Roses are red
Violets are blue
I don't own Harry Potter
This is sad, but true
This is a birthday gift for the lovely RAVENCLAW-SASS!
My dear friend, I hope your day is as wonderful as you are, and I hope you enjoy this little scrap of fluff I put together for you.
All my love xx
The usual sounds of chatter filled the Great Hall as the main course disappeared and was replaced with dessert dishes. Tureens of ice cream dotted the middle of each House table in a rainbow of colours and flavours. Draco sat at the end of the Slytherin table, astutely ignoring the noise surrounding him. The school had only just re-commenced after Christmas and he was already missing the quietness of the halls during break.
He huffed an exaggerated sigh as a chubby second year boy snatched up the spoon for the vanilla flavour. Draco's fingers drummed impatiently on the table, his gaze burning into the side of the boy's face. To his chagrin, the younger student seemed completely unphased by the impending wrath of a Malfoy, and he even had the nerve to smirk at Draco as he settled back in his seat a few spots down.
"Pipsqueak prat," Draco muttered as he stood, pointedly staring at the oblivious boy. He reached for the tureen, but someone's arm was snaking in front of his chest, effectively blocking him from his desired dessert.
"Excuse me, Malfoy."
The scent of lavender mixed with parchment and ink surrounded him as a warm body pressed against his shoulder. He'd know that smell anywhere, and Draco stiffened as feminine curves moved against him.
He cleared his throat pointedly. "Granger," he said. "What the fuck are you doing?"
The brunette witch did not look at him. Her gaze was sliding slowly down the length of the table and back again, until it landed on a tureen of ice cream about a foot away from Draco. "The Gryffindor table doesn't have chocolate."
"Doesn't have—?" Draco screwed up his face in confusion and resigned himself to his seat once more. What did she mean the Gryffindor table didn't have chocolate ice cream? It was the most basic of flavours! He opened his mouth to continue asking his question, but Granger interrupted him.
"Nope," she said, popping the 'p' as she reached for the spoon sticking out of the sticky, sweet substance. "We have all these terribly stupid flavours like jalapeno, tuna, and kitty litter." She screwed her nose up in distaste as she began to scoop a large amount of ice cream into her bowl.
Draco blinked. "But why?"
Granger shrugged. "Ice cream usually warrants a dare contest over at our table." She sighed and shook her head, settling in the seat beside him.
Draco stared at her. Did she intend on remaining beside him throughout desert? Sure, they had become distinctly less hostile since their return to Hogwarts. They'd had no choice—Professor McGonagall had appointed them Head Boy and Head Girl. Sharing quarters had been… interesting, to say the least, but Draco believed that they had reached a point of mutual respect.
But sharing a dining experience? This was something new.
Draco lifted his head, glancing around the Hall, but no one seemed to be paying them any mind. The Gryffindors, he could see, were gathered up one end of the table, the furthest from where the teachers were sitting. They seemed to be watching one student in particular, a small, mousy looking kid with brown hair. His face was a dangerous shade of magenta and his eyes were squeezed tightly shut. He looked to be chewing something, his fists clenched either side of his ice cream dish which was piled high with a vivid green variety.
"Wasabi," Granger stated, having followed his line of sight. Draco grunted in response and decided to turn his attention to his own dessert. He had just risen from his seat when Granger pointed down the length of the Slytherin table. "Would you pass the disco dip, please?"
Draco turned to stare at the witch beside him. "The what now, Granger?"
"Disco dip." She turned to face him, her eyes bright and shining as a smile curved at her lips. Draco made the mistake of letting his gaze drop to them and he swallowed thickly as he watched her mouth form the next sentence. "Have you not heard of it before?"
Slowly, he shook his head. He had no clue what a disco was, though dip was fairly self-explanatory. "Disco dip?" he repeated. "What does it—they—it look like?" He frowned, biting his lip as he continued to stare at the Head Girl.
Granger let her head fall back and a peeling laugh echoed around the space. Draco glanced warily around, but still no one paid them any mind; it was amazing what an unregulated amount of ice cream could do to a pack of teenagers—even the most bigoted of them all.
"You put it on ice cream," she finally said, once her laughter had subsided to intermittent chuckles. "In Australia, they sometimes put it on bread. It's called fairy bread." Her eyes were dancing with the excitement only sharing knowledge could bring such an insufferable bookworm.
Draco's heart flipped over in his chest. A warmth was spreading in his gut, a sensation which had begun recently, and only when he was around Granger. He knew his feelings towards the Gryffindor witch had changed dramatically since the fall of the Dark Lord, and his greatest fear was that she would find out. He was well aware that she was far too good for him.
Thankfully, Granger didn't seem to expect a response, or even notice his avid staring. Draco watched her get up, smoothing both hands over the back of her school skirt as she rose from the table and sidled down towards a small crystal bowl full of colourful grains. She grabbed it in one hand and made her way back to his side, thrusting it under his nose as she sat.
"See?" she said. "Disco dip!"
Draco wrinkled his nose. As far as he could tell, the garnishment held no distinct smell except a decided plastic-like quality he did not care for. "Are you sure they're edible?" he asked.
"Of course!" she replied, surprise lacing her tone as she set the bowl beside her and began to heap spoonfuls of it upon her dessert. She turned to him, spoon now poised over her ice cream. "You should try some."
"What's it made of?" he asked, leaning over the rainbow decorations.
"Sugar," she replied simply.
Draco grimaced. "Disgusting."
Granger dropped her spoon and clutched her hand to her chest, scandalised. She looked up at Draco, her eyes wide but dancing with mirth. "It's delicious!"
"I'll take your word for it." He rolled his eyes and then added one perfect scoop of vanilla to his own bowl.
Granger snorted beside him, a decidedly wet sound as she had just taken a mouthful of her dessert. "I wouldn't have picked you for a vanilla guy, Malfoy."
"Oh?" He arched an eyebrow as he turned to look down at her, relishing in the way her eyes searched his. "What would you have picked me for?"
Granger tapped her spoon against her lips, turning her face to the ceiling as if deep in thought. She pondered for a few moments which stretched long and silent between them. Draco was almost shifting in his seat like some immature fourth year when she finally answered him. "Lime," she said.
"Lime? Why lime?" Draco's eyebrows shot towards his hairline.
"Yes," Granger answered, turning back to her bowl. "Because you're kind of…" Granger screwed her face up until Draco felt the desire to laugh at her pinched features. "... tangy."
"Are you feeling quite right, Granger? Only you're behaving as if someone's cursed you." He clicked several times in front of her face, but she only swatted him away.
"You're tangy!" she insisted. "Like a little bitter, but in a way that's refreshing. Not quite as bitter as a lemon, but certainly you pack enough of a punch to be memorable—"
"Fascinating," he clipped, cutting her off. For inexplicable reasons, he was feeling rather annoyed with the witch. "While we're on this topic, I wouldn't have picked you as a chocolate person." He raised his eyebrows pointedly, indicating her bowl.
"Chocolate is a perfectly normal flavour," she snapped, her demeanor now more serious as she defended her dessert. "It's not as boring as vanilla—" she pointed towards his bowl with a wave of her spoon "—but it's not as outlandish as strawberry… nor is it as sweet." She nodded as if these were all the facts she needed to form a solid argument.
"I picked you for more a pistachio girl myself." Draco shrugged and returned to his dessert, feigning a casual demeanor.
"Pistachio?" Granger mimed a gagging action. "Disgusting! Why would you think that?"
"It just makes me think of stuffy boardrooms, coffee, and ill-fitting robes." He sniffed, scraping some of his dessert on to his spoon and guiding it towards his mouth. "Basically, it has Granger written all over it."
For a moment Granger simply stared at him, her mouth slightly agape. He watched her from the corner of his eye, astutely focusing on his dessert as the cool treat slid down his throat. But then, just when he thought he would have to give in and ask her what in the name of Merlin she was staring at, Granger once again threw her head back and laughed.
"What's so funny?" he asked.
"You perception of me is very interesting, Malfoy."
"Oh? How so?" He arched his eyebrows, turning slightly so that she could see the action as he continued to eat his ice cream.
"I fear you think of me as insufferably boring and prudish; like you."
Draco choked on his ice cream, dropping the spoon into what was left of the melting dessert. "Excuse me?" he managed to get out, his eyes watering. "Me? Prudish?" If he hadn't been raised in a highly poised Pureblood family, he would have guffawed out loud.
"Yes," she answered seriously. "You're so uptight; and vanilla ice cream…" she trailed off and shook her head.
For a moment neither of them moved, but then Granger's hand slid towards the bowl of disco dip and picked it up. She made eye contact with Draco, moving slowly until the rainbow dots were hovering over his bowl.
"No—!" He had barely uttered the word when Granger upended the entire contents of the sugary balls onto his ice cream. "What the buggering—!"
"Oops." Granger smiled sweetly, her gaze still focused on his face, open and challenging.
Draco swallowed, forcing his features into a blank mask. "That was very foolish, Granger," he whispered.
"Oh?" she countered, her eyes dancing. "Come on, Malfoy. Prove you're not a prude; eat it!"
Draco grimaced as he lowered his gaze to his bowl. It was now mostly the round balls of multi-colour, floating on a thin layer of melted ice cream.
Not one to back down from a challenge, however, he picked up his spoon and lowered it into the mess. He cringed as it scraped against the contents, but continued to load a mouthful on to the metal utensil.
He brought it slowly to his mouth, hyper-aware of Granger watching him from the corner of his eye. He could see her wide grin and he could make out the mirth in her gaze; she was laughing at him and he could not lose. Proving to Granger that he was every bit the vanilla prude she thought he was? Perish the thought!
Draco closed his lips around the spoon, fighting the urge to gag as he dragged it back out, allowing the sweet concoction to sit on his tongue. He began chewing, slowly at first and then quicker as he desperately sought the end of this experiment. His taste buds were screaming; he had never been one for sweets, a scoop of vanilla ice cream as far as he would usually indulge himself, and only ever once or twice a week.
He swallowed forcefully, running his tongue through his teeth in a futile attempt to dislodge several pockets of compact rainbow sugar from his molars.
Granger was now giggling, one hand pressed against her mouth. Tears threatened at the corner of her eyes and Draco had to fight the urge to shake her. "You'd feel nauseous too if you'd just eaten a load of that rubbish." To underline his point, he pushed his dish away from him and stood abruptly. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm done playing this game. I'm going to brush my teeth."
With that, he stepped over the bench and turned on his heel, leaving Granger sitting at the Slytherin table, the ghost of a grin on her face.
He made it to the other side of the heavy doors when hurried footsteps sounded behind him. He ignored them, intent on making it to his dorm room before the strength of his enamel was compromised.
"Malfoy!"
He fought a grin as Granger's voice floated towards him. There came a huff and the footsteps quickened. She soon arrived at his elbow.
"What was the performance for?" she asked, slightly out of breath.
"My performance?" He indicated himself with a forefinger poking into his chest, but kept his gaze straight ahead. "What about your little stunt with the sprinkles?"
"Disco dip is delicious and you should never eat ice cream without it. I was correcting a heinous crime."
Draco almost laughed. "You think a lot of yourself, Granger."
"We have that in common."
Draco sighed and came to a sudden stop. He ran a hand through his hair before making eye contact with the bane of his existence. "What do you want?" he asked.
Granger shrugged. "To make sure you were okay. I only meant it as a bit of fun."
"Well, it certainly made an otherwise boring evening meal quite entertaining." He couldn't help the way his lips quirked into a reluctant smirk, his hands finding their way into his trouser pockets.
Granger grinned. "Indeed." She took a step towards him and Draco felt his breath catch in his chest.
"Granger, wha—?"
'Shh." Granger took another step forward until their chests were almost touching and placed her forefinger against his lips.
Draco was so shocked he did as he was told. His eyes widened at the sensation of her digit against his mouth and he had to remind himself that this witch would probably hex his balls off if he flicked his tongue out.
"You know," she said, her voice low and seductive, "there's another perk to eating such sweet things."
Draco shivered, the double entendre not lost on him. "Hmm?" was all he could manage, Granger's finger still pressed firmly against his lips.
She nodded, dropping her hand slowly, gracefully to her side. "Yes," she whispered as her gaze replaced her finger, focusing on his lips as if they were made of chocolate ice cream and her beloved disco dip.
Before he could register much more, Granger had launched herself at him. Her lips slanted over his, warm and inviting, and her arms wound around his neck, tugging him down towards her. Instinctively, Draco wrapped one hand around her waist and tangled the other in her hair.
He walked her backwards into an alcove, pressing her against the brick wall as he took control. A feral growl rumbled deep within his chest as stars burst behind his closed eyelids. His tongue slid along the seam of her lips, and on a sigh she granted him entrance.
Mighty Merlin, she was right! he thought with an inward groan; the disco dip flavour danced on her tongue as it moved against his and he pulled her tighter to him in order to savour the taste. He was lost in everything that was Granger, so caught up in the moment that he didn't pause to think about anything else.
It was everything that he had thought it would be and more. For months he had wondered how the Golden Girl would feel in his arms, how she would move against him, what her lips would taste like. Now he knew; heavenly, in answer to all of the above.
He didn't want it to end but oxygen was necessary to sustain life, so he began to slow his ministrations until he pulled back, bestowing one last chaste peck to her slightly swollen lips. An easy smile spread across her face as her eyes fluttered open. When she met his gaze, her teeth tugged at her lower lip and Draco almost pressed her up against the wall again.
"See?" she said once she had caught her breath, allowing her hands to glide over his chest until they rested at her sides. "It tastes delicious."
"Yes." Draco nodded, reluctantly loosening his grip on her hip and disentangling his fingers from her hair. "I see."
"Shall we move this to a more… private… setting?" Granger quirked an eyebrow and nodded her head towards the doors of the Great Hall.
Movement could be heard from the other side; it seemed that dessert was over and within seconds they would be accosted by a wave of students heading back to their common rooms.
Draco nodded his assent. "Yes, let's."
He snatched Granger's hand and began to stroll quickly down the corridor, intending to drag the witch back to their shared quarters and continue what they'd started once they were safely in front of their fireplace.
Thank you to LadyKenz347 for designing the manip for this fic. You are an angel *heart*