Note: Apologies for the lateness. My beta is back and now I'm gonna write more, hey now! Hey now! My beta is back! ^_^
Chapter Six: Quidditch
Harry woke up painfully early the next morning. Though the night before, he had been upset about the short sheeting, he had managed to talk a house elf into fixing the situation for him. That had been a pain in the ass not to hit Malfoy over the head for. But, regrets aside, it was now morning and the start of a whole new day. Harry stretched.
Across the room, soft rustling was heard and then a soft thump followed by a mewl of pain.
"Malfoy? You okay?"
"Fuck you," came the rather sleepy and extremely annoyed response.
Harry rolled his eyes and stretched again. Really, there wasn't much to do today. He hoped to avoid Hermione for at least a while- she would most certainly put him to work on his vacation homework. Maybe he would take out his Firebolt and fly a bit around the Quidditch pitch. But that's not so much fun by yourself. Usually, he had Ron and Seamus as well as some of the younger kids who would go out and play a friendly game of Quidditch with him if he asked. But now- there was just the twins and Hermione and they weren't too hot at flying. Oh, and Malfoy. At that thought, Harry brightened.
"Hey, Malfoy," he called softly.
"What?"
"Want to play Quidditch with me?"
There was silence for a minute and then a groan. "What, just you and me, Scarhead?"
"Sure, why not?"
"Because it takes at least three people on each team, moron."
Harry sighed softly. If there was anything positive to say about Malfoy, it would certainly be that he never seemed to run out of insults. Even in tight situations, the blond had been able to pull new nouns with which to label the Gryffindor. "What about we just chase the snitch around for a bit?" Harry asked.
"Are you out of your mind?"
Harry was silent. No, he was not out of his mind, but he didn't want to risk an argument that might upset his plan. Besides, he really did want to play Quidditch with Malfoy- even if it was just chasing after one snitch.
There was a loud, condescending sigh from across the room. "Fine, Potter. I'll play with you. But only because I know I can beat you in about two minutes." There was a muttered charm and then Malfoy's rumpled blond head stuck out from between the curtains. His grey eyes traveled up and down Harry's frame. "And get dressed. I don't want to play against you in your ugly pajamas."
"I don't have ugly pajamas!" Harry protested, but Malfoy's head had disappeared.
Smirking to himself. Harry began to get dressed, only to discover that his tail was still attached to the base of his spine. "Oh, hello, tail," he said softly to it and stroked the black fur. It was somewhat calming, even though he knew he would have to wear the same pants as the day before unless he wanted to cut a hole in yet another pair. It didn't bother him much, though- he was used to wearing the same clothes several times in a row.
Malfoy flung the curtains open just as Harry was slipping into his favorite red sweater. "I want to eat first, Potter."
"Fine," Harry replied, his voice muffled by the sweater. Then his head popped out, hair fuzzy from the static. "Mind if I eat with you?"
"Do what you want."
When they had finished their breakfast, Malfoy stood, brushing himself off and casting a glance towards his companion. Without saying anything, he strode off across the Great Hall, Harry following like some sort of reluctant puppy. The two of them made their way silently across the snow-covered lawn towards the broom shed where Harry's Firebolt and Malfoy's Nimbus were housed. Reaching into a box on one of the benches, Malfoy drew out a practice snitch that most of the house teams used when not in a game.
"Ready for me to kick your ass, Potter?"
Harry straddled his broom, swiftly finding the cushioning charm and settling against it. "I'm ready to play against you, Malfoy," he replied noncommittally.
Both boys took off, streaking low over the snow- Malfoy clutching at the practice snitch and Harry glancing uneasily at the dark clouds above. Sure he wanted to play Quidditch, but he didn't particularly want to play through heavy snow. That would be cold, wet, and Not Fun.
Once they reached the pitch, Malfoy opened his fist to release the snitch. The little ball's wings hissed, faltered, and then it took off. Malfoy snorted. "Getting pretty ratty, isn't it?" He said, gesturing to the ball with his thumb.
"Maybe it needs new wings."
"New spells, too."
Malfoy smirked. "Hey, Potter, we actually agreed on something." He gave Harry's shoulder a fierce, hearty smack that caused the other boy to wince and then took off, zooming around the upper levels of the pitch.
Harry chose to remain towards the ground, his feet nearly skimming over the surface of the snow while he looked up, searching quickly for the elusive golden snitch. Occasionally, Malfoy would block his vision, but it wasn't often enough to cause him suspicion that the other boy was purposefully blinding him.
"Oi, Potter, freezing yet?" called down the blond.
"I'm fine," Harry replied, puzzled. Usually, the Slytherin wasn't one to make small talk.
"Strange, I thought you would be with that fraying sweater of yours."
Oh. Harry's eyes narrowed and rolled for a moment, then snapped back open when he saw Malfoy streaking sideways in front of him with his silvery blond hair falling free in the wind he was creating. Without a second thought, Harry took off after his companion, eyes chasing across the pitch feverishly. Then, he saw it.
Not two feet in front of Malfoy's broom handle, the practice snitch was racing along playfully evading capture by dodging from side to side.
Malfoy stretched out on his broom, urging it to higher speeds while Harry chased along after them. It was a race like the two of them had never had before. Of course winning the Quidditch Cup meant a lot for their houses, but this… this was personal now. Harry was vividly aware of the gloating humiliation that would be dumped on his head by the other boy if he managed to lose. And besides, it was a matter of pride. Losing to Malfoy in a normal game could be the result of other teammates or outside factors. But losing to him one on one was… well, it would prove that the Slytherin was indeed a better seeker than he was.
Harry mirrored the other boy by flattening himself out along the broom handle and stretching out his right arm to catch the speeding snitch. Soon, he and Malfoy were on level with each other, both with eyes narrowed against the wind and both with arms outstretched to grab the elusive prey.
Suddenly, with a burst of reckless speed, Malfoy shot ahead and grabbed the little ball. But with that speed, he found himself hurtling directly into one of the stands. Harry's breath caught in his throat as the blond boy sped headlong into the wall, bounced off, and landed face up in the snow.
Harry leapt off his broom (which instantly dropped to the ground) and ran through the ankle-deep fluff until he reached his rival. "Malfoy! You okay?"
A groan answered him.
"Can you move? Do you want me to get Madam Pomphrey?" Harry bent over at the waist, examining the fallen figure. Malfoy's body seemed to be in one piece and not twisted at odd angles. His eyes were screwed shut and his mouth was open, panting heavily. Still, in his fist, there snuggled the captured snitch.
"I'm fine. Just…" Malfoy took a deep breath and opened his grey eyes, meeting the gaze of his companion. "I'm just a bit winded."
Harry breathed a sigh of relief and straightened. "Good game," he said a bit shakily. For a moment there, he had been worried that the other boy had suffered a concussion or would be unable to walk. His tail flicked slightly. If that had been the case, Harry would have felt responsible, and would have had to help the other boy back to the infirmary. The thought of carrying the blond did not appeal to him at all. Especially when it would have meant leaving their brooms in the snow.
Malfoy sat up slowly and then rose to his feet, rubbing his head with his free hand. Then, he grinned broadly. Not smirked, but grinned a real, boyish grin. "I won."
Harry's expression of relief faltered into one of reluctant acceptance. "I know."
To be Continued
Note: Ah…. It's been a while since I've worked on this one… been distracted by YYH and DBZ and Bakuretsu Hunters…. And Haunted Junction. Btw- Haunted Junction is SOOOO MUCH FUN! So if you haven't seen it, go out and find it! It's incredibly funny, incredibly cute, and there's Nino-kun! Bwa ha ha ha haaaa! *unfortunately has a bit of a shota-complex*
Special Thanks to:
Vince: . That Malfoy boy… *growls at him* I don't know where the Hell he is and every time I see him… he's always busy. I hate that kid. *sighs* Though I still want a picture. I'm still trying to get one! *sob*
Jaittsuko Kureiko: Yeah! Draco with fox ears…. Sort of like Youko Kurama, ne? Only… shorter… and… Draco-er…
Cindy: ^_^ I have absolutely NO IDEA how long Draco is going to make Harry keep that tail… heh… though it might make for kinky sex later… o_O
Deidre: Yup! I'm intending on writing at least 31 chapters…. Possibly more. And there will probably be a sequel or a spin-off or something like that. Nya ha ha! Yeah… dear little Perky!Potter is going to have a hard time of it ^_^ Especially now with the losing at Quidditch thing.
Sarah: Hah! I hadn't considered that… shampoo… that's a good idea. Though I'm sorry about the green hair!
Lunadeath: Hee hee… Draco doesn't even know what he's getting himself into. ^_^ Hee hee… he cracks me up, plus he's a hell of a lot easier for me to write pov's of than Harry. Yeah! Here is more. Yay!
Shady: Well, I had made the title before I wrote the chapter. It's referring to the dinner that Draco ate with Snape. And I was actually going to detail the dinner between them, but then I wanted to have more H/D interaction. So… that's why.
Evil Laughter: Hah! It's true! I always end up having twins as friends for some reason. It's kind of silly, but I can never be rid of twins! O_O lol! Not that I'd want to. I love twins. I've moved several times and I STILL end up having twins follow me around! Hahahahaha! I love them all.
Bubblie Bunnie: Heh… they won't snog or shag for a while yet… but they WILL have something quite interesting happen coming up soon. Heh… in my opinion it's better then both put together. *grin*
Ivan: Hee hee! Short sheeting… yeah, I'm sure Draco will come up with lots of nasty little plots soon.
Rings of Saturn: Sorry there is not much romance- but there will be. It just is going to take a while. After all, they are rivals at this point. But something will happen that will get them to be friends, be sure of that. And it will happen soon. *laughs evilly*
Springroll27: God, I could really go for a spring roll right now. Or shrimp pasta. *licks lips* YES I want MORE SHRIMP PASTA! Ahem. Anyway- yes, Harry is gay in this. I would usually make him bi- but in this one he's a bit off canon, so I can get away with it. Ha ha!
Slashybubble: *cracks up* You know, it worked!!! The day after I posted, my beta DID come back! And This time I am waiting for her to beta the story before I post it. So less mistakes, hopefully. ^_^
Shorty: Hm… my brother has a friend named Shorty. And my mum's friend had a bird named Shorty. Anyway- I'm so glad you like it! I'm total crap at writing humor. So I have to stick to rather dry humor and interesting situations and hope that I don't sound too stupid.
Chaos Silver: I used to be a die-hard Harry/Ron fan. Then one day I read this random Harry/Draco slash out of morbid curiosity. It had me going "ugh! Ew!" the whole way through, but I finished it and then read another one… and got addicted. Lol! So now I'm incurable. I have NO idea why I like to pair them together. I don't even know why I like Draco. Okay, I take that back. I do. It's all because of Tom Felton. My young Draco is Tom. Because I saw previews for the movie before I read the books. And I adore Tom. He's just so squishable.
Sairavanie: I had no idea I could write humor at all! In fact, I was so sure this was going to end up stupidly because I had attempted humor. I am just not that funny as a person. ^_^;;
Juniper Winner: O_O I hope your sister doesn't get too mad for the short sheeting!!! I've never actually tried it on someone… hahahaha… I'm a good girl. Except for my love of slash and little boys. o_O
Yue T.K. Sumeragi: I like Draco's pov better, too. I don't feel I can write Harry as well. Probably because Harry is just so darn typical that it's hard to make him have an outstanding personality. It will probably take less long to write the Draco pov chapters just because of that. ;)