Author's Note: YEAH!!! I'm past the 300 mark! hehe. (more please. please? I
love reading all your reviews, it lets me know you care. *sniff sniff*) In
other news, I can't believe I'm up to 18 chapters. For someone like me;
that's a LOT of words! I actually frighten myself. . . Originally I'd
thought I could wrap this up in 10 chapters or less, but I guess I was
wrong.
Either that or I'm just incredibly long-winded. And yes, I get the irony,
seeing how long this note is. Feel free to shut me up and scroll down to
the story now.
dragons lover, (twist eh? yes, coming right up, my lovely...it takes time to build up to these things, u know) but u can expect Marcus back in the fray (actually he's just there to feed my obsession with MF/OW right now.)
Liliku, you're right (am I that transparent/predictable/evil???-wait, don't answer that.). I *was* sorely tempted (oh, so very, very tempted) to end the last scene with such an intrusion in mind, but the romantic in me won out. So I decided to leave them be. (How sweet I am! Just call me cupid from now on.)
Special thanks to Caelestis, Kanoi, raven of the night, Evil Laughter, Marie McBride, Dark Peppermint (sometimes I don't find me very funny either, so it's probably not just the 3 am thing), ashley, KenderElf, asaroth69, Ali, kale & Saavik.
Chapter 18: A Captain's Orders
All too soon, the bell rang.
And with a tremendous show of willpower, Harry tore himself away from Draco.
"It's the bell." he said stupidly, running a hand through his hair.
"I didn't hear anything."
Harry smiled.
Draco pulled him in for one last lingering kiss before finally letting him go.
"I better go." Harry said, and stood up; resigned to his fate.
"Yeah." Draco said, his eyes heavy lidded, a lazy smile plastered on his face.
"I'll see you later, ok?" Harry called out as he left the room.
"Won't have it any other way. . ." Draco drawled to himself as he leant back against his pillow contentedly, resting his hands at the back of his head.
He can't seem to get the smile off his face.
*It's just as well there's nobody here.* he thought, as he closed his eyes, wishing time would speed up and he'd be back to spending more time with Harry again.
++++++++++++++++++++
"Harry! Where have you been?" Hermione whispered urgently as he ran to his seat. He was the last to arrive and everyone else were already in their seats.
Thankfully, McGonogall hasn't showed up yet.
"Hmm?" he mumbled, rummaging through his bag for his parchment and ink; hoping that the warm blush creeping over his face wasn't so noticeable
"Oh. I was with - " He was just about to say Draco's name when he suddenly noticed a pair of eyes watching him intensely.
Ron.
*Oh boy.*
"Never mind." Harry said quickly, pulling out his textbook and wishing McGonogall would get there soon so lessons could begin.
Ron leant forward and said to him quietly. "We'll talk about this later."
++++++++++++++++++
Draco blinked. He had dozed off.
He wondered what had woken him up.
A knock on the door.
He sat up in his bed.
*Harry?* he thought happily, rubbing at his eyes.
"Come in!" he called out, thinking that The-Boy-Who-Lived was really too polite for his own good.
Draco sat up and quickly smoothed back his hair, making sure that every strand was in place. He soon stopped though and his face fell when he saw who it was.
"Hello, Marcus." he sighed, lying back down in bed with a disappointed frown. "What do you want? I'm not really sick or anything, it's just a bump."
The Slytherin Captain ignored this and strode over to stand by his bedside, a confident sneer playing on his lips.
"So. . . I heard you've been getting along quite well with Potter recently." he started casually, looking at his fingernails, and flicked off some imaginary dirt from under one.
Draco sat up with a start, looking at Flint suspiciously.
"Why? What have you heard?"
"Nothing nobody else haven't already. It's all over the school. You two are officially an item." Flint said.
Draco raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"Is that so . . . Wow. Rumours work even faster than I do." he commented, before going back to glaring at Marcus.
"Anyway, what the hell business is it of yours, Flint? And shouldn't you be in class?" he spat out.
In the background, the school bell rang faintly, signalling the end of afternoon classes for the day. Draco hoped that meant Flint would be leaving soon.
"I skipped. Official Quidditch Captain business." he said, and sprawled himself down on a chair next to Draco's bed.
Draco rolled his eyes.
"And I'm it?"
Flint nodded.
"Just thought I should tell you that the match between Slytherin and Gryffindor is back up as planned. Dumbledore finally gave in, since you two have been looking so well lately." he sighed as if this was a great disappointment to him, "And although I was counting on us not having to play them again this term; as Captain, I understand the need to be prepared."
Draco waved a hand in acknowledgement and nodded impatiently.
Quidditch.
What is that anymore when you can make out with Harry Potter instead?
*He must want me to get back into practice again soon. And they say Wood is a slave-driver.* he thought to himself.
"So the match is scheduled for the week after next. And I *want* to win." Marcus stated, a little dramatically, his eyes glinting as he looked intently at his Seeker.
Draco shrugged at this.
"So, what else is new?"
"You get what I'm saying, don't you?" Marcus persisted.
"Yes, yes! I'll go to the practices again. Just tell me when." Draco said impatiently.
"No, you idiot. You've got to end. . ." he paused briefly, "whatever-it-is that you've got going on with Potter."
For a moment Draco just looked at Marcus, not believing what he had just heard.
"And why the hell would I do that?" Draco almost shouted, suddenly feeling angry by the bothersome meddling of what seems like the whole world now.
"Are you really so bloody naive? Do you think I'll let my Seeker go out there all googly-eyed and vulnerable? You'll ruin our chances just by being there!" Marcus shot back.
"Look, it is *just* a game, okay Flint? And what makes you think Harry will have such an effect on me? I'll play as I always have!"
"So you're telling me- you're willing to play dirty and get rough with your boyfriend on the pitch?" Marcus challenged, looking at Draco's face intensely for his reaction.
Draco stopped and blinked. He shuddered a little as he pictured what Marcus meant.
God, he couldn't hurt Harry.
Wouldn't.
Especially so since it was his fault that they had both nearly died the last time.
He hesitated for a split second.
"That. Right there." Flint stood up from his seat and pointed a finger in Draco's face.
Draco immediately pushed it away in annoyance.
"What?" he said defensively, averting his eyes from Marcus's intense observation of him now; lest they give away his doubt.
"I *saw* that. You can't, can you?" Marcus spat out, feeling suddenly quite disgusted with the blonde.
*This bastard's gone all soft on me. How sick could you get?* Flint thought in repulsion.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Draco lied obstinately, crossing his arms over his chest.
"I don't give a damn what you know or don't know, Malfoy. All I want to hear is that you'll quit seeing him. I want the *old* Malfoy back."
Draco gulped, thinking about Harry and the time they'd spent together so far. He couldn't end that.
No Way.
Not for anyone.
So he shook his head firmly at the captain.
"No." And gave Marcus his best steely unblinking gaze.
Marcus sighed and rubbed the tip of his nose.
"Well, then you leave me no choice."
Knowing Marcus, Draco was expecting something like that.
Flint wasn't one to back down easily. One of the reasons why he made such an excellent captain for their team.
"What? You're going to write a letter to my father?" Draco scoffed in disgust.
"I thought of that. . .But he probably already knows -the whole school does. And seeing how you're still very much alive still; I can only assume that the news didn't have quite the desired effect on your father."
He sighed to himself, thinking what a sick family the Malfoys were.
Draco smirked at this, and sat back against his pillow with satisfaction.
He knew Lucius wouldn't care. It makes for an amusing story.
Like father, like son, after all.
"So. . .I guess you're all out of options then, Cap-tain." Draco gloated.
Marcus lowered his head slightly and nodded, before giving Draco a defeated smile.
And he turned around as if he was about to leave Draco to himself again.
When he stopped suddenly.
"Un-less. . ." he slowly said, and rubbed at his chin in mock contemplation.
He turned back to face Draco again, an evil look in his eyes.
"I end things *for* you."
Draco sneered at this, but inside he was starting to feel a little worried.
"And how would you pull that off, pray tell?" he just responded instead, sarcasm heavily dripping off each syllable.
Marcus cocked his head and turned to look back towards the door thoughtfully.
*What incredibly perfect timing.*
"I could tell Harry the truth." he said, raising his voice a little.
Draco scoffed. "What the hell are you on about?"
"You know. . . The 'ac-ci-dent'?" Marcus lifted an eyebrow meaningfully.
Draco stared at Marcus open-mouthed, and his heart skipped a beat.
*No way! He couldn't know. How?* he thought, his mind in a frenzied panic.
Marcus chuckled.
"Not quite the innocent 'accident', now was it? But don't worry, I've been keeping your secret safe all this while. Though I might feel the sudden urge to confess it all to a certain young Gryffindor very soon." he said thoughtfully, letting the threat linger in the air.
"How? How did you know?" Draco blurted out.
"How else? I saw it. Saw you. Hitting him from your broom." He slunk closer to the horrified boy, their faces now only inches apart.
"It was brilliant." he said and tapped his finger at Draco's chest. "Couldn't-have-done-it-better-myself. And two times even. Now *that's* what I call dedication." he noted approvingly.
He leant forward and whispered conspiratorially in Draco's ear.
"So you can understand why I want the *old* Malfoy back."
Draco had covered his face with his hands.
Everything was spinning out of control.
"Now, don't fret, Malfoy." Marcus patted him consolingly on the shoulder, "I'm quite sure I was the only one who saw you. No one else was close enough at the time."
Draco's hands slid from his face and he let them fall to his lap. He felt so utterly helpless now that Marcus knew his secret, and he didn't like this feeling at all.
"You're- you're going to tell him?" he whispered.
"Actually, *we* already have." Marcus straightened back up again.
"What does that mean?" Draco asked slowly.
"Oh, it's just that, uhm," he pursed his lips and brushed some dirt off his robe, "Were you. . . expecting Potter?" Marcus asked with a casual tone.
Draco nodded slowly, watching Marcus very carefully now.
"Well, he's already here. Been standing outside the door for -," he looked down at his watch, "oh, about five minutes now."
"Omigod!" Draco immediately jumped off the bed, stubbornly ignoring the waves of dizziness that instantly hit him and scrambled towards the door.
Marcus had cleverly left it slightly ajar when he had come in.
And now Draco swung it open, before stumbling out into the corridor.
Empty.
He could hear the sound of footsteps around the corner.
And it's someone running away, because the steps were swiftly growing fainter.
*Harry.*
Draco slumped back against the wall, and covered his face with his hands again.
Marcus now stepped out, and he gave Draco a clap on his shoulder as he walked past him out through the corridor.
"See you at practice tomorrow, Malfoy." he said brightly, not looking back, with a huge smile plastered on his face as he strode down towards the Great Hall for his dinner.
And the whole way he's thinking how wonderful life is when you're Marcus Flint.
dragons lover, (twist eh? yes, coming right up, my lovely...it takes time to build up to these things, u know) but u can expect Marcus back in the fray (actually he's just there to feed my obsession with MF/OW right now.)
Liliku, you're right (am I that transparent/predictable/evil???-wait, don't answer that.). I *was* sorely tempted (oh, so very, very tempted) to end the last scene with such an intrusion in mind, but the romantic in me won out. So I decided to leave them be. (How sweet I am! Just call me cupid from now on.)
Special thanks to Caelestis, Kanoi, raven of the night, Evil Laughter, Marie McBride, Dark Peppermint (sometimes I don't find me very funny either, so it's probably not just the 3 am thing), ashley, KenderElf, asaroth69, Ali, kale & Saavik.
Chapter 18: A Captain's Orders
All too soon, the bell rang.
And with a tremendous show of willpower, Harry tore himself away from Draco.
"It's the bell." he said stupidly, running a hand through his hair.
"I didn't hear anything."
Harry smiled.
Draco pulled him in for one last lingering kiss before finally letting him go.
"I better go." Harry said, and stood up; resigned to his fate.
"Yeah." Draco said, his eyes heavy lidded, a lazy smile plastered on his face.
"I'll see you later, ok?" Harry called out as he left the room.
"Won't have it any other way. . ." Draco drawled to himself as he leant back against his pillow contentedly, resting his hands at the back of his head.
He can't seem to get the smile off his face.
*It's just as well there's nobody here.* he thought, as he closed his eyes, wishing time would speed up and he'd be back to spending more time with Harry again.
++++++++++++++++++++
"Harry! Where have you been?" Hermione whispered urgently as he ran to his seat. He was the last to arrive and everyone else were already in their seats.
Thankfully, McGonogall hasn't showed up yet.
"Hmm?" he mumbled, rummaging through his bag for his parchment and ink; hoping that the warm blush creeping over his face wasn't so noticeable
"Oh. I was with - " He was just about to say Draco's name when he suddenly noticed a pair of eyes watching him intensely.
Ron.
*Oh boy.*
"Never mind." Harry said quickly, pulling out his textbook and wishing McGonogall would get there soon so lessons could begin.
Ron leant forward and said to him quietly. "We'll talk about this later."
++++++++++++++++++
Draco blinked. He had dozed off.
He wondered what had woken him up.
A knock on the door.
He sat up in his bed.
*Harry?* he thought happily, rubbing at his eyes.
"Come in!" he called out, thinking that The-Boy-Who-Lived was really too polite for his own good.
Draco sat up and quickly smoothed back his hair, making sure that every strand was in place. He soon stopped though and his face fell when he saw who it was.
"Hello, Marcus." he sighed, lying back down in bed with a disappointed frown. "What do you want? I'm not really sick or anything, it's just a bump."
The Slytherin Captain ignored this and strode over to stand by his bedside, a confident sneer playing on his lips.
"So. . . I heard you've been getting along quite well with Potter recently." he started casually, looking at his fingernails, and flicked off some imaginary dirt from under one.
Draco sat up with a start, looking at Flint suspiciously.
"Why? What have you heard?"
"Nothing nobody else haven't already. It's all over the school. You two are officially an item." Flint said.
Draco raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"Is that so . . . Wow. Rumours work even faster than I do." he commented, before going back to glaring at Marcus.
"Anyway, what the hell business is it of yours, Flint? And shouldn't you be in class?" he spat out.
In the background, the school bell rang faintly, signalling the end of afternoon classes for the day. Draco hoped that meant Flint would be leaving soon.
"I skipped. Official Quidditch Captain business." he said, and sprawled himself down on a chair next to Draco's bed.
Draco rolled his eyes.
"And I'm it?"
Flint nodded.
"Just thought I should tell you that the match between Slytherin and Gryffindor is back up as planned. Dumbledore finally gave in, since you two have been looking so well lately." he sighed as if this was a great disappointment to him, "And although I was counting on us not having to play them again this term; as Captain, I understand the need to be prepared."
Draco waved a hand in acknowledgement and nodded impatiently.
Quidditch.
What is that anymore when you can make out with Harry Potter instead?
*He must want me to get back into practice again soon. And they say Wood is a slave-driver.* he thought to himself.
"So the match is scheduled for the week after next. And I *want* to win." Marcus stated, a little dramatically, his eyes glinting as he looked intently at his Seeker.
Draco shrugged at this.
"So, what else is new?"
"You get what I'm saying, don't you?" Marcus persisted.
"Yes, yes! I'll go to the practices again. Just tell me when." Draco said impatiently.
"No, you idiot. You've got to end. . ." he paused briefly, "whatever-it-is that you've got going on with Potter."
For a moment Draco just looked at Marcus, not believing what he had just heard.
"And why the hell would I do that?" Draco almost shouted, suddenly feeling angry by the bothersome meddling of what seems like the whole world now.
"Are you really so bloody naive? Do you think I'll let my Seeker go out there all googly-eyed and vulnerable? You'll ruin our chances just by being there!" Marcus shot back.
"Look, it is *just* a game, okay Flint? And what makes you think Harry will have such an effect on me? I'll play as I always have!"
"So you're telling me- you're willing to play dirty and get rough with your boyfriend on the pitch?" Marcus challenged, looking at Draco's face intensely for his reaction.
Draco stopped and blinked. He shuddered a little as he pictured what Marcus meant.
God, he couldn't hurt Harry.
Wouldn't.
Especially so since it was his fault that they had both nearly died the last time.
He hesitated for a split second.
"That. Right there." Flint stood up from his seat and pointed a finger in Draco's face.
Draco immediately pushed it away in annoyance.
"What?" he said defensively, averting his eyes from Marcus's intense observation of him now; lest they give away his doubt.
"I *saw* that. You can't, can you?" Marcus spat out, feeling suddenly quite disgusted with the blonde.
*This bastard's gone all soft on me. How sick could you get?* Flint thought in repulsion.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Draco lied obstinately, crossing his arms over his chest.
"I don't give a damn what you know or don't know, Malfoy. All I want to hear is that you'll quit seeing him. I want the *old* Malfoy back."
Draco gulped, thinking about Harry and the time they'd spent together so far. He couldn't end that.
No Way.
Not for anyone.
So he shook his head firmly at the captain.
"No." And gave Marcus his best steely unblinking gaze.
Marcus sighed and rubbed the tip of his nose.
"Well, then you leave me no choice."
Knowing Marcus, Draco was expecting something like that.
Flint wasn't one to back down easily. One of the reasons why he made such an excellent captain for their team.
"What? You're going to write a letter to my father?" Draco scoffed in disgust.
"I thought of that. . .But he probably already knows -the whole school does. And seeing how you're still very much alive still; I can only assume that the news didn't have quite the desired effect on your father."
He sighed to himself, thinking what a sick family the Malfoys were.
Draco smirked at this, and sat back against his pillow with satisfaction.
He knew Lucius wouldn't care. It makes for an amusing story.
Like father, like son, after all.
"So. . .I guess you're all out of options then, Cap-tain." Draco gloated.
Marcus lowered his head slightly and nodded, before giving Draco a defeated smile.
And he turned around as if he was about to leave Draco to himself again.
When he stopped suddenly.
"Un-less. . ." he slowly said, and rubbed at his chin in mock contemplation.
He turned back to face Draco again, an evil look in his eyes.
"I end things *for* you."
Draco sneered at this, but inside he was starting to feel a little worried.
"And how would you pull that off, pray tell?" he just responded instead, sarcasm heavily dripping off each syllable.
Marcus cocked his head and turned to look back towards the door thoughtfully.
*What incredibly perfect timing.*
"I could tell Harry the truth." he said, raising his voice a little.
Draco scoffed. "What the hell are you on about?"
"You know. . . The 'ac-ci-dent'?" Marcus lifted an eyebrow meaningfully.
Draco stared at Marcus open-mouthed, and his heart skipped a beat.
*No way! He couldn't know. How?* he thought, his mind in a frenzied panic.
Marcus chuckled.
"Not quite the innocent 'accident', now was it? But don't worry, I've been keeping your secret safe all this while. Though I might feel the sudden urge to confess it all to a certain young Gryffindor very soon." he said thoughtfully, letting the threat linger in the air.
"How? How did you know?" Draco blurted out.
"How else? I saw it. Saw you. Hitting him from your broom." He slunk closer to the horrified boy, their faces now only inches apart.
"It was brilliant." he said and tapped his finger at Draco's chest. "Couldn't-have-done-it-better-myself. And two times even. Now *that's* what I call dedication." he noted approvingly.
He leant forward and whispered conspiratorially in Draco's ear.
"So you can understand why I want the *old* Malfoy back."
Draco had covered his face with his hands.
Everything was spinning out of control.
"Now, don't fret, Malfoy." Marcus patted him consolingly on the shoulder, "I'm quite sure I was the only one who saw you. No one else was close enough at the time."
Draco's hands slid from his face and he let them fall to his lap. He felt so utterly helpless now that Marcus knew his secret, and he didn't like this feeling at all.
"You're- you're going to tell him?" he whispered.
"Actually, *we* already have." Marcus straightened back up again.
"What does that mean?" Draco asked slowly.
"Oh, it's just that, uhm," he pursed his lips and brushed some dirt off his robe, "Were you. . . expecting Potter?" Marcus asked with a casual tone.
Draco nodded slowly, watching Marcus very carefully now.
"Well, he's already here. Been standing outside the door for -," he looked down at his watch, "oh, about five minutes now."
"Omigod!" Draco immediately jumped off the bed, stubbornly ignoring the waves of dizziness that instantly hit him and scrambled towards the door.
Marcus had cleverly left it slightly ajar when he had come in.
And now Draco swung it open, before stumbling out into the corridor.
Empty.
He could hear the sound of footsteps around the corner.
And it's someone running away, because the steps were swiftly growing fainter.
*Harry.*
Draco slumped back against the wall, and covered his face with his hands again.
Marcus now stepped out, and he gave Draco a clap on his shoulder as he walked past him out through the corridor.
"See you at practice tomorrow, Malfoy." he said brightly, not looking back, with a huge smile plastered on his face as he strode down towards the Great Hall for his dinner.
And the whole way he's thinking how wonderful life is when you're Marcus Flint.
