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XIX

XIXIX "Paranoid Thoughts" XIXIX

"Just because you're paranoid don't mean they're not after you."

Kurt Cobain

Harry felt paranoid. As soon as he woke up Wednesday morning, he felt off. Something was most definitely not right.

He thought immediately about Lupin, leaving for his trip to Albania. Maybe he was hurt and Harry was picking up on it because of the link they had…

But then Harry forced himself to calm down. Last he knew he did not have any sort of magical abilities that would alert him to a problem with his father figure.

He headed for the showers.

'Anyway, I'd know if I had formed some sort of link with Remus. I realized it with Sev even though I didn't realize what it was…' He paused in the midst of soaping himself and gasped. 'Maybe I just haven't had time to realize it with Remus. I better talk to Sev about this, and soon!'

And then Harry's heart began to pound.

'What if it's Sev? I don't know where he went last night. I didn't take the potion. Voldemort could have killed him for all I know. And I most definitely have a link with him!'

Link.

'Oh Merlin! What if it's Ginny!'

In a near blind panic, Harry hastily rinsed the soap from his body.

Barely taking the time to wrap a towel around his waist, the sopping wet Harry bolted down to the Common Room, yelling all the way, "Ginny! Ginny!"

The Gryffindors turned to watch him in alarm as he frantically scanned the room for his sister. "Where's Ginny!" He was nearing hysterics.

Lavender and Neville hurried over to him. "Harry! What's wrong?"

"Where's Ginny?" he demanded, pushing past them to the stairs to the girl's dormitories. "Ginny!" he yelled up the stairs.

"Harry?" he heard. It was Ginny's voice, muffled as though she were very far away. Not stopping to think that as a fifth year student, she would be five floors up the tower, Harry's mind began to formulate horrific and bizarre explanations for the distance of her voice, including, but not limited to, her having been sucked through a vortex into another plane of existence.

"GINNY!" he screamed, trying to head up the steps. The steps turned into a slide and Harry began to slip. Neville caught him, saving him from a potentially 'revealing' embarrassment as he did so.

"Harry, calm down. Lavender, go get Ginny." Lavender turned to run up the re-formed steps. Harry made to head after her, but Neville held him back. "Harry, there is no way the steps are going to let you up wearing nothing but a towel. Just calm down, Ginny will be down in a minute."

Harry was frantic, but knew Neville was right. He began to pace as a crowd formed around him, straining their necks and questioning in muted voices what was the trouble.

Momentarily, Harry heard a thumping of running footsteps and turned to see Ginny rushing into the Common Room.

"Harry! What is it? What's wrong!"

Harry ran the few steps to her, and pulled her into his arms. "Ginny, what happened? Are you okay?"

Ginny flushed in the embrace of the wet and nearly naked Gryffindor, but her concern ruled. She pulled back and looked Harry in the eye. "I'm fine, Harry, what's wrong?"

And Harry locked into her.

Immediately, Ginny understood the paranoia that Harry was feeling, and as a relatively calm outside observer, she could see its source.

Harry's eyes cast about. "It's not you? Then it must be S—"

Ginny slapped her hand over his mouth, smothering the word 'Sev'. She had felt it coming and knew there were too many people listening who would wonder when and how exactly Snape became 'Sev' to Harry.

She stared him hard in the eye, one hand holding his mouth, the other secured on his arm. "Harry," she said firmly. "I need you to trust me now. Do you trust me?"

Harry looked in her eyes and could tell that she understood something that he didn't and wanted more than anything to help him. This was Ginny. He nodded once.

"Then come with me back to your room." Ginny's penetrating eyes glanced around. "Neville, come with us."

She led Harry and Neville back up to their room, and closed the door behind them.

"Where are the rest of the guys?" she asked Neville, sitting Harry on his bed.

"They've already gone down," he said.

"This doesn't leave this room," she stated. Neville nodded seriously. "Harry," she said, turning back to the frazzled boy, "This feeling you have that something is wrong is a side effect of your magical shock from last night."

He made to protest, but Ginny leaned in, holding eye contact. "Nobody is hurt. Nobody is sending you distress calls through any mental or emotional links."

"How do you know?" he asked, but his voice was much calmer.

"Because I can see into you. I can see where this feeling is coming from. You don't feel right because your magic is all out of whack. You can't trust your instincts right now, so please trust mine."

Harry's breathing was heavy and his eyes began to tear up. "I trust you, Ginny," he whispered.

Ginny smiled.

"I'm going to step outside so you can get dressed and ready. If you need me I'll be just outside the door. Neville, will you help him? He's feeling rather awful at present."

"Of course," he said. Ginny squeezed Harry's hand and stepped into the hall.

Harry looked around, feeling much calmer. He still felt like something was wrong, but Ginny would never lie to him about anything so important, so he bit down the side effect emotions. He stood up and began to gather his clothes, thinking over what had just happened. He groaned loudly.

"What? What?" asked Neville, running to his side.

"I just caused a huge scene in the Common Room wearing nothing but a towel!" he whined. Harry felt himself blush bright red at the thought of facing the Gryffindors after that. It didn't help any when Neville stood back and laughed.

"Merlin, Harry!" he said with a smile. "Is that all?"

"What do you mean, is that all! Just one more bloody thing for everyone to laugh at me over!" Harry yelled defensively.

"Harry, mate," said Neville soothingly, "No one's going to make fun of you for something like this. They're going to be too busy making up reasons for you to have been upset enough to run into the Common Room wearing only a towel. And trust me, that will make much more interesting rumors than the whole towel business."

Harry looked at Neville skeptically. "I doubt that."

"No, really. I mean, you're Harry Potter. Now if Neville Longbottom had run into the Common Room wearing nothing but a towel and screaming for Ginny Weasley—the rumors would be all about what I did and not why, because the why couldn't possibly be nearly as interesting to talk about." Neville winked and Harry laughed.

"But you're not going to tell the real reason why, are you?"

"What? So that rumors of your magical shock will get to the V-man and he can devise a way to capture you in the next few days, are you nuts? My uncle went into magical shock a few years back. He was messed up for almost a week—couldn't cast any spells properly. Acted all weird too… No, if anyone asks, I'll just play dumb. And no one will even bother asking Ginny. Or Ron or Hermione, for that matter."

As Harry finished getting ready, he felt himself calm considerably. But he still had this nagging feeling that something was wrong somewhere. He kept glancing over his shoulder, wondering who was watching him, what he was forgetting.

Ginny was standing directly outside his door, and Harry felt more than a little guilty when he saw her. She was only half-dressed, and her clothes were wet from when he had hugged her. But she waved him off when he tried to apologize.

He waited in the Common Room with Neville while she finished getting ready, and then they headed down together.

When they walked into the Great Hall, Harry sighed with relief when he saw Snape sitting surly at the head table. But after a quick glance around, Harry froze in horror. Most of the Slytherins were eyeing him and Ginny, and Harry had a bad feeling about it. Ginny grabbed his hand, and pulled him to the Gryffindor table where Ron and Hermione were waiting.

"What happened?" asked Hermione, indicating that the rumors had already started.

"We'll tell you later," muttered Ginny. "Harry, eat something. I daresay you're going to be really hungry this week."

Harry nodded and began to load his plate. He glanced over his shoulder, and sure enough, many Slytherins were still watching him. They must be plotting something. Harry started trying to figure out what, but then realized he might be imagining the whole thing.

He leaned over to Ginny and whispered, "Are the Slytherins really watching us, or is that just me?"

Ginny cracked a small smile. "Actually, they've been watching the both of us since Sunday. You've just been too tied up trying not to stare back at one in particular that you failed to notice that he's not alone."

"Shit," hissed Harry, panic rising once again, "What are they playing at, do you think?"

"Nothing," said Ginny calmly. "They must have just realized that the DA is too big and too powerful for them to beat. The next reasonable step is for them to want to join. I think they've been sizing the two of us up. I predict they'll send one of their prefects to come and talk to us pretty soon. Do you think you'll be up for it?"

"Yeah," said Harry. 'Merlin, I hope it's not Malfoy,' he thought.

"Me too," said Ginny. "I'm likely to kill him if I ever get the chance."

Harry looked at her sharply. It wasn't like her to say something like that.

That was when he noticed that her mouth was full. She couldn't have just said that out loud.

'Ginny, can you hear me?' he thought when she glanced over to him.

She choked on her food.

XIXIX

That afternoon, sitting in the library, Harry whispered, "So why can't you hear my thoughts now?"

"Because I don't know Legilimency, and I'm only your sister and not your twin. The fact that we were linked even after we had both calmed down some shows that our brother-sister bond is pretty strong."

"But it will only work in times of high stress?"

"I think so," she said. "At least, so long as we're not twins. Twins are linked even across vast distances. If we become twins, we'll be able to communicate even when we're not together, and we'll always know where each other are."

"Ginny, I'm not so sure we should go through with it. Voldemort knows and—"

Harry cut off when he glanced up and saw Malfoy enter the room and sidle over to a seat nearby. Malfoy was looking straight at him, and Harry knew what was coming. They were the only three people on that side of the library.

Harry looked up at Ginny apologetically, and then suddenly wished they were full-fledged twins, because she misread his look and began to pack her bag.

He reached up and caught her arm. "Don't go."

She looked down at him with a slight scowl. "Oh no. You dug your grave. You lie in it." Then she sighed and said quickly, "Figuratively speaking, of course. Don't hesitate to curse the ever-living shit out of him if he tries something."

With that, Ginny turned to leave. She cast a sneer toward Malfoy, but he missed it. He was watching Harry intently.

Harry felt ruffled. He did not want to have a civil conversation with Malfoy. He turned to the books that were splayed out in front of him, unread. He began to wonder if maybe Malfoy wasn't there to talk about the DA. Maybe he was plotting something. Maybe there were Slytherins, or even Death Eaters hidden all around him.

'Magical shock side effects, Harry. Calm down.'

He heard a shifting sound, and sensed Malfoy draw near to him, and then slide into the seat across from him. Harry continued to stare at his books, pretending not to notice.

"Potter," said Malfoy quietly.

Harry did not move. He felt a bit silly acting like he could not see or hear the Slytherin speaking to him from only a few feet away, but he didn't know what else to do.

"Potter," he repeated, just as quietly, "Can we talk?"

"Talk," said Harry without looking up.

"A group of Slytherins are interested in joining the DA. As Prefect, they requested that I speak to you about the matter."

"So you can bully me into letting them in?"

"Actually, I prefer subtle manipulation." Harry could hear the joke in Malfoy's voice. He was trying to get back to a place where he could speak to Harry without pretense. Harry responded with silence. Malfoy shifted in his seat, cleared his throat, and continued in a more businesslike tone. "The younger Slytherins are afraid to approach you about this."

"Are they afraid of me, or of what the older Slytherins might do to them?"

Malfoy didn't answer. Harry wanted to look up, but he was afraid. Lines of Malfoy's poetry crept through his head. 'Don't make me miss you.' 'It burns like fire to see you so far away.' What if Malfoy really did miss him? They were alone now. What if they spoke comfortably and Harry had to admit that he missed him?

'Betrayal, Harry. He betrayed you and Ginny. He put Ginny in danger.'

'What if he had to?'

Harry didn't want to know that. He had read many of the Slytherins. He knew their dance, knew the games they had to play to survive. He felt sorry for them. Hell, it was pretty hard to remind himself to continue to pretend he didn't like them. But he didn't want to like Malfoy now. He didn't want to understand what had happened. Maybe it had only been a game, part of the dance, but it struck pretty close to home.

And Harry was afraid.

"Potter," said Malfoy reasonably, "The younger Slytherins need the extra training. None of them have ever had a real Defense teacher, and you know that when the shit hits the fan, they're going to be in a lot of danger. Among the upper classes, there are varying degrees of interest. Some, although they would never admit it to me or anyone else, truly want to be members of the DA, and I might add, have every intention of joining you when the time comes."

Harry chanced a glance, startled by this admission. Harry knew it of course, but Malfoy had never spoken of what his classmates really wanted—only what they had to do.

Malfoy was staring at the table. He did not seem to notice that Harry was now watching him.

"Others," he continued, but then stopped. He had a very pained look on his face. Eventually he looked back up, and caught Harry's eye. Emboldened by the eye contact, he began again. "Potter, I have to be honest with you here. Several of us, myself included, are under orders to gage your abilities in strategy and power."

"Why are you telling me this?" asked Harry.

'Betrayal. Remember the betrayal.'

"Because I…" Malfoy sighed, and leaned forward across the table. "Potter, I don't know why you ended things. You may hate me, and I guess I probably deserve it, but I feel obliged to tell you that you're being watched. Closely. I volunteered to be the one to talk to you so I could tell you that."

He paused. "Now I know that, as the guy you shagged and dropped, that my opinion amounts to skrewt shit, but I think you ought to consider upholding the ban against Slytherin."

'Betrayal.'

Harry regarded Malfoy with cold eyes and an impassive expression. "Malfoy, there is no ban against Slytherin. As far as Ginny and I are concerned…"

'Remember, the girl you sold to Voldemort?'

"Anyone is welcome so long as they do not threaten or endanger any other member. Even you," he added acidly. Malfoy winced. He looked miserable, and Harry immediately felt sorry for that jab.

Malfoy must have noticed a change in his expression. He leaned forward even further across the table toward Harry. "Are you never going to talk to me again?"

"What's the point?" asked Harry, trying to think of betrayal, but lost suddenly in a different sort of pain.

"The point is… Look, we don't have to do anything. And we don't have to talk about anything important if you don't want, just… Come tell me a story about the stars." Harry melted a little, remembering the last night they spent together when he made up constellations and mythology to go with it. "Meet me tonight."

Harry shook his head. "I have Quidditch practice."

"Skive off."

Harry grinned despite himself. "You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

Malfoy smiled back. "Well, I figure if you don't practice this week, maybe I'll have a chance at beating you. No, really, after practice."

"I have a lot of research to do."

"Just for awhile."

Harry paused. "Maybe."

Malfoy grinned widely. "I'll be waiting."

XIXIX

Dumbledore lifted the ban and the threat against Rita Skeeter, so Harry met with her for the interview that evening over dinner in an empty conference room. When he walked in, she was already waiting with a chubby young man with a big nose and an even bigger camera. Harry didn't recognize him as her previous cameraman, and wondered immediately if he was a spy.

He shook his head, reminding himself that the entire interview was going to be published for all of Eurasia to read. There was no reason for Voldemort to send a spy.

Rita was dressed in a fine green suit covered by a black lace cloak. Her hair fell to her shoulders in relaxed curls, and Harry noticed that her smile looked considerably more genuine than it had during their first encounter two and a half years ago.

"Harry! How are you?" she gushed, jumping up and running over to shake his hand. She pulled him into a half-hug that Harry was too bewildered to return. When she pulled back, he smiled broadly at her.

"Hi, Rita, how's the fan-mail?"

She laughed appreciatively. "You wouldn't believe it. You receive several thousand pieces a week, from all over the world. The younger witches find you absolutely fetching, and the rest of the wizarding world really seem to be looking to you as their hope for salvation."

Harry nodded seriously. "Good." He caught her eye and blushed slightly. "I mean, that's kind of what I want this article to be about. Things are going really poorly in certain countries throughout Eurasia. We've been afraid that people will lose hope and begin to bow down to Voldemort," Rita flinched, "And accept a life of slavery and fear. We wanted something to be published that told people that this isn't the end. Now is the time to band together and fight, and together, we will rid the world of this great evil once and for all."

Rita dove into her purse and pulled out her Quick Quotes Quill. "Wait, wait! Save it for the interview!" And then she whispered to herself, "Merlin, this is good!" She led Harry over to the table in the center of the room, and set her quill to work. "Now, Harry, what words of wisdom do you have for our readers when fear is knocking on their door? These are dangerous times, like you said. Why should people put themselves at risk to fight a band of Death Eaters that are on the prowl?"

Harry sighed. "Unfortunately, that's an easy question to answer. They should put themselves at risk because they already are at risk. When the Death Eaters are out, nobody is safe. It doesn't matter if they are after someone else tonight, because tomorrow night, it could be you.

"The good news, though, is that those Death Eaters, they're just like you and me." He laughed at the look Rita gave him. "Well, maybe not just like you and me, but they're shop owners and bankers and lawyers and chefs. They have money concerns and children who disobey them from time to time. All that separates us from them are the choices that they make. They chose to follow Voldemort, but that choice doesn't give them any extra strength, any extra ability, or any more power than any of us. They're not the elite—they're just ordinary wizards and witches who made very unfortunate decisions."

Rita nodded. "So when our readers are face to face with the Death Eaters in their menacing black garb…" she trailed off.

"They should keep in mind that that menacing black garb is simply a tool of fear. They put their robes on and they sure look scary, but without their costumes, they are ordinary people with ordinary abilities."

There was a loud crack and Dobby appeared with their dinner.

"Harry Potter, sir! Dobby has prepared Harry Potter, sir's favorite dinner!"

Harry looked at the plates with a large smile. Dobby had outdone himself with roast beef, boiled potatoes, fresh bread, and green beans. Harry wondered suddenly how Dobby came to know Harry's favorite meal.

"Thanks, Dobby! It smells delicious!"

Dobby beamed. "Anything for Harry Potter, sir! Would Harry Potter, sir be liking anything else?"

"No thank you, Dobby. I think we'll be fine."

"Yes sir, Harry Potter, sir!" With another crack, Dobby disappeared.

Rita gave Harry a strange look. "Is he… free?"

Harry smiled. "Yes, and happy. He was miserable with his previous owners, and I helped him to gain his freedom. Dumbledore hired him on a couple of years back."

"Did your ex-girlfriend have anything to do with it? If I remember, she was quite into House Elf liberation."

Harry gave Rita a look of friendly admonishment. "Rita, Hermione was never my girlfriend. Remember, you made that up to defame her when she made you angry."

Rita's smile faltered, and she looked down at her quill, scribbling away. "No!" she snapped. "This isn't part of the interview!" The quill came to a halt, and then began tracing backwards over the words it had just written, erasing them as it did so.

Harry laughed. He thought he saw Rita blushing.

She cleared her throat as they loaded their plates. "Anyway, back to the interview," she glanced at her quill, which took up writing once again. "You don't feel that You-Know-Who or his Death Eaters are anything to worry about?"

"Oh, they absolutely are!" stated Harry. "The Death Eaters may be just ordinary wizards, but the choices they have made make them very dangerous. They thirst for power, and have no qualms with hurting or killing anyone who gets in their way. We should absolutely fear what they can do—but we should keep this fear in perspective. Voldemort inspires distrust. He breeds a fear that leads to hysterics. Even his name spoken aloud causes people to panic—and he uses that. The more people fear him, the more powerful he is, because the more people are afraid to band together and fight him and his Death Eaters.

"Make no mistake—now is the time for caution. But now is the time for all of us to work together and stop this evil from spreading further. We cannot let this fear take over our governments, our countries, our lives. Together, we will vanquish Voldemort, and we will put a stop his destruction."

"Harry, rumors throughout the world state that you are the only one who can defeat You-Know-Who. Do you truly believe that you are able to do this?"

Harry took a deep breath. "Five times in my life, I have stood against Voldemort. And five times, he has failed to kill me. I was no more prepared to face him as a young wizard in my first year at Hogwarts than I was when I was a baby. But I have survived, again and again.

"But the costs of war are rising continually. Many people have been hurt or killed, who never should have been. I am still young, but I will never again be unprepared.

"By targeting me repeatedly, and in many ways—by killing my parents, by attacking myself and my loved ones, by putting my name in the sky next to that disgusting mark—Voldemort has sealed his fate. He will not survive our next encounter. I will make sure of that."

XIXIX

The interview lasted two hours over dinner and dessert. Before Harry headed off to Quidditch practice, Rita had him pose for several shots, and then asked him if he would grant her a second, shorter interview on Saturday after he beat Slytherin in Quidditch. "A short piece for Teen Witch Weekly, with a nice shot of you catching the snitch away from your schoolyard nemesis," she prompted eagerly. "The younger readers love a victorious young Harry Potter. Someone for the kiddies to idolize," she winked.

"Rita, what if I don't win?"

"Oh, well then they'll sympathize with the human Harry Potter who was so close to something so important to him, only to have it slip through his fingers. Trust me, I'll be inundated with mail from thousands of young witches who all want to console you personally."

Harry blushed, but in the end, he agreed.

He arrived late to Quidditch practice, and Ron had already started the team on some drills he and Harry had talked about earlier in the day. Harry suited up and was soon out on the field with his team. They practiced hard, and as they headed in for the night, Harry was exhausted.

But not too exhausted to stop him from heading back out after he showered.

Malfoy was waiting by the lake. Harry took the long way over, taking the cloak off as he approached. He suddenly felt very awkward, and didn't quite know what to say.

Malfoy seemed to be having the same problem. They stood there in silence for a few moments, looking at each other's feet, and occasionally glancing up.

Harry shifted his stance uncomfortably. He caught Malfoy's eye for a second, and didn't know if he wanted to punch him or kiss him. Here before him was the person who had betrayed him, looking so nervous and beautiful.

'Maybe it wasn't betrayal. Maybe there was a reason.'

Here was his chance. Harry could look into him, learn his secrets. But he was afraid that if he did, he would fall in love with, or maybe hate, whatever he found there.

He could always just ask him.

But Harry couldn't trust him, and couldn't risk spilling secrets to him that wouldn't be protected by their oath.

"This is so fucked up," sighed Harry.

Malfoy smirked. "You read my mind."

Harry shot him a look. "I shouldn't have come." He turned to leave, but Malfoy caught him under his arm and pulled him back.

"Wait," he said. "Look, I know I lead a duplicitous life. And maybe it wasn't fair for me to expect someone like you to be okay with it." Harry felt himself burning. Malfoy was in his space, and Harry could feel his body reacting to him. "But I swear on everything, I never mean what I say or do during school. I like who I can be around you, Potter. I like that I can drop the act and just be myself." He was entirely too close. "Don't hate me for what I have to do. Even if we're just friends, don't stop coming around. Let me be myself."

Malfoy shifted so that all Harry had to do was lean forward a bit and they would be caught up in the passion all over again. His words said friendship, but his eyes hinted seduction, and Harry knew that Malfoy was trying to get close to him again. Whatever he said, his goal was intimacy, and who knew for what ultimate reason?

'He's playing power games with your emotions…' Luna's voice drifted through Harry's head, and he remembered Malfoy making out with Pansy while eyeing Harry. He remembered Malfoy yelling at him and then pinning him in a violent kiss against the tree. He remembered the tenderness at night, and the cruelty by day. He remembered Lucius kneeling before Voldemort, spilling Harry's secrets, and Malfoy sending him poetry to make it all okay.

'He betrayed you, Harry. Don't kiss him.'

Harry turned his head and stood solidly. "I don't know who you are," he said quietly. "Maybe it's just easier for me if you keep the act."

Malfoy staggered slightly, like Harry had just smacked him. He took a step back and regained himself. He pulled on a cool mask. "Do you hate me, then?"

Harry looked at him and answered truthfully, "I don't know. I don't think so. But I know I can't do this anymore."

"Well that's your choice. But this isn't over, Potter. I'm not giving up just like that."

He turned and walked off, leaving Harry alone with his thoughts.

XIXIX

XIX

X

A/N: Okay, here's a short update, sooner than expected. You can thank my nagging roommate for that. Originally, this chapter and the next were going to be one, but I think it is safe to cut them apart here. More action is coming in Chapter 16.

Thank you for reading. Please review. Come on, humor me.

Vasquaz: teehee

Silent-sounds: tasty? Oh, please, behave!

Ann: Well, thank you for reviewing. I'm glad you like the story.

Slice, the battle whore: Ooh, you are going to love the big showdown when, cough, I mean, IF it comes to that. Not to give anything away or anything, but um, it's gonna be way-cool. And don't worry, I am definitely going to finish this one.

Baby Traci: Sad, I know. But these boys are in the middle of something bigger than them, and it makes things hard.

The Shadow Bandit: Thank you, and yipes are you right! Harry will always give all that he has. Kind of makes you nervous for him, doesn't it? Thanks for the tip about the reviews. I won't complain anymore.

Celedriel-greenleaf: Thank you. I always thought that magic isn't interesting to read about unless there is a cost. And Harry is starting to find out what that cost is.

Yukari: Hey! Thanks for reviewing. I'm glad you are enjoying the story, the characters, and the Snape-Remus interaction. More on that to come…

Illucia: Thank you, and LOVE the analogy to the wizard chess. Let's just hope that holds true in the final battle. I think he will continue to refine these new powers that he's finding, and I think we will find out more about Draco soon enough.

LizBethy: Ooh, too many stories gets confusing, I agree. Of course, I read too many as well, and them I'm also writing one, and ooh! Melt down! We'll be seeing some more Draco and Sev in the next chapter, so keep reading. Glad you enjoy!

Headphone Therapy: Goal oriented, yes, he definitely is. And um, whoa, belly of this mothercrapper, huh?- um, maybe you should consider a stiff drink before reading the upcoming chapters… I'll try to throw in light moments as I can. And Luna will be coming up soon.

Moonlight4: Thanks!

Malfoysnogger: Ooh! Thank you! And we'll find out about Snape soon enough. He does have a few secrets, after all. And glad you like Draco too.

Yuki Kurai: Here ya go, babe!

Dirty dancer: Pervy Sev? What? I think I like this Sev too much to let him be an all-out perv, but we are going to find out more about him and the Slytherins pretty soon. I'm having trouble dividing up these chapters so they're not too long, but they still get a good chunk of story in them. Hold on! Answers are coming!

Wolfen-alysha-draco-dragon: Thanks!

Maximum Poofy-Confused Queen: Thanks! Glad you like it enough to re-read it. Great compliment. My ego just might explode. And don't cry- Remus only just left. No time to have been hurt yet.

Isis-mystic: Harry doesn't know yet, and Snape won't tell me.

CS WhiteWolf: Um, ahem, maybe. The boys aren't letting on yet, but when they do tell me, you'll be the first to know. And are you saying that I should write a huge battle scene into this story? That Harry should get a chance to stand behind his declarations that he's going to accept the prophecy and vanquish Voldemort?

Usually Immaculate Aristocrat: Aw, I'm sorry you don't like Ginny, because she is way-important to Harry. And I tell you, I think Harry and Draco would live happily ever after if Draco would just stop being such a prat. But the Dumbledore battle- I liked that one too. Thanks for reviewing!

OxBeachFlirt01- Yay! Glad you liked it! (By the way, my friend Wintermoon2 predicted Harry's wandless ability in Blast From the Past- she even wrote in a squeal when OotP was released, yelling "I was right!" It's a way-cool story, you should go read it) Anyway, yes, the poetry/asshole duality made sense to me. I also kind of think that if Voldemort dropped dead today and the war ended and Draco's parents chilled out and he didn't have all that pressure on him from everywhere, that he would still kind of act like that, out of habit if nothing else. Thanks for reading!

Lol: Thanks!

Midnightocean: Thanks, here it is!

Tsyuno: Was that enough for you? Hope so! XD

Emeline: Eep! Hope all the words were good and printable and what not! Really though, thanks! I appreciate it!

Madkornfan: Five months! OMG, if you lived with my roommate, she would have skinned you alive four months ago! Glad you're enjoying it. I'm trying to keep the updates fairly quick.

Pat2: Wow! Thanks for the references! I loved the Ginny/Harry scene too. I wasn't going to have her find out for several more chapters, but then, she saw what she saw, and the shit hit the fan. Draco's got issues, but hopefully he'll resolve those. Fingers crossed, but no promises. Snape's got issues too, but Harry doesn't know much about those, because thus far he respects Snape too much to go snooping. But whatever their relationship, I love it. Glad you're enjoying so much. Makes me happy!