Chapter Two: Lingering effects

The sunlight streaming through the window warmed Draco's soft skin as he lay tangled amid his bedclothes. It seems to be the stage of an epic battle, but for now the pale form lies in peace. His fair hair was spread over his green pillow, and his chest gently expanded as he slept. One looking upon this quiet slumber might have thought him an angel, newly given flesh. His skin seems lit by an inner-

Draco's eyes flew open, "Sunlight? What the-?"

The light, airy music that had been playing abruptly shut off. The melodious voice that had been speaking was replaced by a nasty, sneering one.

"Wide awake now aren't we, Malfoy? This illusion was fun, but we'll leave you to discover the other surprises we've left for you. Ta-ta!"

The voice faded as the illusion-window gave a single, bright flash of light. The spell evaporated, leaving a red crest with a lion on it with the words 'Courtesy of your friendly neighborhood Gryffindors' emblazoned in bright gold beneath it, before that winked out as well.

Throwing back the covers and sitting up, Draco's foggy mind vaguely registered a funny weight on his chest, but then he wrote it off as a lingering effect of his illness. He pushed himself off his bed and grabbed a bathrobe, though he still didn't understand his housemates' plea for modesty. Must be that their poor minds couldn't handle his sexiness that early in the morning. The stone floor was cold as Draco made his way into the surprisingly empty common room.

"Ah, well. More private time in the bathroom!"

He slipped out quietly, more because he didn't want anyone interfering with his mirror gazing than out of courtesy. As Draco snuck along the dimly lit corridors, he became aware of a soft shuffling sound. He rounded the corner and spotted a vague figure at the other end of the hall.

Draco had to fight not to laugh as the figure trudged into view. It was immediately evident that Snape had nipped into the teacher's stock of Scotch (kept for obvious reasons-everyone needs some kind of relief. Especially teachers) the night before. The professor must have been good and drunk to have mistakenly donned a pair of boxers with pink and red hearts that sparkled cheekily with each slow step (an anonymous 'gift' he had rather unfortunately opened at breakfast last Valentine's Day).

Besides the boxers, Snape looked a bit worse for the wear. His eyes refused to focus and his mouth hung slack. An empty mug dangled from his nearly lifeless fingers. A sound came from the man then, and Draco simply took it for the anguished moan of the hung-over before he caught the words.

"Coooooffffffeeeeeeee......"

This proved too much for Draco, and he let out a short bark of a laugh before promptly clamping his hands tight over his mouth. But the damage was done.

Snape's eyes swiveled to settle sharply on Draco, "Five points from your House," the man wobbled a bit, and blinked a few times, "Whichever House you're in..."

It was a moment before Draco could speak, and even then he stammered, "B-but professor! I'm in your House!"

Snape had already made it around the corner by then, so Draco decided to go on. He made it to the bathroom, which was deserted, as expected.

"I'm a Malfoy! He's not supposed to do that to me!" Draco glanced into the mirror as he passed it, sulking, "My hair's getting a trifle long, but still!"

He turned on the tap in the shower and shut the door, waiting for the water to heat. He grabbed his toothbrush and went back to the sink. Draco stretched, working at some of the kinks in his back. He didn't notice the strange tightness of his silk pajama top. At least, he didn't notice until one of the buttons popped off and smacked him in the eye. Draco looked down, noticing for the first time that he couldn't see his own feet. The two things attached to his chest were blocking his view.......

1.3 seconds later, the pre-morning silence was rent by a bloodcurdling scream. It cut off abruptly, and was followed by a loud "Thunk!"

Then all was silent once more.......

Disclaimer: Snape's boxers are mine, and I love owning them! Everything else you recognize is the property of one J.K. Rowling.

A/N: I must say, I was disappointed when I didn't get very many reviews. Then I realized that I had forgotten to take off the 'only signed reviews' restriction. If you tried to give me feed back and couldn't, I'm sorry, but please try again, it's fixed now! Also, I don't mind if anyone flames me-even bad criticism is good and I have tough skin.