Gryffindor Common Room

[Draco Malfoy]

An Area where the Gryffindors Meet and Chat.

[Ginny Weasley]

Letting out a long breath, Ginny moved to slump in one of the squishy armchairs by the fire, her bag falling carelessly to the ground next to her as she rubbed her face. Death Eaters, in Hogwarts of all places... it made her skin crawl.

"Could really use a hero right now Harry," she murmured to herself, delicate, pale hand dropping back to her side as she let her out breath and closed her eyes. No... Harry wouldn't be coming to save her this time. He had more important battles to fight, she knew that. This time she was on her own... well, not on her own. She still had Neville and the DA, but for the first time she understood what Harry meant about the burdens of being looked to for answers she didn't have.

Jaw clenching the redhead allowed her eyes to slide open again as her head lifted, that same stubborn core that was so obvious in her brothers giving her strength to push away that pathetic feeling of helplessness. There wasn't going to be anyone flying in on a phoenix to battle the monsters and carry her away to safety this time. If she wanted to be saved, she had to be the one to fight. For her, and everyone else in this damn school.

[Peter Stark]

Peter entered the common room, he only saw a red haired girl sitting besides the fire place. Enough room for a quiet place.
Peter took out a piece of parchment and his quill starting to write a letter. "Time to reactivate some old friends and get some information... background information about those damned Carrow teachers." he thought. "Wasn't there this girl, I met this summer. A Slytherin, wasn't she? Maybe i should...". An owl interrupted Peter in his thoughts.

[Ginny Weasley]

Ginny glanced up in vague surprise at the sound of the portait door going, a small frown playing on her face as she spotted the new transfer student. He was as of yet an unknown quantity, but then again he was from dumstrangs... it didn't exactly bode well.

Still the boy seemed to be keen to mind his own business, slipping off to a corner to start scribbling on a piece of parchment, looking up only as an owl arrived, presumably for him.

"Something interesting?" she asked after a few beats, her brown eyes running over him in close assessment.

[Peter Stark]

Peter put the letter away to finish it later and took the letter of the owl who left immediately.
"You are Ginny Weasley, aren't you?" he replied, with an interested glance in his eyes. "I've heard about you before."

[Ginny Weasley]

A look of resignation passed over the redhead's face before she squared her shoulders and met his eyes.

"That so? Anything interesting?" she asked him calmly, raising an eyebrow, inwardly steeling herself for either an attack about Harry's absence or a hoard of questions and enthusiasm as tended to be the two camps at the moment.

[Peter Stark]

Peter raised his eyebows too. Ginny reacted as expected. 'She seems to have the fighting power, he had been told about.' Peter thought.

"I had been in contact with Lupin some weeks ago. He was the one who made me come here... in favour of going my own way through this *nice* world." Peter connotated the last few words with some sarcasm. "He mentioned there will be some use of mine here and that I will find out how." while saying this Peter took out the last few words of Lupin he wrote him as a goodbye and handed them to Ginny, beeing keen of how she will react.

[Ginny Weasley]

Ginny's body stiffened her eyes sharpening as the boy spoke, gaze flickering down as he proffered her a folded slip of paper, eyeing it suspiciously a moment before reaching out to cautiously take it, flipping it open to read the writing within carefully, scanning the simple words scrawled in her former teacher's distinctive slanted script introducing the youth and a hasty scribble that he was trustworthy. Still... there was no way to know if it was real or not.

Folding the message closed, Ginny glanced back up to the other boy wordlessly, gaze assessing as she took him in.

"How is it you came to know Remus Lupin?" she asked carefully.

[Deleted]

"Ginny!" Dean ran full pelt into the Common Room, almost tripping on the edge of a rug as he tried to stop, spotting Ginny in an armchair by the fire. "Oh good, you're okay." he muttered, bent over and panting. He glanced up at the other boy and frowned a little, moving closer to his ex. "We got a plan?"

[Ginny Weasley]

Ginny grimaced at the less than elegant entrance to the common room, turning from the other boy to watch with mingled fondness and exasperation as Dean stumbled into attenance.

"Sorry, raincheck on this conversation," she offered to the other boy before pushing herself up and moving to take a hold of Dean's arm, pulling him off to the other side of the common room before flicking up a privacy ward.

"For Godric's sake Dean, can't you at least *try* to be discrete?" she grumbled as she released him.

[Deleted]

Dean looked confused when Ginny pulled him aside, eyes flicking to the privacy ward for a moment. "Discrete? Why? We're in the Gryfindor Common Room." he pointed out. "If we can't trust the people here who can we trust?" He mumbled something about how at least it wasn't in the Great Hall and that he'd been worried about her, his words not really able to be heard.

[Ginny Weasley]

Mar 4, 2014 6:10:09 GMT -5 @moon2 said:

Dean looked confused when Ginny pulled him aside, eyes flicking to the privacy ward for a moment. "Discrete? Why? We're in the Gryfindor Common Room." he pointed out. "If we can't trust the people here who can we trust?" He mumbled something about how at least it wasn't in the Great Hall and that he'd been worried about her, his words not really able to be heard.

"NOrmally yes, but we have a new transfer over there," she countered jerking her head to the other guy. "He's not been vetted yet... though Remus seems to know him so hopefully that's a good sign."

Letting out a breath she studied the boy before her a moment before allowing him a wry smile. Stupid moron...

"Why were you worried? It's been a whole... forty eight hours since I last got tortured, I'm doing great," she teased him lightly giving him a light shove in the shoulder.

[Deleted]

Dean barely moved from the shrug and slid an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. "I worry about you sometimes, Gin. And forty-eight hours is too long. Not that I'm not happy about it being that long but those Carrows don't ever stop bugging you. And don't smile like that." He said, running his finger gently over her cheek.

[Ginny Weasley]

Mar 4, 2014 6:20:38 GMT -5 @moon2 said:

Dean barely moved from the shrug and slid an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. "I worry about you sometimes, Gin. And forty-eight hours is too long. Not that I'm not happy about it being that long but those Carrows don't ever stop bugging you. And don't smile like that." He said, running his finger gently over her cheek.

Rolling her eyes, Ginny reached up to lightly knock his fingers away.

"Less of that touching Dean, we're not dating any more," she offered him tartly, though she let the arm remain around her shoulders. "And you can stop worrying - it's sweet, but pointless. I'm fine. I can cope with the nutters, and worrying isn't going to change it anyway. Besides... smile like what?"

[Deleted]

Dean looked hurt for a moment as she knocked his hand away, but was a little bit happy when she left his arm around her shoulder. "Like you're thinking that I'm a moron." he muttered. "I can see what you're thinking Gin. It's in your eyes."

[Ginny Weasley]

The redhead snorted a light laugh as she shot him a droll look.

"You are a moron," she assured him sweetly, hand lifting to pat his cheek jokingly. "It's a terminal condition you suffer from. Don't worry though, I wont abandon you to suffer on alone. Someone has to keep your sorry ass alive."

[Deleted]

Dean almost, almost, pouted, but shook his head and grinned instead. "If you're going to take that job then I guess I better just tail you everywhere, make sure I don't get left alone to get pinned by DEs."

[Ginny Weasley]

Mar 4, 2014 6:48:23 GMT -5 @moon2 said:

Dean almost, almost, pouted, but shook his head and grinned instead. "If you're going to take that job then I guess I better just tail you everywhere, make sure I don't get left alone to get pinned by DEs."

Mouth kicking up at the side, Ginny reached up to slap him lightly upside the head.

"Idiot, that would just make you *more* likely to be cursed. I'm a walking target. Besides, shouldn't you be off fawning after Brown or Wynters or whichever skirt it is you're chasing at the moment?"

[Deleted]

Dean winced from the smack and his free hand shoved into his pocket. "I'm not chasing anyone at the moment." he muttered, looking at ground and scuffing his foot a little. "And if I get cursed too then there'll be less focus on you." he grinned again. "Helping each other out."

[Ginny Weasley]

Mar 4, 2014 7:00:02 GMT -5 @moon2 said:

Dean winced from the smack and his free hand shoved into his pocket. "I'm not chasing anyone at the moment." he muttered, looking at ground and scuffing his foot a little. "And if I get cursed too then there'll be less focus on you." he grinned again. "Helping each other out."

Ginny settled her hand on her hip as she shot him a disbelieving look.

"Bullshite," she scoffed. "You don't know how not to chase someone. And thanks but no thanks. I'm not looking for a hero Dean. Been there, done that. Never ends well."

[Deleted]

"Gin, I'm not trying to be a hero." Dean said, suddenly serious. "I'm trying to be a friend and look after a mate. I want to help you. You can't do everything by yourself."

[Ginny Weasley]

Letting out a long breath, Ginny turned to meet his eyes, her own serious.

"I appreciate the sentiment, Dean, I do," she insisted, voice gentling. "But I'm a big girl and I wont have people endagering themselves for me... I'm coping. If you want to help me out just help me keep the Potion supplies stocked - right now I'm run ragged trying to nick enough ingredients and keep the salves and pain potions in stock for when people need them."

[Deleted]

Dean nodded slowly, still not liking leaving Ginny by herself with mad men running around. "Well... give me the list of Potions stuff we need right now and I can go and get it when I've got a chance." He squeezed her shoulder, holding her tight for a moment. "Harry wouldn't want me to let you run yourself into the ground."

[Ginny Weasley]

Ginny's smile took on a slightly sardonic note at his words, shrugging out from under his hand.

"Harry also wouldn't want a school full of Death Eaters," she pointed out drolly. "shite happens."

Honestly she didn't want to talk about the dark haired youth, not at least like this - like her reason for being. She still cared for the boy - of course she did, despite her complicated and frankly messed up feelings for Draco, she still cared at least for Harry, but she was sick of being just defined by her relationship to him. Sick of hurting over him to honestly...

[Deleted]

Dean let her go, reluctantly. "No one wants a school full of Death Eaters." he pointed out. "When's our next DA meeting?" he asked, after checking that the privacy ward was still up.

[Ginny Weasley]

Ginny chose not to answer that, dropping the issue of her hero ex to focus on the more practical and safter topics.

"Neville and I were thinking tomorrow," she offered with a small hitch of her shoulder. "We've got some new information on spells and potions we need to practice, and Tonks has been in touch again with an update."

[Deleted]

Dean grinned. "Sounds like fun, what've we got this time? Head-exploding spells? Heart-stoppers?" He sobered up a little when she mentioned Tonks. "Any news? Any good news?"

[Ginny Weasley]

Ginny cast him a half exasperated, half annoyed look.

"Head exploders? Heart stoppers? What the hell, Dean. Don't even joke about that. We're not monsters - we're not like them," she snapped at him, genuinely upset at the implication. "We'll fight them and do what we have to, but we are not going to resort to dark magic and murder spells."

[Deleted]

"But..." Dean started, before his brain overrode what his mouth had been about to say. "Sorry Gin." he muttered.

[Ginny Weasley]

Her brow drew down as she took a step closer to him, gaze angry and filled with accusation as they met his eyes.

"No," she insisted, tone stubborn. "Tell me. What 'but' Dean?"