A/N: So I would have to say I am getting this up pretty quickly. If you are wondering why this is up quickly, you must have missed my note that it is a sequel. I strongly suggest you go read 'Awake and Alive' first. I guess you don't have to, but if it make no sense to you, that could be why.

This story takes place five years from the end of the last story, so five years after the war. Lots of drama to come. Make sure to leave reviews with ideas, comments, concerns, etc... anything you feel is something you need to say. It helps my writting and I appriciate the ideas.

Besides the fact that I own nothing, I think that's all I really have... Enjoy and Review!

Chapter One- August 2002

"Tell me what you want to hear

Something that were like those years

I'm sick of all the insincere

So I'm gonna give all my secrets away…"

-One Republic

Secrets are mysteries, kept hidden or concealed from the knowledge others, with the exception of the secret holders. Everyone has secrets. They have their own secrets or even hold other's mysteries. Some have more to hide than others do and most will do anything to keep it quiet. Some can keep their own secrets, but cannot keep others. Some just let everything slip out about everyone. The rest can keep them for a very long time.

Yet, how deep can you dig the hole before you cannot get out without everything caving in?

Twenty two year old Ginevra Weasley was not someone who was good at hiding everything. That is until she got older. She always could keep her brothers' secrets and she could keep her own, but she could not lie very well if she was directly asked about it. Lying was not her strong point. She would stutter and could not hold eye contact, very obviously nervous.

Until she was sixteen and she had her first secret she wanted absolutely no one to know.

Her sixth year she mastered the art of deception and the darkness that the war had brought only helped her. Of course, she also had new friends then that taught her how to achieve this new quality. Not that she used her newfound lying ability for bad, all the time, but she did use it to keep everything from falling down around her.

If she had to lie to keep certain things secret, she would.

Everything she did seemed to work because she was very happy with her life. She was engaged to Harry Potter, both agreeing to a longer engagement, both wanting to be fully ready and settled in their lives.

Her family was great and they thought so highly of her, mostly because she never got in trouble, or at least caught. She had little drama in her life and she was doing very well for herself.

She was also a fully trained Auror now, just recently promoted. Not only was she an Auror like Harry and Ron but she also recently passed her test that now gave her cases that required going undercover and to different parts of the world.

She loved her job as an Auror but the idea of doing that, while playing other people in different places made it even more exciting for her. Not to mention all the new assignments they have now that Voldemort is gone and his supporters dead or imprisoned, with a select few in hiding.

She knew being a Covert Auror was perfect for her as soon as she heard about it. After all, when she was sixteen she spent half a year on the run, changing her appearance to go into wizarding towns for food or to travel to a new hiding place.

Then again, that part of her sixth year at school was not a secret.

She also had a fairly big circle of friends, including many people from Hogwarts and from after graduating. She was shy when she was younger, but once she broke out of that shell, she did not have a problem making friends.

Although she lost contact with many people she had been friends with at school. People she swore she would be best friends with forever disappeared in the blink of an eye. The battle had been won and then they were all gone.

Hermione is still one of her best friends, even though they do not have as much in common as everyone else. While Ginny hates paper work and loves being in the field, Hermione is the undersecretary to Minister Kingsley, spending all workday in an office.

Ron and Hermione got married right after the war. Ginny definatly thought they rushed it too much, only dating for maybe three months, but they were happy.

Of course, they have been secretly in love since they were young; Ron just seemed too immature to be married. However, maybe that was because it was her brother. Besides, her parents got married when they were young.

Ginny was still very good friends with her ex Dean Thomas, now a professional quidditch player. He is married to Luna Lovegood, which Ginny never saw coming, and they have a two year old son, Talon. Luna and Ginny are still close, but now with Ginny's career and Luna running the Quibbler with a child, they have very little time together.

Her other closest friend she met in Auror training right after Hogwarts. Blake, with her dark blue eyes and long, messy blonde hair, is the same age as Ginny and a lot like Ginny in several ways. Charismatic, charming, talented, funny, kind, care free and laid back. They hit it off right away and she is pretty much the only person who Ginny does not lie to nowadays, except for certain things, but she knows Blake has her secrets, too. Blake still looks at her the same no matter what, which is why she is one of Ginny's best friends.

Ginny had turned seventeen the summer after the war. Many sixth and seventh years were given the option to graduate or come back to finish off their final years. Ginny had chosen to graduate and was enrolled in Auror training that fall instead.

She could not return to Hogwarts. It would not be the same. She chose to move on with her life and returning to school did not seem like the best way to move on.

In fact, Hermione is really the only one who chose to go back. It was somewhat weird since she was married to Ron.

Ginny sat in the conference room with the other Aurors. She sipped her coffee, listening to Blake talk, while waiting for Robards to start the meeting. After the war, Robards became head of the Auror Department. Ginny was on the fence about him being her boss, because she did like him, but she also thought he was a little crazy. He did a decent job though.

As if on cue, he walked through the door and everyone grew silent, not wanting his gaze to land on him or her. He walked towards the front of the room, pushed his chair away from his desk and dropped several, very full folders on his desk with a loud thud.

"Potter, Weasley. How's the case coming?" He asked with an unpleased voice, his eyes landing on the two of them and Ginny could see Ron's face turn red. Ginny felt bad because with all her time spent on her promotion, Ron and Harry were piled with more work. It would be easier now that she was promoted and getting a new partner, leaving Harry and Ron with minimal travel, unless necessary.

"We got the husband, but the wife must have been tipped off because she wasn't there when covert aurors got there." Harry said, explaining the situation to Robards. He grunted and told them that they needed to find her before the end of the day tomorrow. He then tossed one folder aside.

There was a light, single knock on the door and Robards cleared his throat.

"I'd also like to congratulate Miss. Weasley on her promotion." He said and the room clapped while Ginny smiled to show her appreciation. "This brings me to other news, our newest member and Ginny's new partner." Robards said, waving his wand at the door, which then opened. The person stepped in, which made Harry and Ron stand in outrage, shouting blasphemes. Ginny's jaw dropt and her heart stopped as her biggest secret walked through the door.

"This is exactly how I pictured it." Draco said in his normal arrogant way with a smirk as Robards yelled at the two grown men who were yelling profanities. Robards used his wand to shut them up, which neither was to fond of, but the elder Auror did not seem to mind.

Ginny had no reaction to any of it. She just stared. The rest of the table looked between Harry, Ron and Draco, but Blake noticed Ginny's face immediately. She nudged her best friend, but the red head did not move, her eyes locked up front.

"Mr. Malfoy has been professionally trained in Germany. I know all of you here know who his father is, but I hope you all have grown up enough to recognize that he is not his father." He said looking directly at Harry and Ron, both who sat there, not looking very pleased with the situation, or the fact that they could not talk. He looked over to Ginny, noticing that she was shocked as well, but it did not make a difference. She needed a partner and he fit the part. "Now Miss. Weasley would you please show your new partner around and to the office you two now share." He finished with, making Ginny stand up, practically against her will, and do as he said so she did not end up like the boys.

Ginny walked down the halls of the department, pointing out storage rooms, the bunkroom, where there were beds for long shifts, and the secretary offices in the Auror department. Draco walked behind her, listening to what she had to say and not saying a word. They walked through a set of doors, which led to a hallway of rooms.

"This is where every Auror's office will be." Ginny said walking down the hall. She waved at Harry as they passed his room. He did not look too pleased at all, nor did Ron.

They walked passed several other offices, some with people he recognized from school. Neville Longbottom was in the office right after Harry and Ron's with Hannah Abbott, which surprised a few people. Angelia Johnson stared him down as he passed her room with Katie Bell. Rodger Davies, Cho Chang, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Ernie Macmillan and Zacharias Smith were just to name a few others.

"The last door is our new office, due to my promotion and you… just popping up." Ginny said the last few words more harsh. She walked up to the door with tinted glass.

G. Weasley

D. Malfoy

Covert Aurors

Ginny opened the door and the tint on the window disappeared. Draco followed her into the office and shut the door, but was immediately stopped short when she turned around quickly.

Before he could process anything, she was smacking him hard across the face, a red mark already on his face as his hand went to cover where she hit. She then took that second to stomp on his foot with her heel.

Satisfied, she walked over to her desk and sat down, turning her chair so she was facing away from him.

"What the hell!" He yelled, but received no response. He glared for a moment at the back of her chair before walking to the desk opposite from hers. He sat down in the chair, looking at his desk, still not saying a word.

Ginny turned and watched him go through the drawers and check out everything in the room. He paid no attention to her, acting as if they never met. Acting as if it had all been a dream, a bad one that never seemed to end. However, she knew Draco Malfoy and she knew he never made anything that simple.

"Why did you come back?" Ginny asked, her voice more bitter than she meant it to sound, but after everything that happened, she did not really care. Draco looked up and over to her. He did not say anything, so she spoke again, slowly spelling it out for him. "You took off after the war, leaving everyone else to wonder if you were dark or light, leaving me wondering a lot more. Then you show back up after five years and expect everyone to believe the best out of you. I frankly don't believe it." She explained to him, her words coming out faster as she grew more frustrated. Until he stood up and walked over to her desk, making her stop talking.

She turned to face him, not daring to speak; afraid her voice would be shaky. He lifted his left sleeve to show the dark mark imprinted in his skin, although faded and now looked like an old scar. Ginny could remember clearly when she had seen his mark in its prime.

Clearly able to picture the mark on his seventeen year old arm, burning the night of the battle. The chills she got when she had seen it almost black upon his pale skin. She quickly shook the memory from her mind and looked away.

"A daily reminder of the choices my father made for me. I'm sure you remember certain things that my father wanted me to do." He said, pulling his sleeve down and walking back towards his desk. He stopped halfway and then muttered under his breath, barely loud enough for Ginny to hear, but still loud enough. "I returned because Lucius died in Azkaban and I'm free to live my own life." He sat down at his desk, once again silent. Ginny fidgeted at her desk, having nothing to work on and knowing what she really needed to do to be a good Auror.

Besides, how do you argue with that?

"So let's talk. We have no cases or paperwork. We're partners and to be frank, I don't trust you, which is not a good foundation." She said and Draco nodded, placing down the item he was looking at to pay attention to what she had to say. Ginny sighed, realizing that he was not going to start talking. "Girlfriend or wife?" She asked, Draco laughed, and Ginny knew he did not have a wife. Surely, that she would have heard.

"I just moved back, so no girlfriend. And I am definatly not married. Not really sure if marriage will be in my future. So how's happily ever after with Potter?" He asked with a smirk that made Ginny want to smack him again. She bit down, grinding her teeth.

"Were good. Engaged." She said and she swore his face faltered for a second, but she could have been wrong. "We've decided on a long engagement, a little over two years so far. We wanted the title to show we were fully committed. Ron and Hermione got married right away and they fight a lot." Ginny said and Draco nodded looking quite impressed.

"I never thought your brother would actually be able to call Granger his own. She could do so much better, even for a mudblood." Draco said and Ginny's face turned red.

"Enough with the word for starters. Two, don't insult my family." She snapped and Draco smirked again.

"I'll watch my language. But Granger is now your family and I complimented her and honestly your brother is not the pick of the litter, not to insult him, but you know they make an odd couple." Draco pointed out bluntly and Ginny's face restored its normal color when she actually thought about what he said. She smiled a little at his bluntness, bringing up fond and not so fond memories. She quickly wiped it away.

"You may be right, but this did nothing to help me like you." Ginny said, getting out of her chair and walking towards the door.

"I'm sure in time we will make great partners, but at least we got somewhere." Draco said and Ginny scoffed as he stepped in front of her at the door.

"We got no where. I don't trust you with my pen, let alone my life." Ginny said and Draco nodded, opening the door for her. He then smirked, making her stop.

"But do I amuse you? Because I know I can make it in your world." Draco asked, and her face dropt, giving him enough answer. He stepped out the door and walked away. Leaving Ginny standing there shocked, not feeling hate towards him as he walked away, but she still wanted to smack him.

Then smack him again because two times would not be enough.

Draco walked away from Ginny, leaving her with nothing to say. He walked into the break room and walked over to the pot of coffee floating over a heater. He grabbed the pot, pouring himself a cup and placing it back where it was. He walked over to the table and took a seat, taking a second to relax and let the days events soak in.

"Hey there." Said the blonde haired woman that had been sitting next to Ginny. She grabbed a cup of coffee as well, taking a seat next to him. "I'm Blake Becker, the psyche analyst here." She said, introducing herself to him. He shook her hand.

"Draco Malfoy." He said, letting the conversation die there. Blake looked at him and Draco could feel her eyes on him. He would have been the one to come up to her if he had met her before now, but everything has changed. "So you know Ginny through work?" He asked and Blake looked at him, smiling, but a bit confused.

"We met in training. Best friends." She said with a small chuckle. "I didn't know you guys were on first name terms, after everything that happened in school. School nemesis and all. However, she just told me to come in here and get to know you so she can set us up." Blake said with another laugh, her bright, white smile intoxicating.

"Your Ginny's best friend?" Draco asked his interest suddenly peaked.

"Since the war ended. We both joined Auror Training right after finishing our last year of school. So about five years." Blake said, but was a bit disappointed to see Draco not listening. "So do you want to go somewhere to get something to eat or drink after work?" She asked and Draco shook his head.

"You're totally my type, but there's a problem and as Ginny's best friend you need to know so things don't get too… complicated." He said and Blake raised an eyebrow, suddenly really confused.

"Problem?" She asked and Draco sighed and nodded.

"I'm in love with Ginny." He said and Blake knocked her coffee onto the floor. Draco quickly whipped out his wand and cleaned it up.

"You're not in love with Ginny. Your school nemesis's fiancé! Did you even talk to each other in school?" Blake said, standing up, ready to storm out of the room.

"Stop." Draco said his voice calm. She turned around and looked at him. He nodded his head toward the chair and she made a disapproving face, before sitting down. "Up until this year I would have agreed with everything you said. It took me until then to realize how I felt about her and that I made a huge mistake letting her go." He confessed and she was bewildered.

"Letting her go? Have you even talked to her? I get the impression you've always hated each other." Blake said, having a hard time believing him. She heard stories about Draco Malfoy from quite a few people at the office. None of them were flattering at all, but some of the girls did admit he was attractive.

"I guess you can say we were friends during the war…" Draco said and Blake nearly choked. How is it that Ginny never mentioned this to her?

Actually, as Blake thought about it, Ginny never really mentioned him. Usually would call him an ass and changed the subject.

"The two of us were on the run from Voldemort and while we were alone, we connected completely. Immediately after the war complications set in and I left her." He said quickly summing it up, not wanting to get into the details. "For years I slept with many women to forget Ginny. Then I started to think about her more and more and her name would pop up more often. Then when I walked into the room earlier and saw her, I knew exactly what I had been running from. I had fallen for her, and I'm willing to do what it takes to give us a chance." He said and Blake just sat there, too stunned to speak. Draco nodded and made sure to tell her to keep this between the two of them, before leaving the break room.

Blake let out the breath she did not know she was holding. How could she not talk to Ginny about this? Then again, maybe she should just let everything unravel as it should and for once just be a bystander.

That was neither what she expected to happen when she spoke with him nor what she expected him to be like.

"So how is the ferret?" Harry asked as he and Ginny got ready for bed that night. Ginny rolled her eyes, pulling back the blankets on the bed.

"Don't start this. He is my new partner and it is just something we will have to live with." She said to him, her voice serious. He rolled his eyes, making her throw her arms up. "What?" She asked him and he looked at her as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Are you sure nothing happened between you two during the war?" He said and she immediately looked angry. "I mean you were alone for months and its not like we were together at the time or anything." Harry quickly explained and Ginny sat down on the bed, sending him a glare.

"We discussed this after the war. We discussed what his mission was and what we did to avoid capture." She said to him, crossing her arms. It would not be that simple if she just told him she had fallen for Draco. It would even be that simple if she mentioned that she slept with him.

"You also didn't mention to me what all happened during your capture. That is until I found out from Luna a good two or three years ago. I just want to know if you were just embarrassed to admit you had feelings for him." Harry said and Ginny tried not to laugh. She was not embarrassed of her previous feelings; she just knew Harry's temper was a lot like hers. This is something he would not handle well at all.

"I didn't tell you about Lucius because I honestly do not like talking about it. I would not have told you if Luna did not. I told you everything else and if you don't believe me you can just sleep on the couch." She lied to him, before pulling the blankets over her. He did not move right away, but he eventually did wrap his arm around her and go to sleep.

Its not so bad

Your only the best I ever had

Don't need me back

Your just the best I ever had

-Vertical Horizon