"I have decided to try a little something new to improve some of your potions scores, lest the headmaster think that I'm not teaching you little whelps well enough. For the next few weeks, we will try assigned pairs. Granger and Weasley, Parkinson and Goyle, Crabbe and Bullstrode," Snape continued down his list, checking off names until he came to "Potter and Malfoy."
Both Harry and Draco shot killer looks at Snape, and vowed under their breath to strangle the headmaster, for they both knew that he had suggested this farce to Snape.
Everyone moved to sit with their assigned partners; many with dirty looks for their partner and for the professor and class began.
Draco put Harry to work doing menial tasks like peeling shrivel figs and skinning and chopping slugs. With Harry's careful preparations, and not having to worry about Malfoy dropping something into his cauldron to make it explode, the two managed to be the first pair done with their potion, and finished it perfectly.
"Good work I suppose Potter." Malfoy said.
"Thanks Malfoy, Potions is much easier when *someone* isn't throwing things into my cauldron to make it explode when I'm not looking." Harry replied with a grin.
Draco snickered and headed out of the Potions classroom, toward the Slytherin dorms. Harry followed him out, but headed up to Gryffindor tower, deciding to use his free period to take a nap, rather than heading out to fly with Ron.
When he entered the common room, Hermione was perched on an overstuffed arm chair, waiting to pounce on him. She jumped up and chased him up the stairs toward his dorm, until he gave up and stopped to see what she wanted.
"Where on Earth were you last night Harry? Ron said you woke up, paced around the common room for a little while, and then headed out, refusing to tell him where you were going, or let him go with you." Hermione said, her voice getting louder and louder with every passing word.
"Calm down Hermione, I went down to the kitchens. I had a nightmare and couldn't sleep, so I went down and talked to Dobby for a while, so that I wouldn't disturb anyone in the tower. I figure most people like their sleep, don't you?" He explained away.
Hermione gave him a look that he knew meant that they're talk wasn't over, and she didn't believe him, but she stepped aside to allow him to head up the stairs to his dorm. Once he reached his room, Harry climbed into bed and pulled the drapes around his bed shut and cast a silencing charm, just incase he had any dreams and made any noises that he wouldn't want anyone else to hear, and fell directly to sleep.
An hour and a half later Harry woke up, very thankful that he didn't have a repeat of the dream from the night before. He wasn't quite sure that he could handle going to Transfiguration directly after a dream like that.
He rushed out of the common room and down the hall to Professor McGonagall's classroom.
When he entered, everyone was standing to one side of the room, and the Professor was reading off a list of names quite similar to the one that Professor Snape had read off in his class. Harry knew by the annoyed look on Draco's face that McGonagall had given a speech similar to the one Snape had given. He vowed then and there to yell at the headmaster after dinner.
"Potter and Malfoy," McGonagall called out, and Harry moved to once again sit with Draco. This time it was Harry's turn to coach Malfoy on proper wand waving and pronunciations to get their transfigurations right. They managed to turn three teacups into mice and then back to teacups, before they spoke about anything other than their work.
'You know we're going to be stuck together until we either go mad anyway, or give in and fuck," Draco told Harry. "Seems like they're not going to let us get any time apart, except when we're asleep. Sticking us together in all our classes. Ridiculous if you ask me."
"I wonder if Madame Pomfrey will give us a couple of beds here at the school in our own little ward, of if we'll be shipped off to St. Mungo's," Harry asked Draco.
They both laughed, and earned themselves a few odd looks from the pairs of students around them, and Professor McGonagall as well. They looked at each other and shrugged. They were quiet for the rest of the lesson and headed to lunch and their separate house tables after transfiguration, both missing the knowing smile on Professor Dumbledore's face as he watched them from the head table.
