Disclaimer: I'm too young to be Rowling so there is sadly no way Harry Potter is mine…

Placing:Mid of fourthyear.

Just an idea I had thanks to FawkesyLady's review.

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sSsSsSsSs

THE SLYTHERIN WAY

PART II

sSs

"Alright, Draco," a person said sighing before sitting down next to the Slytherin Prince. "I guess that I can ignore your bad taste in women for now and instead try to help you a little bit with the aspect of 'wooing' the girl you're in love with."

Draco Malfoy turned when he heard those words. He was still a little bit pale from the dispute he had with one Hermione Granger earlier that day and had been sitting in the Slytherin common room for a while now staring into nothing.

"Nott," he said when he recognised the boy, then the boy's words registered and his eyes widened. "What are you talking about?" He asked, turning green again.

Nott rolled his eyes.

"Half of the school has seen your pathetic attempt at asking out that Gryffindor girl of the Golden Trio," he said, sighing. "And truly, for a Slytherin, you've done a disgraceful job in trying to secure you a date."

"I wasn't trying to secure me anything!" Malfoy screeched and Nott sighed.

"Sure, Draco," he said. "Continue to live in denial. It won't help with the fact that you obviously were unable to get a girl to go out with you."

When Malfoy opened his mouth again to object, Nott held up a hand to stop him.

"Doesn't matter if you deny it or not," Nott said. "We all know what you wanted to do in your way too immature way. Since she's already taken, I guess we, the rest of Slytherin can't help you to get the date of your dreams, but we talked and decided to at least teach you how it's done better."

"But," Malfoy tried to object again, but Nott just shook his head.

"No, Draco," he said. "Up you go. Let me show you how to do it right."

And with that he pulled up the Malfoy heir from his position and then forced him to follow him out of the common room.

"Well," Nott said. "The first thing you must know when you pursue a girl as a Slytherin is if she's single."

Malfoy stared at Nott as if he was insane.

Nott just patted his arm and continued to explain.

"Yes, that's important," he said. "Like that a Slytherin won't make a fool out of himself by asking a girl out who definitely already has a date, you know? Well, I can't show you that part, since I already did the inquiry weeks ago – it's important to start early if you want your date to be free when you swoop in to ask her, you know?"

"But," Malfoy said.

"Yes, I know," Nott said. "You were already late and all that. Just know in the future that a Slytherin is always prepared. You inquire if she has a boyfriend and if she hasn't then you inquire if she's still free when it comes to a date for the Yule Ball, or any ball that is, and then you make your move – it's easy, Draco. Just let me show you how to do it."

With that, Nott led his friend towards the kitchens. Near them, halfway on the way to Hufflepuff common room – if you knew that, that is – he stopped, pulled out a delicately wrapped package and set it down on the floor in the middle of the hallway.

"What -?" Malfoy asked with huge eyes.

Nott smirked.

"I've been doing that for weeks now," he said. "Just a little bit of wooing to ensure that she won't object to my inquiry. It's a little bit of a safety-net, you know, Draco? It helps wonders to secure your date."

Malfoy stared at the package as if it would bite him any minute from now.

Nott simply adjusted the parchment attached to it so that the name was clearly readable again.

"Bones," it proclaimed.

Then Nott pulled Malfoy in a hidden alcove near the package. From there they had a good look on the package and the hallway but weren't seen themselves.

"Of course," Nott added in that moment. "Ensuring that you know her schedule is important, too, but you seem to be quite good at that already, so I thought that lecturing you about it could be skipped."

"But," Malfoy said again but was shushed by Nott before he could utter his objection.

Soft footfalls could be heard at the end of the hallway and a second or two later two girls came into view.

"Oh," one of the girls, a petit blond one said. "Look, Susan, a new package for you from your secret admire!"

The other girl smiled and picked up the package.

"How long has he been wooing you already?" Her friend Hannah Abbott asked interested.

"Since the announcement of the Yule Ball," Susan Bones answered smiling. "It's so romantic, Hannah!"

Hannah raised an eyebrow.

"It's definitely every girls dream," she said. "But I hope that he will truly ask you out soon, because if he doesn't, you truly should accept one of the other offers you've gotten. It would be a shame to have to go alone to the Yule Ball because your secret admire was too shy to ask you out!"

"You see," Nott whispered smugly. "She's been waiting for me. I was a little bit nervous about asking her myself, so I ensured that she knew that I was interested while I had time to find the courage to ask her out. Of course, knowing that she likes being wooed a little and that she's a romantic helped me greatly when I tried to come up with a way to ask her out to the ball."

Malfoy stared at Nott with huge eyes, half-disgusted, half-shocked that his year mate had decided to show him how to get a date.

"But," he said and Nott nodded.

"Yes, I haven't secured it, yet," he said. "But that's the easy part. I'm already halfway done with securing it, you know? Let me show you."

With that he stepped out of the alcove, acting for all the world as if he hadn't watched the two girls oh-ing and ah-ing over the crystal rose he had packed so delicately in the package in Susan's hands.

"Ladies," he greeted them and the girls looked up from the rose Susan had found in her package.

"Nott," they greeted him back, not too wary of him since they knew that he had always been quite gentlemanly towards the other houses.

"How are you two this fine day?" He asked.

"We're well, Nott," Susan Bones said. "How are you?"

"I'm quite well myself," he said, then he turned his eyes towards the rose in her hands.

"I see that you found a rose as delicately and beautiful as you are, Miss Bones," he said. "I'm sure that it would look very sweet in your hair at the Yule Ball."

Susan blushed at that.

"Thank you, Nott," she said and he smiled at her.

"Tell me, Miss Bones," he said softly. "I heard that a beautiful girl like you is still without a date for the Yule Ball. Is it true what I heard?"

Susan Bones blushed even more.

"It is," she said. "I'm… I'm waiting for someone special to ask me…"

"She's waiting for her secret admire," Hannah corrected smirking.

Nott just smiled.

"I'm sure he will step forward," he said. "After all, there's no way that he would shower a girl in chocolate and flowers and poems if he didn't have the intention to step up and ask her out for Yule."

Susan Bones eyes widened at that.

"How do you -?" She asked surprised and Nott pulled out a second package, exactly the same as the first.

"Miss Bones," he said formally, presenting the package with another delicate crystal flower in it to her. "Will you give me the honour of going to the Yule Ball with me?"

"Aw," Hannah sighed next to Susan, while the other girl put down the first package and then reached for the second, blushing.

She opened it to see another crystal flower in it.

"I'd love to, Nott," she said shyly before looking at the crystal flower again.

"I thought that one wouldn't be enough to adorn you hair at Yule," he explained. "So I decided to get you a second one as well."

She smiled at him at that.

"Thank you for all the gifts," she said blushing.

"Well, I had to make sure that my date knows that I adore the ground she walks on," he explained. "What is more perfect than to show it to her in a way I know she would love?"

The answering smile was even more pronounced on the girl's face while her best friend cooed a little bit more.

"Thank you, Theodore," she finally said, still blushing. "Until Yule!"

"Until Yule," he replied and she picked up her other present and then she and her friend walked on, finally vanishing behind the next corner.

Nott turned towards the alcove and raised an eyebrow at the other boy.

"And that's how you do it the Slytherin way," he explained Malfoy patiently. "Especially when you want the girl to acknowledge and maybe consider you as a boyfriend in the long run, you know?"

"But I don't want to be Granger's boyfriend!" Malfoy howled.

Nott sighed.

"Marriage takes its time, Draco," he said patiently. "I know that you always want everything now, but some things simply take some time – and marriage is one of them. Start it patiently and you will get what you want in the end!"

"But I don't want to marry the mudblood!" Malfoy screeched.

Nott just patted his arm.

"Whatever you say," he said commiseratively. "Whatever you say. I know it's hard to be refused, so if lying to yourself will help you, be my guest. Just know that if you need some more tips how to woo Granger, just ask me. I might not think to highly of her, but if you like her, I'm at least willing to help you to get her. I'm your friend, after all."

And with another pat, he left a stunned Malfoy behind in the hallway to the Hufflepuff common room.

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Just a little idea

Hope you liked it

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