A/N- Sorry this took me so long to write! I got so wrapped up in finishing chapter one of Every Season that I forgot about this particular fic. lol. Hopefully, I made up for this by giving you guys a long chapter.
Thanks, as always, to my beta Eugenia. Also, thanks to those who nominated my fic(s) for the list of new classics over at FIA's Forums. Seeing them nominated has made me so happy! =D
Theories on How Danger Finds Us - Chapter 5
Everything will be fine in the morning was what my mother espoused the most in her years of raising seven
unruly children.
And it worked for just about every situation that might have been wrong in our lives at that time - sibling rivalries, relationship troubles, and/or school problems. It even worked for me when I had the Diary; well, to a certain extent, at least. It was this mantra that helped me realize that Tom wasn't the best person/spirit to be associating with.
I mean, let's face it; sometimes all we need is that good night's rest for whatever ordeal we were dealing with to suddenly make all the sense in the world. By morning, you'd always have a clearer, more refined picture of what plan of action would work best when tackling your situation.
Such was the case when I awoke that second morning. I had a vague recollection of the events from last night and I must have run the gamut of emotions as I sat in my bed, thinking about that entire day.
The last emotion I felt was more like a combination of emotions - relief, happiness, and anxiety. I was relieved that I wasn't abhorred by Draco and/or Blaise. I was happy that I had apologized and was able to sort everything out. And I was anxious as to how my classes were going to turn out. I already knew two people in my Arithmancy class, but I knew of no one else who were in my classes.
I rose slowly from my bed, walking over to my closet to grab what I would wear for my first day of classes.
I wanted to look fabulous, and suddenly, I was beginning to feel that I should have met Pansy earlier so she could have given me the make-over that I wanted for today.
I stood at the threshold to my closet, my eyes raking over my collection of jeans, t-shirts, somewhat dressy slacks, flats, and trainers, and felt that none of it was exactly up to par. I had gotten rid of my skirts as soon as I graduated from Hogwarts. Either way, I wouldn't have been able to wear them as I never received a new set of skirts, so they would have been short to the point of scandal. And I really didn't fancy having guys' eyes fixated on my arse every time I stepped outside of my room.
I finally settled on a pair of dark-wash jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, a pair of black, heeled boots, and a teal jacket that tied at the waist. Satisfied that my outfit of choice wasn't completely awful, I stepped into the shower.
I walked out of my bathroom not ten minutes later to find Pansy hovering over my bed, picking up each article of clothing I had set out to wear that day with her thumb and index finger, looking at them with mild disdain before setting them down.
I cleared my throat to alert her to my presence, laughing as she jumped in alarm.
"Oh, morning, Ginny," she began, acting as though I didn't catch her rifling through my clothes. "What you picked out for today is not that bad."
I smiled, rolling my eyes as I responded with, "I guess since it's coming from you, I should take that as a compliment."
"I think you should!" Pansy replied almost indignantly.
"Pansy, as much as I would love to hear you continue your bereavement of my chosen attire, I do have a class to get to this morning, so I need to get dressed."
Pansy walked over to my bedroom door to leave, stopping before she exited. "This weekend: you, me, and shopping."
"If it'll make you happy," I called as she left.
She didn't respond, but I heard her bedroom door close, so I only assumed that she was back in her room.
About five minutes later, I was dressed, fixing up my hair when someone knocked on my door.
"Ginny," I heard Pansy shout on the other side of my door. "You have vis--"
She was cut-off as Blaise and Draco strolled into my room.
"Or you can just walk right in. She might have been starkers for all you two idiots knew," Pansy continued, following the pair of boys.
"Damn. Looks like we were a minute too late," Blaise said to Draco, snapping his fingers.
"What are you two doing here?" I asked, turning away from the mirror near my closet.
"Hello to you, too, Ginny," Draco replied with a smirk.
"Well?" I queried with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, we were in the neighbourhood and since, you know, you, me, and Blaise have a class together, we thought we'd pop by and escort you," Draco supplied, smiling.
"Oh, how gallant and dashing of the both of you," I retorted, rolling my eyes.
"Yes, well, we thought so, too," Blaise responded in a bored tone, buffing his nails against chest.
"Are you ready?" Draco asked, extending an arm out for me to grab. My eyes flicked from his arm to his face and back again. He jiggled his arm. "Come on, Ginny; it's not like I have cooties. Besides, class starts in ten minutes. We need to leave."
I sighed, grabbing a hold of his arm, when Blaise hooked his arm with my free arm, flashing me a smile as he did so.
"Don't you three just make the cutest group?" Pansy cooed with a smirk.
"She's just jealous," Draco whispered, leaning down to my ear. I giggled, not even caring about the vicinity of his lips to my face.
Blaise dragged our rag-tag group to the door, leading us downstairs.
"Try not to get into monumental amounts of trouble!" we heard Pansy shout over the clobbering of our feet.
"Yes, Mum!" Blaise shouted back with a cheeky grin.
"So where exactly is our Arithmancy class?" I asked once we were outside my dorm, raising my hand to my face as best as I could to shield my eyes from the sun.
"Not too far from the administration building," Draco replied to the right of me. "But, like I said earlier, class starts soon, and I don't want us to be late."
"Draco's really anal about getting to his classes on time. Used to drive me and Pansy insane. You get used to it though," Blaise whispered to me.
"I'm sorry if I value my education," Draco shot back with a glare.
"I'm going to have to go with Draco on this one, Blaise. It's our first day of classes and I would like to make a good impression on our professors," I stated, causing Draco to smirk in victory.
"Okay, I'll concede to the fact that today it is most important to make a good impression, but just wait, Ginny. After going through this every day, you'll get annoyed with him, too."
"And you'll be the first one to know. Okay?"
"Fine. I'll be there to say 'I told you so'."
"Fair enough."
I unhooked my arms, suddenly aware that we were still linked and didn't feel up to explaining any questioning looks or comments we might receive. Neither guy seemed to notice and we continued to our class, making it just in time.
We entered the class room as one unit, and luckily it wasn't crammed with students, like I had thought it to be.
Draco and Blaise immediately found seats in the back, pulling out their books, immersing themselves in conversation, seeming to completely forget about me.
I stood, dumbly, at the entrance to the classroom, wondering where I should sit.
The longer I stood, the more susceptible I was to someone bumping into me in their rush to get to class, and about five seconds later, my theory was proven.
I felt someone bump their shoulder against mine, knocking my bag to the ground, causing some of my books and papers to spill to the wood floor.
Draco and Blaise looked up to see what caused the ruckus, laughing when they saw me scramble to the ground, picking up my belongings.
"I am so sorry about that," I heard someone next to me say, bending down to help me pick up my stuff.
"Oh, it's really no big deal; I shouldn't have been standing there," I replied, looking up to see who bumped into me.
They looked up as well, smiling when they realized it was me they bumped into. "Ginny," Gareth breathed. "You're in this class?"
"Yeah," I replied with a smile.
"Do you have a place to sit yet?" he asked with trepidation.
I glanced back at the two Slytherins that escorted me here and found them still entrenched in their own little world.
I turned back to Gareth. "No, I don't. Do you want to sit next to me?"
"It'd be my pleasure," he responded, extending a hand to help me up off the floor.
We found two seats near the front, far away from Draco and Blaise.
Gareth turned to me once we were seated, his eyebrows furrowed. "We never did get to finish our conversation last night, this morning, I guess. What exactly were you doing at my dorm last night?"
"I had a rough first day and I was trying to make amends when you saw me."
"Should I even ask?" Gareth queried, squinting his eyes, raising an eyebrow, and tilting his head, making for an incredibly adorable picture.
I smiled and gave a sort of chuckle; a reaction from his facial expression. "No, probably not. There's too much back story."
Just then our professor made his entrance, causing all conversation to cease.
"Maybe another time then," Gareth whispered before our class got into full swing.
For the next hour and a half, Gareth and I could barely two words to each other as we had become fully submerged in the world of Advanced Arithmancy, which is probably along the lines of Calculus. Not exactly Multi-Variable, but it's close. It's still intense all the same though.
Pretty much everyone in our class breathed a sigh of relief upon the class ending, the professor's lightning fast dictation finally getting to us.
"So, what did you think?" Gareth asked, turning towards me as the class started to dwindle out.
"I was wondering how our professor could go for so long without breathing. I mean, did he even take a breath over the course of his lecture?" I replied with a laugh.
The two of us rose in unison, heading for the door, stopping before we reached the exit.
"What's your next class?" Gareth asked, leaning against the door frame.
I pulled my schedule out of my bag, glancing at it before responding. "Looks like it's European Magical History. What about you?"
"Um, I think it's Microeconomics in the Wizarding World."
"Aw, that's too bad; I was hoping I might actually get a chance to talk to you without interruption," I said, smiling.
"How about lunch? You don't have any plans do you?"
"Not that I know of," I answered with a shrug. "I'll seek you out."
"Great! Well, I hate to run, but I have no clue where my next class is, and I need time to figure it out."
"Oh! Me too! Thanks for reminding me that we actually have more than one class. I'll see you at lunch then," I said, walking away from a grinning Gareth, heading in the direction of where I thought my next class was.
About three minutes and some well-given directions later, I had made it to the history department, named after the goddess, Athena, located near the dining hall. The Greeks and Romans didn't have a specific god or goddess for history, so I still find it rather odd that they decided to keep up with the whole ancient mythology shtick they have going on. I mean, Artemisia Lufkin, herself, did not pay for everything on the school grounds; I'm sure she had patrons and, as is custom, these other patrons usually like to have things named after them, so I don't know how she got away with it.
But, like I was saying, I had made it to my next class without any bodily harm upon my person, hiking my bag further up my shoulder before I stepped inside.
As was the case with my Arithmancy class, the professor was nowhere to be found, so at a loss as to what I should do, I stood near the front of the class trying to find a place to sit.
"Psst! Ginny! Over here!" I heard someone shout-whisper from the back of the class. I looked out upon the students already seated when a hand shot up into the air, pulling my line of vision over to its owner.
"Ginny! Here; come sit next to me," the owner of the hand, and now the voice, shout-whispered, completely disregarding the rest of the class, all of whom were now shooting death glares and other various forms of ocular fire in the poor guy's direction.
Not wanting to be the cause of possible regrettable actions made by members of my history class, I walked over to the guy, plopping down in the seat next to him. "You do realize, Blaise, that half the class wants to kill you, don't you?"
Blaise gave me a winning grin, waving me off with a hand. "Oh, I don't care about those self-absorbed sods. I've never seen a class act so sombre in my entire life. They need to take the broomstick that shoved so far up their arses out."
"So, you're in my European Magical History class," I stated rather blandly.
"I'm in your European Magical History class," Blaise replied, smirking.
"Why are you taking this class?"
"Why are you taking this class?" Blaise mimicked, affecting a falsetto of what he thought my voice sounded like.
"Just answer the question, Blaise. And my voice does not sound like that," I commanded, rolling my eyes.
He pouted. "Oh, you're no fun. If this were Pansy or Draco, this would last for hours in a game of one-upmanship."
"Yes, well, I'm neither Pansy nor Draco, so I'm curious as to why you're in this class."
"It's a requirement for my major. I guess they figure that if we learn about the mistakes of the past, then we are better informed as to how to not make the same mistakes in the future." He paused with a snort. "Because that works so well. There's a reason why the phrase 'history repeats itself' is so popular. But you're an English major, what would you be doing here?" he queried, raising an eyebrow.
"All first year students have to take at least one history class. It was either this or American Magical History."
Blaise shuddered when I said "American Magical History".
"Tell me about it," I replied, nodding sagely.
"You made the better choice," Blaise said, placing a hand on my shoulder.
"I sure hope so."
Our conversation was cut off soon after that, though, since our professor entered just then, robes swirling around her in a flurry. Truthfully, I'd say it was a pretty good impression of Severus Snape. No one can swirl robes like that man can. This woman was pretty darn close. Maybe she's his sister, or something. I don't think Snape has a sister, but if he did, it'd be this woman.
Thankfully, this class wasn't as intense as my first class. It mostly consisted of the professor telling us what it is she'd be covering over the course of her class, as well as some recommended reading that might help us with the class. We ended the class with her beginning a lecture on the old tribal magic that began with tribal leaders and their unstable brand of magic. Back then, apparently, the tribal leaders were unaware as to the full extent of their magical powers because, with them, their magic came in bursts, similar that of developing wizards and witches. I had a feeling I was going to like the class since the professor made it interesting and used grandiose gestures, which really didn't help her out at all because the robes always somehow made those gestures look ridiculous, causing the class to erupt in laughter. But the professor doesn't mind; unlike Snape, she has a wicked sense of humour and, as the year progressed, she would have the class act out certain important historical events, if our schedule allowed for it.
Blaise and I walked out of the class together, heading toward my dorm.
"What did you think of history?" he asked.
"I like what I see so far. Our professor really knows what she's talking about."
"Who was the berk you were talking to before Arithmancy?"
"Gareth is not a berk. He's a sweet Durmstrang boy." I guess my presence prompted a multitude of questions directed to me from any Slytherin within a three metre radius, for I'd heard my fair share of questions from them and it was only the second day.
"'Sweet' and 'Durmstrang' are usually not two words I'd put together in the same sentence," Blaise said, laughing.
"But he is!" I protested, rallying in defence of Gareth.
"You've obviously forgotten your third year and the Triwizard Tournament."
"I haven't, but he really is nice. I'm going to sit with him during lunch today." I replied, suddenly showing a bit more pep in my step, walking ahead of Blaise.
"Stop sashaying, Ginny," Blaise told me bluntly. "That only works when you're in heels."
I turned around to him with a pout. "Why? You don't think it's cute?"
The apples of his cheeks pinkened slightly, before he cleared his throat. I smirked in victory. "You think it's cute," I cooed, clearly pleased with myself for slightly ruffling Blaise's feathers.
"Alright, it's just the tiniest bit cute because of how exaggerated it was. You looked like a six year-old trying to impersonate her mother."
I slapped Blaise on the shoulder, affecting a look of mock hurt. "That wasn't very nice," I said before walking away.
"But it's true!" the former Slytherin replied, running to catch up with me.
"You think you can do better?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Of course I can do better," he shot back, matching my raised eyebrow and raising me a smirk.
"I don't believe you!" I said, laughing.
Blaise raised his eyebrow to an impossible height, turning to face forward before completely outdoing my pathetic excuse for a strut.
I wanted to laugh, I desperately wanted to laugh, but I couldn't. I was too gobsmacked to do nothing more than let my jaw drop to my collarbone, watching as Blaise erupted into laughter.
"Where did you learn how to do that?" I asked once I gathered enough of my wits to form a coherent response to that.
"I had way too much time on my hands as a kid than should have been allotted to me, what with my mum practically dragging me on every shopping trip she went on. I thought it would be funny to imitate the ridiculous women I saw at the various shops and boutiques."
"You were a weird child, Blaise. I mean that was better than most women's."
"Tell me something I haven't heard before. Pansy told me once that I should train models for the runway, except for the fact that there's one teensy problem: I'm not gay."
"Really?" I asked sceptically. "No straight man can do that."
"I swear on my many fathers' graves that I am straight as an arrow. You can ask Draco."
"Please don't tell me you do that on a daily basis."
"Are you kidding? And be made fun of by the entirety of Hogwarts? No, thanks; I'll pass. Draco and Pansy only know because of a very drunken game of truth or dare."
"I don't need to hear anything else," I stated, shaking my head fervently.
Blaise laughed, walking back to me. "I wasn't planning on it. Although, now that it's mentioned, I need to plan one of those nights - see what we can get out of you," he told me with a leer.
"I'm not doing anything that I don't want to. Besides, I bet I can drink any of you under the table," I lied. Well, I lied about the last part. Charlie and the twins can attest to the fact that I am a total light-weight.
"I'll hold you to that, Miss Weasley," he said, grinning.
"And I'll make sure that you never do."
"Aw, come on; where's that famous Gryffindor spirit and bravado you're constantly harping about?" Blaise queried, punching me lightly on the arm a couple of times.
"It's only there when the occasion warrants it," I replied with a smile.
"So, you're coming to sit with us at lunch, right?"
I looked around, we had made it to the dining hall and Blaise was subtlety guiding the two of us toward the table that Draco and Pansy were seated at.
"No, I'm not," I firmly stated, halting any more of Blaise's progress. "I already told you that I made plans to sit with a friend, and I'm not going to back out on those plans."
"Fine then; have it your way," Blaise said, shrugging before walking away.
I stood on my tiptoes, craning my neck in hopes of finding Gareth.
"Looking for someone?" I heard someone whisper in my right ear, tickling the outer shell.
I turned with a beatific smile. "Gareth! You made it!"
"Of course I did. I'm not going to stand you up. What kind of person do you take me for, Ginny?" he asked, giving me a lopsided grin.
"Are you ready?"
"Hopefully, we can find a place to sit."
I waved him off with my hand. "Don't be silly. I have no doubts that we can."
We eventually found a table near the back of the hall. We were the only occupants when we first arrived at our table and, truthfully, I didn't mind. I'm sure Gareth didn't mind either, but we don't really care about his opinion on this particular matter. What matters are my thoughts and, at the time, I was happy to be away from the Slytherins, even if it only was for an hour. And I liked Gareth. He's charming, sweet, funny, and somewhat chivalrous. What was even better was that he really had an interest in who I am as a person.
We were alone for not even five minutes when the entire Slytherin gang walked up to us, slithered, really, and sat down in the empty seats without so much as a 'hello'.
Draco reached over to my plate, grabbing a chip, placing it in his mouth and began to chew on it, making it seem as though I had no problem with this intrusion.
"We were beginning to get worried that you had left us for good," Pansy began, pouting as she furrowed her eyebrows. "But then Blaise told us that you had made other plans."
I glared at the previously mentioned boy, only causing him to shrug in indifference.
"What are you doing?" I hissed, becoming annoyed. I had expected to have a nice, peaceful lunch with Gareth. I didn't want to spend the entirety of my school year glued to the Slytherins.
"We thought we would join you for lunch," Tracey drawled.
Woah, wait. I glanced at the table's occupants. Okay, there was me and Gareth; Draco, Blaise, and Pansy; and Theo, Tracey, and Daphne. What the shit were the last three doing there?
"Is it absolutely necessary that you all sit with me?" I snapped, irate.
"Ginny, it's okay. If your friends want to sit with us, they can," Gareth soothed me, flashing me a dimpled smile.
I sighed, more like a huff, but it was still the same motion. "Fine. They can stay, but only if they behave," I said through gritted teeth.
Merlin, was this what marriage was going to be like? Gareth and I practically talked to each other like some old married couple who were just embarrassed by their friends, or prevented from shagging each other's brains out by their kid who got scared of some thunderstorm. It was like I was the short-tempered, deprived wife and he was the level-headed husband. Oh my god. We were like my mum and dad.
And that just about ruined anything I might have saw in whatever relationship I wanted to have with Gareth.
Not that I have anything against my parents and their love for one another, that's just not what I want in a relationship with whoever I choose to be my significant other. That's also the reason why I broke it off with Harry after the war. He wanted a Weasley family of his own, and marrying into it was not going to suffice. No, he wanted the seven kids, the lopsided house, the garden; he wanted it all. Unfortunately for him, I was not going to be the one to provide him with that. I do not want the seven kids and I do not want the lopsided house; although, I will admit that I do want the garden. Plus, I lost my infatuation with him. He was never there in the time that we dated. In my book, that does not help a relationship at all. If we had spent more time together before he decided to run off and save the world, then okay, I would have waited. But the truth of the matter is that we never really put any effort into wanting to be together. It was like our relationship was just convenient at the moment that he asked me out. I didn't want the rest of my life to be based on convenience.
But, back to the story.
"So, Ginny, introduce us to your friend," Pansy prodded, scooting closer to Gareth.
"This is Gareth van der Eems. He's in my Advanced Arithmancy class."
Gareth, in turn, received a smattering of hellos and head nods in acknowledgement of his presence.
"So, Gareth, is it?" Tracey began. "What is it that you are here for?"
"My major is Economics and I'm minoring in Wizarding Governments."
"Oh, that's interesting; if you're into that sort of thing," Daphne replied, her voice faltering almost every other word.
"Yeah, well, that would be the point of me choosing those two subjects as my point of study."
Daphne squeaked once she realized how obvious her previous statement was.
"Awkward," Blaise sang under his breath, through gritted teeth.
"Not as awkward as what you did before dinner," I sang back, a charming smile plastered on my face. I was going to get back Blaise for not respecting my decision over something as stupid as not sitting with him at dinner if it was the last thing I did.
"And what did our darling Blaise do, Ginny?" Pansy asked, no longer blatantly staring at an increasingly uncomfortable Gareth, but turning to Blaise with a raised eyebrow and a smirk - the classic Slytherin facial combination.
Blaise's face became panic-stricken before he glared at me. "It's nothing," he replied icily, knowing what I was doing. "Ginny's just being silly; maybe she's one to exaggerate."
I snorted, crossing my arms over my chest, leaning back into my chair. "You wish I was given to hyperbolize."
"Aw, come on, Blaise; I'm sure it isn't that bad," Theo prompted, gesturing with his hands.
"Pansy, Draco, do you guys remember that really drunken night we had during seventh year at the Manor?"
"The one where we played truth or dare?" Draco asked.
"Yeah, that's the one."
"Okay, so what about it? If I recall, we all did some pretty stupid things that night," Draco said, shrugging.
"Do you remember the last dare Pansy gave me?"
Pansy and Draco's eyes widened in unison as they finally understood just what Blaise and I were referring to in that moment.
"You didn't," Pansy breathed in shock.
"It was a dare again," Blaise whimpered, almost disgusted with himself.
Draco began laughing at the melodrama Blaise and Pansy had created. "Mate, don't blame Ginny for this; you were the one that even agreed to go through with it." He looked over to me. "It was funny, wasn't it?" he asked with a smile.
"I really can't believe he was better than me at it. I told him he had way too much time on his hands as a child," I replied with a smirk.
"The scary part is that I had just as much time on my hands as he did growing up. Just think; I could've ended up like him."
It was then that I started laughing in earnest. All I could picture was a mini-Draco with his platinum blond hair slicked back in his prim couture dress robes strutting around his room while miniature versions of Pansy and Blaise laughed until their little stomachs hurt. Soon enough my own stomach began to hurt with the mental picture I had created. Draco's eyes lit up as he understood what I was laughing about.
I leaned in to Draco's ear, cupping my hand over my mouth so the others couldn't make out what I was about to whisper. "And Blaise isn't gay?"
He let out a bark of laughter, looking down as he did so. "Ah, no, he's not. Trust me. Why do you ask?"
"I didn't believe him after his little display earlier, so he said to ask you."
"If Draco and Ginny are done being nauseatingly cute and secretive, I think it's time we make our exit," Blaise announced, causing me to blush.
All the Slytherins rose as one, heading back in the direction in which they had come.
"I'll see you later?" Draco asked me, trailing behind his friends.
I nodded, still blushing. One would think I liked the blond boy. That would be a 'no'.
I looked over the Gareth to see him wearing a look of puzzlement. "Well, that was interesting."
I chuckled, shaking my head. "You have no idea."
A/N - Thanks for reading! Please review! =D