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Kira, Blaise, Gregory, Vincent, Draco, and Harry stuffed themselves into a compartment on the Hogwarts Express, trunks carefully packed, holiday homework included. They whiled away the hours of the ride playing exploding snap, eating chocolate frogs and trading stories about pranks they'd pulled. All in all it was a brilliantly fun ride, interrupted only once by the witch with the trolley.
About five minutes before the train was due to arrive at the station they all pulled their school robes off, revealing outfits that Draco had kept in reserve all term. He had informed them all that morning that his mother would be picking them up, and their parents were going to meet them at the Manor for dinner and 'school talk'. Therefore, it was necessary for them to 'dress up'. Harry, personally, felt both amazing and ridiculous. He was wearing flared-bottom green dragon hide pants with a silver, button-up shirt complete with flaring sleeves that mimicked those on Professor Snape's robes, and the Slytherin crest over his left breast. His boots were polished a shiny black, enough to see his reflection in, his hair was jelled back, and a tailored version of his school cloak, he didn't even want to know how Draco'd gotten that done, was in Gregory's possession.
Draco's outfit was similar, though he wore green tie with a Slytherin crest pin stuck in it, and he had a pair of black gloves in the pocket of the cloak Vincent was carrying. His pants were slacks instead of dragon hide, and he wore dress shoes instead of boots. Blaise's getup was a full-length green skirt with the female version of their shirts, a necklace with snake pendant, and her boots were more militant. Kira was carrying her cloak. Kira, Gregory, and Vincent were all wearing full black suits in a wizarding version of the muggle style with green ties poking out of the boy's jackets.
Harry looked around the cabin, closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and slammed his head against the upholstery.
"I feel like a doll." He said.
"But you look fah-bulous." Draco retorted, his own voice irritated.
"I'm fixing all of this." Harry said, waving at all of them. "Your mother is not choosing my clothing."
"Yes, but before you get yourself eaten by the spider, everyone knows what they're doing?" Draco looked at the others. They all nodded as the train grounded to a halt.
After stealthily hauling their trunks off the train the six of them formed up, Draco pointing the line towards where his parents waited.
"One. Two. Three." Kira, Vincent, and Gregory carved a path through the milling students using a wedge formation, Draco and Blaise directly behind them, and Harry bringing up the rear. When the three 'bodyguards' got to the adults they split off, moving back behind Harry. Draco and Blaise both nodded to the elder Malfoys.
"Father, mother, I would like to introduce you to Harry Potter." Draco and Blaise separated, and Harry stepped forwards, shaking Mr. Malfoy's hand first, then taking Mrs. Malfoy's and kissing the back with a light brush of his lips.
"Fabulous." Mrs. Malfoy said, looking at all of them with a satisfied smile on her face. "Absolutely fabulous." Harry didn't dare trade glances with the others, but oh how he wanted to.
"Mister Potter." Mr. Malfoy interrupted his wife's obsession before it could truly start. "It is truly a pleasure to meet you. Draco has told us a great deal about you."
"The pleasure is mine mister Malfoy, and please, call me Harry." Harry smiled at him, letting the man maneuver him a short distance from the others, who were stuck, as Draco had said, in the Spider's web.
Mister Malfoy used the open mouth of the snake topping his cane to move Harry's head this way and that as though he were a prized animal. Harry didn't much like it, but he was going to be staying with the Malfoys so he didn't argue, about that.
"Mister Malfoy," Harry worked out the phrasing quickly in his head, "I would like to apologize in advance for insisting on choosing my own wardrobe, which I intend to expand over the holiday." Unexpectedly, mister Malfoy smiled.
"Young man," the cane's butt returned to the ground, "anyone who can stand up to my wife on the subject of clothing is very powerful indeed. I look forward to seeing you make the attempt."
**&&*&*&&**
Harry was hard-pressed not to crack up when the adults arrived for dinner. Gregory and Vincent's parents were both dressed almost identically to their sons. It turned out that both Blaise and Kira's parents had yet to fall into Narcissa's web, as they didn't usually attend the Manor. In fact, Blaise's mother took one look at Blaise, and point-blank refused to allow Narcissa to dress either of them. The entirety of dinner was accompanied by glares traded between the two mothers, and followed by tense conversation that Draco and Harry were excused from so that Draco could show Harry to the guest room that had been readied for him.
The room was, as he had expected, decorated in Slytherin colors with no thought to how depressing that much dark coloring was. At the same time it was opulent, luxurious and absolutely stunning. The bed was a queen four-post, green hangings and black sheets with a crested comforter. The closet was of the walk-in variety, and his trunk had already been unpacked, everything stored just so.
"Damn, Draco." Harry flopped onto the bed, staring at his friend. "No wonder."
"No wonder what?" Draco shot back confused and on the defensive.
"No wonder you're such a spoiled brat." Harry kept his eyes on his friend, watching the boy swell up like an angry puppy.
"I am no-."
"Yes you are." The matter-of-fact tone threw Draco off. "Spoiled, but not rotten." Harry shrugged. "You've never had to fight for anything. Yeah, you can't pick your clothes, but you've got everything handed to you on a gold platter." He shifted his eyes to take in the room. "And you can't even kick me out of your house for saying this because your dad wants the Boy-Who-Bloody-Lived under his control."
"How do you?" Draco stared at him. "You?" Something seemed to dawn behind his eyes.
"Yes Draco, I read your mail." Harry shrugged. "I learned a lot from the Durselys, but the most important thing is that everything has a price, including friends." Harry's' smile was rather more empty than usual.
"Well then." Draco stood straighter, pulling his eyes back in and closing his loose jaw.
"Well then." Harry echoed.
"Mother will be taking us Christmas shopping tomorrow." Draco grinned a very evil grin.
"Best sleep then, yeah?" Harry asked, and Draco took that for the dismissal that it was and actually left, but not of course, without getting the last word in.
"Yeah. I wouldn't want to miss my mother's reaction if you have the guts to mess with her clothing choices." Draco's smirk was back as he walked out, leaving Harry to change and curl up in the massive bed.
**&&*&*&&**
"Mister Potter." The tension in the dining room could have been cut with a butter knife.
"Mister Malfoy." Harry stood his ground, after all, wizards fought with curses, which were much less scary than the ham-like fists of his Uncle simply because he had no prior experience from which to draw fear.
The pause stretched out as the large, white-haired, aristocratic man and the short, black-haired boy with stupid glasses and a cursed scar played the oldest game in the book; who's going to look away first. After what seemed like an eternity mister Malfoy spoke again, never breaking eye contact.
"How would you like your eggs?"
"Scrambled."
"Mushrooms?"
"Fried."
"Tomatoes?"
"No thank you."
"Potatoes?"
"Hash."
"Black pudding?"
"Hidden in my aunt and uncle's bed."
"That can be arranged."
"You two are being ridiculous." Mrs. Malfoy stood with her arms crossed, her wand in her hand.
"But it's really fun to watch." Draco was leaning back in one of the high-backed chairs around the kitchen table, his feet crossed at the ankle and resting on the table itself.
"What have I told you about putting your feet on the table?" Mr. Malfoy asked, still not breaking eye contact with Harry.
"Not to do it." Draco took his feet off the table, and Harry broke off the staring contest. After all, he needed the good will of at least one of the Malfoy's, and Draco was still miffed about their conversation from the night before.
The rest of breakfast passed with a reasonably limited amount of posturing, and Harry found himself enjoying the familial atmosphere that appeared rather suddenly away from witnesses. For all that the Malfoys were very rich and, if Harry was any judge, well steeped in the Dark Arts, there was a lot of love and caring in private. Draco looked at his father with respect and a bit of hero worship. Mr and Mrs Malfoy argued like any other married couple, but they also made compromises, and they had a system of nonverbal communication that only existed when people really cared.
"Hey Harry, you okay?" The whisper was almost too soft to pick up, and Harry looked at Draco in confusion, only then realizing that he'd been staring.
"Yeah." Harry shook his head to get rid of unwanted thoughts about who deserved what. "Yeah, Draco. I'm fine." He ate the last bite of eggs off his plate, forcing a close-lipped smile even as he chewed.
"Really, if you don't want to challenge my mum that's fine." Draco said, and somehow Harry realized that he knew that wasn't why Harry had been staring, but was giving him an out. He didn't know why it surprised him that his friend could be tactful...once in a blue moon.
"That's okay." Harry took the out, at least in terms of the conversation. "I think I can handle it."
"Well get ready then because I think we're about to leave." Draco straightened even more as his mother rose.
"Well boys, I think it's time to go." Mrs. Malfoy smiled at them, and Harry could have sworn she was already dressing them in new outfits, just with her eyes.
"Where are we going mother?" Draco asked as he stood.
"Well, I figured we'd go to Gioventù Alla Moda, so we'll be spending the night with some friends of the family, and I expect the both of you to be on your best behavior." Mrs. Malfoy replied.
"Italy it is then." Draco threw his arm around Harry's shoulder, covertly closing his jaw and pulling him towards the door.
