Thank you for the reviews! I love the feedback!
Rework of previous chapters: I realized I made an error with the construction of the tunnels so I revised the earlier chapters' descriptions of them. There is no longer a split in the middle of the Gryffindor & Slytherin tunnels, instead there are two additional tunnel entrances into the locker room that Draco has never explored. Makes more sense for upcoming chapters.
The Next Day
Harry was perched in one of the wind-protected alcoves in the courtyard when Cedric found him. Harry looked up from his book and smiled as the sixth-year Hufflepuff approached him.
"I figured you would come looking for me today." Harry swung his legs down to make room for Cedric who hopped up on the ledge next to him. The sun shown down brightly on the courtyard keeping the November chill at bay.
"You made it tough enough, this was the last place I could think to look."
"Sun. Don't get many days like this in winter at Hogwarts."
Cedric nodded and didn't say anything more. They both sat next to each other without talking, Harry knew that Cedric would wait until he was ready to talk. Harry finally broke the silence.
"So, how did you know? That Draco... That I..." Harry flushed and stopped talking.
Cedric laughed, he had a rich, deep laughter that always startled Harry with how warm it was. Cedric was someone who enjoyed life and wasn't afraid to show it. "How did I know that you and Draco might be interested in each other? Honestly, Harry, I'm amazed that the whole school doesn't know..."
Harry looked over alarmed, "Don't worry, they don't. Most people see what they expect to see. I was listening to you sniping at each other at the World Cup and it caught my interest. And you and I had already talked." Cedric shrugged, "You and Draco were so aware of each other, the tension between you was tangible."
"Yeah, but most people think that it is because we hate, well because it seems like we hate each other." Harry said, staring out at the lake. Even he wasn't sure when his interest in Draco had changed from dislike to fascination.
"That is just the surface." Cedric pointed towards the lake, "Look out there, you would never know there are merpeople, giant squids, and more below the surface. I bet you were -are conscious of Draco at every point of the day. You know what he has for breakfast, class schedule, habits. And he knows all of yours. Either you both were really scary stalkers or you were really interested in each other."
"Is that why you agreed to help?" Harry asked. "To help with the Imperius curse?"
Cedric looked over at Harry, "To be honest, I wasn't going to do it, but after I talked to Draco I knew he would resort to any way possible to convince you to help him. And I was afraid that you two might hurt each other if there wasn't someone there to help intervene." Harry nodded at that, they had come close to fighting that first time.
"Have you talked about how you are going to handle it? I assume that yesterday wasn't a...fluke." Cedric asked cautiously.
"We are going to do the same as we have been doing, fighting upstairs, see each other downstairs." Harry shrugged, "Really can't see anyway around it. The Slytherins and, I have to be honest, Gryffindors would both go crazy if they found out. And with me," Harry looked down at his hands, "Everything I do catches the attention of the newspapers. And then there is Draco's father...there really is no choice."
"Do you think that will work?" Cedric asked.
Harry looked over at him, "What do you mean?"
"You both are … let's call it intense. To have a relationship and not be able to be open about it. To hide it from even your friends, it makes things much more difficult"
"Why is it going to be a problem?" Harry was feeling defensive, even though he had been wondering some of the same things himself.
"Well, look around your common room, the hallways, the Great Hall. Watch those couples who are in a relationship, straight, bent, any of them. You'll see them together but talking with friends, sharing meals together at each other's house tables, in study groups together. But they are also interacting with everyone else. It allows the couple to learn about each other, through interacting with each other's friends. It is all part of healthy relationships.
"You and Draco having to fight upstairs and then being alone downstairs in the Quidditch locker room? I don't want to embarrass you but I'll just be blunt, you run the risk of moving really fast, er, physically, and the emotional side of the relationship might be forgotten. But to make a real relationship work you have to have both... There is a thin line between love and hate, you have crossed over from one side to the other, I would hate to see you cross back."
"So you don't think that we should..." Harry looked out at the lake, a frown on his face.
"No, I'm not saying that at all, I just think you need to be aware of it and find away to balance everything."
"Would you want to come down and study with us sometimes? Harry asked hesitantly.
"I could do that, I really enjoyed spending time with you too, won't miss the Imperius part though. I was wondering..." Cedric looked at Harry almost embarrassed.
"What?"
"I would really love to learn how to conjure a Patronus." Harry laughed, "No, I'm serious. They don't even teach that to seventh years. I would love to try."
"Draco said he wanted to learn too," Harry said, "I don't know if I can teach you, but I can tell you what Lupin taught me."
Cedric smiled and held out his hand, "I think you truly underestimate your teaching abilities. Set it up with Draco, I can't wait to start."
Cedric hopped down from the ledge and looked up at Harry, "Think about what I said, talk to Draco about it. Let me know if you want to talk about anything."
Over the next few days it became clear how difficult it would be get time alone with Draco. Ron was eager to make up for three weeks of not talking by spending every minute with Harry. Hermione was already suspicious about how much time he had spent "studying" with Cedric.
Harry had spent much of the last week wondering about how everything had changed so quickly. He had kissed Draco Malfoy. Draco Malfoy had kissed him. After more than a year of wondering, of being unsure about whether or not he was gay, he had kissed another boy. He had kissed Malfoy and it had just felt so right. He could still remember the feel of Draco's body against his and just wanted more. Why he had even spent any time worrying about being gay? Anything that felt so good, so right, so brilliant couldn't be wrong.
Harry saw Draco coming down the hallway and tensed, Draco's campaign to give him hell hadn't relented throughout the week. To the glee of their fellow students and the consternation of Ron and Hermione, they had faced off four times, nearly coming to blows the last time.
Harry thought he was going to get past him without a problem when Draco grabbed him and shoved him against the wall. It felt so alike what had happened down in the locker room that Harry had to force himself to remember that they were in the middle of the second floor corridor and about 50 students were watching them. "What is your problem, Malfoy?"
"My problem is you, Potter." Harry had almost laughed at Draco. He hoped he knew what the real problem was, the fact that they hadn't been able to talk or see each other for the whole week.
"What are you going to be about it then?" Harry asked, biting his lip to keep from smiling.
Draco pushed him harder, "What I should have done years ago..." Harry shoved himself away from the wall, breaking Draco's grip on his shirt.
"Oh yeah, and what is that?" Harry circled around Draco, pulling his wand out.
"Oh, what are you going to do, hex me in? No magic in the hallways, Potter, surely you remember the rules." As he spoke Draco pulled out his own wand.
"When have the rules ever stopped you? Just name the time and place, Malfoy." Harry threatened.
"You want to meet-" Draco was cut off as Mad Eye Moody stomped down the corridor.
"I thought you learned your lesson about threatening students, Malfoy! Perhaps you've forgotten what it felt like to be a ferret." Moody stopped inches from Draco. Moody's magic eye whirled around to look at the other students. "Clear out, all of you! What are you do standing around here."
Harry slid his wand back into his pocket. "It is my fault Professor Moody, I, er, started it."
Moody swiveled his eye to look at Harry. "You did, did you?"
"Yes, sir." Harry shrugged, and nodded.
"Well, clear out the lot of you." Moody stomped down the corridor, dragging his wooden leg behind him. Draco sagged in relief, and Harry gave a quick smile and walked away. He slipped his hand into his pocket to retrieve the note that Draco had slipped him when he'd first pushed Harry against the wall.
"Tonight. 8 o'clock. Downstairs."
Harry smiled to himself as he headed towards Transfigurations.
Draco was already in the office when Harry came through the tunnel. He hesitated at the doorway to the office. "Hey,"
Draco leaned back in the chair and smiled. "Hey, yourself. Are you just going to stand there?"
Harry smiled and shook his head, walking into the office. "What's wrong?" Draco asked.
"Nothing," Harry shrugged, coming over to Draco and hopped on top of the desk next to him. "It is just that it has been so long that I'd started thinking that I had dreamed the other night." Draco smiled and stood up and leaned against Harry, putting his hands on either side of Harry on the desk. He leaned forward. "Well, maybe you did. What exactly did you dream?"
Harry took a deep breath, it had taken him a while to get used to Friendly Draco and now Teasing Draco was making his pulse race. "Hmmm. This," he leaned forward to kiss Draco, his hands pulling Draco's head forward. Draco nipped at his lower lip.
"Funny, I dreamed about the exact same thing. What else?' Harry looked nervously at Draco's teasing eyes. "Oh, erm, this." Harry closed his eyes and kissed Draco again, running his tongue against Draco's lips. Draco opened his mouth and their tongues twinned together. Harry fisted his hands in Draco's hair, forcing his head closer.
"Easy with the hair, Potter," Draco growled, breaking the kiss. "Don't want it looking like yours when we're done." Harry wrapped his arms around Draco instead, pulling his body closer.
"I definitely dreamed about messing with your hair, always too damn perfect." Harry replied.
"Well, that is where your memory and fantasies have gotten confused." He lifted his eyes to look at Harry's unruly mop. "Seriously, what is up with your hair? Do you want to know how much time I spent trying to figure out how anyone's hair can always look like same chaotic mess? I was sure you were making it look like that on purpose just to annoy me."
"Ditto with you and your hair." Harry laughed back, "Even during Quidditch your hair never dared be out of place. "
"That is what pureblood breeding will do for you. Perfect grooming at all times." Draco ran his hands up Harry's back. "Any idea how annoying it is to sit across the tables from you at breakfast every morning and wanting to come over and kiss you good morning."
"Fairly good idea, since you hexed me three times this week leaving breakfast." Harry grumbled. "Really, three times? Don't you think that is a little overkill?"
"Three words. Green. Fucking. Canary." Draco growled, "You are lucky I don't hex you every morning until the end of the school year." Harry couldn't help but burst out laughing at the memory of the feather covered Draco.
"You should thank me, everyone has forgotten about you turning into a ferret." Harry smiled.
"Right, and now everyone just makes tweeting noises at me as I walk by." Draco snarled. "At least ferrets don't make any noise."
Harry reached out and kissed the snarl off his face. There was no more talking until Draco broke away, breathing hard. "Fuck."
Harry couldn't argue. Draco was leaning against him, and he could tell that Draco was as excited as he was. He shifted his body, trying to get more comfortable. They stood in place, their foreheads touching trying to catch their breath. Harry closed his eyes to clear his thoughts. "Did Cedric talk to you, too?"
"Yea, nosy prat." Draco mumbled.
"What do you think?"
"Right now, or before you got here? A half hour ago I was thinking that he may have had a point. Now?" Draco pushed his hips suggestively against Harry. "I think that he has forgotten what it is like to be 14 and feeling like this."
"What point did you think was a good one?" Harry asked, forcing himself to look at Draco.
Draco sighed, his gray eyes dark "That I have spent the last year wanting to get to know you, wanting to know what it was like to be able to walk up and kiss you. I don't want to blow this and having you hate me again."
"Me, too,"
"So, where does that leave us?"
"Taking it a slowly? Studying?" Harry laughed, "Not that I could write a cohesive sentence right now."
"I have a better idea. I need a way to let you know when I need to see you. Notes are too risky."
Harry nodded., Draco went on, "And Granger and Weasley never leave your side these days."
"What about Goyle and Crabbe?" Draco grimaced, "Yeah, they are just as bad. A lot slower on the uptake though."
They finally came up with the idea of just using an insult using either 'ferret' or 'scarhead'. And then indicating the floor to meet and in how many minutes as part of the conversation or hand signals. They picked a spot and back up spot on each floor that was usually empty.
"Think anyone will catch on?" Harry asked.
"Only if they catch us in one of the alcoves, and then I can just punch you." Draco said easily, sliding his arms around Harry. "Snogging, fighting not much difference."
"No? Personally I prefer the snogging."
OoOOOOoO
Harry climbed the stairs out of the kitchen with Hermione and Ron. He couldn't believe that Dobby and Winky were working in the Hogwarts kitchens. Hermione was excitedly talking about S.P.E.W. and how if Dobby could be paid it would open the doors to house elf rights.
Harry was paying no attention to her, his mind was focused on the archway he had seen on the far side of the kitchen while he had been talking to Dobby. The archway that had stones carved with snitches. Could it be another tunnel to the locker room? He was going to have to ask Draco, maybe even bring him into the kitchen and try to get through to the tunnels that way. It would be good to have another way in and out of the locker room, it was getting tougher and tougher to sneak into the Gryffindor common room.
OoOOoOOo
Harry walked out of McGonagall's classroom thoroughly confused. A dance. He had to bring someone to the Yule Ball. He didn't even know how to dance let alone who to invite to one. He knew somehow that Draco was going to find this hilarious. His mind briefly flashed to he and Draco walking into the Great Hall together. Okay, that was funny. He could imagine the stunned expressions on everyone's faces. The deafening silence. The roar as everyone in the room realized what was happening. That would be pretty funny. Impossible, but funny.
"What's the matter, Potter, did McGonagall transform your pet Weasley into a rat?"
Harry rolled his eyes and turned to face Draco who was coming down the hall with Crabbe and Goyle. He did not understand why, of all the Slytherins, Draco chose to spend the most time with those two lumps of clay.
"No, Draco, I was just standing here wondering how long it was going to take you to turn back into a ferret. My guess is four maybe five minutes at the most."
Harry walked past Draco, their shoulders just grazing each others. He counted to ten and then turned around. Draco was looking over his shoulder and nodded and turned back. Harry continued down the hall with a smile on his face.
Harry quickly went down the corridor and ran up the staircase to the fifth floor. The corridor was empty with most fourth year students having a free hour before lunch. He slowly walked down the corridor until he came to the tapestry of the mead-drinking monks. Checking that the corridor was empty he quickly ducked behind the tapestry. Not for the first time Harry was amused by how many tapestry covered alcoves there were at Hogwarts. Great for snogging and private conversations, strange that the faculty didn't mind them.
Draco ducked in a minute later. He looked over at Harry who was sitting on the window ledge. Draco hesitated a moment and then came over to him and kissed him lightly ."What's up?"
Harry flashed him a nervous smile.
"Did you know there was going to be a Yule Ball?"
"Of course, not exactly a secret. Why?"
"Did you know the Triwizard Champions have to bring dance partners and dance the first dance?"
Draco burst out laughing, "Oh, I'm not going to miss that for anything."
"Yea, I pretty much figured that would be your reaction." Harry grumbled.
Draco tilted his chin up and kissed him, "Who are you going to take?"
"You?" Harry smiled into the kiss.
"Not bloody likely." Draco leaned against Harry, pushing him against the window. "Second choice?"
"I don't know! Who am I supposed to ask to a dance? A girl? Right? It has to be a girl?"
"Better be, or I'm going to be very upset with you." Draco murmured in his ear.
"Not to mention how many other problems that would cause." Harry grumbled.
"Right. So, who is going to be the lucky girl? Granger?"
"Hermione? No, that would be too weird. Wait. Who are you going to bring?"
"Easy. Pansy. "
"She better not be easy." Harry scowled at the blond who still had him trapped against the window.
"Oh, she is, but she knows I'm not interested. She and I practically grew up together, took dance lessons, I think Mother even hoped that we would end up together.
"That's the other problem! Doesn't matter who I ask, I've never danced a step in my life! How am I supposed to dance in front of everyone!" Harry pulled his hand through his hair. Draco caught his hand and kissed it.
"What do you mean you've never danced? Surely Muggles dance."
"Of course, they do, but it is not like I've ever been to a dance let alone had dance lessons. This is hopeless, I'm going to look like an idiot out there."
"No, you won't, I'll-" Draco whipped his head around at the sound of voices coming from the corridor. He pushed away from Harry and drew his wand. Harry pulled his out and pointed it at Draco just as the tapestry pulled back revealing two giggling Hufflepuff third years.
"I'm warning you, Potter, don't try a stunt like that again..." Draco glared at Harry and brushed past the shocked Hufflepuffs.
OoOOoOOo
Harry entered the Quidditch locker room and looked towards the office. Draco was sitting with at the desk, a large piece of paper in front of him, he looked up and quickly shoved the paper into a desk drawer.
"What was that?" Harry came around the desk and kissed Draco. He was still reveling in the idea that he could actually touch Draco and not get hexed.
"My Father Christmas List." Draco said, "You can't read it. It is just between him and me." He stood up and pressed Harry against the edge of the table.
"Hmmm. I don't know, are you sure that you aren't getting a lump of coal this year?" Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's waist.
"You think I'm on the naughty list? Can't be, I've been an angel, naughty thoughts don't count you know." Draco bent his head forward and nipped at Harry's ear.
There was a loud cough from the locker room and Harry dropped his arms from Draco, blushing slightly, as Cedric walked into the office.
"Hi Cedric." Draco smiled brightly at him.
"I really think I should get a loud bell and ring it before I even open the door." Cedric said looking between the two of them with a smile on his face.
"Well, once you learn how to do a Patronus you can send one ahead. Dead handy they are, can leap through walls. Lupin told me you can even use them to deliver verbal messages. I haven't learned that yet though."
Cedric nodded, "I've heard that, we'll have to see how that is done." he looked over at Draco, "Did you tell him yet?"
Draco smiled and shook his head. "Nope, waiting for you."
"Tell me what?" Harry looked concernedly between the two of them. "What's wrong."
"Nothing, except..." Draco stood up and went to the large wardrobe that was in the corner of the room, "We aren't meeting for Patronus lessons today." He opened the door and pulled out a large case.
"We aren't? What's that?" Harry looked nervously between the two of them.
Draco set the case down on the desk and took off the lid revealing a record player. "Grab the records, Ced." Cedric went over to the wardrobe and pulled out a stack of record albums.
"You have a record player! How? Is it Muggle or magic?" Harry came over to look at the player.
"Of course it is magic, but it can play Muggle records too, I think. I play music sometimes when I'm studying or draw-goofing off."
"Goofing off?" Harry smiled, "Sounds like something I would be good at."
"I'm sure you excel at goofing off. However, this, Harry Potter- The Boy Who Has Never Danced, is your first dance lesson."
Harry groaned and looked at Cedric who laughed and held up his hands, "Wasn't my idea, Draco said that you needed lessons."
"You two are going to teach me how to dance?" Harry said in disbelief.
"Who else is going to? Do you want to go out there and try it for the first time in front of everyone? I think not. I recruited Cedric here to be your first victim. I value my toes too much to sacrifice them to the cause."
"Something tells me I'm going to be no good at dancing."
"Hmmm. You always do seem to be stumbling around. There is only three weeks to the dance, scarcely enough time."
"Maybe I should wear steel-toed shoes." Cedric said, looking worriedly at his own feet.
"This is probably Draco's Slytherin plot of to ensure that you aren't fit for the next task. You could be laid up in the hospital wing for weeks. Toes crushed so badly that even Skele-Gro can't fix them" Harry agreed.
Draco replied. "Enough procrastinating. You two over there" He motioned to the open floor area in front of the desk. "I shall supervise." Draco sat very un-Malfoy like on the top of the desk with his legs criss-crossed and started sorting through the records. "The Wicked Sisters are playing at the dance. Probably one of their slow songs for the first dance." He carefully placed the record on the spindle.
Harry looked from Cedric to Draco. "You are really serious about this?"
Draco shook his head sadly at Cedric, "Very slow on the pickup isn't he? You," He pointed at Harry, "Put your right arm around Cedric's waist, and your left arm should hold his right hand. Cedric, you know what to do." Draco flicked his wand at the record player and the needle on the record moved over and dropped on the spinning record. The opening chords of the Wicked Sisters "Your Magic Moves Me" started playing.
Cedric held up his arms to Harry and winked, "I'll be gentle, I promise." Harry shook his head and blushing deeply stepped forward and put his left arm around Cedric's waist. Draco sighed and shook his head, "Your right arm, Potter." Harry cursed and switched arms.
"Right now, the proper distance to maintain with your dance partner is 5 to 8 inches. Don't squeeze too close or I'll hex you." Draco said with a wave of his wand.
"Remember to look at your partner, Harry, not your feet." Harry promptly looked down at his feet. "NOT at your feet. You are going to lead, of course. Look up at Cedric." Harry turned and stared at Draco, "Look at Cedric. It doesn't matter that he is taller than you. You probably are going to be shorter than any girl willing to say yes to you. You are going to need to lead and the first step is to leading is to be confident and and, Merlin help us, in charge of the dance."
Harry dropped Cedric's hand. "Isn't it just shuffling your feet around?"
"Maybe for Muggles, but for purebloods there is definitely no feet shuffling." Draco clapped his hands. "As you were. Now your hand should be gripping Cedric's lightly but firmly" Harry rolled his eyes. "To lead you are going to communicate with all of your contact points - your eyes, left hand, and your right arm which way you want your partner to step."
"But I don't know!"
"Patience, Oh Chosen One. Step apart I'll show you what I'm talking about." Draco moved over to Cedric and with a smile bowed to Cedric "May I have this dance."
Cedric laughingly curtsied, "My pleasure, sir." in a false falsetto. Draco stepped into Cedric's arms and they immediately started moving in around the room as if they had danced together for years. Harry couldn't help but admire how easily they circled the room, avoiding the desk and chairs, perfectly in tune with the music. He actually felt a little relieved when the perfection was broken as Cedric stumbled while going backwards. "Sorry, not used to following."
"Alright," Draco stepped away from Cedric, "Did you see the steps?" Harry gave him a blank stare, "Uh, no."
Draco sighed dramatically, he turned and flicked his wand at the record player to stop the music. Harry glared at him. Draco kissed him. "You are going to thank me for this."
"If I were you, I'd think twice about having any blueberry tart tomorrow night." Harry grumbled.
"Try it and I'll trip hex you throughout your entire first dance," Draco drawled coming up to stand next to Harry and held out his arms as if he had a partner. "The basic steps, and that is all we will have time to learn are, step step, step hold, step step, step hold. And again, and again. Look at my feet, Potter."
Cedric was leaning against the desk and watching, "Come on Harry, you fought a dragon, I think this is well within your abilities." Harry's face burning with embarrassment as he attempted to make his feet make the same steps that as Draco's.
"Good, now with the music, Cedric if you would." Cedric obligingly started the music. "Wait for it... you have to listen to the beats in the music, you just don't start moving. 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and begin...Listen to the music, follow the beat of the music..."
By the end of the hour, Harry was able to navigate Cedric around the room with only bumping himself and Cedric into the desk once. "That is going to have to be good enough for tonight. I think I'll need to stop by hospital wing after all for that Skele-Gro after all." Cedric said, falling into a chair.
"Did I really..." Harry looked alarmed, he had stepped on his toes a few times.
"Kidding, Harry." Cedric gave him a brief shake of the head. "What other music do you have, Draco? I think I've heard enough of the Wicked Sisters to last me to the dance."
"Take a look..." Draco pointed to the small stack of records next to the player.
"Do you have any Muggle music?" Harry asked when he joined Cedric flipping through the stack.
"No, why would I buy Muggle records?" Draco said with a laugh, he wrapped his arm around Harry's waist.
"Just wondering."
"Do you listen to Muggle music at your uncle's house?" Draco asked.
Harry hesitated, "Me, no. Dudley has a CD player in his room, it plays smaller silver discs." he sighed and slipped a record out of its sleeve and turned it carefully over and slid it back. "Records are considered to be old-fashioned now for Muggles. It's a shame, there is something special about a vinyl record album."
"But you've seen a record player before right? You knew how to work it." Draco persisted. Harry hesitated and then tugged the hair of his fringe forward nervously.
"I had one for a little while, but something happened to it."
Cedric looked curiously at Harry, "What happened? Your cousin break it?"
Harry glanced from Cedric to Draco and shrugged, "No, not my cousin, my uncle."
Cedric sat down, "Why don't you tell us what happened."
Harry glanced at Draco, "He just put on his therapist hat, didn't he?"
Draco nodded, "Best not to fight it, he is like a boggart, won't stop until you give in and answer his questions."
"Still waiting," Cedric said with an easy smile.
"Okay, well, when I was nine I was shifting around the boxes stored in the cupboard where I slept. I was getting bigger and there wasn't a lot of room to stretch out. Anyway, I found a box that had been pushed back beneath the lowest part of the stairs. I opened it up and it was an old pink record player that had been decorated with flower stickers and peace signs."
"Whose was it?" Draco asked curiously as he reached out and grabbed Harry's hand.
"My mother's...she had painted her name on the side of the player. 'Lily' in big curly rainbow coloured letters." Harry said closing his eyes and seeing the name Lily in his head. "There were record albums, too. A whole box of them and headphones. Big old fashioned headphones. It was the first time I had held anything that had belonged to my mother."
Harry felt a burning in his eyes. Five years later he could still feel the excitement as he realized what he was holding. "I hadn't even seen a photograph of my mother back then, the Dursleys had refused to acknowledge her at all. But those records, I knew that she had handled each one of the records, had picked them at the store, had listened to them wearing those headphones."
"Did you play the records?" Cedric asked quietly. "What were the groups?"
"Old Muggle groups, Beatles, lots of Beatles, Rolling Stones, Cream, Simon & Garfunkel. There was a little bit of everything."
Harry stood up and started to pace back and forth. Draco look at him with narrowed eyes. "What happened. You already said your uncle broke the record player."
Harry looked over at Draco who was leaning against the desk. "I was able to keep it a secret for about a year. There was a plug- an electric plug in the cupboard, I would listen every night or whenever they had locked me in the cupboard. I could lie there on that tiny cot wearing the headphones and imagine what it would be like if my mother was still alive and was playing me her favorite music. I knew all of the words by heart, all of the album notes, the covers, and imagined my mother doing the same thing."
"And what happened." Cedric asked.
Harry stood still in the middle of the room, closing his eyes to block the memories. "One night, I must have fallen asleep and turned over. The plug for the headphones came out and the music blasted out of the player. With the headphones on I hadn't realized what had happened, but my uncle heard it. He pulled me out of the cupboard and ..."
"What did he do Harry?"
"He was mad. Really mad." Harry shuddered involuntarily at the memory, "He smashed it. He smashed the record player to pieces with his big Smelting cane. And then he smashed the record albums. The only thing I had from my mother and he destroyed it."
Draco walked over and put his arms around Harry. "I tried to save the bit of the case that had her name on it but he threw it all into the dustbin. I think Aunt Petunia was furious with him when she got home. They had a huge row and he had to sleep on the sofa. Made me wonder the reason she kept it all those years, they had always said that my mother was a bad person. Why would Aunt Petunia keep her record player and be mad at my uncle for destroying it? But that was the only thing I had of my mother until Hagrid made a photo album for me of photographs he had gathered from my parent's friends after my first year."
Cedric and Draco looked at him in stunned shock. Draco leaned his forehead against Harry's "Well, we have two things in common, Quidditch and a life away from Howarts that is horrible."
"Fucking Merlin's Beard," Cedric swore and Harry turned to look at him in disbelief, it was the first time he had ever heard the even-tempered sixth year raise his voice let alone swear. "Have either of you ever," Cedric closed his eyes in frustration, opening them to glare at them both, "Ever thought of asking someone for help? To talk to anyone? Dumbledore? McGonagall? Snape?"
Both boys shrugged simultaneously, "Why would we?" Harry asked.
"Because, what you two are going through is just...wrong." Cedric threw himself out of his chair and started pacing, "It is wrong that a guardian destroy the only memory an orphan has of his mother! It is wrong that a father force his child to beat his mother! You both realize that these kind of things are not what happen in normal families, right?"
Harry scowled, "Sure, but if your 'family' isn't normal there isn't much you can do to change it. You just have to deal."
Cedric looked between the two of them in amazement, "That's the thing, you shouldn't have to deal. There is help available in the Muggle world, even in our world," He looked at Harry. "You were still in primary school when this happened, you could have gone to a teacher. They are obligated by Muggle law to report abuse cases."
"But they never hit me," Harry protested, "He smashed a record player."
"They made you live in a fucking closet, Harry." Cedric's face was pale in fury, his gray eyes flashing in anger, "That is abuse. They fed you through a flap in the door. That is abuse. And Draco," He turned to face Draco. "I admit that it is tougher in the pureblood wizarding world to seek help, but with someone powerful behind you, someone like Dumbledore..."
"I would never go to Dumbledore for help. I am a Malfoy," Draco pulled himself up coldly, "We deal with our family problems ourselves."
"And where has that gotten you?" Cedric snapped, "Think of your father, where did you think he learned how to torture a child? From his own father. Abused children more often than not become abusers. Do you want to continue you this chain?"
"I'm fucking gay, I'm not going to have to worry about that." Draco snapped, he tightened his hold around Harry.
"Oh no? You don't think your father isn't going to force you into a pureblood marriage to a witch the minute you graduate from Hogwarts? Do you think your father is going to let the Malfoy bloodline die? There are dark potions that can be used to temporarily alter a person's sexual orientation. Do you think that your father would be above using such a potion on you?"
"That is years away," Draco said, "A lot can change."
"Only if you allow things to change, only if you have the support to stand behind you." Cedric replied in a calmer voice. He pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, I never blow up like this...it's just that it is extremely frustrating for me. The more I know about what you are both going through at home...this is way beyond what I can help you with and I don't know what to do..."
"We don't expect you to do anything. It doesn't affect us here." Harry said, leaning back against Draco.
"It doesn't? See that is interesting, I think it does affect you. If you had the support of family behind you, maybe you wouldn't have to hide your relationship. If you hadn't been abused for the last decade, maybe you wouldn't hide who you are behind aggressive behavior." Cedric looked at Draco and then at Harry. "Maybe if Dumbledore knew what you were going through in your home he could find somewhere else for you to go each summer.
"But don't worry, I'm not going to say anything. But I want you both to consider the possibility of getting help for your home situations. Before something serious happens to one or both of you."
Cedric sighed, and held up his hands, showing defeat. "Okay, I'll take my therapist hat off, now, but please think about what I said."
OoOoOOooO
After much debate Harry finally decided to ask Cho Chang to the dance. She has been one of the few students who had been nice to him before the first task. It was a plus that she was the Ravenclaw seeker so that they could probably talk about Quidditch. Harry had never felt really comfortable talking to girls other than Hermione so that would be good to have something he felt he could talk about.
After a week of trying to find a time when she wasn't surrounded by her friends he gave up and realized that he would have to walk up to her in front of everyone and ask to talk to her. He stood outside the Defense against the Dark Arts classroom waiting for her class to get out. She emerged from the classroom laughing with her friends. "Erm, Cho, can I talk to you for a minute?" he asked, face bright red.
oOoOOOoOoo
Harry slouched into the Quidditch locker room, Cedric and Draco were already waiting for him.
"What's wrong? Draco asked immediately.
"Finally got a date for the dance," Harry said miserably.
"Oh, ho." said Draco with a smile. "Who is the unlucky girl?"
Harry threw a glance at Cedric, "Well, I asked Cho Chang first..." Cedric laughed and Draco looked confused.
"I asked Cho to the dance last week." Cedric explained to Draco, "Sorry, Harry, didn't know that is who you were thinking of asking. I could have asked someone else. Simon was in Ravenclaw so Cho and I saw a lot of each other last year while Simon was still here. Simon can't come to the ball, so I asked Cho."
"Poor Harry," Draco shook his head, "So you had to ask two girls...who was your next choice?"
"Pavarti Padma," Harry grimaced, "She was just walking by while Ron and I were talking. She giggles. A lot. But her sister is going to go with Ron, so he is taken care of too."
"Good. Now you can focus all of that anxiety that has been twisting your stomach into a knot towards something more important. Me." Draco kissed him hard on the lips, Harry glanced at Cedric and broke away but didn't object to Draco's arm draped around his shoulders. "By the way, how did you get away from the Weasley rat?"
"Ron not Rat." Harry said automatically, "I finally just told him that I needed time alone to think about things, and to not ask me about it. I think he feels guilty enough about the way he treated me that he didn't object. But I think Hermione is suspicious."
"What do you mean? Suspects what?" Draco asked.
Cedric smiled knowingly, "She thinks Harry and I have something going on." Harry nodded, "She came up to me at the library and gave me a not too subtle hint that I should not be...carefree with your emotions."
"She what! She can't do that...!" Harry blustered. Cedric waved a hand.
"It's fine, I'm glad she is a good enough friend that she wants to look out for you." Cedric said reassuringly, "But it could cause problems for you if she thinks you are studying with me and she sees me upstairs without you..."
Harry nodded, "I'll think of something."
Draco peered down his nose at Harry, "All this subterfuge could be avoided if you just told them both to mind their own business. There are advantages to being a rude Slytherin and not a whimpering Gryffindor."
"So, what lesson is it going to be today? Dancing or Patronus?" Cedric asked, ignoring Draco's comment.
"Patronus." Harry said firmly. "That I can do."
OooOoOoOOO
Three days later at breakfast, Harry was busy ignoring Hermione's dire warnings about his not taking the second task seriously when the owls began swooping into the Great Hall. With so many students staying for the Yule Feast the owls were delivering many more packages and bundles than usual.
"Cor' look at those owls," Ron pointed, a bit of egg stuck to his face, "Wonder who is getting that." Harry looked up to see three large barn owls carefully flying with a large package strung between the three of them. The owls circled and then carefully landed next to Draco Malfoy.
"Malfoy, figures." Ron grumbled. "Probably a new book on hexes to curse us with."
Harry watched with narrowed eyes as Draco carefully untied the bundle and flipped each of the owls a piece of sausage before waving his arm and sending them off. The owls weren't from Malfoy Manor, Harry knew all of the owls his father used. Draco didn't open the package, just placed it carefully on the floor next to him. "I wonder what could it be..."
"I don't know, Harry. Why don't you just go and ask him." Hermione said, annoyed that Harry wasn't paying attention to her. "Honestly, Harry. There is only two months to the task, nine weeks! You haven't even figured out the egg, let alone figured out what you need to learn..."
Harry nodded abstractedly. Draco caught him staring and winked at him and went on talking to Blaise next to him.
"Harry, have you thought about asking Cedric." Hermione asked quietly.
That did catch Harry's attention, he swung around to look at her. "What do you mean?"
"Well, I thought that maybe that he might know something...might be willing to help you. Considering that... you know, you study together." Hermione finished quietly, giving him a significant look.
"Oh, er. Well. Uh, no." Harry cursed himself for being able to think of lies as quickly as Draco and decided to go for the truth. "We are supposed to solve it ourselves you know, I couldn't ask him."
Hermione nodded, "I suppose, but he might be willing to give you a hint."
Ron turned and looked at them, "Who you are talking about? Cedric Diggory? Why would he want to help Harry? He is the competition!"
Harry shook his head quickly at Hermione who frowned at him and then looked at Ron, "No reason."
