Harry tore around the seventh year dorms. He couldn't find his invisibility cloak. It was 9:45 and he needed to get down to the Slytherin common room. Where was it? He felt around his chest and his bureau. Nothing.

The door opened and Harry turned to see Ron coming in. "Ron! Have you seen my invisibility cloak?"

Ron looked stunned. "Er…er…no, I don't think so."

"Damn it! I can't find it and I need to go!"

"It's not in your chest?" Harry shook his head. "Or the bureau?" Another shake. "Did you leave it out by that bush again, below the hoops?"

"No."

"Did you check?"

"No."

"I suggest you do."

Harry looked indignant. "It isn't there!"

"You can't know that until you check!"

"Fine!" He swung around, grabbed his green cloak, and headed out of the room, swirling the cloak over his shoulders. Halfway down the hall, he felt a square of padding bump up against his hip. "Ah-ha!" He pulled the cloak off, dug the invisibility cloak out of the secret pocket he had put it in the week before, and sprinted back to the seventh year dorms. He opened the door and stuck his head in. "Found it!" He tossed the green cloak onto the nearest bed and bolted.

He turned the last corner so fast he almost fell down the stairs. 10:05. He was late. And there was Draco, standing by a statue, just outside the common room, looking nervously up and down the hall. Harry ran, panting, up to him.

"Sorry I'm late."

Draco jumped. "What!? Who's there? Potter?"

"Oh! Sorry." He pulled off the cloak. "Invisibility cloak." He indicated the fabric in his hand.

Harry saw Draco try to hide the admiration in his eyes. This was probably the first one the blonde had ever been close enough to touch. "This explains a lot you know, Potter."

Harry chuckled. "Here, unfortunately, it's not all that big. Back in first year, Ron, Hermione, and I all fit under it. I think the two of us can manage it. You'll just have to stay really close."

Draco looked slightly alarmed.

"Don't worry. I don't bite. You'll have to be behind me anyway, you don't know where we're going."

"Wh-Where are we going?" Draco was starting to look very suspicious. Harry was starting to feel equally conspicuous, standing out in the hall like this.

"Just to an empty classroom, with chalkboards so we can talk plays. Come on, get under before someone comes."

Draco, somewhat hesitantly, stepped behind Harry. He swung the cloak around them and checked their feet. All four were showing to the ankles. "You're going to have to stick closer, crouch over." They readjusted. Harry checked again, another inch or so would do it. He stepped back and bumped into Draco, throwing him off balance. He braced himself for Draco to fall, just as he noticed Snape coming around the corner. "Shit."

Then, thankfully, he felt Draco's hands on his hips, righting the Slytherin just in time. He took off down the hall, keeping close to the wall as they passed Snape.

They made their way along the halls thus, Draco's hands mysteriously remaining on Harry's hips. Harry found himself concentrating on the directions to the room he had chosen. He had planned on checking again to make sure it was empty before they went, but he hadn't known how insane things were going to get when he made the date with Draco.

Had he just thought that? How did the words 'date' and 'Draco' ever get in the same sentence? He shook his head to clear the thought.

"Are we lost, Potter?" Draco's voice had a nervous edge to it and his grip tightened. Harry almost involuntarily stopped walking. Memo to self, get a girl. Maybe then this will stop.

"No, we're not lost." His voice was somewhat strained. "It's right…here." He pushed aside a tapestry to reveal a door. The stepped inside and he pulled off the cloak. "Er…you can let go now, Draco."

Draco jumped back, shouting back on the defensive. "Since when am I 'Draco'?"

Harry thought about that. Really, he had been thinking of him as Draco for some time now, he just didn't usually say it out loud. When did this happen? Before the dare. He stopped that train of thought. "Since…we're friends, right?"

Draco looked very cautious at this question. "Yes, I…suppose so."

"Then you should call me Harry, too." He saw the indecisive look on Draco's face. He held out his hand. "Let's start over. Hi, I'm Harry."

Draco looked at him funny, and then took his hand in a strong grip. "Draco."

"Nice to meet you Draco. I'm sure we can be great friends."

Draco snorted. Harry started laughing. Soon, the two of them were laughing so hard they were crying. Harry was the first to catch his breath. "We'll come back to the friends thing. So, quidditch."

"Right, quidditch."

It got quiet in the room. Harry suddenly missed the laughter of moments before. "You…were looking for some advice?"

Draco got indignant. "Malfoys don't need advice! I was…just looking for…some…pointers." He finished lamely.

Harry nodded. "Right, pointers." They sat for another moment. "Er…what on?"

Draco fished and came up empty. "Well, what do you think the team needs help with?"

"Well…they could use to work together better."

"How do you get your team to work together?" Draco sat on the sill of one of the windows. Harry joined him.

"Can I say, you know, whatever I think?"

Draco looked at him questioningly. "Yes…Harry. Feel free."

"Then, first, I think you need to start with your attitude."

"My attitude?" Draco looked offended for a moment, then relaxed. "How so?"

"As captain, you set the team's tone. First, there's the way you treat Pansy."

"Parkinson?"

"Yes. Baddon and Nott aren't going to treat her like a teammate until you do."

Draco scoffed. "I told you before, Harry, she's only there because her father –"

"That shouldn't matter, Draco. You still have to work as a team. If Hermione heard you saying all of that about girls and quidditch, she would be after you like she is with the house elves."

Harry hadn't even noticed bringing Hermione up, but this could be convenient. Draco shifted, putting a foot up in the corner of the windowsill and moving a little more toward the center. Harry mimicked the move and they were sitting back to back, pressed up against each other.

"House elves?"

Harry began to tell Draco about S.P.E.W.

"Spew?"

"Yeah, she's bright, but sometimes…" He continued, filling Draco in on her whole escapade. His thought when he put Hermione on the list was that she was Draco's only competition for top of the class. Harry figured that Draco respected her for her smarts and the formidable challenge she presented. Secondarily, he had long suspected that Draco may want Hermione as his own, though he doubted that the pureblood would admit any attraction to a muggle-born.

As Harry finished telling Draco about S.P.E.W., they had another healthy round of laughter. It died, as before, and the boys lapsed into silent thoughts. After a moment, Draco turned his head to look somewhat over his shoulder at Harry. "You know," he spoke quietly, almost confidentially, "she's always seemed rather nice."

Ah-ha! He did like her! And she was it! Harry had finally figured it out!

"She seems so accepting and easy to talk to."

Strike that; celebration started too early.

"Yeah, she can be great."

Another comfortable silence fell, and never lifted. The two seventeen-year-olds fell asleep, back to back, on the sill.