Disclaimer : Alright, I'll admit it! I do not own Harry Potter! Is it really that big of a deal! Now let's get back to the story...
A/N: First, I want to say thank you for all of the wonderful reviews you guys have given me! I really, really, don't deserve them. I'm sorry this update took kind of long, and I really don't have a good excuse other than the fact that I am extremely lazy.
Also, this entire fic is going to be from Draco's P.O.V, and the sequel will be in Ginny's.
The Finest Silk
Chapter Two (of three) - The Dress Robes
Last Chapter: "Due to the exceptional behavior from all of the Houses, the teachers and I have decided to hold a ball for the fifth through seventh year students. It has no particular theme, but formal wear is required. It will take place in two weeks, and a Hogsmeade trip has been set for this Wednesday and Friday so students can purchase the appropriate attire. I hope to see everyone there." And with that, he sat down while the Great Hall became filled with the sounds of joy from the older students, and outrage from the younger ones. I look over at her, and I am surprised to find out that even though she is smiling, she has a sad glint in her eyes. I suddenly realized what was wrong, and am determined to fix it. I skive off the rest of my classes and go to my dorm, to devise a plan.
I'm sitting on my bed amongst various bags of galleons, sickles, and knuts, trying to figure out how I can make this plan work. I am currently counting out all of my money which, given my wealth, might take a while. My plan is to go to Hogsmeade this Wednesday and then apparate to a nice shop in London to buy Ginny some expensive, and elegant dress robes. She will be the most beautifully dressed girl at the ball. No price is too high to spend on my goddess, although I would like to have some money left over to spend on myself. The only thing I haven't figured out yet is how I will give them to her. I want to remain anonymous, but at the same time, I want to see her eyes light up with joy and wonder as she opens my gift. I want to see the jealous looks on the faces of her friends as she proudly inspects her new robes. As I continue to try and figure out my plan I am interrupted by Zabini.
"Hey, Malfoy." He says, walking into my room and flopping down on a chair. He observes the array of coins on my bed with a raised eyebrow.
"Planning a little shopping trip, are we?" He asks with a smirk. I hesitate, because I'm not sure what to say without revealing too much.
"Yes, I'm going on the Hogsmeade trip on Wednesday, I need some dress robes." There, I thought, there's nothing he could find too interesting about that.
"Okay, mate, mind if I come?" I groan inwardly. How can I refuse his company without sounding suspicious? I smirk at him.
"Zabini, you are the last person I would pick to accompany me on a trip." He glares, while sending me a rude gesture with his hand.
"You know, you've been a bit secretive lately, Malfoy. I think this has something to do with that Weasley girl." He makes a face when he says her name, the sort of face one might make if they had eaten an earwax every flavor bean, and I clench my fists in anger. He sees this, and smirks again, but I cut him off before he can reply.
"It has nothing to do with that Gryffindor muggle-lover! The fact is, that I just don't want waste anymore of my valuable time with you than is necessary!" This doesn't phase him in the least.
"Well, I just want you to know that it's okay with me Malfoy," He notices my questioning glance and continues "That you like her, I mean, I can't really say I blame you. She has that gorgeous red hair, and those long legs and don't even let me get started on her br-" Whatever else he was about to say was broken off by my shoving him abruptly against the wall.
"You bloody well stay away from her, or I will rip you apart with my own hands!" I say through gritted teeth. He looks amused, but he doesn't say what we both know that he is thinking. He pushes me off, brushes off his robes, and stalks from the room. I slam the door angrily behind him.
***
After having breakfast, which was mainly consisted of me staring at Ginny, and Zabini catching me with that satisfied smirk of his, I am on my way out of Potions class. Zabini is walking beside me, knowing that I am hoping to see Ginny. And I do. Her hair is in pigtails today, and on anybody else it would look too girlish or immature, but she manages to look as beautiful as always. Out of the corner of my eye I see Blaise smirk, and begin to quicken his pace and I know nothing good could possibly come of this. Just when Ginny is about to pass by my left he sticks his foot out and deliberately trips her, causing her to fly in my direction. As she hurtles into me, my arms wrap around her instinctively and I have to struggle to maintain my balance on the ground. I am amazed at how small and warm she feels, and suppress the urge to tighten my hold around her arms, and instead I do the opposite and release her. I then bend down and pick up her books and hand them to her. Her cheeks are flushed and she is quite clearly too shocked by my actions to speak, but her eyes show her gratitude. I am at a loss for what to say as well, so I brush past her and walk in a hurried pace towards where Zabini is doubled over in laughter. He is going to pay for this. He sees me coming, stands straight, and attempts to suppress the look of amusement on his face. I shove him angrily against the wall, his robes are clenched tightly in myf fistsand he doesn't seem so amused anymore.
"What the hell was that about? Did I not tell you, just two hours ago, what the consequences would be if you didn't stay away from her?" I demanded. He tries to give me an innocent smirk, but stops abruptly when I shake him a bit.
"Look, I was doing you a favor!" I give him a look of disbelief.
"Me? You were doing me a favor?! Explain to me, Zabini, how that would be considered a favor! You just made me look like a fool, and that is not something that a Malfoy does."
"Are you blind or stupid? I've seen the way she blushes when she catches you looking at her. I just figured that if you caught her before she fell she might start to fancy you a bit more, is all." His expression looks honest, but that is the stupidest plan I've ever heard of.
"Fancy me? I caught her from falling, so that's going to make her fall madly in love with me? That's the stupidest idea you've ever come up with! Even Crabbe and Goyle would've known it was a stupid plan!" Tired of arguing, and realizing that I am late for classes again, I turn and walk away. Instead of heading in the direction of my class I find myself heading towards my dorm. This is the second day in the row I've skived off classes. I walk into the boy's dormitory and flop down on my bed. All I can think of, is the way Ginny felt in my arms. I wish I could hold her more often, and begin to imagine what it would be like if she were mine.
***
My thoughts were so consumed of Ginny yesterday, that I ended up falling asleep, and by doing so, missed dinner and quidditch practice. Seeing as how I am the captain, that didn't go over too well with my teammates.
Today is the Hogsmeade trip, so all the classes are abbreviated. I was so preoccupied with my plan, that on the way to Herbology, I nearly trampled five or six first year Hufflepuffs.
When the last of classes were finally let out I walked quickly to my dorm, gathered my money, and headed towards Hogsmeade. I shiver from coldness, and realize december is not the best time to be walking around in thin, silk, robes without a cloak. Once far enough away from the school where I thought I wouldn't be seen, I apparated. I am sixteen, so it's not quite legal yet, but I'm not concerned. A few seconds later, I land in a secluded back yard. It's a little hard to get my bearings at first, but once I realize where I am, I begin walking to where all of the shops are. I see a shop that catches my eye, "Bella's Enchanted Robes." It sounds like a place where a girl would shop, so I went in.
The store was decorated with pink and purple, too girlish for my tastes, but then I remind myself that I am here for a girl, so that's probably a good thing. A plump, middle aged woman, sees me and hurries over excitedly.
"My, my, you are awfully handsome! Is there anything I can help you with?" I smirk at her compliment before replying. I now realize that it feels slightly awkward to be buying dress robes for a girl.
"Well, I'm looking for some dress robes, for a girl." She nodded at me knowingly.
"Well, give me a description of her, so we'll know what will look good on her." So I begin to describe Ginny, careful not to go into too much detail, because this lady would probably think I am obsessed with her. Well, she is my obsession, but no one else needs to know that. So I kept it simple, and described Ginny's red hair, pale complexion, and small frame. She nodded approvingly.
"This sounds like one beautiful girl." She says, but she probably says that to all the blokes who come in
here. She sees that I am beginning to feel impatient, so she instructs me to follow her, and I do. She leads me to a
section near the back of the shop, and starts pulling out dress robes , while muttering about finding one that
won't clash with red hair. Once she finds a considerable amount, she dumps them all in my arms and I nearly stagger
under the weight. She then walks off towards the front of the shop, where there are large arm chairs, and cushions. She
grabs the robes from me, pushes me down in a seat, and begins holding them up one at a time, explaining what the
material is made of, and how much it costs, and all that. Soon, she has gone through the whole pile and I haven't
found one that seems even remotely worthy of Ginny. She sighs impatiently.
"Well, there's only one more pair of robes left that I can think of, but it's very expensive." I tell her that whatever the price, it won't be a problem. She raises her eyebrow at me before going off to retrieve it.
When she returns, she holds it up, and at first I am speechless. The robes are long, and silver, but not the cheesy sort of silver that pansy would wear, it's a more subtle color, but it would still draw attention. There are light flower patterns in white, it has long sleeves, which is good, because I know she would be cold without them. The salesclerk takes my awed silence as a good sign, and smiles triumphantly. She hands me the dress, and the second I feel it, I know that it is made completely from silk. This is something my mother taught me when I was young, and was forced to accompany her on all of her shopping expeditions. The robes are luxuriously soft and smooth, and they have a liquid-like feel to them. She gives me the price ; six hundred Galleons, which is a lot, but nothing is too much for my princess. When I her I'll take it and I see a suspicious gleam in her eye.
"Well, seeing how this is such a unique color, and quality, I doubt your young lady would have the proper shoes for it on hand. Perhaps you would like to purchase them for her?" A part of me wanted to decline, for I knew this women was just trying to get all the money she could from me, but a part of me wanted to accept, because I realized that Ginny probably did not have such extravagant shoes to go with these robes. So I nodded to the woman and she grinned slyly at me. She then dragged me over to the shoe section, which is pretty big. I had thought that it would take forever for her to locate the shoes but she finds them immediately. They are silver in color, and made of satin. They look as though they have been made for the dress robes. I tell her I'll take them and she puts them in a box, and hands them to me. The shoes are seventy Galleons. I grimace slightly, and a part of me stops to question why I am doing all of this, when I am going to get nothing in return. Then, I remember the look in her eyes, when she heard about the ball. How she had been excited, but then disappointed upon realizing that she would not be able to afford the robes. This is all the motivation I need. I look at the salesclerk, who is eying me with a smug expression. I groan, knowing that she is probably going to try to convince me to buy something else.
"Now, before you go to the front desk to purchase your items, I thought a white comb would look nice in your young lady's hair." She has a devious glint in her eye, because it is now apparent that I will buy anything for Ginny. I glare at her as she heads off to find the comb. When she comes back she shows it too me, knowing that I will take it. This costs me another fifteen Galleons. She then suggests a handbag, which costs twenty five galleons, which I grudgingly agree to. After she has found that I briskly walk up to the front desk before she can find even more ways to take my money. The clerk at the front desk smirks at me as she sees the number of items I hand to her. She stares at a minute before asking me :
"Sir, would you like me to wrap these, or are you going to wear them now?" At first I am clueless, but when the implications of what she finally said dawns on me, I am furious. I snarl at her, which I notice frightens her a bit, then tell her to gift wrap them. She tells me this will cost an extra five galleons. I grit my teeth and tell her to go ahead. She then rings up the total; seven hundred and fifteen Galleons. I hastily give her the money, grabbed my packages, and got out of that store.
Once outside, I realize I don't have enough money for new dress robes for myself, and I grimace. Imagine that, a Malfoy, not having enough money. Now that is a disturbing thought. I walk back to the backyard in which I came, and apparate back to Hogsmeade. Students are still bustling around, as I make my way back to the school. Lunch will bwe soon.
Once inside the school I head to the Owlry, and tie the packages to two school owls, and instruct them to give them to Ginny during lunch, and not a moment sooner. My own owl, glares at me, obviously feeling betrayed. Realizing there are only five minutes left, till lunch, I hurriedly make my way down to the Great Hall.
***
I am now sitting with a clear view of Ginny, waiting for those damn owls. It's been ten minutes and there not here yet. Luckily, Blaise is sitting at the opposite end of the table with Pansy Parkinson, and is now too distracted to smirk at my staring at Ginny. Finally, the owls fly in, laden with the heavy, expensively wrapped packages. I watch Ginny's reaction as they drop the packages in front of her. She looks both puzzled, and embarrassed at the same time. A girl next to her nudges her arm, and Ginny opens the largest package which contains the dress robes. Her face lights up with delight and awe as she picks the material up in her hands and inspects it. The girls at the Gryffindor table surround her and bombard her with questions. I watch as she carefully places the robes back in the box, and opens the next package, which has the shoes in it. Her face lights up again, and I get this funny feeling in my stomach that I can't quite describe. She then opens the box that contains the handbag and hair comb. The girls around her seem to be going mad with jealousy. They keep glaring at her but she takes no notice. She gathers her packages and then walks out of the Great Hall, unaware of the many jealous eyes following her.
A/N: I didn't like this chapter at all! I tried and tried to re-write it, but it just wouldn't turn out right! Well, anyways, please review and tell me what you thought!