[HP] Three thousand days of innocence

Ginny woke up before opening her eyes the next morning, and she lay in bed for a while, half asleep, dazed.She was warm all over—beautiful, like being wrapped in a blanket.Gentle ripples of contentment and happiness rippled through her body like waves, and she arched her back slightly, wondering why on earth she felt so good.

"Ah, you're awake."

**

"Ben, dear? Are you up?"

Mrs. Walcott's voice came from outside, and after a while, someone knocked on the door. "If you're ready, there's breakfast downstairs."

"We're going down right away," Draco said in a perfectly normal voice.

"Okay." They heard her footsteps down the corridor.

"Damn it," he moaned, resting his head on Ginny's shoulder.His cheeks made Ginny's skin tingle. "Perfect timing, right?"

"I'll ask you out another day," Ginny said, running her hand through his hair.

"Say what you say. Now," he said, getting off her and onto the ground, "I think I'll have to take a cold shower." Ginny laughed.He gave her a smirk and walked slowly out of the room, his pajama bottoms hanging low on his narrow hips almost criminally.

When Draco came downstairs with her ten minutes later, Mrs. Walcott hugged him hard. "I'm fine." He smiled warmly at the old woman, reassuring her. "I feel better than before."

"I know how hard it is to relive those months," said Mrs Walcott, beginning to fill his breakfast plate with ham, eggs and black pudding. "But it's always important to remember where we came from."

After breakfast, Draco went upstairs to change clothes, ready to go to the beach, and the Walcotts pulled Ginny back to the kitchen. "As people whose only concern is Ben's well-being, we feel it is our duty to approach you," said Mrs Walcott gravely, keeping her eyes on Ginny. "He seems serious about you, and from what we've seen, you two make a great match, but—"

"I—I won't hurt him," Ginny stammered. "I—I'm fine—"

"But dating him means dealing with all his baggage," warns Dr Walcott. "I don't think he told you that he tried to kill himself?"

Ginny fought back the tears that were about to fall.It was unimaginable that her handsome and confident Draco had ever gotten to the point where he wanted it all over. "No." She said softly.

"He nearly died," Dr. Walcott said softly, putting down the newspaper.His wife squeezed his shoulder. "That was about three months after he was found. He somehow got hold of a scalpel..." The doctor shook his head.

"People with dissociative fugue often struggle with a great deal of distress and depression, even when they are able to regain pre-fugue memories," Mrs Walcott said. "He didn't know who he was or where he came from - and still doesn't. You can understand how painful it is for anyone."

"And the truth is, he's already gone into a fugue state once, and he's likely to do it again," Dr Walcott said. "It's been eight years since his last illness and he's been living a healthy, fulfilling life, but Lucy and I wake up every day worrying that we're going to hear from John that Ben is up and gone," he lamented. Take a breath. "I taught him ways to avoid a relapse, but ... the fear remained."

"I know—in fact, I can't pretend to know what it's like to date someone like Ben," Ginny confessed. "But—I care about him. You have to trust me. I'm not going to run away because he has a ghost in his heart. I care about him. You can trust me. I'm not going to leave him just because of his dark side."

"I told you I liked her," Mrs Walcott said to her husband, who laughed.

"Yes, I'm encouraged to hear that," said Dr. Walcott, smiling at Ginny. "God knows, after all that Ben has been through, he deserves someone like you."

She went upstairs to change into her bathing suit and cover-up, and the four of them drove to the beach.The Walcotts held up a large green umbrella and put chairs under it to read, while she and Draco spread out towels nearby.

As soon as Ginny put down her bag and removed her blouse, she was acutely aware that Draco's eyes followed her every move.He's quiet while they're applying sunscreen, and doesn't speak until she asks him to paint her back.

"I've been thinking about one thing since the day I met you," he said, running his hands along her spine.Ginny closed her eyes gently.

"what's up?"

"Do you have freckles all over the place?" His hand reached down unnecessarily, and Ginny leaned towards him. "Looks like I finally have an answer."

She turned her head and gave him a sultry look. "I thought you couldn't talk anymore."

He laughed, flushing. "I'm trying to think of deep words - maybe even a celebrity quote if possible - to express how glamorous you look in that dress, but..."

"I understand." Ginny nodded. "Your brain doesn't work well when all your blood is going elsewhere."

He stared at her dumbfounded, then threw back his head and laughed. "Oh, you'll pay for it!" Ginny cried in protest as he suddenly took her on his shoulders and ran off towards the sea.

The salty water is cold and clear, and they swim and play from morning to afternoon.For lunch, they ate the famous fish and chips at the Palm Court restaurant on the docks, and Draco bought them some hard candies. "I have a really sweet tooth," he said with a smile. "I'll eat anything with a lot of sugar in it."

"When you're old, you'll lose all your teeth," she warned with a smile.

He sighed exaggeratedly. "After the last tooth falls out, I'll have to switch to marshmallows." Ginny laughed, putting her arms around him.Merlin, she really loves this man.

The idea was completely unexpected and shocked her greatly.She must have shown it on her face because Draco asked her what was wrong and she just shook her head and said she was fine.They strolled through the arcade, watching the flickering lights, watching a little boy walk by with a huge stuffed animal on his shoulders, and Ginny stared at Draco.It was true, she realized in a pang of pain.I don't know when, seeing him funny, amazing, and understanding, she fell in love with him and everything about him: the way his hair fell in front of her eyes, his graceful movements, and his humor His sense, his cooking, his smile, his... everything.

She tugged at his hand lightly, and when he looked at her, she pulled him into the middle of the arcade and kissed him, while children ran around screaming and video games beeping.

"What's this for?" he asked when she let him go.

"No reason," said Ginny, her heart aching.He gave her a goofy smile and they walked the rest of the arcade with their arms around each other's waists.

Draco had cooked them some very tasty dishes at dinner that day, and the Walcotts had warmly praised him. "I've been looking forward to this part of his visit," joked Mrs Walcott.

"Ah, now I see why I was even invited," he said, setting a strawberry salad on the table in front of her. "You're using my cooking skills."

"Am I that obvious?" she said, and they both laughed.

When it finally came time for them to go, Ginny and Draco packed their bags and put them in the trunk of his car. "It's great to see you again, darling," said Mrs Walcott, hugging Draco. "You are always welcome in our family and will never be forgotten."

"Thank you very much, Lucy," Draco said.He hugged Dr. Walcott too, and Ginny said goodbye to them.

"Take care of him for us, Ginny," said Dr. Walcott, putting his arms around his wife. "Maybe you can counteract the bad influence of John and Simon."

"I'll do my best," she said, smiling at Draco.

The return trip went smoothly, and just after nine o'clock, he parked in front of her apartment and helped her get her things out of the trunk. “This weekend has been amazing,” she said as they stood on the front porch of her house. "I had a great time."

"I'm glad," he said softly, leaning over to kiss her lips passionately.He ran his fingers through her long hair, making her scalp tingle and she let out a whimper.She liked the way he kissed her, as if at that moment, he had nothing but her on his mind.She clutched the front of his shirt, eager to invite him in.

But he answered the question. "I really want to ask you if I can go in, but I have to be at the market at five o'clock tomorrow morning." He pressed her forehead, panting.

"Ask," Ginny said, biting his lip lightly. "I won't say no."

He kissed her again, longer this time. "God, I do," he moaned, eyelashes fluttering. "You don't know how much I want. But I hope that when I make love with you, I can take it easy and have a perfect experience. I don't want to leave you early in the morning."

Ginny closed her eyes and thought of this image: waking up next to him like this morning, the sun on his pale blond hair, his warm body stretched out beside her.she wants.She wants it all. "Okay," she said softly. "Another day."

"Another day," he agreed, walking away from her. "sleep tight."

"You too." She watched him get into the car and drove away.

She took out her keys and walked to her apartment in a dreamlike, ecstatic state.She sighed in exasperation when she opened the door to see Draco's files strewn across her coffee table.She would think about what she had learned and how it related to the case another day.Not tonight, her blood still humming from his touch.

Ginny went to the bedroom and threw her bag on the floor, she didn't want to pack it now.She came to the table and slowly gathered together the scattered parchments and set them aside.

She's a little selfish, isn't that too much?She wanted to keep Draco for herself, to be with him, to love him the way he was, with no one in the way?The Ministry of Magic wants him to make an example; the wizarding society wants a thrilling criminal trial; Harry wants to capture him so he can have the final say; his parents want him to be their son again...

She looked down at the last page and found scrawled at the bottom:

Accused of Colin Creevey's murder, evidence available - O.C. Yaxley, Memory

Below is:

Draco's favorite tiramisu ice cream

Ginny sighed and stuffed the parchment back into the folder.