Untold Truths and the Events That Follow

Summary: Draco is walking from the library one day after a long study session only to stumble upon Ron and Ginny Weasley talking about Dumbledore's plan on them continuing to be friends with Harry in return for money. Draco will not go along his merry way pretending he never heard it; instead he tries to make Harry see the truth. If only Harry would listen! Draco doesn't think Harry would listen unless he had help from his friends. Will they help, or leave him fending for himself?

Pairings: Draco/Harry with hints at Blaise/Hermione.

Warnings: Slight OOC and lemon.

Key:

Bold: author's notes

Italics: thoughts

Times: Normal speech or narration

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"Can you believe it? Why would they be so stupid, staying 'friends' with him when we all know he is a lost cause? I mean, after Sirius, Harry has just been on autopilot. How can a person stay with another in that way?"

"I know, Ron. At least we have a reason now, thanks to Professor Dumbledore. We should just accept our fate for the next year or two."

"I still think it's strange, though, that Harry's in this state. It wasn't like he knew the man long. Hell, most of the time he knew him as the man who betrayed his parents! Ginny, how can a person be so affected by that?"

"You think I would know? Anyways, we better go before Snape comes along."

Footsteps were heard going in the opposite direction from where the blonde boy sat, shocked by what he had accidentally heard. Harry is being betrayed by Weasel and Weaselette? Are they the only two? Draco thought as he sat in the alcove he had previously slipped into with the only goal being to not be bothered. Closing his book thoughtfully, Draco stood up quickly and, after a quick glance to make sure the coast was clear, walked back to the Slytherin common rooms.

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Harry sighed as he gazed out of the common room window. If only fate hadn't been so fickle, Harry would be able to live with Sirius, unworried about events to come. As it was, Harry would eventually go back to the Dursleys and the cycle would start again. Sirius wasn't even able to clear his name, something that angered Harry immensely. Harry dragged his hands down his face and through his hair, a method of relaxation he picked up unconsciously from Remus. To add to matters, Harry couldn't stay with any of his friends during the summer; something about being too dangerous or some such rubbish. Really, if it was dangerous to stay with wizards and witches who already know enough to defend themselves, how dangerous was it to stay with ignorant muggles?

Stress and grief were finally taking their toll on Harry. His eyes were dull and almost lifeless, dark purple bruises, made darker by the paleness of his skin, formed from lack of sleep. His hair, normally glossy, had barely a sheen to it, and his clothes that normally fit now hung slightly limply off his form, a shock considering he was already small enough. Harry was quieter now, ignoring most of the things that happened around him in favor of either gazing out the window or staring listlessly into the roaring fire in the Gryffindor common room. He paid attention more to his studies, something that excited Hermione considerable. He was being dragged to the library at least three times a week, and together they would sit at an empty table, either reading or working on the school work assigned for that day.

Sighing once more, Harry slowly uncoiled from his ball-like position on the floor by the window and stretched his arms above his head. Nodding his head toward the twins and Hermione, who noticed he had stood up, Harry headed up to see about getting some sleep. Most likely he was just going to be lying in bed and staring up into the canopy top, but that didn't really affect him anymore as he was used to doing so for hours on end many nights. Closing the door softly, Seamus and Dean had gone to bed early and he didn't want to wake them, Harry slowly crossed to his own bed and closed the curtains. After placing silencing spells on the curtains, in case of a nightmare, Harry finally allowed himself to lie down and close his eyes.

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Draco waited at the entrance of the Great Hall, waiting for Harry to come, so he could tell him what he had found out the day before. Seeing him turn the corner with Granger and the Weasleys, Draco stood slightly straighter and called, "Potter, I need to talk to you."

Nodding to his friends, Harry paused a few feet from Draco as they entered the Hall. Waiting a few moments to ensure they had their privacy, Draco breathed in deeply before starting, "I figured you might want some information."

"Information, really? Why should I trust you, Malfoy?" Harry sneered slightly, a quick movement of his lips before it was gone again.

Draco shrugged, "You can ignore it if you choose, or you could use it to your advantage." He rationalized. "I overheard Weasel and Weaselette talking about agreeing to some bribe from Dumbledore in return for continuing your friendship."

Harry laughed hysterically. "You actually expect me to believe that? You, who has done nothing but cause trouble for me and my friends, telling me that my friends, who have been so for years now, are betraying me? Ha, you're funny Malfoy, really, you are." Chuckling still, Harry breezed past Draco and headed towards his tables before he could say anything else.

Huffing in agitation, Draco straightened his robes and followed his example, instead heading towards the Slytherin tables, and sitting down between Pansy and Blaise. Blaise, who he had informed about the situation that morning while in their shared room, patted him quickly on the back before going to his meal again. Pansy, who didn't know, quirked an eyebrow in question before she too went back to her meal. They had known about is crush on Harry for a few years now and, even though they didn't exactly enjoy the idea, supported Draco. To this day, Draco was still shocked at how much they believed in him.

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A week later, Draco and Blaise were leaving the library after a study session when Draco noticed that Granger and the Weasley twins were sitting by themselves in a secluded corner of the library. Waving to Blaise, Draco headed for their table and dragged a chair to sit at the end of the table.

"I need to know if you know about what Weasel and Weaselette are doing." He said simply. All heads raised at the sound of his voice, and when he finished speaking, all eyes widened slightly.

"Now, how do you know about that when we only just found out about it last night?" One of the twins, he didn't know which, asked, distrust in his voice.

"I heard about it about a week or so ago. They don't really have the best tact, I must say."

"Well, yes; we know about that." Granger said, giving a quick, sharp glance at the twins before turning her gaze back at Draco and Blaise.

"Are you in on it?" Blaise asked, gazing back.

Granger slammed her book so loud it was a wonder the whole library didn't hear. "I am done talking to you if you are assuming I would do something that foul." She hissed through her teeth as she started packing. The twins, who looked just as angry but didn't act so, simply watched her.

"We meant no disrespect Granger." Draco drawled. Once he knew he had her attention again, he continued, "When I heard them talking about it, they didn't say anything about you. I had to assume the worst before the better."

Eyes still burning, Granger stiffly sat back down. "Why didn't you say that sooner then?" She said, voice equally as stiff as her body.

Blaise grinned at her, "Would you have believed us if you had done the same to us?" He asked sweetly, too sweetly in the Gryffindors' ears, but to Draco it was a sign that he was losing his patience.

"Blaise, calm down." He said simply, and continued for him while Blaise started to do what looked like a breathing exercise, "What he means is that we didn't know if you would lie to us or not."

Again one of the twins –he really needed to find out which was which- asked, "Why do you want to know so bad? After something, perhaps?"

Counting to ten, his own way of calming himself down, Draco gazed intently at the twin in question and answered, "I am not after anything. I just don't want to see… I don't want to see him any worse than he already is." It wasn't a lie, per se, but it wasn't exactly the full truth, either. I doubt it would go well if I told them I fancied him. Draco inwardly snorted at the idea. He quickly pulled his thoughts back to the topic at hand when he noticed Granger's eyes locked onto his face, her teeth nipping softly at her lips in an unconscious habit as she picked apart the problem that was, in this case, him.

Finally, she nodded. "I'll find the real reason later, but for now that will have to do."

Blaise chuckled, "If you can tell that already then I may just have to talk to you more later." Draco glared coolly at Blaise and he just laughed in return. Blaise already knew Draco fancied Harry Potter, but that didn't mean that others had to know too. Well, at least not yet, he amended. He was sure that soon enough he would gather enough Gryffindor courage floating around the castle to actually tell him how he feels. That wasn't for a while yet, but he could dream.

Standing with a nod towards the occupants of the table, Draco asked, "You going to come with me or stay with your new interest?"

"Oh, I think I'll stay." Blaise answered, not even glancing at him. Draco rolled his eyes and left the library.

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"Malfoy, do you mind?" Draco heard behind him a ways off. Turning, Draco scanned the empty courtyard between Hogwart's gates and the Great Hall until he found the source of the call, Granger. Walking to Granger near the gates instead of his original plan of walking to the Hall, Draco nodded slightly in acknowledgement.

"I need to know something; it has been bothering me for some time. Since the time you talked to me and the twins actually." She explained, going off into a tangent when the conversation wasn't going exactly as she had liked, from his guess.

Holding up his hand, palm facing her, Draco waited for her to notice and close her mouth. "What is it?" He asked, his tone slightly cold, offending the listener even though its true cause was from nervousness.

" I want to know the real reason why you want to help Harry." She deadpanned.

Draco rubbed the back of his neck in a sheepish manner, clearing his throat quietly. " You… You want to know that?" He questioned guiltily, his eyes unnoticeably darting around them to see if anyone was around.

"Yes, it seems exceedingly strange that you would want to help when you are… what you are," she finished lamely.

A flush crawled along his face, heating it with embarrassment and rage. "It wasn't like I had a choice, Granger," he angrily stated, "Just because I am in Slytherin and my father is one, does not mean I am in there willingly. If I had a choice, I would be far gone from here." Still angry, Draco turned to leave her to her thoughts.

"Wait, I didn't mean it like that. I just… Well, it's hard for me too, you know." Granger stated. She sighed, "Look, why don't we just start over or something."

Halting without turning to her, Draco asked, "How do you propose we do that?"

"Hi, my name is Hermione Granger. My friends call me 'Mione. What's your name?" He heard her ask.

Swiveling around to face her, he saw that she had her hand out for a hand shake. He slowly reached up to grasp it, shook it once, then said, "Hello. My name is Draco Malfoy. You can call me Draco." Shaking it once again, they both let go.

"So, Mal- Draco. Want to study with me later?" She asked.

He thought for a moment before replying, "Okay, meet you in the library, then, at the table where we first spoke, Hermione?"

Nodding and grinning, she went on up the path to the Great Hall while Draco sat on a nearby bench. He had a lot to think about and would rather do it in the secluded part of the courtyard instead of in the packed tables of the Great Hall.

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Later that evening, Hermione and Draco were sitting opposite each other, potions books, papers, and quills strewn across the table as if a tornado had just passed. Draco's hair was a mess, caused by the excessive amount of times he had ran his hand through the locks, while Hermione was chewing her lip again in agitation at some question or another. Some time into their study session, both the twins and Blaise had come to join them.

Glancing up in thought, Draco noted Blaise staring at Hermione as she furiously scribbled down words on her parchment, a small, soft smile on his lips. Cocking a brow, Draco shifted his gaze to the twins, who had noticed the same thing. Winking, the twins lowered their heads and got back to work. Draco smirked carefully, so as not to bring attention to his own self, before doing the same.

Another hour passed before both twins set down their quills and stretched with a long, suffering sigh. Earlier on, the twins had informed him that Fred always stood on the left and George on the right. This was how Hermione and Harry was able to tell who was who, being that she was the only person they told besides Draco and Blaise. They seemed to enjoy messing with their family, so no one in the Weasley family knew of the trick. They all planned to keep it that way, as it was indeed funny.

"I'm ready to go; what about you?" Fred asked George. George nodded, then both looked at Draco. "What about you?"

Draco grinned and began to collect his supplies. Once all three were finished, they gave a quick nod to Hermione and Blaise, who were not finished with their work, and left the library.

"Is it just me, or is Blaise acting like he is love struck?" George asked.

"No, no. It's not just you." Draco replied, a slight hint of laughter in his voice.

"What are we to do about it?" Fred asked, "And what are we to do about you and Harry?"

Draco stills, and glancing around fiendishly, whispers harshly, "How did you know?"

Both twins grin evilly, "Why, based off of your reaction, of course."

Draco groaned, "But why did you pick him of all people?"

"Well, hate to say it, but we knew for a while now. When was it, Fred? Last year or the year before?"

George snickered, "I believe it was the year before."

Draco groaned again, his shoulders hunching slightly. "Was I really that obvious?"

The twins laughed again, not answering because it was probably a rhetorical question anyway. Waving goodbye a while later, both parties headed to their respective common rooms.

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