Author Note: This chapter is a bit shorter than the last two, but I thought it was a bit more entertaining. I hope you enjoy this one. I enjoy reading and replying to the reviews, so please continue reviewing!
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Chapter 3 - Cruel Thoughts
Draco and Ginny had several conversations similar to the one they share that first weekend of October. But Ginny certainly wasn't the only one who noticed the change in Draco. The Slytherin table was always buzzing about the loss of the "Slytherin Prince". Then, at the Gryffindor table there was buzz about how Draco was playing a crude trick on everyone. The Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws were skeptical about the popular Gryffindor tale, but the too were curious about what brought about the odd change. Every time Ginny would hear her brother and Harry coming up with a new tale, the next few were even more ridiculous than the first, she bit her tongue (literally) to stop herself from telling them off. The last thing she needed was Ron harping on her for being decent to Draco.
Ginny sighed as she lowered herself into one of the chairs the Gryffindor common room. As she watched the flames dance in the hearth in front of her, she could hear a muffled sound from just beyond the portrait. She listened closely but couldn't make out the words, nor to whom the voices belonged. She frowned and remained still as she heard the portrait open.
"Just because you don't like him, doesn't give you the right to hex him for no reason, Ron!" yelled a female voice, Ginny immediately recognized it as Hermione's.
"I didn't hex him for no reason! I had a reason, lots of reasons!" Ginny heard her brother yell back. Neither noticed that Ginny was sitting there.
"Lots of reasons? Honestly, Ron! I don't think there is any possible way you could be a bigger prat! Malfoy has not said a single word, derogatory or other wise, to you this term, not a single word. He's being decent for, Merlin's sake. And here you are, hexing him because you feel like it!" Hermione screeched.
Ginny looked over and saw Harry lowering himself into the chair next to hers. He rolled his eyes and shook his head. His expressions clearly said this is going to take a while. Ginny just shrugged and continued listening to the argument.
"Decent? Hermione, how can you say that rat is decent? After everything that prat has said and done to us over the last six years?" Ron yelled.
"I can say that Draco Malfoy is decent, because at this point in time he is acting more like a human being than you are!" Hermione hissed, "He is treating everyone with a decent amount of respect, which is more than I can say for you."
Ron's eyes widened and he shook his head, "You're something else, Hermione Granger. You'll sit there and stick up of for the guy who has been the cause of our misery for the past six years. I can't see how you can call yourself a Gryffindor. Should we be checking your arms now, Hermione? Is that it? Is that why you're sticking up for the rotten bastard?" The next thing Ron knew he was on the ground holding his jaw, where someone who was able to put a lot of force behind his or her fist had punched him. Ron opened his eyes to see his other best friend standing over him, his emerald eyes a blaze. "Bloody hell, Harry, what was that for?"
"I'll listen to you two bicker all you want, but you will not suggest that type of thing to one another. I won't stand for that, not from you. Not from Hermione. Hermione has every right to be sticking up for what she believes is right, at this moment I agree with her, you shouldn't be hexing anyone just for the fun of it, not even Malfoy. That makes you too much like, " Harry snapped his mouth shut, drew a deep breath than spoke again, "Don't you ever say something that stupid again with in range of me, Ron." He said before returning to his seat next to a very shocked and furious Ginny.
Ginny glared at her brother as he picked himself up off the ground, muttering the whole time. Hermione looked from Harry to Ron and shook her head. The shock of what Ron had suggested hadn't fully settled yet. She spun on her heal and ran up to the girls' dormitories. Harry, Ron, and Ginny all winced as they heard a door slam.
Ron threw a dirty look at Harry, who was glaring into the fire, and slipped back out the portrait hole. Ginny turned back around and sighed. "Are you alright, Harry?" she asked hesitantly. Harry nodded silently. "So...what happened to cause that scene?"
Harry glance up at her, "We were walking back from the Library, Hermione was helping us on our Potions paper, when we saw Draco doing his prefect rounds. He was being quiet, he wasn't disturbing anyone, he was just acting like he has been lately. All of a sudden, Ron calls out his name. Hermione and I knew something wasn't right in the way he'd said Malfoy's name. We stayed close enough to stop him if he did something stupid. Draco stopped and turned around. He was pleasant enough, as Hermione said, he never mentioned my scar or family, and he didn't mention your family and he said nothing about Hermione being muggle-born.
Ron just got a wicked look in his eyes and sent the binding charm at him, then proceeded to send to more hexes towards Draco. Hermione and I managed to reflect those two. Hermione did the counter spell for the binding spell and helped Malfoy up. Malfoy just gave Ron a dirty look, thanked Hermione, and walked away." Harry said shaking his head, "As you can tell, Hermione was furious at Ron for hexing Malfoy, and Ron was mad at Hermione and I for countering his hexes."
When he glanced at Ginny again he was surprised to see her face was red, not from embarrassment, but from anger. "T-that PRAT!" Ginny growled. She looked at Harry and shook her head, "Draco's really not that bad, and he certainly doesn't deserve to be treated like that."
Harry frowned for a moment studying the girl who had been like a little sister to him for the last several years, "Just as I thought," he muttered under his breath. At Ginny's questioning look he explained, "I've seen Malfoy...alright, alright, Draco, together talking quite a bit recently, no don't worry I've said nothing to your brothers," he said quickly as Ginny started to panic. "Anyway, I've seen you two talking, and he's seemed like he's been treating you nice enough. I thought perhaps the reason he's always acted as he has, had to do with his lack of true friends, and it seems that I wasn't too far off."
Ginny just shrugged, "He was sitting on the train by himself and his was the only nearly empty compartment, so I sat in there, and we started talking. Once school started we just found convenient times to continue talking. Like I said, he really isn't all that bad." Harry nodded silently, it was then that Ginny had an idea. "Harry?" she asked hesitantly. Harry glanced up curiously. "Would you be willing to do something for me?"
Harry narrowed his eyes slightly. He wasn't sure he liked the tone that her voice had just adopted. "That would depend on what it is that you are asking me to do." he said watching her.
Ginny chewed on her lower lip for a moment before launching into her story. She told Harry about the state in which Draco was in during the train ride. She told him about his fear of not becoming a Death Eater, she also told Harry about the conversation they had not long ago. About why he was acting so much differently this term. After telling him the background of her request, she voiced what she'd been trying to say for the last twenty minutes. "Harry, he's afraid of his father, of what will happen to his mother. He's afraid of not being able to defend himself against You-know-who's dark powers, he says that's the only reason he's considering becoming a Death Eater. He really doesn't want to though."
"Ginny...Ginny, hold on," Harry said holding up a hand to stop her, "What is it that you're trying to ask me?"
Ginny sighed "Harry, he wants to know how to defend himself without resorting to becoming a Death Eater. I'm wondering if it would be too much to ask to invite him to the D.A." Harry opened his mouth to say something but Ginny cut him off, "Come on Harry, I mean I could bring him as a guest, just for one meeting to see how he gets on, then if you say otherwise I won't invite him again. But doesn't Draco have as much right to learn to defend himself as anyone else?" she pleaded.
"GINNY!" Harry said loudly, cutting off her pleas. "Will you listen for a moment?" Harry sighed, "I'll make you a deal, he can come to the D.A.but there are two conditions," Ginny nodded and looked at Harry expectantly. "First, you have to be able to help him catch up. Second, if I ask you not to bring him again, you do so."
Ginny grinned and threw her arms around Harry's neck. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," she squealed as she gave him a hug. Harry laughed and returned the hug. "I'll talk to you later, I've got to go see if I can find Draco!" she said as she hurried towards that portrait hole.
Harry shook his head as he watched her leave. As soon as she was gone, he leaned his head back against his chair and groaned. "What have I gotten myself into?" he muttered. Well I'd better let Hermione know what's going on, he thought to himself. He stood up and looked around. He saw Pavarti and Lavender in the corner and approached the two girls, "Would you mind getting Hermione for me?" he asked. Both girls looked surprised but Pavarti nodded then walked up the stairs to the dormitory.
"Here goes nothing," he muttered.
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