Excuse Me?

Nimhi and Midnaite

No copyright infringement is intended. No profit is being made. This is a fan created work.

Notes: Alright, I'm really doing this. I'm going to make it through all of these chapters and then start new ones. Here's chapter two!

Chapter 2
What Happened?

~!~

Seamus frowned. Everyone had gone down to breakfast except him. That is, him and the people in Harry's bed. Dean had seemed mildly concerned when Seamus had urged him to go down to breakfast without him, giving a flimsy excuse about being on a new diet. He glared at the bed curtains.

You have to come out sometime, and when you do, you've got a helluva lot of questions to answer.

He fiddled with his robes in annoyance.

Time passed.

Seconds turned into minutes. Minutes turned into hours, and Seamus's stomach was starting to growl unhappily when finally there was a rustling sound from the other bed. Seamus dropped the Sailormoon cards he had been playing with and turned expectantly toward Harry's bed. After a long moment, a slender arm reached out and grabbed a pair of glasses off the bed stand.

"G'morning." A voice Seamus identified as Draco's mumbled. "Or rather, afternoon."

"Is it really?" Harry's voice asked. "We've missed breakfast!"

"Yeah, I suppose. But at least we don't have classes today. I wouldn't want to explain why we're both late…"

Seamus fought the urge to charge over to the other bed, rip open the curtains, and start yelling. Instead, he clenched his fists into his quilt and took a calming breath.

"Well, we may as well get up." Harry said. "No point in lying around all day."

"I disagree."

There was a rustling sound followed by giggles. Seamus rolled his eyes in exasperation. Finally, after a few more suspicious sounds, the curtains opened. Harry pushed back the quilt and stretched languorously, Draco sliding over to sit beside him on the edge of the bed. Seamus's eyes widened and he buried his face in his hands.

"For Merlin's sake, GET SOME CLOTHES ON!" he screeched.

Harry and Draco both yelped in alarm and Draco jerked the quilt up over himself, knocking Harry backwards in the process. They peered out at Seamus from under the blankets, eyes wide.

"Seamus?" Harry asked nervously. "What are you doing here?"

Seamus sighed.

"Well, this is my room too." He said slowly. "As in, I sleep here every night? And it's not hard to notice when little things are different. Things like people who often forget to even close their curtains tying a huge fucking knot in them. Now get up, get dressed, and start talking."

Harry and Draco exchanged a glance before Harry sighed and shrugged.

"Give us a minute to get dressed." He said resignedly. Seamus nodded before heading to the bathroom to give the other boys a moment alone. Once he had gone, Draco turned to Harry with a serious expression.

"Is this going to be alright?" he asked quietly. "Finnegan knowing? Of all the people to find out like this…."

"I…I think it'll be fine." Harry replied, pulling on a pair of pants and handing Draco his. "Seamus is…less likely to be angry than say, Ron. On the other hand, he's hardly discreet."

"He must have kept anyone else from checking on us this morning, though. Does Ron usually go to breakfast without waking you?"

"No, he doesn't. Well, maybe that's a good sign, then."

"You done?" Seamus poked his head into the room. Harry nodded and motioned for him to come over. He came the rest of the way into the room and sat on Ron's bed, facing Harry and Draco.

There was a moment in which the boys merely stared awkwardly at each other, before Harry sighed.

"So, we had detention last night." He began.

~ # ~

Seamus was quiet through the entire explanation, which only served to make Harry even more nervous than he already was. When they had finished Seamus gazed speculatively between the boys sitting opposite him. Harry swallowed heavily and Draco's eyes narrowed dangerously. Finally, Seamus grinned.

"Oh, it's absolutely perfect! Why didn't I see it before?" he burst out. "A rivalry started when one turned down the other's friendship. Somehow, no matter what else was happening, neither could ever quite ignore the other…slow realization that maybe, the spark between you wasn't exactly hatred, maybe it never was…I love it!"

Harry and Draco exchanged a glance.

"Er, you won't tell anyone yet, will you?" Draco asked hesitantly, eyeing Seamus. "Because if you do, I swear I'll…"

Seamus held his hands up.

"Woah, don't worry Malfoy, your secret's safe with me." then he frowned. "Don't get me wrong though, appealing story aside, you're still a git. But this is Harry's secret as well."

Draco frowned at him and opened his mouth to reply, but Harry cut him off.

"Anyway, Draco, you should really be going." He said. "If anyone finds you in here…"

Draco nodded.

"Very well." He said. "I'll see you later."

He kissed Harry gently while Seamus rolled his eyes, then quietly slipped out the door, looking both ways before disappearing. There was a pause, and Seamus turned to smirk at Harry.

"W-what?" Harry asked nervously. Seamus grinned even bigger. Harry eyed him.

"Is he hung?"

"SEAMUS!"

~ ! ~

"Where were you?" Hermione demanded as Harry sat down next to her and Ron. He had found them outside studying. Or, Hermione was studying and Ron was daydreaming. "Where were you? You missed breakfast!"

"I slept in." Harry said matter-of-factly, flipping open a book. A few feet away Seamus, who had followed him out onto the grounds and joined Dean, let out an odd giggle. Harry threw him a Look. He cleared his throat slightly and put on a serious face. "Besides, I can just grab something from the house elves to eat, so that's no problem. It's been too long since I've visited Dobby."

Hermione eyed him but seemed to accept this answer and she turned back to her book. Ron, however, grinned at Harry conspiratorially and leaned over.

"So? Who was she?" he whispered in Harry's ear. At the raven haired boy's shocked expression Ron grinned more. "C'mon, mate! I saw that knot in your curtains. Then having Seamus shooing us all away? Who was she?"

"I don't know what you're talking about…" Harry said, looking down at his book. Ron frowned.

"What's this, Harry? We're best friends, aren't we?" he insisted. "You can tell me!"

"There was no girl." Harry said, with a slight shrug. Seamus snorted into his hand before letting out another giggle. Harry glared at him. He controlled himself, and turned back to his conversation with Dean.

"Why won't you tell me?" Ron asked, poking out his lower lip and giving it a touch of tremble. "I thought you told me everything?"

Harry sighed and tried to say something, but Ron was already laying it on thick. He placed a hand over his heart.

"YOU DON'T LOVE ME ANYMORE!" he wailed dramatically. Seamus obviously couldn't control himself any longer, he burst into hysterical laughter. Ron stopped acting and stared at him before turning to glare at Harry. "You told him, didn't you? I can't believe you! You told SEAMUS and not me! What the fuck, Harry?"

Harry sighed again.

"I didn't tell him anything."

"I don't believe you! He knows something that you're not telling me!"

"Oh, Harry! He'll simply die!" Seamus squealed, between laughs. "He won't even believe it, oh, tell him! I want to see his face!"

"Shut UP, Seamus!"

"You DID tell him something!"

"No, I didn't! You don't understand! He…found out on his own…"

Seamus just laughed harder.

"Why can't you tell me?"

"Ron, I…"

"Is there a problem?" a cool voice asked. Ron stopped snapped his mouth shut and glared up at the blond who had just wandered up. Seamus laughed so hard it looked like he was having convulsions and Harry blushed and looked away.

"No problem here, Malfoy." Hermione said flatly, nose still in her book as she generally ignored the boys. "Go away."

Draco smirked.

"No, there is a problem." He threw a pointed look at Harry. "Your very existence is a huge problem for me. Now, if you must behave like animals, can't you keep it in the den? The rest of the world doesn't want to listen."

Harry sighed.

"Go away Dra…er, Malfoy." He said. "We don't need you here."

"Oh but you do. After all, what would this world be without me?"

"Heaven?" Ron suggested.

"Shut up, Weasel. What do you know?"

"More than you!"

"Is that so? At least I'm not failing potions!"

"S-shut up!"

"Is that the best you can come up with, you pathetic piece of filth! Shut up? What'll you do if I don't? What can you do? You can't even make friends without scar-head's help! Always following him around like some kind of lovesick puppy and hiding in his shadow when you get scared!"

"You BASTARD!"

"Aw, did I upset Wonder boy's little lap dog?"

Harry growled softly. Why did this have to happen to him? Why now? Why just after…last night? When everything seemed to be getting better…Why did they have to hate each other so…?

"Both of you, CUT IT OUT!" He shouted, hands rising to his hair in frustration. "Malfoy, LEAVE, go…comb your hair or whatever the fuck it is you do in your spare time. Ron just ignore him, okay? He's not worth the trouble, and Seamus? DAMMIT SEAMUS, SHUT THE FUCK UP!"

Everybody within hearing distance stopped what they were doing and stared.

"Harry?" Ron asked slowly, completely forgetting his argument with Draco. "You okay?"

"No I'm NOT okay!" Harry screeched, jumping to his feet, eyes shining with tears. "All this stupid hatred! There's no fucking POINT! Don't any of you get it? Why are we always fighting with each other? House rivalries mean NOTHING anymore!"

He ran back toward the school, leaving everyone staring after him. Ron immediately turned to glare at Draco.

"This is entirely your fault!" he declared. Draco stared at him for a moment.

"I know…" he whispered suddenly. "Look Weasel, I'm sorry, okay? I've got to go."

He took off after Harry.

"What just happened?" Hannah Abbott asked her friend Susan Bones. The two Hufflepuffs had been sitting nearby. Susan shrugged.

Seamus glared at Ron.

"You bloody idiot!" he hissed. "Why'd you have to go and get in a fight with Malfoy today? What's your problem?"

He grabbed Dean by the wrist and stalked away. All the other students stared at Ron.

"Er…Hermione, what just happened?"

~ ! ~

Back in the Gryffindor seventh year boys' dormitory, Draco was holding Harry gently as the brunet tried not to cry.

"He'll never accept it." Harry whispered. "He'll hate me…"

"Shh…" Draco replied, stroking Harry's hair. "I'm sure everything will turn out fine."

"That's impossible, Draco. How can it possibly be fine?"

"Because you're not going to give up now. He'll listen eventually."

"Draco, he hates you. He'd sooner adopt a Blast-Ended Skrewt and keep it in his bed than associate with you."

"Well…perhaps if I…if I were to make an effort to…to…make, you know…amends with him? Before you tell him, I mean. Maybe even…possibly, become reasonably polite acquaintances, even…friends, maybe? If…that'd help?"

"You hate him too."

Draco sighed.

"You're right Harry, I do. But I'm willing to try and make…make friends with him, because I really think I might love you. And if he's truly your friend, he'll accept that."

Harry sighed.

"I suppose it's worth a shot."

He wiped at his tears and gave a half hearted smile.

"So, what's his name? You can't go on calling him Weasel, after all."

"Er…"

"Ron. His name is Ron."

"Ron. Gotcha."