Chapter 4

It was well known that Potions was Harry's least favorite class, and who could blame him? With Snape's cold glares, the daily potion mishaps, and the clear favoritism, it was no wonder every Gryffindor dreaded their Potion lessons.

But not Harry, not anymore at least. Over the past few weeks Harry and Snape formed a sort of...understanding. Or rather, Draco and Snape formed an understanding, and Harry was just the chess piece in the middle. Every single lesson was the same: it went like this:

Harry would enter the room and sit down.

Snape would glare and make a scathing comment.

Draco would sit next to Harry and glare at Snape.

Harry would sit back and smile innocently.

Snape would glare and snarl until class was dismissed.

Although it was better than what it used to be, Harry still found it tiresome, which was why he jumped at the chance of getting out of class, even if it was for the tournament.

Draco didn't seem as gratified as Harry. Then again, he still had to sit through another half-hour of potions. "You aren't going alone," Draco crossed his arms firmly. He had just began to stand when Snape's greasy voice interrupted.

"Unlike Potter, you do not have an excuse to skive off today's lesson," Snape said icily. Apparently favoritism only went so far.

"I'll see you at lunch, Draco!" Harry chirped happily and walked over to Collin who was standing at the door with saucer-like eyes.

"It's amazing, isn't it, Harry?" Colin chattered excitedly as they made their way up from the dungeon. "Isn't it, though? You being a champion?"

"Yeah, really amazing," Harry said snorted. It truly wouldn't have been so bad, had Draco not become even more protective of him. He could barely get Draco to leave him alone when he went to the bathroom, for Merlin's sake! That wasn't even the worst of it, either. His mate even had the audacity to kidnap him for an entire weekend! A weekend that was supposed to be dedicated to catching up on homework.

"By the way Colin, what's this even for?" he remembered to ask.

"Oh, they're taking pictures of all the Champions," Colin said enthusiastically. "Isn't that great?"

"Of course..." Harry trailed off then groaned inaudibly. So far his ears had remained relatively secret. Sure, all the students knew, and most likely their parents as well, but it wasn't like it had been publicly announced yet.

"Well, this is it," Colin said when they reached a closed door. "Good luck, Harry!"

"Thanks," Harry sighed as he stepped through the door.

Ass soon as he stepped inside Viktor and Cedric's eyes immediately flashed over to him. Apparently they could silently communicate because, after a second of staring at each other, Viktor looked away and Cedric rose to meet him.

"Hey, H-" Cedric's greeting was cut short as Bagman rushed forward and threw an uncomfortably heavy arm around him. Harry immediately caught Cedric's small frown, and looking over at Viktor, he noticed the Bulgarian was also sporting a distasteful look, although his could only be described as a possessive scowl.

"Ah, here he is!" Bagman cried, ushering Harry further into the room. "Champion number four! In you come, Harry, in you come. We'll begin weighing the wand in only a moment!"

Harry grimaced but didn't argue, letting himself be tugged into the center of attention. He looked around the room then scowled heavily when he saw her.

Rita Skeeter was sitting in the corner of the room, her sharp eyes lit with a keen interest as she observed the room. She turned and looked over towards Harry, drawn by Bagman's loud exclamation.

Harry groaned again flattered his ears against his head. The vibrant quill was already scratching away on the parchment, no doubt filling the pages with information on his transformation. He could see the headlines now…

Deciding that his sanity depended on him looking away from the moving quill, Harry quickly turned his attention to the grouping in the front of the classroom.

A long, velvet covered table took up most of the space in the front, barely leaving enough room for four chairs, three of which were filled with the other Champions.

With a resigned sigh Harry trudged over to the only remaining seat - right between Cedric and Viktor. Almost immediately after he sat down Cedric and Viktor turned towards him.

"Harry," Viktor nodded and offered him a smile that still managed to look serious.

"Viktor," Harry returned, barely holding back his resigned sigh. At least it was slightly more relaxing with Draco elsewhere. At the very least, he didn't have to worry about keeping his mate from picking a fight.

"It's good to-" Cedric got cut off for the second time that day by Dumbledore clearing his throat and rising from his seat. The four present judges quickly silenced as well and straightened in their seats.

Cedric frowned at being interrupted again but settled back into his seat, deciding to content himself with scooting his chair closer to Harry's.

Dumbledore took his seat as he introduced Mr. Ollivander. The old wand-maker stepped forward and asked to examine Fleur Delacour's wand first. Harry watched the process carefully and took out his own wand, resting it neatly on his knee.

Viktor and Cedric followed his movement and Harry barely stopped himself from blushing as their stares rose a little higher than was acceptable. He quietly cleared his throat and shifted, crossing one knee over the other and taking his wand in his hand.

Ollivander called up Cedric next and quickly evaluated his wand before handing it back and calling Viktor up. Cedric returned to his seat and offered Harry a smile.

"Good," Ollivander nodded as he twirled Viktor's wand in his hand. He gently ran along it's length for a few more seconds before handing it back with short nod. "Now, Mr. Potter. If you would?"

Harry stood from his seat and nervously walked over to Ollivander. He hadn't quite forgotten what the man said four years ago, and he didn't want the wand maker to announce it to everyone here. Especially not with the Daily Prophet's head writer siting in the corner.

"Of course, how I remember," Ollivander said, his eyes twinkling with enchantment and interest. "Such an rare occurrence..."

Harry winced and his ears flattened (much to his chagrin), but to his relief, Ollivander handed it back with nothing more said than a murmured 'thank you'.

He headed back to his seat then irritably fingered his ears. His lack of control over them had something left to be desired. Not only did they instantly let Draco know what he was thinking, but they were also bloody embarrassing!

Viktor and Cedric shared smirks and each reached up to lightly touch an ear.

"They are cute, kitten." Viktor said with rough amusement while Cedric nodding in agreement.

Harry resisted the temptation to slap their hands away. His ears were sensitive, and he didn't like anyone but Draco touching them.

After another thirty minutes of taking photos, Harry and the other Champions were finally free to go. Harry let out a relieved sigh and quickly left the rooms, not bothering to wave to Viktor and Cedric. He felt a little guilty. After all, they were both nice, but it would only encourage them.

When Harry got back to his rooms, he found Draco lounging on an armchair with a pile of letters beside him. Draco's head immediately popped up when he heard the door creak and a relieved expression crossed his face.

In one swift movement Draco rose form the chair and walked over to Harry, drawing him into a warm embrace. Harry purred and pushed closer to him, nuzzling his head in Draco's neck. He nudging his nose against the heated skin and breathed in Draco's wonderful scent. The scent of his dominant. It spoke of protection and warmth and safety, and Harry couldn't have loved it more.

Draco chuckled warmly and picked Harry up, carrying him over to the abandoned chair then pulling Harry onto his lap.

"I'm not very happy about you leaving, little one," he murmured after a few minutes of cuddling.

Harry pouted and nestled his body closer to Draco. "I had to, Draco. It was for the tournament."

Draco sighed and pressed his forehead against Harry's then lightly kissed him. "I still do not like it," he rumbled.

Harry hummed and pressed his lips back to Draco's for a hungrier kiss. Not being near Draco for awhile had an odd effect on his emotions. After a few more seconds he pulled away and smiled impishly, so maybe being away affected his hormones as well...

Draco snorted in amusement and kissed the tip of Harry's nose before drawing away slightly and moving Harry until the Gryffindor was resting against his chest and facing forward again. "While you were gone, an owl came for you," he informed Harry and he drew a folded up parchment from the pile on the table.

"Mmhn?" Harry took the offered letter and quickly opened it, finding it was from his Godfather and Remus. He groaned and pressed into Draco, his ears twitching in annoyance. He really didn't want to read this letter, especially after today's tiring events.

Out of all the people they'd told about their mating, Harry's surrogate guardians had the worst reaction. It wasn't that they weren't happy for him, on the contrary. They were ecstatic that Harry had come into an inheritance. It was Draco they had the problem with.

"Draco, you know we're going to have to tell Remus and Sirius, right?" Harry looked up from his bed and stared at Draco, who was helping him clean off his desk. Or rather, Draco was cleaning, and Harry was watching and occasionally adding input.

"Perhaps we should send them a letter," Draco straightened his back and walked over to the bed, quickly sitting down then pulling Harry on his lap.

"Draco! You can't tell them this over a letter," Harry scolded. "They'd be even more furious."

Draco snorted in amusement and pressed a kiss to Harry's head. "You're suggesting we tell them in person?" he asked skeptically.

"Yup!" Harry chirped then rose off the bed and tugged Draco up as well. "Come on, I'll send a letter and ask if I can meet them."

"You're what!" Sirius choked on his glass of firewhiskey and stared at Harry.

"That's wonderful, always did wonder why James didn't inherit it as well, though." Remus mused, mindlessly reaching out and patting the still choking Sirius on the back.

Harry shrugged and grinned at them both. "Do you know what I am?"

"Judging by the fluffy kitten ears atop your head, I'm going to assume you're a Neko," Sirius said dryly, then his expression filtered into a grin. "Congrats kiddo, I'm happy for you."

"Good!" Harry exclaimed happily. "Because I have something else to tell you. Draco, could you come out please?"

Remus and Sirius exchanged looks full of dread before returning their attention to Harry. "Wh-"

Draco stepped out and put his arm around Harry's waist. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Black" he said smoothly. "And it's a...pleasure to see you again Professor Lupin."

It only took a second for the information to sink in. "Your mate!" Sirius and Remus both shouted incredulously. "You can't be serious…"

Sirius opened his mouth but quickly thought better of it. "Your mate is...Draco Malfoy," he said weakly.

"His Dominant mate," Draco corrected, a smirk tugging at his lips. "Who will soon become Harry's bonded."

Silence, then..."BONDED!"

Suffice to say, Harry was in no way eager to read what they had to say. Sometimes Harry wondered if they had been extremely inventive that day, or if they had just been storing up torture methods, but whichever it was, even Draco had looked surprised at their level of creativity in their threats to him.

Draco seemed to sense his thoughts. "I suggest you open it sooner than later, love," he chuckled and tightened his arms around Harry's waist. "Have faith in the knowledge that this letter was meant for you, and therefore contains no threats. They love you. It's me they don't like."

Harry pouted and twisted his body so he could give Draco another kiss. "Too bad, 'cause they're just going to have to get used to you," he said stubbornly before facing forward once more.

Draco smirked and kissed the back of Harry's neck. "Indeed."

Harry let out a lengthy sigh, settling back into Draco's embrace, and began to read. And surprising, it wasn't as bad as he thought it would be. In fact, it was strangely pleasant towards Draco.

Dear Harry,

Sirius and I have talked in length, and we have decided to give Draco a chance. We do realize he is your mate, and as such, recognize that he will not be going anywhere. It would please the both of us if you would come and visit for your Spring Break. Make sure t-

Hey Kiddo!

Harry looked up from the letter and snorted in amusement. Of course his Godfather would just take the pen.

Hey Kiddo! How have you been doing? Malfoy hasn't hurt you, has he? Anyways, Remus is right. We would both love for you...and Malfoy to come visit us for Spring Break. I only saw you once this summer, and I can't wait to see you again. It'll be interesting to see if your Neko inheritance made you grow a tail or something.

Harry huffed in indignation. He did not have a tail!

As far as I can remember, your grandfather didn't have one, but you never know. He did, however, have matching ears like yours. If he could see you know I'm sure he would be so proud, as would your father. Well, Remus says we we have to go now, so I'll write you soon!

Love,

Sirius and Remus.

Draco took one look at Harry's beaming face then pulled the letter out of his slack hands. He quickly read through it and raised a delicate eyebrow. "I suppose we now have plans for Spring Break," he said blandly. He was unable to hold back his smile, however, when Harry turned to straddle him and threw his arms around his neck.

"You should look happier," he scolded, a brilliant smile still planted firmly on his face. "At the very least, Remus seems to have accepted you. Even Sirius was being friendly towards the idea of us."

Draco hummed in reply and grabbed Harry's chin gently before lowering his lips till they were barely grazing Harry's. "Good…" he whispered, his breath tickling Harry's lips.

Harry whined and tried to make their lips meet but Draco merely smirked and pulled away. "Draco!"

"Are you going to be good?" Draco asked, his gray eyes twinkling mischievously. Harry pouted and nodded, looking impatiently towards the blond.

Draco chuckled and bent forwards once again, his eyes silently warning Harry not to move. Harry huffed and flicked his ears impatiently. Another soft whine broke from his throat, but before he could complain again, Draco's lips pressed firmly against his.

Harry let out a soft whimper at the needed contact and more than willingly opened is mouth, allowing Draco's tongue to peak forward. Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's neck and melted into his embrace.

Draco pulled away a few seconds later and smiled down at Harry. "I love you, my little mate."

Harry purred and rested his head on Draco's shoulder. "Love you too," he smiled sleepily then settled into a more comfortable position, closing his eyes and letting out a quiet yawn. The heat of the fire was washing over him in pleasant waves, and Draco's soothing scent was surrounding him like a cloud. He didn't stand a chance. In a matter of minutes Harry was soft asleep against Draco's chest.

Draco chuckled and affectionately rubbed the fluffy ears. Harry was simply adorable, adorable and all his.