Malfoy stalked into the small, wood-panelled office and slammed the door behind him, tossing a dejected greeting over his shoulder,"Potter."

Harry looked up from his paper-strewn desk to see his former nemesis throwing himself behind his own in the office they shared at the Aurory. Christ on a Cracker, why couldn't he be nice for a change? Harry had just put in a twelve hour shift and had what looked like at least another hour of paperwork ahead of him, so having The Ferret saunter in at the beginning of his night supervisory shift with a piss-poor attitude was quickly grating on his nerves.

Harry dropped his quill to the blotter and braced his head in his hands with a sigh, "Malfoy, what the hell? Can't you be nice, just for once?"

When no answer came, he peeked through his fingers at the blond man, only to find him completely flabbergasted. Harry's eyebrows met over his glasses as he stared back.

It seemed a tense and interminable moment before Malfoy responded angrily, "I was being nice, especially since you can't be decent enough to come to dinner when you're asked."

The Boy Who Lived Twice squinted a confused look at his associate and tried to think back to what he was referring to. For a moment, he came up blank, but then he remembered a hurried invitation after a particularly harrowing arrest and his subsequent shrug-off. "What? I thought that was just...cursory. Nobody ever means it."

Malfoy just snorted. "That's odd, considering I don't know anyone who wouldn't mean it if they asked you to dinner."

Did The Ferret just blush? Harry shook his head, "Honestly. Can you see me rubbing elbows with your mum?"

He really did blush, this time in anger, "What's wrong with my mother? She saved your life!"

Harry quickly rejoined without thinking, "And I saved yours." They stared at each other for a bit before Harry took a deep breath and let it out with a great sigh. "There's nothing wrong with Madam Malfoy. Sorry. I've just had a long day, so can we just forget it?"

Draco seemed to calm his affront and nodded, pulling a neat folio out from his top desk drawer and opening it flat on the blotter. Harry had looked down at his own paperwork and thought perhaps the letters had started dancing across the page. He was just about to give up for the night when his office-mate said quietly, "Would you come to dinner if I asked you to?"

Harry blinked up from his desk and said the first thing that came to mind, "Who all would be there? Your mum? Snape?"

Draco's response was almost too quiet to hear, "Me."

Something was up, but Harry was too tired to make sense of what Malfoy wasn't saying, "And?

The blond quickly looked down and hunched over his paperwork, mumbling, "Just...forget it. Forget I said anything."

This was almost like the time Hermione tried to tell him about her crush on Snape. He blinked again, and rubbed his eyes in disbelief as two and two suddenly made four. "Are you...are you asking me out?"

Draco glanced up from under his blond fringe and answered obliquely, "Are you always this thick, being the Head Auror and all?"

Harry grinned quickly and looked away, then back. "I'm sorry. I didn't think you would ever..."

Malfoy slowly looked up in his own disbelief, but tried to cover his surprise. "I still haven't."

Standing up slowly, Harry rolled up the scroll that would just have to wait for tomorrow before asking for a confirmation as best he could. "Close enough in Slytherin-speak."

"Shut up." Well, if Draco's ears got any redder...

Harry grinned and said playfully, "Make me."

Draco flashed a grin, but didn't look up yet. "Are you five?"

Stepping closer to the other desk, he leaned his hip on the edge and crossed his arms, "No, I'm Harry, but I could be hungry."

Gray eyes finally looked up from the folio and twinkled at Harry, "Tsk, tsk, Potter. Trying to influence a subordinate to skive off."

He grinned, "Pfft. As if. MacMillan's here. Weren't you just complaining about never being able to enjoy sick leave?"

Draco tilted his head, poised much as Harry had seen the twins do before doing something mischievous. "Are you serious?"

Harry shrugged but smiled.

Before he could say anything, however, Draco sprang up from the other side of his chair, shoved the folio into his top drawer and sped out the door. After a shocked moment, Harry saw him lean back in through the door. "Are you coming?"

He went.