Please Be There If I Remember

Chapter Forty-Five: Studying

"Holy shit," the redhead said. "Someone call Harry Potter. He would have a heart attack when he saw this."

"Don't worry, I think Harry will be fine," Draco responded cheekily and could barely refrain himself from bursting into laughter at her shocked face.

"I'm going mental," she whispered to herself. "Absolutely barmy. Somebody pinch me."

"I don't think your skin would appreciate that."

"Did you just...make a joke?" The girl gasped, and Draco had a feeling that she might have thought that this really was a dream and she could say anything. "And it wasn't about money or looks? Merlin and Morgana, he did. Oh Circe, now he's smiling at me."

A laugh burst out of Draco.

The girl pulled out her wand and pointed it at his face. Draco stopped laughing.

"Okay, woah. Hold on. Before we get all spell-happy, let's remember we're in a library, and Madam Pince is around the corner."

Thankfully, the words had the desired effect and the girl frowned and sat down again from where she had shot out of her chair. Draco assumed the reality that this wasn't a dream must have clicked, or maybe the girl remembered who she was talking to. Whatever the reason, she wouldn't stop staring at him, and he could see her wand hand was below the table—most likely with her wand pointed at him where he couldn't see.

"I know a mean Bat-Bogey hex, and I'm not afraid to use it," she said in a warning tone.

Her fiery tone and sharp eyes slightly miffed Draco, and he knew she would not hesitate to turn his bogeys into bats unless he started trying to diffuse the situation right now.

"Right, of course. Um, first of all, who are you?"

"What?"

At least my nose is fine so far.

"Your name?"

"...Ginny Weasley." Her face scrunched in confusion.

Draco tilted his head curiously, chances of being cursed into oblivion momentarily forgotten as her name registered in his mind. "You wouldn't happen to be related to a Ron Weasel, would you? Is that what his last name is?"

"...Yes?"

"Oh, good to know. Anyway, sorry. Thank you for not hexing me. Yet."

"If you don't explain in the next ten seconds, I still might," Ginny said, but it was starting to sound mollified. Was it something about Draco's demeanour that changed? Whatever it was, he was just glad she had turned less...malicious.

"Fair," was his response, and when her words actually registered in his mind, Draco started to ramble. He decided that after Neville, he should probably just drop all qualms he had about not telling people about his memory loss because it wasn't getting him anywhere.

"So, this might sound really crazy, but six months ago I fell down some stairs and got my memory wiped. I woke up in the hospital and ended up meeting—wait, you know Harry Potter, right? Actually, stupid question, everyone knows him, but you were one of the ones in his Defence club, no?"

Ginny sneered. "Going to blab to Umbridge, Malfoy? Don't worry, your friend of yours already found that bloody list."

"What, no! I didn't mean—"

"Hold up," Ginny cut in, and maybe both of their heads were riddled with too much studying because it took a moment for her to acknowledge his previous words. "Wait, you don't remember anything? Like, anything at all?" At the shake of Draco's head, Ginny stumbled out: "Holy Merlin, everything makes sense now. That explains...so much. Like, so much." She took a deep sigh of relief. "So that's what Luna meant when she said it had to be you to tell me. Not what I was expecting, to be honest."