CHAPTER NINETEEN: THE SLYTHERINS
When Draco entered the DADA classroom, he was met with a chorus of snickers from the Slytherin students. He rolled his eyes, trying to convince himself that he wasn't hurt. Unfortunately, even though he didn't really like any of the Slytherins, it still hurt to know that they hadn't held any real affection for him. He took a seat beside Buffy, allowing her to momentarily squeeze his hand in a show of support.
Hermione had sat beside Neville so that Draco would be able to sit with Buffy, knowing that the Slytherin boy wouldn't want to be seated anywhere near his house-mates. Unfortunately for Draco and Buffy though, the seat directly behind them was free, seeing as Ron and Harry were running somewhat late.
Pansy Parkinson and Blaise Zabini sat in the free seat, giggling and snickering loudly.
"Honestly, I can't believe he'd let himself sink so low as to accept help from muggle-loving Gryffindors," Blaise said, pointing at Draco.
Draco rolled his eyes and resolutely kept staring at the front of the classroom, wishing that Giles would walk in and begin the class. He didn't particularly want to sit and listen to people teasing him.
"You can't blame him for sucking up to Summers though," Blaise continued. "I mean, if she's really as powerful as the Ministry seems to think she is, then of course Malfoy's going to do anything to become her lapdog. When she finally follows in her father's footsteps like everyone thinks she will, Malfoy will be the first to join up."
Draco's fist clenched angrily. He could handle the insults, but he didn't particularly like how they were talking about Buffy.
Buffy definitely didn't like them talking about her cousin so badly. She turned around and glared at the two girls.
"You know, if you're gonna insult someone that the Ministry is afraid of, you may want to do it a little more quietly," Buffy said, her voice soft and angry.
Blaise glared right back at her.
"Are you threatening me, Summers?"
"Do you want me to?" Buffy replied, a false sickly sweet smile on her face.
They sat staring at each other, a contest of wills to see who would turn away first. Of course, Buffy had had far more practise in staring competitions. She'd never backed down from a challenge, especially not one from a girl who was a year younger than her and had no real power over her. Blaise was the first one to break their contest.
The Slytherin girl scoffed with disgust and looked away. Buffy grinned and turned back around. Before she knew it, she felt a sharp stinging sensation in her scalp.
She whipped around to face Pansy and Blaise and found them sitting with smug smiles on their faces.
"Resorting to hair pulling are you?" Buffy said angrily, resisting the urge to reach up and massage her head, annoyed with herself for not having sensed the movement. Had she still had her slaying abilities, she wouldn't have had any problems with stopping her. "Grade school much?"
Blaise chose not to respond, merely folding her hands demurely in her lap, when in reality, she was tucking the strand of blonde hair into a pocket of her robes for safekeeping. She knew how much damage having a piece of hair would be in a spell. All she had to do now was to find a perfect spell to completely ruin Buffy Summers life.
Buffy turned back around and shared a look with Draco.
"Why do I get the feeling this is the beginning of a very long year?" Buffy whispered.
Draco half-smiled at her and nodded.
They were thankfully saved by Giles coming in just as Harry and Ron ran in, just before the doors were closed.
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Draco was extremely uncomfortable. It wasn't a feeling that he liked. He looked around the Gryffindor Common Room, taking in the bright red and gold that adorned the walls. Buffy sunk into the seat next to him.
"Would you relax?" she said quietly. "No one cares that you're here."
He scowled at her. "I care. I'm…"
"So conditioned into thinking that Gryffindors are the scum of the earth that even now you can't even recognise that we're your friends?" she finished for him.
Draco sighed, knowing that she was right. It was a hard pill to swallow. He'd been thrown out of his own house, only to be taken in by the very people who theoretically should have hated him the most.
"Besides, you're here by choice remember? Snape said that the Slytherins can't actually kick you out. If you didn't want to be here, you could go back there," Buffy reminded him.
"I think I'll pass on that option thank you very much," he replied. "Besides, Professor Giles is letting me stay in his study. It's as close to a private room as I'm going to get."
From Harry and Ron's table there was a sudden shout of jubilation as Ron won yet another game of Wizard's Chess. Harry groaned and ran frustrated hands through his hair.
"I am never going to win against you," Harry complained, giving Ron a friendly grin.
Ron just grinned back, knowing that his best friend would never be able to take him in a match of chess. It was just about the only thing he was actually better at than Harry, and he prided himself on that fact. He didn't rub it into Harry of course, seeing as Harry never rubbed in his talents to Ron, but he was definitely proud of his achievements.
"Go again?" Ron asked.
Harry just shook his head and stood up from the table. "Not a chance."
Ron glanced over to Draco and Buffy.
"How 'bout it Buff?" Ron asked, still grinning. "You want a go?"
Buffy just shook her head laughing. "If you want a three second game, then yeah sure. I'm so not the chess player," she said.
Ron sighed in disappointment and was about to pack up his chess kit, when Draco surprisingly spoke up.
"I'll go against you," Draco offered. "If you're game."
Ron looked at his former enemy curiously. He'd never actually spoken to Draco without Buffy being around, or without accusing him of some sort of evil plan. To have the Slytherin boy offering to challenge him in chess was slightly strange. But Ron wasn't one to back down from a challenge, especially not one from a Slytherin.
"You're on."
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Ron stared intently at the chessboard. The Gryffindors were gathered around the two boys who were playing chess in the middle of the Gryffindor Common Room. Buffy had a big grin on her face and was barely containing excited squeals. Ginny was grinning in much the same way, while Harry and Hermione were standing behind Ron looking pensive.
Draco moved his Queen forward and Ron dropped his head onto the table, groaning in defeat. Without looking, Ron reached up, touched his King and flipped it on it's side, admitting defeat.
There was a sudden silence in the Common Room as the occupants looked on in shock. They'd never seen Ron Weasley lose a single game of chess before. For him to lose to Draco Malfoy was an even bigger shock.
Ron lifted his head up and grinned at Malfoy. "Finally, a worthy opponent."
Draco couldn't help but grin, and the two boys shook hands amicably.
Hermione smiled widely. She'd half been expecting Ron to throw a temper tantrum about losing, but not only had he lost well, but he'd almost been thankful that he'd finally found someone to challenge him. Somehow she wasn't surprised that the person to challenge her boyfriend was Draco Malfoy. It seemed somewhat poignant.
"Go again?" Draco asked.
"Hell yes!"
The rest of the Gryffindors just groaned and moved away from the table. Hermione, Buffy, Ginny and Harry were the only ones who stayed to watch.
Harry moved to sit beside Buffy, draping an arm around her waist. Buffy rested her head against Harry's shoulder and closed her eyes contently.
"Wanna go sit in our corner?" Buffy asked.
Harry didn't even have to think about his answer. He eased Buffy into a standing position then stood up, leading her towards their corner, that they had claimed on Christmas Eve the year before. He sat down, leaning against the wall and pulled Buffy down to sit with her back to his chest between his legs.
"So, Malfoy keeps bragging that he met Willow," Harry said as Buffy snuggled against him. His arms wrapped around her small waist, revelling in the feeling of her warm body against his. "When do I get to meet your best friend in the world?"
Buffy turned to look at her boyfriend. She could read in his eyes the genuine interest in meeting her friend from Sunnydale.
"Well, I doubt Dumbledore would be too thrilled about the two of us disappearing off school grounds," Buffy said, slowly contemplating their options.
Harry's grin got wider. "You're saying that just to tempt me aren't you?"
Buffy rolled her eyes. "After what happened last year, I don't think it's a good idea for us to just disappear."
Harry sighed and knew that his girlfriend was right.
"Well, you ask, and then we'll go. Next weekend maybe?" he suggested.
Buffy nodded and grinned widely. "Sounds good."
Harry smiled and tightened his grip on Buffy, running his hands sensually up her sides. Buffy's heart caught in her throat and she closed her eyes, leaning against him.
"Maybe we should take this somewhere a little less open," Harry whispered.
Buffy nodded, her eyes still closed. Harry went to shift them so they could stand up, but Buffy's hand caught his before he could move. So shifted her position so that she could kiss him properly. Mid-way through the kiss, the Sixth-Year Gryffindor couple apparated. None of their friends even noticed their absence.
Harry opened his eyes and took in the messy boys Sixth-Year dorm room. He grinned as he realised they were sitting on his bed in the same position they'd been in down in the Common Room.
"You're getting good at that," Harry whispered as he carefully slid out of his cloak, leaving him in jeans and a sweater.
"What? Kissing you?" she asked, smiling cheekily.
"Apparating," he replied, as he began removing Buffy's cloak, taking in the black pants, light blue strappy top and matching cardigan. "But the kissing is definitely good."
They manoeuvred themselves into a more comfortable position, both of them laying on the bed, Harry laying half on top of Buffy, his weight resting on his elbows next to Buffy's shoulders. He pulled back a little and smiled at her softly. Buffy felt herself go pink under his scrutiny of her, but let Harry continue to look at her. Her eyes caught his and she found herself drowning in a sea of emerald green. He smiled at her again and bent his head down, nuzzling her neck, trailing soft kisses along her skin.
"You…feel…so…good," he whispered in between kisses.
Buffy was incapable of actually speaking at that point in time. It had been far too long since Angel, and the desire she felt for Harry was too much for her to handle. She brought a hand up to tangle in Harry's hair and pulled him gently towards her, kissing him passionately.
Buffy sighed happily as she felt Harry's hands move beneath her shirt, his hands touching her warm skin, gently memorising the flatness of her stomach. Buffy pulled Harry further on top of her, sliding her hands beneath Harry's sweater and trailing her hands across the expanse of his back. Harry slid his hands along Buffy's waist, moved back slightly and slowly pulled Buffy's cardigan off her, leaving her in just the singlet top and pants.
Buffy ran her hands back down Harry's back, over his backside, and moved her right hand to the zipper of his pants. Just as she was about to undo the button, she heard the door open. The subsequent "oh holy god" was as effective as any cold shower. Harry groaned and buried his face in Buffy's hair. Buffy couldn't help but smile, even though she was tremendously embarrassed.
"I am so sorry," Ron said quickly. "I uh…I didn't realise…I should…I should go. So…yeah. That's what I'll do."
Buffy giggled and gently shoved Harry slightly, sending him rolling off her. She stood up, retrieved her cardigan and cloak and grinned at Ron.
"It's okay. I should be heading up to my own room anyway." She leant over and kissed Harry once more as a goodbye. He kissed back with enthusiasm and whined in protest when she pulled back. She grinned at him and kissed his cheek quickly, waving at Ron as she left the room in a hurry.
"You two really need to find somewhere else to do that sort of stuff," Ron said.
Harry groaned dramatically and threw an arm over his face. His reply of "I know" was muffled by his jumper.
Ron just grinned, shaking his head in silent laughter. He flopped down onto Harry's bed, sitting next to the distressed teen.
"I can't believe you and Buffy have actually talked about…well, you know," Ron said.
Harry removed his arm from across his face and sat up on the bed. He grinned happily.
"It's pretty amazing," Harry replied. "And…it's not just about sex. I mean…yes, we'll be having sex, but…there's more to it than that. I love her, and she loves me, and…it's going to be so special between us."
Ron smirked and clapped a hand on Harry's shoulder as he stood up. "I'm going to pretend I didn't hear anything so very unmanly."
Harry glared at his best friend. "You think it's unmanly to be in love with someone?" Harry demanded. "Because I'm sure Hermione would just love to hear something like that."
Ron went bright red and sputtered on his words. "Well…I didn't mean it exactly. I was just…it was only…I was just teasing."
Harry grinned and nodded. He understood even if Ron didn't.
"I know. You're trying to act like everyone thinks you should act in regards to sex. Whenever anyone else spoke about it, it was always considered feminine to think of it as an emotional act of love, rather than just a physical act of sexual gratification," Harry explained.
Ron raised his eyebrows speculatively. "Where the hell do you come up with this stuff?" he asked.
Harry just grinned. "What can I say? I'm the perfect male."
"Modest too."
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He licked his dry lips and ducked down to kiss her.
"Are you sure about this?" he whispered.
"Absolutely."
DKG.