian official. I’m only safe from her here... that is, unless she could in no way, shape, or form get her pawing little hands on me. In other words, I’d have to be married."
He then looked up at her across the table and grinned. "Why, Weasley? Interested?"
"In YOU? Never," she scoffed.
"Never is a long time, Virginia. Even for you."
Ginny, feeling a small blush hitting her neck at that, hurriedly looked down at her menu. She smiled as she realized it was in Japanese. Before she could gloat over this too long, the waiter came over and asked for their order. Draco gave it... in perfect Japanese.
~Figures he’d be fluent in Japanese.~
Draco had been talking to her for several sentences before she realized it, only tuning at the words, "...Chinese Fireball..."
"What?" she asked, interested now.
"I was planning on grabbing an eggshell for Professor Snape while I am here."
"WHAT?!"
Draco smiled at her charmingly as he took another forkful of his rice. "I was planning on grabbing an eggshell for Professor Snape while I am here."
"I HEARD you, Malfoy... I just don’t believe you could be such an artlessly moronic git!"
"Ah, your extensive vocabulary comes into play. You know, Weasley, insults are oh so much nicer when you say them at the level of the person you’re insulting."
" Malfoy, I don’t care WHAT you think, or say, but to get back to the point of the insult, that’s SUICIDE!"
"Not for me."
His frank, matter-of-fact way of saying it gave Ginny pause for an instant.
"How can you be so sure?"
"The dragon is mine to call, Virginia." At her confused look, he nodded. "Excuse me for using a vampiric term, but it’s the best thing I could think of to describe it. It may have something to do with my name, and subsequently my Animagus form...
"You can turn into a DRAGON?"
He shrugged. "Yeah, so? The stag picked your precious Potter, the fox chose that git you call Brother, a tabby chose his girl... I was chosen by a dragon."
Ginny stared at him, an idea occurring to her. "This is the first time you’ve mentioned Harry voluntarily."
Draco grew sullen. "I thought you’d be Mrs. Potter by now, Virginia. What happened, Potter jilt you for that prissy Ravenclaw?"
Ginny rose to her feet furiously, knocking over her chair in her anger. Draco stared at her incredulously as she fairly screamed, "YES! OK, he did, Draco Malfoy! And if you weren’t such an insensitive GIT, you’d know I DON’T want to talk about it!!"
She stormed angrily out of the restaurant, leaving a shocked Draco behind. He hadn’t known. How COULD he have known? He ran his hand through his hair wearily. "Damn it, Ginny, I’m sorry," he muttered, swiftly rising from the table and throwing 50 galleons down, more than covering the bill. He quickly fought his way to the door and left the same way as Ginny.
~*~
Knock Knock.
Ginny buried her tear-stained face in her pillow and ignored the insistent pounding on her door. ~Maybe if I ignore them they’ll go away, ~ she thought bitterly, still on her bed. The pounding continued, intensifying her headache. She finally threw herself off the bed and hurtled to the door. "What the hell-!"
Never in her wildest dreams did she expect Draco Malfoy to be standing outside her door.
He looked her up and down in shock. Her face was red and swollen from crying, her hair sticking to it in patches due to the dampness, her eyes bloodshot. Before she could issue a stinging insult and slam the door, he put his foot inside and said, "God, Ginny, I’m sorry. I didn’t know."
She turned away and looked into the fireplace. Draco took that as an invitation and came in softly, closing the door. Without a word he took her by the elbow and into the kitchen. He wet a paper towel and gently wiped the traces of her tears from her face. Then he led her to her bed. "Ginny, you need rest."
She nodded and looked up at him. His eyes were all compassion... as odd as it seemed. "Thank you, Draco."
Then, without thinking, she raised herself up on tiptoe to kiss his cheek. He turned his face at the last second, and their lips met in a tantalizingly brief kiss. Then she pulled back and stared at him wide eyed. "G’Night," she squeaked, and fled to her room.
She got inside and closed the door, hand to her lips. "Oh. My. God."
Outside, Draco stood staring at her closed door. ~Am I falling for a Weasley?!~ He tried to tell himself that he was just toying with her, but he knew it wasn’t true.
~*~
~Damn it, this is awkward. ~ Ginny sighed as she twirled a lock of her hair around her finger. It had been a long three weeks since that short kiss in her apartment, and the two had done a remarkable job of avoiding each other... amazing, in fact, since she was his boss. With that thought and without warning, a small green envelope * popped * onto her desk. She slit it open and read carefully,
‘Dear Virginia,I got two comp tickets to the Billy Joel concert tonight. Want to be my "date?"
-Draco’
Ginny stared at the letter, then picked up her red bordered stationary and wrote in her slanting hand,
‘Dear Draco,
Sure. Love to. But isn’t Billy Joel a Muggle entertainer?
-Ginny’‘Dear Virginia,
No, BJ is NOT a Muggle entertainer... at least, not solely. He’s a wizard. I’ll come for you at 7.
-DracoPS Wear Muggle Clothes’
‘Dear Draco,
I’ll be waiting.
-Ginny’
After this odd correspondence Draco decided to go see Ginny at his lunch. As he raised his hand to knock on the door, he heard Ginny shouting inside.
"MOTHER, WHAT I DO IS NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!"
Draco heard the voice inside answer her back, with that tonal quality suggestive of a fireplace discussion.
"VIRGINIA MARIE WEASLEY, WHOM YOU DATE *IS* MY BUSINESS! DRACO MALFOY IS ONLY A NO GOOD RICH BOY WHO WANTS YOU FOR ONE THING... TO RUIN YOUR REPUTATION!"
"MUM, WE’RE JUST GOING... YELL AT RON! HE SENT HIM HERE! "
"OH, DON’T YOU WORRY, RON’S BEEN YELLED AT! BUT YOU! GINNY, I THOUGHT YOU HAD MORE SENSE!"
"I WILL DATE WHOM I WANT, WHEN I WANT! THIS CONVERSATION IS OVER, MOTHER!"
A sound of splashing water followed by sobs indicated that Ginny had cut the transmission. Draco pulled his hand back.He thought about it for a few minutes before turning on his heel and heading back to his office to make a few calls.
~*~
Draco was back at 6:59, staring at his watch. As soon as it clicked to 7:00, he knocked.
Inside, Ginny smiled. "How very prompt," she remarked as she opened the door.
They both stared at each other, pleasantly surprised. Draco was wearing slacks and a polo shirt, the contrast making him easy on the eyes. Ginny was wearing a dark green skirt and a loose crème colored blouse, the colors and fit perfect for her. All in all, both were impressed.
"You look great. Ready to go?" asked Draco with a genuine grin, holding his arm out to her.
"It’s seven, isn’t it?" she bantered back, taking the proffered arm and closing the door behind her.
~*~
After about an hour, Ginny and Draco grinned at each other over the screaming fans as Billy Joel asked for a volunteer to help him sing the next song. To her surprise, Draco pushed to the front.
"You! Come on up!" Billy pointed to Draco, who was swept onto the stage. "What song do ya want?"
"Only the Good Die Young," he answered, winking at Ginny. She had never heard that one, and wondered why Draco looked so mischievous. Billy hit the opening chords, and they began to sing. Then, she understood.
"Come out Virginia, don't let me wait.
You Catholic girls start much too late.
But, sooner or later, it comes down to fate.
I might as well be the one.
Well, they showed you a statue, and told you to pray.
They built you a temple and locked you away.
But, they never told you the price that you pay
For things that you might have done.
Only the good die young.
You might have heard I run with a dangerous crowd.
We ain't too pretty, we ain't too proud.
We might be laughing a bit too loud,
But that never hurt no one."
Ginny looked up at Draco as they all sang, and she felt her heart go faster. It seemed written for them.
"So come on, Virginia, show me a sign.
Send up a signal, and I'll throw you a line.
That stained-glass curtain you're hiding behind
Never lets in the sun.
Darling, only the good die young.
You got a nice white dress and a party on your confirmation.
You got a brand new soul, and a cross of gold.
But, Virginia, they didn't give you quite enough information.
You didn't count on me, when you were counting on your rosary.
They say there's a heaven for those who will wait.
Some say it's better, but I say it ain't.
I'd rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints.
The sinners are much more fun.
Only the good die young.
You said your mama told you
All that I could give you was a reputation.
She never cared for me.
But did ever say a prayer for me?
Come out, Virginia don't let me wait.
You Catholic girls start much too late.
Sooner or later, it comes down to fate.
I might as well be the one,
You know that only the good die young!"
The crowd exploded at the end, and Draco bowed as Billy Joel clapped him on the back. He hopped off the stage and fought his way through the crowd toward a shell-shocked Ginny. Unknown to them, mostly everyone was watching.
"Well, Virginia?" he asked softly, reaching her.
"A sign, Mr. Malfoy?" She smiled and stepped to him, twining her arms around his neck as he brought his lips to hers. The entire concert burst into applause.
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Draco and Ginny belong to JK Rowling, Bloomsbury, Scholastic, Warner Bros and various other corporations. They are being used here without permission and/or affiliation with the above. None of the authors listed here make any profit from these stories.