Harry called me and asked me if I'd like to go over to Ron's house; it was just him, his brothers and parents, Harry, and Hermione. I said sure, and Lily drove me over to their house.

Molly invited her to stay. Lily texted James to pop over after work. I greeted Molly and Arthur shyly- Molly was quite the hugger- then found myself sitting on the loveseat beside Harry; Ron and Hermione sat on the couch, strangely far away from one another.

"I'm really sorry," I said softly after they'd finished explaining what happened. "I didn't mean to cause so much trouble."

"Oh, please, Draco," Hermione said gently, pleadingly. "Don't think that was your fault. Ginny's been falling further and further into the TERF rhetoric ever since Harry came out. You didn't do anything wrong, and this has nothing to do with you."

"Yeah," Ron said quietly in agreement. "You're not doing anything wrong, anyway. Just being yourself. Ginny's the one with the problem, not you."

I looked down, then leaned onto Harry's shoulder. Logically, I could understand that- at least by thinking about it as Ginny having a problem with Harry and Pansy, rather than a problem with me- but it didn't help to quell the guilt inside of me.

It must have been hell to be a lesbian in a happy, loving relationship, only for you partner to come out as trans. It didn't make it okay for her to do- anything that they said she'd done, but I couldn't help but follow her line of thinking and grow sad.

The air around us was melancholic and muted until Molly called everyone for dinner; Ron promised to tell her we'd already eaten as he and Hermione headed to the dining room to eat. I turned in my seat, and Harry pulled my legs over him, smoothing a hand against my clean-shaven shin.

"I'm sorry," I said. "That you had to deal with all this."

Harry looked over at me with gentle, sad eyes. "I am, too. I just… I don't understand how Ginny could do that at all, you know?"

I nodded, tilting my head to the side to listen, grateful he didn't just dismiss me like Ron and Hermione had.

"She's a good person. I guess that doesn't really matter, but…"

"It does to you,"

"Aye," he admitted softly. "She's not bad, she's… Wrong. It makes it harder, at least for me. Thinks I'm some poor, misguided butch, tricked onto testoserone. Thinks Pansy's some evil, manipulative menace, transing all the femboys. Thinks you're some poor, misguided… You know. If that were true- if you believed that- this must all be terrifying, frustrating. I don't know how to get through to her. I mean, she shouldn't not be blamed because she thinks she's doing the right thing. But you can't get through to someone if you're treating them like piss. It's all so… Complicated. There are no good answers, only bad ones, middling ones, ones that won't do."

"Right," I said softly, reaching forward and caressing his arm. He went on.

"It was easy enough for her to handle Paddy and Tonks. After all- Tonks is intersex, and Paddy just looks like a man in makeup. She seems to understand nonbinary people well enough, which is usually the opposite of how people are. Maybe because she's known them for longer, and it just seems… Natural, normal?" Harry sighed. "I just don't know."

"Maybe she'll get there in the end," I said softly. "When she doesn't feel so… I don't know, angry, hurt. Maybe she won't, I guess, but… Maybe she will."

Harry gave me another sad smile. "Maybe."

When dinner was over, all of the Weasleys came into the living room, filling the many old, worn-in pieces of furniture. James came over shortly thereafter, eating leftovers on the floor in front of Lily's seat, leaning back against her. They asked me questions, chatted with me and each other. I was nervous at first, but there was such a welcoming, lively air that I couldn't help but melt into it, feeling warm and accepted. Ginny came home as the sun began to set, glancing at me and Harry before heading towards the kitchen to get herself some food.

"I don't know what to do," Molly said fretfully, quiet. "I mean, she's not allowed to treat people like that. But she already feels so ignored, so… Un-listened to. I think punishing her might just make it worse."

"I'll have a talk with her," Arthur said. "Tell her she isn't allowed to make people feel like rubbish just because she has 'opinions'."

"We have to be careful," Molly said. "We don't want to make her feel… Pushed away. That'll only push her deeper into all that stuff."

"Right,"

"I don't get it," Bill said in a low voice. "Coddling bigots in the hopes that they don't get worse."

"She's not a bigot-" Arthur started.

"She hates trans people, Dad," George said.

"I'd call that a bigot, I reckon," Fred added.

"She doesn't hate people who are trans," Bill said. "But she hates their transness and denies them their humanity. I'd… I'd go ahead and call that a bigot, too."

"Even if trans people weren't their genders," Ron said. "There's no reason to treat them like shite. If Harry was a girl 'pretending' to be a boy, you'd still be a dick for throwing that in his face. Not that you are, Harry, but-"

"Right," Harry said. "I know what you meant."

Ginny came back and sat on a stool, looking cool and undisturbed. "Chatting shit?"

"Yeah, I reckon we are," Fred snapped.

"We're not 'chatting shit'," Bill said. "We're talking about how you seem to enjoy making people feel like shite because you 'disagree' with who they are as people. If someone was saying the same shit about lesbians, you'd recognize it as garbage- you do, regularly. But-"

"I am not having this discussion," Ginny said with an angry grin, her eyes glittering with disdain. "So you can take it and shove it up your-"

"Ginny, please," Arthur said.

Ginny shook her head and looked down at her food, stabbing it with her fork. "Right. Why would any of you listen?"

"Why would we?" Fred snapped.

"Listen to you ramble on about how Harry isn't who he says he is?" George said.

"Having an opinion is one thing," Percy said. "Weaponizing it against people you love and expecting other people who love you both to listen and nod along is an entirely different thing."

"I'm not weaponizing shit," Ginny snapped.

I leaned forward, feeling empty and numb. I whispered quietly to Harry, so that no one else could hear me, "I want to go."

"Please, by all means, fucking do," Ginny hissed. I looked over at her, unsure how she heard that.

"Ginny." Lily's voice was stern and solid, unwavering. Lily's brown eyes turned to her.

"Draco just got kicked out by her parents," James spoke up. I tensed and shifted, turning towards Harry more fully as if for protection. "They took all her things, they shaved her head, tried to make her into a good little well-behaved boy. And it just made her feel worse. She doesn't need you snapping at her, right now of all times. Please, just leave her alone."

Ginny rolled her eyes but said nothing.

"Thanks for having us," Harry said, leaning forward; I sat up, placed my feet on the ground. "But we're going to walk home, I think."

"No, it's alright," James said, standing. "I'm tired. I should get home."

"I think I'll stay a few moments longer," Lily said, giving Molly a gentle smile; Molly looked defeated and heartbroken. James, Harry, and I walked to James' car; Harry opened the passenger door for me, and I got in.

The drive back to the Potters' house- my house- was slow and silent. When we got there, Harry headed to the restroom and I rushed upstairs to change into pajamas. I had just plopped onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling, when Harry knocked and walked in.

"Tomorrow's Friday," Harry said.

"Aye," I giggled out.

He got a small smile. "We could miss school again- at least, you could."

"No, I don't think I want to."

"Alright. I have to get changed,"

"I have to wash off my makeup, anyway. I should probably shower."

"There's girly stuff in the bath," Harry said. "Mam's stuff, but you can use it."

"Alright, thank you."

"Towels and hand towels and stuff on the shelf by the tub."

"Alright, thank you."

"And a blow dryer underneath the sink, if you need it. Should be a brush in one of those drawers."

I gave him a small smile. "I'm sure that'll do, Harry. Thank you."

"No problem."

I gave him a quick kiss before scurrying down the stairs.

Once I was alone in the bathroom, I stood naked in front of the mirror. My face was as feminine as it had ever been, maybe. My hair, styled carefully, was not so dissimilar from the hair any number of girls, even feminine girls, might choose for themselves. I shuddered, looking at myself for a long time, going back and forth about whether or not I thought I was pretty, and whether or not it mattered.

Eventually, I managed to will myself into the shower. At home, I showered with the lights dimmed, but here, there was just on or off. I tried not to look down at myself as I quickly showered, then got out to dry off. I placed the towel in the hamper and pulled my pajamas back on, brushed my hair, and hurried back up the stairs to find Harry playing video games on a bean bag chair.

"Do you wanna play?" Harry asked. "I've got loads of games."

"No, thank you," I said. "I'm not big into video games. Well, unless you count the Sims."

"The Sims is a video game- I've got three of them on my laptop. You can play if you want."

"Not right now, but thank you. I think I'm ready for bed- no, you can keep playing. I don't mind."

Harry, who had been about to turn off the console, looked over at me. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," I said. "Can I turn the lights off, though?"

"Of course."

I turned them off and lay in the bed, curling into the Gryffindor sheets. I lay there and got progressively sleepier, half paying attention to the game Harry was playing. Eventually, he turned it off. "Can I get a kiss?" he said softly, looking over at me.

"Yes," I said, blushing and smiling. He walked over and sat on the bed, leaning down.

He kissed me deeply and I responded. One hand found my cheek, stroking it with a crooked thumb. Our mouth pressed into each other slowly and sweetly, his tongue teasing my lip but retreating whenever mine went to meet it. I moaned and sighed beneath him, shuddering and squirming.

He was so dreamy. He tasted so good, like sugar and spice and hot chocolate and cinnamon. His hand trailed down slowly; he opened his eyes to watch my face, gauging my reaction. My eyes had been fluttering open and closed throughout the kiss.

His hand found my chest and kneaded it as if he were kneading a breast; his palm teased my nipple, and I moaned louder, the sound high-pitched and needy. He continued on for a moment, our lips still locked, until his hand moved down to caress my waist, my hip.

And then, lower still. I pulled back and sighed, looking up at him, feeling delirious and abashed, taken and strange. My lips were swollen and warm and damp. I looked up at him, his face dark and hungry and full of adoration.

"Goodnight, Harry," I breathed softly.

"Goodnight, Draco," he said, his voice low and gentle. He got up, then, and walked to the futon, laying down.

I turned onto my side, feeling utterly alone, but I knew that if he had lain down beside me I'd feel strange and overwhelmed.

Soon, I drifted off to sleep, dreaming of Harry and his sparse, low grunts, his confident, wandering hands, and the desire that plagued me.