Two days later, Draco sat across his best friend at a restaurant table during lunchtime, his mood as dark as the Manor during Voldemort's reign as he recalled the hellish morning he had had.

Earlier that day, on his way to the Department of Mysteries lift, he had (accidentally, of course) overheard a conversation between Her and her assistant as he passed by her office.

"He's gorgeous," She was saying. "And such a gentleman. He even asked before kissing me, can you believe it?"

Draco had felt the proverbial "blood running cold" many talked about as he realized the implications of her words: She had been kissing someone; a he, a man – worse than just a man: a gentleman – had put his lips (and who knew what else) on her!

And She sounded pleased with his manners.

Fucking hell.

He hadn't been able to find it in him to greet her as their eyes met for a brief moment. Anger and jealousy consuming him like Fiendfyre even (and most specially) as he looked down her body and was reminded that it was Casual Friday – which meant she looked gloriously delicious in light blue jeans, purple jumper and pink trainers.

"Couldn't leash that hair today, Granger?" he was provoking her before he could stop himself, looking at her curls gathered in a high ponytail and not in the usual bun, wanting to hold on to that ponytail and snog her until she forgot about every man who had touched her before him!

But She just rolled her eyes at him and smiled: "Not all women are tameable little pureblood ladies, Malfoy. And there are men who know how to love and appreciate the wildness of some of us women."

Fuck.

Granger 1, Malfoy 0 – and it wasn't even nine yet.

Her words felt like a punch to his guts; not only she had kissed a man but the bastard knew to appreciate her wildness.

I can appreciate it too, Granger. I'd love to have a chance to show you just how much I appreciate all of your wildness, cheekiness, sexiness- you'd feel fully appreciated by the time I was done with you.

But Draco didn't say any of that out loud, fisting his hands on his sides he added to the insult: "Wildness? So you finally accepted Firenze's advances?" he shook his head. "We all know of your love for magical creatures, Granger, but that's a little extreme even for you."

She glared at him, "When a wild centaur can be more civilized and interesting than a man society calls a Lord," she pointedly looked him up and down, making it clear she was comparing the half-horse to him, "I can't see why my accepting his courtship would be considered extreme."

Draco froze, not believing what he was hearing: "You went out with a centaur?"

She scoffed, "I don't see how that's any of your business, Malfoy."

"Granger." He knew he sounded growly but he couldn't fully control his jealousy right then.

A centaur? He was going to lose her to a fucking centaur?

"Malfoy." She copied his warning tone with her arms folded and then rolled her eyes, walking into her office and closing the door.

Draco looked at her assistant, demanding to know: "Miss Fawcett, did she really-?"

"No, Mr. Malfoy. She is not dating Firenze." The young woman laughed.

"But there is someone." he insisted.

"That... I can't tell you, sir." She replied with a knowing smile.

Damn it.

And that was why, as Draco sat to have lunch, his mood was more sour than a bag of Acid Pops.

"How is Casual Friday going?" he heard Theodore ask and remembered he had agreed to have lunch with his friend.

"Fine." he replied dryly.

Theo laughed, "My my who'd have guessed muggle jeans and trainers would put the mighty Malfoy heir on his knees."

Draco glared at him.

"What crawled up your ass today?" asked Theo. "You're even more arsehole-y than usual."

Draco sighed and looked at the salads that had just appeared on their table, "I think She is seeing someone." His voice low, almost a whisper.

"Jeez, not that again." Theo rolled his eyes.

"Yes, that again... you asked!" Draco growled as he tapped his wand to the menu, ordering a firewhisky.

"Why do you think she's dating someone?" Theo sighed.

"I overheard her talking about a man as I was walking past her office."

"That's it?" Theo frowned, and Draco could see a hint of pity in his friend's green eyes. "Listen, Dray... haven't you met someone at the pub this week?"

"Yes."

"So let's see how that goes."

Draco laughed bitterly, "She's muggle, Theodore, and thinks I look like you!"

"Find someone else then! You've worked hard these past four years to restore your family name, Dray. I know for a fact that young ladies have been dying to receive your mother's invitation for Saturday Tea Parties."

Draco looked down at the Malfoy signet ring on his left pinkie, something he had begun to wear after he was able to dissociate the Malfoy name from seedy businesses and Dark Arts.

"You're saying I should just what, Theo? Choose one of those ladies, marry and have a couple of babies?"

Theo exhaled loudly. "Are you ever going to do anything about Granger?"

"No. I tried already and she ignored me."

"So there's no point in continuously making me the guest of honour of your weekly pity-parties."

"Fuck off." Draco growled, looking at the food that popped up on the table.

"You should stop purposely visiting her office daily, Draco."

Draco frowned, correcting him: "I'm forced to walk by her office-"

Theo rolled his eyes again. "Sure, mate, sure. So you weren't inside her office today?"

"No. I walked right past it."

"Glanced inside long enough to check her ass and taunt her?" asked Theo taking a bite of his salmon and potatoes.

"Did not."

Theo tilted his head. "A minute ago you admitted arguing with her."

"She was by her assistant's desk."

"Ah, you didn't have to walk into her office because she was in the corridor."

"Fuck you, Theodore."

"Am I lying? You don't know the colour of her jumper today?"

Dark purple with small white cats all over it. Hideous.

"No." Draco lied.

Theo laughed, seeing right through his friend's attempted lie.

They continued eating in silence until Theo's breath hitched and Draco looked up at him with an arched eyebrow.

"Are you choking?"

"No." Theo seemed strangely nervous. "But I... Harry is here."

Draco frowned. "Harry? Harry who?"

"Potter. We're- well, he is my boyfriend."

"Wait- what?" Draco stuttered. "You're fucking Scarhead?"

Theo rolled his eyes. "Dating, Dray. I'm dating Harry Potter. We've been seeing each other for a while now." He waved a hand in the air, showing his boyfriend where they were, and blushed as he added with a smile: "I think he is it for me. He's my Chosen One. Get it?"

If Draco wasn't so shocked by that news he'd be choking on his food after that attempted joke. "Since when?" he asked instead.

"About four months."

"Holy shit. That's insane, Theodore!" He lowered his voice, trying to control his surprise, "You're the son of a death eater! And now you're fucking Potter? How did you- just how?"

"The Aurors have been working on collecting cursed family heirlooms – as you well know since your Department is the one who breaks the curses." He shrugged, "I just... he's so sweet, I couldn't stop myself from falling for him."

Draco shook his head, whisper-shouting: "You are in love with Gryffindor-goody-two-shoes Potter?"

Theo arched an eyebrow at him, "Are you judging me, Draco? Really?"

"Malfoy." they heard Potter's voice.

Draco just looked up at him in a manner of greeting, sipping his firewhisky and unexpectedly forgetting how to swallow as his eyes fell on the woman beside the specky Gryffindor, the sight of Her making him accidently inhale his alcoholic drink.

Fuck!

Draco found himself coughing his head off, tears pooling in his eyes, as if he couldn't handle his firewhisky – a surely ridiculous behaviour for a grown man.

"Is he dying?" She asked Theodore as she sat between him and Draco, putting a half-full water bottle on the table.

"Afraid not." Theo chuckled.

"Pity." She whispered.

Draco finally recovered from his coughing fit and grabbed her water bottle, holding her angry gaze as he drank all of it without asking.

"Very mature, Malfoy." She rolled her eyes, tapping the enchanted menu on the table, ordering a new bottle.

Potter cleared his throat, trying to find something to say before they started arguing, "We've already had lunch," he said, pushing his chair very close to Theo's, stretching an arm along his back and pulling him closer. "But I remembered you told me you usually eat here... and I wanted to see you." He touched his nose to Theo's ear and the Slytherin giggled before pulling his face to his and casting a notice-me-not spell on the two of them, their tongues down each other's throat within seconds.

Draco watched that scene with a mix of surprise and disgust, glancing at Granger and noticing she didn't seem surprise; he saw her shake her head and pick up the sweets menu, placing an order and waiting for it in silence, as if she was completely alone at the table.

After a minute, a beautiful glass bowl with fried ice-cream on a bed of hazelnut cream arrived at their table.

Draco recognized that dessert for it was one of his personal favourites, but he didn't make any comments. He just silently watched her scoop the ice cream and a little of the dark cream underneath it and bring the spoon to her mouth.

Fuck. He felt his trousers tightening up uncomfortably, his cock filling up as he heard Her let out a small moan after each spoonful.

Circe's tits! He couldn't stop looking at her lips closing around the spoon, imagining the ice-cream melting on her tongue.

"You can order one yourself, Malfoy." She said, not even looking at him. "No need to stare at mine."

Even though she'd caught him by surprise, Draco recovered fast: "I'm staring at your lack of propriety, Granger; fellating that spoon and moaning in public." he tutted at her.

"What?" she asked in a higher tone. "Lack of propriety- fellating the spoon? You can just look the other way if my table manners are too offensive for your pureblood sensibilities!"

Draco gave her a shrug, keeping a soft smirk on his face just to keep her engaged, "I'm merely pointing out that's not how a woman should be seen eating in public, Granger."

"I don't see anyone else bothered by my eating, Malfoy." she glared at him.

He looked around and certainly no one was paying attention to her. "Well, that shows us what society has come to."

She rolled her eyes at him, "Thankgoodness society has got you, Malfoy, to remind us of proper behaviour at the table." She filled her mouth with ice-cream and hazelnut cream and continued with her mouth purposely full: "I wonder what would we all do without you."

Granger 2, Malfoy 0

But he was not backing down, he had more ways to annoy her: "Actually, I was wondering, Granger, if you should be having that at all."

Suddenly the two snogging men sitting across the table from them stopped trying to suck each other's tongues down and looked at him with equally surprised and fearful expressions.

But Draco had Granger's honey-coloured eyes on his, daring him to continue that thought.

"And why is that, Malfoy?" she asked.

He slowly tilted his head to the side, and if he had looked to his right he'd have seen how both Theo and Potter had stood up as if ready to leave, trying to call attention to themselves to stop him from speaking any further.

But Draco had his eyes on hers and the daring gleam in them beckoned him to finish his sentence – as boldly as he had signed up to be.

Challenge accepted. Draco thought.

"Well, Granger," he said. "With the way your skirts are already tight on your hips, maybe you'd better be having some fruit salad or no sweets at all."

He saw pain in her eyes but just for a second before she hid it behind anger and a smirk formed on her lips as she leaned towards him.

"It seems to me, Malfoy, you're not used to seeing real womanly curves. I can assure you, my skirts are fine, you needn't worry about their tightness."

He couldn't stop the blush that spread up his neck and cheeks, but he retorted: "It's impossible not to worry, Granger. Your arse is not small."

She sat up on her chair, squaring her shoulders, and just stared at him for a couple of silent seconds. Then she seemed to have made up her mind and stood up, leaving the half-eaten sweet in the glass bowl and storming out of the restaurant.

Granger 2, Malfoy 1 – finally! However, he didn't feel as victorious as he thought he would as he watched her go. Damn it. He had hurt her feelings. Again.

"Why the fuck did you say that?" Potter asked, glaring at him as he sat back down beside Theo.

"It's true." Draco shrugged, grabbing the bowl and the spoon and eating the melting ice cream. "Even your gay eyes can see it."

Theo huffed and growled low: "All my gay eyes can see, arsehole, is how desperately you want to hold her not-so-small arse and fuck your heir into her!"

"What?" Potter gasped, looking from his boyfriend to the blonde. "He- you like her?"

"No." Draco scowled at his friend for trying to out his feelings like that. "Theodore has this theory that I annoy Granger because I like her. I'd be courting her if I liked her."

Theo scoffed loudly.

"So why?" Potter insisted, trying to understand.

"It's fun." Draco kept the nonchalant tone.

"Because he's an idiot, Harry." Said Theo shaking his head. "A fucking idiot who is going to die alone and friendless, for I don't know how much longer I'll be able to stand his idiocy."

Potter looked once more between his boyfriend and the blonde eating ice cream.

"She liked you once, Malfoy. A few years ago, during the 8th year. She had a huge crush on you then."

Draco tried not to react to that.

Potter continued, staring at him with barely controlled fury: "Listen, Ron did a number on her feelings before they broke up; he began to tell her not to eat things, same you did just now- and he constantly told her he didn't want to 'marry his mother' so she'd better stay fit."

"Holy shit, what a knob!" exclaimed Theo as Draco gaped at Potter.

"Yeah." Potter went on, "Mione went through a phase of starving herself to try and keep thin but that's not how her body works... and now you're insulting her for fun." He fixed an accusing gaze on Draco.

"I'm not him!" Draco exclaimed, furious that the ginger idiot had tried to force Her to lose her sexy curves.

But you just made her stop eating her ice-cream. Said his inner consciousness. How different are you really?

I was just joking! Draco defended himself.

But she doesn't know that!

Fucking hell – that was true: Granger thought he was just as disgusted by her curves as Weasley!

Damn it!

"See what I mean?" Theodore was talking to Potter, a finger pointed at Draco. "He's crazy for her but refuses to properly act on it like the little Lord he was raised to be."

Potter folded his arms on the table, looking at Draco with no-longer restrained anger. "And why is that, Malfoy? Is it because she's muggleborn?"

Draco ran a hand down his own face, feeling suddenly too tired to keep denying everything. "No, Potter. It's because she's too good for me. She deserves better."

"Now that we can agree on!" said Potter still glaring at him. "Stay away from her, Malfoy! If all you want is to hurt her, stay away! Or I will hurt you."

Draco tried to show he was unaffected by that warning – but deep down he knew Potter had not become Head of Aurors for nothing; and if the Saviour carried on with the threat to hurt ex-Death Eater Draco Malfoy, he knew no one would fault him for it.