My Mate

Ginny nearly slammed into Severus as he came barreling out of the Hospital Wing. Yelping, she danced to the side and he instinctively grabbed her arm as she looked up into his stormy face.

“Oh! What’s your problem!” She snapped, beyond irritated and aware that it wasn’t really him she was upset with, but not inclined to resist taking a potshot at him.

“Damnation, Weasley! Watch where you’re going!” He snarled, setting her aside brusquely.

“I could say the same for you!” She retorted and before he could stride off, continued. “I don’t care how angry you are with Narcissa, but you will contain yourself until after my wedding, do you hear!”

He rounded back on her, his eyes brimming with fire, but stalled when Ginny glared viciously at him, her chin raised and hands on her hips.

Severus muttered something unflattering under his breath and stalked away. Ginny decided to interpret that as an agreement.

“Slytherins!” She growled.

When Ginny walked inside, Narcissa was the only person in any of the beds and she looked miserable.

“Are you alright?” She asked in concern.

Narcissa tried to surreptitiously wipe away a stray tear, and gave the younger woman a trembly smile.

“Fine.”

Ginny simply stared.

Narcissa sighed heavily. “I’ll be fine. Eventually.”

“Let me know if there’s anything I can do.” Ginny sat on the edge of the bed and squeezed her thin shoulder. “Are you going to be up to going to the wedding? I’m sure I can convince Draco to postpone it.”

Narcissa gave a short burst of laughter that seemed to startle herself. “There is NO way that Draco would agree to postpone the wedding and I don’t want you to. I’m sure that I’ll be well enough to attend.”

“If you’re sure.” Ginny said reluctantly. “But you need to take it easy and I don’t want you putting a lot of strain on yourself until you’re completely healed. Nurse’s orders.” She said in a mock stern tone.

“Yes Ma’am.” Narcissa’s mouth twitched with the barest hint of a smile.

“Where’s Draco?” Is he with Madame Pompfrey?” Ginny asked abruptly.

Narcissa frowned. “I just woke up a few minutes ago and he was already gone. But, I’m sure that’s where he must be.”

Ginny quickly peered into the older Mediwitch’s office. Nothing. She was just turning to the door to go find the both of them, when a flash of parchment caught her eye. It was sitting on his bed and had her name on the front.

Dread curled in the pit of her stomach and she almost didn’t want to touch it, but she snatched it up and scanned its contents, while a flare of anger ignited.

She could feel her face heating up and tried in vain to hold onto the tiny threads of her temper.

The explosion was as spectacular as a good show of Muggle fireworks and almost awe-inspiring in its intensity and it was really a shame that the only ones to witness it was Narcissa and a startled third year who had come to get his broken finger looked at.

Needless to say, the third year decided he could live with the pain for a while longer.

Olivia squeezed through the mass of students to the extra table that had been set up off to the side of the staff table for all of the unexpected guests. It had been enlarged to accommodate the surge of extra bodies, since the Weasleys, and a group of Slytherins had arrived.

Naturally, Simeon was sitting at one end of the table and upon seeing her, his charcoal eyes narrowed menacingly.

She just couldn’t seem to catch a break and the thought that kept running through her mind was that she couldn’t wait until Simeon left to go back to wherever it was he came from.

The man would not leave her in peace and if it had been anyone else, she might have disregarded him. But there was something about Simeon that made her instinctively wary and triggered the “flight” response.

He was the kind of man who didn’t say anything unless he meant it and she knew without a doubt that he would follow through with any promise he made. She just wished that it could have been a good promise rather than a threat.

But that kind of thinking could land her in a world of trouble. It would be too dangerous to start thinking of him in any other way than as an enemy. And all too easy to let his potent masculinity and dark features cloud her judgment.

His dangerous sensuality already sent sparks shooting through her veins when he directed that dark gaze at her. Combine that with the emotions that she could sometimes pick up from him and it was a temptation she didn’t need.

Careful to stay as far away from him as possible, she quickly filled up two plates and sat down to eat, nodding acknowledgements to the others already seated. Marcus Flint shot her a flirtatious leer, and Gregory Goyle gave her a “once over”. She didn’t notice Simeon’s glare intensify.

“Well doesn’t this just bring back memories.”

Hermione jerked her head up in irritation at the silky voice that interrupted her research, to see Blaise Zabini leaning negligently against the table, a smirk across his tan face.

She glared at the man who had been the bane of her intellectual existence at Hogwarts. He was the only person to ever score higher than her and it had driven her “know-it-all” soul nuts. Just when she thought she had him beaten, he would pull out ahead by one point or so.

And not just in Potions either. If that had been the case, then she could have rationalized that he was getting good grades out of Snape’s Slytherin favoritism. As it was, he excelled in every class and even beat her in Transfiguration and Charms a couple times. In Potions and Arithmancy, he was almost always higher.

For a girl who derived her sense of worth from her intellectual ability, it was a smack in the face and she had driven herself twice as hard. In the end when they graduated, he had passed her by five points. She still carried a grudge against him for that.

For a long time she hadn’t even known who Blaise Zabini was, since they hadn’t had many classes together until after their fifth year. He had an uncanny knack for blending into the woodwork and becoming completely unnoticeable.

Once they had realized that they were competing, was when the animosity had started. The glares, the snide looks and taunting. At the Leaving Feast, he had given her a jaunty smile when they had been named as the students with the two highest scores.

She wanted to slap that smug smile off his too handsome face. No one had a right to be that pretty. His violet eyes sparked and were framed by thick black lashes and his ebony hair was tousled. He had gotten taller and more muscled since she’d seen him last, but he was still on the lean side.

“Go away Zabini.” She snarled, angry that he could still get under her skin, even after five years.

“Oh, but I’m feeling so nostalgic, Granger.” He pulled out a chair next to her and slid into it, crowding her space. She scooted over with a look that should have him dropping dead.

“You do realize we’re not in school anymore and you don’t have any homework to churn out.” He drawled.

“Oh you’re just hilarious.” She retorted.

He snatched the book from her.

“Give that back!”

“What do we have here?” He scanned it while keeping her at arm’s length. “Werewolf cases?” He arched a brow. “Know someone who got bit, or just a little light reading?”

Hermione stared at him. “You don’t know?”

“Know what?” Blaise questioned.

“Draco was attacked by a werewolf and…”

He was gone before she could finish.