A Stroll in Your Shoes

Disclaimer: I did not create any of the Harry Potter characters, etc.

A/n:  I’m still unsure on how much chapters are left to go. I can’t imagine it will be more than three though.

Third Time’s the Charm

Ginny opened her eyes groggily in the pale, morning light, relieved to find that the aches and chills that had so horribly ran through her body had gone. She still felt tired and drained, but she no longer felt like her head was slamming into wall after wall, and her nose, thankfully, was no longer dripping faster than a leaky cauldron. She shifted in the bed, and felt something heavy resting on her legs, restricting her movement. Sitting up in confusion, she was surprised to see Draco sleeping soundly against her legs, one arm trailing over the blankets, with his head resting on his other arm, and the rest of his body still sitting on the chair next to the bed.

A small frown settled on Ginny’s lips, wondering just why Draco Malfoy was asleep on her bed. That was until she realised she wasn’t actually in her bed- in fact she had no idea where she was. The room was completely unfamiliar, and only held a cauldron, a chair, and the bed she had been sleeping in. She realised she didn’t even remember how she had gotten to the bed. The last thing she remembered was leaving the bathroom after Pansy had said all that stuff about Blaise…

Ginny felt her throat constricting and her eyes tingling unpleasantly, and firmly pushed all thoughts of the amber-eyed boy out of her mind. She would not cry over him anymore, no matter how much it hurt. He was not worth it, even if he had been a dear friend. He had betrayed her by lying about that poem, and she could not find it in herself to forgive him. Not yet anyway.

Glancing back at Draco, Ginny wondered if he had brought her here. She vaguely recalled being held in someone’s arms and having someone feed her some foul-tasting potion, but she had just thought that had been a dream. Seeing the blond Slytherin fast asleep on her bed, however, made her wonder if it had been real.

She stared at him curiously, watching the soft, blond strands of hair fluttering against his pale face as he breathed steadily. His eyes were shut peacefully, and his expression was so relaxed and unguarded that she thought he seemed to look somehow younger, even somewhat gentle- an adjective she would normally never use to describe the rude and obnoxious Slytherin.

A smile crept onto her lips, and she couldn’t help but reach out her hand and smooth back the strands of his hair, really taking the time to just look at his face without him smirking or glaring at her. It was nice, and she realised she liked it when he slept- not because he wasn’t ruining things by opening his big, fat mouth (though it helped)- but because when he was asleep the soft quietness she rarely saw in him seemed to come to life in the smoothness of his expression and the sweetness of his slumbering visage.

He shifted sleepily and pulled his face somewhat grumpily away from her fingers, looking so adorable in his sleepy crossness that Ginny had to try hard not to giggle. It was clear he was stirring but was reluctant to face the day, being much more content to keep sleeping in his awkward position. She was half-tempted to let him sleep, but her legs were beginning to protest against his weight.

“Draco,” Ginny murmured, giving him a gentle shake. He mumbled something incoherent and tried to shuffle away from her hands, but this proved to be a bad idea, as he toppled right off the bed with a loud thud. Ginny heard him groan sleepily to himself at being woken up in such a painful and annoying way, hearing his soft cursing under his breath. She couldn’t help but laugh, and continued to laugh as his very tousled head finally popped up from the floor, looking very put out indeed.

“What’s so funny? That hurt you know,” he muttered grumpily, and then yawned slightly as he stretched his arms to ease the stiffness of his muscles from falling asleep half on the chair and half on the bed. “What time is it?” he asked, once he had finished stretching.

Ginny shrugged and hugged her knees to herself in the bed, still eyeing him with innocent curiosity. She’d never seen Draco like this, and was finding it quite endearing. “I don’t know. I only just woke up myself.”

She watched him glancing about for something, and smiled slightly as he scratched his messy hair in obvious puzzlement. She’d never thought she would see the day when she thought Draco Malfoy cute, but cute was the only way to describe this sleepy boy.

“There it is!” he suddenly exclaimed and picked up his cloak, which had been tossed recklessly on the floor. He reached into the pocket and pulled out a pocket watch, glancing at it blearily before dropping both watch and cloak, and then clambered up on the bed next to her, slipping under the covers and getting into a more comfortable position.

“Um, Draco.” She stared at him for a moment, feeling his weight next to her in the bed, not really sure what to make of the odd situation. Though he was just lying there next to her it was still somewhat uncomfortable, even though she knew amorous thoughts were probably far from Draco’s mind right now. It seemed like he was already falling asleep again too.

“Go to sleep, Ginny,” he scolded her groggily, his eyes firmly shut, but Ginny was no longer tired. She could not sleep with him right next to her. It was just weird.

He let out a deep breath as he relaxed in the bed, and just lay there silently. Ginny sat up straight and stiff, not daring to move and feeling incredibly awkward. She glanced down at him again, noting how easy and natural he found this, and felt just a little irritated.

“You can’t go to sleep in this bed with me,” she muttered angrily.

“Sure I can,” Draco replied sleepily. “It’s five-thirty in the morning, I’m not getting up now, and I’ve got a crick in my neck from sleeping on that chair. I just spent the whole night making sure you were okay, making flu-healing potions for you, and having you crying all over me. The least you can do is let me sleep next to you.”

Well that was the Draco she knew well. Trust him to ruin all those nice memories of him looking after her by saying something like that. That didn’t make the situation any better though, and Ginny was not about to give in yet.

“Yes but-”

Draco sighed and grabbed her firmly by the waist, yanking her down next to him so she was lying down again. “Shutup, Weasley, and stop fretting.”

Ginny stiffened so much that she was sure she had just become a plank of wood. She could feel his warm body next to her, and her heart started pounding hard in her chest, her throat going suddenly dry. He seemed to sense her discomfort, because he removed his arm from her waist and tried to give her as much space as he could in a single bed, mumbling softly, “Just relax. I’m not going to do anything.”

She glanced at his face resting next to hers on the pillow, his eyes shut so she could not see the expression in them, and realised she could trust him. He would not do anything, and it was clear all he really cared about was going back to sleep. Feeling much more at ease, Ginny snuggled down into the bed next to him to get warm, and let out a small breath.

They both lay there silently for a moment, but Ginny was troubled by the fuzzy memories that flittered through her brain. She had been somewhat delirious last night, but she did know that Draco had stayed up most of the night to look after her. He had even said himself that she had been crying all over him, which meant that memory of her leaning against his chest and crying as he stroked her hair and mumbled soothing words was real. He had actually comforted her.

“Draco…”

“Mmm?”

“Did you really hold me in your arms last night? When I was crying and all?”

Draco was silent for a moment, and then she heard him let out a small sigh. “Go to sleep, Ginny,” he said finally, but that was answer enough for her. The memory had been real, and smiling slightly to herself, she snuggled up even more to him, watching his face through the dusky light and wondering what she had ever done to deserve such a friend.

She had not forgotten her conversation with Hermione, and knew very well that she liked the snarky boy lying next to her. Right now she was hesitant to admit such feelings though, especially since she and Blaise had pretty much fallen apart. She didn’t want Draco to think she only wanted to date him as a rebound from Blaise, and in truth she was still hurting because of that anyway. The wounds were still fresh, and she was reluctant to try her hand at romance again. Two failed relationships in one year was not the easiest to deal with, and she was afraid of having it happen again.

“Stop staring at me, it’s creeping me out,” Draco muttered after a moment of silence. Ginny giggled softly, but complied with his desires all the same, closing her eyes again before she too slowly drifted off to sleep…

OOO

Hermione shifted uncomfortably in the bed, feeling increasingly frustrated. Why was it that she could just not get comfortable? It seemed like all her sheets were tangled around her legs, her head could just not find a soft spot in the pillow, and to top it all off a stupid owl seemed to be hooting very loudly near the window. This was just ridiculous.

Furious, and feeling the least shreds of sleep leaving her, Hermione thrust the covers off her body and placed her feet on the cold stone fur, deciding she just could not be bothered with this anymore. She shivered at the shock of icy stone, and quickly stuffed her feet into the cosy slippers sitting near her bed, grumbling under her breath about winter and every other cold morning.

Wrapping a pink dressing gown around her chilled body, she started to walk towards the door, and almost tripped over Crookshanks the cat. Closing her eyes to gather some patience, Hermione wisely kept her mouth shut for the sake of her dorm-mates, and then scooped up Crookshanks in her arms before leaving the room. She idly scratched his ears, making her way down to the common room and was surprised to see she was not the only one who could not sleep. Someone was sitting in one of the squishy armchairs by the fire, their messy, black hair sticking up everywhere from sleep.

“Harry?”

Harry turned, giving a small, tight-lipped smile, and then went back to gazing into the fire. Hermione wondered what was bothering him, and came over still holding her fluffy burden before taking a seat next to him.

“You couldn’t sleep either?” she asked, watching him curiously as she scratched Crookshanks’ ears.

He shook his head, letting out a small sigh as he did so. “No. I couldn’t sleep.”

Silence fell about them, and for a moment the only sounds that could be heard were Crookshanks’ happy purring and the soft crackle of the fire. Hermione stared at the ginger fluff ball in her arms, and, annoyingly enough, thought of that conversation she and Draco had had not so many days ago. She tried to put it out of her mind, but the thoughts would just not go away. She knew she liked Harry, and Draco had told her to just tell him how she felt. Now would be the perfect chance. They were both alone in the room, there was no one going to interrupt them…

She glanced at him, watching his fringe falling into his amazingly green eyes as he leaned down to stoke the fire. She could stare into those eyes for hours if she wasn’t afraid of looking like a sap, and right now they looked even more beautiful with the fire reflecting in them, almost like burning emeralds.

Pulling her gaze away she stared back into the fire, feeling all the helplessness of her situation rushing in. She just couldn’t bring herself to say anything. She was frightened he would laugh; frightened of having all her hopes blighted and hearing those terrible words that he could not like her- that he only liked her as a friend. How could she risk that? Gryffindor or not, she was happier with her delusions in thinking maybe he could. She’d rather have hope than nothing at all.

“Hermione.”

His voice was soft, gentle- almost caressing in her deluded mind. She raised her eyes back to his face, seeing the restlessness in him. Her heart ached just at the sight, but she kept her face impassive as she always did. “Yes?”

“Do you think I deserve to be loved?”

She frowned, her eyes gazing into his searchingly. Where had this come from? Why did he think he did not deserve love? If anything he deserved it more than anyone else.

“Why do you say that?”

He sighed and stared hard into the fire, his mouth firmly descending into a frown. “I don’t know…. I just… I just feel like somehow I don’t deserve it. Like I’m being punished if I even try to hope I do… Everyone always gets hurt, and then I don’t even think I know how to love anyway. They don’t give us manuals for that, and I…” he broke off and shook his head, looking suddenly embarrassed and awkward. “Never mind.”

“Harry.” Hermione placed an impulsive hand on his cheek and turned his face towards her so that he had no choice but to look into her eyes. “You deserve love. You deserve everything good that happens to you. You’re a good person, Harry, and it’s not your fault when people get hurt. We all make our own choices.” She smiled tenderly at him, smoothing back the unruly fringe so that his scar peeped out from her fingers. “As for you not knowing how to love, I think you’ve proven enough that you can. You just have to not be afraid of it.”

His hand lightly came to rest over hers on his cheek, his green eyes gazing deeply into hers, and slowly his face started to come closer. Hermione could feel her heart speeding up in readiness for what was about to come, her eyes catching the tiny freckles on his nose from being in the sun too long, and then her eyes slid shut and his lips were pressing softly against hers. It was only a few seconds before he had pulled away again in embarrassment.

“I’m sorry,” he said in a tight voice. “I should never-”

“No,” Hermione interrupted, feeling her heart pounding in her chest like a wild drum. “I- I liked it.”

Harry glanced back at her in surprise, but relief at the same time. “I did too,” he admitted quietly, and then his cheeks flooded with pink and he quickly stared at his hands. She knew that Harry had kissed Cho and Ginny before, but this was different. They were best friends, and somehow that seemed so forbidden and awkward, and yet so right as well…

“Do you… do you want to do it again?” Hermione asked shyly.

“No,” Harry replied quickly.

“Oh…” Hermione fell silent and glanced away in embarrassment. Was she really that bad?

Harry seemed to sense her feelings, saying awkwardly, “No, I mean, I do, but I-” He sighed and said nothing more, obviously unsure how to phrase his muddled feelings.

“No… it’s okay. I understand,” Hermione said softly, not quite able to hide her disappointment. For a moment she had thought he liked her. For a moment she had felt her heart soaring in her chest just as if it had developed wings all of its own, but she had been wrong...

“Hermione,” Harry said softly. She turned her face just as he leaned forward to press his lips once more against hers. The kiss was nowhere near perfect. It was clumsily started, and their teeth knocked together somewhat awkwardly, but even then there was something magical about it. She could feel her body trembling as his lips moved against hers, his hands tentatively coming to rest on her cheeks in all the gentleness he carried. Slowly she relaxed into the kiss, shyly exploring her feelings with her lips, as he did the same with his, neither of them trying to give too much too soon.

When they finally broke apart, she could only meet his gaze with a shy smile, their faces still close enough so that she could see all the different shades of green that made up the colour of his eyes.

“What does this mean, Harry?” she couldn’t help but ask, reluctant to speak, but wanting to know all the same. She didn’t think she could bear to have him turn around and say he didn’t like her after that kiss.

He smiled slowly and allowed his hand to lightly caress her cheek, saying those soft words she would never forget,

“I think this means I like you…”

OOOOO

When Ginny awoke again a good many hours later, it was to feel very warm and comfortable tucked up in someone’s arms. She was not so impressed, however, when the warm body next to her moved to get out of the bed, allowing the chilly air outside to attack her skin and send goosebumps up her flesh. She shivered and made a noise like a grumpy kitten as she huddled down into the blankets, still keeping her eyes defiantly shut against the light.

She could hear Draco shuffling about near the bed, and rolled over, opening one eye blearily to see him putting his shoes back on. He glanced at her in amusement, picking up his cloak and putting it on.

“C’mon, Weasley. Time to get up.”

“Too early… going back to sleep,” Ginny mumbled in her sleepiness, rolling over the other way and closing her eyes once more. She was not ready to get up just yet.

“It’s nearly lunch time,” Draco replied with a laugh.

“So.”

“So if we don’t go down now people are going to get more than a little suspicious, don’t you think?”

Ginny said nothing in reply. She was conveniently pretending to be asleep, even though it was impossible for anyone to fall asleep in so little time.

“You’ve got three seconds to get up before I make you get out of that bed myself. I’m not having all of Hogwarts thinking I took advantage of you- which is what they will all think…”

“You wouldn’t dare,” Ginny muttered, momentarily forgetting whom she was talking to. Of course, if she had been a bit more coherent she would have realised Draco was not like the other guys and had no qualms in annoying her, and indeed when she felt the blankets being ripped away from her and arms wrapping around her body, she could only let out an indignant squeak as she was picked up in his arms.

“That’s not fair!” She complained, giving his arm a furious swipe as he held her, only succeeding in making him laugh at her in mocking amusement.

“I never said I was fair.”

“Put me down!” Ginny snapped furiously, though she would be a complete, fat liar if she didn’t admit that she enjoyed being held by him. That was not the principle though; the principle was that he had ruined her sleeping in.

Still chuckling at her, Draco placed her back gently on the ground and took a step back to sit on the bed himself. “Well at least you’re up now, and there’s no point going back to bed.”

She just glared mutinously at him before slowly and painfully making her way to where Draco had left her belongings. Shoes, jacket, gloves and hat were all put on their correct places, and then she was once more glaring back at the blond sitting on the bed. He was watching her with faint amusement, which only made her all the more irritated. Why was it that she always seemed to be a source of amusement to him at her expense?

“I’m up.” Ginny said in anything but happy accents. “Satisfied?”

Draco only smirked at her before he stood up and walked towards the door. Ginny glanced about at the messy bed and cauldron with a frown. “Aren’t you going to clean up in here?” she asked curiously.

He shook his head and opened the door. “No. The room will clean itself.”

She frowned, not really sure what he was meaning, until she followed him out of the room and realised where they had been sleeping. It was the room of requirement, and realising that he must have carried her up here, she couldn’t help but glance at Draco in some astonishment. Had he really carried her up seven flights of stairs?

Oblivious to her thoughts, Draco only gestured for her to follow him. “C’mon, if we hurry we can get to lunch without causing too much of a scene.”

Ginny nodded and followed him down the stairs to the great hall, silently wondering to herself just why Draco would go through all this effort for her. He had always been a selfish and spoilt brat (and when she thought about it he still was), but there was no denying that she had a lot to be grateful to him for. She did have to wonder about one thing though…

“Um, Draco?”

“Yeah.”

“What happened last night? You know, after I fainted?”

Draco sighed and stopped on the stairs. She could see the troubled frown on his lips, and just knew that whatever happened was obviously something she would not like to hear. She needed to know though. She needed to know so that she could move on.

“Please just tell me. I promise I won’t get angry.”

He stared at her silently for a moment before nodding his head, and then proceeded to tell her everything that had happened (leaving out the details that concerned himself). Ginny listened silently, feeling rather mixed on the whole thing. In a way she was happy for Pansy and Blaise, and yet in another way she was incredibly upset. She was no saint, and it would be nigh impossible to forgive Pansy and Blaise just because they had realised their love for each other; after all, that didn’t change the fact that Pansy had purposely tried to break them up and Blaise had lied to her about the poem.

“I’m sorry, Weasley,” Draco said finally. She met his gaze and saw the genuine concern he felt for her lingering in his grey eyes. Somehow it made her feel better, and she even managed to give a small smile.

“It’s okay. It’s not like I can do anything about it now, and maybe it’s better this way? Obviously it would never have worked out between us.”

Though that wasn’t really comforting, more depressing really….

He nodded his head, seeming reluctant to comment too much on it. Ginny decided she would not think about it anymore, as it only made her angry, and gave him a bright smile. “C’mon, let’s go get lunch. I’m famished!”

OOO

Once they entered the great hall they had split up their separate ways to go to their own tables, and Ginny was surprised to find herself in a much better mood. Even if she was royally pissed off at both Pansy and Blaise, she found herself thinking about much more pleasant things- like a certain blond Slytherin who, by the looks of things, was currently having an argument with Crabbe and Goyle. She still couldn’t believe that he had spent the whole night looking after her, and felt somewhat special that he had. It was a nice feeling.

“Where were you last night?” Hermione asked, while piling up some salad on her plate. “I didn’t see you come back into the common room, and I noticed you weren’t in your dorm this morning.”

Ginny glanced about the array of food and decided toast would be the best choice for her lunch. She glanced at her friend, who was sitting on the bench next to her, and gave a casual shrug. “I wasn’t feeling well, so Draco took me to the room of requirement to sleep since he doesn’t know our password, and he couldn’t take me into his own dorm.”

“Draco? What happened to Blaise?”

Sighing slightly, but knowing everyone would figure it out sooner or later, Ginny gave a very rough rendition of what had happened during the date, trying hard to keep her voice even so as not to reveal how truly upset she was by it. Hermione exclaimed in shock at all the right moments, and expressed great anger in all the others.

“Well that’s all very well for Blaise and Pansy to realise they like each other, but that’s no excuse for the way he treated you!”

Ginny shrugged again and bit into her toast. “I can’t do anything about it, and to be honest I don’t want to even talk about him right now. It just makes me so mad!”

Hermione nodded sympathetically. “He’s acted like an idiot, but you can’t let him hold you down, Ginny. You’ve still got plenty of other chances for love.”

“Right. Who’s going to like me now? I think I’m cursed, I really do. It seems like every person I date likes someone else. Maybe I’ll just give up this romance business and go be a nun.”

“Now, Ginny, don’t start getting dramatic,” Hermione chided with a laugh, her eyes twinkling with amusement. “You know very well you’re not cursed, and I don’t think you want to be nun.”

“No I don’t,” Ginny admitted with a tired sigh. “I’m just so sick of everything. Two failed romances in a few months is not exactly an achievement I’m proud of.”

“Well you know what they say, third time’s the lucky charm!”

“Hmph,” was all Ginny managed to say, but as her eyes drifted back to the blond Slytherin sitting on the other side of the hall, she couldn’t help but hope that stupid saying was right.