Draco wasn't going to make it.

She was almost certain of it. She'd been watching the clock ever since she'd woken up. It was ten to midnight, and she was going to quit waiting for him.

She'd been telling herself that every five minutes for the last two hours.

She heard voices from downstairs, and decided to go investigate. Her parents were seated at the kitchen table, across from Ron and Harry. The looks on their faces did not bode well; Harry was tight-lipped and his body was rigid with tension. Ron didn't look any better, either. She couldn't make out what they were talking about, and was about to take a step closer when a hand clamped over her mouth from behind.

"You are too nosy for your own good." His hot breath caressed her ear, sending chills down her spine.

"I wouldn't be nosy if people actually told me things," she hissed, pulling his hand away. She turned and found her nose nearly touching his. Their proximity was doing nothing to help stop the chills in her body. "You came."

"I said I would," he whispered.

"But you brought Harry with you," she returned, giving him a half-smile. When he did not return it, she frowned. "What's going on, Draco?"

"Is there somewhere we can talk without being discovered?"

"Of course," she answered quickly. She turned and padded down the hallway towards her room, motioning for him to follow her. Once inside, she closed the door.

"This isn't what I had in mind," he said, his voice still soft.

"Don't worry - I've had my door charmed to be eavesdropping-resistant for years," she explained. "Talk."

He sat down heavily in a chair. "Potter has finally decided to make a move."

"What?"

"On the Dark Lord and his minions. He's finally convinced that it's better to strike first than to wait for his friends to be picked off one by one."

"Oh, Gods," she breathed, her heart plummeting. "When is he going to attack?"

"Tomorrow," he said. Her chest constricted and she began to feel lightheaded.

"Oh, Gods," she repeated. "You might all- you might-" She couldn't finish her thought aloud. He nodded once curtly. "Well," she said, her throat dry. "I suppose that's one way to start off a new year, isn't it?"

"He's a fool," he said, his eyes locked on hers.

"But I thought that you agreed that we should strike first," she said, confused.

"I do."

"So you're just calling him a fool for the fun of it?" She asked, forcing a smile. His gaze was so intense that it was making butterflies erupt in her stomach.

"He's doing it for the wrong reason."

"Which is?"

"He's doing it because he's let peer pressure finally get to him."

"And that's wrong why?"

"He should be doing it for you." It felt as though her breath had been stolen from her.

"For me?" She whispered, her voice trembling.

"I'm going to fight beside him tomorrow," he began, standing. "And this might be the last time that I see you."

"Don't say that," she begged, feeling the tears prick her eyes. "Please, don't talk like that. You sound as though you've already given up hope of returning."

"You have to face reality, Weasley."

"Damn it!" she snapped, rising to her feet as well. "If you're going to be so gloomy, you could at least call me Ginny in your last moments, so I feel as though you think of me as your friend."

"Fine - you have to face reality, Ginny."

"I'm not ready to give you up," she cried, turning her back to him.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm not ready to lose you," she repeated. "I've only just started to get to know you."

"You shouldn't want to know me."

"Why not?" she asked angrily, turning back to face him. "Because people think I shouldn't? Because of Harry? Well, damn them, and damn him! It's my life, and it's my choice. I'll bloody well have you as my friend if I want to!"

He watched her silently. He watched, and he wanted. He wanted the fire that she possessed; wanted the fury that rolled off of her in waves so strong they were almost palpable.

"Draco, are you listening to me?" she demanded, stepping closer to him. He blinked once. "I'm going to go and fight with you."

"The hell you are," he snapped harshly.

"You can't stop me."

"I can, and I will. That's the most foolish thing I've ever heard you say."

"I'm so selfish," she said, deflating. She cast her eyes down at the floor and sighed. "I know that you have obligations, and I know that I'm a silly little girl for trying to stand in the way of them. I'm sorry. I just don't want to have to talk to your headstone instead of directly to you." She dropped her face into her hands.

"The bitterest tears shed over graves are for words left unsaid and deeds left undone," he said softly. "So if you have something to say to me, now is the time to do it, while I can still hear you."

She looked up and smiled through her tears. "I thought that actions spoke louder than words," she said, attempting a laugh and failing miserably.

"Are you going to hex me? Because if you are, then I much prefer for you to wait and do it to my corpse."

"There are some things I want to say to you, now that I think about it," she said, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand and straightening her posture.

"Like?"

"I'm proud to call you my friend. I'm grateful for the time we've spent together. And I sorely regret not acting on my impulses every time I've had one."

"Impulses?" he asked, not daring to hope.

"There have been many times when I've had what seemed like ridiculous impulses to hug you," she said, her cheeks warming. She looked away. "Or even kiss you. I never acted on them because I was afraid of how you would react - and now because of my cowardice, I will never know."

They stood in silence for several minutes. When Ginny felt that her tears were under control, she looked up. Draco was watching her intently, his eyes fixed on her. "I'm sorry. I know that this is probably the last thing you want to hear before going into an attack, but you're right. I need to tell you while you can still hear me."

The voices downstairs continued to drone on, and, tired of the noise, Ginny rolled her eyes and silenced them by soundproofing her door completely. She replaced her wand on the nightstand and heaved a sigh.

"How long do you think you have before Harry notices that you're gone?"

"Anxious to be rid of me now?"

"Does he even realize that you're gone when you leave?" she asked, ignoring his question.

"No."

"I didn't think so." Then, "How long?"

"He's given everyone the night to spend with their families. As dim as he is, even he realizes that this could be the last time any of us are seen alive."

"Are you going to go and visit your mother?"

"Mother is better off without me," he answered, his gaze never wavering from hers. "She believes me to be dead already."

"That's sad," she breathed.

"It's better this way. At least she won't have to suffer my death twice."

"I wish you wouldn't talk like that."

"I'm only telling the truth."

"Well, the truth hurts, and we're going to have enough truth tomorrow to choke a horse," she said, frowning. "So lie to me."

"What?"

"Lie to me. Tell me that everything's going to be all right, and you're going to do your best to come back to me."

He stared at her. She took a steadying breath and closed the distance between them, reaching up and touching her hand to his face. His eyes closed as she ran her thumb along the sharp line of his cheekbone.

"You shouldn't do this," he whispered. She did not respond. Instead, she reached her other hand up and tentatively touched his hair. She'd always wanted to know what it felt like. Now she had her answer - it felt like silk sifting between her fingers.

"I should stop," she agreed, not moving. He opened his eyes. "You never should have given me false hope."

"What?"

"False hope," she repeated breathily. "You kissed me under the mistletoe. You never should have done that."

"I know."

"Where are you going to spend the night?" she asked, her eyes focused on his mouth.

"Here with you." Her eyes snapped up to meet his, and the chills were back. His intent was unmistakably clear; his eyes were pools of liquid mercury, they were so intense.

"We're wasting time," she breathed, her heart pounding wildly. "When we haven't got the luxury of doing so."

"So shut up already," he said, his face moving closer. Her eyelids fluttered closed just as his mouth covered hers in a hungry kiss.