Chapter 9 - Echo
A/N: I meant to slow down the pace of this fic but ended up slowing down the posting of it to a near stand-still. I apologize if you think I'm moving too quick but trust me, this speeds up the posting time exponentially!
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Ginny never got the chance to tell Draco about Ron and Harry's reaction to her flippant remark. She had entered the kitchens with a smile on her face, ready to be swept up in the arms of her silver-eyed knight, but she found the fire spluttering in the hearth and the darkness pressing in on all sides. Draco was always there before her. She turned around in confusion before sighing and pointing her wand at the dying embers.
Half an hour later, Ginny sat in the cold, rubbing her arms fiercely and trying to determine whether she was concerned or angry. Rushed footsteps alerted Ginny of his arrival and she flew to him, her discomfort and irritableness vanishing in the few seconds it took her to stand up and wrap her arms around his neck. "Where were you?"
He was breathing heavily and every attempt at speaking was hindered by a rapid intake of breathe. After a few moments, Draco finally managed, "I'm sorry, Gin. I forgot."
Ginny swayed. She felt as though a dark wave had hit her in the chest. "You forgot?" she said quietly.
Draco nodded mutely. As he was running up from the dungeons, he had prepared himself for a tirade and was somewhat unsettled by her low whisper. "I was working on a project for Snape," he finally said, frowning at her almost vacant look. He was tempted to read her mind but resisted. He trusted her to tell him her feelings. Only problem was he could not spare the time to hear them at the moment. "Actually, I need to get back."
"What?" Ginny asked, snapping out of her trancelike state.
"Erfm, I'm in the middle of an…experiment," he explained, reluctant to reveal more about what he and Hermione Granger were doing in the bowels of Hogwarts' dungeon. "I told him I was just going to the loo."
"Oh," she replied, somewhat bewildered and numb all at the same time. She never imagined Draco would abandon her for schoolwork. Perhaps Hermione, but she wasn't snogging Hermione for one. "Hermione is doing a project for Snape too. Is it the same one?"
"Not that I know of. Probably trying to get some extra credit." He was surprised at how easy the half-lie slipped from his tongue. As though his old self was rearing its head once again. That he still retained many of the habits and characteristics that he had grown up with and practiced for years was not remarkable. But ever since he had forged a pseudo-relationship with the fiery redhead, he had never considered lying to her and without actually being conscious of it, hadn't until that moment. In fact, he didn't even know exactly why he had lied but found it convenient that he had nonetheless. "I, on the other hand, have to make up work for Snape, being so sick and all."
Something didn't feel right. Ginny couldn't tell what it was but she knew it, felt it, like a prickling sensation on the surface of her skin. She opened her mouth to speak, to say something, anything. But she wasn't sure what.
As though conscious of her growing suspicion, and indeed, he was concerned that she would not leave well enough alone, he leaned forward and kissed her. He pushed her up against the wall, his hands somewhat clumsily pulling at her jumper.
Ginny was surprised at first but her astonishment became something entirely different as Draco simultaneously kneaded her and rocked his body against her. She gasped into his mouth and he bit down on her lower lip.
The next moment later, he had pulled back from her and was straightening his tie. "I'll see you tomorrow, Gin."
And he was gone, his footsteps echoing down the corridor until they were lost to distance and time.