Fic: Photo album (H/D), Snapshot 4
Jan. 26th, 2006 10:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
asimplechordSnapshot title: Weasley woes
Warnings: more fluff, holiday shopping mentioned, not HBP-compliant
Chapter Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Do I look like a blonde living in Edinburgh? *checks mirror: dark hair, dark eyes* *checks map: nope, TX nowhere near Scotland* No, I didn't think so. And that means that none of these characters belong to me. I just enjoy playing with them.
A/N: Everyone here knows I'm not a big Harry/Ginny fan, right? The big kiss scene in HBP seemed way too easy for me, too abrupt after Harry not paying any attention to Ginny for 5 years, and I didn't have any explanation for that (other than it being JKR's crack-induced plan for Harry's happily-ever-after) until![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
jadzia7667 reminded me of the love potions the kids discuss in potions class in HBP. So, while this story is generally NOT HBP-compliant, we have book 6 and the brilliant mind of jadzia7667 to thank for a little bit of this snapshot. As usual, written during lunchbreak - papers to read? me? nah! - and unbeta'd, so correct away.
“You look like a pixie in the wand light, Weasley. Are you all right?” Draco Malfoy’s tone was mild, not nearly as derisive as it usually was when directed toward Ron, shocking him. The attempt at politeness was not, however, enough to quell his outrage.
“What are you doing here? Harry, what were you thinking—”
Ron shook his head in disbelief, unable to finish his sentence.
The day had started off so well. His supervisors in the Auror Division of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement had, in a fit of holiday generosity, given the rookie Aurors the afternoon off. Ron had used the extra time to browse at the jeweler’s at Diagon Alley, looking for a gift for Hermione. He wanted something that was meaningful, but not as serious as an engagement ring. He’d picked out a pair of earrings he thought she would like, with little blue stones in a simple setting, and was feeling quite smug, confident in his and their reception the next morning.
For Ron Weasley, life was almost perfect: great job, great girlfriend, and a place of his own for the first time in his life. The only minor irritation was Harry’s falling out with Ginny three nights before. Ron was not pleased with the way Harry had treated Ginny at the Yule Ball, but he was sure that Harry had reconsidered his words after he’d stopped to think about them. And Ginny had always wanted Harry, so he had every hope that she’d take him back after he apologized properly. Harry just needed to sit down and listen to some stern words, which included a warning about toying with Ron’s little sister. When he thought on it, Ron wondered if maybe Harry just needed some advice about how to treat a girl. After all, he hadn’t had any successful relationships that Ron knew of. And of course Harry would have told him, wouldn’t he? Ron was his best friend!
So it was in this cheerful and generous mood that Ron finished his errands, stopping briefly at Quality Quidditch and Flourish and Blotts before heading to Weasley Wizarding Wheezes, which had a private Floo that he’d use to head to Grimmauld Place with his purchases. There, he ran into Ginny, who was working the counter furiously to accommodate last minute customers. She nodded at him distractedly and reminded him that she’d be home after she’d sent the last customers on their way and stopped at Gringotts to deposit the day’s earnings. Ron passed through the workroom. He called out to Fred and George, but they were sniggering over something smoking in a cauldron, so he turned to the Floo to finish his travel for the day.
Ron stepped out of the Floo and into the kitchen, where Molly was busy baking.
“Hello, Mum. Smells great.”
“Hello, dear. You’re here early.”
“Early holiday, they let us have the afternoon off. I stopped by the Wheezes – Ginny’s coming home soon.... Is Harry around?”
“Yes, dear, he’s in the study—” Molly muttered distractedly.
“Thanks.” With that, Ron headed out of the kitchen and toward the stairs.
“But—” Too late. Ron was gone before she could finish her sentence.
When he entered the study, Ron thought he was imagining things. Harry and Malfoy were seated close together on the sofa, bent over a model Quidditch set and playbook. As he watched, Malfoy reached out and gestured to a notation in the playbook, and rather than drawing his hand back when he was done making his point, he let it settle on Harry’s knee. And Harry – Harry put his own right hand down on top of it gently!
Ron had no idea how long he stood there, oblivious to their soft conversation, before Malfoy’s words pulled him out of his horror-induced stupor.
“Weasley?”
“Ron? Are you-?”
“Like I said, I don’t know what you’re thinking, or what he is doing here. How could you invite him here? It’s going to be hard enough to get Ginny to take you back, and now you bring this git, who you know she hates, home for the holiday? Does Mum even know what you’ve done? She’ll be furious!”
“Ron, your mum knows Draco is here, and she is well aware of what happened at the Yule Ball. You and Ginny told her the other night, remember?” Harry’s irritation on that subject was obvious even to Ron.
“This is your house and all, but how did you dare present him to Mum after what his father did to Percy? I have half a mind—”
“Half a mind is right.” Harry ignored the Slytherin’s muttered insult, but Ron’s anger was visible in the way his lips tightened and the tips of his ears turned red.
“We’ll see what Mum has to say about this.”
At that, Ron tugged Harry off the sofa. With an apologetic glance at Draco, he followed Ron out of the room and back down to the kitchen.
There, Ron received another shock. His Mum had invited the Ferret. And she didn’t care that Harry’s behavior had broken Ginny’s heart – in fact, she defended Harry. When Ron pointed out how close Harry and Malfoy had been in the study, how they’d been touching, she just smiled at Harry’s blush and told Ron to leave them be. Flabbergasted by this unexpected series of revelations, Ron sat down weakly in the nearest chair. His head hit the table with a dull thud.
Just as Harry opened his mouth to thank Molly, the front door slammed, and Ginny’s voice could be heard in the foyer.
“Mum, I’m home.”
Rather than coming to the kitchen, though, her footsteps led up the stairs… to the study.
“Oh, no.”
“Bugger.”
“Oh, dear.”
The three in the kitchen all expelled explosive breaths at once.
****
From the door, all Ginny could see of the study’s occupant was a pair of legs stretching from the easy chair toward the fire, feet propped comfortably on an ottoman. Definitely not Ron, not with his clodhoppers, she thought. Pleased to find Harry alone, she closed the door softly.
“Just the person I was looking for, Harry! I’ve been wanting to talk to you about an apology. Now that a few days have passed...”
When the door closed and he heard Ginny’s voice Draco froze in his seat. His mind raced for a moment before he decided that there was nothing to be done to avoid it. Relishing the confrontation to come, he sat back and let the Weaselette natter on about forgiveness and apologies and appropriate behavior without interruption.
Ginny wound down her planned speech, vaguely surprised that Harry hadn’t responded to any of her points, and approached the hearth. She gasped in shock when she saw that it wasn’t Harry seated in the wingback chair.
“You!”
“Moi. Was that little confession supposed to be convincing? Because I don’t think a fake apology in a soft voice, accompanied by batting eyelashes, will distract Harry, or induce him to change his mind. He’s not interested in the goods on offer, Weasley.” This time the voice addressing a Weasley offspring was neither neutral nor pleasant.
“Harry is interested, he just needs a little helpful nudge to realize it. What are you doing here, anyway? Don’t you belong in the dungeons with the other snakes? I don’t know how you wangled your way into an invitation, but—”
“Actually, I’d say that it’s you who haven’t earned a proper invitation, Weasley. And that bit about help? You mean like the Amortentia you tried to dose him with in our sixth year? That worked out well, didn’t it?”
“You—” Ginny took a deep breath before she could admit something she’d regret. “If you mention your groundless suspicions about that to Harry, I’ll be forced to let him know who really influenced Cho Chang to stop seeing him, and how.”
“Like Harry would care. Go ahead! He was never in love with her anyway.”
“No, but he’s fond of you for some reason. And don’t think I don’t see how you look at him. Friendship, my arse. How do you think our hero would feel if he knew you deliberately seduced her to hurt him, and that was while you were busy juggling Padma and Terry, not to mention all the Slytherins you f—”
“GINEVRA MOLLY WEASLEY! How dare you!?”
Ginny turned to see her mother, pale with outrage, sweeping into the room. Harry was standing near the door, his face utterly blank. In a smooth motion, Molly reached out as she approached and locked pinching fingers around Ginny’s ear. She pulled her from the room, leaving Harry and Draco alone.
tbc...
What does Harry have to say about the Cho info? Just what will Draco give Harry for Christmas? And how will the rest of the wizard community react to the pair?
Warnings: more fluff, holiday shopping mentioned, not HBP-compliant
Chapter Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Do I look like a blonde living in Edinburgh? *checks mirror: dark hair, dark eyes* *checks map: nope, TX nowhere near Scotland* No, I didn't think so. And that means that none of these characters belong to me. I just enjoy playing with them.
A/N: Everyone here knows I'm not a big Harry/Ginny fan, right? The big kiss scene in HBP seemed way too easy for me, too abrupt after Harry not paying any attention to Ginny for 5 years, and I didn't have any explanation for that (other than it being JKR's crack-induced plan for Harry's happily-ever-after) until
jadzia7667 reminded me of the love potions the kids discuss in potions class in HBP. So, while this story is generally NOT HBP-compliant, we have book 6 and the brilliant mind of jadzia7667 to thank for a little bit of this snapshot. As usual, written during lunchbreak - papers to read? me? nah! - and unbeta'd, so correct away.“You look like a pixie in the wand light, Weasley. Are you all right?” Draco Malfoy’s tone was mild, not nearly as derisive as it usually was when directed toward Ron, shocking him. The attempt at politeness was not, however, enough to quell his outrage.
“What are you doing here? Harry, what were you thinking—”
Ron shook his head in disbelief, unable to finish his sentence.
The day had started off so well. His supervisors in the Auror Division of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement had, in a fit of holiday generosity, given the rookie Aurors the afternoon off. Ron had used the extra time to browse at the jeweler’s at Diagon Alley, looking for a gift for Hermione. He wanted something that was meaningful, but not as serious as an engagement ring. He’d picked out a pair of earrings he thought she would like, with little blue stones in a simple setting, and was feeling quite smug, confident in his and their reception the next morning.
For Ron Weasley, life was almost perfect: great job, great girlfriend, and a place of his own for the first time in his life. The only minor irritation was Harry’s falling out with Ginny three nights before. Ron was not pleased with the way Harry had treated Ginny at the Yule Ball, but he was sure that Harry had reconsidered his words after he’d stopped to think about them. And Ginny had always wanted Harry, so he had every hope that she’d take him back after he apologized properly. Harry just needed to sit down and listen to some stern words, which included a warning about toying with Ron’s little sister. When he thought on it, Ron wondered if maybe Harry just needed some advice about how to treat a girl. After all, he hadn’t had any successful relationships that Ron knew of. And of course Harry would have told him, wouldn’t he? Ron was his best friend!
So it was in this cheerful and generous mood that Ron finished his errands, stopping briefly at Quality Quidditch and Flourish and Blotts before heading to Weasley Wizarding Wheezes, which had a private Floo that he’d use to head to Grimmauld Place with his purchases. There, he ran into Ginny, who was working the counter furiously to accommodate last minute customers. She nodded at him distractedly and reminded him that she’d be home after she’d sent the last customers on their way and stopped at Gringotts to deposit the day’s earnings. Ron passed through the workroom. He called out to Fred and George, but they were sniggering over something smoking in a cauldron, so he turned to the Floo to finish his travel for the day.
Ron stepped out of the Floo and into the kitchen, where Molly was busy baking.
“Hello, Mum. Smells great.”
“Hello, dear. You’re here early.”
“Early holiday, they let us have the afternoon off. I stopped by the Wheezes – Ginny’s coming home soon.... Is Harry around?”
“Yes, dear, he’s in the study—” Molly muttered distractedly.
“Thanks.” With that, Ron headed out of the kitchen and toward the stairs.
“But—” Too late. Ron was gone before she could finish her sentence.
When he entered the study, Ron thought he was imagining things. Harry and Malfoy were seated close together on the sofa, bent over a model Quidditch set and playbook. As he watched, Malfoy reached out and gestured to a notation in the playbook, and rather than drawing his hand back when he was done making his point, he let it settle on Harry’s knee. And Harry – Harry put his own right hand down on top of it gently!
Ron had no idea how long he stood there, oblivious to their soft conversation, before Malfoy’s words pulled him out of his horror-induced stupor.
“Weasley?”
“Ron? Are you-?”
“Like I said, I don’t know what you’re thinking, or what he is doing here. How could you invite him here? It’s going to be hard enough to get Ginny to take you back, and now you bring this git, who you know she hates, home for the holiday? Does Mum even know what you’ve done? She’ll be furious!”
“Ron, your mum knows Draco is here, and she is well aware of what happened at the Yule Ball. You and Ginny told her the other night, remember?” Harry’s irritation on that subject was obvious even to Ron.
“This is your house and all, but how did you dare present him to Mum after what his father did to Percy? I have half a mind—”
“Half a mind is right.” Harry ignored the Slytherin’s muttered insult, but Ron’s anger was visible in the way his lips tightened and the tips of his ears turned red.
“We’ll see what Mum has to say about this.”
At that, Ron tugged Harry off the sofa. With an apologetic glance at Draco, he followed Ron out of the room and back down to the kitchen.
There, Ron received another shock. His Mum had invited the Ferret. And she didn’t care that Harry’s behavior had broken Ginny’s heart – in fact, she defended Harry. When Ron pointed out how close Harry and Malfoy had been in the study, how they’d been touching, she just smiled at Harry’s blush and told Ron to leave them be. Flabbergasted by this unexpected series of revelations, Ron sat down weakly in the nearest chair. His head hit the table with a dull thud.
Just as Harry opened his mouth to thank Molly, the front door slammed, and Ginny’s voice could be heard in the foyer.
“Mum, I’m home.”
Rather than coming to the kitchen, though, her footsteps led up the stairs… to the study.
“Oh, no.”
“Bugger.”
“Oh, dear.”
The three in the kitchen all expelled explosive breaths at once.
****
From the door, all Ginny could see of the study’s occupant was a pair of legs stretching from the easy chair toward the fire, feet propped comfortably on an ottoman. Definitely not Ron, not with his clodhoppers, she thought. Pleased to find Harry alone, she closed the door softly.
“Just the person I was looking for, Harry! I’ve been wanting to talk to you about an apology. Now that a few days have passed...”
When the door closed and he heard Ginny’s voice Draco froze in his seat. His mind raced for a moment before he decided that there was nothing to be done to avoid it. Relishing the confrontation to come, he sat back and let the Weaselette natter on about forgiveness and apologies and appropriate behavior without interruption.
Ginny wound down her planned speech, vaguely surprised that Harry hadn’t responded to any of her points, and approached the hearth. She gasped in shock when she saw that it wasn’t Harry seated in the wingback chair.
“You!”
“Moi. Was that little confession supposed to be convincing? Because I don’t think a fake apology in a soft voice, accompanied by batting eyelashes, will distract Harry, or induce him to change his mind. He’s not interested in the goods on offer, Weasley.” This time the voice addressing a Weasley offspring was neither neutral nor pleasant.
“Harry is interested, he just needs a little helpful nudge to realize it. What are you doing here, anyway? Don’t you belong in the dungeons with the other snakes? I don’t know how you wangled your way into an invitation, but—”
“Actually, I’d say that it’s you who haven’t earned a proper invitation, Weasley. And that bit about help? You mean like the Amortentia you tried to dose him with in our sixth year? That worked out well, didn’t it?”
“You—” Ginny took a deep breath before she could admit something she’d regret. “If you mention your groundless suspicions about that to Harry, I’ll be forced to let him know who really influenced Cho Chang to stop seeing him, and how.”
“Like Harry would care. Go ahead! He was never in love with her anyway.”
“No, but he’s fond of you for some reason. And don’t think I don’t see how you look at him. Friendship, my arse. How do you think our hero would feel if he knew you deliberately seduced her to hurt him, and that was while you were busy juggling Padma and Terry, not to mention all the Slytherins you f—”
“GINEVRA MOLLY WEASLEY! How dare you!?”
Ginny turned to see her mother, pale with outrage, sweeping into the room. Harry was standing near the door, his face utterly blank. In a smooth motion, Molly reached out as she approached and locked pinching fingers around Ginny’s ear. She pulled her from the room, leaving Harry and Draco alone.
tbc...
What does Harry have to say about the Cho info? Just what will Draco give Harry for Christmas? And how will the rest of the wizard community react to the pair?
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-01-27 05:26 am (UTC)Ginny totally dug herself into a hole about the Amortentia, didn't she? I'm assuming that Harry heard that part... *wicked grin*
Can't wait to see more!
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Date: 2006-01-27 01:49 pm (UTC)Ron is just so... Ron. I know he understand strategy, but when it comes to other things, he's even more clueless than Harry. If he didn't have Hermione to prod him, who knows where he'd be? :D
no subject
Date: 2006-01-27 02:55 pm (UTC)*couldn't resist throwing in her two knuts* :D
no subject
Date: 2006-01-27 06:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-01-27 01:41 pm (UTC)I was thinking of writing more, but I really like the 1000-2000 word format, because it gives little glimpses and leaves the rest to the reader's imagination. Like, what happened in the day between Molly's invitation and the arrival at Grimmauld Place? I'm not sure I'll ever write that, though I could always come back if I am inspired and stick a little drabble in there.
Anyway, the point: I can't imagine Harry's going to be too upset over Cho. That was years ago now, and, well, Draco was Malfoy then. Both did things they regret, right?
no subject
Date: 2006-01-27 08:12 pm (UTC)I've ended chapters in places I thought were perfectly reasonable before, only to get a load of comments and reviews going "Noooooo! How could you leave it there, you cruel, cruel person?!??! Arrrrrgh!" and so forth. And I'm reading it and blinking and going, "... oh. Whoops. Sorry!" :) Of course, I know what's coming, so the suspense is never quite as great! :D I do make an effort to re-read it through readers' eyes, but still. :P
I hope Harry's not upset about Cho! That's ancient history by now! And I can't wait to find out more about Harry and Draco themselves! So far, we've had nothing too terribly official, as such. I loved the hand thing. So nice!
no subject
Date: 2006-01-27 08:43 pm (UTC)More is coming... maybe not tonight, because I didn't have a long enough lunchbreak today. :D But soon, I hope.
If you had to pick an archive for Harry/Draco fic, which one would it be? I was thinking of submitting this somewhere in addition to OWL when I have a few more 'moments' finished, but I don't want to put it to the wrong audience. I haven't even been posting it to
no subject
Date: 2006-01-28 12:06 am (UTC)I wouldn't suggest the LJ H/D comm route, but that's just me. Go for it if you want to. :) The Hex Files crowd would like these a lot, I know. At Skyehawke, people tend to be fairly scant when it comes to feedback, but you never know! Especially if you link people to your stuff there from your journal, that helps. :)
no subject
Date: 2006-01-28 03:12 am (UTC)Silly, isn't it - if it's only ~1000 words, it's not a 'chapter' to me, it's a snapshot, and if it's not a chapter, I don't feel commitment-phobia breathing down my neck. :)
no subject
Date: 2006-01-27 02:51 pm (UTC)Excellent update! And I love Ginny getting yanked out of there by her own mother. That was priceless. :D
:) Maggie
no subject
Date: 2006-01-27 05:29 pm (UTC)And of course, the muses are also telling me that Molly's lecture about love potions is STILL going on, even now. :D
no subject
Date: 2006-01-27 04:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-01-27 05:26 pm (UTC)Draco is right to be concerned - he can reason away past actions all he wants, but Harry will feel betrayed when someone close deliberately hurts him. But he also has matured in the last few years, so he will (hopefully) come 'round pretty quickly. The muses (hee, that sounds so silly, but the hamsters running the wheels in my brain are directing traffic just now) are telling me more about Draco than Harry just now, so we'll see. :)