Seven Minutes In Heaven
By Anti Darth Ani
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A great little chapter I have here for all my loyal and patient readers and reviewers. Just be nice to be for being so slow to update, because I have a lot going on right now (even more than the four fan-fics I'm writing right now at the same time). But hey, this story isn't dead, and that counts for something, right???? @.@ Well, I surely hope that you truly enjoy this chapter. I've now officially used up all my creative juices and am in need of an extremely long nap!!!
Also, I am look for a person to edit this story. If you have some spare time and can edit it quickly (and you want to edit the story), please leave your e-mail in your review and I would love you forever and ever. And I really think it would get me to update faster because then I wouldn't have to edit it myself :P
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"Where in the world have you been, Ginny?" Ron asked as she slipped into the seat next to Ron in the Great Hall for lunch. "You about gave poor Hermione a heart attack when we couldn't find you this morning. How many times do we have to tell you that you need to be extra careful these days? With the war drawing up closer every day, we need to know where you are Ginny. If Mum found out…" Ginny couldn't seem to focus on her brother's extra long lecture as she took a sip of her pumpkin juice. Her brain zoomed out and refocused on something completely different, something she knew her brother would have a fit about if he ever found out. Across the room sat Draco Malfoy, sitting at the Slytherin table, surrounded by his goons and giggling seventh year girls.
Oh, Ginny would have given anything to be one of those girls. She didn't want to be a boneless airhead, but she wanted to be around him like they were. No one cared if those girl crowded around Draco and laughed at every single thing he said. No, none of their brothers would slit their throats if they saw them standing around Draco. In fact, their brothers would want to become one of Draco's lackeys. But not Ron. Ron would ask Ginny if Draco had put a charm on her, and then he would curse her into tomorrow for `going out with that git'.
Sometimes I wish I could trade in my red hair and my family name just to get along with the people I can't now, Ginny thought as she forced herself to look away from Draco's fan club. It isn't healthy to think about him this much, she told herself. I can't even eat right anymore because of him. And why? Because they made out a few times, a few times too many in everyone's opinion except for her own.
Lavender cleared her throat and bumped Ginny with her shoulder. Ginny looked up at her friends, who were sitting silently at the table, staring at her. Ginny glanced at all their faces with a puzzled expression. "What?" she demanded, wondering why they were looking right at her without saying anything.
Hermione shook her head, like she was ashamed, and went back to talking to Harry about her classes. Ginny turned to Lavender and raised an eyebrow but Lavender sent her back a look to say `I'll tell you later'. Frustrated and upset, Ginny let her fork clatter down onto her plate and she stood up and climbed over the seat. She reached for her backpack and managed to grab the strap quickly. As she yanked it up onto her shoulder, it tipped too far back and a few of her books spilled out of the pack.
Many of the heads in the Great Hall turned to Ginny, whose face was glowing a bright red. Nice going, you idiot, she chided herself. Nice, clean getaway, she mocked herself as she silently tried to gather up her books without saying a word to anyone. Before her brother or her friends could say a word to her, Ginny had snatched her books back up and hurried out of the dinning hall without another word.
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Lavender wondered what had suddenly gotten into Ginny. She noted during lunch how Ginny's eyes seemed to drift over to the Slytherin table while she was eating. As Ginny snatched up her books, her backpack slid against the floor and when Ginny stormed out of the hall, Lavender saw a little piece of paper left on the floor. Making sure no one saw her, she quickly leaned back and picked up the paper, sliding it into her pocket, she sat back up and reached for the mashed potatoes.
"What's her problem?" Harry asked as he watched Ginny's retreating form. Ron just shrugged and Hermione mumbled something about hormones as she opened her Muggle Studies book. Lavender thought about the piece of paper in her pocket. Oh, it could be nothing more than her Potions notes, but it could also be some very important, maybe the reason Ginny seemed to be on edge.
Of course, Lavender figured she already knew why Ginny was on edge. And it had to do with the blonde hair god glancing at the seat where Ginny had been sitting only seconds ago. Yes, Draco had a way of pinching one of Ginny's nerves, getting under her skin and just staying there. And Lavender didn't think he even knew what kind of affect he had on her poor friend.
Lavender shook her head to herself and smiled. Teenage relationships never ceased to amaze her sometimes and it was great when things got complicated. Otherwise, where was the fun in watching your friends date and find the wonders of getting lost in the broom closets? Although it felt mean to admit it, Lavender was actually having a little fun watching Ginny struggle with her feelings for Draco. After all, Lavender had a plan to get them together anyways, and it was damn near foolproof. It was just going to take a little time and some effort. Since she was going to help Ginny out in the end, where was the harm in having a little fun watching them struggle with each other first?
No harm in that at all, Lavender answered to herself as she bit into her chicken. As she ate, she listened to Ron and Harry talk about the upcoming Quidditch game against Ravenclaw. She also noticed that Draco had gotten up from his house table and was making his way towards the double doors out into the hallway.
Oh, let the games begin, Lavender grinned and patted her pocket, making sure the piece of paper was still safely tucked away.
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Ginny didn't want to even think about what an idiot she had looked like. Why can't things ever just be simple? she asked herself as she threw her bag against the wall and sighed. Ginny slumped against the wall and just looked down at her bag. I can't let this get to me anymore, Ginny thought, twisting a strand of her hair around her finger. I just need to relax and focus on my schoolwork for now. I'll worry about everything else later. Much later. She looked around, wondering why the hell she'd chosen this hallway to make her `great' escape down. It was deserted, which seemed liked the only plus. Not even the portraits on the walls moved. The statues stood silently without moving and Ginny groaned. Where am I?
She wanted to pick up her bag and try to find her way out of here. She wanted to get back to her dormitory and sleep, forgetting about the rest of her classes for the day. But she couldn't seem to move. I really don't like it here, she discovered as she looked up and down the dark hall. And I don't even know where here is.
Ginny slowly bent down and picked her bag back off the floor. She looked in the direction she'd coming running from and sighed. Might as well start walking. After all, all hallways lead to the Great Hall, Ginny thought as she began her long walk towards the Astronomy Tower for her next class. The only sound she heard was the clicking of the heels of her shoes against the hard ground.
The further Ginny traveled down the hallway, the more hopeless she began to feel. This hall seems to go on forever, she thought after she'd walked down the hall for a good five minutes. I don't remember going this far. Her heartbeat quickened as she began to panic a little and walk faster. What if it's one of those magical hallways? she thought, breaking out into a full run. A hallway that traps me here and has me running forever. She couldn't remember if she'd actually heard of such a thing before, but Ginny figured anything could exist, and Hogwarts was a perfect place to try such a thing out.
The further down the hall Ginny traveled, the more she panicked. Tears formed in the corners of her eyes, but she didn't stop to let herself cry. If she stopped running, she would breakdown and she'd have no chance of escape. Her best bet was to just keep running.
I'm going to die, she thought to herself suddenly. She tried to shake the thought out of her mind, telling herself how stupid she was being, but the more she ran, the more tired she got and the more she wanted to give up. This is stupid, Ginny thought, but she didn't stop running.
Just as Ginny was going to give up, she ran into something solid. Something she couldn't see, something that shouldn't have been in her path. Ginny let out a little "umph!" as she collided with the solid object. She would have landed on her ass, but the object came to life, grabbing her waist and holding her up.
As soon as she caught her balance again, Ginny tried to pull away from the object. But it held onto her tighter and Ginny realized it was a person. She began to push against it and tried to hit it with her backpack, but it didn't let go.
Ginny suddenly stopped and let the bag drop. Why is everything so black? And why can't I see who's in front of me? What the hell is wrong with me lately? "Damn, Weasley," came a muffled voice and Ginny felt her stomach drop.
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Her hand reached out and he grunted when she touched his face. Well, if he was being honest, he'd have to say that she tried to touch his face but ended up more or less sticking her finger in his nose. "What the hell are you doing?" he hissed, batting her hand away.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, but she didn't really seem to be talking to him. Instead, it was as if she was talking to someone next to him. She wasn't even looking right at him.
"What am I doing here?" he shot back. Good question. "I was following you," he told her honestly. She raised an eyebrow and reached out again, but this time she reached right over his shoulder. "What is wrong with you, Weasley?" he asked. "Are you trying to be a mime?"
Ginny sighed and let her hands drop. "I can't see anything," she admitted. Draco didn't know why, but he had to laugh. She managed to hit him well enough, "It's not funny!" she insisted.
"Oh, you have no idea how funny it is. Someone jinxed little Miss Perfect Weasley." Draco drew his wand out of his pocket, but waited to reverse the charm. He had half a mind to just let her suffer for a while. It proved enough to amuse him for a while.
"Draco," she hissed, reaching out and managing to grab his tie. "I know you know the anti-jinx." She pulled him a little closer, "So be a good little Head Boy and take the jinx off of me."
Draco didn't like being bossed around. He was a Malfoy, after all. But, he had to admit, he liked the way the little Weasley got when she was angry. He felt like shoving her up against a wall and well… doing everything he shouldn't all over again. "And how do I know you didn't curse yourself in order to get me to come to your rescue?"
"Oh, don't be such an ass," Ginny complained, letting go of Draco and taking a step back, only to somehow hit her back against a solid object, which Ginny took to be a wall.
"But that's what you like, isn't it Weasley?" he asked, stepping closer to the cornered girl. Maybe he'd be able to shove her up against the wall after all…
"Don't go there right now," she said in a soft voice, sounding a bit detached for a second. Draco guessed he had struck a nerve or something equally as bothering. He took another step, resting his hand on the wall next to her head.
"Go where, Miss Weasley?" he asked, his breath tickling the side of her face. "I'm not going anywhere." He hated how he couldn't control the way he acted around her. Nothing went the way he wanted it to when it involved Ginny Weasley. It scared and fascinated Draco at the same time.
"Draco, stop," she whispered, turning her head away from him and trying to control her pacing heart. She couldn't do this anymore. She'd promised herself she wouldn't let it happen again, but her control over the situation was slipping more and more the closer he got to her. "We said we wouldn't do this anymore," she reminded him, although she knew all too well that he didn't need a reminder.
"What are we doing?" he asked her, slowly pulling his wand out of his robe pocket. Ginny just shrugged and looked down at the floor, still seeing nothing but black. Draco muttered a short charm as the tip of his wand pressed against her stomach. The colors immediately returned to Ginny and she could see his shinny black shoes poking out from the bottom of his robes.
She couldn't give him an answer because she didn't have one. But she didn't want to admit that. Without even a thank-you, Ginny silently picked up her backpack and slid out from between him and the wall, hurrying off without another word.
Fine, Draco thought as he watched her retreating form. Let the games begin.
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