Ch. 18

Ginny waited somewhat impatiently at the bottom of the stairs that led up to her dorm. Blaise was late by about fifteen minutes, and she was starting to panic. Was he just tricking her for a laugh? She sighed in frustration and leaned against the railing as she looked around again.

Next to her on a wall, there was a portrait of a girl smiling quietly at the redhead. She managed to get Ginny's attention by asking, "Waiting for someone?"

Ginny looked up at the portrait and nodded after a few moments. "He was supposed to be here at noon, and it's fifteen past. I'm trying not to worry, but he is a Slytherin and we don't have the best history."

"Ah," The girl said knowingly. "I fell in love with a Slytherin back when I was alive. I understand your concern."

"You were a student here?" Ginny asked curiously.

The girl in the portrait nodded. "Many, many years ago. I was a Hufflepuff though, and our relationship was frowned upon since I was a half-blood."

"Yeah, everyone in his house calls me a blood traitor," Ginny said sadly. "Unfortunately, he called me one as well a few years ago. That's not helping my nerves right now."

"Don't lose hope, little Gryffindor," The girl smiled. "Slytherins are very good about keeping their word."

Almost on cue, Blaise turned the corner, panting slightly. He caught sight of Ginny and rushed over to her, putting his hands on his knees as he took deep breaths.

"I'm so sorry, Ginny," He started between breaths. "I got caught up by Peeves; he locked me in a cupboard."

Ginny laughed. "Oh, it's okay. I know how Peeves is. I'm just happy you showed up."

He straightened up and smiled at her. "Were you worried I wasn't going to?"

"I'll admit, the thought crossed my mind." She pushed herself off the railing and turned to the portrait to say, "Thank you for talking to me. Have a good day!"

The girl in the portrait waved at her, smiling. Ginny then turned to Blaise who gestured forward and they began walking through the castle. Blaise wanted so badly to take her hand but knew that she would either freak out or be self-conscious about the rest of the students seeing them together. He already noticed that she felt a bit uncomfortable with the stares they were getting.

He looked down at her, smiling slightly. She looked exceptionally beautiful today, even though she was dressed casually in a light grey jumper that showed her figure and dark jeans. The sleeves on her jumper seemed just a bit long for her as they nearly covered her hands, but he thought that only added to her cuteness.

She looked up at him then and a bit of color appeared on her cheeks. "What are you looking at?"

Shaking his head, he looked forward again and put his hands in his pockets. "Just thinking about how much I like that sweater on you. You look very beautiful today."

Her mouth hung open slightly but she shut it quickly, putting her head down slightly to hide her smile. He grinned as he felt a mixture of embarrassment and happiness radiate off of her, and he made a mental note to always compliment her on how she looked if that was how she was going to react.

She at first was unsettled by the amounts of looks that the two of them were getting as they walked through the castle together, but after a bit she ignored the looks and simply focused ahead of her. Soon enough they had made it through the castle and were heading towards the carriages.

He motioned for her to step in first, and he stepped up afterwards, sitting across from her. She smiled at him, realizing that they had walked that entire way in silence, and amazed that she didn't seem to mind. She never really had comfortable silences with Harry.

Blaise noticed the slight fall in her mood and quickly said, "So, Ginny. Um. What are your plans for after Hogwarts?"

"I've actually got plans to go be a chaser for the Holyhead Harpies," She said excitedly. "I was told that they would be happy to have me try out. Though now that I think about it, I think it was only because I was dating Harry..."

"They would be fools if that was the only reason they wanted you to try out," Blaise said immediately. "Any team should be lucky to have you as a chaser for them."

She blushed slightly. "Well thank you, Blaise."

He grinned as she used his first name finally. "It's nothing to thank me for. It's the truth."

"I know, but not many people would say that," She said with a shrug.

"Well, they're idiots."

She laughed and he beamed.

Soon enough, they were slowly making their way through Hogsmeade, quietly chatting with each other. Ginny learned that he and Draco planned to go into business together once they left Hogwarts, and they were already developing ideas for products.

"You know," Blaise said as he put his hands into his pockets, "Draco would probably kill me for leaking valuable information to you."

Ginny laughed at him. "I won't tell, I promise."

He grinned at her. "Good. Because if our secrets get out, I'll know who did it."

"Ooh, I'm scared," She joked.

"You should be!" He said in a mock-terrifying voice.

They laughed together and continued walking. He noticed they were walking by Spintwitches, and he remembered that Ginny had mentioned needing a new broom. He then smiled as an idea crossed his mind and he quickly formulated a plan.

"So, how about we do lunch at the Three Broomsticks," He started, looking down at her, "And then we go to Spintwitches?"

"That sounds good!" She grinned. "Perfect actually since Quidditch tryouts are this week for Gryffindor. I still need to talk to McGonagall about them."

"I'm sure you'll make captain," He said confidently. "You have nothing to worry about."

"I really hope that I do," She sighed. "There's a small part of me that is worried I won't, but at the same time, I'm pretty sure I will too."

"You just need to keep that confidence up," He said. Then he reached over and squeezed her hand reassuringly.

She looked down at his hand in shock and he quickly let go, but then smiled slightly at the feeling of disappointment that she gave off when he did. He grinned at her and they continued walking. They passed Gladrag's, and he noticed that she had paused slightly as they did, looking in the window at a new set of clothes that had just come out in the past week.

He smiled and knew that they would end up going in there on that trip as well.

"I can't believe you wouldn't let me pay for my lunch," Ginny grumbled. "Or that you cut me off after two butterbeers!"

Blaise grinned as he held the pub door open for her to leave first. "Well, it is Sunday. I can't have you getting too drunk."

She rolled her eyes and left the pub, waiting for him to follow. They soon set off, wandering slowly down the street. Blaise led her towards Spintwitches, which she happily went to. There were a few other people in the shop, but they mostly ignored the two of them as they made their way to the brooms.

"Oh!" Ginny exclaimed. "There's the Firebolt! I hear they're in the process of making a newer version of it!"

Blaise looked between her and the broomstick. She looked at it longingly, but after a few moments she had to tear herself away from it and went to look at the cheaper brooms. While she did that, Blaise managed to slip away and walk up to the counter.

"How much for a Firebolt?" He asked the man.

The man behind the counter looked surprised at the inquiry but gave Blaise a fairly hefty number. Blaise looked over at Ginny who was blissfully unaware of what he was doing, and he turned back to the man. "That's fine. It'll be worth it. Just charge it to my vault, please."

The shop owner nodded happily and while he was wrapping the broom, Blaise walked back over to Ginny with a smile on his face. She jumped when he cleared his throat, announcing his presence.

"Oh, I was wondering where you went off to," She said, smiling at him. Then she gave him a suspicious look as she asked, "What's the large grin for?"

"You'll see," He replied with a shrug. "What are you thinking about?"

She sighed and looked back at the brooms that she was previously inspecting. "I'm trying to decide which one to get. I had a Cleansweep Seven before, and while I liked it, the Eleven is the better version. It's just a bit more money though, but if I'm trying out for the Holyhead Harpies, it might be worth the money to have the better broom."

The shop owner interrupted them, addressing Blaise with a noticeable excitement in his voice. "Sir, your purchase is ready at the front."

Ginny watched the man walk back up to the front before looking at Blaise curiously. "What did you get?"

He grinned and put his hands in his pockets. "Promise you won't be mad at me?"

Narrowing her eyes, she stared at him for a few moments before asking, "What did you do?"

He laughed at that. "Don't worry! You'll like it!"

"You better not have bought me something!" She exclaimed. "You already bought lunch for me!"

He gestured forward towards the counter and she rushed past him, stopping when she saw the familiar shape sitting on the counter wrapped in brown paper.

"Blaise Zabini!" She exclaimed, whirling around. "You did buy me a broom!"

"You're not allowed to open it until you get to your dorm," He said, smiling at her. "I want to be well out of range of your hexes when you open it."

She stood there, unsure of how to react. He had bought a broom for her, of all people. And there he was, grinning like an idiot in front of her because he had. She felt a sudden urge to cry hit her, but it was happy tears.

Blaise panicked when he saw her eyes well up. "Ginny? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you! I can cancel the purchase if you want!"

Ginny shook her head, blinking back the tears. "No, no; I'm just...no one's done that before."

He relaxed when he realized that she wasn't upset, but grateful. Letting out the sigh he was holding, he shook his head. Of course she wasn't used to expensive purchases growing up in her family, or even any new purchases for her at all. She probably got all hand-me-downs, and that broke his heart. Whatever she wanted, he would be sure that she would get the best version, if she wanted it.

She interrupted his thoughts by suddenly attacking him with a hug, wrapping her arms around his neck again and squeezing him tighter than she had the night before when they said goodbye. He happily picked her up and twirled her around slightly, not letting go when he set her back down onto the floor. She didn't let go either, if anything tightening her hold.

"Thank you so much," She said in a quiet voice.

He smiled into her shoulder and only tightened his arms around her, breathing in her happiness.