AMBITION

Pairing: Lucius/Ginny
Rating: T
Summary: Today’s trial had been the fourth of Lucius Malfoy’s that Ginny had attended.
Author's Notes: EWE. I have to say I love this pairing, but I hardly ever write it. This was written as a gift in a recent LJ Ginny drabble exchange. Note the word drabble. Yeah, I went a bit over the word count. Because it was for an exchange, this is a stand alone one-shot.

The Ministry of Magic’s holding cells were located deep within the bowels of the building, beneath the courtrooms, the offices, and the grand, tourist-friendly entrance hall. They were lit by dim, yellow lamps, the light from which seemed to be sucked into the walls. Outside, the midsummer sun was burning in the sky, but down here the atmosphere was cold enough to leave Ginny shivering as she stepped into a cell which she had been shown to. As she did so, the man waiting for her stood from the stone bench that ran the length of one wall and raised an eyebrow. Lucius Malfoy was just arrogant enough to believe it was his presence that had prompted her reaction.

She had been surprised by the note that had led her to be there. It had been handed to her as she left the courtroom during the recess that afternoon, desperate for a quick cup of something packed with caffeine, and a sticky bun if she could find one. The sight of one of the Ministry’s guards approaching her, an apprehensive look on his face, had been more than enough to stir her interest, and her inner reporter. Five minutes later, Ginny was marching down the corridor to the Ministry lifts, her heels tapping out a determined beat. The note, she suspected, had been sent with the help of a hefty bribe on the part of its author.

Today’s trial had been the fourth of Lucius Malfoy’s that Ginny had attended, and the second on her schedule for the day. As a court reporter, she had witnessed him being convicted of murder, tax fraud, and even the theft of an enchanted silver cigarette case. The Aurors were always finding something new to charge him with. Indeed, sometimes it seemed to her that when they wanted to close a particularly difficult case, they blamed Lucius Malfoy. The latest crime had been the abduction of a minor Ministry employee nearly twenty years earlier. Even Ginny, who had once nearly died as a consequence of the man’s actions, thought that the evidence had been rather sparse. However, that had not stopped them from achieving a conviction.

She was always slightly disappointed by his appearance. After so many years in Azkaban, he should have been gaunt – maybe even sickly. There should have been a beaten look about him. Clothed in a set of grey, tailored robes, with a crisp, white shirt underneath, he was none of those things. Indeed, he looked every bit the cultured, well-bred Pureblood. A twisted part of her could not help but admire him for it. Money could buy you anything it seemed - especially now that the Dementors no longer guarded the prison. To her shame, she had cast more than one lingering look over his trim frame while sitting in on his hearings. Not that she would ever admit as much. Ginny was well aware that any attraction she felt to Lucius Malfoy was based solely on the fact that she knew she should not be attracted to him. It was hardly the first time that she had felt that way about a man, either.

Pulling himself up to his full, impressive height, Lucius said, “Miss Weasley. I would offer you a seat, but I believe it is actually more comfortable to stand.”

Ginny swallowed even though her mouth was dry. She was uncomfortably aware of how small the cell was. They were, she calculated, only two or three steps apart. It wouldn’t even take the space of a heartbeat for him to cover the distance, if he decided to.

The note materialised between her fingers. “What is this?” she asked, thankful that her voice came out steady. The way that he was looking at her made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. It was decidedly predatory. She could not miss the way that his eyes slipped down, over the silk of her blouse, to the swell of her hips. The outfit she had chosen that morning was designed to appeal, showing off her hourglass figure and shapely calves.

“That is a proposition. I thought it was relatively self-explanatory,” he said, bringing his eyes back to her face. “In exchange for a favour, I am willing to supply you with details concerning the hiding place of a certain werewolf.”

Ginny’s eyes widened, her interest flaring. Almost instantly, she forgot about the way that he had been looking at her. There was only one werewolf that he could be referring to – Fenrir Greyback. The man had disappeared during the confusion following the final battle at Hogwarts. He had been on the run ever since.

She wet her lips. Finding Greyback would not only get her a story on the front page of the Prophet – it would finally close a painful chapter for her brother.

“What favour?” she asked.

Lucius smiled, and took a step forward, forcing Ginny to retreat in order to maintain the distance between them. He did not stop there however, but placed his body directly in front of hers so that she was all too aware of the difference in their heights. Against her back, the cell door formed a cold, immoveable mass. Her heart thudded noisily in her chest, even as she thought of her wand, safely locked away in the head guard’s office.

“As you are no doubt aware, this summer has marked my fourth year as a guest within Azkaban’s walls,” he said. “I will shortly be returning there, and I doubt that I shall leave again for a very long time - unless the Aurors decide I am guilty of something else, that is. My son has, quite sensibly, decided to distance himself from me. My wife is currently living in exile. The only company I have is the criminally insane, an inbred cellmate who communicates by grunting, and my hand.” He slipped a finger under her chin, lifting her eyes to his. “In short, I am willing to tell you where to find Greyback in return for an hour of your time, here and now.”

Ginny let out a shuddering breath, alternating between anger and astonishment. “What on earth makes you think I’d agree to something like that?”

His smile became a smirk. “You’re ambitious and undervalued. Your editor gives stories to your colleagues that should really be given to you, giving them to gossip-peddling sensationalists like Rita Skeeter. A story like this would make him sit up and take notice. That aside, there is the single, unassailable fact that every time we’re in the same room, you struggle to keep your eyes from me,” he concluded bluntly.

Dragging her shoulders back, Ginny said, “I hate you.”

“Perhaps. But there’s also a curious, dirty little part of you, deep down inside, that is eager to say yes.” He leaned closer, his forehead close to hers. Ginny felt pinned in place. “The guards have been instructed to stay away,” he said.

“You bribed them,” she said, trying to buy time to think.

“They were surprisingly amenable. I believe they were more concerned that you would attempt to harm me than vice versa.”

“They yet might have a point.”

Amusement brightened his eyes. “Do you accept?”

Ginny opened her mouth, determined to tell him precisely what he could do with his offer, only to stop before actually doing so. Flaring bright in her mind was a stream of possibilities. Lucius’ assessment of her had been eerily correct, though it made her uncomfortable to admit so.

She blinked, her eyes slipping down to the thin, masculine line of his lips. It would be a lie to say that she had never contemplated them before.

“Well?” he asked.

Ginny pushed away from the cell door. The offer was simply too tempting.

END