Daphne was strutting down the streets of Hogsmeade with a tin of biscuits she had just purchased at the Happy Hearth Bakery. The place was so bustling that it was perfect. In her current disguise, she had wondered how to get her potion into the sweets. She had worried that would be the only part of this with any sort of a hiccup.

No such trouble.

Daphne had set the tin on a table and dosed them right there. The little baker and her one cashier had been so busy that they had not noticed her doing it. Daphne didn't think anyone else had either. The lone waitress had picked then to carry a tub of dirty dishes to the back. It just made things sweeter. Daphne had administered the poison to the biscuits in broad daylight in public. It was powerful. Today she was powerful.

Daphne stepped into the Healing Hands and was spotted almost immediately by her quarry.
"Charlie!"

She did a quick look around the waiting area.

"Hullo, Petal," she replied in a voice she hoped sounded male enough. "I see you're a bit busy. I brought you some sweets. I'll just leave them and be back later when it's less hectic so we can chat, yeah?"

Weasley was smiling at her, thinking she was someone else entirely. That made Daphne smile. It was good to know her polyjuice was always dead-on. Even if this batch had been sitting around for a bit.

Ginny finished leading her patient to the lobby before she closed the distance to Charlie as he looked like he was trying to skirt out the door. She hugged him around his middle, trying to pretend she hadn't wanted to start crying upon seeing him. If anymore of her family showed up, she'd never be able to keep this secret.

She pulled back and looked up at him. "You can't stay?"

Daphne looked at all the patients. Bones was the receptionist? Good to know she had found work after Snape's betrayal and departure.

"Wish I could, but looks like you're a bit busy, yeah? I'll just keep myself occupied and come back a bit later. No worries. Don't want to keep the sick people waiting. I can entertain myself for a bit. I'll just head down to the Sticks and see what mischief I can get into."

"I'm sure Brody wouldn't mind seeing you."

Who the fuck was Brody? "I guess not." Excuse me? About-to-be-dead bitch, I would like to leave the scene of the crime here, all right? Thank you.

"Well, my last appointment is at four. If you want, you could come back then."

You'll be dead by then. "Will do."

That said, Daphne beat a hasty retreat. She wanted to be quite far, Charlie suit or not, from the clinic when Ginny Weasley died. Not that she minded watching death. She just wasn't into being caught.

*****

Her next appointment would be here any minute, and Ginny still hadn't had lunch. She knew she'd lost weight over the last week with her non-eating habits, and she could feel her body getting weaker because of it. Her mother had always told her not to eat sweets for a meal, but as it was the only thing available to her, she didn't think her Mum would look too harshly on it. She grabbed one of the biscuits Charlie had brought her and ate it quickly, brushing the crumbs off her white robes as she walked into the lobby to meet the patient. Routine exam. No rushing needed. No known ailments.

"Mr. Jeffreys, I can see you now." The man smiled as he stood. He set the magazine he'd been reading down on one of the tables and smiled as he crossed the lobby. Ginny smiled at him before she led him to one of the exam rooms. She shut the door softly and turned to look at him with what she hoped was a welcoming smile. "What can I do for you today, Mr. Jeffreys?"

"If I were a much younger man, I'm sure you could do much more." He blushed slightly and Ginny's forced grin widened. "But, as it is, I'm an old man and I'm starting to slow down. I just want to make sure I'm not going to keel over when I reach for the toast in the morning, if you know what I mean."

Ginny laughed softly. Slightly inappropriate older man helping you for get about the shambles your life is in? Check. "Of course. Always good to check the ticker. Wouldn't want toast to be your downfall, that's for sure. Go ahead and take your shirt off and we can begin." She turned as he started unbuttoning his shirt, walking towards the cabinets on the wall to grab a fresh examination parchment. She stumbled and had to catch herself on the counter, her vision swimming slightly.

"Are you alright?"

Shaking her head to clear her vision, Ginny turned to look at him with a weak smile. Should have tried to force myself to eat breakfast. "Sometimes I trip over my feet as if they weren't attached to my body," she joked reassuringly, shaking her head again before reaching up to push her hair behind her ear. "And when was your birth date, Hank?"

"August second," he answered.

"Another August birthday, excellent." Ginny smiled, her tongue running over the roof of her mouth. There was an odd taste on the back of her tongue. Almost metallic, like she'd swallowed a sickle. Swallowing a little harshly, she cleared her throat. "And the year?"

"1949."

She pressed the quill to the parchment, her hand shaking as she began writing. As she was finishing the number four, her hand drew across the paper in a strict line, the quill breaking into two pieces in her fingers. She dropped the chart, the clipboard hitting the floor, the sound echoing loudly in the small room as she put a hand to her forehead, eyes closed to lessen the wave of dizziness that had erupted in her head.

"Are you alright," he asked, reaching forward to grip her upper arms.

"I don't feel well," she whispered, breathing heavily. The colors in the room swirled before her eyes, her eyelids fluttering in her head before rolling backwards in their sockets. Her legs gave out, Mr. Jeffreys' hands on her arms the only thing that kept her from crashing to the floor and most likely bashing her head against the counter as she fell.

Ginny's body started spasming, every muscle contracting at once and releasing, over and over again. Her brain stopped having conscious thought at that moment, the pain and seizing sapping all her mental facility. A horrible noise, like she was choking on her own tongue, followed. Unsure what to do, Mr. Jeffreys flew to the door, throwing it open and rushing into the lobby. "Help! Something's wrong!"

Susan jumped up at the man's cry. Hurrying to the exam room, she stared, open-mouthed, as she took in Ginny's violently twitching form. "Blaise!" she yelled, moving to kneel beside Ginny. "Blaise, get out here!" Unsheathing her wand, Susan used it to keep Ginny's tongue clear of her airway as well as she could.

Blaise immediately dropped everything he had been holding, which had thankfully been just papers, and rushed out into the hallway, slamming into Weasley's office door as he slid on the floor. He quickly pushed off the wall and ran to the exam room everyone was crowded in. His first thought was that the patient wasn't hurt, but that he was staring down at the convulsing form of Ginny Weasley.

"Fuck. What happened?" he asked Susan as he dropped to his knees and tried to look down Ginny's throat.

"I don't know. She was fine just a minute ago." She looked to the older man. "Mr. Jeffreys, did she say anything before this started?"

Mr. Jeffreys shook his head. "No! Just that she didn't feel well. What's wrong with her?"

"We're trying to figure that out. Why don't you wait in the lobby, Mr. Jeffreys?" Susan said soothingly.

When the man left, Blaise levitated Ginny onto the exam table. Once on the table, he tried to subdue her. "Placidus," he said, hoping to stop her erratic movements. It calmed them some. He turned to Susan. "Go into my lab and look in the third cupboard from the left. There should be an anti-seizing potion in a blue bottle. I can't figure anything out if she's moving like this."

Nodding once, Susan ran to the lab, grabbing the blue bottle from the spot Blaise had directed her to. She was getting very worried. It was one thing to see the patients coming through with ailments, but Ginny was a friend. "Here," she said, thrusting the bottle at Blaise as soon as she got back into the exam room.

Blaise had started to force the potion down Ginny's throat when her seizures started up again and he got an elbow to the shoulder. "Bloody hell!" he exclaimed as he tried to hold her down. "That charm should have calmed her for at least five minutes, not one!" He wrenched Ginny's mouth open and forced the potion in her mouth before covering her lips and nose with his hand so she would swallow. Coaxing her seized throat muscles with his other hand, she swallowed in reflex.

He was worried when he noticed her hands still shaking and her right leg twitching.

"Something's not right," he said to himself. "That should have calmed her muscles down immediately."

She couldn't move, her entire body frozen both figuratively and actually. Ginny was so cold that even while she wasn't able to move, her whole body was shaking uncontrollably. Why had she come down here? She hadn't wanted to, but she had. She could hear it moving in the darkness, slithering across the ground. Every scale scraping along the wet stone of the chamber as it came closer. She was bait and he'd be here any second and this would all be over if she didn't move.

Eyes snapping open, Ginny reared up, hands shooting out in front of her. I can move! Run! If it looks at you, you'll die. Eyes wide and unseeing, Ginny's fist connected with Blaise's body as she flew off the exam table, stone and darkness the only things in her vision.

He grunted in pain and barely managed to grab a hold of Ginny's robes and yank her back. After she elbowed him again, he lost his wand. With both hands free, he wrapped them around the fighting Ginny and held her from behind.

"Fucking hell! I know you're pissed at me, but take out your anger somewhere else!" She still struggled, so he looked to Susan for help. "Bind her!" he shouted.

"Incarcerous!" Thin, snake-like cords came from Susan's wand, wrapping tightly around Ginny's body and pinning her arms to her sides. She repeated the charm, this time aiming for Ginny's legs. Helping Blaise lower her to the table, she looked at him, frowning. "This can't be a natural illness. Someone did this to her."

"You can't have him! It's not right! It's not fair!" Ginny struggled against the bonds, screaming when she couldn't free herself. She strained, feeling something give in her shoulder as her face turned red with effort. "I won't do it! I WON'T!" Her ragged screamed turned into a hoarse and wet cough, her whole body heaving as she attempted to draw in air.

Blaise's eyes widened in disgust as his new shoes were now covered in vomit.

"Oh my God! Aim that somewhere else!" he shouted in horror at Ginny. "You've got the market covered on revenge. Damn."

"Right, because she's in complete control of her faculties right now!" Susan shook her head. "Get on with it before she gets worse!"

Blaise fake gagged as he looked down and cast a cleaning spell on his shoes only to hear Ginny start to vomit again. He managed to back up in time, but was stunned when it was mostly red.

"She's vomiting up blood," he stated, his brain working quickly. "Seizures, hallucinations and blood. It's a poison of some sort. I need a bezoar." He turned to Susan. "Watch her and keep her head turned sideways so she won't suffocate. I may not like her right now, but it doesn't mean I want her to die. I'll be right back."

He ran into his lab and slid onto the floor, quickly pushing aside various containers before he found a clear container that held a small, kidney-sized stone. He grabbed it and rushed back into the hallway and the exam room. After casting a cleansing charm on Ginny's mouth, he fed her the bezoar.

"Hopefully this will slow it down enough so I can figure out what the fuck is going on."

Susan absently stroked Ginny's hair, waiting to see if the bezoar would help. Who would do something like this? It had to be intentional. Thank Merlin Blaise was thinking rationally. For herself, Susan could scarcely keep from panicking.

The retching was starting to ebb, and she looked to Blaise. "What next?"

"I need to figure how that damn poison got in her, and quick. Bezoars only cure most poisons. This one is fast-acting with severe symptoms and an aversion to low-level charms and potions. Whoever made this meant business. Fortunately, there are so few poisons that are this severe that I have a very small list to go on."

Blaise was thinking extremely fast. "If she starts to throw up again, just clean it up and make sure to keep her cool with a wet cloth or something. I'm not sure if the hallucinations will come back, but if they do, cast perspicuus to give some temporary relief. I'll be back."

He was extremely pissed off as he exited the exam room and went back to the doorway of his lab. It wasn't fair that less an a week after their argument she nearly got killed. It made it harder to be infuriated with her, and made him feel like shite for yelling at her, even though he was still convinced she deserved it. Shaking his head to get back on track, he paused in the hallway. He had no idea how she had been poisoned at all. It was obviously fast, so she had to have been poisoned very recently. Walking into her office, he looked all over the place for empty vials or any strange plants in the room. As he was about to leave, he saw a plate of biscuits on her desk, and noticed they looked oddly familiar. As he walked closer, he saw they were some of Hannah's biscuits. She had made a batch for Draco about a week ago.

Deciding he needed the calming help one of her biscuits would give him, Blaise picked one up and started to take a bite, but stopped right as the biscuit was about to enter his mouth. Something was... off.

The smell was just a bit different. The more he stood there with the biscuit close to his mouth, the more frustrated he became. Something about these was familiar, but it wasn't something he was used to. The smell was oddly metallic. Suddenly, he realized what he was smelling.

"Aconite," he breathed. Blaise grabbed the plate of biscuits and rushed into his lab, tossing them all on the empty counter. Waving his wand, beakers and tubes of liquid came flying at him and arranged themselves on the counter. After casting revealing spells on the biscuits, he discovered that they were poisoned and hastily set to see which poison. He cast spell after spell and tested the biscuits with various liquids, hoping to find something to help with the antidote.

Blaise hadn't been out of the room more than a minute when Ginny's eyes flew open wide. She looked terrified, and a steady stream of nonsensical rambling poured from her mouth about snakes and being cold. Casting perspicuus, Susan spoke softly to her, smoothing her hair. She wasn't sure what else to do, but after a moment, Ginny quieted significantly. God, let Blaise find something soon.

It felt like hours, but it could only have been ten minutes. Twice he had heard screaming from the exam rooms, but it had calmed quickly.

"Fuck, you're a nasty bugger aren't you," he growled out, looking at the crumbled biscuit he was grinding. Blaise was so close to figuring out what the last ingredient was. The poison had been too hard to identify on its own, but hopefully with the ingredients separated, he'd be able to figure it out.

He dumped the crumbs in a cauldron that immediately began to bubble. It went through a rapid change of colors before settling on a deep red.

"Dragon's blood," he said in the empty lab. "You son of a bitch."

He knew what it was now, but he didn't have the antidote with him. Grabbing his wand, he apparated to his lab in the Manor and quickly rushed to his storeroom, grabbing a tall tube of green-yellow powder and apparating back. After mixing the powder with a few more ingredients, he bottled the substance and quickly returned to the exam room.

"I've got it. I need you to hold her head still."

Moving to the head of the table, Susan placed a hand on each side of Ginny's head. "Alright, I've got her."

It was hard getting her mouth to open since her jaw was clenched tightly shut, but a hard grip underneath her a jaw and quick pinch forced her mouth to open. Blaise wasted no time in making her drink the thin potion down. He also undid the ropes binding her.

"Help me move her to her side. If she throws up after this it'll be getting rid of the poison in her system, and even with her head turned she could choke."

As the antidote started to move through her system, the taut muscles in Ginny's body started to relax. The vomit turned from red, to pink, to clear as her body was purged of the poison, the cleansing potion Blaise had giving her working to rid her of the filth. Coughing and dry heaving, her eyes cleared a bit before they filled with tears. Her entire body ached. She felt like she was swimming to a surface of a pool and could finally see the light. It also felt like she'd been playing Quidditch for hours, as if she'd been beaten by the bludgers over and over again. She tried to move, freezing when she felt a blinding pain in her shoulder and upper back.

Her eyes rolled up to look at Blaise, looking at him sideways as she was still on her side on the exam table. He looked honestly concerned. She hadn't expected to see that look in his eyes ever again, not after what she'd done to Draco. Oh, Gods, Draco. Someone needs to warn him, tell him. What if he doesn't care? I could have died and he would have never known. He needs to know. I need to tell him. She tried to open her mouth and speak, but her throat was so raw from throwing up that it was almost impossible to make any noise. Eyes pleading with him, she silently asked him what had happened.

"Don't speak," he said in nearly a whisper. "Your esophagus is overused. Both the poison and the bile from your stomach burned it a bit as well, and I'll be damned if I nearly broke a sweat trying to get this shit out of you only to have you ruin your throat because you couldn't keep your fucking mouth shut." Blaise sighed. "You were poisoned. It was a very fast poison added to the biscuits you received. It was also strong and dark. Not many poisons have seizures, hallucinations, and the body shutting down like that so quickly." He cracked a smile. "You're lucky I wasn't totally offended by your puking all over my new shoes." The smile disappeared. "But don't think that just because you nearly died it means we're all hearts and flowers again. I'm still pissed. It's not fair you got to be the one in mortal danger."

Ginny tried to swallow, but it proved too difficult. She had a horrible taste on her tongue, but if what he'd said was true, it made sense. If she hadn't almost died a few seconds earlier, she'd be more angry about his words. As it was, he'd saved her life. She couldn't be too angry at him for that. Her eyes rolled to look over at Susan. She couldn't move, the energy completely sapped from her body. The brunette was giving her a sympathetic smile, and Ginny wanted to smile back at her so badly.

Biscuits. It had to have been in the biscuits. They're the only thing I ate all day. The ones Charlie had given me. Her eyes darted back to Blaise, alarm clear in them. There was something in the biscuits at Hannah's. Anyone else could have the same thing happening to them.

Blaise quickly crouched so he was eye-level with her. "Look, I said you're fine, all right? I know you don't particularly trust me, but I got rid of the poison and the poisoned biscuits."

Stupid insufferable life-saving prat! Do you think those were the only biscuits she made today? Use that large, utterly egotistical head of yours and think! Ginny was a vocal person, and having to convey messages with her eyes was difficult. She looked back to Susan, begging her to understand and help.

Susan looked at Ginny's worried expression and tried to determine what was wrong. "Blaise, you destroyed all the biscuits?"

"Well I had to," he replied. "It took me all the biscuits to figure out the ingredients. I was about to have to rush over to Han's... to... get..." He trailed off as his eyes widened in horror. "The biscuits. Hannah's biscuits are poisoned."

He paused as only one word came to his mind. "Fuck."

*****

Blaise immediately tore out of the exam room and started to run down the street towards Hannah's bakery. He grabbed his wand from his pocket and tried to figure out a way to alert someone about the poisoning. He was in such a rush that he knew no other way than to send a patronus out and hope Draco got it in time. Casting the patronus charm wasn't easy when he was moving and completely terrified about the poison, but after the charm was cast and his ghostly panther was shooting off through the streets of Hogsmeade, he saw Hannah's storefront coming closer.

When he arrived, he didn't waste any time in rushing in the front door and immediately clawing a piece of cake out of a customer's hand.

"Don't eat it! It's poisoned!"

Hannah's eyes were wide as she came out of the back slowly. She knew that voice. Kristen looked horrified. Mac looked ready to kill.

"Blaise Zabini, you are so inappropriate right now!"

"It's poisoned!"

He was acting like a maniac, hitting sweets from people's hands. Hannah had no recourse - she sent her strongest binding hex his way. Blaise locked up and toppled like a felled tree. Hannah's nostrils were flaring. Then she realized no one was moving. They were all staring at her.

"He has a very odd and oftentimes inappropriate sense of humor. There's nothing wrong with any of it. Look..." Hannah started stepping to everyone and pinching bites off of their food and eating them.

Kristen offered replacements for things that had hit the floor and took bites herself. Mac did as well. Blaise was watching with frantic eyes as that was the only thing on him that could move. Hannah levitated him and was directing him towards the kitchen.

"I'll be right back."

"We'll hold down the fort, boss," Kristen said with wide eyes.

Mac nodded in agreement.

The customers were already talking and gossiping. Most of the conversation was how the Happy Hearth was much more exciting than Puddifoot's Tea House.

Hannah's eyes were in slits and she was trembling in anger when she released her binding on Blaise. "How could you do that to me?"

Blaise was panting as he rushed up to Hannah and started checking her eyes for dilation. He tried to check her pulse but Hannah ripped her hands from his grip.

"What do you think you're doing?"

He gathered her up in his arms and kissed her forehead. "Thank Salazar you're not poisoned."

Hannah grabbed one of her spatulas off of the counter and proceeded to hit him about the head and shoulders with it. Rather violently.

"What in the hell made you think I'd been poisoned or that my food was poisoned?" She pointed the spatula in a menacing manner. "And not a word about my saying hell. This is a situation that calls for it. I'm trying to run a business here, Blaise. No one wants to eat things from the baker whose boyfriend accuses her pastry of being poisoned."

Despite her best efforts, her eyes watered. "How could you? Why on earth would you do that to me?"

Blaise's hands were shaking as he pointed in the general direction of the clinic. "Ginny Weasley nearly died on one of her own exam tables after eating one of your biscuits. It was a fast-acting poison that almost shut her entire system down in twenty minutes. I examined those biscuits and nearly didn't discover what the poison was in time. I was trying to protect you."

"That's very sweet. Next time a little less loudly and with much less dramatic flair. No hitting things out of the customers hands please." Hannah stomped her foot. "How dare you think I'd poison people. I would never do that."

He gave her a look.

"Except for when I do. Oh... today, but that wasn't anything serious. Just some diarrhea. Oh, I'd never kill anyone. You must know I'd never kill anyone. Why would you think I'd hurt Ginny? Is that what you think of me?"

"Hannah, I didn't think you did it. It had to be sabotage or something. This shit was one hell of a poison. It's serious. Whoever put it in those biscuits meant for her to die quickly and in as much pain as possible."

Hannah shivered. "She's... she's all right?"

He nodded. Hannah threw herself at him. If he said one word about flour, she'd put her binding hex back on. She was shaking. She could not think who would do such a terrible thing.

"She's going to be okay, Han," Blaise whispered as he ran a hand up and down her back. "She's going to be okay. Susan's watching over her. I'm sorry for scaring your customers, but I was so worried about you. I'll go out and explain to them."

"In case you missed it while you were in my binding hex, I told them you liked inappropriate jokes. Mac's probably backing me up."

Blaise scowled at the mention of Magpie but then chuckled and leaned his forehead against hers. "Good girl." He kissed her and gave her another hug as he sighed. "So you're not totally pissed with me now?"

"Not completely, but you and Draco do have a lot of alarming personality quirks that are quite similar."

He pulled back and put his hands on Hannah's shoulders, keeping her at arm's length. Blaise made a face at her. "I don't know whether that was an insult or a compliment."


*****

Draco was in his new office in Diagon Alley trying to drown himself in work when the patronus found him. He'd know Blaise's dark panther anywhere.

Ginny's been poisoned.

He swore a blue streak, causing his little assistant to faint. He really needed a girl made of sterner stuff. He didn't care if Ginny never wanted to lay eyes on him again, he was making certain she was all right. He could stop caring for her now about as easily as he could stop breathing. Draco disapparated with a crack and was in Hogsmeade moments later. Then he was running, tearing towards the clinic. His heart was beating so hard he could hear it in his ears. He crashed through the door screaming.

"GINNY!"

Motioning for Ginny to stay put, Susan rushed out to the lobby to calm Draco. "She's alright, Draco. Ginny's going to be fine. She's just laying down and resting right now." He made to move around her and she blocked his path, laying a hand lightly on his shoulder. "You need to calm down. She's had a rough time of it. That poison was pretty awful. She's vomited so much that she can't speak at the moment. You've got to stay calm because she doesn't have the energy to get upset again."

Draco picked Susan Bones up by the upper arms and physically removed her from his path before continuing on until he located what he was after. She needed to learn now he would not be deterred. Not by adorable Hufflepuffs. Not even by Ginny herself. He might not be a good man, but he did have his moments.

"You know, if you wanted to talk to me again, all you had to do was owl. No need to send everyone into a panic," he sounded droll, but he was shaken. She looked dreadful. One thing came to his mind. One name. Pucey. That fucker was going to bleed from his eye sockets for this.

Susan trailed down the hall after Draco, just to make sure he wasn't going to get all riled up in front of Ginny. When she reached the exam room, he was speaking in a fairly normal tone and she figured it was safe to give them a bit of privacy. Clearing her throat, she said, "I'll be up at the front desk if you need me. Don't try to speak, Ginny. I can bring you some parchment and a quill if you need it."

Ginny watched Susan leave for the front before looking at Draco with her eyes full of tears. Everything she'd been angry at him about was so stupid. It wasn't his fault. If he'd have told her about Jack and Penelope, it wouldn't have made the shock any less. She hated that she couldn't say she was sorry, or that she'd been an idiot. She held a hand out to him, hoping he'd take it.

Draco moved quickly, pulling up a stool. He was weak. He'd always been weak where the people he loved were concerned. Maybe his Mother was right though. Maybe it really wasn't weakness. Perhaps his love was his strength. He took her hand and held it. "Don't cry then. Blaise earned his keep today, yeah? There isn't anything he couldn't counter. Don't worry about it, love." I'm going to find who did this to you and make them wish they'd never been born. I am my mother's son.

He pushed some hair back from her forehead.

"We'll cancel appointments for the rest of the day, and I'll take you home. I'll be staying. I don't care how put out you are with me."

She nodded. She wasn't going to argue with him. Being home with him sounded infinitely better than being there alone, especially after everything that had happened in the last week. With Blaise angry at her, she'd been sure he'd never want to speak to her again. Ginny squeezed his hand, reaching up with her other to wipe away the tears still leaking out of the corner of her eyes. Her entire body felt like it'd been squeezed of all its energy. Even lifting her arm took effort. She coughed, the spasms shaking her whole body, a wave of pain coursing through her throat.

"Easy, easy. Don't. We'll just go. Let me tell Bones, yeah?"

Draco walked out to the receptionist area. He was shaking a little. He'd be worth her one day. He would, because damn if he could get her out of his system.

"Bones, obviously the appointments for the rest of the afternoon should be canceled. I am taking Gin home, and cancel her schedule for tomorrow." Then he added, "Please," as an afterthought.

Offering a small smile, Susan nodded. "Sure. Just owl me if she needs any more time and I'll get it sorted." It'd been a rough day, she wouldn't even gripe at him for using her last name.

Draco nodded. He moved briskly back to the exam room Ginny was in and lifted her as gently as possible. He walked through the clinic, figuring Blaise or Bones could secure the wards. Draco stepped outside and apparated near Orchard's Gate. Thank goodness he was still keyed to the wards as Ginny looked to be worn out and hanging on to wakefulness by a thread.

Ginny was vaguely aware of being apparated. Usually it didn't bother her, but this time it made her dizzy. Ginny was going to have to figure out what Blaise had given her. That antidote was fairly strong. She felt sort of out of her own body, except she could feel all the pain at the same time.

She was going to need someone to cover the clinic for the weekend, in case an emergency came up. She pulled her head off of Draco's shoulder as he walked up the stairs. "N-" She coughed. "Nev-" She put a hand over her mouth, trying to silence the noise in the hallway. It seemed impossibly loud.

"Shut up," Draco said politely. "I'll get you some parchment, but if you are asking me to ask Longbottom to fill in while you are recovering, then the answer is yes. I can do that. No more trying to speak. Rest."

He nudged her door shut with his boot after entering her bedroom.

After laying her on the bed, Ginny watched him move around her room, pulling out the Chudley Cannon's shirt Ron had sent her. Draco knew it was her favorite shirt to sleep in. If she'd been able to smile, she would have. Closing her eyes when it felt as if her stomach was going to turn again, Ginny rolled onto her side, holding onto her abdomen. She should have gotten some water. Having a potion in her stomach when nothing else was in it was never good.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Draco didn't like the way she was holding her stomach. "Do I need to fetch Longbottom? Because I will. I'll haul him out of St. Mungo's if I have to."

She shook her head as the pain passed, laying back against the bed. She couldn't talk. She couldn't drink. She couldn't say she was sorry. There was no way she'd be able to cover the clinic. The only thing she saw herself being able to do was sleeping. For a week. She sat up with a groan, grabbing the bottom hem of her shirt and trying to pull it over her head.

"Stop that," Draco said. "I am going to change your clothing for you, then... glass of water and I'll owl Longbottom tomorrow. Then I'll lie down with you. Unless you don't want that. Then I'll find a chair to sit in and be creepy and watch you."

Ginny patted the bed beside her, eyes seeking his. She didn't want him in a chair. She wanted him beside her. It's where he should have been the whole time. She'd let her anger and hurt get the best of her, and she'd taken it out on him. It had been unfair. She'd almost ruined everything, and then she'd almost died without being able to say she was sorry.

"All right, all right," Draco said in a soothing tone, feeling more relieved than his pride was telling him he should have been that she wanted him near her.

Draco made quick work of her clothing. In no time at all she was secured in her favorite tee shirt and her knickers. Draco fetched her a glass of water and held it for her while she drank greedily from it.

"Not too much then, I think."

He was patting her back in what he hoped was a soothing manner. He was also considering a trip to Azkaban.

Ginny could feel her body getting heavier. At first, she was completely frightened of falling asleep. She had no idea what the long term effects of the potion would be. Sure, she trusted Blaise's brewing abilities, even if he hated her, but he had seemed concerned with how quickly everything had progressed. What if she didn't wake up? She looked over at Draco with wide eyes, swallowing harshly. If she didn't wake up, he needed to know. She needed him to know. "L-" She shook her head, grabbing his hand and gripping it in her own. "Lo-"

"Shhh." Draco said. "Just rest. It can wait. You'll be fine. Tell me tomorrow."

She took his hand and was tracing shapes on his palm until he realized it was not shapes. They were letters. She was saying something.

L. O. She looked up at him, her fingernails tracing phantom letters on the palm of his hand. V. E. Ginny was a verbal person. If she couldn't say what she wanted to, she'd at least make sure he knew some other way.

Love you. Over and over.

He didn't breathe for a moment. Draco stopped her tracings by grabbing her hand and kissing her palm.

"Likewise," he said. "You rest now. Please. It'll be all right. It will." Was he speaking to her or himself? Draco could not be sure. There was a desperate part of him that wanted to ask her how much she loved him, to ask her if she loved him despite who he was.

She believed him. He said everything would be alright, and she believed him. Ginny nodded, letting her body collapse against the pillows. As he smoothed her hair with his hand, Ginny finally let her eyes drift shut. He knows. He knows and he'll be here in the morning. I didn't ruin everything.

Draco watched until she drifted off into what looked like a peaceful sleep before very gently lying down beside her. He wouldn't sleep. He couldn't. If she stirred, he'd know. He had not been taking his death threats seriously, but now they had his undivided attention. They should never have come at someone he loved. Never. They were about to find out how serious a miscalculation that was in their ultimate plan.

That, and he was feeling a bit wanted and needed just now. It was something he never thought he deserved to have. Wanted, but could never have. Apparently he had it.




Summary: Daphne does the bidding of Vincent and poisons Ginny while wearing her 'Charlie' suit. Things are scary for a bit with Ginny, but Blaise and Susan take care of her. Blaise thinks that Hannah should be warned that her biscuits have a new secret ingredient, which she doesn't take very well. (Well, if your boyfriend came screaming into your place of business and screamed that everything was poisoned, would you take it well?) Blaise had the forethought to contact Draco about what's happened, and Draco comes in and takes over caring for Ginny. (And they do care. Very much.)


** The title and lj-cut for this scene is from the song "Emergency" by Paramore... which can be seen here: Emergency