Title: Checkmating
Author: mahaliem
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Slash, Sexual situations, Language
Pairings: Harry/Draco Ron/Millicent
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters belonging to JK Rowling and various publishers. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.
Summary: In hopes of convincing Voldemort supporters to change sides, Ron decides that he and Harry should pair off with Slytherins.


Part 2 – Middlegame

Each morning, Millicent was bombarded with a new gift. When Ron sent her wildflowers he'd picked himself, she whacked him in the face with them, saying that she was allergic. He told her that he should've known that she was the delicate sort.

Ron sent her only cinnamon-flavored Bertie Bott beans after bribing Pansy (with the surviving chocolates) into telling him it was Millicent's favorite flavor. She blew them at him with a straw. Afterwards, he complimented her on her aim and her excellent lung capacity.

The various notes and poems he sent to her were always shredded. Ron smugly noted that these were made into little bits only after she'd read them. Encouraged by this, he began to send her little letters at dinner as well.

The highlight was the evening Ron stood in front of the school and began to recite his latest work.

She thumps about like a storm
Dark hair spreading 'cross the skies
Thunder rumbling from her form
Bolts striking out from her eyes

I wish to stand in rain at night
Drown myself in Millicent
She's the one for which I light
Powers up my filament.

It was all Ron could do to lose Millicent when she angrily chased him out of the castle and to the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

Afterwards, Hermione told him that if Millicent had managed to catch him, it would've been deemed a justifiable homicide, as the poem really was quite terrible.

Hiding behind a tree, Ron waited until Millicent stomped out of sight. Just to be sure that the danger was past, he remained where he was for a few more minutes. It was then that he heard noises coming from the nearby bushes.

Slightly nervous, Ron called out, "Is someone there? Show yourself."

Harry stepped out, brushing a leaf from his hair. Behind him, Malfoy appeared, straightening his robes.

"Ron. Hey," Harry said, waggling his fingers in what was a half-hearted wave.

"Harry? Malfoy? What are you doing here?"

A few sounds came out of Harry's mouth, but nothing that could be termed coherent. Malfoy stepped forward.

"We were fighting. Bitter enemies and all that."

"Right." Harry was now nodding his head.

Folding his arms across his chest, Ron leaned back against the tree he'd been hiding behind. "In the bushes? At night?"

"Didn't want that fool Dumbledore to find out."

Harry frowned at the fool part, then looked at Ron. "He would've stopped us. And we really wanted to fight."

"That's right," Malfoy said, a smirk spreading over his face. "I didn't want anything to keep me from getting Harry right where I wanted him."

"And I felt that Draco needed to be shown who was boss."

"So I pushed him down on the ground."

"But I pulled him down with me."

"Which is how I ended on top of him."

Harry's voice quivered. "Yes. On top of me. Touching me everywhere."

"Pressed against me," Draco added.

The pair stared at each other intently. Ron watched Draco's chest rise and fall rapidly. Was he having problems breathing?

"I tried to get out from under him. I wriggled and thrust up as hard as I could," Harry continued.

"Oh, god, yes. Extremely hard. He did do that."

"But he... he bit me. On the neck." Harry's eyes started to glaze over as he looked at Draco.

Ron didn't like the way Harry's voice was low and husky. And the way he was looking at Malfoy was downright wanton. He might have set the two of them up, but that didn't mean he had to stand by and watch them.

Loudly, he cleared his throat and saw two pairs of eyes swivel towards him in surprise, clearly having forgotten that he was there.

"If you're done fighting, then we can go in, right?"

Harry looked longingly back at the bushes for a moment before nodding his head.

As the three of them headed back to the castle, Ron edged closer to Malfoy. "You're a Slytherin," Ron said, striving for a casual tone instead of his usual accusatory one. "As such, you probably know a way for me to get closer to Millicent."

Malfoy tilted his head and looked at Ron. "You really are interested in her? And all this time I thought the whole 'brave Gryffindor' bit was a load of –"

"Do you know something or don't you?"

The group halted. Malfoy crossed his arms and smirked at Ron while Harry watched the interplay.

"And why should I tell you, Weasley?"

"Because if I succeed, you know Millicent will be terrible for me. She'll treat me rotten."

"Hmm...I suppose that is a good reason. Fine. I'll do it. I'll help."

Malfoy talked as they walked back to the castle with Harry hovering close by. As Ron listened, he reminded himself that he hadn't signed over his soul to Satan so he really shouldn't feel as if he just had.

- - - - -

"Weasley, you lousy little rodent!" Millicent marched toward where Harry and Ron stood talking in the corridor after breakfast.

"Incoming," Harry said. He gave Ron a sheepish smile and ducked away.

"The Wizarding World's Hero - Hah," Ron muttered as he watched his friend (who'd faced Voldemort countless times) scurry out of the way of Millicent on the warpath. Taking a deep breath, he faced her.

"I can't believe even you would stoop so low." Millicent waved a crumpled letter in her hand so hard that it made a flapping sound.

"What is it?"

"You had your mother write to my father. She's invited me to spend the Christmas holidays with you."

"Yes, you're right. That was absolutely dastardly of me."

Her glare became even harder. "He's told me it would do me good to spend some time with ... " Millicent became so outraged and flustered at this point that she had a difficult time spitting out the next words, "my boyfriend!"

Malfoy's plan to use parental influence had worked. Too bad it gave Ron a slightly queasy feeling to know that he'd listened to the prat.

"I suppose you could always tell him the truth. Tell him I'm not really your boyfriend."

All the energy seemed to escape Millicent like air from a balloon and she started to droop. A little worried, Ron took her by the arm and led her into an empty classroom, then to a chair that she slumped into.

"What's wrong?"

"I can't tell him the truth."

"Why? Some Slytherin code about always lying?"

Millicent gave him a dirty look. "No, you git. I can't tell him because he's... "

As she paused, all sorts of awful scenarios rushed through Ron's head.

"He's so happy for me," Millicent finally said.

Ron's eyes almost bugged out. "What?"

"My father worries that I might be lonely."

"But... but you're always surrounded by Slytherins. Many of them follow you and tremble at your every word."

Millicent's gaze lowered to the floor. "Dad wants me to be loved."

A trickle of guilt crept into Ron's thoughts. He'd begun this entire business for good reasons, the defeat of Voldemort being the best reason possible, but he hadn't really considered the feelings of others.

Squatting down next to her chair, he took one large, calloused hand in his. "Would it be so bad, Millicent, if I was your boyfriend?"

A faint smile crept over her face.

"Yes, Weasley, it truly would."

- - - - -

When Millicent entered the train compartment and plopped herself down next to Ron, Hermione and Harry both did their best not to stare at her, only sneaking peeks with quick sideways glances. Ron didn't even try.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm in a lousy mood. Instead of inflicting it upon my friends, I'm inflicting it upon the cause – you."

"You mean she has a good mood?" muttered Harry.

"You mean she has friends?" mumbled Hermione.

Ron gave his companions a pleading look. Hermione sniffed a bit and then leaned forward, extending her hand. "It's very nice to see you again, Millicent."

Millicent looked at Hermione's hand as if it were a deadly snake. Actually, Ron thought, reconsidering, she'd probably like the snake.

"Touch me with that, Granger, and I'll crush all the bones."

Hermione quickly withdrew her hand.

Harry straightened up in his seat, outraged. "You can't talk to her like that."

"Who's going to stop me? You?" Millicent gave a brittle laugh at Harry's anger. "You're too well-mannered, too full of that honourable crap, to draw your wand on me first. You're too much of a Gryffindor."

"I won't stoop to Slytherin levels," Harry said haughtily.

"If you don't, we'd all better start learning how to bow to Voldemort because you're going to lose, Potter."

At Harry's glare, Millicent let out a puff of exasperation before continuing. "Think back to second year, the Dueling Club. I was paired off with Granger and won."

"You cheated," Hermione interjected, still peeved about the incident five years earlier.

Millicent cast a smug smile at Granger, before turning to face Harry again. "The purpose of a duel is to win. I knew that Granger knew more spells than I did. It would've been stupid to stand there and let her hex me."

Harry sat back in his seat, staring hard at Millicent.

"From what I've heard, Potter, you don't tend to follow rules well. If you want my advice, don't follow them when you fight, either."

Ron watched Harry absorb this information and for a moment was quite proud of his fake girlfriend. Then Malfoy flung the door open, folded his arms across his chest, and leaned against the jamb.

"So there you are, Potter. Thought we were going to have one last tumble before we went off with our nearest and dearest for the holidays."

"Malfoy!" Harry screeched, turning pink and looking wildly about at Ron, Hermione, and Millicent.

Draco pushed away from the door and took a step forward. "You promised me that we'd... fight."

"Oh, right. Fight." Harry took a deep breath. "We can do that. But there's no place on this train to... um, fight.'

"I heard the baggage compartment was a good place for fighting," Ron suggested.

"That's strange." Hermione's brow furrowed. "I'd heard it was a good place for kissing."

Reaching out, Draco grabbed Harry by the arm, and dragged him out of the compartment.

As Harry was pulled down the aisle away from them, Hermione looked worried. "I do hope Harry doesn't get injured."

"Don't worry about it. Malfoy won't hurt him." Millicent waved away Hermione's concern.

"I've seen Harry come back after meeting Malfoy with bruises and such," Hermione said.

"And wearing a smile, I'm sure."

"Only when he's taught Malfoy a lesson."

Millicent looked puzzled for a moment. "Malfoy has quite a reputation. I wouldn't have thought Potter could teach him anything."

Hermione smiled primly. "There's a lot more to Harry than most people know."

"Must be."

"Harry can be quite a formidable at fisticuffs."

A look of understanding passed over Millicent's face. "Oh, you actually think they're going back there to fight?"

Ron looked from one girl to another. Hermione's questioning expression. Millicent's glee at being able to tell the smartest girl in the school something she didn't know. If Millicent talked, Hermione would stick her nose in it, and the gig would be up. Millicent began to open her mouth and Ron knew he had to stop her.

Grabbing Millicent, he pulled her forward and plastered his lips to hers.

Several things happened.

Hermione lost all of her verbal skills, reduced to making gurgling sounds.

Millicent lost her ability to move, acting as if she'd been hit with 'Stupefy'.

And Ron lost his mind.

Definitely lost his mind since part of him was thinking this was quite nice.

In a rush, reality returned. Millicent pushed him away, then punched him in the head, causing Ron to fall on the floor, seeing stars. Hermione regained her voice and put it to use by shrieking "Ron!" and Ron learned that certain ideas were very, very bad.

He did, however, gain some insight into what the courtship between Hagrid's father and his giant mother might have been like.

- - - - -

Mrs. Weasley looked at Millicent. She turned to look at Ron for a moment, and then looked back at Millicent. Taking a deep breath and putting a smile on her face, she moved forward, clasping Millicent's hands in hers.

"Hello, my dear. We're so pleased that you'll be joining us for the holidays." Her gaze traveled down to one of Millicent's hands and she let out a small gasp. "You seem to have hurt your hand. We'll have to get that healed up right away."

"Why thank you, Mrs. Weasley," Millicent said, following in Ron's mother's wake as she led the way out of the station. "I must've somehow knocked it into something hard."

While Hermione and Ginny followed closely behind the pair, Ron rubbed the swelling behind his ear where Millicent's fist had landed and went to search for Harry.

The train was almost empty, sweet wrappers lying crumpled on the floor, a few papers strewn here or there, but Ron heard voices coming from near the rear of the train.

"Damn it, Malfoy. You can't do this."

Draco let out a harsh laugh. "A few sessions in the broom shed doesn't mean you own me, Potter."

"But Voldemort will."

For one crazy moment, Ron wondered if Draco was planning sessions in the broom shed with Voldemort before it clicked. Draco must be considering becoming a Death Eater and Harry must've been trying to convince him it was nuts.

Ron stood in the compartment's doorway and observed Harry and Malfoy for a moment. Malfoy's hair was almost as messy as Harry's and their robes were wrinkled, as if they'd spent a good part of the trip wadded up. Malfoy had his head tilted up, staring at Harry disdainfully as if he wanted no part of him. Harry's eyes were blazing with anger as he faced him.

"Ahem." Ron cleared his throat and the two spun towards him, startled at his presence. "We have to go now, Harry."

Harry gave a brief nod, then spun back to Draco. In a spurt of movement, he grabbed him by the arms and slammed him back against the window, then pressed against him. Latching his mouth onto Malfoy's, he kissed him hard for a moment, before releasing him and stepping back.

Still furious, he pulled a package from his pocket and shoved it into Draco's hands.

"There's your present. Merry fucking Christmas," Harry spat, before leaving, pushing past Ron as he did so.

Malfoy, holding the silver wrapped box in his hand, still stood with his back against the window, as if that were the only thing holding him up. For a moment his eyes met Ron's and he stiffened, as if thinking of once more donning the mask of pride he usually wore before sighing and giving it up.

Ron hated Draco. He'd always hated him. Ron knew he should be crowing with delight at the triumph of his strategy. The Malfoy standing there, holding Harry's gift tightly and looking totally alone in the world, would never be an enemy to Harry. Instead of gloating though, Ron felt slightly ashamed.

He gave Draco a sympathetic nod, then turned away.

It took him a few minutes to catch up with Harry.

"Want to talk about it, mate?"

Harry shook his head.

"That was some kiss you laid on Malfoy."

Letting out a deep sigh, Harry shoved his hands in his pockets. "All right. Let's hear it."

"Hear what?" Ron asked.

"The 'ews'. The fake retching. The shouts of disgust that I kissed Malfoy."

Ron smiled. "Not one who can talk. Got you beat there."

As Harry's eyebrows rose, Ron explained.

"I kissed Millicent."

tbc