Chapter #5
Companionship

“ “Each look, each collision creates different things.”

The first thing she managed to splutter, when she found her voice again, was, “I hate you, Malfoy.”

“And I,” he said most dispassionately, inclining his head towards her as he spoke. It amazed Ginny how calm he was now, because her insides were shaking with fury, trying as she was not to show it – it had occurred to her that she might be stuck with him for a while, and the last thing she wanted to him to know that she was in a position he could manipulate.

Not that he would want to, she thought to herself. I’m a blood traitor. The last thought actually satisfied her, mostly because it meant she was doing something right. Blood-traitors like her were... good.

She waited a moment or two but, when he did not speak, she had to do so herself. “What do we do then?” she asked, kicking a pebble that lay in the path. “How long is it going to take you to repair that time-turner?”

He raised an eyebrow, quietly dropping the time-turner back into its oval, emerald pendant encasing, and fastening the chain around his neck. “I don’t know, Weasley,” he drawled coldly. “I thought you would have enough sense to know time-turners cannot be repaired.”

“I know reparo doesn’t work on them, you idiot, I only meant –”

“I said, Weasley, that time-turners can not be repaired.”

She stared at him, he stared right back, and it was a moment before the statement sunk in. Ginny’s brown eyes were wide, her hands suddenly sweaty. “You mean –”

He inclined his head.

Ginny gave a scream, and dropped the flagon of pumpkin juice in her hand. The thing shattered on the floor and, among other things, made her realize that she had been holding it with her free hand all this while – even when her other hand had been busy trying to get rid of him on the train.

“You son of a –”

“Now now, let’s not dirty your tongue, Weasley.”

“I was going to say son of an idiot,” Ginny spat at him, which was absolutely true. She had been about to say that. There was an odd feeling in the pit of her stomach, as if she was doomed to eternal grief for life and, she suddenly reflected that, if she did not soon find a way out of this situation, she was. She was stranded God-knows-how-many epochs back in time, without food or proper clothing and her worst enemy for a companion. Where was she, anyway? Which country, which –

“You look disturbed, Weasley. Anything the matter?”

She swore, he smirked, and she dived at him. Malfoy stepped out of the way – she was too predictable, he had decided – and she was sent, hurling, into the ground. Which, obviously, hurt more than she let on as she instantly scrambled to her feet to glare daggers at him.

“Quite a bit of fire in you, Weasley,” he drawled. “Let’s see how soon it’s put out here. Cold, isn’t it?” Look amused, he turned around and began to walk off. Ginny was about to let him, when it dawned on her that he was the only one who held a means to their escape. He was also probably lying about the fact that it could not be repaired – he was going to repair that time-turner the moment he had shrugged her off, she could wager on that!

“Oh no, you don’t!” she shouted and, eyes widening slightly as she contemplated the possibility of being left where she was for life, she made a dash after him. Malfoy paused, turned and rolled his eyes.

“What now, Weasley?”

“You’re not leaving me alone, Malfoy.”

“I know I’m exotically handsome, but I don’t date blood-traitors, Weas –”

“I don’t want to date you!” Her voice was so loud, she was thankful the place was empty. “I have a wand, Malfoy, and if you leave me here, I’m going to use it to RUIN that pretty face of yours.”

“You think I’m pretty?”

“SHUT IT.”

He smirked, glanced at her, and Ginny blushed as she realized he was taking in her figure. She had, after all, become much more womanly over the summer. His gaze lingered, then he turned away, looking amused. Ginny wondered, for a second, if he was amused at her, or at the fact that he had made her blush. Then she walked right after him.

“Malfoy –”

“Stop following me Weasley, I don’t need your company.”

“I don’t need yours, either!” she snapped, but it was a lie – she obviously did, if she wanted to see the face of anyone she loved, ever again. “I’m just not letting you go as long as you have that time-turner, Malfoy. Hand it over, and you can leave, I don’t have a problem.”

To her surprise, he unfastened the chain around his neck and threw it at her. Ginny caught it with one hand and, as he began to walk away again, made another dash after him. “You can’t leave!”

He smirked. “I thought you said –”

“Fine, I was ranting. I don’t know how to repair this thing, I – well, I need you to do that and you know it!”

“That’s obviously why I gave it to you in the first place, Weasley,” he said, rolling his eyes. “I knew you’d come after me.”

That anyone could be so much of a calm and collected prat, stunned Ginny. “Malfoy,” she said and, this time, her voice was the sort of patient that is clearly very impatient. “Listen to me – I’m hungry, cold and scared, and I don’t have a clue where I am. You need to help me.”

“Give me back the chain,” he said coldly.

For a moment, Ginny decided she would not – after all, he was not going to leave her, as long as she possessed the chain. But then something in his eyes – perhaps the impatience – made her re-decide and, biting her lip, she took it off and handed it over.

Without a word, he fastened it around his neck once more. “The knob broke while you were trying to drag me underneath that train, Weasley,” he said, coolly observing her as he spoke – he was obviously surprised she had handed the chain over so quickly. “The time-turner apparently went out of control, so I have as little an idea about our whereabouts, as you do – we might have gone ages back in time, maybe even a century or two – but you obviously don’t see me whinging about it –”

“That’s because it’s your fault, if you hadn’t come to annoy me on the train –”

“Shut up and let me speak, Weasley,” he cut through her words with a scowl. “It’s more your fault than mine, no one asked you to put your hands all over me. I gave you my hand to grasp, not my robe.” He took a deep breath, as if to tone down the sudden anger in his voice and, when he spoke again, his voice was devoid of emotions, once more.

“Like it or not, Weasley, we’re stuck here for now. I can try to repair this time-turner, but I know it won’t work because the fact is, one can’t repair time-turns - they’re just not designed that way. The least you can do to help is to stop complaining.”

She scowled, but then decided a fight would do no good. “Fine,” she said, though more than just a little grudgingly. “I’m not going to complain, Malfoy, but I need to know where I am.”

He sighed. “Only one way to do that, isn’t there? Let’s find some humans – if they exist, and if intelligent apes aren’t what made these buildings.” And, ignoring the look of pure horror that arose on her face at his words, Draco Malfoy began to walk away.

Unsure, Ginny followed.