Ready, Steady, Play!
Disclaimer: Harry Potter, characters, names and indicia are trademarks and copyright to Warner Brothers and JK Rowling. All events and actions contained here within are fictional works of the author herself, unless otherwise stated; this is purely in the author's mind.
Warnings: This story contains SLASH, which means a male/male pairing. If this offends you, please read no further. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED. The author accepts no responsibility should this fic offend anyone's ideals.
Pairings: Harry/Draco
Spoilers: All published works…I think…I'll say that just in case!
A/N: Well the next chapter is here everyone! I'm sorry it's been a while since the last update…It's been a little hectic…and I got attacked by Kivutar, my angst muse, as Euterpe, my fluff muse, took some time off and I started writing an epic…then Uni started up again and so I've been kept occupied by a thousand different things since!
A lot of you suggested Hide and Seek for the next game…which had me coming up with this. Sardines is a game I used to play when I was at Prep. School…it's a load of laughs and so much better than the normal Hide and Seek! Hope you all like this!
Sardines
"Sardines."
"What?" Harry asked her sceptically, "As in the canned fish?"
"Exactly." Now the whole room was staring at her as if she had grown three heads and a tail.
"I always knew you were off your rocker, Granger, but this new tangent of yours makes me wonder whether I should have labelled you insane." The blond-haired Slytherin raised an elegant eyebrow as he continued sarcastically, "Please enlighten us mere mortals, who obviously don't have your mental capacity, how it is that a can of deceased fish packed together can help us alleviate our boredom."
Hermione rolled her eyes, as the occupants of the Great Hall, the whole of her year, turned confused eyes in her general direction.
"Not literally sardines, Malfoy – the game!" She sighed in defeat as they stared at her blankly, looking for all the world like a bunch of first years coming into the Great Hall for the first time.
She heaved a long suffering sigh. "Fine, I'll explain it," she said, sounding scarily like Professor McGonagall when she was exasperated…the others gulped.
Sardines was a bit like a twisted game of 'Hide and Seek'. Twisted in that only one person hid, and everyone else had to find them. Each person who found them had to hide with them, until everyone was hiding. The last person who finds them is the loser. The name, Sardines, came from the fact that, in the end, everyone would be so tightly squished together; they would resemble a can of sardines.
After three explanations, it seemed that the rest of the year had finally got the gist of it, but the problems were far from over…
"Well, who gets to hide?" Dean piped up.
After another half an hour or so of arguing, it was decided that two people should go and hide together: two people from different houses to stop people saying it was unfair.
"I'm hiding."
"I want to hide."
Two voices simultaneously cried out, then eyes widened in absolute horror as they realised who the other person was. Before they had time to protest, Hermione beamed and clapped.
"It's settled then. Harry and Draco, you have ten minutes to hide!" She grinned evilly. Harry shivered slightly knowing she was up to something, but he knew without a doubt that he wouldn't be able to get out of it.
Looking to Ron for sympathy, if nothing else, he was even more terrified by the calculating look Ron was sending the rivals – it did nothing to put to rest Harry's fear at all…Ron and Hermione working together…He shivered again.
"I've started timing," Hermione sing-songed, smiling sweetly at him. He scowled back, before storming out of the Great Hall with Draco behind him, to find somewhere to hide.
"Hope you know some good hiding places, Potter," Draco drawled from behind him. "I'd hate to be found easily. It'd ruin my reputation."
"Whatever," he replied simply. He gritted his teeth. Hermione was evil. Ron was evil. They were both damn evil! They knew he had some not-so-platonic feelings for his blond nemesis and –
His inner rant was cut off by Draco.
"Potter, time's up. Where're we hiding?"
He looked around slightly and realised he had absolutely no idea where they were, let alone where to hide! Scanning his mental map, he recognised some of the portraits and remembered a small alcove of sorts a little way away.
"This way," he ground out, before hurrying off, expecting Draco to follow.
The blond rolled his eyes before hurrying to catch up before the Gryffindor could go too far. He grinned a little to himself…Potter was so damn adorable when all grouchy. Of course, he would deny that he had even thought that Potter was anything positive at all; he mentally threatened his inner voice…This kind of information was classified and his inner voice shouldn't have ever…Dammit, he was getting confused with himself.
Just as he was preparing to smack himself on the head, Harry turned to face him, those impossibly green eyes boring into his own. Draco melted.
"I hope here's ok. It's the only place I can think of around here," he said, but then looked at the small niche rather sceptically. "I'm not sure we can all fit though…It'll be a tight squeeze even if we could."
Draco shrugged and gestured for Harry to precede him. As Harry crawled in, Draco smirked and stared at his arse – and what a fine arse it was too – before following him quickly, just in case Harry got suspicious.
They settled down, sitting some distance from each other. They sat in silence until – "I'm bored."
"Me too," answered Draco honestly. "I wish they'd hurry up and find us…"
After another few silent minutes, they ended up playing 'Rocks, Paper, Scissors' for a long time before Ron showed up.
"Hermione, they're here," he sort of whispered to, presumably, Hermione. A second later, her bushy head popped into the opening.
"Crawl in then Ron," she said with a perfectly straight face. "If you go in first, I can sit on your lap."
Harry and Draco goggled for a bit, but not long, because Hermione descended upon them like an avenging angel. "Why are you two sitting so far apart? I mean, you picked a small enough place, didn't you? At least have the decency to try and pack it in a little, I mean…"
"Okay, Hermione!" Harry half shouted putting his hand up in defence.
"Yeah, Granger, do you want to be found?"
Hermione just glared. Harry sighed again; he seemed to be doing it quite a lot these days, knowing that they wouldn't get any peace until they had fulfilled her command. That didn't stop him sending a death glare that would have made Snape very proud towards his friends.
"Fine," he said simply, still glaring at them. Hermione, rather predictably, beamed.
"Move, Draco." He scooted closer and she tapped her foot impatiently. "Onto his lap – now," she growled.
"Jeez, woman, calm down," the blond mumbled moving into Harry's lap. He was secretly rejoicing at the chance to be close to the object of his desires. Outwardly, he shot Ron a look. "I don't know how you put up with it, mate. I don't envy you at all."
Ron shrugged, pulling Hermione into his lap and kissing her deeply.
Draco closed his eyes and tried to memorise the feeling of being safe and warm as Harry put his arm around him, no doubt to have it in a more comfortable position, but Draco could pretend…
Harry, on the other hand, was having a hard time thinking straight. He could feel the heat coming off the smaller blond and the delicious weight of the slight boy in his arms. He was trying to get his raging hormones into some semblance of control, but was fighting a losing battle, especially when more and more people began to crowd together, and Draco was being pushed more and more tightly against him.
Draco was in a state of absolute euphoria. If he died now, he would die happy. He shifted a little, to change his position, and thought he heard a small moan from the brunette behind him. His eyebrows knitted together in confusion. He shifted more deliberately this time, adjusting his position just so. Oh yes, he heard a definite moan this time – as well as feeling a slight physical action.
Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Ron and Hermione observing them closely…maybe there was hope after all. He grinned cheekily.
Slowly, he moved a hand, the one next to the wall (so that the others couldn't see) to rest teasingly on Harry's thigh. He heard a sharp intake of breath. Gently, he began rubbing small circles with his thumb. He smirked as he felt and heard Harry's breathing become faster. He made his motions more deliberate, rubbing seductively as well as shifting every once in a while, enjoying the Gryffindor's reaction.
Suddenly, the body beneath him moved. One of Harry's hands pinned his and the other tightened its hold around his waist, stilling him. He felt a warm breath by his ear as Harry breathlessly whispered, "Don't tease me, Draco. Not unless you intend to come through with all those promises…"
As if proving a point, Harry bit down hard on his earlobe, almost causing the blond to yelp. The sound didn't alert anyone else though – in fact, the sound never came out. Harry had firmly clamped his lips on the Slytherin's.
Draco felt warm lips on his, followed by an equally warm tongue sweeping over his bottom lip. He obediently let the other boy in, tasting the tangy yet salty taste that was all Harry. Oh yeah, he corrected himself, if he died now he'd die happy! Screw it, he'd die ecstatic!
A shout of "Finally!" broke the couple's euphoric bliss as Hannah Abbott and Susan Bones stumbled upon their hiding place. Both boys groaned at the untimely interruption.
"God hates me," mumbled Harry, and Draco wholeheartedly agreed with him.
They sat still as the others moved out of the small niche they had decided to hide themselves in. They reluctantly joined the others only when moving became inevitable.
"Our turn to hide and you guys find us!" Hermione shouted as she and Ron ran off in the other direction.
The others began to find something to do while they waited for the ten minutes to run out. Draco and Harry were throwing longing glances at each other, shifting uncomfortably. They ended up side by side despite the fact that they had made an effort to be on the other side of the room to the other, glancing nervously around.
Finally, it seemed as if Harry had managed to dig out the Gryffindor courage from the nook where it had decided to reside in until this moment, and leaned down to kiss the blond. Draco licked his lips in anticipation, closing his eyes as he felt Harry's breath against his own. Harry's lips brushed gently over his before –
"Time's up! Let go find them," squealed Lavender.
Draco and Harry groaned in frustration, both fighting the urge to hit their heads on the stone wall next to them, thinking 'God really hates me…"
The gaggle of people disappeared in different directions, trying to figure out where the two Gryffindors had decided to hide.
Harry and Draco stared after them. Then looked back at each other. Then back in the direction some of their friends had gone. Then back at each other. Then –
"Do you think they'll miss us?"
"Not at all."
"Great. I have a room," Draco suggested, smiling cheekily at the green-eyed boy.
"Lead the way!" Harry grinned back, slipping his arm, almost naturally, around the blonde's waist.
*~*~*~*~*~* Approximately five hours later *~*~*~*~*~*
"Harry?" A small, sleepy blond whispered, grey eyes fluttering open to meet emerald.
"Yeah, Draco?" He asked as he tucked a wayward piece of baby soft hair behind his lover's ear, gazing down at him affectionately.
"Do you think they're still waiting for us?"
Harry just laughed: a smooth, carefree sound of unadulterated happiness.
*~*~*~*~*~* Elsewhere in the castle *~*~*~*~*~*
"Where the hell are they?"
"I don't know…"
"What's taking so long…Hogwarts is big but not that big!"
"Ron…if Harry couldn't find us, wouldn't he just use the Marauder's Map?"
"Maybe it'd interfere with his Gryffindor ideals of fair play, 'Mione."
"Oh, yeah, possibly…we'll just have to keep on waiting then, I guess."
"Yeah."
Hours later, they were still there. Neither Draco nor Harry were seen for the rest of the weekend. The year had ended up sleeping in their hiding place before deciding to return to their dorms at four o'clock in the morning.
Harry's bed remained suspiciously empty, whereas Draco's room remained suspiciously locked.
Finite Incantatum
A/N: Hope you liked it and were satisfied! I'm really really sorry it took me so long! I have no excuses! I was really tempted to write in the missing scene…you know, the one in the bedroom…but I figured I'd be banned from ff.net…if anyone wants to see it, let me know and I'll write it and post it on my LJ or something.
So:
Craw/Brad: Thank you! I'm liked you like them! I hope this met your expectations!
Silvrei: No they weren't! I just couldn't resist putting it in to get a more vivid picture! They weren't smart enough to remember their wands ^_^
The Red Dragons Order: *snigger* Yeah I know…and now I make him argue with himself…poor guy! I love him though; he's an absolute darling to work with! I so prefer bottom!Draco anyday…Harry just seems to be a guy who likes to be in control, you know?
Catmint: I hope this was good enough! It was really hard to think up anything that wouldn't disappoint after the Twister one! I hope you liked this as well!
Little Webby: Hope school's going cool…Hope you enjoyed too! Don't fret too much about not being able to look it over! GCSEs are a drag! Just concentrate on them! And I want to see the rest of your story!!
Sylvia Sylverton: Update is here! Hope you enjoyed this one as much as the others!
FallenAngelOfInnocence: Thanks for telling me what '7 Minute in Heaven' is…I have a feeling Harry and Draco might maim each other to keep up appearances…Capture the flag sounds good though! Hope this version of 'Hide and Seek' is as good as the other one! Personally, I think it's a lot more fun…both to play and to write (I was stupid enough to hide in a cupboard once…with 20 or so people playing, I'm sure you see why we were in a bit of a predicament ^_~)
Eruantane: Yep, that's how you spell comical! I hope you liked this one as well!
Sailor Grape: How was this? I'm glad you liked Twister! I thought that, that way…everyone could play! No worries bout thinking up games, just if there are any you'd like to see, pass them along and I'll see what I can do…I could still dig ideas from my own childhood…being in boarding schools made sure we played a lot of games!
anna may: I love you too ^_^ I hope your wait was worthwhile…and that the chapter wasn't disappointing! I'm sorry for making you wait so long!
Benjis VIP: Good! Hopefully thinking good things about Harry and Draco! Hope you enjoyed this one!
Emerald+Silver = Slash: Tag? Oooo…good idea! Will write that down for brainstorming…see if I can come up with an original mini-plot for it! I hope you liked this chapter too!
moonysgurl: Thank you! Hope this met your standards!
Kaaera: *hugs back* Glad you like this and hoping that this met your standards! I'd hate to disappoint all these lovely people! I'm sorry again for the long wait!
adarial ciao: You guys do this! OMG! It must be such a laugh! Wow…I wish my friends were as exciting as that…but I suppose Sardines was always a load of laughs as well! I have some other really dodging and compromising ones still to come!
Estrella de la Tarde: Thank you so much! I am honoured that you should in any way whatsoever compare my fic to Sailor Grape's!! Your ideas are great…specially the one in the dark…a bit like Murder in the Dark…hmm…Don't worry about the English, hon…it's not my first language either! I'm actually Thai, but I practice a lot! And your English is great! What's the fuss?
Frulie: Here's the update as per deal…am now waiting eagerly for yours! I LOVED Chapter 14!! When Harry was tending to Draco, my heart bled because it was so sweet…the line…uh…hang on, let me try and remember this… 'Draco gently scolded, eyes filling with tears. Harry pressed the side of his face into Draco's hair, and gave his heart permission to start beating again.' had me in tears…I was so happy! Call me sentimental, but nothing beats a happy reunion! Anyway, waiting eagerly for Chapter 15 and thanks for reading!
the laura: Scrabble? Will do! And thank you for the review!
SweetSorrow1: *blushes* Thank you so much! I hope this chapter was up to standards!
lizziebordon: Hehehe…I like getting Draco freaked out…I like the idea that Harry's one of the only things that can break his composure! Lol! Thank you for the review and I hope you enjoyed this!
FireCracker2000: My muses are sort of back from holiday…they're sort of working online or something though, coz this took me longer than normal! I feed them lots! They're fat…like me…and I intend to keep it that way! I dunno, I thought Blaise was a boy…JK Rowling should really give him a gender…I mean, poor guy/girl, it can't be nice to be asexual, can it? Thank you for reading though!
justxme: Here's more and hope you like it as well!
WOW! This list is longer than I thought it'd be!! YAY! Thank you! Also a big thank you to readers who do not review (I know you're out there!) coz you bother to read it at least! Thanks!
A few more things:
If you have any ideas for games, let me know!
If you want to be added to my mailing list, also let me know! If your email isn't on your author's profile, please leave it in the review!
I might be needing a beta in the near future…preferably someone who can stomach NC-17 m/m smut…I don't want to freak you out or anything! That's why you aren't going to be doing it, Little Webby and Tanny, you guys will seriously not like…I'll mail you my other stuff from time to time. Let me know if you're interested. Think about it some and then let me know coz I'm not needing one just yet!
And if anyone spots any mistake…let me know!
Many thanks again everyone!
As always, comments and constructive criticism is loved, cherished and adored. Flames are used to burn you at the stake.
~*Dea*~