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Mala Fide: In Bad Faith	By : SueLovesJude Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Lucius/Ginny Views: 8819 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 14
- 15
- 16
�Author
Notes: Thank you,
Persephone33, for being my beta reader. :-)

In this
chapter: Couples and cousins.

Mala
Fide: In Bad Faith � Chapter 14

�Oh, this
one�s nice,� the young woman said admiringly, picking up the ginger plant and displaying
it for her husband�s examination. Impressed once more by her uncanny ability to
pick out a healthy specimen from dozens of samples, he nodded his approval. She
was perfect in every way � regardless of what she wore on her head.

Neville didn�t
pay any mind to the simply awful hats Luna had worn for most of their
honeymoon. Today�s was a garish, bright orange hat with an oversized floppy
brim. Her odd sense of style was a trait he had found quirky when they had
first met, but now it truly endeared her to him. It was part of what made her
Luna. Besides, he was in love; all he saw was her beauty and the way the yellow
of the sunlight made her hair shine like gold underneath its edges.

�Yes. It
is. Very nice.� Never taking his eyes off her, he leaned in and kissed his wife.
She tried to set the plant in the basket draped over her arm, but she had
closed her eyes and accidentally put it on a nearby table.

It was a
ghastly mistake, for that particular table contained a display of Turkish Snapdragons.
They were similar to snapdragons that were raised by Muggles. However, the
flowers on the Turkish variety resembled miniature dragon heads, and when
agitated, they would snap their tiny jaws and spit out fire.

Thinking
it was being provoked by the innocuous ginger plant, one of the young
Snapdragons thrashed and shot out a flurry of hot sparks. The compact fireball
hit the backside of an elderly witch who just happened to be standing next to
the table. She screamed when its tiny mouth bit down on her protruding bum.

Neville
suddenly realized it was probably a colossal waste of time to try and squeeze
in some shopping for herbs and plants while on one�s honeymoon. It was just too
hard to focus on the task at hand. But it was too late � the damage was done, and
it seemed like it would never stop.

The irate
woman swatted her hand blindly behind her. Finding the source of her
irritation, she drew her wand and swiftly subdued the plant. She looked around
wildly. Then drawing even more attention to herself, she shrieked, �Well, no
wonder! Turkish Snapdragons! What kind of dunderhead � you!�

She was
pointing directly at the terribly embarrassed groom. �This is all your fault!�
she bellowed. He watched in horror, wanting to crawl under the table, any
table; famed herbologist or not, he still respected any witch who was old
enough to be his grandmother.

The hefty
woman strode over and slapped the poor young man�s cheek as hard as she could. A
half-second later, Luna decided she could no longer watch in silence. She rose
to her husband�s defense: The woman simply forgot was she was ranting about.
She suddenly remembered she had left a kettle on the boil at her friend�s house
just down the street from the gardening show. Setting down the three plants she
had intended to buy, she promptly left the show without another word.

The newlyweds
breathed a sigh of relief. Neville retrieved the ginger plant; miraculously, it
was apparently no worse for the wear. Carefully placing it in Luna�s basket, he
patted her sun-warmed hair. �Let�s go,� he suggested. She nodded in agreement.

But the
fiasco wasn�t over just yet.

�Monsieur
Longbottom!� a French-accented voice called from across the crowded yard. �You
know your mademoiselle will �ave to pay for what she made the lady forget to
buy.�

It was
Gabrielle Delacour. Her lips in a wry smile, she hugged him warmly and kissed
each of his cheeks in the French style. �Bon jour, Neville! �Ow are you? And
you �ave a girlfriend! �Oo is she?�

He gave
the young French beauty a goofy grin and corrected her. �This is Mrs.
Longbottom, my wife. Luna, I�d like you to meet Gabrielle Delacour.�

�Oh! You
are married? �Ow wonderful!� She hugged him once more then turned to hug the
bride. �When did zees �appen?�

The other
witch�s eyes lit up. �Delacour? Why, you must be Bill Weasley�s sister-in-law.
You share Fleur�s striking good looks.� The younger girl blushed slightly and
bit her lip at Luna�s honesty.

�Thank
you, Madam.�

�Longbottom?�
another familiar voice said, joining the conversation. �I thought you were on
your honeymoon.�

Neville looked
up and saw Vincent Crabbe. Pansy Parkinson was on his arm and smiling graciously.
�Hello, Neville. Luna.�

�Hullo.
Actually, we�re still on our honeymoon. It�s just that, well, this show only
comes along once every few years, so you know, you hate to miss it . . . it�s
crucial for any serious herbologist.�

�Neville,
�oo are your friends?� Gabrielle chimed in.

He introduced
his former classmates. A brief moment of slight awkwardness passed between the
two wizards. Sensing their slight discomfort, Gabrielle shared some hints as to
where the best buys of the show could be found. As the others talked, Luna
thought back on her wedding day and said to Pansy, �I do hope you enjoyed the
food at our reception.�

�Yes, very
much. The whole day was lovely.�

�That�s
good. I didn�t see either of you for most of the afternoon, and I wondered if
maybe you had taken ill. Did you think there was something strange in the crab
dip? It tasted like it might have had a pinch of Jakesong in it, and you know
how that can upset a person�s stomach. I felt a little bit queasy myself after
eating it. But I felt much better after I had some champagne.�

By now, Vincent
had stopped listening to Gabrielle and Neville and exchanged a glance with
Pansy. She grinned and blushed modestly. �No, we were fine, actually. We had to
leave early to pick up Vincent�s boys.�

�Pardon,
mademoiselle?� a man said in a thick accent.

�Oh,
excuse me,� Gabrielle said to her friends, �I �ave another customer to attend
to. Good to see you again, Neville. Nice to meet you, Luna. Au revoir, Monsieur
and Madam��

�Crabbe.
A-and Miss Parkinson,� Vincent added, indicating his girlfriend.

The younger
witch nodded. �Oui. Enjoy ze rest of ze show, and your stay in Provence. Au revoir!�

The
former schoolmates continued browsing through the various aisles, discussing
the various herbs and plants and their properties. The two wizards were soon
arguing about how to make Strengthening Solution and whether one was supposed
to add the salamander�s blood before putting in the pomegranate juice or after.
When Vincent reminded Neville of the disastrous results Potter had had when he
had switched the order of these ingredients in one of their Potions classes,
the Gryffindor was a bit stunned. The two had long had a professional respect
for each another, but this took him by surprise.

�How
could you even remember something like that?� he asked without realy
thinking. But instead of taking offense, the other wizard shrugged casually. Neville
then suggested the two couples meet up for dinner that night.

They had
a pleasant evening. It was mostly spent exchanging theories about plants and
potions over a meal of fresh seafood. Each man learned little tips he didn�t
know and was grateful for the advice. Pansy interjected her two Knuts worth when
they were discussing the careful handling of Bubotubers. Luna, sharing her own
unique brand of information that her father regularly posted in The Quibbler
as if they were well-known facts, reminded the others that Blibbering
Humdingers love to eat Bubotubers.

�It�s
true,� she said when Pansy snorted softly into her glass of sparkling water. �People
who grow Bubotubers really need to keep a sharp watch out for them, or their
whole crop could be destroyed overnight.� Neville just smiled and took his
wife�s hand.

After
they had finished their dessert and caf� au lait, the two couples parted ways. The
Longbottoms went to their hotel, while the other two Apparated back to England. While Pansy would have liked to stay in France one more day, she said they had
plans to take Vincent�s boys to Rhiannon and Lucas Malfoy�s birthday party
tomorrow.

While Luna
was brushing her hair before bed that night, she suddenly gasped and turned to her
husband. �Oh! You should have given Vincent the letter for Ginny. He could have
taken it to the party tomorrow.�

It seemed
like a good idea, but Neville frowned.

�Yeah, I
thought of that. But for some reason, Brian asked me to deliver it to her
personally. That�s why I haven�t bothered sending it by owl.�

�Oh, I
see.� She finished her brushing then dimmed the lights for bedtime.

* * * * *

Lucius
looked up at the sound of the doorknob turning in the handle. When Ginny
entered the room, he set his book on the oval table in front of him. �How is
she?� he asked with concern.

She
sighed as she sat down next to him on the fine leather sofa. �Fine. She�s
sleeping.�

�That�s a
relief,� he said, smiling faintly.

�I had to
give her a child�s dose of Dreamless Sleep Potion.�

The young
mother sounded tired herself. But then, having birthday parties for small children
was rather exhausting, even with house-elves around to do most of the work. She
rubbed her eyes. It had been a very stressful day, what with all the children
running around, some of them performing accidental magic � although she doubted
that all of it had been purely accidental. The incident with Rhiannon only made
it worse.

Lucius
stared silently into the fire. The crisp crackling of the wood and the dancing
flames held his gaze for several moments. Ginny, too, fell under their hypnotic
spell. She watched as the blaze transformed itself into new patterns, fading
slightly on one side, only to be reborn on the other. She was mesmerized by its
vibrant glow.

Without a
word, he edged nearer to her. He placed a hand on her thigh, and when he did, she
looked up at him and smiled wearily.

�What do
you think could have happened to frighten her so?�

�I don�t
know, exactly. All Rhiannon said was that she saw a monster. I thought maybe
she meant a ghoul, until she said it had red eyes and a mean laugh. Can�t
imagine who would � wait a minute . . . �

Ginny
chuckled to herself and shook her head. �Of course! It had to be one of the Flint boys, just having a laugh. They�re always up to something, just like the twins.� She
laughed again, mostly at her own stupidity. �Those imps! I should give them a
good scare myself next time we�re at their house. Imagine, picking on a little
girl who�s too small to defend herself.�

�It must
have been,� Lucius said, placing a consoling hand on her shoulder. �We certainly
don�t have any ghouls or monsters at the manor. Now, come here,� he said as he
pulled her close to him. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and began stroking
her arm. She relaxed into him, amazed at how the little things he did never
failed to bring her comfort.

She was
right where she belonged.

He seemed
to sense what she was feeling and lifted her chin. When their eyes met, he
said, �I love you, Ginevra Malfoy.�

The way
he said her name, so reverently, that it made her heart ache. . . . like he
thought it the most beautiful sound in the world. It made her pulse beat faster
and her face flush. When he dipped his head slowly and kissed her, she felt a
fire burning her, threatening to devour her from the inside out.

How
could I ever deny him?

�Yes,�
she breathed between kisses, �yes, Lucius. I will. I will marry you. I love you
so much, and I don�t want to live another day without you in my arms, in my
heart � in my life.�

Lucius
turned to face her, and holding her at arm�s length, he looked at her in wonder.
For a moment, Ginny thought he might cry. But he simply said, �You have made me
the happiest of men. I will adore you always. You won�t regret this, my love.�
As he kissed her tenderly, she felt a surge of magic flow between them. It was
unlike anything she had ever felt in her life.

When he
finally broke the kiss, he said in a voice that sounded almost victorious: �And
now we are one.�

They made
love in his room that night with renewed energy. Ginny could barely grasp how loving
he was with her. He was passionate, yet tender. She had not known ardor like
this for such a long time. And yet, it wasn�t completely unfamiliar to her; she
knew she had felt this way before, once. It was somewhere in the recesses of
her mind, but in a place she couldn�t go. Her lover was on fire, his thirst for
her unquenchable. It was heavenly.

She realized
he must have taken some sort of potion to be able to go on that way. It flattered
her that he wanted to spend so much time pleasing her, enjoying her, loving
her. As the morning�s first glow came slipping through the curtains, they both
collapsed in exhaustion and slept for hours.

* * * * *

Stella
tapped her toe impatiently. Her cousin was late � again. She couldn�t fathom
how a person who had magic at his disposal could ever be late. Yet he
was, more often than not.

To pass
the time, she alternated between perusing the menu again and counting the beads
of rain collecting on the window at the front of the noisy caf�. She�d been
hoping for an end to this early winter storm � she was on-call that night � but
unfortunately, it showed no signs of slowing.

It was a
dreary Sunday afternoon. She had looked forward to having tea with Brian. But
when she rose that morning to gloomy skies, she regretted suggesting they go out.
If only my flat weren�t so small, she thought. Besides, his tended to be
filled odd aromas, resulting from any number of experiments; the effects of
which she wasn�t sure were always entirely safe.

When her
cousin came into view at last, she waved her hand to flag him down. He caught
her motioning for him and quickly came indoors, joining her at the small round
table.

�Afternoon,
Stella. Sorry I�m late,� he said in way of greeting as he bent down to hug her.
She met him halfway up and returned the gesture.

�I�ll never
understand why you�re always late for our meetings, Brian. You�re a wizard, for
God�s sake,� she added in a fierce whisper. �And by the way, your tea�s gone
cold.�

While she
continued to chastise his lack of punctuality, he discreetly warmed his cup. �So
what was it this time? A flat tire?�

He
smirked at her. �Ha, ha. I couldn�t find my notes from last week, and I
couldn�t exactly owl them to you later on. Your neighbors might start to wonder
about you.�

�They
already do. I have no social life; my only friends are you, two aging cats, and
a rather strange red-haired girl who comes to visit me, on average, twice a
year.� She paused to take a sip of her tea. �Besides, couldn�t you have just,
er, found them and then had them delivered here � you know, magically?�
she asked, saying the last word in barely a whisper.

�You mean
Summon them? No, I couldn�t have done that. For Accio to work, you need
to know exactly where an object is. You need to be able to visualize it in its
spot � very clearly � to call it to you. Besides, seeing folders fly through
the air does tend to cause Muggles to stare.�

Stella
cleared her throat nervously. Rolling her eyes in the direction of the next
table over, she hissed, �Sort of like what you�re doing right now?�

The two
teenage Muggle girls who were seated beside them were staring at him,
wide-eyed, their mouths agog. �Oh! Hello, there,� Brian said to them with a little
innocent wave of his fingers.

His
cousin explained to them with a kindly smile, �It�s all right, my dears. My
brother. He just got released from Bedlam. Still having a spot of trouble with
reality. He�ll be fine.� Both girls blushed then quickly turned back to their
plate of chocolate scones.

�Now,�
Stella continued rather brusquely, �let�s get to work, shall we?� She leaned
over to one side and swept her case off the floor and up into her lap.
Withdrawing three folders, she placed them in the middle of the table, rearranging
other objects so that everything would fit in the small area between them.

Stuffing
another biscuit in his mouth, Brian asked, �Wha�s aw �is?�

�Research,�
she answered a bit tersely. �Weeks and weeks of it.�

�Where�d
you get all of it?�

�Internet.�
Seeing his confused expression, she shook her head. �Never mind. I�ll show it to
you sometime.�

Even
though he was born to Muggle parents, Brian had immersed himself in the
wizarding culture once he got to Hogwarts. He loved everything about their
world. The only modern device he had was the mobile phone Stella insisted he
have � and only because the Floo system scared the living hell out of her.

She
opened the middle folder and flipped a few pages back. When she found what she
was looking for, she handed it to him. �Finish that biscuit,� she said, �and
read this.�

When he
began reading, she reminded him, �Don�t you have something for me? We were both
supposed to be looking into this.�

�Oh,
right. Sorry.� He wiped the cinnamon and sugar off his mouth then took out his
notes. He cast a quick spell so that the pages would look like newsprint to
anyone else who happened to glance down at it, only without the moving
photographs.

Lowering
his voice, he said, �Of course, this is a violation of about 32 separate
wizarding laws. I could lose my license to practice medicine, even face
possible jail time. I know, what are the odds? We�re nowhere near any the
Ministry, but we should have met at your flat. We could have the convenience of
using magic without . . . �

Stella
waved an impatient hand at him, told him to �shut up and read�, and continued studying
his notes. After several minutes of reviewing each others� documents, she
looked up. �Well? What do you think?� she asked then poured some more tea for
both of them. By now, the rain had let up and the crowd in the caf� was
thinning out.

�Interesting.
I�d never thought of some sort of blood disease.�

�I know,
it sounds crazy. I didn�t know wizards even got them. But it would explain
why the methods your hospital uses couldn�t figure out what was causing her
illness, or how to cure her.�

They polished
off the remaining biscuits and emptied their cups. Finally, she said, �Listen,
Brian, could you possibly get some of her blood, so I can have it tested?
That is, does your hospital keep anything like from its patients?�

�Well, in
unexplained deaths, the hospital keeps a few samples and freezes them in a
magical stasis. That way, as new spells and techniques are discovered, we can
go back later and test them further so I imagine we would have blood, tissue �
any number of things.�

�Really?
Well, that�s very modern for your hospital. No offense, of course.�

�None
taken.� He shrugged and said modestly, �To be honest, it�s a rather new practice.
Some of us younger Healers thought of it, mostly the Muggle-borns, having grown
seeing so many ailments with no apparent cause that our parents couldn�t just
�wish� away.�

�Well, I
think it�s fantastic. Look, why don�t we get the samples now, so I can have them
looked at?� He nodded, and they gathered up their things and left the caf�.

* * * * *

Near the
end of her time in her temporary post as Madam Pince�s assistant, Hermione found
herself no closer to learning the identity of the mysterious Brian. When she stumbled
upon books and books of photographs of past and present students, she was
overjoyed. They were organized by year and house; all she had to do was look
for the Brians.

Unfortunately,
it wasn�t that easy.

The books,
it turned out, didn�t list any first names � only the student�s first
initial, followed by a last name. �Fat lot of good that does me,� she muttered
as she flipped through the pages for what seemed like the thousandth time,
scouring for boys with the first initial B. She had found several
possibilities, but how was she to know the Brians from the Bradleys from the
Bills?

No matter
what she tried, no Charm would reveal the students� first names. It was fast becoming
an exercise in futility.

She
decided to call it a day as soon as Madam Pince got up from her afternoon rest.
Since the librarian�s days were generally quite long, she frequently took a nap
to prepare for the �evening rush�, as she called it, when large numbers of
students often came down to do research for essays and other homework. Just
before 5:00, Hermione wrapped her warm traveling cloak around her for the long walk
across the grounds to the front gates. Of course, she could Floo to the Burrow in
seconds, but she wanted some time to think and unwind.

At least,
that was what she meant to do.

Hearing
her boots crunch down on the packed snow as she walked was oddly liberating and
seemed to brighten her mood. As she moved further away from the castle, the
snow was softer, fresher . . . untouched. Her feet sifted through the light
powder. The simple pleasure of being the first person to wade through new snow
made her smile subconsciously, just as it had when she was a girl.

The feel
of it reminded her of countless snowball fights, something she had hated in her
early years at Hogwarts but learned to enjoy as she and Ginny became closer
friends, and eventually, confidants. She was soon giggling at memories of the
four of them � Harry, Ron, Ginny, and herself � making hundreds of snowballs
and filling them with magic so they stayed together but were still slushy and
wet on impact. She could still see Ron, running after her, red-faced and
puffing like an angry dragon without its fire. It always made the girls laugh
raucously; he was so easy to get riled up. Harry would just roll his eyes and
tell him, �They won that time, mate. Give up!�

Looking
around to make sure no one could see her, Hermione lay on her back and made the
most perfect snow angel. She tried to ignore the way the snow was creeping inside
her cloak and robes. When it reached the edge of her skirt and spilled into the
tops of her boots, she squealed. The sound of it echoed into the deepening
twilight.

Wouldn�t
Ron be surprised to see me now?

A few
minutes later, she rose and dusted herself off, prepared to walk on. She felt
cold but rejuvenated.

The
closer she drew to the gates, the slower she walked. She hated leaving this
place � she always had and still did. Back when they had all lived here, it was
a different time, a time when their responsibilities were to each other. Of
course, there were their studies, but neither Ron nor Harry took them very seriously.
What had mattered most, what still mattered today, was their friendship.

At last,
she reached out and touched the gates with her gloved hand. She stood there for
a moment, smiling as she reflected on how lucky she was: she had Harry�s
children, and she still had Ron and most of his family. A few moments later, she
walked outside, the gate clanging shut behind her. Once she was far enough into
the outside world to Apparate, the lands around her melted away.

Splat!

Her
arrival at the Burrow was heralded by something wet and slushy hitting her hat,
which was already damp from making the snow angel. She shrieked in surprise.
Just as the moisture soaked through and started to saturate her hair, a man�s
voice roared, �Get her!�

His
battle cry was echoed by a band of small children. The four � no, five �
warriors rushed her, coming out from behind their make-shift fortress and going
into full attack mode. Laughing, she tried to cover her face as she lumbered
through the deep snow and made a run for the house. She could barely catch her
breath. Her attackers were relentless in their pursuit and continued to pelt
her with snowballs.

When they
finally caught up to her, she was almost at the front porch. The little ones
wrapped themselves around her legs and waist and brought her to the ground.

�Yay,
Uncle Ronnie! We got her!� they cried as they jumped up and down. �We win! We
win!�

Sitting
down on the snow-dampened steps, Hermione reached out for her daughters and
grabbed them. Their faces were beaming; their noses and cheeks were as red as
apples, their breath coming out as visible puffs that filled the air around
them then vanishing.

�We got
you, Mummy!� Lily said, her jack-o-lantern grin a mile wide.

�Yes, you
did, my little flower. Look at me � I�m soaked from head to toe!� Her oldest
friend in the world was crouching down among the children. She turned to him
and stuck her tongue out. �I�m sure this was all your idea, Ronald
Weasley.�

�Well,
actually your girls asked me to help them defeat the Huns��

�Hey!�
young Artie objected, sounding offended � even though Hermione was fairly
certain the six-year-old didn�t know what the word meant. �Wait, what are
Huns?�

�Never
you mind,� Ron said. But he wasn�t looking at his nephew. He stood up and raked
his fingers through his hair to clear out the rest of the snow. When he offered
to help Hermione to her feet, she smiled and took his hand gratefully.

Finally,
she noticed just how wet her clothes actually were. She cried, �Ahhh! I�m
freezing!� and started to shiver. The kids giggled at her.

Pretending
to be upset, she resumed her authoritative manner. She clapped her hands twice
and ordered, �Now everyone, let�s all get inside and get into some dry clothes!
Leave your outerwear on the hooks just inside and then go change at once for
dinner.�

The
children herded past them, making battle sounds and shouting cries of victory
about their conquest. Jocee thrust her fist in the air and announced proudly,
�Grandma, we won! We defeated the Huns! And we took a prisoner, too!�

Ron
rolled his eyes and smiled, partly in amusement at his niece, but mostly
because Hermione sounded like herself again . . . like the girl he knew and
loved. True, he had ribbed her terribly when she was Head Girl. But he had
always liked that certainty she had about herself � the conviction that actually,
she was right, all the time.

�You
know, going to Hogwarts three times a week is starting to rub off on you. I
think you should consider taking a post there permanently. It suits you.�

�Me? Work
at Hogwarts?� She sounded as if the idea surprised her.

�Sure.
Why not? Harry and I always figured McGonagall was your idol. You�re just like
her � except you do know how to have fun. McGonagall wouldn�t know fun
if it came up and bit her in the arse.�

Hermione
followed everyone in and cast a Drying Spell on the children�s outerwear. Once
she and Ron had hung and dried their things as well, they stood together by the
fire. Lily, Jamie, Artie, and Jocee had all trooped upstairs to put on dry
clothes for dinner at the command of Admiral Molly.

The two old
friends relaxed into a casual conversation about Ron�s Quidditch practices, which
were being canceled due to inclement weather. �Besides, with Christmas just
around the corner, we�re probably just going to regroup next month. We�ll see
what Oliver wants to do.� As she turned around to warm her backside, he noticed
the way her skirt was clinging to her thighs in a provocative and positively
indecent manner . . .

He
swallowed then asked, �Do you want to take that skirt off?� Mortified, he
quickly rephrased the question. �Er, I mean do you want to get into something
dry for your trip back home?� His face had turned the color of stewed beets.

Feeling slightly
self-conscious herself, she cast her eyes downward. �Does your mum have
something of Ginny�s I could borrow?�

�I think so.
Let me go ask her.�

Anxious
to escape the embarrassment he was feeling, Ron took off for the kitchen. Hermione
stood by the fire quietly and listened for his return. Instead, she heard his
mum chastise him for bothering her in the middle of her cooking with something
he could �very well get himself�. He skulked through the living room, his face even
redder than before, his lips twisted into an annoyed frown. He headed to the
stairs, all the while grumbling something about how she didn�t need to yell
at him � after all, he was only asking. His friend turned back toward the fire
and bit back a grin.

Once Hermione
had put the dry clothes on and adjusted them to fit her a little better, she
and Ron resumed their conversation by the fire while waiting for dinner. �Is
Fred coming over tonight?� she asked, as if she had just thought of her
boyfriend.

�I
s�pose.� He seemed a little disappointed to have to tell her this. �So, how do
you like working with Madam Pince?�

Hermione
shrugged and grimaced. �She�s all right, I guess. I don�t know if it�s because
I�m so familiar with the place that the work is so incredibly easy for me �
it�s almost boring at times � but some days, I find myself with a good deal of
free time on my hands.�

�Well,
you�re not down there in the evenings, are you?� he observed. �I reckon that�s when
the library is busiest.�

She
laughed. �I know. It is kind of silly to have an assistant during the day. But still,
I have had time to . . .

�Hey,
Ron, do you know someone named Brian that Ginny and Neville would both know but
I wouldn�t? I figure he�s got to be close to our age, or how else would they
know him? But if they know him, then we would too��

�Brian?
Why the devil do you want to know about some wanker named Brian? You�ve already
got one boyfriend.� This time, he sounded downright annoyed.

Hermione
just looked at him. Is someone jealous?

She
sighed in exasperation. �I don�t want to date him, Ron. I don�t even know
him, but � please help me out with this. It�s for Ginny.� She looked at him
seriously. �Don�t you worry about her being with Lucius Malfoy?�

�What do you
think?� he snarled sarcastically. For a few moments, he said nothing more. Then
his eyes lit up. �Hey, I wonder if it�s the same Brian that Percy used to hang
out with at Hogwarts.�

�Percy
had friends at Hogwarts?�

She didn�t
mean to say it like that. It sounded cruel. It just sort of slipped out
before she could stop herself, and it was her turn to blush. Even so, Ron
laughed wryly.

�Kind of
amazing, eh? Most of them were in Ravenclaw, of course.�

She
smiled and asked hopefully, �Do you happen to know Brian�s last name?�

�Well, if
it is Percy�s old friend, it�s Gilpin. He�s a Healer at St. Mungo�s,
probably of the youngest one they�ve got. Why do you need to fi��

But before
he could finish, her lips were on his and her arms around him. He tried not to
read too much into it. It was nothing but a gesture, a gut reaction to
wonderful news . . . the rush of instant relief one has when an important but
vexing question has been answered. Especially when that someone was Hermione.

When she finally
grasped what she had done, she felt a bit awkward. But for some reason, she got
too caught up in the moment to let reason take over, let go, and simply back
away.

Besides,
Ron didn�t seem to mind terribly that she had kissed him . . . or
rather, that she was still kissing him. No more than he minded the way she was
starting to run her fingers through his hair or the feel of her tongue as it was
invading his mouth or the sound of her moaning into his lips or just how close
she was pressing up against him. To the contrary, he clenched her tightly as
his body responded to her.

�My, my .
. . isn�t this cozy?�

~End of
Chapter~

Notes: Hmm�as some of you had already predicted,
Fred and Hermione�s relationship may not be as solid as she implied. (I hope this
doesn�t seem too clich�, but I can�t help it; I am a die-hard R/Hr
shipper!)

Thank you
so much for reading! Reviews and comments would be extra, extra nice,
especially since they were so sparse on the last chapter. :-( In the next chapter,
we should see more Lucius/Ginny and perhaps a bit more angst. For the angst
fans, I�m sorry we couldn�t have more this time. But think how poor Fred must
feel-!

Say, did
any of you notice the line from Nickelodeon�s �Fairly Odd-Parents�? Well, not so
much a �line�, but one word that appears in the cartoon, time after time. I
thought it was rather amusing. :-) The first person to name it can have either
a cookie from Chapter 15 or a drabble with the HP pairing of your choice. (The
only ones I can�t write are romantic H/D or D/Hr.)
- 14
- 15
- 16
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Mala Fide: In Bad Faith