A Picture Says A Thousand Words

Draco took great delight in the looks of stunned disbelief on the faces of the Gryffindor's.  They had been staring at him that way ever since Virginia had sat with him for breakfast yesterday.  And here it was, the next day and she was still sitting with him.  This was almost too good.  He had the girl of his dreams and he'd managed to piss off every person he hated.  The look on Potter's face when he kissed Virginia yesterday morning was priceless.  Draco just wished he'd had a camera.  Hey, that kid who follows Potter around like a dog always has his camera, Draco thought suddenly, I wonder if he got a picture of that?  He looked up at the Gryffindor table and noticed the fourth years leaving.

"Draco, sweetie, I have to go to Potions now, I'll see you at lunch," Virginia said as she kissed him.

"Sure, I'll walk you to class," he replied, not taking his eye off the kid.  He was in the same year as Virginia, so he would be going to the dungeons too.  Draco took Virginia's books out of her arms and carried them for her.  He took her hand with his free hand and they walked down to the dungeons, behind the Gryffindors.

Outside the door, he grabbed the kid's arm and pulled him back before he entered the class.  Draco turned to Virginia, gave her a deep kiss and a charismatic smile and she walked into class in a daze.

"You're the kid who follows Potter around with a camera aren't you?" Draco asked, trying to keep his voice pleasant and even.

"My name is Colin Creevey," said the kid, no, Colin.

"Whatever," Draco said dismissively, "did you take any photos yesterday at breakfast?" he insisted.

"Uh, yes," Colin replied nervously, shifting his books from one arm to the other.

"I want them.  Now." Draco demanded forcefully.

"I haven't developed them yet.  Look, I'm going to be late for Potions, Snape will kill me," Colin whined as he turned towards the door.  Draco grabbed his arm and spun him back around to face him.

"Then let's go and develop them," the Slytherin said.

"Now?" Colin squeaked.

"Now." Draco said as he dragged the Gryffindor boy behind him. 

~*~

Dear Sirius,

Thanks for your last letter.  Unfortunately your advice about Ginny is no longer needed.  She dumped me for Draco Malfoy, can you believe that?  But the strangest part is that I don't really care.  I mean, I care that she's dating a Slytherin whose family are heavily into the dark arts….but I think I just care for her like she's my sister.  Ew, I think that came out wrong.  She didn't feel like my sister when I was kissing her but when I really think about it, we weren't really right together.  There was something missing only I didn't realise it until she started seeing Malfoy.  It really bothered me that she was with him and he was kissing her.  But it wasn't for the reason that you would think.  I wasn't jealous of him kissing my ex-girlfriend – I was jealous of her kissing him, like I wanted to kiss him which is totally crazy because he's my enemy and I'm sure he's a Death Eater or close to it.  I could never be with him but at the same time I have to admit that he is sexy.  What does this mean?  I need help with this, Sirius.  I think I might be attracted to boys. 

Help!

Harry

Dear Harry,

There is nothing wrong with liking boys, you know.  But there is something decidedly disturbing about liking Lucius Malfoy's son.  I remember what Lucius was like at school and if his son is anything like him, I'd advise you to keep well away from him.  I'm sorry Ginny broke up with you but it seems obvious to you now that it was inevitable doesn't it?  From what you've told me it wouldn't have worked anyway.  Especially if she's after the proverbial 'bad boy'.  Look, I'll be in Hogsmeade next weekend.  Meet me at the Shrieking Shack on Friday night after dinner.  Drop by the kitchens before you come here and bring some food.  I'll let Dumbledore know you're here and you can stay for the weekend with me. 

Don't worry, we'll sort it all out.

Sirius

Dear Sirius,

Don't go to any trouble just for me.  I don't want you to get caught.  I suppose you'll come anyway though, like you did last time I bothered you with something unimportant.  Ron and Hermione are too wrapped up in their own relationships so they'll be busy all weekend. 

By the way, I DON'T like Malfoy.  I just think he's kind of cute.  There is a BIG difference.

Harry

Dear Harry,

You're right.  I'm coming anyway.  Besides, last time you 'bothered me with something unimportant' you ended up being transported to that graveyard and we all know what happened there. 

See you tomorrow night.

Sirius

~*~

Harry received the last letter on Friday morning at breakfast.  He hastily shoved the note into his pocket and glanced over at the Slytherin table.  Ginny, Virginia, Harry corrected himself, was still sitting over there.  She had been all week.  Earlier in the week Malfoy had gotten his hands on a photo of Harry's face at the exact moment Malfoy had kissed Ginny and had plastered copies of it up all over the school.  Harry knew exactly where he had gotten the picture, it was so obvious, as was Colin's shame at giving in to Malfoy's blackmail.  Harry just couldn't be bothered dealing with it and had ignored it all week, which annoyed Malfoy no end. 

Harry had told Ron, Fred, George and Hermione of his suspicions about Malfoy's motives for dating Ginny and, although they privately thought he was just jealous, they all agreed to keep an eye on the situation since it was Malfoy.  They also knew of Harry's plans to meet Sirius for the weekend but not of his current dilemma.

Harry followed his fellow Gryffindors around the castle to their various classes as if on autopilot.  He mechanically ate his dinner without paying attention to the conversation around him.  He was starting to come to terms with the fact that yes, he was more attracted to boys than girls, and he was glancing around at the boys around him and found that:

*Most of the boys his age and older already had girlfriends

*Of the ones who didn't, most seemed immature

*No one was openly admitting to liking boys

Well, that third point was accurate if you excluded Dean and Seamus, who were openly a couple and didn't seem to notice the dirty looks and obscene gestures directed at them by many disapproving students.  It was really only the Gryffindors who actually knew Dean and Seamus who accepted that, for them, there was simply no choice – they had to be together.  They needed each other, like oxygen.

Harry watched the two of them together with an ache in his heart.  Seamus was trying to feed Dean a bit of his sausage.  Dean pushed Seamus' hand out of the way and kissed his boyfriend quickly then resumed eating his meal.  Dean caught Harry's eye and raised a quizzical eyebrow at Harry's expression.  Harry shook his head and turned away.  Dean watched Harry for a moment, concern for his friend etched on his face.  This soon gave way to mirth as Seamus tickled him and triumphantly pushed the piece of sausage into Dean's open mouth.

~*~

Harry made his way towards the Shrieking Shack with his arms loaded up with food.  Dobby had made sure that Harry and his 'friend' would have plenty to eat all weekend.  Harry knocked awkwardly on the trapdoor and grinned when he saw Sirius on the other side. 

"Whoa! You've got enough to feed an army here.  How did you manage that?" Sirius asked as he took a basket from Harry's arm.

"One word – Dobby," Harry replied as he climbed up and dumped the rest of the food on the table. 

"Thank god for house-elves!  Now come here, you," Sirius pulled Harry into a fierce hug.  Harry hugged him back, revelling in the simple gesture.  It was different to Mrs Weasley's hugs.  It was more…..masculine.  Okay, so Harry knew that didn't make sense but it was the only way he could think to describe it.  Harry breathed in deeply, Sirius had a scent that was uniquely his.  Harry stopped his thoughts abruptly and pulled away from his godfather.  What the hell was he thinking? This was his father's best friend, for god's sake! 

If Sirius was surprised at Harry's sudden retreat, he didn't show it.  He sat down on the couch and gestured for Harry to join him.  Harry sat down on an armchair near the couch and looked uncomfortably at the floor.

"So, have you had any more thoughts about your….er….preference?" Sirius asked diplomatically.

"Preference?" Harry asked, looking up confusedly. 

"Sexual Preference.  You know, if you like boys or girls?  Are you gay or straight?" Sirius asked, abandoning all pretence of diplomacy.

"OH, that," Harry said, blushing.  "I guess….well….I think I'm gay," he said finally.

"What makes you think that?" Sirius asked softly.

"Well, I'm really not attracted to any girls.  Everyone agrees that Hermione is the best looking girl in our year but I don't feel a thing for her, except friendship.  Even with Ginny, it was more that she was Ron's little sister.  It felt good to be a part of the Weasley family but I wasn't really attracted to her."

"So are there any boys at school, apart from Malfoy, that you find attractive?"

"Uh….not really.  Some are cute, like Justin.  But mainly, they just seem so young or is it just me?" Harry asked, looking worried.

"Harry, you've seen so much in your fifteen years.  It's only natural that you'd feel older than you really are.  I mean, you witnessed a friends death last year, that's gotta take a toll," Sirius replied gently.  Harry shifted uncomfortably in his seat at the mention of Cedric. 

"So how are things going with the Order of the Phoenix?" Harry asked, firmly changing the subject.  Sirius allowed him to get away with it, knowing that Cedric's death was still a painful topic for Harry.  Sirius described the missions various people in the Order were on.  While they were talking Sirius ate some dinner.  He hadn't eaten since the previous day. 

After putting the rest of the food away and cleaning up the kitchen, they both returned to the living room.  Harry sat next to Sirius on the couch to look through an album full of photos of the Marauders and Lily that were taken by their generation's Colin Creevey.  Sirius told Harry hilarious tales of the group's exploits and Harry was surprised to hear that his mother was just as much a prankster as his father.  He had always pictured his mother as being kind of like Hermione at school.  Harry's eyes were starting to get heavy by this time and he closed his eyes, just for a moment, as he listened to Sirius describe how they came up with the plan to become Animagus. 

Sirius watched as his godson's head slid along the couch towards his shoulder.  Harry's head rested on Sirius' shoulder and he wriggled in his sleep to get more comfortable against his 'pillow'. 

To be continued………………

RIP – Cedric

My 11 year old cousins white budgie that died recently.  Incredibly ironic……..I told him to next time name his budgie after a character that lives….