A/n:

This story was written for the fluffy Halloween fest at LJ, for marianna_merlo's prompt "Draco's friends dare him to go into the Forbidden Forest on Halloween, and he does it to prove his manliness. But he is super scared. Maybe Harry will save him?"

A huge thank you to my beta susannah_wilde who pointed out a major plothole. Any remaining mistakes are my own.

"He's just so brave!" Daphne said. "I don't think anything can scare him. Not even tonight!"

Millicent grunted her agreement.

"I know! Harry's so brave!" Astoria sighed, and looked over her shoulder towards the gryffindor table. When she didn't find Potter there, her face fell.

Draco sneered and rolled his eyes. He could have told her that Potter wasn't in the Great Hall. Ever since they had returned for their 8th year, the girls had been talking about nothing but Harry Potter. Even Pansy had grudgingly admitted that she thought the git was hot, in a scruffy sort of way. Draco didn't want to hear about how brave or hot or heroic Potter was, he thought morosely. Not because he disagreed. Because he didn't. Potter was extremely hot. And a good kisser. And very brave, when it came to trying new things. Draco knew this from personal experience. And that was the problem. Harry was his, and the girls should bloody well keep their greedy claws to themselves. Unfortunately he couldn't tell them that, since he and Potter had an unspoken agreement to keep their... what ever it was that they had... a secret.

He cast around in his head for something extremely scary, that didn't involve killing megalomaniacs or snakes or anything else that Potter was apparently good at. He couldn't really come up with anything, but he couldn't really let the girls go on with their hero-worship either.

"I don't think he's that brave, actually. I'm sure he'd be too scared to, say, go into the forbidden forest on Halloween."

The girls just stared at him. Astoria was frowning, like the concept of Potter being scared was difficult to comprehend, Pansy was trying to hide a smirk, and Daphne looked faintly amused. Millicent looked... bored.

"Oh, and I suppose you could go in there, tonight, on Halloween, without pissing your pants?" Blaise asked. Draco rolled his eyes. Why did Blaise always have to meddle?

"Yes, Blaise, of course I could. Unfortunately, I don't have the time for such excursions tonight. You see, there's the little detail of a certain Halloween Ball. I'm sure my dancing partner will be most disappointed if I'm not there." He glared at Blaise, willing him to back off, but it was Theo Nott who answered.

"Speaking like you have a stick up your arse doesn't make you sound like less of a coward, Malfoy!"

Stupid Theo! He'd never really gotten over the whole Narcissa-and-Draco-Malfoy-changing-sides-at-the-last-possible-moment-and-Harry-Potter-testifying-for-them thing, which had made the Notts the most prominent Death Eater family left, and led to their rapid social deroute after the war.

"Take that back, Nott! I'm not a coward, and you know it!"

"Then prove it! Go into the forest and bring back proof that you were there."

"Ha! Easy! What proof do you want?"

"Acrumantula silk!"

"Fine! I'll get it for you."

"Fine!"

"Fine!" Draco pushed his chair back and stormed out of the great hall. He sagged against the wall next to the hourglasses in the entry hall. Shit! Shit shit shit. Why had he let Theo provoke him like that? He'd been called a coward so many times, especially by Potter, that he had to prove that he wasn't one. But he hadn't exactly planned to do it by making a scene in the middle of the great hall, and then storming off into the forbidden forest. He really had to work on his impulse control. Well, that was too late now. He would just have to get on with it. He pushed away from the wall, squared his shoulders and marched through the doors and towards the forest, clutching his wand in a deathgrip.

"Potter!"

Harry turned around and was surprised to see Pansy Parkinson hurrying along the corridor to catch up to him. He must have looked as confused as he felt, because Pansy took her time rolling her eyes at him, before she spoke.

"It's Draco! He lost at pissing contest with Theo and Blaise, and now he's marched off into the forbidden forest."

"Ehrm..."

"Don't be an idiot, Potter. Draco's new found saviour-shagging hobby is a secret. Therefore every half-decent slytherin knows about it."

She rolled her eyes again for good measure and walked off, at a much more dignified pace than before. When Harry just stood there, frozen, she called back over her shoulder:

"Well, don't just stand there, Potter. Go and save him! That is what you do, isn't it. Saving people?"

Harry blinked a few times, trying to clear his head after the shock of finding out that all of Slytherin House knew about him and Draco being... what ever it was that they were. Then the rest of her words registered in his brain and he took off at at sprint towards the forest.

Harry tried to keep calm and rational, but his brain kept sabotaging him by concocting the most horrible scenarios. His mind was racing with images of Draco, trampled by a heard of centaurs. Draco mauled by a werewolf. Draco, dead from an acrumantula bite and being eaten by giant spiders. Oh Merlin! Giants! What if Draco was captured by giants? Harry squinted into the darkness and strained his ears. He had to find him, before it was too late.

A faint shout in the distance broke the eerie silence under the ancient trees. Harry wanted to sprint towards it, but he forced himself to creep slowly through the undergrowth, careful not to disturb the inhabitants of the forest more than necessary. It seemed to take forever, but finally he was close enough to see that Draco was standing with his back pressed up against the trunk of a huge oak. He seemed unharmed, but he was whimpering quietly and his usually ivory coloured skin had taken on a greenish tinge. He was staring wide eyed at something, that was hidden in the wilted grass in front of him.

"Draco?" Harry wispered. "What is it?"

"S-s-snake!" Draco wispered back, his gaze never leaving the ground.

Harry slowly inched close, until he was close enough to grab Draco's hand. Draco gripped back, his palm clammy and cold.

"P-please, Harry. Please get it away from me!"

From this angle he could clearly see the snake. It was a small adder, not bigger than his wand. It was curled up on the ground, staring at Draco just as fearfully as Draco was staring at it. Harry closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to concentrate. He hadn't spoken parseltongue since he defeated Voldemort, and he wasn't sure this would work. He opened his eyes and focussed on the little snake.

"Hello, little friend."

The snake slowly lifted it's head and blinked at him.

"Hello wizzzard."

"Why are you out on sssuch a cold day, little friend? Don't you have a warm place to sssleep?"

"The pale wizzzard is standing in front of my sssleepingplace."

"If I tell him to move away, will you let him pass without biting him?"

"Yesss."

Harry looked up and saw that Draco was staring at him. He smiled and gestured to the snake.

"She promised me she won't bite you if you move. She's cold and she wants to go to sleep, but you're standing in her way."

Draco didn't really answer, he just barked a sharp, hysterical laugh and shook his head.

"Come on Draco! Just move towards me slowly..." Harry tugged gently on Draco's hand, and he finally started moving, creeping along the wide tree trunk until he was close enough to collapse into Harry's embrace. Draco sagged against him, with his head burrowed against Harry's throat, and Harry tightened his arms around him and buried his cold nose in whispy strands of blond hair, that smelled like fresh air and Draco. Over the top of Draco's head he could see the snake slithering towards a small hole at the root of the giant oak.

"I hate snakes" Draco murmured against his jumper. "You probably think I'm a coward." Harry could feel the cold air against his collarbone, when Draco raised his head and glared at him defianty.

"Draco! You were living in the same house as Nagini last year. I think it's perfectly rational for you to be terrified of snakes." He could feel Draco's tense shoulders relaxing minutely.

"How did you know I was out here, anyway?"

"Parkinson told me."

"Pansy?" Draco's eyes widened comically.

"Yes." Harry still couldn't really believe the strange conversation had really happened. "She told me that all the slytherins knew about us, and she sort of ordered me to save you. She's a bit bossy, isn't she?"

"Yes, I suppose she is. She's nothing compared to Granger, though."

"Point taken!" Harry said with a smile.

"I didn't tell her about us, though. I swear I haven't told anyone." Draco was looking really nervous and biting his lip. He looked like he was afraid Harry would be angry. Harry frowned. Why would he think that?

"I never wanted this to be a secret, Draco! You're the one who doesn't want people to know."

"I don't want it to be a secret either. I'm not ashamed to be seen with you, you know. This saving people thing comes in quite handy sometimes. Besides, you've been at the top of Witch Weekly's Most eligible Bachelors list every month since the war. And you're not exactly hard to look at." Draco shrugged, but he looked much more at ease.

"Really?" Harry couldn't help the hopeful lilt to his voice and hoped that Draco didn't think he sounded like he was angling for compliments. Even though he was, in a way. It was just so hard to believe, that Draco really thought about him that way.

"Yes, really." Draco was smiling now. Harry could feel his mouth stretch into an answering smile as he leaned in for a kiss.

"You're not exactly bad looking either, you know." he whispered.

"But I think it's your turn to save me now. I really hate this forest! Especially tonight. I was so scared, when I walked around in here all alone, trying to find you. I kept imagining the most horrible things. I just want to go back to the castle. I brought my broom, but I have no idea where we are. Do you think you can fly us back?"

"Of course I can. Just promise me that you'll tell everybody about my heroic saviour-saving. Especially Theo and Blaise!" Draco said.

"I promise," Harry said, as he settled in on the broom behind Draco and hid his smile by burrowing his face into the hood of Draco's cloak.