Ron plopped the leafy garland on his head and sighed as his miserable reflection stared back at him in the mirror.
"I stand corrected—this is worse than my robes for the Yule Ball," he declared mournfully.
"The costume isn't that bad," Harry offered kindly, scrutinising his own appearance in the mirror before giving his reflection a quick nod of approval. "I guarantee there'll be crazier costumes than yours out there tonight."
"I doubt that," Ron mumbled under his breath, tugging at the clingy velour material. He turned to inspect the obscenely large glittery wings that completed the look and grimaced. "Urgh, this costume doesn't even make sense! Hermione knows what fairies look like and it's nothing like this."
"Well, it is supposed to be a Muggle interpretation of fairies," Harry reminded him. "You'll get less grief if you just roll with it, mate."
Ron grumbled something incoherent in response before he squared his shoulders and turned to face Harry. "Alright, I can't think of any other way to improve this monstrosity. Let's make tracks and get this over with."
"Try not to get too excited about the party, Ron," Harry joked as they exited the boys' dormitory and made their way down the spiral staircase.
"Shut it or I'll transfigure your outfit to look like mine," Ron warned.
Harry chuckled but thought better than to continue winding up his best friend: he knew that Ron had been teased mercilessly from a young age for being too tall and gangly, his hand-me-down clothes, and flaming red hair. While he had grown into his looks over the years, his physical appearance had always been a sensitive topic of discussion and he still couldn't help but take people's opinions to heart.
Hermione, Ginny and Neville were waiting for them in the Gryffindor common room, already dressed in their costumes and ready to attend the evening's festivities. Harry thought Neville looked quite dashing in his medieval suit of armour, while Ginny—sporting a brown bomber jacket, tan trousers and aviator goggles—looked impossibly cool in her Amelia Earhart costume. The three friends stopped chatting and turned as Harry and Ron appeared at the doorway. Hermione gasped when she caught sight of Ron and hurried over to his side.
"Oh Ron, you look wonderful!" she beamed. Ron, however, looked less than convinced.
"You really think so?" he asked uncertainly.
"Oh yes, you look very regal with your crown. And quite handsome, if you don't mind me saying."
"I don't mind that at all," he grinned, looking instantly more relaxed than he had moments before. Hermione took a step back, extended her arms and turned on the spot.
"Well?" she inquired. "How do I look?"
Ron's eyes grew impossibly large as he took in the sight of his girlfriend. While she wore the same style of fairy wings and garland as he did, she had paired it with an elegant floor length dress of silver silk. Her normally wild brown hair was styled into soft ringlets with little flowers braided throughout (Luna's doing, Harry suspected), and her large, brown eyes were decorated with glitter eyeshadow.
"Wow Mione, you look really beautiful," he replied before quickly adding, "I mean, not that you don't always look beautiful..."
"Nice save, Ron," Ginny joked but Hermione looked pleased by the sincerity of the compliment nonetheless. She hooked hers and Ron's arms together and stood on her tiptoes to press a kiss to his cheek.
"Thank you," she whispered before addressing her friends. "Shall we head down to the party?"
Ron walked arm in arm with Hermione out of Gryffindor Tower with his head held high. Clearly, it no longer mattered what anyone else thought of his costume so long as his girlfriend liked how he looked.
As the group of friends approached the Great Hall, the music within grew steadily louder. Harry thought there was something very strange about hearing Pulp echoing through the corridors of the magical institution, but based on the large number of students dancing in the centre of the room, it was proving to be very popular, even amongst those unfamiliar with the Muggle band.
"Ah, Luna's already here," said Neville cheerfully, waving to the person dancing on their own wearing what at first glance looked like a dinosaur costume. When Luna caught sight of Neville she stopped dancing abruptly and skipped over to her friends, grabbing hold of her beau's outstretched hand.
"Hello, Harry," she said dreamily. "I like your costume."
"Thanks Luna, I like yours too." He could just see Luna's protuberant silvery eyes peering through the mouth of her costume. "Um...who are you supposed to be?"
"Saint George and the Dragon," Neville explained. Luna tugged on two pull strings sewn into the arms of her costume and the large green, bat-like wings on her back began to flap.
"I'm the dragon," she added unnecessarily.
"Ahh…" Harry grinned and nodded in understanding. He should have known Luna would think outside of the box when it came to choosing outfits for her and Neville. "I think you guys are in with a good chance of winning the prize for best couple's costume."
"Oh, I don't know about that," Luna shrugged. "Professors Tonks and Jones's costumes are also excellent. I think that they'll probably win the top prize."
Harry frowned. "They're wearing a couple's costume?"
"Of course," Luna replied airily, pointing towards the seating area on the far left of the room. "They're dressed as Aragorn and Arwen from The Lord of the Rings. Professor Tonks said that's her favourite book."
Harry craned his neck to look over the heads of the other students and, sure enough, his two professors were sat together in the corner, whispering and giggling conspiratorially with one another, seemingly oblivious to everyone else around them.
"Huh. I suppose that would explain why Professor Jones has been coming to watch our rehearsals so often," said Ron thoughtfully. "And there was me thinking she was interested in the play."
"I like your costume too, Ron," said Luna. "Who are you dressed as? Oh! Is it the Tooth Fairy?"
Ron frowned. "The what now?"
"The Tooth Fairy," Luna repeated. "Muggles believe that The Tooth Fairy comes at night and steals the teeth of their children while they sleep."
Ron looked horrified at this explanation while Neville instinctively covered his mouth with his hand. While Hermione explained to Luna that the Tooth Fairy did not, in fact, leave children toothless, Ginny took the opportunity to slip away unnoticed to where Theo—dressed as an astronaut—stood waiting for her by the buffet table. While the rest of his friends took to the dancefloor, Harry sat at the side, watching the other students dance and amused himself trying to figure out what everyone's costumes were. Dean and Seamus were sporting matching claret West Ham football strips while Blaise was surrounded by a group of girls admiring his form-fitting Mr Motivator leotard and bumbag. Harry smirked when he spotted one student clad in a Guy Fawkes costume subtly pouring some illicit liquid (Firewhisky, no doubt) into the punchbowl before quickly stashing the hip flask inside the folds of their cloak. Maybe he ought to have a little try of it himself, Harry thought to himself.
He was less amused when he spotted a couple of the younger students donning round spectacles and scars on their foreheads. If they thought that Harry would be flattered by their choice of costume, they were dead wrong. He was glad to have worn a mask tonight; no one apart from his closest friends seemed to have realised who he was and he was thoroughly enjoying being anonymous for the evening. The only thing that would make his night better would be if he had Draco by his side.
His eyes scanned across the room again searching for Draco but there was still no sign of him. Harry sank back into his seat, feeling disappointed. Despite what had happened earlier in the day, Draco had assured him that he would be here tonight, but it looked as though he had changed his mind. Harry resisted the temptation to pull out the Marauder's Map and look for him. If Draco wanted to be here, he would turn up eventually.
"You look as glum as I feel," said a dreary voice beside him. Harry turned and was surprised to find Myrtle sitting (well, floating in a seated position) in the chair next to him.
"What are you doing here?" he asked, drawing a sharp look from the somber spectre.
"What? Do I need your permission to attend school functions?" she replied testily.
"No, I just didn't think you liked this sort of thing," Harry explained. "Big crowds, loud music, people being cheerful…"
"Everything that I hate," she agreed. "Well, I did pop along to Sir Nicholas's Deathday Party for a bit, but then they all started complaining about how hungry they were. I got so bored listening to them whinging, so I thought I'd come check out what was happening up here instead."
"And what's your verdict on the Halloween party?"
"It's rubbish here, too," she groused. "Look at everyone enjoying themselves, laughing and joking away...it's horrible."
"A truly awful sight to behold," Harry joked.
Myrtle sighed and turned to face Harry. "So what's your excuse for looking so miserable?"
"I'm not miserable," he argued. "I'm just waiting for Draco to turn up."
Myrtle's expression darkened. "Oh him. Well, after the way he spoke to me earlier today, I'd rather not be in his company any time soon."
"Yeah, he told me what happened," said Harry. "He feels really bad about what he said to you."
"And so he should! My being dead is no laughing matter, yet he saw fit to mock me nonetheless," Myrtle's anger seemed to melt away as quickly as it had arisen. Her shoulders sagged and she sniffed loudly, wiping a transparent tear from her eye. "How could he say such an awful thing to me? I thought that we were friends."
Harry thought carefully before speaking again, "Well, speaking from my own experience, friendships aren't always easy or straightforward. You expect people that you don't like to say horrible things about you, but you don't really care what they think, do you? But when it's your friends...well, they have the unique ability to hurt you the most; because they know everything about you, and they know exactly what words cut the deepest. Draco in particular, well...his sharp tongue is pretty infamous."
"Yes, I think we both know that all too well," Myrtle huffed.
"Sometimes being such close friends with someone can be a scary thing. It's difficult allowing yourself to be that...vulnerable with another person when you're so used to being alone. Sure, sometimes they say stupid things that'll hurt your feelings, but they're also the first ones to stick up for you if anyone tries to hurt you. They're the ones who stick with you through thick and thin. And they're the first ones to forgive you when you hurt them, too."
"So you think I should forgive Draco for what he said?" she asked.
"That's entirely up to you."
"But you two have managed to forgive each other for far worse indiscretions."
Harry shrugged. "We've nearly killed each other on more than one occasion. Saved each other once or twice, too. If Draco and I can get to a place where we can forgive each other, I think there's hope for your friendship with him yet."
As Myrtle had listened, she had stopped crying. She gave Harry a hard look. "You're too nice, you know that? And too forgiving for your own good."
"Yeah, you're not the first person to tell me that," he sighed.
Myrtle looked thoughtful for a moment before relenting, "I suppose you're right. I'm still angry at him for what he said...but I won't try to drown him in toilet water if he decided to pay me a visit in my bathroom."
"I'll let him know," Harry assured her.
"You're smarter than you look."
Harry snorted. "Thanks...I think."
"I think I've had enough partying for one day. I'm just going to head back to my toilet and think about death." Myrtle rose from her seated position and began to float away. "See you later, Harry."
Harry waved Myrtle off and watched her drift away, taking care to avoid walking straight through any of the students. He suspected that the real reason that Myrtle had attended the party was to see Draco, but he was glad that he'd crossed paths with her first. Trying to take his own mind off of Draco for the time being, Harry decided that he would have some of that punch after all. He weaved his way through the crowd towards the buffet table pouring himself a ladleful of ruby red liquid into his goblet. Just as he was about to take a drink, he paused when a familiar voice whispered in his ear.
"You're a hard man to find, Don Diego de la Vega. Or should I say...Zorro."
Relief and excitement rose up in Harry then and he turned around to get a look at Draco's costume for the first time. Sporting a white Stetson, black mask and red kerchief, Harry thought that his boyfriend made a very handsome cowboy. Draco also had a silver sheriff badge pinned to his chest that was not dissimilar to the Inquisitorial Squad badge that he used to wear.
"The Lone Ranger, I believe?" Harry guessed.
"Indeed," Draco confirmed, tipping his hat to him. "You approve?"
Harry nodded. "You look great."
"I know," he agreed unabashedly, twirling a toy revolver in his hand. Harry smirked and rolled his eyes.
"Ever the humble man," he chastised lightly. Draco's smile broadened. He glanced around to make sure nobody was paying attention to them before he took a step closer to Harry.
"You don't like me because I'm humble," he said in a low voice. "You like me because I'm bad."
"You're not bad," said Harry gently. "A bad influence, maybe…"
"Speak for yourself," Draco chuckled. "You're a wanted man, Zorro. There's a large bounty on your head. I ought to slap some cuffs on you and collect the reward."
"Is that a promise?" Harry replied silkily. Draco's smile grew licentious.
"Now who's the bad influence?" he teased. "Your list of crimes are as long as my arm: Lewd conduct. Public nudity. Solicitation…"
Harry tutted. "It sounds like I've been a very bad boy, Sheriff. Perhaps we can come to some sort of arrangement?"
"Maybe," said Draco interestedly. "What exactly did you have in mind?"
Harry raised his goblet. "We could start with a drink?"
Draco looked thoughtful for a moment as though he were seriously considering Harry's proposal before giving a curt nod. "It's a good start. We can work out the finer details of this arrangement later in the evening."
Harry poured a large drink for Draco and handed him the goblet. "So, what inspired you to dress up as the Lone Ranger?"
"Same reason you decided to dress up as Zorro," he shrugged. "The anonymity that comes with wearing a mask is nice. And these Muggle wands are fascinating."
Draco drew his toy pistol and pointed it across the room, pulled the trigger and a small red flag with the word 'BANG' emblazoned across it popped out of the muzzle.
"May I ask why you two gentlemen are loitering around the punch bowl?" came a sharp, authoritative voice.
Harry and Draco turned to see Professor McGonagall dressed as Mary, Queen of Scots, looming over them.
"Nothing, Professor, we were just grabbing ourselves a drink," Harry explained.
The tension in Professor McGonagall's stance immediately eased when she recognised Harry's voice. "Ah, it's you, Mr Potter. I didn't recognise you in your costume."
"Thanks, that's sort of why I picked it," he laughed. Professor McGonagall gave him a sad smile at those words.
"Yes, I can appreciate why you'd enjoy nobody recognising you for an evening," she said gently before turning her attention to Draco. "Mr Weasley, I presume?"
"Not quite, Ma'am," Draco replied, smirking at the shocked expression on Professor McGonagall's face.
"Mr Malfoy?" she asked. She looked between the two former enemies and shook her head. "Well, you gentlemen certainly keep unexpected company these days."
"Times have changed, Professor." Harry drew Draco a coy smile. "So much has happened in the last couple of years that it seemed silly to hold onto old grudges. Everyone deserves a fresh start."
Professor McGonagall's eyes widened with surprise at those words but then she smiled fondly at Harry. "Very wise words, Mr Potter, and I quite agree. Still, it would be remiss of me to see two serial mischief-makers in such close proximity to one another and not remind you both that misbehaviour, tricks or stunts of any kind will not be tolerated, particularly after what happened earlier today. I've already had to confiscate alcohol and fireworks from a number of students."
"Don't worry, Professor, I'll make sure Potter behaves himself," Draco simpered, earning himself an annoyed glance from Harry.
Professor McGonagall's eyes narrowed. "No shenanigans from either of you. Is that understood?"
"Yes, Professor," they replied in unison.
With a brisk nod, Professor McGonagall wished them both a good evening and strode off to stop two of the younger students from lobbing candied apples at one another.
"That comment about shenanigans was definitely directed at you," said Draco.
"Like you're any better," Harry shot back and Draco chuckled.
"I'm just better at not getting caught," he countered.
Since neither of them felt like dancing, Harry and Draco sat at one of the free tables and chatted with one another for a while. Harry enjoyed explaining which Muggle bands and singers were playing and was surprised when Draco said that he quite liked The Spice Girls when one of their tracks started to play.
"Of course, they're not as good as The Weird Sisters," he drawled. "Or as good looking, I imagine."
"If you think Myron Wagtail's hot, wait 'til you see Stephen Gately," Harry smirked. "Unless you prefer blonds?"
"I am partial to a blond on occasion...but there is one brunette in particular that I've had my eye on," Draco teased, smiling at Harry over the rim of his goblet. He took a sip of his drink and glanced thoughtfully at Harry for a few moments before speaking again.
"I'm surprised that you were so excited about tonight," he mused. "You must have been to Muggle parties before?"
Harry's smile faltered a little. "Umm, not really. Actually, this is the first time I've ever got to dress up for Halloween."
Draco frowned. "Really? I thought it was customary for Muggles to dress up and go Tricking."
"Trick or Treating," Harry corrected him. "Although, knowing you, there would be more tricking than treating going on. But no, I wasn't allowed to do things like that when I lived with the Dursleys."
The corner of Draco's mouth twitched slightly and his eyes narrowed. "Ah yes. The Dursleys…"
Draco took another sip from his goblet. Harry felt his stomach twist uncomfortably thinking about his aunt and uncle. He didn't talk much about them to anyone, even Ron and Hermione knew very little of his life at Privet Drive. Remembering how they treated him over the years was a great source of shame and embarrassment for Harry, and as far as he was concerned, the less people that knew, the better; because the less people that knew what it was like, the easier it would be for him to pretend that it had never happened. He rather hoped that if he just didn't think about them, that maybe one day he would be able to forget about his time at Privet Drive entirely. But the nightmares were persistent, and Draco had spent more than enough time wandering through Harry's memories to know what it was really like for him living there. Still, Draco had never mentioned what he had seen, which Harry greatly appreciated. But based on the dark expression on Draco's face at the mere mention of his aunt and uncle, it was clear that he knew a great deal more than he was letting on.
"I always wondered where you went during the summer holidays," Draco continued conversationally. "I thought that you spent your time being trained by Dumbledore."
"Believe me, that would have been preferable," said Harry grimly.
Draco carefully placed his empty goblet onto the table. "Well, I'm hoping that the festivities are living up to your expectations. It is a strange custom, dressing up as monsters to chase away evil spirits. Not a very effective defence against Dementors or Lethifolds though, is it?"
"Not really," Harry agreed before smiling at Draco. "Still, it's a good laugh, isn't it?"
Draco snorted. "That's a matter of opinion. But you know what would be fun?"
"What?"
A sly smile spread across his face. "Sneaking off somewhere quiet so that I can have my way with you."
Harry thought that was a brilliant idea. He abandoned his drink and followed Draco out of the Great Hall towards the front entrance. The cool night air had a bite to it and Harry shivered involuntarily as they exited the front doors of the castle. Without prompting, Draco quickly drew his wand and cast a warming charm on both of them. Harry sighed and felt the tension in his muscles ease as warmth washed over him like an invisible blanket.
As they made their way down the front steps, they found themselves surrounded by a fake graveyard, complete with plastic headstones, bushes covered in fake cobwebs, and large statues of ghoulish monsters from Muggle folklore. There were a few students and teachers dotted about the grounds and graveyard. Professors Switch and Flitwick laughed as they played with Muggle sparklers, writing their names through the air, while a large crowd whooped and hollered as The Headless Hunt played a game of Head Polo for the students' amusement. Harry and Draco walked past a small group of first-years who were participating in the spooky scavenger hunt. They were—rather foolishly, in Harry's opinion—scouring the grounds for Mrs Norris, who from what he could overhear, had a clue attached to her collar. Draco and Harry hurried past all of them and set off down one of the winding paths, past one of the large bushes where some suspicious giggling was emanating.
"Sounds like someone's having fun." Draco cast a flirtatious glance at Harry. "Fancy taking a tumble in the bushes with me?"
Harry grinned and, after checking that the coast was clear, grabbed Draco's hand and pulled him towards what looked like an ancient, gnarled willow tree, except this one had cherry blossom pink branches and green leaves with red spots. They pushed their way through the low-hanging curtain of branches, letting the leaves fall back into place and obscuring them from any prying eyes.
"This'll give us more privacy than a bush," said Harry, turning to face Draco.
He let out a small gasp of surprise as Draco pushed him against the rough bark of the tree, his expression now predatory. Keeping his hand firmly against the centre of Harry's chest, Draco quickly discarded his hat onto the ground before carefully slipping his knee between Harry's legs, deliberately brushing his thigh against Harry's prominent erection. Harry's eyelids fluttered in response and he pressed his hips more firmly against Draco's leg.
"Are you going to arrest me now, Sheriff?" he joked.
"I'm going to frisk you first," Draco purred, sliding his hands over Harry's waist and nuzzling his exposed neck. Harry closed his eyes and pulled Draco closer, wrapping his arms around Draco's neck before hooking his leg around Draco's leg to increase the friction. Despite a bumpy start to the day, this was working out to be the best Halloween ever. Suddenly, Harry heard giggling coming from nearby and he stilled, listening intently for the source of the noise.
"Do you hear that?" he whispered.
"Hmm?" Draco hummed, seemingly unperturbed by the threat of someone spying on them.
"I can hear someone laughing," said Harry, pulling away from Draco, but Draco just laughed.
"It's the tree that's laughing, you plum," he chastised lightly. Rolling his eyes at the confused expression on Harry's face, he explained, "This is an Alihotsy tree; you use the leaves to brew a laughing potion."
The tension in Harry's body eased a little. "Oh, right."
"When the wind blows through the leaves, you can hear them laugh. And if you listen closely enough, you can hear them talk to each other, too," he murmured, pressing a lazy kiss to Harry's neck.
"Really?" Harry's breath hitched and his eyes rolled to the back of his head as Draco sucked on the sensitive spot on his throat. "W-what do you think they're saying?"
"Hmm…" Draco drew back to look Harry up and down with an expression of sheer reverence. "You're stunning to look at, you know that?"
Harry laughed. "That's what the tree's saying, is it?"
"No. I am."
Draco's expression was quite serious all of a sudden and Harry felt as though the air had been pulled from his lungs. Although he knew that Draco liked him (that much was obvious, even to Harry), he was so used to Draco's flirtatious teasing that the sincerity of the statement took him aback somewhat. Draco's eyes slid shut as Harry carded his fingers through his hair and pulled him closer again, kissing him gently at first, trying to convey in a kiss how much he cared about Draco because he didn't have the words. There was a strong gust of wind then and as the branches swayed in the breeze, the tree seemed to sigh contentedly as Draco and Harry kissed each other soundly beneath it. Draco left a trail of gentle bites and open-mouthed kisses down Harry's neck causing the pleasant ache between his legs to grow more intense and he moaned, rutting against Draco's leg.
"You're going to get us caught," Draco quietly chastised, although he made no attempt to stop his ministrations.
Harry wanted to say that he didn't give a shit if they got caught, but he managed to suggest they cast a Silencing Charm before he pulled Draco in for another kiss. He could feel Draco smile against his lips, and in response, he slid his hand off of Harry's hip to cup his erection, giving it a firm rub through the soft cotton of his trousers. Harry let out a soft moan of approval and let his own hands roam lower, sliding under the hem of Draco's shirt and dragging his nails across the soft flesh of his back, making Draco shiver.
Breaking the kiss, Draco experimentally nipped Harry's plump bottom lip. That sent a pleasant spark of pain and pleasure straight to Harry's groin and he instinctively tightened his grip on Draco's lower back, digging his fingers into his soft skin.
"You like that, don't you?" Draco teased, his voice low and rough as he gave Harry's cock a tight squeeze. Harry groaned and nodded helplessly, unable to form words. "Yeah? How about this?"
Draco slipped his hand beneath Harry's trousers and boxers, taking the hot, firm flesh of Harry's cock into his hand and swiping his thumb over the wet tip. Harry's response was immediate; his breath stuttered and he clamped his eyes shut, pressing his forehead into Draco's shoulder.
"Fuck…"
"Mmm, I thought you'd like that," Draco whispered, very slowly and deliberately running his hand along the full length of Harry's shaft, delighting at the shaky gasp that escaped Harry's lips as he twisted his wrist on the upstroke. "You've no idea how amazing you look right now, Harry. So hot. So fuckable…"
"Oh god, keep talking like that and I'm gonna blow my load," Harry warned, already panting for breath.
Far from deterring Draco, he increased his pace. Harry felt his legs begin to buckle as the build-up of pleasure spread from his groin and through his body.
"You like it when I talk like this too, don't you?" said Draco, his voice full of want. "There are so many things I could tell you, Harry. Would you like to hear about how I lie in bed every night, playing with myself and thinking of you?"
"Oh god, yes," Harry gasped, thrusting his hips forward into Draco's tight fist. "Tell me, please…"
"I take a firm hold of my hard cock and imagine that you're on top of me, sinking your tight little hole onto my cock," he purred. "Would you like that?"
"Fuck yes," Harry panted, a surge of arousal coursing through him at the thought of Draco pleasuring himself, thinking of him.
"Sometimes, I like to finger myself and imagine you're the one fucking me," said Draco roughly, increasing his grip around Harry. "I think about you bending me over a desk and pounding into me until I cum without touching my prick."
"Holy shit," Harry's head was swimming now, his breaths becoming increasingly laboured as he edged closer towards the point of no return.
"I've fantasised about it for so long, Harry. Long before we kissed, before I even realised that I had feelings for you," Draco admitted, his hand relentlessly stroking Harry's slick prick back and forth. "I've wanted you for so long, I couldn't believe that you would want me, too. I still can't believe it sometimes. I just want to give you everything, Harry. Everything of me…"
"Draco…" Harry whimpered. The pleasure of his impending orgasm was creeping up his spine into his chest, catching his breath. He wasn't going to last much longer. Draco pressed their foreheads together and they locked eyes, smoky grey on emerald green, dark with desire.
"God, you're so beautiful," he breathed, the stream of praising words pouring from his lips like a broken faucet as he stroked Harry closer and closer to orgasm. "With your perfect, messy hair and your smile. I love it when you laugh at my jokes. I love the way you moan when you cum..and your eyes, god I love your eyes...I love everything about you, Harry. Oh god, I think I love you, too…"
Harry didn't quite register what Draco had said because stars exploded across his vision at that moment as though a firework had gone off behind his eyes. He canted his head back, bumping it against the tree trunk, and came in a long, exhaled groan as his hands clawed Draco's back and Draco pulled him in for a messy kiss. As Harry began to come down from the dizzying high of his orgasm, Draco's words finally began to sink in. Harry pulled Draco into a hug and gently stroked his hair while Draco kept his face buried into the crook of Harry's neck, unwilling to look him in the eye.
"Did you mean what you said?" he asked.
His voice was barely above a whisper and he was afraid of how Draco would answer. He suspected that he had just gotten carried away in the moment, but if Draco did feel that way...the thought scared Harry as much as it excited him.
"Yes," Draco mumbled, his voice barely audible. "I don't know why I told you that. I shouldn't have told you that..."
Draco sounded ashamed at his admission, but Harry cupped him by the cheeks and forced Draco to meet his gaze. "Well, I'm glad that you did."
"...But you don't feel the same way."
"I didn't say that," Harry replied quickly. "It's just...I'm surprised that you're being so candid about your feelings, is all. Usually, it's like getting blood from a stone."
Draco gave Harry a searching look. "So, how do you feel about me?"
Harry closed his eyes and kissed Draco again before whispering against his lips, "I think I love you too."
Draco let out a strangled sound, somewhere between laughter and a sob of relief, and he kissed him back, clutching Harry's hands that remained on either side of his face. There was something desperate about the way that they held each other now. Suddenly, this indefinable thing between them felt much more solid, far more tangible—and at the same time, infinitely more precious and fragile than what it had been only moments before.
Their moment of perfect solitude was suddenly interrupted by loud voices coming from the direction of the Black Lake. Harry and Draco broke their kiss and listened closely as the voices grew steadily closer to where they were hiding, and they both hoped that whoever it was would keep on walking by. Suddenly remembering that his trousers were still undone, Harry quickly spelled away the semen and fought with his zipper while Draco peaked out of the leafy canopy to see what the source of the commotion was.
"It's Weasley," he whispered over his shoulder. "He's arguing with Ginny and Theo."
"What?" Harry hastily tucked his shirt back into his trousers and hurried over to Draco's side to take a look for himself. "Bugger. I worried that this might happen."
Ginny was hand in hand with Theo, her face like thunder while Ron marched after them both, calling for his sister to stop walking away from him. Harry spotted Hermione a short distance away, hobbling after them in her high heels.
"There's nothing to talk about!" Ginny cried over her shoulder without slowing her pace.
"There's plenty to talk about!" Ron exclaimed. "I just stumbled across you in the bushes with this...this…"
Ginny suddenly stopped dead in her tracks and rounded on her brother. "You just happened to stumble across me in a bush with my boyfriend? I find that highly unlikely!"
"Boyfriend?" Ron cried, aghast.
"What's more likely is that you were looking for me because you knew that we'd be together," said Ginny accusingly.
"I wasn't following you! I'll have you know that I was looking for my own bush, thank you very much!" Ron shot back. "Believe me, the last thing that I wanted to see was this wanker—" Ron gestured wildly at Theo, who rolled his eyes. "—groping my sister!"
"Leave her alone, Weasley," Theo warned. "She doesn't want to talk to you right now."
"You stay out of this, Nott!" Ron snapped. "This is none of your business."
"This"—Ginny gesticulated between her and Theo—"is none of your business, Ronald. Let's get one thing clear: who I like and who I choose to spend time with is none of your business. End of story."
"Like hell, it isn't! You're my sister and I don't like you seeing him."
Harry took a step back then and turned to Draco. "I don't feel comfortable listening to this. Let's get out of here before they find us."
"In a minute," Draco replied distractedly, a small frown forming on his forehead. "I want to keep listening."
"Why?"
"Because it interests me and I enjoy watching Weasley get angry," he admitted, unable to tear his eyes away from the trio as their argument grew more heated.
Harry gritted his teeth in frustration at Draco rejecting his advice to leave. He considered heading back up to the castle on his own, but instead, he moved back to Draco's side and peered through the canopy of leaves again. Against his better judgement, he was interested to see what would happen, too. Hermione had finally managed to catch up to them and was trying to calm Ron down while he and Theo squared up to one another. Ginny looked livid as both boys threw a slew of insults at one another, practically nose to nose as they jabbed each other in the chest with their index fingers. As things took a more personal turn (Theo began ridiculing Ron's costume so Ron started mocking Slytherin house), Harry glanced nervously at Draco who was getting more visibly angry with each passing insult.
"Stop it!" Hermione cried, pulling Ron away while Ginny stood in front of Theo as though shielding him. "Please, just stop fighting with each other."
"He started it," Ron huffed.
"Why?" Ginny challenged. "Why do you hate Theo so much when you don't even know him?"
"I don't hate him," Ron argued.
"Then what is your problem?"
"He's not good enough for you!" he cried, pointing accusingly at Theo. "He's a no-good Death Eater and I trust him as far as I could throw him. That's what my problem is."
"Alright, I've listened to enough of this," Draco growled. He began to push his way through the leafy branches of the Alihotsy tree, but Harry grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back.
"What are you doing?" he hissed.
"Weasley has no right to say those things about Theo," Draco snarled. "He knows nothing about him!"
"I know that, but if you go bursting out there in the middle of their argument, you're going to have to explain why we're hiding under a tree together!" Harry reminded him.
"I don't care!" Draco declared. Just then, Draco's expression morphed from one of frustration to realisation. "I mean...really don't care what they think."
He sounded surprised, almost in awe of himself that this could be true. The argument continued to rage on just beyond the leafy canopy but Harry paid it no mind.
"You really want to tell them about us?" he asked uncertainly. "Because yesterday you didn't seem all that keen. Don't get me wrong, I understand why, and I'd love to tell them about us, but...Draco, what's the matter?"
Draco shook his head. "I don't know. But I suddenly have the overwhelming compulsion to speak every thought that enters my head." Draco frowned and turned to Harry. "That is weird, isn't it?"
Harry didn't know what to say to that. Harry suddenly realised then that the shouting had grown quieter. He peered out of the canopy again to see his friends heading back towards the castle, the argument still in full swing. He turned back to Draco to tell him that the coast was clear, but Draco was staring off into the distance at nothing in particular, his expression serious. Harry gave him a light shake to get his attention.
"Draco, what's wrong?" he asked again, feeling a stab of panic rise up in him at Draco's odd behaviour. Draco seemed to snap out of his trance and his eyes flitted towards Harry's.
"Ask me a question," he demanded. "Something simple. Factual."
Harry's eyes widened with surprise at the strange request. Whatever he thought Draco was going to say after a tentative declaration of love, it wasn't that.
"Okay, umm...what are Slytherin's house colours?"
Harry grew even more alarmed when Draco gritted his teeth and screwed his face up in concentration, trying and failing to answer the question. "Rrrr…rrrrr…RRR— GREEN. Slytherin's colours are green and silver. Fuck."
Draco looked exhausted from the sheer effort of saying one simple word. Harry stared at him. "What the hell was that all about?"
Draco looked up at Harry, his expression now one of panic and confusion. "I can't lie."
Harry frowned. "What?"
"I can't lie," Draco repeated, sounding more distressed. "I tried to lie about the colours of Slytherin house but I couldn't."
Harry felt his stomach sink. "Shit. Do you think someone's hexed you?"
Draco roughly ran his hand through his hair and shook his head. "I don't know...it could be a number of things. What am I going to do?"
Without a moment's hesitation, Harry grabbed Draco's hand and pulled him through the low-hanging branches of the Alihotsy tree and back towards the castle. "We're going to see Madam Pomfrey. Just don't talk to anyone on the way."
"Oh, give me some credit, Harry!" he snapped. "I've been hexed to tell the truth, I haven't developed a sudden bout of incurable stupidity!"
Harry pursed his lips and rolled his eyes. It was good to know that whatever was wrong with Draco, it hadn't dulled the sharpness of his tongue.
"I saw that!" Draco cried accusingly as Harry marched him past the fake graveyard towards the main entrance. "I saw you roll your eyes at me."
"I didn't roll my eyes at you," Harry lied. "Maybe you're seeing things, too."
"We both know my eyesight is infinitely better than yours. Honestly, my life could be in danger and you're rolling your eyes at me! Where's your sense of compassion? If I didn't know any better, I'd think that you were enjoying this..."
As Draco continued his rant, Harry was suddenly thrown back to the first day of term when he and Draco had bickered with each other in much the same way as they were now as they climbed the stone steps of the castle into the Entrance Hall. Harry had less of a compulsion to hex Draco this time around—but only slightly.
Harry made to bypass the Halloween party for the Grand Staircase, but the noise within made both he and Draco pause. The music was no longer playing and there was a lot of shouting and screaming pouring out of the Great Hall. Harry and Draco shared a concerned look before they both hurried over to see what was happening. As they pushed open one of the heavy doors to the Great Hall, the sight that met them was one of absolute chaos: the room was packed with students and teachers, and it seemed like everyone was either shouting or crying. Several people had both hands covering their mouths but seemed unable to stop talking, their eyes wide with alarm.
"What the hell is going on?" asked Draco aloud as Harry scanned the room for his friends. He spotted Ron and the others near the centre of the room; Ron was now red in the face as he and Ginny screamed at each other while Hermione appeared to be babbling incoherently, tears streaming down her face as she did so.
"Wait here," said Harry, closing the door on the bemused-looking face of his boyfriend. As he pushed his way through the thronging crowd, he caught snippets of odd conversations and bizarre confessionals.
"My grandmother wasn't sick," Jimmy Peakes shamefully admitted to Ritchie Cootes. "I bailed on you because I had a date with Sophie Roper and I didn't want to miss it."
"I ate a Puking Pastille and I crapped my pants," cried Romilda Vane, hiding her face in her hands.
"I tried to Engorgio my penis and ended up in St Mungo's over the summer holidays," Nigel Wolpert blurted out, looking mortified as he did so.
"I can't speak Mermish. I only told you that because I was trying to impress you," Harry heard someone else confess.
"—the only way I can sleep without nightmares is taking Sleeping Draught," another student admitted. "I think I have a problem…"
"—I saw Lavender die and I didn't do anything to help," sobbed Parvati onto Padma's shoulder. "I could have helped but I was too scared to move!"
"—I don't know how to tell my parents—"
"—I'm scared all of the time—"
"—I hate you—"
"—I'M IN LOVE WITH YOU—"
It was clear that whatever was wrong with Draco had spread like wildfire, and it seemed like everyone in the school was affected. Even some of the teachers appeared to have been affected too as several members of staff ran past with their hands over their mouths. Everyone was suffering from the effects of the mysterious hex...everyone except Harry, for some reason.
While chaos reigned, Peeves flew overhead, laughing maniacally as he revelled in the turmoil unfolding below. When Harry finally managed to reach his friends, he called out to them to get their attention and their heads snapped towards him. Ginny's eyes welled with tears and Ron looked absolutely livid.
"Harry!" Ginny shouted, rushing towards him. "Harry, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to tell him—"
"Is it true?" Ron cut in, rounding on Harry. "You and Malfoy…"
Harry's stomach dropped. "W-what?"
"You wouldn't," Ron stammered. "I mean, you're not even gay! Tell me she's lying, Harry."
Harry turned to Ginny and gaped at her. "You told him?"
"I didn't mean to," she pleaded. "It just came out, I couldn't help it."
Ron looked as though he had been slapped across the face. "So it's true? You and him?"
"Ron, now isn't the time to talk about this," Harry rushed. "Something is seriously wrong here. I think everyone's been poisoned or cursed or…"
"—I hate Hagrid's rock cakes!" Hermione blabbered uncontrollably. "And his treacle tarts are even worse! Oh my god, what is happening?"
"How could you?" Ron cried. "How could you break up with my sister for Malfoy, of all people?"
"It wasn't like that!" Harry argued.
"Then what was it like?" Ron shouted. "First Ginny and Nott, now you and Malfoy? Has everyone lost their minds?!"
Harry pleaded with Ron to calm down and listen to him, that there were things of more immediate importance to worry about right then than his relationship with Draco. But Ron, like everyone else who had been affected, seemed apoplectic with rage. As the screams and shouts rose into a deafening crescendo, Professor McGonagall suddenly appeared at the top of the hall and cast her wand in a wide arc above everyone's heads.
"LANGLOCK!"
The moment the words had passed her lips, the entire room was instantly rendered mute. Harry gasped and instinctively clutched his throat as his tongue was suddenly glued to the roof of his mouth. Several other people around him did the same thing, eyes wide with shock as their mouths kept opening and closing of their own accord like a goldfish gulping for air. Professor McGonagall's wand fell by her side and she cast her sharp gaze across everyone in the room.
"Everyone remain calm!" she ordered. "We will not solve this by screaming and shouting at each other like banshees. While we do not yet know the source of this commotion or the culprits involved, I assure you, this will be dealt with swiftly and severely. For the time being, you will all calmly and quietly exit the hall and make your way to the Hospital Wing. Is that clear?"
The students nodded mutely and everyone slowly began to file out of the Great Hall towards the Grand Staircase in the direction of the Hospital Wing. Harry reached out and grabbed Ron by the shoulder, but Ron shrugged him off and marched ahead on his own. Harry stared after him, unable to cry out after him, unable to apologise for keeping secrets from him when they both swore that they never would. Just then, Ginny cautiously tugged his arm and mouthed "I'm so sorry" again, but Harry just shrugged and fixed a forced smile to his face before mouthing "it's okay" back to her. He couldn't be angry at her: he knew that she would never have purposefully broken his trust like that. No, he was angry at himself. Angry at himself and the person who had done this to everyone. As Harry exited the Great Hall, he saw Draco stood at the foot of the staircase waiting for him.
"What's happening?" he asked, pulling Harry aside. "Does McGonagall know what's going on?"
Harry pointed at his mouth and shook his head. It took Draco a moment to realise what Harry was trying to say before he whipped out his wand and pointed it at him.
"Finite Incantatem."
Harry let out a sigh of relief as his tongue detached from the roof of his mouth. "Thank you."
"So, what did McGonagall say?" asked Draco again, pocketing his wand. "Does she know what's wrong with everyone?"
Harry shook his head. "Everyone's to report to the Hospital Wing. If anyone can fix this, it's Madam Pomfrey."
"And if she can't?"
"Then St Mungo's is going to be inundated with patients."
Draco cursed and shook his head. "I bet it was that fucking P.A. that did this, whoever they are! When they said that we'd all be sorry, they weren't joking, were they?"
"No, they weren't," said Harry darkly, climbing the Grand Staircase with Draco by his side. "What I don't understand is how everyone else seems to be affected except for me."
"McGonagall didn't look like she'd been affected either," Draco noted. "And some people's symptoms appear to be worse than others. I've seen some people babbling absolute nonsense, other people seem more aggressive...it just doesn't make any sense."
"Yeah, you seem fine," said Harry curiously. "Apart from the fact that you can't lie, of course. I wonder why you're less affected than the others?"
"I don't know. But don't even think about taking advantage of me in my vulnerable state," Draco warned. "I don't want you asking me any embarrassing questions."
"I won't," Harry assured him. "What happened tonight isn't funny. I overheard people confessing all sorts of things—private stuff. People are going to need counselling after this."
Draco sighed and shook his head. "It's a real shame, and the evening started out so pleasant. I had a great time under the tree grabbing your—"
Harry quickly covered Draco's mouth with his hand before he could blurt out to curious passersby exactly what they had gotten up to earlier in the evening. Draco drew Harry an apologetic look and slowly Harry moved his hand away.
"Evidently, I'm more affected than I thought," Draco mused.
"Probably better if you don't say anything from now on," Harry suggested. "Just in case you say something that you'll later regret."
Draco scowled but he kept his mouth shut and nodded. He, Harry and the rest of the students walked in eerie silence towards the Hospital Wing. The only sound that they made was their shoes scuffing against the old stone floor. While this had been far from the worst Halloween that Harry had ever experienced—as Draco rightly said, the start of the evening had actually been very pleasant—it would probably be the one that everyone else would be keen to forget.