Author's Notes: I just realized that I forgot to say thanks to the
reviewers in the last chapter. I am very sorry, and thanks for reviewing
chapter 6, everybody. The others will be at the bottom. This chapter isn't
very well-written because I have writers' block. I hate it!! Oh well. Ciao
until the bottom.
Warning: SLASHY GOODNESS IN THIS CHAPTER!
Disclaimer: I don't own them. I will never own them. I really want to own them :O(
~~~
Chapter 8: Slip of the Tongue (hehe)
After Harry had gotten into his pajamas and into bed, he picked up the note that had been placed into his pocket. He did a quick glance-over of the note, and saw how elegant and flowing the handwriting was. It looked perfectly aristocratic and cold. It was Draco Malfoy penned onto paper, not just handwriting.
---
Potter,
Meet me in the astronomy tower at midnight, tomorrow. My detention lasts until 11:45 with McGonagall, so do not be alarmed if I am a touch late. We will be discussing properties of the potion, among other things.
Yours, Draco Malfoy
---
Harry was very disappointed, although he didn't know what it was about. He had wanted a different type of letter, not something telling him that he was going to discuss 'properties of the potion, among other things.' He was getting sick of those letters. But what did he expect... a love letter? Malfoy would rather die than write a love letter, probably.
He reread the letter, and made a mental note about the meeting. Hermione probably got her own letter, so he wouldn't have to show it to her. He also saw how the letter had originally been addressed to 'Harry', but Malfoy had changed it to 'Potter.' What a shame.
Then, Ron walked into the room. He saw Harry reading the letter with a little wisp of a smile on his face. Harry looked so... well, different. He had never seen that look before. It was a look of wistfulness and happiness, both at the same time. He watched as Harry whispered 'Nox', put the letter on the top of his trunk, and shut his crimson curtains. He walked in the general direction of Harry's bed and squinted in the moonlight. He was reaching towards the letter, before-
"Ron, I've told you once. I'll tell you again. My mail is personal with a capital P. Don't touch unless I tell you to or I give you permission to. Now, go to bed." Whoa, someone was grumpy. He had never heard Harry this grouchy before. It must be from having Malfoy as a partner. Little did he know it, but he had actually gotten pretty close to what it really was. Harry was very, very confused about how he felt for a certain golden-haired Slytherin. He was pretty sure that he wasn't gay or anything, but he still felt drawn to Draco.
~~~
The next morning Hermione woke up bright and early and she was very surprised to find Harry in the common room. He usually slept late, especially on the weekends. There weren't any classes on Saturdays or Sundays, so this seemed very abnormal.
"Hello, Harry. What are you doing up?"
"Hi, Herm. I just couldn't sleep very well. Neville was snoring and everything." This was accompanied by a small pout. He really did want to still be in his warm bed, but he was still confused over Malfoy. Oh well... he needed to discuss the meeting with Hermione anyway.
"That's too bad, Harry. Do you want to come to the library with me? I have a few things that I think that I need to tell you."
"Okay. We can discuss the meeting tomorrow, too." Hermione's eyebrows rose.
"What meeting?" Whoops. Maybe it had only been for him and Draco.
"Er... never mind." Hermione gave him a suspicious glance, and discreetly noticed the letter that Harry was putting in his pajama pocket. It had something to do with the meeting, for sure. And she was going to find out what it was. "I'll meet you in the library after I get dressed."
"Okay, I'll see you there." Harry walked up to his room and quickly got dressed. The note from Draco was secured underneath his pillow, so no prying eyes could find it. It would be disastrous if Ron found out about his meetings with Draco. And if Seamus found it the whole school would know about it in less than a day... and it wouldn't be about potions. The Irishman was perverted at his best. Neville would tell Ginny, who would tell Ron. Dean would keep quiet, but it still wasn't logical to take that chance.
After a quick combing of his unruly hair, Harry made his way to the library where Hermione was assuredly waiting for him. He wondered what this could be about. Hermione wasn't really a gossiper, so it must be something about her or schoolwork. When he walked into the library, he saw her fidgeting in her seat as if she were nervous about something.
"Herm, I'm here. What did you want to tell me?"
"Oh, hello Harry. Please sit down. Erm... this might come to you as a bit of a shock." Harry was very worried when he heard that. Hermione usually didn't stress over things. "Well, I guess I can't stall any longer. This has been bothering me for a while now. I really don't like keeping things from you, Harry. And neither does Ron."
"What does this have to do with Ron?"
"Everything. You see, Ron and I are officially a 'couple.'" A wide grin appeared on Harry' face. He had been wondering when they would get together.
"That's great, Hermione! I am so happy for you. Who knows?"
"Oh, you are the first. But we are going to start to take it more publicly soon. I think I might tell Ginny and Draco."
"Hermione, I think that you are forgetting that Ron hates Malfoy, and he wouldn't be very comfortable with him being in the small group of people that knows."
"Who said Ron would know who I told?" Draco had been rubbing off on Hermione. That comment was so Slytherin-ish. Harry gave her a frazzled look before he got up and hugged her.
"I am so glad that you finally got together, Hermione. I think that Seamus won the bet, though."
"What bet?"
"Oh, I said something about a bet? My mistake." Harry had a small smirk on his face.
"Harry, now that you know the news, I want you to tell me something. What meeting were you talking about earlier?"
"Er... Malfoy told me to meet him at the Astronomy tower at 12:15 or something like that. You don't have to come. We are just going to discuss some stuff." Hermione had a pensive look on her face. Why didn't she get a note? Maybe Draco just forgot to write one, or maybe Draco didn't want her to come. Oh well. She would be there at 12:15 anyways.
~~~
It was 12:10 when Harry walked into the tower, and he was surprised to see Draco in something other than wizard garb. It was unusual, but at the same time he didn't mind it at all. He thought that it made Draco look much more desirable than before (if that was possible at all), and he had no objections to that. No one could object to Draco being attractive, unless they were a Weasley. Both boys just stood silently for a few seconds. Draco thought that Harry looked very nice. It looked like he had actually tried to comb that mess on his head known as hair. Draco was the first to break the comfortable silence.
"Harry, I have something to tell you." Harry thought that it must be something very important, if it was good enough to get Malfoy to use his give name in a non-sarcastic manner. Draco continued with his statement. "It's rather important, or at least it is to me." Hermione walked into the room, and flashed Draco a knowing look. Draco nearly pissed his pants. He would have to make something up because this really didn't go whit how he had wanted it.
"Er... I think I um... trust you enough to tell you the spell and stuff to get the uh... passion." Hermione then gave Draco an annoyed look. She knew exactly what Draco was going to say, and that was not it. She should have never walked in! "Granger, will you come over and help me demonstrate the spell to Harry?" If there was one constant in the wizarding world, it was that Hermione was quick on her feet.
"No. I don't think that I will. You know it just as well as I do." She put on her innocent face. What a clever little witch. Draco blushed, or at least he blushed as much as someone that pale could. He really didn't need the Mudblood setting him up. He could do it all for himself! Meanwhile, Hermione was becoming very impatient.
"Well, go on! We haven't got all night!" Draco rolled his eyes. She must really be supporting this relationship, if you could call it one. Her amber eyes were twinkling almost as much as Dumbledore's. It was creepy, actually.
"The incantation is 'calidus nebulus'. You have to swish your wand in kind of a circular motion, and then you poke it forward on the last syllable. It's not really that complicated, except for you have to do it at the same time as your partner, or it won't get the full effect. To activate it you have to kiss, as you probably know. I'll show you the motions really quick." Draco got out is wand and did the wand waving and the incantation. A few silvery sparks shot out of the tip of his wand, and quickly disappeared. Harry did the same, except for his sparks were a vibrant, Slytherin green. Draco gasped. "Okay, Harry. That was really good. You have it down. Okay, so now we can discuss some other things." This was said in a nervous rush. Hermione was very unpredictable at times, and he didn't want her getting any ideas.
"Not so fast, Draco. You have only told him the movements and the incantation. You should know that the main stress is when you have to say it. And anyways, practice makes perfect." There was that innocent grin again. It was the bane of Draco's existence. Granger had now been demoted to 'Mudblood not worthy of any Malfoy's attention.' In normal English, that means the cold (or Arctic) shoulder.
He leaned forward expecting all of the heated and semi-violent kisses from before. What he got was infinitely better. Harry's lips were so soft against his. They were moving slowly and leisurely...perfectly. It was romantic, in Draco's opinion. His arms had drifted towards a position around Harry's waist. Both of the boys had their eyes closed. Draco then felt the tip of Harry's tongue against his lips, tentatively asking for more. It was very sweet, and he felt like he would burst with love. He let Harry continue. Seriously, who could decline Harry anything? It was next to impossible with those gorgeous green orbs and adorably messy hair. Draco wondered if it was just kissing Harry that made him emotional. There were certainly no ingredients involved in THIS little snog.
After a couple minutes of the blissful kiss, Draco reluctantly pulled back. He opened his eyes and looked into hazy jade ones. "We have to say the spell now, Harry."
"Okay, Draco. How about now?"
"Okay." Both boys muttered 'calidus nebulus', but Harry stumbled over his words. He was still stunned by the kiss he had shared with Draco. Draco's silvery mist permeated the air. It unhurriedly drifted over to Harry. It swirled around him, but this time it wasn't cold. It was warm, and it seemed to touch Harry's heart. It made him feel safe and protected. It made him feel like Draco was all around him and in his mind. He smiled and reveled in the caring expression on Draco's face. It was all so perfect. Draco looked into Harry's now clear eyes. Was he imagining it, or was there really adoration in their depths? He sure hoped so.
~~~
Meanwhile, in Dumbledore's office, a serious meeting was going on. Professor McGonagall was really a night owl, so it was perfectly normal to have a meeting at midnight.
"Minerva, would you like a lemon drop?"
"No thank you, Albus." Dumbledore shrugged, and popped one of the sour little treats into his mouth. He sucked on it a bit, before he decided to start the meeting.
"What did you come up here for, Minerva?"
"I'm requesting permission..." This was where Albus usually tuned out all of his fellow colleagues. It was just so hard to concentrate when you had such a splendid office. This was the reason why all of the teachers sometimes were allowed to have controversial lessons. He was looking around his room, towards a certain spot with a certain map. He glanced at the astronomy tower, and noted with glee that there was a couple that was enamored with each other. He choked on his lemon drop when he saw the names. He was wheezing and coughing until Minerva finally realized something was wrong.
"What's wrong, Albus. Oh... those lemon drops will be the death of you someday." She stood up and started to do the Heimlich maneuver on him. At this moment, an unsuspecting Hufflepuff walked by the Gargoyle guarding Dumbledore's office. The ill-fated student would have to take therapy for years.
~~~
Author's Notes: Thanks so much Aini Saire, E, Gabygirl, Nemkess, FalconIce, LadyVader, asaroth69, Malfoy Snogger, koureshin, Hyperbole, and waffles050201. I really appreciate the reviews, and I tried to incorporate your ideas into my story. Also, I am so *not* putting off the revenge, but it just doesn't fit into this (unusually mushy) chapter. The 'sexy' comments will be in the next chapter, I swear. I still need help thinking of them though. :O) Leave a review *wink*. I still need plot ideas, too. Should I throw in an evil scheme or something? Yay! The second kiss has been put into the story! It's only going to be a little while longer before they get together in a real relationship.
P.S.: If you don't remember the little map thing Dumbledore has, you should go back to chapter 4 and read the last scene. I almost forgot about it myself. I had fun writing that part, though.
Warning: SLASHY GOODNESS IN THIS CHAPTER!
Disclaimer: I don't own them. I will never own them. I really want to own them :O(
~~~
Chapter 8: Slip of the Tongue (hehe)
After Harry had gotten into his pajamas and into bed, he picked up the note that had been placed into his pocket. He did a quick glance-over of the note, and saw how elegant and flowing the handwriting was. It looked perfectly aristocratic and cold. It was Draco Malfoy penned onto paper, not just handwriting.
---
Potter,
Meet me in the astronomy tower at midnight, tomorrow. My detention lasts until 11:45 with McGonagall, so do not be alarmed if I am a touch late. We will be discussing properties of the potion, among other things.
Yours, Draco Malfoy
---
Harry was very disappointed, although he didn't know what it was about. He had wanted a different type of letter, not something telling him that he was going to discuss 'properties of the potion, among other things.' He was getting sick of those letters. But what did he expect... a love letter? Malfoy would rather die than write a love letter, probably.
He reread the letter, and made a mental note about the meeting. Hermione probably got her own letter, so he wouldn't have to show it to her. He also saw how the letter had originally been addressed to 'Harry', but Malfoy had changed it to 'Potter.' What a shame.
Then, Ron walked into the room. He saw Harry reading the letter with a little wisp of a smile on his face. Harry looked so... well, different. He had never seen that look before. It was a look of wistfulness and happiness, both at the same time. He watched as Harry whispered 'Nox', put the letter on the top of his trunk, and shut his crimson curtains. He walked in the general direction of Harry's bed and squinted in the moonlight. He was reaching towards the letter, before-
"Ron, I've told you once. I'll tell you again. My mail is personal with a capital P. Don't touch unless I tell you to or I give you permission to. Now, go to bed." Whoa, someone was grumpy. He had never heard Harry this grouchy before. It must be from having Malfoy as a partner. Little did he know it, but he had actually gotten pretty close to what it really was. Harry was very, very confused about how he felt for a certain golden-haired Slytherin. He was pretty sure that he wasn't gay or anything, but he still felt drawn to Draco.
~~~
The next morning Hermione woke up bright and early and she was very surprised to find Harry in the common room. He usually slept late, especially on the weekends. There weren't any classes on Saturdays or Sundays, so this seemed very abnormal.
"Hello, Harry. What are you doing up?"
"Hi, Herm. I just couldn't sleep very well. Neville was snoring and everything." This was accompanied by a small pout. He really did want to still be in his warm bed, but he was still confused over Malfoy. Oh well... he needed to discuss the meeting with Hermione anyway.
"That's too bad, Harry. Do you want to come to the library with me? I have a few things that I think that I need to tell you."
"Okay. We can discuss the meeting tomorrow, too." Hermione's eyebrows rose.
"What meeting?" Whoops. Maybe it had only been for him and Draco.
"Er... never mind." Hermione gave him a suspicious glance, and discreetly noticed the letter that Harry was putting in his pajama pocket. It had something to do with the meeting, for sure. And she was going to find out what it was. "I'll meet you in the library after I get dressed."
"Okay, I'll see you there." Harry walked up to his room and quickly got dressed. The note from Draco was secured underneath his pillow, so no prying eyes could find it. It would be disastrous if Ron found out about his meetings with Draco. And if Seamus found it the whole school would know about it in less than a day... and it wouldn't be about potions. The Irishman was perverted at his best. Neville would tell Ginny, who would tell Ron. Dean would keep quiet, but it still wasn't logical to take that chance.
After a quick combing of his unruly hair, Harry made his way to the library where Hermione was assuredly waiting for him. He wondered what this could be about. Hermione wasn't really a gossiper, so it must be something about her or schoolwork. When he walked into the library, he saw her fidgeting in her seat as if she were nervous about something.
"Herm, I'm here. What did you want to tell me?"
"Oh, hello Harry. Please sit down. Erm... this might come to you as a bit of a shock." Harry was very worried when he heard that. Hermione usually didn't stress over things. "Well, I guess I can't stall any longer. This has been bothering me for a while now. I really don't like keeping things from you, Harry. And neither does Ron."
"What does this have to do with Ron?"
"Everything. You see, Ron and I are officially a 'couple.'" A wide grin appeared on Harry' face. He had been wondering when they would get together.
"That's great, Hermione! I am so happy for you. Who knows?"
"Oh, you are the first. But we are going to start to take it more publicly soon. I think I might tell Ginny and Draco."
"Hermione, I think that you are forgetting that Ron hates Malfoy, and he wouldn't be very comfortable with him being in the small group of people that knows."
"Who said Ron would know who I told?" Draco had been rubbing off on Hermione. That comment was so Slytherin-ish. Harry gave her a frazzled look before he got up and hugged her.
"I am so glad that you finally got together, Hermione. I think that Seamus won the bet, though."
"What bet?"
"Oh, I said something about a bet? My mistake." Harry had a small smirk on his face.
"Harry, now that you know the news, I want you to tell me something. What meeting were you talking about earlier?"
"Er... Malfoy told me to meet him at the Astronomy tower at 12:15 or something like that. You don't have to come. We are just going to discuss some stuff." Hermione had a pensive look on her face. Why didn't she get a note? Maybe Draco just forgot to write one, or maybe Draco didn't want her to come. Oh well. She would be there at 12:15 anyways.
~~~
It was 12:10 when Harry walked into the tower, and he was surprised to see Draco in something other than wizard garb. It was unusual, but at the same time he didn't mind it at all. He thought that it made Draco look much more desirable than before (if that was possible at all), and he had no objections to that. No one could object to Draco being attractive, unless they were a Weasley. Both boys just stood silently for a few seconds. Draco thought that Harry looked very nice. It looked like he had actually tried to comb that mess on his head known as hair. Draco was the first to break the comfortable silence.
"Harry, I have something to tell you." Harry thought that it must be something very important, if it was good enough to get Malfoy to use his give name in a non-sarcastic manner. Draco continued with his statement. "It's rather important, or at least it is to me." Hermione walked into the room, and flashed Draco a knowing look. Draco nearly pissed his pants. He would have to make something up because this really didn't go whit how he had wanted it.
"Er... I think I um... trust you enough to tell you the spell and stuff to get the uh... passion." Hermione then gave Draco an annoyed look. She knew exactly what Draco was going to say, and that was not it. She should have never walked in! "Granger, will you come over and help me demonstrate the spell to Harry?" If there was one constant in the wizarding world, it was that Hermione was quick on her feet.
"No. I don't think that I will. You know it just as well as I do." She put on her innocent face. What a clever little witch. Draco blushed, or at least he blushed as much as someone that pale could. He really didn't need the Mudblood setting him up. He could do it all for himself! Meanwhile, Hermione was becoming very impatient.
"Well, go on! We haven't got all night!" Draco rolled his eyes. She must really be supporting this relationship, if you could call it one. Her amber eyes were twinkling almost as much as Dumbledore's. It was creepy, actually.
"The incantation is 'calidus nebulus'. You have to swish your wand in kind of a circular motion, and then you poke it forward on the last syllable. It's not really that complicated, except for you have to do it at the same time as your partner, or it won't get the full effect. To activate it you have to kiss, as you probably know. I'll show you the motions really quick." Draco got out is wand and did the wand waving and the incantation. A few silvery sparks shot out of the tip of his wand, and quickly disappeared. Harry did the same, except for his sparks were a vibrant, Slytherin green. Draco gasped. "Okay, Harry. That was really good. You have it down. Okay, so now we can discuss some other things." This was said in a nervous rush. Hermione was very unpredictable at times, and he didn't want her getting any ideas.
"Not so fast, Draco. You have only told him the movements and the incantation. You should know that the main stress is when you have to say it. And anyways, practice makes perfect." There was that innocent grin again. It was the bane of Draco's existence. Granger had now been demoted to 'Mudblood not worthy of any Malfoy's attention.' In normal English, that means the cold (or Arctic) shoulder.
He leaned forward expecting all of the heated and semi-violent kisses from before. What he got was infinitely better. Harry's lips were so soft against his. They were moving slowly and leisurely...perfectly. It was romantic, in Draco's opinion. His arms had drifted towards a position around Harry's waist. Both of the boys had their eyes closed. Draco then felt the tip of Harry's tongue against his lips, tentatively asking for more. It was very sweet, and he felt like he would burst with love. He let Harry continue. Seriously, who could decline Harry anything? It was next to impossible with those gorgeous green orbs and adorably messy hair. Draco wondered if it was just kissing Harry that made him emotional. There were certainly no ingredients involved in THIS little snog.
After a couple minutes of the blissful kiss, Draco reluctantly pulled back. He opened his eyes and looked into hazy jade ones. "We have to say the spell now, Harry."
"Okay, Draco. How about now?"
"Okay." Both boys muttered 'calidus nebulus', but Harry stumbled over his words. He was still stunned by the kiss he had shared with Draco. Draco's silvery mist permeated the air. It unhurriedly drifted over to Harry. It swirled around him, but this time it wasn't cold. It was warm, and it seemed to touch Harry's heart. It made him feel safe and protected. It made him feel like Draco was all around him and in his mind. He smiled and reveled in the caring expression on Draco's face. It was all so perfect. Draco looked into Harry's now clear eyes. Was he imagining it, or was there really adoration in their depths? He sure hoped so.
~~~
Meanwhile, in Dumbledore's office, a serious meeting was going on. Professor McGonagall was really a night owl, so it was perfectly normal to have a meeting at midnight.
"Minerva, would you like a lemon drop?"
"No thank you, Albus." Dumbledore shrugged, and popped one of the sour little treats into his mouth. He sucked on it a bit, before he decided to start the meeting.
"What did you come up here for, Minerva?"
"I'm requesting permission..." This was where Albus usually tuned out all of his fellow colleagues. It was just so hard to concentrate when you had such a splendid office. This was the reason why all of the teachers sometimes were allowed to have controversial lessons. He was looking around his room, towards a certain spot with a certain map. He glanced at the astronomy tower, and noted with glee that there was a couple that was enamored with each other. He choked on his lemon drop when he saw the names. He was wheezing and coughing until Minerva finally realized something was wrong.
"What's wrong, Albus. Oh... those lemon drops will be the death of you someday." She stood up and started to do the Heimlich maneuver on him. At this moment, an unsuspecting Hufflepuff walked by the Gargoyle guarding Dumbledore's office. The ill-fated student would have to take therapy for years.
~~~
Author's Notes: Thanks so much Aini Saire, E, Gabygirl, Nemkess, FalconIce, LadyVader, asaroth69, Malfoy Snogger, koureshin, Hyperbole, and waffles050201. I really appreciate the reviews, and I tried to incorporate your ideas into my story. Also, I am so *not* putting off the revenge, but it just doesn't fit into this (unusually mushy) chapter. The 'sexy' comments will be in the next chapter, I swear. I still need help thinking of them though. :O) Leave a review *wink*. I still need plot ideas, too. Should I throw in an evil scheme or something? Yay! The second kiss has been put into the story! It's only going to be a little while longer before they get together in a real relationship.
P.S.: If you don't remember the little map thing Dumbledore has, you should go back to chapter 4 and read the last scene. I almost forgot about it myself. I had fun writing that part, though.
