Underneath it All

Rating- PG-13

Disclaimer- I don't own Harry or Draco, they belong to J.K. Rowling. I just put them under the Imperious Curse and force them to do what I want.

Warnings- OotP spoilers, SLASH (male/male pairing)

A/N- Notes to my reviewers-
LockedInYourHeart- Yes, this is a love story between Harry and Draco (that's what H/D slash means) sorry if I didn't put up enough warnings.
Fran- thanks for the review! I know they get together kind of quickly but I do it any slower without writing a few more chapters and I really wanted the story to focus more on the ball part of it.

Chapter 2- Thinking of You

The next couple of days went by in a blur for Harry. All he could think about was that night on the roof with Draco. Harry's grades were beginning to slip because he couldn't concentrate in class.

Draco wasn't doing any better. The only thing that he had succeeded in was getting points taken away from Slytherin for not paying attention. The classes with Gryffindor were the worst. He couldn't seem to peel his eyes away Harry.

Of course, Harry returned the favor by staring at Draco during meals, which didn't go unnoticed by his friends.

"Harry, are you alright? You seem a little out of it." Hermione pointed out.

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure nothing's wrong, mate?" Ron asked before shoveling more food into his mouth.

"Yea." It's just that I never noticed how gorgeous Draco's eyes were before. The emotions are so deep you could drown in them. Did I really just think that something about Draco Malfoy was gorgeous?

At the Slytherin table, Draco was having similar thoughts.

Well, it's not that I care about him being a boy. Purebloods are often bisexual but then they settle with a member of the opposite sex to produce an heir to continue the bloodline. But Potter?

"Err... Draco, are you okay? You've been playing with your food for the past ten minutes and you haven't eaten anything. You know, you've been eating a lot less lately," said Blaise Zambini, shaking Draco from his thoughts.

"I'm fine." Draco snapped back. "I've just had a lot on my mind." Like Harry's emerald eyes and raven hair and oh-so-delicious tan skin. The blonde went back to gazing at Harry as Blaise shrugged off his friend's odd behavior.

But Hermione would not settle for an 'I'm fine'. She followed Harry's gaze to the blonde Slytherin. Then she looked back at Harry and saw a look in his eyes that was much more complex than hatred, the look in Harry's eyes when he stares at Malfoy. She didn't know what to call this look, but it definitely wasn't hatred. This left a perplexed look on Hermione's face.

"What's up?" Ron asked, seeing the look on his girlfriend's face.

"Oh, nothing," came Hermione's response.

Ron, like Blaise, shrugged it off and changed the topic to Quidditch, much to Hermione's disappointment.

Harry, however, had heard none of this exchange since he was still lost in his own thoughts.

Well, I knew I was gay already. How could I not be after seeing Oliver in the showers after Quidditch practice? A smile spread across Harry's face. But really, why did I have to fall for Draco Malfoy, of all guys? He hates me. Of course, he didn't seem to hate me that night on the roof...

Then both boys were pulled from their thoughts as Professor Dumbledore stood to give an announcement.

"Since most of you will be staying for the Christmas holidays this year," Dumbledore began. This was true. Since of the war was so close, many of the parents had decided that it was safer for their children to remain at Hogwarts for the winter break. He continued, "I believe that a Christmas Ball is in order. There is no reason why spirits shouldn't be high during this normally joyous time of the year."

Excited students began whispering to each other all around the room.

A smile spread across Dumbledore's wizened face. "This shall not just be any Christmas party; it is going to be a masquerade ball. Everyone will arrive alone, wearing a mask, and at midnight your identities will be revealed. The Ball will begin at 7 o'clock on Christmas Eve and end, of course, at midnight."

The aged wizard sat back down as chatter resumed to talk about the upcoming event.

TBC