Chapter 38 – The Ferret and the Pug

Just before midnight, Tuesday 6th July, House of Bones, Black Moor, South Downs

"And what time do you call this young lady?" Susan asked with a smirk on her face as Hannah came stumbling through the fireplace dusting herself off and flopped down just missing the large purple teddy bear next to Susan on the sofa with a grin on her face. She and Harry had danced together for over an hour before spending a very enjoyable time together getting pretty heated on her doorstep and she'd been disappointed when he'd turned down coming inside with her because he had an early appointment at his solicitors but her spirits had soared when he said that he'd like to cook her dinner a night or go out just the two of them.

"You don't look like you've been in very long as Potty is still down here with you." Hannah smiled back with a satisfied sigh.

"No I've only been back about twenty minutes and I'm just resting my feet and catching my breath. All that Quidditch has given Harry a lot more stamina than I would have thought." Susan said rubbing the sole of one of her feet.

"Oh yeah and what have you been doing to test his stamina?" Hannah asked with a big grin on her face.

"Not as much as I'd like or as much as I bet you and Neville had been doing I'd say. Where is he anyway? Why didn't you bring him back here?" Susan asked surprised at seeing Hannah come back alone.

"He said that he'd had to get back, because he didn't want his Gran going mental at him as it's almost midnight, but he promised to write and arrange another day out with me alone." Hannah said with a grin. "Where's lover boy?"

"He had to get home as he said had an appointment in the morning with his account manager and solicitor and some things to take care of over the next couple of days and said that it would be after the weekend that he had enough free time to see me properly as he didn't just want to do a flying visit unless he had to in between then.

I suggested I could go to his or he could come here and we'll talk about our business venture together…. Amongst other things." Susan replied trying to hide the smile at the thought of more time with Harry and the other things she'd like to be doing with him.

"Do you want me to make myself disappear for the day if he comes here? That way you can get some alone time with him." Hannah asked seeing her friends eyes light up.

"Are you sure? You don't have to leave the house or anything or I'll just go to his, but I'd love some time with him where he's not worrying about us being errrrr interrupted." Susan replied blushing as Hannah started giggling.

"You planning on making this the house of boning?" Hannah laughed getting the giggles as Susan picked up Potty and playfully whacked her over the head with it as she laughed as well.

"Only if I'm lucky," Susan said "only if I'm lucky."

Wednesday 8th July, Pearl Hall (Home of the Davis Family), Pett Bottom, Near Canterbury

"Whoa Whoa Whoa, so let me get this straight you went to Silverstone without me, with the guy we both fancy and then you had a romantic walk and dinner with him and then you snogged?" Tracey asked counting off her points that she was making to a grinning Daphne.

"I only snogged him three times!" Daphne replied in feigned shock

"Good god, I've got to give you credit for rigging that card game and thinking on your feet. I can't believe I only sussed out what you'd done just as I was about to run out of chips. So how was it?" Tracey asked dropping onto her bed next to Daphne not able to keep the fake anger up anymore as getting the goods on how good a kisser Harry Potter was far more important.

"Well you remember when Pansy and us were discussing what our perfect kiss was like last year in the dorm?" Daphne asked getting a nod from Tracey, "Well, times that by about six and then you're getting close to how amazing it was."

"Seriously…. That good?" Tracey asked.

"Oh Trace it was absolutely incredible. We'd had such an amazing time together it was all just perfect. He's so amazing and just as Hermione has been describing him all these years and he really doesn't understand the effect he has on women."

"You mean you spent most of the day restraining yourself from jumping his bones then." Tracey said with a smile.

"Ha ha, well yes, but it's not just that it's the way he seems to ooze sex appeal through his magic and I always thought that when Madam Pomfrey said that eventually a witch's magic would reach out to find a compatible partner in a wizard and not to just go jumping on the first broomstick that takes your fancy that she was just trying to stop all the girls in school just sleeping with random guys. I never knew it could actually happen."

"You mean you felt like you were drawn to him and that your body was just crying out to connect with his in a more intimate way?" Tracey asked her gaze fixed off somewhere else.

"I see you've experienced it as well." Daphne said to her friend.

"Yes, it was heightened when I was alone with him in the Spiny Serpent that night we were all dancing and drinking together. If you and Pansy hadn't come in the bar when you did I think I would have jumped him as I was feeling him up and was close to losing it." Tracey said blushing for the first time that Daphne could remember seeing her blush.

"Well believe me it's harder when you spend a whole day with him. I spent most of the day worrying that I should have brought some extra panties as when I got home I was soaked." Daphne replied causing them both to giggle.

"Honestly, I don't know whether I'll be able to stop myself next time I get him alone. Speaking of Pansy, where is the Slytherin Princess today by the way, I thought she was coming over here with you?" Daphne asked.

Tracey brought herself back to the moment from her day dream of spending her time alone with Harry "Oh get this she said that she needed to go to Gringotts to speak with them about currency exchange for France and then needed to go underwear shopping or something. She said that she'll come and hangout tomorrow."

"Currency exchange? Why would she need to speak with them about that it's not exactly a difficult one to understand or sort out."

"I know I mean it would take a complete idiot not to…." Tracey stopped talking as a thought just struck her before she smacked her palm against her forehead amazed at her own stupidity.

"What? What's with the face palming?" Daphne asked.

"I'm such an idiot. How did I get sorted into Slytherin I'm clearly not cunning enough to be in it?" Tracey replied shaking her head as Daphne's confusion continued to grow.

"Did Harry say what he was going to be doing for the rest of the week at the end of your date by any chance?" Tracey asked her.

"Well he said he needed to see the goblins about some business venture he was thinking about and that he was seeing his solicitor today about some other business stuff. I honestly never would have imagined that Harry Potter would be so into business wheeling and dealing and…. What are you looking at me like that for?" Daphne stopped talking looking at the knowing look on Tracey's face.

"Did you happen to tell anyone other than me about your date with Harry and may have divulged that information to?" Tracey asked.

"Well I told Tori about the date but not about his plans why?"

"So you've told no one else? No one floo'd you or anything to ask about your date?" Tracey asked leaning back on the bed.

"Well, Pansy did floo call me the next day but I…. Oh I see!" Daphne exclaimed the realization hitting her like a bolt of lightning and hitting her forehead with her palm at her own stupidity.

"The little snake. I'm clearly crap with spotting people's sneaky plans, but given how good yours was I'm surprised you didn't see it." confessed Tracey.

"I guess I was still a bit euphoric from my night before with Harry." Daphne reasoned.

"So the question is. Do we try and find her to try and rumble her plans like we had to last time or do we let her have a fair crack at him, because if we do that then you both have to promise to let me have a day with him on my own?" Tracey said crossing her arms over her chest.

"Well I suppose it's only fair to let her try and break through his walls on her own as I had a chance and success I might add, but Pansy won't have it as easy due to her history with his friends and Malfoy."

"Yes Daph, but you're not as sexually aggressive as she is. I mean hello... underwear shopping." Tracey said.

"I'm not worried. He's too much of a gentleman to go that far with Pansy especially as she's trying to build bridges with him."

"Well don't say I didn't warn you. Now then I want you to promise that you'll both back off and let me have a date with him as well."

"I promise Trace; you know I wouldn't stick it to you like that. Pansy might if we don't keep an eye on her, but I won't." Daphne answered giving her friend a small hug.

"I'm more worried about Pansy getting Harry to stick something to her." Tracey mumbled in Daphne's ear before the broke apart giggling.

Wednesday 8th July, Horizont Alley, London

Harry had been having a busy morning. He'd begun a plan about how to get to Japan to attend school as he didn't know whether he'd be able to portkey, floo or apparate that far, so had thought of another idea as he wasn't really fond of apparating or port keying and the thought of having to do it half way around the world made him feel sick.

He'd just left Hayley Sloop with instructions to look into a couple of things for him as well as giving her more ideas on what his plans for the future were and it was safe to say that Hayley and her staff really were earning their money with all the things that he'd asked her to go about recently, however she said that she was more than happy to deal with his requests and had joked about having to recruit more people and was shocked when Harry said if they needed to then he'd fund their wages etc.

As Harry closed the door to the office after Angelic had been flirting with him playfully after thanking him for the meal the last time that he was there and said that she'd love to go out with him again. Hayley had called her into her office before Harry had, had a chance to reply.

As he made his way down Horizont Alley he saw a witch bent over picking up some bags that had fallen on the ground and she was struggling to pick them all up. Harry moved forward to offer some assistance and bent down to pick up two of the bags furthest away before turning around to give them the witch who had dropped them. The bags really were very light and didn't really feel like they had anything in them but they were tied closed with black ribbon.

As Harry approached the witch she stood up and Harry saw the smiling face of Pansy Parkinson smiling at him. Harry's eyes couldn't help, but look at the outfit Pansy had on. She was wearing a pair of dark green suede high heeled boots, black stockings that disappear under a black pleated mini skirt that had matching green to her boots in the pleats of the skirt and add onto that she had a black top with a plunging neckline and she must have been wearing a bra that was pushing her ample chest up creating a drool worthy amount of cleavage.

She was wearing a black cardigan that covered her arms and shoulders and trailed down the back to around her knees and at the front it swooped out framing her bust and flared out again over her hips. She looked absolutely sexy as hell with her bobbed hair framed her face beautifully and she had a smoky charcoal make up applied to her eyes and a dark lipstick on giving her a slight gothic look that really worked for her.

"Wow, you look amazing!" Harry greeted honestly as a small smirk stole onto her face.

"You're looking pretty good yourself," she replied as she moved forward giving him a kiss on the cheek. "Still smelling divine as well." she added as she stepped back.

"Do you need a hand with all these bags, looks like you've bought most of a shop?" Harry asked her blushing at the compliment.

"Sure that would be a great help, how do always manage to find an aftershave that smells so yummy?" Pansy asked him as they split the bags between them.

"It's just a potion that I created that I use as aftershave. It smells however the person smelling it wants it to smell." Harry responded not feeling too bad at his slight bending of the truth as it was actually Sirius' idea, but he was sure his godfather wouldn't mind him not passing on the credit as he'd given Harry the instructions on how to make it.

"God you should sell that stuff. It smells heavenly." Pansy stepped in and put her face next to his neck and breathed the smell in and made an "mmmm" sound as she stepped back her eyelids fluttering slightly.

"What does it smell like to you?" Harry asked.

"Lemon cake and chocolate." Pansy replied.

"Maybe I will have to start selling the stuff. From the reaction I've had to it I'd make a fortune." Harry grinned at her as they turned and started making their way towards Diagon Alley.

"I'm curious how you make that as I'd love to smell divine all the time. So what are you up to today then?" Pansy asked looking at him through her hair so she could see his reaction.

"Not a great deal really I've got a lot of what I wanted to do today done already and I sorted things a lot quicker than expected, so I've not really got a lot of plans. How about you? More shopping? That is if you've left anything else for everyone else already." he said lifting the ten or so bags in his hands to make his point.

Pansy bumped shoulders with him playfully and said "No I'm done shopping now all I want to do is get off my feet and be able to put these bags down. Where are you planning on going now? Lunch or something?"

"I was thinking of just going home and watching a film or something and just vegging out for the rest of the day not really doing a lot." He replied shrugging his shoulders.

"Fancy some company?" Pansy asked hopefully.

"Sure why not. I can make some lunch at the house if you want." He responded getting an enthusiastic nod of the head from Pansy. "Right well how about you give me the rest of these and grab hold of me and I'll apparate us back to my place." he said taking her bags off her as she put her hand on the crook of his arm as Harry turned on the spot and apparated back to Potter Manor.

Harry made himself and Pansy some chicken sandwiches and brought a big bag of crisps to the cinema room along with a glass of apple juice for them both as saw Pansy had selected three films from the collection he had shown her and explained that she'd like to watch any or all of the three films.

Harry looked through her choices quite surprised considering that Susan and Hannah had been interested in the romantic films.

"Interesting choices, I guess I'm surprised to see you're not a romantic film kind of girl."

"I'm quite happy to watch something romantic, but I just thought that these three looked interesting as I've never seen a muggle picture before." Pansy explained taking a bite out of one of the sandwiches.

"Why did you pick this one?" Harry said showing her Batman Begins.

"Because I wanted to see if it was just Professor Snape wearing a mask and some rubber as the rest of the outfit looked like him." Pansy explained causing a laugh from Harry.

"And this one?" he said showing her a cover of Fast and Furious.

"Because the blonde guy looks cute." Pansy reasoned shrugging her shoulders and causing Harry to roll his eyes.

"So you're still into your blondes then?" Harry teased.

"God, No I'm not exclusive to blondes. I love a good brunette as well." Pansy answered giving Harry what she hoped was her sexiest smile, which she thought worked as Harry suddenly looked all cute and awkward.

"And errrrr this one?" he asked finally showing her the third film, which was a film called Conan the Barbarian played by an actor called Arnold something but Harry couldn't pronounce the actors surname.

"Who doesn't love a good swashbuckling adventure?" Pansy questioned back. "Let's watch that one." she said as Harry agreed and went to put the disc in the player.

They ate during the opening credit and then Harry extended the sofa they were sat on so that he could stretch his legs out. After putting their plates and glasses on the floor Pansy shuffled across next to Harry and picked his arm up and wrapped it around her and snuggled into Harry's side.

She felt him tense slightly at the intimate contact and the position they were in so she looked up at him giving him her best puppy dog eyes and asked if he was ok with this to which he said he was and after about ten minutes she felt him physically relax.

Pansy then proceeded for the next hour to really play up the scary bits by turning herself more into him pretending she was scared purely so that she could have more of his body touching hers until eventually she'd managed to work herself so that she was pressed fully on her side up against him, with her arm across his chest and one of her legs wrapped around his.

To Harry's credit he'd taken her movement and physical closeness with him and Pansy in the darkness very well as she could make out a tenting in his trousers from her ministrations and antics.

"Well that was pretty good, if not a bit dated by looking at the quality of the picture." Harry said as Pansy nodded her head against his shoulder.

"Do you want to watch something else?" he asked as the credits of the film started rolling up the screen as he waved his wand lowering the volume so they could talk with the film's music in the background.

"Maybe in a little while. How about we talk for a bit." Pansy said

"Sure we can do that, what do you want to talk about?" Harry asked her.

"Let's talk about how you've become such the ladies' man since you and Ginny broke up." Pansy said.

"HA!" Harry barked out a laugh "Ladies man, I seriously think you've got your information mixed up Pansy."

"Oh really?" Pansy asked propping herself up on her elbow as her hand on his chest started making small circles on his stomach causing Harry's arousal to give a small lurch up the scale at the contact.

"Really, I am certainly not a ladies' man. Far from it." Harry replied.

"So are you trying to tell me that you've not kissed two witches recently?" Pansy asked a slight smirk on her face as she could see him squirm under this line of questioning.

"Well errr technically Susan kissed me first as did Daphne." Harry replied his mind screaming out to him that he'd initiated plenty of kisses with them since the first kiss with each of them.

"Oh I know all about kiss with Daphne and I saw with my own eyes how good the kiss with Susan was. She made every single witch in that hall jealous…"

"Come off it." Harry scoffed

"It's true!"

"Is it though? Really?... there were plenty of witches there with husbands and boyfriends who I'm pretty sure weren't jealous." Harry said smugly.

"Alright Mr. Pedantic, how about she made every single, attached or unhappily married witch jealous then."

"Sorry Pans, but I think you're way off here. Yes, Daphne told me that she wished it could have been her, but that's it. For a start Hermione and Fleur were there and they wouldn't have been jealous as they are both happily in relationships, Luna was there same, Hannah Abbott I think fancies Neville, then there is you, Tracey to name a couple more. So you see you're well off." Harry said.

"You really are clueless aren't you!" Pansy said shaking her head.

"Clueless about what?" Harry said putting his arm behind his head glad that he'd managed to win that line of questioning.

"Well me for a start!" Pansy let out a frustrated groan before she said as Harry's took a confused look on her face.

"Huh?"

"Jeez I knew you Gryffindors were dumb, but you're now Head of the Ravenclaw family, so you're really going to have to get a bit quicker otherwise you'll bring shame to the name." she responded playfully seeing how he clearly wasn't picking up she decided that the direct approach was necessary and taking a leaf out of Daphne's book and seeing as she finally had him where she wanted him she might as well just roll the dice and see what happens.

"I fancy you Potter!" Pansy stated looking him straight in the eye causing shock to register in his brain.

"Since when?" he asked feeling kind of numb as he really hadn't expected that at all.

"Well I've thought you were fit ever since the Black Lake task in fourth year in your swimming gear, but only really, properly since sixth year. You got taller and more attractive. You sort of shrugged off the geekiness and I kept hoping to catch you alone but you were always with Ron or Hermione and then later with Ginny and once I saw you with Ginny I knew there was no point in trying to speak with you."

"I had absolutely no idea." Harry replied.

"Now don't go thinking I'm like all those saddo's that only like you because you were the chosen one or whatever, because that's just not the case. You were never mean to me when you could have been, especially when I was being so horrible to your friends and a right bitch.

I heard Daph and Trace in the dorm every night talking about you and they recounted what Hermione was saying you were like and how it conflicted with everything Draco ever said, I guess we all just sort of started watching you from second year and as we all grew up, we all started liking you more and more. Although unlike Daph and Trace, I was tied into that bloody betrothal contract with Draco.

I knew it was pointless liking you. That all changed in sixth year when he tried to force himself on me and I found out he had taken the dark mark." Pansy said her eyes cast down at the horrible memory as tears formed in her eyes and started rolling down her eyes.

Pansy cursed herself for crying. This was her chance to tell him what she really thought about him and she was messing it up because her eyes were betraying her and not stopping her tears.

Seeing she was starting to get upset Harry moved his arm from behind his head and propped himself up as he turned his body onto his side so that they were face to face and he cupped her chin raising her face so their eyes met and ran his thumb over her cheek wiping the tears away as they fell.

"Did he hurt you?" he asked gently staring into her eyes.

"He tried to," Pansy replied "He sent a note to me one night telling me to meet him in the Astronomy tower, you know as people always used to sneak up there to make out and stuff away from watchful eyes.

Anyway I thought he was going to actually show me some affection or be all romantic and try to kiss me or something and he told me that I needed to start performing my duties as a pureblood wife should as he grabbed my chest and tried to put his hand up my skirt.

I told him we weren't even married yet and that if he thought he could take liberties then he had another thing coming. He told me that I needed to learn my place and he would show him what a real pureblood wizard could do to a witch. Then I made my first mistake of saying that the only real man in the school was you."

The tears started falling from Pansy then and Harry never being comfortable around girls crying gently rubbed her arm urging her to continue. It was a strange feeling as he really wanted to protect Pansy and felt bad that he hadn't protected her or really known anything like this was going on as he'd always just assumed that Malfoy had projected his hatred at Harry and muggleborns.

Pansy took a breath as she could feel her breath starting to catch a bit as she got upset about it and Harry rubbing her arm was really helping her to relax as it was tingling where he touched, she continued "This made him really angry and he pushed me down onto my knees tried to force me to go down on him. He took his dick out and told me that I was his and I had better get used to doing what I was told.

Then he tried to push himself into my mouth, but I kept moving my head to stop it from happening and then he grabbed my hair then screamed at me that you weren't a real man, just a scared four eyed freak and that your days were numbered.

He then tried again until I told him that if he tried it again, I was going to bite it off. Seeing that I wasn't going to submit and probably because he was worried about my biting his dick off.

He pulled me to my feet by my hair, which really hurt and backhanded me across the face knocking me to the ground onto the floor." Pansy was feeling herself shaking while she was telling Harry what had happened. She'd never fully told anyone other than her parents, Tracey and Daphne what had happened that night

Harry was shaking with fury as he had never known any of this and if he had he would have blasted a hole straight through Malfoy.

"Then he pushed me onto me back and put his hand around my throat and tried to pull my panties down, but I started struggling against him was trying to get his hands away from me and I ended up pulling the sleeve on his robes after I lost my grip on his wrist and it ripped and that was when I saw the dark mark." Pansy was shaking at this point and broke down as Harry pulled her into a hug as she wept against him while he softly stroked her hair.

"It's alright Pansy, I'll never let him touch you again…... ever and if I see him again then I might not be responsible for my actions." Harry stated his anger flaring and sending out a pulse of magic that brought Pansy eventually calmed down and her breathing slowed from the heaving sobs that it had been as she felt the power oozing off Harry.

Pansy couldn't help her stomach giving a small flip hearing Harry say that. He was going to protect her even though he had absolutely no reason to.

"I'm sorry Harry. I shouldn't have laid all this on you." she whispered noticing that his t-shirt was soaked with her tears.

"You've nothing to be sorry about. I always thought Malfoy was a nasty ferret but I didn't know he had that in him." he whispered back to her and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.

"I've soaked your t-shirt crying on it. I don't normally do crying. You know Slytherin Princess and all that. I've had to keep a tough exterior all through school but all I've ever wanted is for someone to really care about me." she said looking into his face with a small smile on her face.

"Plus If you're going to be my knight in shining armor I'll have to stop that or your armor will rust." she said giving a giggle, which made her sound a lot younger than she was.

"Ah don't worry my armor is water proof." Harry laughed softly but mentally face palming himself for such a cheesy line.

"Harry?" Pansy said barely above a whisper.

"Yes."

"Can I ask you a question?" she asked tentatively

"You just did." he responded with a smirk.

"Don't be silly. Seriously though if I ask you something would you tell me honestly?" Pansy said in response to his lame joke.

"You ask me an honest question then I'll give you an honest answer." he said his curiosity peaked.

"Do you think you would have liked me if we'd been sorted into the same house?" she asked.

"Given what I know you are like now then yes I think we would have been friends and liked each other. I'd have been able to show you that I wasn't some egotistical attention seeking nutter."

"Do you think you would have ever fancied me?" she asked hopefully trying to keep the conversation going down the path she wanted it to.

"Ummmmm… probably yes." He said cautiously as there was no doubt at all that she was a beautiful witch now.

"What! Really?" Pansy asked shocked and excited all at the same time and sat up more so that her head was now level with Harry's.

"Yeah I think so." he said with a shrug.

"Damn that Sorting hat. Think of all the fun we could have had over the years if I'd been able to sneak into your dorm at night." Pansy said.

"You'd have snuck into my dorm?" Harry asked surprised feeling his cock give a slight lurch at the thought of Pansy sneaking into his dorm in the night. He couldn't help wondering what kind of attire Pansy dressed in when she went to bed.

"Actually no, I wouldn't have." Pansy said seeing the tinniest bit of disappointment appear on Harry's face. "I sleep naked, so I wouldn't want Malfoy and his goons ogling my goodies as I made my way into your bed."

"Bloody hell!" Harry exclaimed.

"I've got a confession to make Harry." Pansy said running her tongue seductively across her top lip. "I was really jealous of that kiss you gave Susan Bones at the ball and Daphne hasn't stopped talking about your date with her and I'm really struggling here." she said her heart pounding in her chest.

"Oh….. and why are you feeling jeal…" Harry said but was unable to finishing as Pansy had moved forwards quickly kissing Harry.

A/N: - I just wanted to say that I know a lot of people out there like Draco as a character and his stepping back into the light after his lust for power in the original series. Did he really turn back into the light or did he just puss out and lack his convictions in his belief? (Controversial I know) I brought this development in with Pansy and Draco in the Astronomy tower as a means to bring Pansy and Harry closer together and for their friendship to have something honest to build itself from.

I'm still contemplating whether to bring Draco into this series and if I do to decide whether he is fully back into the light or whether he wants to go back into dark magic and power seeking again.

So apologies to any Draco lovers out there but I need something to help Harry and Pansy connect.