Only…three reviews…

Well, I guess I deserved it. XD… ;w;…

Review answahs at the bottom as usual.

Gaara's feet actually stopped carrying him any further into their first class of the day, Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Actually, from the look of the room, it rather felt like Give The Dark Arts A Big Ol' Hug. Honestly, the sun was in full shine out; were the candles really necessary?

He sensed Harry's incredulity similar to his own as the class began to settle down. The moment Gaara dropped his bag to the desk furthest to the left- far enough for him to keep an eye on Harry but not too close that his friends would start to squirm.

Really, Gaara was getting annoyed at having to be so constantly compassionate.

Professor Snape's dark, low voice filled the room as he spoke to the class over the desk. The transfer student noticed how the man's dark eyes paused on Potter's face derisively before moving on and snorted.

As the professor began to give a speech on the Dark Arts- well put-together and in a way that was practically designed to have the listener respect the arts- Gaara let his eyes droop. Even when the man began to display slides of the Unforgivables he remained impassive, gaining him slightly horrified looks from the Patil girl who'd noticed.

Ugh.

A yell pierced the morbid silence of the Slytherin common room.

"COW! There's a cow in the common room! Quick, someone get a lasso," Naruto ordered, rolling the sleeves of his emerald green shirt up.

Draco contemplated hexing the other into a cow but decided he didn't want a blond bovine near him, and merely responded with a bored 'I-don't-care-version-DRACO' sneer.

Millicent Bulstrode glared all the more at Uzumaki, clearly unamused even if peals of laughter came from Pansy and Zabini. The two kept Uzumaki around only for their own entertainment, though Draco was getting the feeling they were starting to rather like him. Draco did have to admit, there were some Slytherin qualities about him. Though only

Naruto jumped on the couch when Bulstrode whipped her wand back into her robes and cracked her knuckles, stepping menacingly over. "Don't look at me like that! After a double period with McGonagall your brain would be mushy too!" He shook his fist at her back when the girl snorted and stomped away.

"Stop playing, Uzumaki," Pansy finally ordered, pulling the other down on the deep green chair. The blond made a face at her and pulled the Transfiguration book onto his lap, doodling in it.

"Don't you ever work?" Zabini asked boredly over his Charms material. "There must be some job you have in mind…" A slightly devious grin curled his lips, and Draco propped himself up on his elbows, raising an eyebrow at Uzumaki and smirking. This should be good, he thought.

"Like, hm, Auror, or something along those lines?" the Malfoy wizard drawled. Pansy stiffened in his arms, but then she joined in their silent amusement.

Contrary to their expectations, the other didn't squirm. Instead he leaned back with his arms behind his head, eyes in his squinty, confidently bored look, then cracked an ocean blue eye open at them.

"What I'll do, hm? Probably something no less interesting than what you guys'll be doing…you're planning on working together, aren't you?"

Break was coming to a close and the sixth-years were rising out of there chairs, save these four. Malfoy, Parkinson, and Zabini gazed at them evenly as Naruto grin-smirked.

Perhaps he was more of a Slytherin than they'd believed.

Pansy smoothed her skirt and smirked back at Naruto, lifting her bag and heading for the hole. Crabbe and Goyle had been watching the confrontation, puzzled, but quickly hurried after her.

Draco restrained himself until Zabini had left too, then grabbed Uzumaki's arm as the other started to leave.

"What do you know?" he asked coldly, silver eyes cutting and demanding. But the other blond wasn't giving in and looked up the few centimeters that separated their height.

"Why, Malfoy? Unless you feel you have something to hide from me. I can't stop that," Uzumaki shrugged, eyes going squinty again. Draco hated that. It made the other harder to read. "Don't worry so much, mate. If you're always worrying about secrets y'gotta keep, how'll you make friends?"

"I am not your mate," Draco muttered distractedly, glaring all the more…he felt like he was being manipulated, and he didn't like it. He wasn't used to it from anyone except- no. He couldn't think of that now.

Naruto shrugged a grin and hauled his briefcase-like bag over his shoulder. "C'mon, we've got Potions! Have you seen that guy? I swear I thought he was an armchair..."

Sorry. Not much action in this one, but we got a better look at characters. Short, too... ;w;

Another chapter will be up either tomorrow or Monday, btw.

Yaaaaaaaayme: Did I get all the as right? I actually had to count em and then tap em out….-gigglesnort-. Yeah, I put this up at like eleven. But you were the first reviewer in a long time 3.

KaL KeY: You didn't miss anything. Hope yu didn't end up reading it like, three times, looking for it. It's a secret that'll be let on piece by piece til someone figures it out~

Kittyore9: owo I'm actually not a yaoi writer. Sorry, sorry. Cookie'll be doing something I think, though…for this chapter maybe.

As for pairings. One reviewer actually got it on the dot; I don't really want to get too into the romance because I think that's what makes good crossover/AU fics go bad. D: Like when you leave a sandwich out and it starts making a fungus civilization.

But maybe I'll experiment in side-fics: D