Author's Note: For those who wondered who Remus' secret love was, check out my new fic, Severed Moonlight. /shameless plug :P


Chapter Eight

"So, what happens now?" Draco was propped up on his elbow on the bed. Harry was putting on his clothes again.

"Well," Harry replied, "I have to go back to The Burrow… They're probably wondering where I am." He pulled on his socks and ran a hand through his hair in an attempt to make it look decent.

"Back to her, you mean?" Draco growled with obvious contempt.

"Why, you jealous?" asked Harry cockily, but at the sight of Draco's expression he sighed. "Look, I have no intention of going back into her bed or doing anything with her ever again. I do like her, though, you must understand that. It really hurts me to have to hurt her like this…"

Draco's expression softened. "I suppose I can understand that… You won't sleep in her room tonight, though, right?"

"Of course not," Harry assured him. "I suppose I'll sleep in Ron's room…"

Draco laughed humourlessly. "How will Weasel and the Mudblood feel about this?"

"Don't call her a Mudblood, Draco," said Harry, frowning. "Whatever you may feel about them they're my friends. More than that, they're like my brother and sister. I love them like blood. If this is going to work you'll have to respect that."

"All right." Draco nodded, sitting up. "I will stop insulting them if they show me the same courtesy. If they really consider you family as well, I daresay they will." There was a hint of sarcasm in Draco's voice.

Harry was about to say something, but he realised that Draco was right. It would surely take some time for Ron and Hermione to accept his choice. It would be unfair of him to demand politeness from Draco but not from them. Then again, if Draco managed to behave himself around them it might make things easier.

He decided to cross that bridge when he got there.

"I'll see you later, all right?" he said and walked over to the bed where Draco was still sitting. "And I promise we'll make it past this obstacle as well."

Draco nodded and smiled. Harry planted a kiss on his lips and left.

He Apparated to The Burrow and entered the garden. Walking up the path to the kitchen door he considered what he should say. How could he explain to his two best friends that he was in love with a person they had all passionately hated since first year?

"Hi, Ron, Hermione… Listen, the reason I helped Malfoy in his trial is because we had sex last October. Yeah, I love him. I've been thinking about him constantly ever since. He's extremely good in bed, too."

Harry shook his head and grinned despite of himself at the thought of Ron and Hermione's expressions following such a speech.

He opened the door to the kitchen and found Ron and Hermione at the kitchen table. Ron was sitting hunched forward over a cup of tea, his expression grim. Hermione had placed a hand over his and was looking worried. Upon Harry's entering they both looked up.

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed, standing up. "Where have you been?"

Harry was about to answer when Ron, too, stood up and shouted, "Yeah, where the hell have you been?"

"Ron, please," said Hermione. "Harry, why didn't you –"

"– tell us that you were playing on that miserable, slimy, ferrety little git's team all along?" Ron cut her off. He walked threateningly towards Harry. "What the hell did you help him for? You traitor!" He raised his fist, but Hermione grabbed his arm just in time.

"Ronald, sit the bloody hell down!" she cried shrilly. Ron stared at her for a moment, looking taken aback. Then he relaxed his shoulders and went back to the table.

"Harry," said Hermione again. "Mr Weasley told us about the trial. He said that –"

"– that you claimed to have been friends with that Death Eater since bloody forever! Why in the name of Merlin's balls were we not informed of that?"

"Ron, shut up!" said Hermione. "But, yes… Harry, why didn't you tell us about it before?"

Harry raised an eyebrow and glanced at Ron. "Would you have listened?"

"Well, we…" Hermione trailed off and looked away in embarrassment.

Harry shook his head and chuckled humourlessly. "Look, it's a little more complicated than that. Malfoy and I…"

"Harry, is that you?" Mrs Weasley entered the kitchen. She looked flustered and a bit tired. "Oh, you're back! Would you like some tea, dear?" She smiled.

"No thank you, Mrs Weasley," Harry said with a small smile. "Maybe later. We can't talk here," he said, turning to Ron and Hermione. "Can we go somewhere else?"

Hermione nodded. "All right. Come on, we'll use your room, Ron."

Ron stood up, refusing to meet Harry's gaze, and they filed out of the kitchen past Mrs Weasley. Harry did his best to look apologetic when he passed her.

Ron's room was as orange as ever. Pig hooted excitedly in his cage as they entered. Ron let him out and then walked over to the window, staring out into the afternoon. Hermione sat down at the edge of the bed. Harry remained standing in the doorway, going through in his mind how to approach the subject.

"So…" said Hermione to Harry. "You said that it was complicated?"

Harry took a deep breath. "Yes," he said. Pausing, he tried to gather his thoughts. "Mr Weasley told you that I met Draco last October?"

"Draco?" Ron spat with obvious disgust. "Please…"

"Yes, he did," said Hermione, ignoring Ron. Harry felt somehow grateful to her for that. "He said you met at an inn, and had a lot of alcohol, and that you left the following morning. Then Malfoy apparently fled the country."

Harry nodded. "That's roughly it, yes. Well, we spent time together then. We talked about some things… He came there looking for some kind of escape, some form of comfort. He'd just killed another Death Eater. He knew they'd come and kill him. He found me, and he needed my trust, so we agreed to a truce."

"You mean, you believed the bullshit he spouted and let him manipulate you!" Ron growled. "I never knew you could be so stupid… One night versus a lifetime of trespasses, I wonder which to believe?"

"No, that's not what happened!" Harry found himself getting angry now. "He needed someone to connect with, if only for a moment, and I provided that! I needed it too… You're right, one doesn't become friends based on one night's truce, but we're not friends. That is, not only friends… Look, this is really hard for me!"

There was a moment's silence. Ron's face looked white. Hermione frowned. "What do you mean, Harry?" she asked hesitantly.

"You don't get it, Hermione?" Ron's voice was soft, but his expression was dangerous. "Not just friends, are you?"

"Ron, what –"

"He means that they fucked, Hermione!" Ron shouted. "That's what you mean, isn't it? You fucked that lowlife, that git, that… You and him, you –"

"Yes!" Harry retaliated angrily. "Yes, Ron, that's exactly what we did! And you know what? It was amazing! It was better than anything else, and we did it again just this afternoon!"

"You little –" Wand forgotten, Ron threw himself at Harry. The impact knocked him to the floor, and Harry's glasses were knocked off his face.

"Ron, stop it!" Hermione pleaded.

"No!" Ron's eyes were dark with rage as he grabbed Harry by the collar and shook him. "How could you? How could you go to Ginny and tell her you loved her and wanted her and do the things you did when, all along, you were – a freak? Queer? What do they call it?"

"I'm not saying it's right, Ron! Please, stop so we can talk about it!"

"There is nothing to say!" Ron took a punch at his nose, and Harry felt blood trickle down his upper lip. "You betrayed us, and you betrayed Ginny! As if doing it wasn't bad enough, you did it with Malfoy?"

Harry tried to reach into his pocket for his wand. Ron was much stronger than him physically, but if he got hold of his wand he might be able to repel him. But his arms were pinned to the floor, and he couldn't see…

"Ron, get off him, please!" Hermione cried, grabbing a hold of one of Ron's arms. This was Harry's opening, and he pulled his wand out of his pocket and pointed it straight at Ron's face.

"Calm down, Ron!" he warned. "Get off me, right now!"

Ron swallowed and let go of Harry's collar. Then he slowly stood up, panting heavily, and let Harry get to his feet. Hermione touched Ron's shoulder, but he shook her off. Harry took a deep breath and put his wand back in his pocket.

"I thought maybe you'd support me," he said hoarsely. "I thought it wouldn't matter that he's a boy, or that he's who he is. I thought that you'd trust my judgement, even if you didn't understand why, because we're like family. Because I love you like my brother and sister, and I thought you loved me too." He picked up his glasses off the floor and put them on. Then he wiped some blood from his nose with his sleeve. "I guess I was wrong."

He turned around and left the room. Once down on the landing below his legs began to feel heavy and he sat down on the floor. His shoulders shook and his vision got blurry. He realised after a moment that the blurriness and the shaking was due to tears, and he tried to take some deep breaths to calm down.

He had known it wouldn't be easy. That Ron in particular would be very hard to convince should not have been a surprise. All the same, he somehow had not anticipated the punch, nor had he imagined that Ron would be so angry. Now he realised why Remus had never told anyone about his lover. It was probably someone his friends didn't like, someone they disliked enough to possibly end a friendship over. Remus had known no one would understand. Now Harry knew too, he had just realised a little too late.

Harry took another deep breath and stood up. He needed to get out of there, away from The Burrow. Away from Mrs Weasley's motherly smile, Mr Weasley's naïve incomprehension. Away from Hermione, away from Ginny…

And away from Ron.