Summary: Sequel to Telling Everyone. Harry and Draco are dating happily, but nothing's guaranteed. Lucius Malfoy is out of Azkaban and… their teacher? They'll be in trouble if he finds out that they're together, but how can they keep it a secret when Everyone Knows?
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and co. are definitely not mine. I double-checked, just in case. Not mine.
A/N: This takes place two weeks after Telling Everyone. Just FYI ^_^ The characters are a bit OOC, but I think it's necessary for this crazy plot. The rating is just in case… So read, review, and enjoy!
*~*~*
"HARRY'S DATING DRACO, HARRY'S DATING DRACO, HARRY'S DATING DRACO," Fred and George's voices sang.
"Mr. Potter!" Professor McGonagall finally yelled from the Head Table. "This has got to stop!"
Fred and George chanted "HARRY'S DATING DRACO," one more time and their Howler burned up.
"It's not my fault!" Harry protested. "It's a Howler! What am I supposed to do?"
She glowered at him a moment, but then decided ignoring him was the best strategy.
For the past two weeks, Fred and George had sent a Howler to Harry at dinner. It always said the same thing, too: "HARRY'S DATING DRACO!" Everyone in the Great Hall had learned to cover their ears for the first few minutes of dinner. Mostly, people thought it was funny.
And it was true. They'd been dating since December (December 16, to be exact, as Hermione had once pointed out), although they only told people two weeks ago. And they were extremely happy.
Draco waved at Harry, who blew a kiss back.
"Something's wrong," Hermione whispered, startling Harry.
"What?" he asked instantly. "What happened?"
She looked up at the Head Table. "Look at Dumbledore."
He was reading a letter, brow creased. The permanent twinkle in his eyes was gone and replaced by a cold fury. Abruptly he stood up, and his gaze fell on Harry. He swallowed nervously as Dumbledore then turned to look at Draco.
The elderly wizard swept down the aisles created by the tables. He first stopped at the Slytherin table and tapped Draco on the shoulder, whispering something in his ear. Draco immediately left the room. Dumbledore then made his way over to Harry and gestured for him to go outside.
They unconsciously reached for each other in the hall. Draco gripped Harry's hand so tightly the Gryffindor thought it would break. "Is something wrong, Professor Dumbledore?" Harry asked bravely.
He silently handed Draco a letter to read. Harry craned his neck to see what it said, and his blood froze.
Headmaster Dumbledore,
I realize that you believe Lucius Malfoy is a threat to the wizarding kind. However, there is no proof that he was involved with You-Know-Who. He claims it was simply a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and I am inclined to believe him.
This is why I gave to order to release him from Azkaban prison earlier today. He was indeed grateful, and made a generous donation to the Ministry. I ask you to consider that when voicing the complaints I am sure you will have.
Of course, I secured his word that he would stay out of trouble and have no further contact with You-Know-Who (that is, if he indeed had any in the first place).
Now, it has come to my attention that your Defense Against the Dark Arts professor must take a two week leave. I thought it would be a wonderful opportunity for you to see Mr. Malfoy's good intentions if he were to fill that position for you. He seemed more than eager when I brought this up with him earlier and I believe he is qualified for the job.
Now, Dumbledore, I believe you might owl me back in protest. My mind is made up on this matter, and I'm afraid I will have to refuse any owls from you, at least until Mr. Malfoy has had a chance to prove himself to you.
He should be arriving tomorrow.
Best regards,
Cornelius Oswald Fudge.
"No way!" Harry said loudly.
"I'm afraid so, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore said grimly.
"Oh, no," Draco whispered, staring at the letter. "Is he going to try and hurt Harry?"
"I don't believe he will risk it," Dumbledore said after a pause. "But even so, I will keep a close eye on him. I am more concerned at his reactions should he find that you two are dating, Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy."
A letter Draco had received once from his mother suddenly flashed in front of his eyes.
'I hope your father is still in Azkaban, the bloody git. I don't think he'd approve, so maybe it's a good thing he doesn't know.'
"We are in so much trouble," Draco breathed.
"We have to hide this," Harry said desperately. "We just have to tell everyone not to mention it."
"Pretend I'm still dating Pansy," Draco agreed with a scowl.
"Will you boys be okay?" Dumbledore asked gently.
"We kept it a secret since December," Harry said determinedly. "We'll be fine."
"It might even be fun," Draco said, breaking out into a smile. "Remember all the sneaking around, Harry? The dumb lies we told? That people believed! Not that we don't still do it…"
"Oh yeah! And the time Filch caught us after curfew and we said we were returning from detention…"
"Ha! He believed us, why wouldn't he? We get in trouble…" his voice trailed off as he saw Dumbledore staring sternly down at him.
"…for saying stupid things like that," Harry said, finishing Draco's sentence with a sheepish grin.
Dumbledore shook his head, grinning, the twinkle in his eye returned. "It seems you two will be okay. I'll be speaking with the staff, and I trust you will take precautions with the students not to let your secret loose. And believe me, I will be working to get Mr. Malfoy back to Azkaban where he belongs."
*~*~*
"Death Eaters in the castle!!!" Harry screamed as he burst into the Gryffindor common room. He'd forgotten that most everyone was down at dinner. Too bad, he'd been practicing that frightened scream.
But at least Colin Creevey was in there; he and Dennis were pouring over a big black book. They jumped up in fright, and Harry saw the words, "Has a black thong" printed in bold. He frowned.
"What is that?" he asked suspiciously.
"Death Eaters?" Dennis squeaked, fumbling for his wand. He dropped it, bent to pick it up, and dropped it again. "Where?"
"Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom," he said breathlessly, putting on a frightened face. "Tomorrow!"
"Let's go get 'em!" Colin said enthusiastically.
"Tomorrow," Harry repeated loudly.
"Come on, Harry!"
"It's tomorrow! They're not coming until tomorrow!" he yelled in exasperation.
"Oh," Dennis said, taking his time to pick up the wand to ensure he got it firmly in his hand. "Let's get 'em tomorrow, then!"
"I don't think Dumbledore would appreciate you 'getting 'em'," Harry said, "seeing as he's our new Defense Against the Dark Arts substitute."
"Wow," Colin said, eyes wide. "How do you know this, Harry?"
"It's Mr. Malfoy," Harry said. "And if you tell him that Draco and I are dating… okay, if you don't tell him we're dating, I'll let you take a picture of me!"
*~*~*
Draco, unlike Harry, had remembered that everyone was in the Great Hall eating, and went back in calmly. He wedged in between Pansy and Crabbe. "Pansy, will you go out with me?" he asked, deciding that she wouldn't understand the whole top-secret, hide the relationship, Death-Eater father concept.
Her eyes lit up and she pounced on him. "Oooooh! Of course! I knew you'd come around, Draco!" she giggled.
"Er… yeah. Right." He looked to his right. Would Crabbe and Goyle really understand? He didn't think they even understood the concept of 'going out with Potter.' He decided he didn't need to say anything to them.
Pansy was practically smothering him. Glancing up, he saw mixed emotions on the faces of his fellow Slytherins. Some of them, like Pansy, were smug that he had finally 'come around.' Others, though, were disapproving.
"Why did you break up with Harry?" Blaise Zabini whispered angrily. "I thought you were finally learning your lesson, Draco!"
He winced. Whoops. Maybe he should have been more subtle.
"My dad's coming here to teach!" he said loudly, jumping up on his chair. He figured that most of the Slytherins, with the exception of Crabbe and Goyle, would understand the significance of this. "He's going to be our new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor!" He made sure to give the Gryffindors a superior smirk before sitting back down and continuing to eat serenely.
The whole of the Great Hall, however, broke out into furious whispers and people kept shooting Draco furtive looks. Some were of sympathy, some were of understanding, and some were of pure hatred and suspicion. Those were the ones Draco was aiming for. His father would throw a fit if he thought anyone was 'pitying' a Malfoy.
*~*~*
"I'm so sorry for you, Harry," Parvati said sympathetically. Lavender handed him a sprig of flowers. He stared at her closely, wanting to catch her giggling, but it appeared she was serious.
"Er- thanks, guys. Girls!" he said hastily. "Thanks, girls." They gave him funny looks before hurrying off to their dormitories. Probably to gossip about him, Harry thought.
"That's what Dumbledore wanted to tell you, then?" Ron asked sympathetically.
"Yeah," Harry said, staring at the flowers. "What am I supposed to do with these?"
Hermione took them from him and examined the bottoms. "Magical flowers," she declared. "They won't wilt for a month, and you don't even need to put them in water. Lavender and Parvati must really feel sorry for you, Harry, they usually save these for Firenze, or those Ravenclaw boys."
"Oh," he said blankly. "So… what am I supposed to do with them?"
Hermione huffed. "You put them beside your bed, Harry, what do you think you do with them?"
"Put them beside my bed?" Harry yelped. "You're kidding! Everyone's going to think I'm…"
"Gay?" Ron supplied, grinning.
"Got a point, mate," he said, smiling sheepishly. He leaned over and smelled them. Hmmm… he could get used to these.
When Mr. Malfoy was back in Azkaban where he belonged, he'd see if he could get some for Draco.
*~*~*
Draco stood next to Snape just inside the main entrance to Hogwarts. He was standing very stiffly, and glancing at the older man next to him could tell that Snape was just as nervous. He felt rather bad for his teacher, who had enough stress without a Death Eater staying in the castle, monitoring his movements. And by the awkward but somehow gentle way Snape spoke to him, he knew that, though he was finding the emotions difficult to express, he felt just as bad for Draco. Even though Snape didn't entirely approve of his relationship with Harry, he was of the opinion that nothing Draco did could make him deserve a father like his.
Mr. Malfoy came strolling up to the castle. Hagrid followed behind, carrying his luggage. It was piled up so high that even the half-giant was having trouble walking. He dropped a bag once; Lucius turned sharply and snapped something Draco couldn't hear at him. He continued on, leaving Hagrid to struggle with the bags. Draco felt a stab of anger- he knew perfectly well that his father could have magicked the bags, or even shrunk them and carried them himself. It wasn't fair- but, he reminded himself, he had to at least pretend to agree with his father.
"Draco," he greeted his son coolly when he finally made his way up to the castle. "Severus." He then turned his attention to the other two members of their little party- Albus Dumbledore and Minerva McGonagall. McGonagall was standing, face rigid, jaw clenched- and wand held tightly in her hand, hidden under her robes. Dumbledore, however, had his hands folded serenely in front of him.
"Hello, Mister Malfoy," he said pleasantly. Draco thought Dumbledore should be given a medal for this charade. "Or, as it will be for the next two weeks, Professor Malfoy. Allow me to accompany you to your rooms."
Malfoy nodded curtly, glancing around disinterestedly. "Come, Draco."
What, am I a dog? he wondered absently as he moved to follow his father. I only do the whole slobbering and licking thing with *Harry*. Professor McGonagall moved, as if to follow Dumbledore and the Malfoys, but the Headmaster shook his head very slightly. She hesitated, and looked torn, but Snape touched her lightly on the arm and said something softly, and they both wheeled around and marched in opposite directions.
Draco followed his father, trying to think of something to say. 'I'm dating Harry!' was out of the question, and he would probably get hexed with 'so how was Azkaban?' Comments about the weather were overdone, and if he complimented his father on his lovely hairstyle, Malfoy Sr. would probably suspect (realize) that Draco was gay. And since he was supposed to be dating Pansy… no, no, no, that wouldn't do at all.
So he decided that silence was best for now. That is, until he abruptly thought of something and blurted out, before he had time to think, "Father! In class, do I call you 'Daddy' or 'Professor'?"
Lucius turned around to glance in surprise at his son. His brows narrowed sharply. "I would expect my son," he said tightly, "to observe the proper behavior." Without glancing at Dumbledore to see the man's reaction (which was a twitching of the lips and the omnipresent twinkle in the eyes), he strode on.
That really didn't answer his question, but the real message was a simple 'shut up.' So Draco shut up, rather ashamed of himself, and followed his father down the halls. At the entrance to Malfoy's temporary headquarters, he dismissed his son with a quick glare.
Draco wondered what the point was of dragging him halfway across the school as he walked with heavy footsteps towards the Slytherin common room. At the base of the stairs next to the Great Hall, he ran into Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Or rather, their counterparts, his new enemies: Potter, Weasley, and Granger. The four of them eyed each other uncertainly. Draco wanted nothing more that to run over to Harry and tackle him to the floor, rolling around, getting their robes all tangled up… an idea began to form.
"Potter," he said, sneering. "You… fathead," he finished lamely.
He could tell that Harry was amused, but that was only the result of many hours of gazing into the green eyes. Harry covered it up well with a dark scowl. Ron glanced between the two, obviously unsure as to whether they were serious or faking it. Hermione stared steadily at Draco, face impassive.
"Malfoy," Harry said evenly, struggling not to laugh. "Glad your father's here, eh, Daddy's boy?"
Draco sucked in his breath sharply. "I resent that!" he protested. He did, but it had also given him the opportunity he wanted. Without a second's thought, completely ignoring Professor Snape's distinctive footsteps coming up a side hallway, he jumped forward and tackled Harry.
He was vaguely triumphant to realize that he'd caught Harry off guard, but more preoccupied with scrabbling around his 'opponent's' robes, trying to make it look like punches. He heard Harry moan, possibly pretending to be in pain. More likely it was just involuntary. But it didn't take long for Harry to come back, actually biting his neck.
Ron pulled out his wand, but Hermione nudged him in the ribs. He was hopeless.
Much to soon for the boys on the floor, Professor Snape descended on them and yanked them apart. "Mister Potter and Mister Malfoy!" he hissed through his teeth. "This is immature and unnecessary behavior! I would expect more out of you especially, Mister Malfoy. You know how important it is! Twenty points from Gryffindor!"
Hermione actually let out an extremely unladylike snort of laughter, causing Ron to look at her in admiration. Professor Snape, while able to argue that his obvious bias was due to Malfoy's presence, was obviously enjoying this. Snape turned to her and fixed her with a glare before turning his attention to Harry with something like horror. "Mister Potter, what is that?"
Harry looked down and offered lamely, "A goose egg?"
Draco put both hands to his mouth to prevent laughter, but it was futile. Harry glanced his way: "Oh, Draco has a 'goose egg' too!"
"We must have given them to each other," Draco said, smirking. "We were bumping a lot in that particular area."
Snape had a muscle ticking in his forehead. Without any further comment, he turned and practically raced down the hallway.
"Well…" Draco said, not sure what there really was to say after that. "Er… you suck, Potter!"
"Double for you, Malfoy!" Harry said, now fighting desperately to keep a straight face. "I bet I could kick your ass any day!"
"I bet you couldn't kick it tonight! At eight o'clock!" he said.
"I bet I could!" Harry said, and then turned and walked off, followed by a scurrying Ron and Hermione. Draco watched them go, knowing he would be seeing Harry that night, in the Room of Requirements. And they'd see who kicked who's ass.
*~*~*
Draco sat patiently at dinner, studiously ignoring the glares from the Gryffindor table, the two glares from the Head Table (his father and Snape, who else?), and the constant fumbling of Pansy, sitting next to him. He sneaked a look at Harry, immediately noticing his lover's transfixed gaze of horror. He followed Harry's stare upward…
And spotted the barn owl swooping toward Harry, carrying the Howler from the two people they'd forgotten to swear to secrecy. Lucius happened to glance upward, following the owl's progress with mild interest (as if he could miss it anyway, once it started). Aw, shit. They were in so much trouble.
A/N: That's just the first of several as-of-now-unoutlined chapters. ^_^ If you have any ideas, or scenes you'd particularly like me to put in, feel free to tell me. I could always use inspiration… though I write fine under pressure.
I honestly don't know when the next chapter will be up- school is starting for me soon and I always throw myself into the first few weeks, plus I have to update my other story, "The Other Side." Reviews will help me write faster, hint hint! I'm done talking now… so you're free to go on and click that pretty purple button! ^_^