Draco found Harry outside next to a tree, apparently sunning himself. "Potter!" he shouted. Harry jumped. Draco thought he heard him mutter something under his breath.
Pushing himself off the ground, Harry stretched. "Yes?" he asked innocently.
"Don't be coy, Potter. What's the meaning of this?" Draco approached Harry and waved the parchment.
Taking the parchment, Harry examined it and shrugged. "It's blank, Draco."
"Oh, take the bloody charm off already!"
Harry sighed and pulled his wand from his sleeve. "Really, you have no sense of humor." Tapping the parchment, he muttered the counter charm. "There, happy?"
"Well?" Draco said impatiently.
"Well, what? This is the note I sent to you. What of it?"
"Why?"
Pretending to search the sky, Harry smirked. "Seems a bit bright for midnight, don't you think?"
"Knock it off, Potter. And I'm not meeting you at midnight. I'm not sneaking around these halls in the middle of the night and risking detention. I am a prefect, you know."
"Well then, why would anyone question a prefect making his rounds?"
Opening his mouth for a retort, Draco shut it quickly. He didn't even think about that. Still, if he wanted to have the upper hand, he couldn't let Potter call the shots. His mouth quirked. "Don't you know anything about being a prefect, Potter? Oh, yes, I suppose you would have to be one, which you're not. I don't have rounds tonight, it's Bones' turn. Therefore, if I'm found roaming the halls when I shouldn't, I would lose House points and receive detention! But that's something you should already know about."
"Why do you have to be such a wanker? A simple 'no' would suffice, you know."
"Don't call me names, Potter. Really, why all the secrecy? You can just talk to me now, what's the big deal?"
Shifting his eyes, Harry focused his gaze on his feet. "Not now. I don't want an audience."
Draco looked around. "I really don't think anyone's going to care. There's hardly a soul out here. What are you afraid of?"
Harry snapped his head up to meet Draco's gaze. "I'm not afraid of anything!"
Draco raised an eyebrow. "Honestly, Potter, there's no need to shout. Keep it up and you will have an audience. Look, if you want to talk so terribly, fine. But not in the middle of the night."
Harry sighed dramatically. "Fine," he said. "When, then?"
Draco thought a moment and grinned widely. "After lunch," he said triumphantly.
Harry shrugged, trying a little too late to look nonchalant. "If you insist."
"Good. I have better things to do than wonder all day what it is you want."
"Fine."
"Good."
"Good!"
"Fine!"
"GREAT!" Harry shouted. Rolling his eyes and shaking his head, Draco walked away.
Harry had to hold himself back from doing cartwheels and making a total arse of himself. Then again, he'd already made an arse of himself. His shouting attracted the attention he tried to avoid from the few students that were outside. But at that point, he didn't care anymore. Draco agreed to meet him. Then he realized. 'After lunch?' he thought. Oh, no. He checked his watch. Noon. 'It's lunchtime now!' He started to panic. 'I don't even know what I'm gonna do!' He sank back to the ground.
Harry's stomach growled. 'I guess I should go and eat. Maybe Ron and Mione will know what to do.' He stood, brushed himself off, and strode toward the castle.
Harry entered the Hall and walked to the Gryffindor table. "Hello, all." He took a seat next to Ron.
"Where have you been, mate?" Ron asked.
"Outside. Such a lovely day, isn't it?" Harry couldn't stop smiling.
"Harry?" Hermione asked. "What happened outside?"
"Why do you ask?" Harry said.
"Seems to me you've got a serious case of perma-grin," Ron stated.
Harry blushed. "Well. . . ." He pulled the collar of his shirt up to cover his face.
"It's Malfoy, isn't it?" Seamus chimed in.
Harry sunk deeper into his shirt. "Shut up!" He paused. "Yeah," he admitted.
"Well?" Hermione asked eagerly. "Did he get your note?"
"Yeah," Harry replied again.
"AND?" Ron practically shrieked.
"Ron, quiet! We don't want to attract attention," Hermione scolded. "Never you mind!" She glared at Lavender Brown. "So what did he say, Harry?"
"He wants to meet after lunch instead of midnight."
"YES!" Seamus and Ron both shouted. Most of the Great Hall turned to stare at the Gryffindors.
Sinking as low as he could without going completely under the table, Harry wondered if his normal skin color would ever return.
"Would you two please keep it down? That's wonderful, Harry." Smiling warmly, Hermione reached around Ron and gave Harry's shoulder a squeeze.
Harry sat up straight. "No, it isn't. I'm bloody nervous as hell!" he whispered. Most of the other students went back to their business, except for a few curious Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors, who continued staring.
"Never. You. MIND!!!" Hermione angrily shouted. Lavender huffed and turned back to Parvati Patil.
Ron clapped him on the back. "It'll be alright, mate."
"I don't know what I'm going to say to him! I thought I'd have more time! Now I only have forty-five minutes!"
"Harry, don't worry. It'll be fine. Just be yourself and be honest," Hermione said matter-of-factly. "Besides, it's best this way. Now you won't have to worry about getting caught."
Ron and Harry both rolled their eyes.
"Or, Harry, you could do as you said earlier and shove him against the wall and--" Seamus started.
"Stop that!" Ron covered his ears. "I'm all for Harry being happy, but I don't want a visual, thanks!" Hermione smacked him on the arm.
"You know, if you don't want the rest of us to know what you're talking about, then it would be nice if you didn't share it with the rest of us!" Lavender snorted.
Gritting her teeth, Hermione spat, "Oh, shut it!"
At that point, the doors to the Hall burst open and Draco stormed toward the Slytherin table. Harry watched as he took a seat next to Blaise Zabini. He then proceeded to sink under the table again.
Grabbing Harry by the robes and pulling him up, Hermione shook her head. "Oh, come on, Harry, it isn't that bad."
"Easy for you to say," Harry mumbled and grabbed a sandwich.
Blaise welcomed Draco with a bright smile. "Did you find him?" he asked.
"Yes, I found him outside a little while ago. I told him I didn't want to meet him at midnight."
"So, when are you meeting him?" Blaise asked.
Draco stirred his soup. "After lunch."
"That's good then, right?"
Draco shrugged. "Is it?"
"What's wrong?"
Draco paused as Crabbe and Goyle meandered by. "I just can't help thinking this is all a bad idea, Blaise."
"I really think you're wrong. If Potter feels the same way about you, there's no reason not to go for it! To hell with what everyone thinks! This doesn't sound like the Draco I know at all."
"Keep it down, will you? Don't you get it? We're probably the only two people in this school that could get ourselves killed just by having a relationship with each other! Besides, I don't even know what he wants. It could be something completely different." Draco resumed stirring. Raising his eyes from his soup, he locked gazes with Harry.
Harry felt his stomach jump to his throat as he and Draco stared at each other. Suddenly not hungry, he pushed his plate away.
"Harry!" Ginny approached Harry from her place at the table. "What's going on? What's all the shouting about?"
Ron, Hermione, and Seamus exchanged glances. Harry continued to stare.
"Harry?" Ginny repeated.
Breaking eye contact, Harry turned and smiled at Ginny. "Hey."
"Did Malfoy find you?" she asked, looking a little worried.
"Yes, he did, earlier. Why?" Harry gulped.
"I'm so sorry, he stopped me in the hallway earlier, but I wouldn't tell him where you were. I'd hoped he wouldn't find you. He didn't bother you did he? And what did he want, anyway?"
Harry sighed. "No, Ginny, it's ok." He stood and looked at Ron, Seamus, and Hermione. "You three can go ahead and fill her in. I have a feeling it won't be long before the whole school knows."
"Fill me in? What does he mean, Ron?" Ginny asked.
As Harry left the Great Hall, he paused as he heard a high-pitched "WHAT?" and chuckled. The Gryffindor table was definitely the place for excitement today.
Draco became irritated when the youngest Weasley interrupted his staring contest with Harry. Growling, he stirred faster. He watched as Harry said a few words to her and left the Hall. A few seconds later, a scream pierced the air. Again, the Hall stopped and turned to the Gryffindor table.
"What the hell?" Draco looked at Blaise.
Blaise shrugged. "I don't know. There seems to be a lot of that happening over there today."
"Well, it seems as though he's off, so I'd better go as well." Draco stood. Feeling his butterflies returning, he abruptly sat. "I don't think I can do this, Blaise."
"Look, you need to stop this." Blaise dropped his voice to a whisper. "You need to remember that's it's not going to matter what the rest of this place thinks. Especially the Slytherins. Some may surprise you."
"And some would see me disembowled in the middle of the Great Hall."
Blaise slapped a hand on the table, causing the silverware to bounce. "Enough already! This isn't you! These cowards are too afraid of you to try anything even if they did manage to form an opinion!"
Draco covered his face with his hands. "That may be true, Blaise, but you're a different story." He said from under his hands.
"What are you talking about?" Blaise blinked.
"He means the whole bloody table just heard that remark!" Crabbe had appeared behind them, Goyle right next to him.
Draco stood. "Don't worry about it, Crabbe. Blaise just isn't feeling well today. He's been spouting off nonsense since he woke up this morning." He elbowed Blaise in the shoulder.
Blaise stood as well. "What are you talking about, Draco? What nonsense? You know that I'm the king of doxies, everyone does." He looked at Crabbe and Goyle. "Honestly, he's been arguing with me about it all day."
Goyle blinked. "Uh, Draco, maybe you should get him to the infirmary. Could be serious."
"You're absolutely right, Goyle. Let's go, Blaise. We're going to the infirmary." He grabbed Blaise by the collar and they both made their way to the door, not noticing Pansy staring after them.
Harry stared at himself in the mirror. "It doesn't matter what you do, dear, it'll never lay down," the mirror said.
Harry ran a brush through his hair for the thousandth time. "If it only had a little more length," he said aloud. He tried a ponytail, but it wasn't quite long enough yet. At least with the extra length he did have, it hung in loose curls instead of sticking straight up on his head. But it still laid in every direction. "Arrgh!" he shouted, frustrated.
Ron and Seamus entered. "Harry, you should've heard-- what's wrong?" Ron asked. Harry looked as though he were trying to brush his scalp raw.
"It's this stupid hair!" Harry shouted at him. "Just look at it! It's everywhere!"
"Calm down, Harry, you look fine," Seamus soothed. "Just leave it wild. It's pretty sexy that way."
Harry rolled his eyes. Seamus would think Percy Weasley wearing Muggle snorkel gear would be sexy. "If you say so, Seamus." Giving one last self-conscious look in the mirror, he turned to the other two boys. "What about the clothes?" Harry opted for a plain black t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans. They belonged to him, he decided the year before he would wear his cousin's oversized hand-me-downs no more.
"Nice!" Seamus nodded his approval. "Simple yet delicious."
Ron shook his head. "I won't say delicious, but you do look fine, Harry."
Harry turned to look in the full-length mirror on the other side of the room. The shirt did cling nicely to his thin frame. Harry didn't have much of a chance to grow thanks to the Dursleys, but Quidditch kept him in shape. He decided he was satisfied with his appearance and turned back to his friends. "I just hope Draco agrees with you," he said uncertainly, while fidgeting with the hem of his shirt
Knowing Harry needed a boost, Ron strode over to him and put his hands on Harry's shoulders. "Harry, he would be completely daft not to want you."
Seamus' eyebrows shot up.
Harry drew a shaky breath. "Thanks, Ron," he replied. "I guess I should go."
"He'll be putty in your hands, Harry!" Seamus exclaimed. "Go get him!"
"I'll be back!" Turning to leave, Harry called over his shoulder, "Wish me luck!"
Gazing at Ron in disbelief, Seamus gave him a wide grin. "Ron, I never would have believed that if I didn't hear it with my own ears," he told him.
Ron shrugged. "I only told him the truth. Malfoy had just better not hurt him. Harry deserves to be happy."
Seamus clapped him on the back. "I know, mate."
Draco had changed clothes three times. He decided leather might be a bit much, so he opted for a pair of black jeans and a black button up shirt. Pulling his hair into a sleek ponytail, he checked his reflection.
The mirror whistled. "Gorgeous!"
Draco smiled. Just what he wanted to hear. "Here I come, Potter." He left his room and closed the door.
A few Slytherins had returned from lunch and lounged in the common room. Conversations stopped when he entered, and they stared. Draco smirked. "What are you looking at? Carry on." Waving his hand, he suppressed a chuckle. He couldn't help it he was so ravishing.
Draco bumped into Pansy in the hallway. "Where are you going?" she asked.
"Sorry, I don't feel like sharing at the moment," he said icily.
"What's your problem, Draco? I just asked a question!"
"It's none of your bloody business!"
"I can't believe you! You've changed so much! Why do you have to be so nasty to me?" she whined.
"Maybe I'm just bored with the likes of you. Judging every move I make. Questioning everything. Shoving your little pug nose in my affairs all the time!"
"You're a bastard!"
"Your ridiculous little opinion has been noted. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have somewhere I need to be." He turned and left her staring stupidly after him.
Draco reached the classroom first. He looked around the old room, taking everything in. Several broken down desks and chairs littered the place. Cobwebs hung in the musty corners. 'Ugh, Potter,' he thought, 'you could have picked a nicer, at the very least, less smelly place.' He wrinkled his nose in disgust and strode over to the window to wait for Harry.
After several detours thanks to the moving staircases, Harry finally reached the fourth floor. He stopped short in front of the classroom door. 'I can't do this,' he told himself. 'I must be crazy.' Turning his back to the door, he retreated down the hallway. One, two, three. Three steps and he stopped. 'What the fuck are you doing, Potter? Get in there, now!' Harry turned again, one, two, three, and stopped, yet again, in front of the door. His hand above the doorknob, he closed it into a fist. 'This is ridiculous, get on with it!' A few deep breaths, opening and closing his hand several more times, and finally, he turned the knob.
Poking his head inside the classroom, he looked around. "Draco?" he called.
"I'm here," came the reply.
Pushing himself off the ground, Harry stretched. "Yes?" he asked innocently.
"Don't be coy, Potter. What's the meaning of this?" Draco approached Harry and waved the parchment.
Taking the parchment, Harry examined it and shrugged. "It's blank, Draco."
"Oh, take the bloody charm off already!"
Harry sighed and pulled his wand from his sleeve. "Really, you have no sense of humor." Tapping the parchment, he muttered the counter charm. "There, happy?"
"Well?" Draco said impatiently.
"Well, what? This is the note I sent to you. What of it?"
"Why?"
Pretending to search the sky, Harry smirked. "Seems a bit bright for midnight, don't you think?"
"Knock it off, Potter. And I'm not meeting you at midnight. I'm not sneaking around these halls in the middle of the night and risking detention. I am a prefect, you know."
"Well then, why would anyone question a prefect making his rounds?"
Opening his mouth for a retort, Draco shut it quickly. He didn't even think about that. Still, if he wanted to have the upper hand, he couldn't let Potter call the shots. His mouth quirked. "Don't you know anything about being a prefect, Potter? Oh, yes, I suppose you would have to be one, which you're not. I don't have rounds tonight, it's Bones' turn. Therefore, if I'm found roaming the halls when I shouldn't, I would lose House points and receive detention! But that's something you should already know about."
"Why do you have to be such a wanker? A simple 'no' would suffice, you know."
"Don't call me names, Potter. Really, why all the secrecy? You can just talk to me now, what's the big deal?"
Shifting his eyes, Harry focused his gaze on his feet. "Not now. I don't want an audience."
Draco looked around. "I really don't think anyone's going to care. There's hardly a soul out here. What are you afraid of?"
Harry snapped his head up to meet Draco's gaze. "I'm not afraid of anything!"
Draco raised an eyebrow. "Honestly, Potter, there's no need to shout. Keep it up and you will have an audience. Look, if you want to talk so terribly, fine. But not in the middle of the night."
Harry sighed dramatically. "Fine," he said. "When, then?"
Draco thought a moment and grinned widely. "After lunch," he said triumphantly.
Harry shrugged, trying a little too late to look nonchalant. "If you insist."
"Good. I have better things to do than wonder all day what it is you want."
"Fine."
"Good."
"Good!"
"Fine!"
"GREAT!" Harry shouted. Rolling his eyes and shaking his head, Draco walked away.
Harry had to hold himself back from doing cartwheels and making a total arse of himself. Then again, he'd already made an arse of himself. His shouting attracted the attention he tried to avoid from the few students that were outside. But at that point, he didn't care anymore. Draco agreed to meet him. Then he realized. 'After lunch?' he thought. Oh, no. He checked his watch. Noon. 'It's lunchtime now!' He started to panic. 'I don't even know what I'm gonna do!' He sank back to the ground.
Harry's stomach growled. 'I guess I should go and eat. Maybe Ron and Mione will know what to do.' He stood, brushed himself off, and strode toward the castle.
Harry entered the Hall and walked to the Gryffindor table. "Hello, all." He took a seat next to Ron.
"Where have you been, mate?" Ron asked.
"Outside. Such a lovely day, isn't it?" Harry couldn't stop smiling.
"Harry?" Hermione asked. "What happened outside?"
"Why do you ask?" Harry said.
"Seems to me you've got a serious case of perma-grin," Ron stated.
Harry blushed. "Well. . . ." He pulled the collar of his shirt up to cover his face.
"It's Malfoy, isn't it?" Seamus chimed in.
Harry sunk deeper into his shirt. "Shut up!" He paused. "Yeah," he admitted.
"Well?" Hermione asked eagerly. "Did he get your note?"
"Yeah," Harry replied again.
"AND?" Ron practically shrieked.
"Ron, quiet! We don't want to attract attention," Hermione scolded. "Never you mind!" She glared at Lavender Brown. "So what did he say, Harry?"
"He wants to meet after lunch instead of midnight."
"YES!" Seamus and Ron both shouted. Most of the Great Hall turned to stare at the Gryffindors.
Sinking as low as he could without going completely under the table, Harry wondered if his normal skin color would ever return.
"Would you two please keep it down? That's wonderful, Harry." Smiling warmly, Hermione reached around Ron and gave Harry's shoulder a squeeze.
Harry sat up straight. "No, it isn't. I'm bloody nervous as hell!" he whispered. Most of the other students went back to their business, except for a few curious Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors, who continued staring.
"Never. You. MIND!!!" Hermione angrily shouted. Lavender huffed and turned back to Parvati Patil.
Ron clapped him on the back. "It'll be alright, mate."
"I don't know what I'm going to say to him! I thought I'd have more time! Now I only have forty-five minutes!"
"Harry, don't worry. It'll be fine. Just be yourself and be honest," Hermione said matter-of-factly. "Besides, it's best this way. Now you won't have to worry about getting caught."
Ron and Harry both rolled their eyes.
"Or, Harry, you could do as you said earlier and shove him against the wall and--" Seamus started.
"Stop that!" Ron covered his ears. "I'm all for Harry being happy, but I don't want a visual, thanks!" Hermione smacked him on the arm.
"You know, if you don't want the rest of us to know what you're talking about, then it would be nice if you didn't share it with the rest of us!" Lavender snorted.
Gritting her teeth, Hermione spat, "Oh, shut it!"
At that point, the doors to the Hall burst open and Draco stormed toward the Slytherin table. Harry watched as he took a seat next to Blaise Zabini. He then proceeded to sink under the table again.
Grabbing Harry by the robes and pulling him up, Hermione shook her head. "Oh, come on, Harry, it isn't that bad."
"Easy for you to say," Harry mumbled and grabbed a sandwich.
Blaise welcomed Draco with a bright smile. "Did you find him?" he asked.
"Yes, I found him outside a little while ago. I told him I didn't want to meet him at midnight."
"So, when are you meeting him?" Blaise asked.
Draco stirred his soup. "After lunch."
"That's good then, right?"
Draco shrugged. "Is it?"
"What's wrong?"
Draco paused as Crabbe and Goyle meandered by. "I just can't help thinking this is all a bad idea, Blaise."
"I really think you're wrong. If Potter feels the same way about you, there's no reason not to go for it! To hell with what everyone thinks! This doesn't sound like the Draco I know at all."
"Keep it down, will you? Don't you get it? We're probably the only two people in this school that could get ourselves killed just by having a relationship with each other! Besides, I don't even know what he wants. It could be something completely different." Draco resumed stirring. Raising his eyes from his soup, he locked gazes with Harry.
Harry felt his stomach jump to his throat as he and Draco stared at each other. Suddenly not hungry, he pushed his plate away.
"Harry!" Ginny approached Harry from her place at the table. "What's going on? What's all the shouting about?"
Ron, Hermione, and Seamus exchanged glances. Harry continued to stare.
"Harry?" Ginny repeated.
Breaking eye contact, Harry turned and smiled at Ginny. "Hey."
"Did Malfoy find you?" she asked, looking a little worried.
"Yes, he did, earlier. Why?" Harry gulped.
"I'm so sorry, he stopped me in the hallway earlier, but I wouldn't tell him where you were. I'd hoped he wouldn't find you. He didn't bother you did he? And what did he want, anyway?"
Harry sighed. "No, Ginny, it's ok." He stood and looked at Ron, Seamus, and Hermione. "You three can go ahead and fill her in. I have a feeling it won't be long before the whole school knows."
"Fill me in? What does he mean, Ron?" Ginny asked.
As Harry left the Great Hall, he paused as he heard a high-pitched "WHAT?" and chuckled. The Gryffindor table was definitely the place for excitement today.
Draco became irritated when the youngest Weasley interrupted his staring contest with Harry. Growling, he stirred faster. He watched as Harry said a few words to her and left the Hall. A few seconds later, a scream pierced the air. Again, the Hall stopped and turned to the Gryffindor table.
"What the hell?" Draco looked at Blaise.
Blaise shrugged. "I don't know. There seems to be a lot of that happening over there today."
"Well, it seems as though he's off, so I'd better go as well." Draco stood. Feeling his butterflies returning, he abruptly sat. "I don't think I can do this, Blaise."
"Look, you need to stop this." Blaise dropped his voice to a whisper. "You need to remember that's it's not going to matter what the rest of this place thinks. Especially the Slytherins. Some may surprise you."
"And some would see me disembowled in the middle of the Great Hall."
Blaise slapped a hand on the table, causing the silverware to bounce. "Enough already! This isn't you! These cowards are too afraid of you to try anything even if they did manage to form an opinion!"
Draco covered his face with his hands. "That may be true, Blaise, but you're a different story." He said from under his hands.
"What are you talking about?" Blaise blinked.
"He means the whole bloody table just heard that remark!" Crabbe had appeared behind them, Goyle right next to him.
Draco stood. "Don't worry about it, Crabbe. Blaise just isn't feeling well today. He's been spouting off nonsense since he woke up this morning." He elbowed Blaise in the shoulder.
Blaise stood as well. "What are you talking about, Draco? What nonsense? You know that I'm the king of doxies, everyone does." He looked at Crabbe and Goyle. "Honestly, he's been arguing with me about it all day."
Goyle blinked. "Uh, Draco, maybe you should get him to the infirmary. Could be serious."
"You're absolutely right, Goyle. Let's go, Blaise. We're going to the infirmary." He grabbed Blaise by the collar and they both made their way to the door, not noticing Pansy staring after them.
Harry stared at himself in the mirror. "It doesn't matter what you do, dear, it'll never lay down," the mirror said.
Harry ran a brush through his hair for the thousandth time. "If it only had a little more length," he said aloud. He tried a ponytail, but it wasn't quite long enough yet. At least with the extra length he did have, it hung in loose curls instead of sticking straight up on his head. But it still laid in every direction. "Arrgh!" he shouted, frustrated.
Ron and Seamus entered. "Harry, you should've heard-- what's wrong?" Ron asked. Harry looked as though he were trying to brush his scalp raw.
"It's this stupid hair!" Harry shouted at him. "Just look at it! It's everywhere!"
"Calm down, Harry, you look fine," Seamus soothed. "Just leave it wild. It's pretty sexy that way."
Harry rolled his eyes. Seamus would think Percy Weasley wearing Muggle snorkel gear would be sexy. "If you say so, Seamus." Giving one last self-conscious look in the mirror, he turned to the other two boys. "What about the clothes?" Harry opted for a plain black t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans. They belonged to him, he decided the year before he would wear his cousin's oversized hand-me-downs no more.
"Nice!" Seamus nodded his approval. "Simple yet delicious."
Ron shook his head. "I won't say delicious, but you do look fine, Harry."
Harry turned to look in the full-length mirror on the other side of the room. The shirt did cling nicely to his thin frame. Harry didn't have much of a chance to grow thanks to the Dursleys, but Quidditch kept him in shape. He decided he was satisfied with his appearance and turned back to his friends. "I just hope Draco agrees with you," he said uncertainly, while fidgeting with the hem of his shirt
Knowing Harry needed a boost, Ron strode over to him and put his hands on Harry's shoulders. "Harry, he would be completely daft not to want you."
Seamus' eyebrows shot up.
Harry drew a shaky breath. "Thanks, Ron," he replied. "I guess I should go."
"He'll be putty in your hands, Harry!" Seamus exclaimed. "Go get him!"
"I'll be back!" Turning to leave, Harry called over his shoulder, "Wish me luck!"
Gazing at Ron in disbelief, Seamus gave him a wide grin. "Ron, I never would have believed that if I didn't hear it with my own ears," he told him.
Ron shrugged. "I only told him the truth. Malfoy had just better not hurt him. Harry deserves to be happy."
Seamus clapped him on the back. "I know, mate."
Draco had changed clothes three times. He decided leather might be a bit much, so he opted for a pair of black jeans and a black button up shirt. Pulling his hair into a sleek ponytail, he checked his reflection.
The mirror whistled. "Gorgeous!"
Draco smiled. Just what he wanted to hear. "Here I come, Potter." He left his room and closed the door.
A few Slytherins had returned from lunch and lounged in the common room. Conversations stopped when he entered, and they stared. Draco smirked. "What are you looking at? Carry on." Waving his hand, he suppressed a chuckle. He couldn't help it he was so ravishing.
Draco bumped into Pansy in the hallway. "Where are you going?" she asked.
"Sorry, I don't feel like sharing at the moment," he said icily.
"What's your problem, Draco? I just asked a question!"
"It's none of your bloody business!"
"I can't believe you! You've changed so much! Why do you have to be so nasty to me?" she whined.
"Maybe I'm just bored with the likes of you. Judging every move I make. Questioning everything. Shoving your little pug nose in my affairs all the time!"
"You're a bastard!"
"Your ridiculous little opinion has been noted. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have somewhere I need to be." He turned and left her staring stupidly after him.
Draco reached the classroom first. He looked around the old room, taking everything in. Several broken down desks and chairs littered the place. Cobwebs hung in the musty corners. 'Ugh, Potter,' he thought, 'you could have picked a nicer, at the very least, less smelly place.' He wrinkled his nose in disgust and strode over to the window to wait for Harry.
After several detours thanks to the moving staircases, Harry finally reached the fourth floor. He stopped short in front of the classroom door. 'I can't do this,' he told himself. 'I must be crazy.' Turning his back to the door, he retreated down the hallway. One, two, three. Three steps and he stopped. 'What the fuck are you doing, Potter? Get in there, now!' Harry turned again, one, two, three, and stopped, yet again, in front of the door. His hand above the doorknob, he closed it into a fist. 'This is ridiculous, get on with it!' A few deep breaths, opening and closing his hand several more times, and finally, he turned the knob.
Poking his head inside the classroom, he looked around. "Draco?" he called.
"I'm here," came the reply.
