Disclaimer and warning at the beginning of first chapter.

Reactions of the Gryffindors: Chapter 3

"Malfoy" he finally spat, horror obvious in his voice.

The Common Room fell silent as the Gryffindors waited for Harry's explanation, not used to hearing such venom in their friend's voice and knowing that whatever Malfoy had done this time had gone too far.

"What about him" asked Ron, clearly wanting to know what the 'Prince of Slytherin' as he was nicknamed, had done to Harry this time, as was the rest of the Common Room.

"How much do you know about Veelas?" Harry asked, suddenly feeling drained. It had been a tiring day, and Harry longed to go to sleep but he knew that the other Gryffindors wouldn't let him leave without explaining his outburst first. He couldn't resent them for it. After all, they were merely concerned about him.

"They are magical creatures which attract the human race with their beauty and aura," Hermione quoted off the top of her head, no doubt from one of the many textbooks she read for 'light' reading.

"Like what we met at the world cup?" Ron asked, confused about why the conversation had moved from Draco Malfoy to a study session on Veela.

"Yes – No…Well, part Veela," Harry corrected.

"Part Veela?" Hermione mused thoughtfully. "They are powerful, incredibly powerful in fact, and they inherit the Veela's beauty, but they don't inherit the transformation process which occurs when a full Veela gets angry."

Harry nodded.

"Do you know anything about their mates?" he asked.

He watched as Hermione's quick mind processed all the information she had been given before she came to the most logical conclusion. The widening of her intelligent brown eyes, and the disbelief present within them, made Harry wince.

"They fall in love with a human – kind of like a fairy tale, I guess," Ginny said softly, remembering the stories her parents had told her when she had been a little girl.

"Well this isn't a fairy tale," Harry muttered.

"Harry, mate, you've lost me," Ron sighed, running a pale, freckled hand through his red hair, making it stand on end.

"It's about Malfoy. When I went to Dumbledore, as McGonagall told me to, I found Snuffles, Remus, Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape and Malfoy already inside."

"Why was Malfoy there?" Seamus interrupted.

Dean elbowed the Irish boy, glaring at him to make sure he stayed silent. He knew that Seamus would distract Harry from his story constantly if he wasn't restrained from the beginning.

"Malfoy's a Part Veela," Harry confessed, waiting for their reactions.

At first they didn't seem to believe him. Ron and several of the other Gryffindor boys laughed while the girls looked intrigued, no doubt liking the fact that a Veela was living on Hogwarts grounds. Ron, on seeing Harry's serious face, stopped laughing.

"A Veela" asked Ron, astonishment plainly visible.

"Part Veela" corrected Harry.

"But why did Dumbledore want to tell you that" asked Ron, eyes filled with curiosity.

Harry was about to tell him about how Dumbledore had somehow manipulated him into agreeing to being seduced by a Veela who wanted nothing better than to bond with him when he was interrupted by none other than the boy Draco was threatening to kill over him.

"You mean that Malfoy is one of the sex gods" gaped Seamus, merry eyes filled with a mixture of curiosity and desire.

"No! I mean Malfoy's a... I don't know what he is... oh, God" Harry moaned, burying his head in his hands helplessly. It was pointless, he realised, hoping that they would make the same realisation as Hermione had without him actually saying it. It was so preposterous that he was Malfoy's mate that they probably wouldn't believe it unless he told them outright.

Hermione frowned, eyeing her friend in concern. She knew that Harry hated confrontations, or discussing his feelings. He was an incredibly private boy, especially since the Tri-Wizard Tournament in their fourth year.

"But what's Malfoy being a Veela got to do with you" asked Dean, perplexed.

"He's chosen a mate" Harry said hollowly.

Ron paled, not liking the tone of Harry's voice. He knew that Harry would never have told them about Malfoy if there hadn't been a reason behind it. He inwardly sighed, pitying the person who would be trapped with Draco Malfoy for the rest of their life.

"Who is it" he asked.

"Me."

At Harry's words the whole Common Room, with the exception of Hermione, erupted into laughter. Ron collapsed onto the floor, tears streaming out of his eyes. Harry stared at the ceiling, waiting for the inevitable explosion, which would occur when they realised he was being serious. As soon as the laughter stopped, he looked back at Ron.

"I'm serious Ron... he wants me to be his mate" Harry said, honesty blatant in his green eyes.

For a moment it appeared as if Ron didn't believe him. His pale blue eyes went wide with astonishment and his face paled dramatically until every single freckle was pronounced. Harry would have laughed at the sight if it weren't for the circumstances.

"But you hate him" howled Ron.

"Yeah..."

"He hates you" Ron continued, clearly still in the stage of disbelief.

"Not anymore" muttered Harry with a sigh.

"Are you sure, Harry" asked Ginny uncertainly.

"Of course I'm sure – I've just been speaking to him. Put it this way, don't leave me alone with him" Harry muttered, almost to himself.

"Bloody hell" gasped George and Fred in unison.

"His father's a Death Eater" added Ginny. "And besides, you're not gay."

"You aren't, are you mate" asked Ron in shock. Harry didn't think he could take a confession of homosexuality at that moment of time, even if the wizarding world didn't care about sexual orientation due to the fact that wizards even could marry a completely different species.

Harry shook his head, honest.

"I've never really thought about it, it's not like I expected to live long enough to even consider a serious relationship..." Harry admitted.

On seeing Hermione's eyes darken with suppressed anger, he quickly tried to prevent one of her famous lectures. Her temper terrified everyone, including the staff. Over the years she had loosened up, mainly due to her friendship with Ron and Harry who were renowned rule breakers, and developed into one of the most academically successful witches to have graced the halls of Hogwarts.

She had once, in a moment of anger, duelled Blaise Zabini in public after he had attacked Lavender Brown with a hex which caused her entire body to be covered in huge, painful boils. She had won by miles and, even with muggle parents, she was one hell of a witch.

"Dumbledore asked me whether I preferred girls or boys" he added. "But I don't know..."

"So you don't know whether you're gay" gaped Colin Creevey, who was clearly enthralled by Harry's tale.

"I don't really care at the moment - you've got to save me from Malfoy! You should have seen him when he saw my..." Harry broke off with a blush.

"Saw what" grinned Fred, raising an eyebrow in curiosity, a leer spreading on his face.

"Yes... what...? Oh" gasped Hermione.

"Yes that, and you never said it had a Veela repellent charm on it" accused Harry, turning to face her.

Hermione blushed in shame, avoiding Harry's eyes, her gaze moving to stare hesitantly at Ron, who, as ever, remained oblivious to her scrutiny.

"Why the hell did you show him that" huffed Ron in shock, clearly not liking the idea of his best friend stripping for a Veela, missing the fact that it had a Veela repellent charm on it completely. It was clear that his mind was fixed on the fact that Draco Malfoy was trying to seduce his best friend, not the fact that his other best friend had sensibly tried to prevent that from happening, even without their knowledge.

"Dumbledore made me show Snuffles my stud. You should have seen him. I think McGonagall's going to make us take them out, though" Harry thought, remembering her disapproving face.

"McGonagall" shrieked Hermione.

"What the hell did they say" gaped Ron, paling at the thought.

"Well...Snuffles didn't believe it, Remus gaped, Snape smirked, McGonagall frowned, Dumbledore laughed and Malfoy... well..."

"Too much information" Ron moaned, burying his face in his hands.

"What are you going on about" snapped Ginny, obviously annoyed at being left out of their conversation.

"We went to a muggle tattoo parlour and I dared them both to have their nipples pierced" grinned Hermione, giggling when the pair both blushed.

"What?"

"When"

"Wicked"

The Gryffindors stared at the two boys, clearly not believing it. They all knew that Harry was old fashioned and didn't really consider his appearance. As long as he was dressed in clean clothes, he didn't care what he wore – mainly because Ron was the same. Hermione placed her hand on Harry's arm in an almost motherly gesture.

"What exactly did Dumbledore say, Harry" she asked.

"Basically, Malfoy's going to try to seduce me. He's chosen me as his mate and wants to bond with me. He has come into his Inheritance; something about his attraction charms kicking in, and found out he liked me. He says that's why he's been avoiding us" Harry explained.

"Seduce you" croaked Neville, clearly terrified at the prospect. He eyed Harry in sympathy. Harry wondered idly what Neville would have reacted like had Harry been Snape's mate. Harry felt nauseous at the very thought and hastily blocked it out of his mind.

"Yeah..." Harry answered weakly.

"Bloody hell" swore Dean.

"It's not fair! I mean, Harry's like one of the sexiest guys at Hogwarts, and now we've lost him and Malfoy" complained Parvati, not even bothered by the fact that the object of her comment was listening to her.

"You can have him" Harry yelled, making everyone jump.

"Harry, you need to calm down mate, there's got to be something we can do..." began Ron, his voice almost desperate.

"There isn't. He said he won't give up until he has me" Harry complained bitterly.

"What about his father" queried Hermione, curious.

"He says that he has his Grandfather's money and mansion, so he's all right financially. You should have seen him 'Mione, he was... well... possessive, I guess. He shouted that he wouldn't let his father touch me..." Harry said softly, frowning at the memory.

"Possessive" blinked Seamus, clearly not liking the idea of Harry being bonded to Draco Malfoy.

"Yeah. He said he wouldn't share me as well..." mumbled Harry, blushing.

"Why should you listen to him" argued Ron.

"Ron! You never make a Veela angry! He's likely to kill you if you try to touch Harry. He'll go ballistic if Harry dates anyone else" snapped Hermione, remembering what they had learnt about Veela in class, and the extra books she had read from the library.

"I guess you're stuck with him then" mused Dean, clearly seeing no way out.

"I don't have to accept him though, I can fight it, but he won't give up. He'll probably haunt me for the rest of my life" Harry moaned, remembering the possessive look in Malfoy's eyes.

"He didn't... well... he can't try to... you know..." asked Lavender suddenly, blushing crimson.

"He's already kissed me! Can you imagine what will happen if I'm alone with him again" spat Harry angrily, clearly frustrated by the entire thing.

"What" gaped Ron in shock. Harry had forgotten to tell them that detail.

"He kissed me"

"Bloody hell" said Seamus, now staring at Harry's lips with an almost dazed expression, jealousy clear to see.

Hermione frowned. Unlike most of the school, she knew that Harry was completely innocent and wanted real love, not meaningless affairs. She had been astounded at how Harry had changed over the years. Gone was the shy boy to be replaced with a strong, good looking young man who commanded respect for both his magic and personality.

Even Hermione had to admit that even though Harry was not good with magic intellectually, he was perhaps one of the most powerful wizards to enter Hogwarts. Harry was ruthless at duelling now, after training hard with fully trained aurors and Sirius. She had even seen him once duel Dumbledore and win.

Even the Slytherins and Death Eaters were wary of him, especially as he had won the International Duelling Championship the previous year. The competition had been introduced by the Ministry to try to boost friendships between countries. Schools from all over the world had sent the most advanced and intelligent students they had to compete.

At first she had been sceptical of Harry's chances when he had been manipulated into joining by a beaming Dumbledore. However, that had rapidly changed. As soon as Harry had stepped onto the platform a sense of magic so powerful she could almost see it, erupted from Harry, scaring her.

The concentration and skill with which he had fought had been better than a man three times his age. He knew far more defence spells than she could hope to ever dream of. He had won easily. The newspapers had gone ballistic, claiming that Harry Potter would defeat the Dark Lord and once again save the wizarding world, as he was predicted to do.

Even Snape had respect for Harry, though she doubted Harry even saw this. Sometimes Harry was so naive it was unbelievable. He also knew everything...most of the time before other people. He was, to put it simply, as Sirius had once told her, the incarnation of Dumbledore. He knew things...he knew who to trust, who to hate, who to protect...He also knew who to talk to, who was afraid and it was his sense of companionship and optimism which drew people to him.

"What are we going to do" moaned Ron anxiously.

"I think you should just leave it for now, Harry. I'll have a word with him tomorrow; maybe I can get him to back away for a bit while you sort everything out. But we'll try to keep you two separated...God only knows what he'd do if he gets the chance" interrupted Hermione quickly, sensing that Ron and Seamus were about to explode any minute.

"I'm just glad I've got some protection against his Veela charm. He even made Dumbledore drool" Harry said weakly.

"Dumbledore" gaped Ron.

"Yeah... and Snape..."

"Bloody Hell" gawked Lee Jordan.

"The attraction will become stronger now, as he'll try to use it to seduce you. Even with the charm, part of the attraction will be there. Veela are almost magnetic...I wonder what Dumbledore's going to do with him. I mean, surely he can't walk around school with everyone lusting after him" wondered Hermione.

"I know, I mean, the charm thing helped but it was still there. It's almost hypnotic" Harry mused.

"He's cursed you" muttered Ron.

"Ron" shrieked Hermione, sounding annoyed.

"What" Ron asked innocently.

"He's a Veela, he can't help it."

"So? If I catch him within ten feet of Harry, I'll hex him" mumbled Ron quietly so that she wouldn't hear.

Seamus nodded in agreement, having heard Ron's comment.

"What did Snuffles say" asked Hermione, purposely ignoring Ron.

"He just told me that I had a choice" Harry sighed, remembering Sirius' words.

"I'm surprised he didn't try to kill Malfoy" snorted Ron.

"He almost did."

"How do you know" asked Hermione.

"I heard them arguing before I entered the room - believe me, it wasn't pleasant" shivered Harry.

"Who's Snuffles" asked Fred finally, clearly confused.

The rest of the Gryffindors looked the same way and Harry blushed, thinking quickly how to explain who Snuffles was without giving away Sirius' true identity. No one knew that the ex-convict was innocent, except for a small few who were sworn to secrecy.

"He's a friend of Harry's whom Harry has gotten to know...the one who's been training him" Hermione lied smoothly.

He could tell by their faces that they believed them. Harry mentally thanked Hermione and smiled lopsidedly at them, causing Seamus to lean closer. Harry shuffled away uneasily, the memory of Draco's words playing in his mind. Did Seamus fancy him? He honestly didn't think so, and in fact had never considered Seamus' attention anything but friendly flirtation, but maybe, just maybe, there was something in what Draco had claimed.

"What's wrong" asked Seamus in surprise, clearly hurt.

"Nothing... I just don't want to get him jealous..." Harry mumbled, eyeing the Irish boy warily.

"He won't know"

"Seamus, Veela can smell things. Malfoy will smell your scent over Harry easily" Hermione tutted impatiently.

"Really" asked Seamus, obviously frustrated at the fact that Harry was clearly out of bounds.

"Yes" snapped Hermione.

Everyone went silent, the full implications of the situation hitting them suddenly. Their Golden Boy was to be bonded to Draco Malfoy, a boy most despised, even if they did find him physically attractive. However, his looks weren't enough to compensate for his vicious tongue – in most cases.

"I can't believe Malfoy's a Veela" choked Seamus finally, breaking the silence.

"I can" snorted Ron. "I always said he wasn't human."

Hermione elbowed him in the ribs, glaring at him angrily, and her eyes moving over to Harry who was staring forlornly at the carpet. Ron, understanding, smiled apologetically.

"He's getting his own room in a tower. Dumbledore thinks that it's safer to have him away from anyone in case his magnetic charm gets too powerful" Harry said, preventing the inevitable argument from starting between the two.

There was an uncomfortable silence as Harry fiddled with his thumbs, unsure of what to do. Ron was still clearly in a state of shock and Hermione appeared almost happy about it. Wait a minute, his mind screamed, why would Hermione be happy about Draco Malfoy trying to seduce him? At least she had not questioned him on his earlier slip.

"Why didn't you think that you'd ever have a serious relationship" asked Neville finally, clearly confused.

Harry inwardly cursed him. He had successfully deterred Hermione from asking him that and now Neville had brought the subject back up! Perfect, he thought bitterly, eyeing Neville uncertainly and with a trace of anger.

"No reason" he managed to mumble.

"Oh, Harry, why didn't you tell us..." whispered Hermione, sadness in her intelligent brown eyes as they gazed at her most loyal best friend, the one who had always stood by her no matter what.

"It's not a big deal... so I think I'm going to die..." Harry muttered self-consciously, wrapping his arms around himself as if to protect him.

Looking at Harry, Hermione finally realized the depths of the damage the Dursleys had done to him. At sixteen years old he was already prepared to die, and it appeared as if, deep down, he didn't care. At sixteen years old, Harry Potter was tired of life, tired of hiding, tired of fighting.

"You're not going to die, mate" bellowed Ron, clearly nearly ready to shake some sense into his best friend. Hermione silently applauded him for his efforts.

Harry shrugged.

"Harry... your scar hasn't been hurting you lately, has it" asked Ginny suddenly.

All eyes switched to her and Harry cursed. He had kept it a secret, revealing the information of his visions and scar to only Dumbledore and Sirius. In fact, he had never even told Hermione or Ron, fearful their possessive behaviour and almost mothering protection was going to develop into obsession for his safety. Besides, he didn't need the whole wizarding world to know that he was slowly, albeit slowly, going insane.

It had been during the previous summer while staying at the Weasley's when he had woken up from a vision. It had been the annihilation of a muggle village, he hadn't known where, and the destruction, pain, torture and death he had witnessed had terrified him.

He had stumbled downstairs, intent on getting a glass of water when he had met Ginny, and promptly collapsed into her waiting arms, pouring out his heart about the visions and the fear he had of sleeping, lest a dream transform into a night of horror.

He had sworn her to secrecy, and now she had broken it. She had told the entire Gryffindor common room that his scar had been hurting him...proving that Harry had been lying all along. Hermione and Ron would kill him!

"What does she mean, Harry" snapped Hermione, brown eyes flashing.

"Nothing" gulped Ginny, seeing her error and sending an apologetic, slightly pleading expression to Harry.

"Your scar's been hurting you? But You Know Who...He isn't near us, is he" gaped Ron in shock, his freckles blending in with his white face.

"NO! You're safe! It's nothing..." Harry yelled loudly, causing the whole room to jump in shock.

"You've lied to us! You told us that your scar hadn't been hurting you" Hermione shrieked, clearly furious that he hadn't confided in her.

"Look, it's nothing to worry about, Snuffles and Dumbledore know... no one else... apart from Ginny... and you lot now" protested Harry.

"In what way has it been hurting" asked Hermione insistently.

Harry saw red.

"For God's sake! Do you have to know everything? Can't you accept the fact that I'd prefer to keep something to myself? I can cope! I'm not a child anymore, Hermione, I've never been a child! I grew up on my own, and I can deal with things myself. I've never had a mother and I don't need one now" Harry hissed poisonously, his green eyes glowing furiously.

The Gryffindors sat in a daze, unsure of what to say or do. They had never seen Harry like this before. This wasn't Harry. This was somebody else, a stranger. Sure, Harry had often reacted violently when provoked, but it was rare that he was angry at his best friends, whom he confided almost everything to.

"You can't shut us out" said Hermione, fear beginning to enter her eyes, although she knew she had to try and persuade it out of Harry.

"Fine, do you want the truth? Do you want to know why I've not told you? I've been protecting you! All of you! I couldn't cope with your pity, Hermione, and I never will. What do you want me to do? Write to Rita Skeeter and confess that their Golden Boy is actually going mad" raged Harry, his body tensing with fury.

Hermione paled at the anger in his voice, never having it direct towards herself so vioeltnyl before.

"That's right Hermione? Do you really want to know? Fine! Every night when I close my eyes I see him... Voldemort... sometimes its one person... sometimes it's a group and sometimes its hundreds. Night after night I watch them die, slowly! Do you know what its like to watch women, men, children being tortured? I've seen death Hermione... death every night… Why the hell do you think that the aurors are actually able to attack Voldemort? We're connected! I can see him, but he can't see me! I've been giving the aurors tips and evidence for the past two years"

Finally Harry collapsed onto the sofa, all energy drained out of him. No one spoke or moved and it was Ginny that moved forwards, wrapping her arms around him and drawing him close in just the same way as she had done that night.

"I'm so sorry Harry" she whispered uncertainly, unsure of how to apologise to the boy she had idolized for years and now loved as a brother.

Harry didn't answer, but buried his face into the hollow of her throat, his breathing ragged and fast. Hermione suddenly moved forward, hesitantly stroking his back. No one else moved until Harry pulled away, his face once again composed and serene.

'How much is the mask?' Hermione thought. 'Why did I never notice how Harry tried to block his emotions? He doesn't even realise he's doing it...'

"I'm sorry" she said out loud.

Harry nodded, avoiding her eyes.

"Why didn't you tell us" asked Ron softly, unsure of what to say.

"I was ok... I mean Dumbledore and Snuffles talk to me. They have this Pensieve which I use every night to show them my dreams. Snuffles nearly fainted when he first realised what I saw... Only them and one auror actually know that...you have to promise to keep it a secret... please" Harry whispered.

The Gryffindor's nodded but Harry didn't look convinced. Peter Pettigrew, his parent's best friend had betrayed him and he didn't doubt that it would happen again to him.

"Secreta monissssss nemetaire silenciousss" he hissed suddenly, his voice turning the words into parseltongue so that only he knew what he had said.

A faint blue light erupted around the room, covering everyone until it finally ended with Harry, entering his body and burning gold before it disappeared.

"What did you just do" Hermione asked uncertainly, having never heard of such a spell before, even if it was in Parseltongue.

"It's a spell. You will never be able to say anything about my scar to anyone. No one will ever get the information from you, not even if they torture you or use Veritaserum" Harry said truthfully.

Hermione blinked, surprised. She had never read about such a spell before.

"But that's impossible" argued Ron.

"Not anymore. It's a new spell and you will never be able to remind yourself of it within ten minutes. You will know, deep down, what I have told you and done but you will never be able to tell anyone the truth. The spell silences your mind" Harry said simply.

"How did you learn it" asked Lavender.

"I was taught it" Harry said with a lopsided smile, effectively changing the conversation to Quidditch within minutes.

Only Hermione watched him with a frown, her mind silently remembering everything Harry had told her. She suddenly realised that she didn't know her best friend as well as she thought she had. How long had Harry been hurting emotionally, without confiding in everyone?

Maybe, just maybe, Draco Malfoy would be a blessing for once. The Veela bond would protect Harry, and she had no doubt that Draco Malfoy would protect what was his. Malfoy was known for being selfish, and wouldn't share Harry. She smiled. It would all turn out for the best, she thought, relieved; Harry would have someone there for him and to share the burden of fighting Voldemort. Harry would be loved as he craved to be loved.

End of chapter 3.

Please review.