Harry enjoyed his new relationship with Ron. It was fun, like their old friendship, but with... benefits. And he didn't feel like puking like he often did with Draco, which is always a plus. With Ron, he felt less of a need to stay secretive. Everyone already knew about his "tendencies" after the scandal with Draco and the affairs broke out, and his liaison with Ron seemed a lot more wholesome in comparison. People minded this less; they were always together before anyway. The only thing was that some people shook their heads at Ron, a prefect, for God's sake, for fooling around with this tart in the first place. If this had been before the summer of 1996, it'd be different. But now, with the way Harry was... Ron could do so much better.
But Ron didn't care; he was in love! The two of them were practically skipping through the hallways, hand in hand. Rainbows burst into manifestation behind them; flowers and butterflies bloomed at their feet. But...
Harry was still continuing his bathroom dalliances with Draco on the side. Ron wasn't informed of them, but he was very well aware, as Harry was no longer wearing the gloriously red and gold Gryffindor scarf relentlessly anymore. He was jealous, to be sure, and he let that be known one morning.
"Harry, I don't want you seeing that cad anymore."
"What? I don't know what you're talking about..."
"Oh, come on! You show up with five new hickeys on your neck every afternoon! You're not fooling anyone. Really, I don't know how you can stand yourself being with that little prick."
"Alright, alright... But I can't cut it off. It'd break his heart. Seriously, you don't know him like I do. I know he was a little scumbag for all the past five years, I know that more than anyone. But he's really changed, he really has. You should hear the way he talks sometimes, about how me and him are so tragic, and how we're destined together because only we can understand each other. It's creepy. But he's so into it, that I can't break it off with him. It'd break his heart. I can't find it in myself to do that."
"Well..." Ron thought for something to say. "You better find it in yourself soon! Because I don't trust that guy... Not at all."
Harry went on anyway to see Draco that lunchtime in the same boys' restroom as always. It was funny, because since half of the female population at Hogwarts hated Harry by this point, it didn't matter if he snuck quietly to the lavatory or not anymore.
Draco was waiting there as usual, but before he could do anything, Harry grabbed his wrists and stopped him.
"Malfoy... Ron wants me to stop seeing you."
"Weasley?!" he sneered. "Why should you care what Weasley thinks?" That old Malfoy snobbery never left, apparently.
"Because... he's my boyfriend, and his opinion kind of matters now."
"Your boyfriend?!" He whipped his hands out of Harry's. "Then what the hell am I to you?!"
Harry was baffled. Draco seemed to be changing personalities at a cue.
"Look, Potter. It was bad enough that you were fooling around with those twits, but those were girls, so it was tolerable. But this is different. I don't share, Potter. I take what I want and I keep it unless I get bored. And I have yet to be bored with you... So you better go back to Weasley and tell him to give it up, because," he emphasized by reaching down and grabbing Harry in a physically uncomfortable area, "you're mine."
After Draco relaxed his grip and let him go, Harry returned to the Great Hall feeling all kinds of weird. This was not a position he was used to being in. He informed Ron of what Malfoy had said, and Ron was, to say the least, just a bit angry.
"WHY, THAT LITTLE—!"
"Ron, calm down!" Harry exclaimed as he struggled to hold the redhead back. Ron was attempting to rush the young Malfoy, who was now walking in the opposite direction of them after stepping out of the restroom. "He's not worth it, Ron! Don't let him get to you!"
"Nuh-uh, Harry, it has to come down to this. MALFOY!" he called out down the hallway. Draco abruptly stopped walking and turned to look at them, looking a bit perturbed. "You and me, Malfoy! Man to man, one on one! Whadya say?!"
"... Right, Weasley. Whatever you say," Draco sneered as he steadily approached the pair. "Wand? Or fist, if you prefer to be more... masculine?"
"Sure, sure, let's go with wands. We can have a Wizard's Duel, Malfoy, just you and me." Ron reached for his wand hidden somewhere in his robes, but faster than you can say "Quidditch", Draco had already whipped his out.
"Musca Carnivora!" he yelled, and a black, fuzzy mass spewed out of his wand. As it speedily approached, Harry and Ron realized that it was actually an accumulation of many things: a rather massive swarm of houseflies.
"Houseflies?! Is that all you got? Real weak, Malfoy, real wea—AHHHH! WHAT THE BLOODY HELL?!" As the swarm of flies reached Ron, he felt tiny, painful pricks all over his body, and realized that they were biting him. These were man-eating houseflies, not quite the domestic kind.
"Hnfh!" Draco smirked and walked up towards Harry, then grabbed his wrists. "See this fool, Potter?" as Ron wriggled on the floor, struggling with the flies. "You can't possibly prefer this buffoon over me, can you? That would be preposterous."
Before Harry could answer, Ron gave a big shout, "ARRRGH! YOU LITTLE—!" and leaped from the ground, out of the housefly swarm, and towards Draco, pinning him to the ground. Wands were knocked out of both of their grasps and the two switched into a full-on physical fist-fight. As you may remember from the past chapter, fist-fights with Ron Weasley can last quite some time, and after a few minutes, the two boys lay on the ground, panting and bleeding. Harry had stood to the side, preferring not to get involved, but felt uneasy at this familiar scene. Uh-oh, what was that look the both of them had in their eyes as they stared at each other? Oh no, they better not... Harry thought.
But they did. Ron stood up and grabbed Draco's hand to lift him up. "Hey, you're pretty good for a rich little mama's boy pansy," he said.
"And you're not so bad for a poverty-stricken, filthy commoner," Draco replied with a smile, wiping the blood and dirt from his robes.
OH NO, Harry thought.
"Hey, you want to get something to eat?" Ron asked, even though they had just had lunch.
"Sure, Weasley..." Draco answered. "I'd be delighted. But I'll pay, since your family has no money and all."
"Deal," said Ron, and the two of them walked off side by side, looking at each other a bit fondly.
I. Cannot. Believe. My luck, Harry thought to himself, as his legs gave away underneath him and he collapsed onto his knees on the ground. I really cannot believe this. Now what?
But before he could answer his own question, he noticed, a little farther down the hallway, Neville Longbottom glancing at him shyly. He gave a small, blushing smile when Harry caught his eye, but did not look away. This could be good, Harry thought. He sneakily smiled back, slowly got off of the ground, and made his way back to the Gryffindor common room. Neville followed.
When they arrived to the common room, it was alone except for Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas playing Gobstones. The two of them noticed the boys heading up the dormitory stairs, and had an inkling of what was going on. They too smiled sneakily to each other, and soon followed.
THE END
Author's Note: Though it takes about one and a half minutes to read each of the chapters for this fic, altogether it took me three months to write. Well... something like that.