Sorry for the delay, everyone. I hope you all had a great holiday! (I know I did. I got footie pajamas, and I'm wearing them now!) For those of you who didn't read the short update I posted before, I've been having difficulties with this chapter. Truth be told, I still don't like it, but it's longer than it was. Not as long as the last chapter, but I'm trying! Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this one more than I do, because I'm not overly happy with it. That's okay, I'll make up for it in the next one, I suppose! To the reviews!

fanficfan4life - Haha! I actually had considered making it Muggle Studies rather than Herbology, but I thought that was way too OOC... and then decided it would have been funnier if Harry took it instead. I enjoyed writing that bit of dialogue ;) Look forward to another bite in this chapter, haha.

fudgebaby - Hurrah! Thank you! :)

Iset - Eh, he's working on it. Harry's too complicated for his own good. Thanks for your review!

Lindsey - LMAO. I hate you. loves you anyway I'm going to write you a Nick/Kevin story. JUST KIDDING!

Lani-David - Well, I can definitely say I feel like I went off on a tangent in THIS chapter. I think I was just happy to finish it (this chapter, I mean). Ron and Hermione's reactions are probably milder than you're expecting, but there's a reason for that. You'll see what I mean!

Sweetnlilly - Thank you! As for the story you're looking for, I haven't heard of it, but if I come across it, I'll be happy to post the link for you :)

Arwen Applestone - Thank you for both reviews, last chapter and chapter 11! Well, Harry isn't suffering too badly yet, but he will be soon enough. Ron and Hermione don't take kindly to Malfoys!

miz-fabulous - I've definitely read some sex scenes that made me go squeamish, too. A lot of "People do that?!" I'm thinking of one in particular, but I'll keep the details to myself, haha. Thanks for your review! :)

YamakitoMastukari - HAHA. They should exceed the daily dosage of sex, I think! They certainly exceed the daily dosage of FIGHTING. Blarg.

path walker - LMAO. You laugh at their misery? Harsh! Then again, I'm the one WRITING their misery, so who am I to talk?!

blusorami - PRESENTS! Oh man, if only! Those would be the best presents ever! But since we're talking about dolls... I have to say, I bought my friend the Lupin action figure, where you can change his head from Remus to a werewolf. She loves him, so I had to get it. It's awesome, we played with it for longer than we should have.

Lady Slone of Snow Mt - The brunt of Ron's verbal blade of anger will come at a later time. However, the blade gleams just a little in this chapter ;) (No, the metaphor wasn't necessary, but I like metaphors. Hehe.)

Angel-Wings6 - It's okay! Review when you can, that's all :) Thank you!!

HedwigPig - Sick minds think alike! I enjoy some good ol' smut every now and then, too. (Although I don't think I've quite mastered the art, for lack of a better word, of smut yet. "Erotic stuff", as you put it, works nicely though! I can do that!)

Fantasy101 - Thank you! I love Ron, he's so fun. He'll figure out Muggle technology sooner or later!

Lelimo - Thank you so much!! :)

Carrie Anderson - The amount of Ron and Hermione in this chapter isn't enough to appease most Ron!Hermione fans (Hell, even I'm not appeased and I wrote it!). However, they will OWN the next chapter. That, I can promise. So don't set anything on me yet! Haha.

ASKLJFLKSDFJDLSAC! (That's my RAGE! at this chapter.)


Chapter 14

I'm okay with faking this
I'll fake everything just to slip your kiss

As the phone rang, Harry held his breath, almost hoping that no one would answer. He felt terrible for ignoring Ron and Hermione, but not as terrible as he was going to feel after they found out the truth. The phone stopped ringing as Harry heard a distant voice through the receiver.

"Hello?" it asked, though hardly audible.

"Ron?" asked Harry.

"Hello?" Ron asked again, louder.

"Ron!" Harry repeated.

"HELLO?" Ron shouted. Harry heard a shuffling of noises.

"—Oh, give it here," he heard Hermione say. "Hello?" she asked, into the phone.

"Ron will never get the hang of the telephone, will he?" Harry asked with a laugh. Hermione gasped and Harry could hear her smile through the phone.

"Harry! —Ron, it's Harry! —Oh, how are you?" she said in one breath.

"Unusually well, actually," Harry replied. "Sorry I missed your ring. I wasn't near the phone." He stepped into the other room, hearing another phone being picked up.

"All right, Harry?" Ron asked through the other receiver. Harry started to laugh.

"All right, Ron."

"Sorry about that."

"Ronald was holding the phone upside-down," Hermione explained.

"Well, it's a stupid machine, really! Both sides look the same, how am I supposed to know which end to talk into?" Ron asked angrily.

"Oh, hush," said Hermione. "Anyway, Harry, it's great to hear from you! I didn't think you were home."

"Yeah, I've been home for a few days. Been a little busy though, but . . . " Harry's voice trailed off as he walked out his back door and shut it behind him. He sat down in a lawn chair by the pool. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed.

"Is something wrong, Harry?" asked Hermione.

"Not . . . exactly," Harry said uncertainly. He was then struck by a fantastic idea. "You two should come over for dinner tonight." This way, he could slowly break the idea of Draco being around before officially telling them that he and Draco are an item, because he clearly wasn't going to tell them that bit of information so soon.

"Brilliant, mate!" said Ron happily.

"Around 7?" Harry suggested.

"Sounds great!" answered Hermione.

"I, um, should tell you, though," Harry began, carefully choosing his words. "I have a—er, I have a guest, kind of."

"Who?" his friends asked in unison. Harry bit his lip and hesitated before responding.

"Malfoy."

Harry pulled the phone away from his ear just in time to miss the outburst from his friends.

"—Why would that little—!"

"—He's an idiot—!"

"—I can't even imagine—!"

"—Hope you've hexed him—!"

Harry placed the phone back to his ear, and said, "Hey, wait a second! He's helping me with a case and staying here for protection reasons." Well, Draco had told him to say something close to the truth.

"Has he done anything? I'll strangle him—"

"Ronald, hush. Harry, I don't understand," Hermione interrupted. "Why would he be staying at your house? Couldn't he have stayed somewhere else?"

"Well, it's my case, so Tonks and I thought it would be best if he came here."

"How can you let him stay in your house?! He'll curse you the second he gets a chance!" Ron exclaimed.

"Listen, it's a long story," Harry said exasperatedly. He thought it might be best to not tell them that Draco didn't have his wand, seeing as Ron would probably use that bit of information to his advantage. "Can you two just trust my judgment?"

"It's not that we don't trust you," Hermione explained. "It's just—Well, he's Malfoy! You can understand where we're coming from here."

"I know, I know. Believe me, it's strange for me too," Harry said, although his friends had no idea just how strange things had become. "But he really has changed, or—I don't know, maybe he was like this all along but just hid himself. We've been wrong about people before."

"I guess," Ron said, still sounding heatedly unconvinced. "But how do you know you're not wrong now?"

"I—" Harry paused, considering this question. To tell them the truth would be easy enough, but he didn't feel it was his place to explain Draco's life after Hogwarts, because, after all, it would have to be included in the account. Harry smirked to himself, and answered, "I just do. Call it a gut instinct."

"This still doesn't make sense," Hermione insisted. "Malfoy is helping you with a case, and you somehow find him trustworthy enough to stay at your house? And even Tonks agreed to this?"

"It was her idea, actually," Harry said. "I can't really explain all of this right now. Just believe me, okay?" He heard Hermione sigh.

"Okay, Harry," she said. "We'll see you at 7, then."

"And if Malfoy even does anything out of line—"

"Be quiet, Ronald."

-----

Harry walked back into the living room, where Draco was sitting on the couch, flipping through yesterday's issue of The Daily Prophet. Placing the phone back on the charger, Harry turned to Draco and shoved his hands in his pockets.

"Um," he mumbled uneasily, and cleared his throat. Draco looked up over the paper and raised an eyebrow.

"So?" he asked. Harry shrugged.

"Ron didn't threaten to kill anyone yet," Harry said, an air of optimism in his voice. Draco sighed.

"You didn't tell them, then."

"Well, sort of, I did. I told them you were staying here for protection reasons because you're helping me with a case." Draco didn't reply, but returned to his paper. Harry continued, "C'mon, do you really think I should have told them the truth right away?" Draco folded up the paper and flung it to the other end of the couch.

"No," he replied simply. Harry joined Draco on the couch, resting his head on his lover's shoulder.

"I invited them over for dinner," Harry said. He felt Draco's shoulder tense at his statement.

"When, tonight?" Draco asked, sounding slightly irritated.

"Yes, at 7. And I know you'll be on your best behavior," Harry said, nudging Draco in the side with his elbow. Draco groaned and slouched down in his seat.

"I'm always on my best behavior," he argued. "As long as Weasel doesn't do anything stupid and Granger minds her words—"

"They'll be respectful if you are. And it might help if you stop calling Ron 'Weasel'," Harry suggested.

"Whatever. I supposed I should start calling Granger by her first name, too? And then I'll make them a lovely Muggle fruit basket."

"I'm only asking you to be civil. Please?" Harry asked. Draco remained silent. Harry added, "For me?"

"Oh, Merlin," Draco said and rolled his eyes. "Fine. I'll treat them as they treat me." Harry grinned, wrapping an arm around Draco's waist.

"You could still make them a fruit basket, if you like."

"Shut up."

"You know, it might be a good idea if you just don't talk while they're here . . ." Harry said. Draco narrowed his eyes and put his hand over Harry's mouth.

"It might be a good idea if you just don't talk, period," said Draco. Harry responded by promptly biting Draco's hand. Draco let out a yelp and pulled his hand back. "What the—!"

"Just getting you back for earlier," Harry interrupted innocently. "Listen, though. Don't say anything to them about you and I . . ." Harry shrugged and said, "Whatever we are."

"I don't plan on it," Draco replied. He paused, and asked curiously, "They do know that you're gay, right?"

"Yes," Harry answered defensively. "It's not like I don't tell them anything."

"Oh, relax, I'm just asking. What did they say about that other bloke you were dating?"

"Who, Jeremy?" Harry asked, glancing up at Draco. Draco raised his eyebrows in response. Harry turned his eyes down, leaning his head on Draco's shoulder again. He said, "Oh, well—They were—They liked him, I think." Draco sighed.

"Right. By that response, either they hated him, or they didn't know about him."

"Okay, they didn't know about him. They didn't actually know about me then, either. Or, rather, I hadn't told them about me," Harry said, remembering how Ron and Hermione said they had known "for a while."

"I see," Draco said flatly. "Then, this will certainly be a breeze when you finally let them know about 'you and I'."

"It's not like I planned to never tell them about Jeremy. But really, I hardly ever saw them, and when I did, he wasn't usually around. I think they would have liked him, though. Everybody that met him did." Draco grimaced at this.

"Sounds like he's the opposite of me," he muttered. "So, why didn't you love him?"

"I . . ." Harry paused, and answered truthfully, "I don't know. I guess I just believe that there's someone out there for everyone, and he wasn't the one for me. I was attracted to him as a friend, but that's basically all it was. He was probably the nicest person I've ever known—very caring and friendly." When Draco didn't say anything, Harry smirked. "You, on the other hand, are egotistical, defiant, and downright callous." Draco blinked and frowned.

"If that was supposed to be a compliment, you might want to try again," he said snidely. Harry looked up at Draco and gave him a quick kiss.

"The truth is, after so many years of feeling loveless, I was ready to grasp at anything that came my way. We both mistook our friendship for love, and when we discovered that we were really nothing more than friends, we broke up. I realized that as much as I wanted love, I wanted someone I could relate to. You might be all those things I said, but you're genuine.."

Draco was silent once more. Harry continued, "I think what was so shocking about you after eight years is that as much as we've always had our differences, we fit together like a puzzle. When I can't open my mouth, you can finish my sentence. When I'm too shy, you're too bold—"

"—And other analogies."

"Right. The point I'm trying to make is, Jeremy was perfect. For that, I couldn't love him. I can't relate to perfection. Then you come along, ripped at the seams, nothing but raw emotion. You went from being Malfoy, someone who thought he was perfect, to Draco, someone so incredibly flawed that he became perfect. Well, to me, at least."

Harry smiled sheepishly, and commented, "I guess that still sounds like a backhanded compliment."

"No," Draco said thoughtfully. "It just sounds like you've put a lot of thought into it." Harry snorted.

"I have, actually. What else do I have to do when one of us storms out of the room in frustration? And that seems to be an hourly occurrence. Anyway, it might be a shoddy explanation, but it's the best I have."

"It's not shoddy," said Draco, his stiff tone from earlier replaced by a gentler one. "I just hope you can come up with an explanation as good as that when your friends ask you what the fuck you're doing." Harry bit his bottom lip.

"Yeah, so do I. We'll just take one thing at a time. Once they're okay with the idea of you being around, I'll tell them the rest," Harry said. Draco nodded, although neither of them seemed certain that Ron and Hermione would ever be "okay" with the idea of Draco being around.

Without warning, Draco began to laugh. Harry furrowed his brow, and asked, "What?"

"I was just thinking . . . Can you imagine Weasel's—" Harry threw him a scolding glare, "—Oh, whatever—Ron's face when you tell him the truth?"

"I can imagine it, but we must be thinking of two entirely different scenarios, because I'm certainly not laughing."

"You always plan for the worst, you know? You're so sure that he's just going to explode with rage, but for all you know, he might not even care," Draco said. Harry glanced off to the side. Draco clearly didn't know Ron very well.

"Trust me. He'll care."


Hurrah! Wow, I hate this chapter. It definitely kicked my ass, and I lost. Oh well. Next chapter: Dinner time! Draco discusses his "indestructable knees", much to Harry's chagrin, and a brief mention of Weasley Is Our King. Oh, and Ron WILL get pissed at some point. Mark my words.

Okay, and I just want to throw this out there, because I feel bad not admitting this, haha. Any of you ever see the movie Dragonheart? (IF NOT, RENT IT RIGHT NOW. IT HAS DAVID THEWLIS, JASON ISAACS, AND THE VOCAL TALENTS OF SEAN CONNERY.) I have to tell you... the scene in Chapter 10? Where Harry is pointing out the Draco constellation? Because of this movie, that's the only reason I know that constellation exists, haha. What can I say, I didn't get into the astronomy class this semester :P The dragon's name in the movie is Draco, and he's named after the constellation. In fact, when I first saw HPSS (I hadn't read the books yet, forgive me), I was like "That kid has the same name as the dragon from Dragonheart..."

I only mentioned that above information because I asked for Dragonheart for Christmas and watched it the other night, so it's been on my mind. I'll shut up now.

Please R/R!!!