Blind

VirtualFaerie/MalfoyMyFerret

Rating: PG13
Genres: Angst, Romance
Relationships: Draco & Ginny
Book: Draco & Ginny, Books 1 - 4
Published: 30/03/2003
Last Updated: 01/04/2003
Status: completed

"What are you?? Blind?!?" She asked shrilly. "Actually," he said, the corner of his mouth taking a sardonic uplift. "I am."

Chapters

1. Part 1

2. Love is Blind

1. Part 1

A/N: Yes, I'm quite aware of how crazy I am--starting another story and all. But really, I couldn't help myself. Besides, this is just something that I dredged up from my hard drive, I've had it on there forever. It just needed a little dusting off and some re-writing and it would be okay.

This fic is going to be two parts.

Disclaimer: Don't own anything related to Harry Potter--and I definitely don't own Gucci.

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BLIND

Part I -- What Are You?? Blind?

By VirtualFaerie

Ginny Weasley was perusing the aisle of a grocery store, trying to decide what exactly she already had at home and what she needed to keep her from starving for the rest of the week. Grocery shopping was one of her most dreaded activities. Not to mention that she was having to do it at a late hour. Good thing they had grocery stores open at ten o’clock.

She had just gotten off of work. Working as a secretary for Amos Diggory was no easy task, and he was very demanding and had her doing work that he probably should have been doing himself. But she wasn’t all that miffed about having to stay over-time to do it. It meant she got paid extra, which was always a Good Thing.

The only thing she liked about grocery shopping was the fact that it did not take place in her lonely, empty apartment. She hated being at her apartment on account of it being so lonely, and therefore spent as much time outside of it as possible.

As usual, she had her head in the clouds and wasn’t paying attention to where she was going when she ran straight into another person’s cart. It sent her flying back onto the cold, hard, tiled floor of the grocery store. She was mad.

"What are you?? Blind?!?" She asked shrilly. She pulled herself up off of the ground and dusted off her behind. She stood up straight to look the offender in the eye, and was quite surprised to see a very tall and very blond man in front of her. And he was wearing sunglass. Gucci if she could see right.

"Actually," he said, the corner of his mouth taking a sardonic uplift. "I am."

Ginny’s eyes widened. That would explain his sunglasses at night. She clapped her hand over her mouth and felt her cheeks heat up. "Oh my gods," she breathed. "I’m so sorry, I didn’t know!"

"I don’t see how you could have." He said, smirking. What a kidder.

"I’m sorry. I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going," Ginny gushed. She was wringing her hands. She couldn’t believe that she’d just run into a blind man’s cart. She felt so awful. And then she’d had the gall to ask him if he was blind!! What was she, insane? "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I’m quite fine. How are you?" he said. Yes, he was quite fine, she heard herself agreeing. A very fine specimen of male. He had longish blond hair that looked baby fine and begged to have fingers run through it. His face was chiseled and smooth, his lips a perfect shape, not too thin and not too full. He was very tall, and very muscular, she could see it through his polo shirt.

She squint her eyes and cocked her head to the side, trying to figure out what was so familiar about him. He looked like someone she had known. "I've got a sore bum," she finally replied to his question. She narrowed her eyes. "You look familiar," she said slowly.

"Do I?" he said. "You might look familiar, but I'm not quite sure." She blinked a few times, wondering if he'd ever let go of her first remark to him. She doubted it.

"What's your name?" she asked.

"My name?" he asked. "Why?"

"Because," Ginny said, getting irritated. Wasn't it wrong to get irritated with a blind man. It should be. "I want to see if I know you."

"Oh, right," he said, nodding his head understandably. "Of course, you would."

"Name?" Ginny asked, tapping her foot impatiently.

He raised his eyebrows. "Alright, alright. No need to get your knickers all in a twist." He smirked at her. "My name is Draco Malfoy."

Ginny gasped. "Draco? Draco Malfoy?"

"That's my name," he said. He wasn't looking quite at her...more of at the shelf right above her shoulder. Ginny felt her heart flutter faintly. "I didn't catch your name," he said.

"That's because I haven't told you," Ginny said, frowning.

She was sure that he blinked behind his designer shades. "That was supposed to be a hint that maybe you should tell me," he said slowly, as if talking to a toddler.

She frowned distressfully. She didn't know if she wanted to tell him her real name. She remembered having a crush on him during Hogwarts--he had been so unreachable then, just because of her name. And if she told him her name now, he'd be just as unreachable. It's not as if he'd ever find out, right? He was blind.

"I'm Jenny," she said. "Jenny Wesley," she said, hoping that he wouldn't be able to sense her lie. At least it sounded close to her name--maybe if he was smart enough he'd put two and two together. "I went to school with you," she blurted out before she could stop herself.

She saw a perfectly sculpted eyebrow arch from underneath his sunglasses. "Oh, did you? I don't remember you...or your name anyways."

"I was a year younger than you."

"What house were you in?"

"Gryffindor," she said slowly.

"No wonder your name didn't ring a bell," he said, yawning slightly. "I didn't associate with Gryffindors back then."

"Back then?" Ginny asked, furrowing her eyebrows. "It doesn't matter now?"

"Everyone's crazy now--so no, it doesn't really matter. Besides, what's the use of keeping up school rivalries? It isn't like we're there anymore."

"You don't sound like the Draco Malfoy from Hogwarts," Ginny said, looking at him askance.

"People change," he said simply. "Who'd have thought that Draco Malfoy would go blind?"

"How did you go blind?" Ginny asked carefully, hoping that she wasn't treading on a dangerous subject.

"My father had a hex that went wrong," he said bluntly, putting his hands back on the handle of his cart and steering very slowly around Ginny's.

"Why did he hex you?"

"Because I didn’t want to become another one of Lord Voldemort’s hapless minions,” said Draco, some sort of emotion passing over his face. Ginny couldn't identify it.

"I'm sorry," Ginny said. "I didn't mean to..."

Draco smirked again. "I'll forgive you if you let me take you out for a cup of coffee," he said, crossing his arms and staring raptly in his direction. Ginny vaguely wondered how he could still be so confident.

"I'd like that," Ginny said, grinning.

"Well, I'll take you, but first I need to pay for my groceries," he said, pushing his cart down the aisle and to the register.

"Of course," Ginny said, following him to the check-out. "How do you know where you're going?"

He turned his head towards her, "I was given this kind of spell that lets me know my surroundings, just so I can find my way around without bumping into things or getting lost."

"Why don’t you just have a medi-wizard fix your eyes for you?" She asked curiously, helping him put his groceries on the black conveyer belt.

"I can’t, not right now at least. There’s only one that can do it; it takes powerful magic to tamper with something as fragile as a person’s eyes. Right now he’s over in Algeria dealing with a life and death crisis, and it just so happens that is more important than getting my eyesight back." He said, pulling some galleons out of his pocket when the check-out girl asked for his money.

Ginny paid for her own groceries and they went outside. When they got to the coffee shop, she asked, "Did the hex ruin your eyes? I mean they way they look? Because they were very nice last time I saw them," Ginny said, blushing slight--very glad he couldn't see it.

Draco's face was taken over by a very self-satisfied smirk. "I haven't ever been able too tell," he replied tartly.

"Can I look?" Ginny asked tentatively.

He looked a bit hesitant. "Sure, I guess."

Ginny reached up and pulled his sunglasses off so she could see his eyes properly, as she did her fingers brushed his temple and she felt him shift under her touch. She grinned and looked at his eyes, they were still as beautiful as ever, only now they held a slightly dazed kind of look, like the kind one might have while they were daydreaming. Ginny sighed and touched his cheek, "Still nice," she breathed. She was now very aware of how close her lips were to his, and her big mouth spoke up for her before she could stop herself. "Can I kiss you?"

She felt him stiffen, then relax. He lowered his lips a little so they brushed against hers gently, and he felt with his hands until he found her waist and rested them hands there. Ginny put her arms around his neck and kissed him back, enjoying the feeling of kissing Draco Malfoy, something that she never dreamed she would have been able to do.

He pulled back, his dazed eyes looking at her face, she felt herself blush and then she reminded herself that he couldn’t see her. "So," Draco said softly, to break the uneasy silence. "What do you look like?"

Ginny hesitated, "Well, I’m rather short, maybe 5’2 and my hair is r-dark brown and I have brown eyes."

He nodded. "I wish I could see you."

Ginny bowed her head. "Maybe it’s best if you didn’t."

"Why would you say that?" He asked curiously.

"Because, you might not like what you see," Ginny said quietly.

The waitress came with their coffee and they drank in silence. "I don’t think that it really matters what you look like," Draco said slowly. "After being blind for almost a year, I’ve learned that looks certainly aren’t the most important things."

Ginny smiled. "I’m not that bad looking."

Draco shot her a cheeky grin. "But it doesn’t matter now does it?"

"I guess not."

They talked some more and finished their coffee. And when they were standing back outside in front of the coffee shop Draco said, "Why don’t you let me walk you home?"

"I think I’d like that," Ginny said linking her arm with his.

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THREE MONTHS LATER

"Jenny, love! Have you seen my socks? I need some socks," Draco called from his bedroom.

Ginny looked up from her perch on the couch and smiled. "Have you looked in your sock drawer?"

"No, I didn’t look in my sock drawer," Draco answered, walking out of his bedroom and sounding quite peeved.

Ginny got up. "I’ll get some from the laundry room."

Ginny and Draco had been living together for two months, and Draco still didn’t know who she really was. Ginny was so in love with him that she wasn’t sure how she was going to tell him, or how he was going to take it. All she knew was that she had to tell him soon because the medi-wizard that could cure him would be back in England in a few days. After the grocery store incident they had gone out on many dates and then decided since they were seeing…well maybe not seeing, but since they were together so often, that maybe they should just share an apartment. So now they were.

Ginny came out of the laundry room and tossed Draco a pair of socks, which he missed, not even having known that she would toss a pair to him. Ginny giggled and picked them back up, handing them to him this time. He scowled at her, "I don’t see how you could have thought that I might EVER catch those." Draco sat down on the couch and began tugging on his socks.

"I forgot, it was a natural reflex…to just toss the socks across the room," said Ginny, smiling.

Draco finished and grinned. "That’s okay, because you can make it up to me."

"Ho--," Ginny was cut off by his lips on hers, she smiled into his lips. They broke apart and Ginny stared at him. "I apologize to you a lot, don’t I?" she asked, amused.

"That’s because you’re always getting into trouble," he said, pushing himself off the couch. “Could you help me find my shoes?”

Ginny rolled her eyes, she didn’t know how he ever survived without her in the first place. “Sure. Where are you going?”

“Not telling, it’s a surprise.” Ginny grinned, last time he said that he had wandered home with a bouquet of roses.

“Hurry up and go so that you can get back,” Ginny said, handing him his shoes.

He looked over at her, “I’ll go as quickly as possible.” He put his shoes on, patted his back pocket to make sure his wallet was there and kissed Ginny on the cheek. “I’m going now, see you when I get back.” Ginny should have taken what he said as a hint. But she didn’t. She kissed his cheek too and wished him a safe trip.

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Ginny was sitting on the couch reading a book, when she heard a key click into the lock of the door. She smiled and went to open it for Draco, but when she did, she was too surprised for words. Her mouth gaped and her eyes widened.

"Hey, Je--," he looked at her. "Are you Jenny?"

Ginny’s lower lip trembled. "More like Ginny." Draco didn’t say anything, he just blinked.

"You lied to me," he said calmly, taking in her red hair and freckles.

"I wanted to you to give me a chance. I didn't think you would have if you'd known who I really was," she said weakly.

"So you lied," his voice still an eerie calm.

"Yes," she breathed, looking down at the floor. Draco shut the door and sat on the couch with his head in his hands.

"You’re a Weasley," he said more of a statement than a question.

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A/N: Yes, yes, I know!! No need to tell me…it’s OCC. But I couldn’t help it!!! That’s why it’s fanfiction, right? That’s why I’m not J.K. Rowling. ::sighs:: Oh well, I hope you liked it. It’s the first part of two.

Please Review. (I’ll post the next part sooner—it’s all done.)

2. Love is Blind

A/N: Hee. Here’s the second part—and the end.

Disclaimer: Still don't own anything.

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BLIND

Part II -- Love is Blind

By VirtualFaerie

"You’re a Weasley," he said more of a statement than a question.

"Yes," she answered slowly, almost afraid of what was to come.

"I can't believe you lied to me," he said. He looked up at her, his eyes weren't dazed, they were clear-cut and looking at her sharply. She felt like a knife and been shoved through her heart just from his look. He was angry. "You took advantage of my...my blindness and lied."

"I only did it because I didn't think you'd give me a chance if you'd known who I really was," she tried to explain. She fell back into an armchair, feeling like she needed to curl up into a tiny ball and just disappear.

He shook his head in disbelief. "Were you ever going to tell me?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "I couldn't ever find a time though. What was I supposed to do? Just out of the blue say, 'Oh, and my name isn't really Jenny, it's Ginny. I'm Ginny Weasley'?" She asked, feeling her face heat up.

"How do I know I can trust you?" he asked harshly. "You said you loved me--was that a lie too?"

Ginny's eyebrows shot up. "No! No, I would never lie about that. It was true. It still is true. I love you."

"You sure have an odd way of showing it," he said. "You've been lying to me from the beginning."

"Only my name," Ginny protested.

He arched an eyebrow. "You didn't tell the truth when you told me how you looked."

"That would have given my name away," she argued. She felt like this was a pointless argument, it seemed no matter what she said it would never be right. She could see where he was coming from, but had hoped maybe he would be more forgiving, after all, he'd said he loved her too. They'd been together for so long. She didn't want it to be ruined because of a mistake she made at the very beginning--she hadn't even thought it would go this far then.

Ginny willed him to see the love that she hoped was evident in her eyes. She wanted him to believe her. "Would you have still asked me out if you'd known who I really was?" she ventured. She didn't know how he would respond to this question--because, despite living with him, and dating him for months, she wasn't quite sure on his views of the wizarding world. Had he let go of past prejudices, or was he still holding onto them with his Malfoy dignity? There was no way to be certain considering she hadn't subjected herself to his prejudices until now and even now it hadn't been intentional.

Draco looked back up at her a blinked. He took in her appearance fully--looking, seeing what he had been with for the past three months of his life. He was seeing the woman who he had fallen in love with, who had accepted him despite his blindness--other women hadn't been so forgiving of that defect, even if it could be cured eventually. He wanted to forgive her, he wanted to take her into his arms and assure her that even though he was mad as hell at her for lying to him, he could still love her. He could still love her even with her Weasley background and different beliefs. But he felt too betrayed to even think of telling her so. He had been lied to too many times in his life, by his father, his friends, and even his mother. She had lied to him too, how was he to know that she wouldn't turn around and hurt him as others had?

He looked into her dark brown eyes, they reminded him of melted chocolate--of warm, comforting hot chocolate, the kind that warmed your soul. Her large and doe-like eyes were framed with dark sooty lashes. She had tendrils of her dark red hair hanging in her face, and freckles sprinkled across her face. He could tell by the look in her eyes that she loved him. But her real name revealed a whole new person to him. What had she not told him, just because it might have provided some clue to who she really was?

He rubbed his temples and looked down at the floor. This certainly wasn't what he had been expecting to come home to. He had expected to come home and be able to gather "Jenny" up in his arms, and surprise her with his cured blindness. He had wanted to see her for so long.

"I need time to think about this," he said finally, after mulling through everything. He wasn't ready to forgive her.

He got up from his chair and grabbed his robes and wand, storming out of the apartment slamming the door behind him.

Ginny swallowed heavily, still staring at the closed door. She blinked, and two tears leaked out of her eyes and trekked down her cheeks. She didn't even bother to try and wipe them off before she leapt off of her chair and ran into her bedroom, locking the door behind her. She collapsed in her bed, crying. She didn't know what to do.

What was there for her to do besides sit and wait? Wait for him to think things through more thoroughly?

She could chase after him...try to persuade him to forgive her--Merlin knew she would try anything to get him to forgive her, she loved him enough. She pushed her face into her pillow, feeling the tears being soaked up by the pillowcase.

She would just have to give him time.

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Ginny sat in Hermione's kitchen, at the scrubbed table that reminded her so much of her mothers, nursing a mug of--ironically--hot chocolate. Hermione was sitting across the table from her, peering at her concernedly. Ginny had shown up at her doorstep not long ago, with her make-up smeared and her eyes red and puffy. Hermione had let her in--Ginny hadn't said a word--and made her hot chocolate.

"What's wrong?" Hermione asked tentatively.

Ginny sniffed. "You know how I told you I had a boyfriend I was living with?" she asked. Hermione nodded--it was the boyfriend that she wouldn't tell anyone anything about, not even his name. "And he was blind?" Yes, Hermione remembered that. She nodded again. "Well, he decided to surprise me, and came home with his eyes fixed."

Hermione furrowed her eyebrows, now she was confused. Wasn't Ginny supposed to be happy about this? What could he have done?

Ginny blinked slowly. "He was...Draco Malfoy--and I hadn't told him my real name when I first met him, because I wanted him to give me a chance." She looked at Hermione timidly. "You remember I had a crush on him during Hogwarts?"

"Yeah," she answered. Ron had almost blown Malfoy's head off when he'd heard. He thought that maybe Draco had slipped Ginny and love potion and was trying to use her to get at Harry. Hermione had been greatly amused, if not concerned that Ron would kill himself with high blood pressure.

"That's why I told him that my name was Jenny Wesley. He was blind from some hex his father had done--I wasn't expecting us to have a relationship that would go anywhere. I made a mistake." Ginny's lower lip trembled as she tried to suppress tears. She was sick of crying. "He came home not expecting me. Now he's angry--and...." She shook her head feebly and took a sip of her hot chocolate.

Hermione rubbed her forehead. Why did Ginny have to go and get involved with someone like Draco Malfoy? "What did he say?"

"He said he needed time to think," Ginny said. She looked at Hermione with hopeful eyes. But Hermione didn't know what to say. She didn't know the first thing about the inner workings of Draco Malfoy--she didn't know what she could possibly tell Ginny.

"Well," Hermione started slowly. "At least he didn't flat out say he wouldn't ever forgive you."

"Yeah..." she said. Ginny put her hot chocolate back on the table. "I'm sorry I bothered you."

"You're no bother!" Hermione protested.

Ginny shrugged. "I don't know. I just needed to...tell someone. Thanks for listening."

Hermione shook her head and gave Ginny a light hug. "It's alright. That's what friends are for, right?"

"Do you think that I can stay the night?" Ginny asked. "Just tonight?"

"Sure," said Hermione. "Stay as long as you need to."

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Ginny unlocked her apartment door, and pushed it open slowly. She stepped in and closed it behind her--able to see Draco sitting on the couch in the living room. His elbows were rested on his knees and his face was rested in his hands, he was looking at the floor. She almost wanted to turn back and leave--go back to Hermione's. But that wouldn't help the situation any--especially since he had already heard her come in--she could tell by the way that he had stiffened.

"Draco," she called out carefully.

He raised his head and looked at her expectantly. "Where have you been?" he asked coldly.

She lowered her eyebrows. "At Hermione's."

"What were you doing? Crying to her about how evil Draco is?" he said. His tone was sharp and biting. Bitter. He put on a high falsetto, "Oh poor me, I lied to Draco and now he hates me!" She didn't say anything--she kept her eyes on his face. After being with him so long she had learned to read his expressions--but not his eyes. They threw her off.

"I went because I need to go somewhere that didn't remind me of you." She paused and took a deep breath. "Look, Draco, I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to lie to you. To tell the truth, I didn't even think that we were going to be where we are now. I didn't think that I would have fallen in love with you."

"Do you always lie to the ones you love?" he asked bitterly. He could see her shift uncomfortably at the entrance of the living room. Her hair was mussed and her make-up smeared. But he had never thought she'd looked more beautiful--but then again he'd never really seen her before. Her eyes were wide and soft, begging for him to forgive her. But why should he hand it to her so easily?

"I'm sorry," she said again. "I know what I did was wrong. But I'm sorry. I can't go back and change what I did." She took a hesitant step towards him.

"Why?" he asked hoarsely. "How do I know that you won't lie to me again? How do I know that you aren't lying about other things?"

She swallowed. "You won't. You'll just have to trust me, there isn't anything else I can say."

"What's your trust to me? You've already blown it," he said harshly.

She felt her lower lip tremble slightly and tilted her head up to the ceiling, trying to keep the tears in that were threatening to fall. She sucked in a deep breath of air and looked back at him. "Draco," she said. "I'm fucking sorry!" she yelled pleadingly.

His eyes widened for a moment in surprise. "Ginny," he said slowly. "I just don't know what to think." He rested his head back in his hands, letting out a long sigh. "I just don't understand...why?"

"Because.... Like I said, I wanted you to give me a chance. I'd liked you during school and I thought that if I told you my real name that you wouldn't even give me that chance." Ginny felt like she had said this a billion times. "Please forgive me," she asked quietly. A single tear slipped out of her eye and slid slowly down her cheek.

He stood up from the couch, and crossed the span of the room until he stood in front of her. He cupped her face with his hands, wiping away the tear with the pad of his thumb.

"Please..." she said as barely a whisper before he covered her lips with his. His kiss wasn't as soft or gentle as they had been before. It was rough and impassioned -- all of the emotions he'd had came spilling out. Ginny was startled for a moment, first by the fact that he kissed her, and second, by the force of the kiss. His lips felt hot on hers, a pleasant tingle ran down her spine as one of his hands curled around the nape of her neck. She slid her hands onto his chest and leaned into him -- kissing him back as ardently as he was kissing her, trying to show him without words how sorry she was, and how much she loved him.

As Draco kissed her, he opened his eyes and looked at her. He wanted to see her while he was kissing her.

She pulled back slowly and looked him straight in the eye. She raked her teeth over her bottom lip nervously. "Draco...I do love you. Please know that I wouldn't do anything like that to hurt you purposely. I'm so sorry."

Draco looked at her. "Okay," he said softly, so softly she almost hadn't heard him. He leaned in and gave her a feather soft kiss, then rested his forehead on hers. "I love you, too." He paused and the corner of his mouth quirked up. He added, as an afterthought, "Ginny."

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A/N: Bwhahaha. Yes, that's the end. Nice little short fic. Only two chapters. ::sighs:: Just what the doctor ordered I think. Now I can go back to HSNT and ATCC. ::cheers:: Yay!

Thanks to everyone that reviewed! You made my day.