Hey guys! Here's another chapter for you. Two words: It's starting. Enjoy! :)

CHAPTER TWELVE: SECRET KEEPER

"Cecily?"

I woke up to a quiet voice and the gentle movement of someone shaking me softly, coaxing me out of my dreamless deep sleep. Slowly my consciousness came back to life as I opened my eyes and took in my surroundings.

I was in my dorm, in my bed, Jojo at my feet, and Greengrass leaning over me with a worried look. It was just starting to get light out which told me it was very early in the morning.

"What is it, Greengrass?"

"Just making sure you're okay," She said. "We looked for you everywhere last night. We were worried."

"I'm fine. Jojo wanted to take a little stroll around the castle," I said, hating the sound of my voice in the morning-squeaky and tired.

"Well I should warn you, Draco's not very happy about it." Her voice was a whisper, not waking the other girls. I sighed, closing my eyes.

"I figured he wouldn't be but it's nothing I can't handle," I said and then wondered, "Wait, why are you waking me up so early? Just to tell me that? Could've waited, don't you think?" I looked up at her and saw her expression; she shook her head slowly and subtly gave my body a once over. I raised an eyebrow and sat up slightly, looking to see what she saw.

Nothing was out of place, I still had my clothes on, Jojo was sleeping peacefully and I'm sure my hair was a mess.

And I was still wearing Potter's coat.

Wait a second...

"Oh, bloody hell," I hissed and unzipped it quickly, trying my best not to wake the girls, and tore my arms out of it and ripped it off. I threw it on the ground and scowled. Ugh. What in Salazar's name had I been thinking?

Vaguely, I could still smell him on me. Ugh! I'd have to shower before my brother could come in and detect something was off. I'd also have to either hide Potter's coat or find a way to return it to him without anyone knowing I'd had it in the first place.

Neither option was appealing to me.

"I don't know what you're up to Cessy but you should be careful." Daphne was looking at me with concern and I sighed, nodding.

"I can't tell you who it belongs to," I said, she nodded in understanding. "But thank you for telling me I still had it on before my brother barged in here and saw it." My voice was a whisper barely audible. Who knows if these girls were actually asleep? Wouldn't want them knowing I was keeping secrets from my dearest brother. Daphne just nodded again and looked at me sympathetically.

"Just be careful." She warned me once more and I nodded, my chest heavy with the fact that I had now dragged her into another one of my messes. She went back to bed and I attempted to do the same.

But now I simply couldn't.

Last night I spent time with Potter and actually enjoyed myself.

At least I think I had. Did Firewhisky alter realities? It sure seemed like it.

Again I could smell Potter's aroma on me and I wanted to groan loudly in disgust. I couldn't believe I had actually tolerated being with Potter and let him give me his coat. And he let me keep it! He was either just as foolish as I believed him to be or he did it on purpose to torture me more.

Git.

After about five minutes I couldn't stand his scent lingering on me any longer. I woke Jojo by jolting out of bed and apologized to her as I gathered fresh clothes and headed towards the showers, confusion and revulsion toward my actions the only two things on my mind.

After my shower the rest of the girls started to wake for the day and I decided to face the consequences of my actions and go seek Draco out before he found me. At least then he'd know I felt guilty. I trekked over towards the boys dorms and cautiously opened the door to Draco's room.

Theodore was still sleeping and I smiled slightly to myself at the sight of him. His hair was rumpled and his arms were flailing like he'd been tossing and turning. His mouth was slightly open and he was snoring softly every few seconds. I peaked over at Draco's bed and saw him in a similar state. I sighed, letting the guilt eat at me a little longer before I woke him gently.

He jolted awake and panicked, looked around the room before his eyes rested on me.

I was met with a heated glare instantly. My heart sank.

"Where the hell did you go last night?"

I had known it was coming but still the ice in his voice stung and I stumbled over my words before finally landing on:

"I'm sorry."

"That doesn't answer my question, little sister," He said, sitting up fully now, letting his sheets slide down his body.

"Jojo and I just went for a walk around the castle, that's all," I said, hating myself for yet again lying to him. How many things was I keeping from him now? Some twin I was. I tried not to think about Potter's arms holding me as I'd stumbled back to the castle. Who knows what Draco would do if he'd found that out.

"Not bloody likely, we searched the whole castle for you and you weren't anywhere to be found-," He hissed. "-I was worried about you for Salazar's sake!"

"Draco I'm sorry, I didn't mean to worry you-," I said lamely, beginning to feel my anxiety creeping up as the other boys started to wake up at Draco's loud voice. "-I really just went for a walk and then came back here in time for curfew." I wanted to kick myself for how easy it was for me to lie to him. Part of me was horrified about not wanting to knock myself unconscious in Potter's presence last night and I'm sure Draco would've shared the sentiment if he knew the truth. Lying was the only option, sadly. It made my chest feel heavy.

"Yeah, I know. Daphne told me you passed out in your bed when we got back to the common room but what the hell Cessy? You were supposed to be gone for fifteen minutes, not two hours." His voice was cold and I felt my heart tugging with the pain and worry I had caused him. I felt awful; moreso that I was lying to him about what I was actually doing.

"I didn't realize the time had passed. I'm sorry Draco, it won't happen again." I was quiet in my reply and he seemed to deflate at my tone a bit but by the angry look in his eye I knew he was going to be mad for a while.

"It better not." He glared some more and finally sighed, running his hands down his face from exhaustion. He peaked at the clock in his dorm and groaned, falling back into his bed. "I have to patrol in thirty minutes but we'll meet for breakfast."

"Okay," I said, still feeling the heaviness in my chest from disappointing him. He was definitely right about one thing: It better not happen again.

I could never again spend time alone with Potter. It just caused too much trouble and confusion. He sighed again and got out of his bed and started to get ready for his day. I watched him gather his clothes and head towards the showers and looked over at Theodore. He was up now, looking at me with a face I hadn't seen in quite some time.

He was clearly disappointed in me too.

"Are you upset with me too?" I asked, already knowing what his answer would be.

"Just concerned. It's not like you to just run off without a word." He got up out of bed and I felt a blush creep onto my face at the sight of his naked chest and low hanging pajama bottoms.

Did all the boys sleep without shirts on?

Draco had been shirtless as well but seeing as how I was his sibling and that's what he did at home I was used to it. I peaked over at Blaise and there it was; another shirtless boy. Blaise smirked at me and stretched; giving me a show. I shuddered to think Montague was shirtless somewhere in the Slytherin dorms. Ew.

"I-uh think I should go head towards the Great Hall," I said, cheeks still flaming. Blaise chuckled.

"Aw c'mon Cecily stay and enjoy the show," Blaise said, getting out of bed fully and stretching once again. His body was lean and his muscles rippled as he continued to stretch. I felt myself staring a little too long before shaking my head and heading towards the door.

"Wait, Cessy, talk to me-," Theodore grabbed my arm before I could exit the dorm and I tried my hardest not to look at his pectoral muscles which were right in front of my face. "-are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Theodore."

He gave me a look that clearly told me he knew I was lying but I wasn't about to spill all of the things I'd been hiding to him. Plus this is as much skin on him as I wanted to see and I just knew Blaise would start pushing his limits over in the corner just to see my red face still.

Poor Draco would probably kill his friend. It would just be bad overall, so yeah I had to leave.

Theodore's eyes, seemingly bluer first thing in the morning, were looking at me with such concern it just added to my already constricted heart. Draco's anger and now Theodore's worry were going to make me an emotional mess and it wasn't even seven o'clock yet.

"I'm worried about you, Cessy," He spoke softly so none of the other boys could hear him. I felt my breath catch in my throat and I tried my hardest not to let him show that his words affected me so. If he continued this way I was sure to let all of my secrets spill and I couldn't have that. Too much was at risk.

"Don't worry about me, Theodore. I'd tell you if something was wrong," I said, letting the lie slip between my teeth with ease.

When did I become such a good liar?

He gave me a dissatisfied look once more and let go of my arm, nodding his head slowly. I looked him over once more, admiring how truly beautiful he was; tall, chiseled but not overtly, warm and protective and looking at me like I held his heart in my hands. I gave him a smile I knew would get him off of my case, only furthering my crushing guilt. He smiled back and told me he'd meet me down for breakfast. I quickly agreed and headed back towards my dorm. Potter's jacket was laying on the floor still and honestly the sight of it made me want to kick something.

I thought back to last night where we'd both been civil towards each other. I could vaguely remember laughing quite a bit and not hating being in the same room as him. I remembered Jojo and Hedwig revealing that they were friends and that Potter had known for a while. I remembered him telling me Sirius Black was his Godfather. That had definitely been a shock. I remembered the smiles we shared and how surprisingly charming he'd been.

How the hell had that even happened? Was I truly going insane?

I looked over at Jojo, who was sleeping peacefully on my bed and I sighed. She had led me towards the Owlery. Why? Did she know Potter was there? But no, that's impossible.

I sighed to myself. I would be crazy if I believed that my cat had known Potter was going to be in the same place I would be at the exact right moment. It had just been a coincidence; one that had most of my friends worried about me, unfortunately.

"Well, that's the last time I'm drinking, Jojo," I said and picked up Potter's jacket, wondering what to do with it.

I could always find a way to give it back to him at one of the D.A. meetings; there was one tonight wasn't there? Had he said that or was I remembering it wrong? Or I could possibly get it back to him through Granger but taking it out of here just seemed a bit risky. What if someone saw me with it and then saw Potter wearing it after I gave it back to him and put two and two together? Or worse! What if someone had already seen Potter wearing it and had seen me stumble to bed wearing it last night? Ugh!

Either way, I would have to deal with the consequences eventually.

"Everything okay?" Greengrass' voice spoke from behind me and I sighed when she came over to my bed, holding a towel around her body and brushing her hair out.

"They're mad at me," I said, shoving the jacket into my trunk and locking it. I would deal with it later.

"I'm sure they were just worried. We all kind of were."

"Well I was fine," I bit out, glaring at her. It's not like I was wandering around some city by myself, it was Hogwarts for salazar's sake.

"I know you can take care of yourself Cecily," She said a little harsher, most likely from my spark of attitude that was wrongly aimed at her. "But despite you putting him in his place Montague can still be a problem. You're brother and Theo know that too."

At this I lessened my anger. She had a point and she would know better than the rest of us. Draco and Theodore were just being overly protective, as usual.

"I shouldn't have wandered off," I sighed, admitting my fault once again. "Meet us for breakfast?" I said, changing the subject, hoping to get the spotlight off of me and blatantly ignoring that fact that she called Theodore by his nickname again. I didn't even want to bother with why it still bugged me; it would just give me a headache. She sighed, and nodded, telling me she'd be down soon. I shook my head slightly, lost in my own thoughts and hating myself more and more by the minute while I left my dorm and headed down to breakfast.

"So my point is-," My brother was still droning on about my wandering off, twenty minutes into breakfast and he hadn't even taken a bite; instead he was intent on lecturing me. "-do that again and it'll be the last time you do anything, ever." He glared, finishing his rant.

"I've heard that before brother, when are you going to live up to it, huh?" I teased him. At this point I had already dealt with my guilt and apologized so he was just over doing it. Theodore had seemed to forgive me, he sat happily next to me, giving me some his fruit off of his plate and sharing glances with me every time Draco used the phrase 'little sister'. He had used it a total of five times so far.

"Just try to remember what I told you at the beginning of the year, Cessy." His tone was warning and I looked at him earnestly.

"I haven't forgotten, Draco."

Stay under the radar.

"Good." And finally, he took a bite of his eggs.

"Greengrass,-" I called and she looked up from her copy of the Daily Prophet with a raised eyebrow. "-sit with us in Divination today." She looked at me curiously but shrugged and nodded. I eyed the paper but before I could even reach for it Theodore had snatched it out of reach. I pouted.

"Don't even think about it," He gave me a scolding look and I continued to pout. "And I thought we were going to be tablemates today?" Theodore sounded confused and I felt bad about excluding him but I had something planned for today so he would be sitting with Blaise much to his dismay. I could tell he was ready for things to get back to normal with us, hence the stealing of the paper before I could read it and get angry about the stories. There hadn't been any forehead kisses in a while so I was looking forward to it getting back to normal as well but not today.

Today I was going to get a hold of another Orb and have Draco and I test it out. By my brother's curious gaze I knew he was wondering what I was up to but I didn't bother telling him in front of our peers. The first time we'd had a vision it had been in front of Daphne so she wouldn't be surprised to see it if it happened again. Hopefully.

Part of me was a little giddy to be involving Draco in my scheme only for the fact that this was a secret that we shared, rather than me keeping it from him. I had enough of those to last a lifetime by now. The only part I couldn't share with him was that I was researching our birthmarks with Granger and I had a hunch our marks had something to do with the fact that we could see into the future. If that's what we could even do, I still wasn't sure.

But that's what today's test was for.

Speaking of Granger...

Peaking past my brother's head I saw the trio sitting at the Gryffindor table, heads leaned in together whispering about something. I felt the incessant need to know what they were discussing but I figured if it was important they'd let me know soon. Especially if it had to do with our meetings. From the look on Granger's face it didn't look serious, more like friendly gossip. Granger cracked a small smile at Potter but I couldn't see his face; he was face the same way I was so all I saw was his back. Briefly, very briefly, I looked at his back and wondered what his body looked like shirtless. I remembered his arms wrapped around me last night, holding me up and thinking to myself how strong he was; practically holding my dead weight as I hobbled back to the castle. If his arm muscles were any indication he was probably very toned; from quidditch most likely.

Cecily! What. Are. You. Thinking. Stop that!

I shook my head of the intrusive thought and cleared my throat, wondering what the hell came over me. I saw Granger glance my way and of course, Potter turned on a dime, making immediate eye contact and giving me the tiniest of smiles. My throat felt very dry suddenly as I sipped my pumpkin juice quietly, trying hard to get my thoughts back on track.

"You okay over there?" Draco's voice popped me back into reality and I stopped looking over at the Gryffindor's. I hesitated before answering, my head too scrambled for proper words to pour out.

"I'm excellent, yeah-," I nodded, setting my goblet down, making sure to maintain eye contact with him. "-why do you ask?"

"No reason," He said, narrowing his glance at me and continuing to eat.

I waited patiently for him to finish without saying another word so that we could get started in Divination.

Once breakfast was over and we were in class. I felt a sliver of dread sink into me when I saw Potter, Granger and Weasley roll in and sit directly behind Daphne, Draco and myself. Potter had tried to make eye contact with me again and I had stealthily avoided it. Every fiber of my being was hoping that's all he would attempt with Draco sitting right next to me. He wouldn't try to say hello, would he? Surely he wasn't that foolish. Right?

My prayers were answered when no greeting came and Professor Trelawney began her lecture. It appeared today she was having us practice our dream interpretation with our tablemates. Meaning; Draco and Daphne would have to share their dreams with me and I with them and see what the meaning behind it all was.

I had to refrain from rolling my eyes; my most recent dream that I could remember featured a butterbeer in my hand and delicious cinnamon pastry in the other. Didn't seem too far-fetched to interpret that as anything other than hunger.

However, dream interpretation would put a kink in my plan. How was I going to get my hands on a crystal ball if none of us were required to use one during the lesson? Perhaps I could have Daphne distract Trelawney while I snatched one from the other side of the room.

"Greengrass-," I whispered, before my mind had even had a moment to think of a better plan. "-distract Trelawney for me, will you?"

I had to give it to Daphne, she didn't even hesitate. I was highly impressed and slightly in awe as she stood quickly and sauntered towards our nutty professor. She grabbed her attention quickly and made sure she was facing the other way from us before asking her about a dream she'd had. I wasn't paying attention enough to hear what she was saying but I was thankful for Daphne's ability to distract someone at a moment's notice.

Suddenly, all of my past bitterness towards her seemed irrelevant and I felt a little bad about being so mean. She'd actually been helping me quite a bit lately.

Draco was watching me with an alarmed look as I brought my wand out and smiled at the thrum of my magic humming through it. I muttered a quick 'Accio' and quick as a flash a murky fog filled crystal ball flew to my waiting hands.

"What are you doing?" Draco asked, voice low, eyeing our surroundings making sure no one was noticing. I had a feeling at least two Gryffindor's behind us noticed but I couldn't care at the moment.

"I want to see something." I looked at Trelawney, now animatedly describing Daphne's dream with wild hand gestures to her, and placed the Orb on the table. I didn't even give Draco a chance to protest before I grabbed his hand and forced it on the ball, over mine.

And just like last time I felt like I was submerged in ice, my mind numbing as I felt the vision swim forward.

I was looking at my house, Malfoy Manor. The picture was like last time where it wasn't clear but I knew the shape and the grounds. There were people outside of the gates of my home, men I didn't know, muttering to themselves. I saw them turn as a loud scream from the distance pierced through the wind. It shifted, I was looking at the quidditch pitch at Hogwarts, the scene blurry but the gist of it clear; Draco and Potter were fighting, throwing punches and slamming each other on the ground, there were shouts and I was there grabbing at Potter's quidditch robes trying my best to get him off of my brother and then it moved on again. I was now looking into a room I had no recollection of, but there were doors, so many doors, and the loud echoing sounds of running footsteps sounding far away. The unmistakable snapping sounds of spells were not far behind. I heard more shouting and then I was somewhere else. I heard Draco calling my name, same as the last vision, desperate and pained, my heart ached to find him but just like the last one I couldn't see him. I heard my own voice crying out for him and just as the last vision ended I felt my mind coming back to itself, my body washed in the freezing cold and I had to fight from gasping out loud.

I looked at Draco first. His face was pale and eyes wide as he snatched his hand back from me, too shocked to be angry with me and too unsettled to say anything at all. I looked around the classroom; it couldn't have been more than twenty seconds that had passed but it felt like I'd been in my own head for far longer. Daphne was still distracting Trelawney.

"I just had to see," I whispered, and quickly swished my wand so that the crystal was back in its original spot at the other side of the room. Draco still said nothing, but nodded his head at me, understanding.

My plan had worked for the most part. At least I knew for sure Draco and I could definitely have visions. More questions were arising, that was for sure, but at least I knew now. I caught Daphne's eye, nodding my head slightly; a signal for her to return. She cut Professor Trelawney off quickly with a quick 'oh now I understand' and headed back to our table. I chanced a glance behind me and saw Potter's eyes already on me; I didn't have it in me to make eye contact and quickly turned around when Daphne sat down.

"Everything alright?" She asked.

Draco didn't reply, the color in his cheeks hadn't returned.

"Yeah," I nodded. "Everything's fine."

I cornered Draco in an empty Charms classroom very quickly after Divination was over. None of our friends followed, although Theodore tried to but I quickly told him we had twin business to discuss and he let it go and moved onto the next class.

"What was that?" Was the first thing out of Draco's mouth and I sighed. Clearly he hadn't thought about our first encounter since it happened but thankfully for both of us I'd been thinking of it nonstop.

"It was a vision, Draco, our second vision by my count. Unless you've been having them without me," I accused and he shook his head, still looking a bit pale.

"Of course I haven't been having them without you! I tried to forget the first one we had! How did you know it would work a second time?" He asked, his anger rising; as a result his color was returning which was a good sign. I'd rather him angry and flushed than subdued and pale.

"I didn't!" I defended. "I just guessed and I was right! Something is going on here Draco, we have to figure out what it is before something bad happens." I was glad to see he was at least admitting we had visions. Last time I remembered he tried to brush it off as 'twin things'.

"What do you mean before something bad happens?" He asked, crossing his arms and leaning against the desk at the head of the classroom.

"I don't know about you but these visions we had don't exactly scream 'happy times are coming' to me. I feel like-," I hesitated, knowing he didn't like when I brought this topic up. It brought up things in him he didn't like thinking about. "-I think Hogwarts is going to be attacked..."

He froze, giving me a hard look, dark thoughts swimming behind his eyes.

"By who?" He asked, but he already knew my answer. I took a deep breath before answering, dreading the look on his face when I said the words.

"The Dark Lord and the Death Eaters."

He stiffened even though I tried to soften the blow, make it seem like it wasn't something he had to think about, and I saw him swallow hard. He shook his head slightly.

"That doesn't seem like it's our problem," His voice was low and I could tell just by his tone that even he didn't believe his words. What was he thinking now? Did he think we were going to fight back and lose? Did he fear that he would be the one attacking the school? I could barely even think about it without wanting to wrech all over the floor.

"Draco, look at me," I said, trying my best to convey how much I loved him and how much I wanted to protect him. He would not become one of them. Not if I had anything to do with it.

He barely lifted his head as his eyes made contact with mine; an exact match.

"I will not let anything bad happen to you. Ever."

He swallowed again and nodded, lowering his head and looking to the ground, taking a deep breath.

"You know I feel the same. Which means if Hogwarts is attacked I don't want you anywhere near it when it happens."

"Maybe we should tell Professor Snape-"

"No!" He snapped. "We can't get Professor's involved, especially with Umbridge

sniffing around trying to find any reason to expel students. It's too risky." I could tell he was starting to panic.

"Well then maybe we should send an owl to Mother, maybe she knows something," I said, shrugging, feeling more than helpless and confused.

"Do you think if she knew anything she wouldn't have told us already?" He asked.

"I don't know Draco, but I'm trying to come up with solutions! It's more than what you're doing!" I shouted, feeling my anger rising. He wasn't giving me any leeway as to what we should do. He didn't want to get Professor's involved, he didn't want Mother involved, and I sure as hell didn't know what to do. I was at a loss and I just wanted some answers.

"Alright, alright! Listen,-" He sighed, running a hand through his hair, stressed just as I was. "-We'll keep it to ourselves for now, okay? Let's see if these visions even happen, okay? So far nothing has come true." He saw the look on my face and added: "If it'll make you feel better maybe we'll steal one of the crystal balls and see if it continues. I don't know, I just know that if we get adults involved they're going to instantly see us as some kind of freaks. I'd very much like to not attract attention, you know that."

I didn't like it. I didn't like it one bit but the look on Draco's face had me nodding my head. I couldn't stand to see the fear in his eyes at the uncertainty of what was happening to us. I didn't doubt that it would put us in a very bright spotlight but I knew that Professor Snape would keep our secrets. He was someone we could trust. I just knew I needed answers and needed them soon.

"I'll give you until after the holidays. If we can't figure something out by then please let me get Professor Snape involved." I was pleading. He looked torn, knowing what he knew but wanting me to feel better about the situation. He nodded his head and sighed, coming over to me. He wrapped me up in a tight hug and rested his chin on top of my head. He was so much taller than me now my face was squished into his chest and I felt the frantic beating of his heart against my cheek. I felt his body tense with stress and I hugged him tight, hoping we could figure it out on our own for his sake but knowing it was unlikely and that'd most likely be speaking to a teacher about it soon enough. I would really have to start digging into my research with Granger. She still hadn't told me what she'd found out-we hadn't had time to meet just the two of us.

"We'll be okay," He said into my hair and leaned back, placing his hands on my shoulders and squeezing them, reassuring me. The look on his face said otherwise but I could feel he just wanted me to feel better. I sighed.

"I hope so." He simply looked at me with an expression I knew matched my own.

It said: What the hell is happening to us?

After a very long and trying day I really didn't want to head to the seventh floor. Professor Snape was extra intuitive in Potions and had immediately spotted that something was on my mind. After class he'd asked me if there was anything I'd wanted to talk about and of course there was but the promise I'd made to Draco was at the forefront of my mind and I couldn't exactly break it having made it not an hour before. Plus, my emotions were so drained that I really wasn't in the talking mood. Something that poor Theodore had noticed right away and tried to cheer me up out of. He could only do so much though because as soon as we'd gotten to Defense Against the Dark Arts Umbridge had squashed any kind of good mood that might've made its way to me.

She didn't do anything particularly nasty, only had us reading another chapter in her horrid spell book that didn't allow us to actually use the spells. Just her mere presence put me in a foul mood. She had caught Longbottom with his wand out and given him a detention immediately but other than that she had sat at the head of the class and watched over us for a full hour, smiling in her pink outfit with a wicked gleam in her eye. In my gut I knew she was up to something. I'd heard that she had started examining other classes; perhaps to get a jump start on who she thought she could sack. Fortunately for me she hadn't examined any of my other classes yet but I knew she'd show up sooner or later. Draco had left immediately after our last class to go patrol with Tracey with a distraught look on his face and a promise to see me later and my chest ached for him. I didn't want him feeling the dread that I did but of course I knew he was. Probably moreso.

And now here I was, making my way up the seventh floor corridor to fulfill my duties as the disloyal Slytherin working with her brother's enemy.

I came to the front of the wall where the hidden door was to the Room of Requirement when Potter came out of it and opened it for me, making sure I hadn't been followed.

This was another thing I'd had running around in my head all day that I had tried my best to ignore.

Potter.

What was I going to do about Potter?

Inside the Room of Requirement was much the same as the first time only it seemed that I was early. It was just me and him.

Great.

"Malfoy." He nodded his head to me after closing the door and gave me a cautious look.

"Potter." I returned it, hating the awkward silence but not exactly knowing what to say. I kept my eyes on the floor and awkwardly pursed my lips. He didn't say anything else for a moment and the silence ate at me. Ugh, which was worse? A nice Potter or a silent Potter?

Yesterday I'd been having a merry ol' time with him, drunk and enjoying our conversation, and today I could barely look at him.

"I almost thought you wouldn't show up," He finally said. "Didn't know if the Firewhisky meddled with your mind or not," His tone was light, not as heavy with amusement as it usually was nowadays, like he knew I wasn't really in a joking mood. I managed to look at him for a moment and saw his unruly black hair, sticking all over the place like he'd run his fingers through it, his eyes were bright, as usual, his stance was casual, but there was something in his expression that told me he was treading lightly. Like he didn't want to upset me, or something.

"So..." I started and he looked at me patiently. "Sirius Black is really your Godfather, huh?"

At this, he managed to crack a grin.

"Yes, he is," He spoke as if he was trying not to laugh. "We went over this."

"I vaguely remember," I muttered. He nodded, amused, and stepped closer to me.

"What else do you remember?" He asked, his tone lower than before. I glanced up at him again, overwhelmed with his proximity, once again, and his stunning green eyes, once again.

It was awful; I liked it better when I hated him without question.

"I remember you weren't awful company but considering I was drunk I probably would've enjoyed Filch's company just as much as yours," I admitted which earned me another grin and a nod.

"I doubt you would've enjoyed his company more than mine. And you weren't so bad yourself. Although you agreed with me too much for my liking." He crossed his arms over his chest and I willed my mind not to think about the fact that they had been around my waist about twenty-four hours ago.

"So agreeing with you is what's got your wand in a knot? Wow. Can't win anything with you," I said, raising my chin to him.

"No, you can't apparently," He said, still grinning like he was in on a secret that I wasn't. "I was expecting more of a reaction about the news of my Godfather but you didn't give me much. Just agreed with me and moved on. I was expecting a fight."

"Sorry to disappoint, Potter," I growled, feeling that familiar annoyance I had when I was usually around him. Had I really not argued at all with him last night? Seemed impossible; he was infuriating.

"Ah, there it is," He smiled fully now.

"There what is?" I snapped.

"That spark. You were lacking in it last night." He had gotten closer again, I was practically staring up at him with my neck all the way back. When had he gotten so tall? When had all of the boys in my life gotten so tall?

"Oh sorry Potter, was my Malfoyness not showing while I was drunk?" The sarcasm was so heavy in my voice I could taste it. The phrase he used so long ago stuck with me; it was just so ridiculous.

"Exactly," He said slowly, almost like a whisper and I felt his breath brush over my face. He was so close now. "You know what I was thinking?" He said louder now, taking a fraction of a step back.

"Probably nothing, your brain is so small," I replied.

He gave me a look and rolled his eyes.

"I'm thinking you should be the first to try the stunning spell today. You went last the last time, aside from Neville, and you did great. Why not try it first this time? Give some of the other students a bar to reach." He spoke so casually and so confidently that I almost said yes off that bat. But then I remembered who exactly was in this little dueling club.

"I don't think they'll like me going first," I said, annoyed with the truth of my words. My thoughts slid to Cho Chang and her pinched sneer directed towards me. She reminded me of Puginson a little with it. I could just picture her outrage if I went first and did well. The thought made me smile.

"Quite frankly, Malfoy, I don't care what they think about it. I would like to see you go first."

It sounded like a challenge and Chang's face in my mind with her snarl towards me was egging me on.

"Fine. I'll go first." I flicked my hair over my shoulder and crossed my arms, haughtiness oozing from my pours. He smirked at me, looking like he'd gotten exactly what he'd wanted. "Where is everyone, by the way?" I asked.

"I moved the time to seven-thirty," He said without a second thought.

"You didn't think to tell me? We've got twenty minutes until everyone shows up," I sighed in exasperation, annoyed. I could've at last eaten dinner with Theodore before I'd left if I'd known. "Did you just want some alone time with me?" I added, partly joking, partly to see if my words affected him.

"No, of course not." He spoke too quickly, looking at the ground, backing up from me now. Like he was nervous. Like he'd been caught. Something inside me fluttered with giddiness at this revelation. Was Potter nervous because of me? Ha! It seemed Potter was keeping some secrets of his own.

"Admit it Potter, you like spending time with me." I pointed a finger at him and I could tell my face was giving off that famous Malfoy arrogance that we were known for.

"Yeah, right," He scoffed, but still wouldn't look at me. "You're the last person I'd pick to spend my time with."

Ouch. That stung more than I cared to admit.

"Well, the feeling is mutual," I said, glaring at him, ignoring why his words affected me so. He looked at me now, glaring right back, his green eyes flashing with something in them I couldn't place. I felt the boiling of anger in the pit of my stomach but also a small thrill at the familiarity of the situation. This was the Potter I was used to.

"Well, as long as we've got that cleared up," He sneered, peering down at me. I must've looked quite the sight, all five foot seven of me glaring up at him with the same steely glare he was giving me.

"Oh yeah, it's really clear. You like spending time with me just as much as I like spending time with you,-" I paused. "-which is never."

"Didn't seem like you hated it last night." His voice was raising, much like mine.

"That was a complete coincidence! I didn't know you were going to be at the Owlery-," I was defensive now, but also loving that we were having a genuine argument that had nothing to do with Death Eaters, or saving the wizarding world, or pink slimy toads.

"Oh, so I'm supposed to believe that Jojo led you to where I was?" He sounded exasperated and I was so sick of people underestimating my cat.

"Yes!" I threw my hands up, just as frustrated with him as he was with me. He threw his head back and laughed.

"Do you realize how ridiculous that sounds?"

"Yes, I do, but it's the truth," I said. He paused and gave me a look that I couldn't decipher. His eyes roamed my face, flickering over my mouth, my nose and finally my eyes. His eyes, as bright as ever, seemed to darken.

Not the reaction I was hoping for.

"Fine, you want the truth? Okay, Malfoy, I'll admit it. I do like spending time with you."

Also not the reaction I was hoping for. Or was I? At this point I had no idea. Part of me feared it, part of me wanted to see where this was going. It was strange, this new path Potter and I had been put on. I wasn't entirely sure I wasn't enjoying the ride.

"Well that's funny considering we're supposed to be enemies," I said, my voice lower now and confused with why he would actually like spending time with me after all of the years of hating each other. What, exactly, had changed?

He chuckled and shook his head, stepping closer to me again. So close, I could smell him. The same scent that had lingered on me this morning.

Great. Now I recognize his scent.

"I already told you, Malfoy, we're not enemies," His voice was soft and his eyes were blazing as he looked at me. Again I could feel his breath on my face. And then he lifted his hand with no hesitation and gently brushed a piece of my hair back behind my ear. His hand rested lightly on the side of my neck; it was big and warm and a little rough.

"I don't think we ever were."

And if I hadn't been able to feel my own heartbeat in my throat I would have assumed the world had stopped turning.

Did...did that just really happen?

Did Potter push my hair behind my ear? And did he really just tell me, very kindly, that we were never enemies at all?

It was silent between us except for our breathing and the pulsing sound of my heart in my ears but I could see him looking at my face with such intensity and I could feel his breath and warmth and when he glanced down at my mouth I was pretty sure I felt like I was going to pass out.

What. Is happening.

"Oh good, you're here!"

And just like that the moment was shattered by the sound of Granger's cheerful voice.

Potter and I sprang apart so fast it was like watching a spell hit us. I felt the loss of the weight of his hand on my neck and instantly my face heated. Granger didn't seem to notice as she prattled on about how excited she was for tonight's lesson. My face was so hot and all I could do was stare at the floor, looking anywhere but at Potter. My heart was beating so fast in my chest I was pretty sure they would all be able to hear it. What had just happened? Did Potter and I just have a moment?

Was that even possible?

All these thoughts came rushing to my head immediately and I was starting to get a headache. When did he decide it was okay to brush my hair back behind my ear? When did he decide he likes spending time with me? Why did I even bother asking him that in the first place? Why did I not mind that he just brushed my hair behind my ear? Why the hell was Granger's voice so loud?

"Is that right, Malfoy?"

"Huh? What?"

I looked up at Granger, in a daze, still feeling the blush on my cheeks from the moment before running over and over in my head. It was like I could still feel his hand tucking the long blonde strands behind my ear. I could still feel the weight of it on my neck. It left a wave of goosebumps on my skin.

What. The actual. Hell.

"What was that, Granger?" I asked, shaking my head, willing that moment to get out so I could focus.

"Harry just told me you're going to be the first to try the stunning spell." Her tone was light, happy, and she was looking at me like nothing had just changed in the last two minutes. Which, for her, it probably hadn't.

"Oh, yeah. I am." It suddenly felt like I couldn't speak. Why couldn't I make proper sentences?

"Well I'm excited to see it. Have you been practicing Expelliarmus?"

"A little," I said, glancing over Granger's shoulder to see Potter with cheeks just as red as mine. He was looking at the ground, rubbing the back of his neck and adjusting his glasses like he didn't know what else to do. I felt similar.

"Well it won't be long now, everyone will be showing up soon. Harry? Are we practicing on the dummies again?" Granger asked. I was honestly very grateful she was here now. If she wasn't I didn't know what would've happened. Potter took a moment before clearing his throat.

"We could yeah, I was actually going to have Malfoy try it on me first. It's hard to get the full stunning effect at first so she'll probably just push me around a bit. I'm not sure it'll work the same on the dummies." His voice was a little rough and I felt my heart continuing to beat loudly at the sound of it.

"Oh. Well it's a good thing we have the matts on the floor," Granger chuckled and I joined her; anything to distract me from Potter.

And just like that the D.A. starting rolling in. It took about five minutes for every member to join us and I made sure I stayed far away from Potter, not looking in his direction and making sure I was kept near the back so he wouldn't be able to look at me.

This was getting out of control. Hadn't I just told myself that I wasn't allowed to be alone with Potter anymore this morning? Was that really this morning?

It had been such a long day.

"Granger," I whispered. She came over to me immediately. "Are we going to be having one of our own meetings soon? There some things I've figured out. Plus, I'm pretty sure you still need work on your blocking."

"I've already planned for it, it's before our next D.A. meeting on Thursday, is that alright?" She asked and I sighed.

Thursday had about two exams, one quiz and a paper due but it would have to do. I needed to know what she knew. I also needed some time apart from Potter, clearly.

"Yeah, that works."

"Great." She beamed and focused back on Potter who had moved to the back of the room, getting everyone's attention.

Potter welcomed everyone and I kept my gaze on the ground, trying to ignore what the sound of his voice was doing to my brain. It was so confusing. First we're enemies, then we're business partners in a sense, then we're fighting. then we're acquaintances, now we're brushing my hair behind my ear while telling me we've never been enemies?

My poor head, and heart, couldn't take it.

What was I even supposed to feel? Were we friends? Were we just on the same side? Did he want to see me more?

All of these questions needed answering but I wasn't about to get them now.

"Malfoy, come up here please." Potter addressed me directly and I nearly squeaked out a protest but remembered I had said I'd go first. Couldn't back out now. I made my way to the front of the room as Potter told people to stand back. Granger was to my left near one of the fireplaces giving me a thumbs up. Most of the Weasley's were on the opposite side of the room near where Potter was standing. Cho Chang and her ugly little face was also on Potter's side. I noticed only Granger and Loony had wanted to stand over by me.

Huh. Go figure.

"Alright, Malfoy. You know the spell. Say it with power and focus. Maybe you'll finally get to knock me on my arse." My pulse hadn't slowed down since he and I sprang apart when Granger came in and now that he was talking to me like we were still the only two people in the room it wasn't helping the cause.

However, I was onto him. He was letting me stun him because he thought I was mad. I could tell by his expression that he felt a little guilty, and a little anxious, and him letting me stun him was definitely some sort of twisted yet appropriate apology. I didn't know if an apology was what I needed at the moment though. I wasn't mad, I didn't think. Just confused, and a little flustered. I definitely needed answers from him but seeing as he couldn't give them to me right now I'd take what I could get.

The Slytherin in me really wanted to see him get knocked on his behind at least once; even if it wasn't on the quidditch pitch.

"Stupefy!"

A large collective gasp sounded from the entire group as Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived, The Golden Boy, was lifted off of his feet six feet in the air and knocked backwards twice that much, landing on his butt with a loud groan. He lifted himself up onto his elbows with a small wince and he caught my eye right away. Immediately people were running at him asking if he was okay but he was keeping eye contact with me the whole time, brushing them off as he stood up. He gave me a small smirk and a nod of his head.

I couldn't help it. I smiled a genuine smile at Harry Potter and threw my head back and laughed.

I pretended not to notice him watching me the whole time with a small smile of his own.

Author's Note:

It's happening it's happening it's happening!

They like each other, c'mon who could deny it? Aside from them, of course.

Hope you guys liked it!

bambieisavenging: Glad to hear you like it! And thank you for that comment that made me so happy :') I'm glad you think she's realistic enough to be a part of the actual books!

JuicyFruits123: I'm glad you like the fluff! There's plenty more on the way!

Thank you to all who reviewed and favorited! And to those of you new to the story-welcome! Hope you're enjoying!

~Alyssa~