A/N: I really do appreciate all the encouraging feedback. It makes my heart smile.
Chapter 6: The Party
The party was being held in the Ministry's largest conference room. Usually reserved for lectures, the room was booked each Halloween for the costume party. It was a tradition started by Arthur Weasley, and everyone loved it.
As Ginny stepped into the room, she gasped. It was spectacular. The floor was covered with a light fog, and the walls were lined with ominous-looking trees. The ceiling donned the appearance of the night sky, covered with a misty haze, and the main source of light came from the glowing full moon.
Through her awe, she heard Ben whimper, and knew that it wasn't the decorations that bothered the child, but the crowd. There were already at least a hundred people there.
"Shhh, Mummy's here," Ginny said soothingly as she rubbed his back. "Look, there's Charlie. Do you want to go say hello? I'm sure he'd love to see your costume."
Ben just nodded his head that rested on her shoulder, and Ginny made her way towards her brother.
Charlie saw them coming, smiled, and set his drink on a nearby table. "Now how are my two favorite people?" Charlie asked as he gave Ginny a kiss on the cheek.
Hearing his favorite uncle's voice, Ben turned to him grinning. When Charlie saw Ben, his face broke into feigned fright. He jumped back and yelled, "Ginny! I think that really scary dragon ate Ben!"
Ginny smiled at her brother's antics and Ben roared at him.
"Well, there's only one thing to be done now," he said seriously. "The only way to defeat the most fearsome of dragons is by… tickling them!" Charlie grabbed Ben and tickled him mercilessly and the child broke into peals of laughter.
After a few moments of joyous torture, he released the tiny dragon and looked at his sister strangely. "Ginny, what are you supposed to be?" he said gesturing to her costume with one hand, while the other held Ben.
Ginny pouted and said, "Can't you tell?"
Charlie looked at his sister's sleeveless, floor-length, iridescent blue dress and the blue strips of organza wrapped around her arms and hands that trailed down her sides. The dress, while not tight, fell on her perfectly and showed off her curves. She went shoeless, and her red curls were unrestrained and tumbled halfway down her back.
He looked back at her and said, "No, I really haven't a clue."
She let out a frustrated sigh and said, "I'm the wind!"
"The wind," he said slowly while silently thinking that his sister had fallen off the deep end. "Well, you're a very lovely wind. Why don't you go find some of your friends and give me and Ben some man time," he said emphasizing the last two words in a deep booming voice.
Ginny thanked her brother with her eyes and told Ben that she wouldn't be far if he needed her. She knew it was good for Ben to spend time with her brothers. It would never be the same as having a father, but it was the best she could offer him right now.
~~~~~
"I can't believe you're making me wear this," Draco grumbled as he pulled at his enchanted pointy ears.
"Oh, hush; you look great, and quit that. Do you know how many tries it took to get those ears right?" Pansy admonished as the three walked through the door.
"I vaguely recall," Draco sneered as he remembered the 212 different sets of ears he possessed that day. "And why do I have to wear this and he gets to wear that?" he said as he gestured to Blaise's costume.
Blaise smirked as Pansy said, "Because we're going as a couple. His costume has to match mine."
Draco looked again at his friend's sweeping black cape and fangs and then at his own tights and tunic and cursed the fates for the unfairness of it all. "He gets to be Dracula and I have to be Leggings," he mumbled.
"It's Legolas, not Leggings, and he gets to be Dracula because I wanted to be Lucy. Besides, the Legolas look is good for you, but it would have been so much better if you would have let me make your hair longer," Pansy said while eyeing Draco's beloved locks.
Draco took a large step back and looked at Pansy seriously and said, "I'll let you make my ears pointy, I'll let you make me carry around these stupid bows and arrows on my back, and I'll even let you dress me up in tights, but I will not, under any circumstances, let you touch my hair."
Blaise laughed and said, "Come on, guys. If we stay in the entrance all night, I won't get to see people laughing at elf-boy." Draco scowled, but walked ahead anyway.
After greeting a few key people, Pansy told Draco to wait while she went to talk to Ginny.
"So what exactly are you going to say to her?" Blaise asked him after Pansy had left.
"To be honest, I'm not quite sure yet. I'm just going to make it up as I go," he said while sipping his punch.
"That sounds like a great idea," Blaise said sarcastically.
"I rather thought so," he replied, ignoring the sarcasm.
Blaise just rolled his eyes as he continued to watch the partygoers.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the room, a small brown head perked up and glanced toward the entrance. He began to struggle with his captor and Charlie said, "Hey, what's wrong, Benno? Want down? Alright, but don't leave this room, okay?"
His feet touched the ground and he started to make his way to the entrance where a certain blond man stood.
Draco was still scanning the crowd looking for Pansy and Ginny, who he had yet to see, when he looked down into the wide blue eyes of a very short dragon.
"Hello," he said as his brain screamed, `That's the kid! That's the kid!' Calming, he remembered that he had to make this child like him. How the heck was he supposed to do that?
Before he knew what was happening, the kid had raised his arms straight into the air and was making a whiney noise.
Draco looked at him incredulously while Blaise leaned over and whispered, "I think he wants you to pick him up."
He looked like he was in pain as he looked at Blaise and then proceeded to squat down to pick the child up. Ben smiled and a chill ran down Draco's spine, as he looked closer into his piercing blue eyes. The cores seemed to swirl and Draco felt himself starting to fall. He quickly looked away and he once again felt the floor beneath his feet. He looked back into his eyes and everything seemed fine. Draco decided that either he was imagining things, or someone must have spiked the punch, but for some reason, he wasn't quite sure.
Ginny was shaking her head. She couldn't believe she let Pansy talk her into this. Although, to tell the truth, there probably wasn't anything she wouldn't do for her. But this? This was beyond weird. What could Draco Malfoy possibly have to say that was worth listening to?
She was still looking down and mumbling to herself when she ran into the back of her best friend. "Pansy, what…"
She looked up and what she saw caused her jaw to plummet to the ground. Draco Malfoy was holding her son… and they both looked rather okay with it. They were just staring into each other's eyes. Ben was actually smiling.
"What in Merlin's name is going on?" she asked bewildered.
Pansy just shook her head and said, "I don't know."
Ginny was still rooted to the ground, so Pansy calmly walked over and took Ben from Draco's arms. Ben started to fuss and Pansy flipped him upside down blew on his tummy, effectively removing all previous thoughts from the giggling child's mind. While still holding him upside down, she and Blaise carefully made their way away from the two.
Ginny regained her senses, closed her eyes briefly, and walked closer to Draco. She fought to remain clam and asked, "What do you want, and how did you do that?"
Draco took a deep breath and said, "Maybe we should talk somewhere a little more quiet."
He took her hand and she grimaced slightly, but she still let him lead her away from the room.