Captivation
Chapter 6: Realization
An owl from Ron came that morning during breakfast. Harry was incredibly thankful it wasn't a Howler since he seemed extremely shocked and pissed off in his letter. It read:
Harry,
BLOODY HELL! MALFOY'S THERE? You can't be serious! You know, he's probably stalking you since you were the main cause of his father being sent to Azkaban. You never know if his dad told him to try and kill you or something. You better watch your back. Or better yet, try and get him kicked out. I'm glad you're having fun. Ginny still seems really pissed off. Just the other night when I showed her the letter you wrote me she started screaming about how you were probably already hooking up with tons of girls and how you just didn't want her because she was younger. But don't worry about her. She'll get over it…eventually. So, have you met any girls? Hermione says hi and she hopes that you'll visit soon. OY! Are you coming back for your birthday Harry? It's in four days on this Saturday! Hermione really hopes you will! Let us know!
Ron
p.s. Tell the Ferret-Head I hope he rots in Azkaban with his dad. Oh, did you ever find out if he has the Dark Mark? I bet you ten thousand galleons he does! But don't hold me to that. Dad would kill me if I gambled any money.
Harry just shook his head in amusement. Although Malfoy was annoying, he hadn't come off dangerous at all. Still, Harry did want to know if he had the Dark Mark.
Hold on, I gave him a full body massage last night! Damn it! I can't even remember if I saw anything or not!
Harry inwardly cursed alcohol and wondered how he'd get to see Malfoy's arms. There was a chance that after Quidditch practice that night, Draco would be in the showers. Perhaps Harry should take a shower; he needed one after all. The cleaning spells weren't very thorough. During the Advanced Flying Techniques class, Harry glanced over at Malfoy to see the older teen leaning back smugly against the wall with his head tilted back as his magical quill took all the notes. He completely ignored Harry's presence even after class when he tried to speak with him.
Angrily, Harry followed him out of class and down the hall. He was thankful when they came to a hallway with no students there so he was confident to catch Malfoy's attention.
"Dr—Malfoy!" Harry shouted.
The slightly older teen stopped then wheeled around. "Are you stalking me Potter? Or is it that you want to give me another massage?"
Draco's lips were curled upward in amusement and Harry's heart nearly stopped. Had the blond been awake when Harry's hand had brushed against his penis? Had he just pretended not to notice so that he could use it as black-mail later on? Trying not to panic, Harry glared at him.
"Malfoy, we need to get started on this project! Why can't you cooperate?"
"Perhaps because I have better things to do right now," he drawled. "In fact, I was actually thinking of throwing out your Firebolt and getting a better—"
Harry didn't even hear the blond's whole sentence. He lunged for him with such force and aggression that Malfoy was even too stunned to move out of the way. Harry slammed him hard up against the stone wall, knocking the wind out of him. Without hesitation, Harry punched him across his face, splitting his lip.
"Don't you ever say that!" Harry shouted in fury.
The blood dribbled down from Malfoy's lip but Harry punched him again right after the first one, causing his nose to start to bleed (though he didn't break it like Malfoy did to him in their sixth year). Harry had came in so fast and punched him without warning that Malfoy hadn't been able to block the attack, but after the two punches he fought to push Harry off.
Once he managed to shove him off, Malfoy wiped the blood from his face.
"I didn't think you were that attached to your old broom, Potter," Malfoy spat, glaring at him.
"It was a gift from Sirius!" Harry blurted out.
He bit his lip, trying not to let himself get carried away. Just mentioning Sirius' name brought back some of the pain that he had yet to grieve. In anger, and not wanting to leak any tears in front of Malfoy, Harry angrily retorted:
"If you don't want that broom then give it back! But if you so much as put one scratch on it I'll make sure I find a way to get you kicked out of this school!"
Harry then wheeled around and stomped off both upset and furious. He desperately needed some air. If he would've remained there any longer someone would either have spotted them fighting or Harry would've begun to get upset over his Godfather all over again. It was so infuriating being a human. Whenever he was alone and he could cry, he didn't feel like it. But when he was in front of other people and he absolutely didn't want to cry, the tears started to come. Malfoy was the last person he wanted to see him cry. In fact, he hadn't even cried at Dumbledore's funeral. After Sirius died, he had let some tears fall when he sat by the Hogwart's lake by his self, but other than that he never actually grieved.
Perhaps it was time to contact Remus. It might even make him feel better to talk with the older man. Given that he had some minutes before his next class began, Harry went up to the Owlry where Hedwig was resting. He took out some parchment from his book bag and a quill.
Remus,
I know it has been a while. I'm sorry we sort of lost touch. I guess with the war and Voldemort and all, I just couldn't deal with staying attached to anyone. I can't believe I even survived. But I'm really glad you survived. I haven't seen you in over half a year but I'm doing fine. I actually got accepted to the Quidditch Academy of Scotland. I thought perhaps some time we could see one another and catch up. My birthday, as you know, is this coming Saturday. I'm probably going to celebrate it over at Ron's house so you're welcome to come that day. I hope you're well.
Harry
He let out a soft sigh of relief. It felt good to write to him finally. Hedwig didn't put up much resistance when he offered it to her and flew off immediately. Although Harry was still pissed off about Malfoy and Sirius was again on his mind, he felt better once the day wore on. By the time lunch came and Harry made his way to the dining hall, he saw that Hedwig was already there sitting on the table with a letter attached to her leg. His heart immediately clenched.
"Remus replied already?" he asked aloud as he rubbed Hedwig's feathers.
Upon opening the letter however, Harry's excitement died.
Potter,
Go to the library before dinner right after class. Be there on time—I won't wait for you.
Harry knew who it was from—Draco. Although he was disappointed that Remus hadn't gotten back to him, he wondered why Malfoy wanted to meet him. Perhaps he was finally going to agree to work on their project. His next few classes passed by relatively fast, though he received quite a bit of essays to work on. Finally, his last class came: Strategic Quidditch Skills—the one where Captain Murock was his teacher.
"Harry can I see you?" Mariabella gestured to him.
"Er, sure," Harry said as he quickly packed up his books.
The rest of the students were already leaving as he approached her desk. Smiling, Mariabella gestured for him to sit down.
"Err, am I not doing well in the class or something?" Harry asked nervously.
"Oh no, Harry, you're doing just great," she shook her head. "It's actually a message from Niall. He's a bit busy so he couldn't meet with you personally, but it appears that Rita Skeeter has found out you're here. She has tried to sneak in and get an interview already but Niall's doing all he can to keep her away. I just thought I'd give you the heads up."
"Thanks," Harry nodded.
She smiled as he got up and left the room. Rita Skeeter was always finding ways to torment him. Granted, she wrote a descent article about him when the war ended but she was still annoying as ever. Harry hurried as fast as he could toward the library, hoping that Draco had at least waited five minutes. When he got to the library, it was practically deserted and he didn't see anyone around. Harry walked around the tables, searching for any sign of Malfoy. If the blond had literally left a minute after waiting, Harry was going to kill him.
"You're late, Potter," a voice drawled to his left.
Harry saw Draco standing by one of the book shelves with crossed arms.
"The teacher held me after class," Harry said, approaching him. "And it takes a few minutes to walk down here, you know. I'm only five minutes late."
"Are we going to work on this or not?" Malfoy retorted with narrowed eyes.
Harry set his books down, resisting the urge to break Malfoy's nose. It seemed that the bruises Harry had left on the blond's face had been cleaned up. The older teen probably had some sort of magical cream to cover it up.
"Do you have any ideas?" Harry asked.
"No Potter, I was waiting for you," Malfoy drawled.
"Alright, so…should we talk about it?" Harry asked.
Draco gave him a cool look and sat down at the table. Harry sat across from him, feeling rather awkward.
"Well Potter? Any brilliant ideas since you so desperately wanted to meet with me?" Draco drawled.
"Hold on!" Harry exclaimed, glaring. He thought for a couple seconds and was relieved when an idea came to him. "How about we demonstrate how to catch a snitch?"
"You're kidding me, Potter. Why would we do that?"
"Look, both of us have been Seekers, right?" Harry asked, not waiting for a response. "And it's not as simple as 'you see the snitch, you fly after it'. I mean, there are some techniques you use, such as ones to dodge bludgers and other players while making sure you keep up with the snitch. Plus, there's a specific technique for grabbing it so that it doesn't slip through your fingers. Professor Dmitrii said that we just had to present something on a flying technique, right? Well, catching a snitch has a flying technique to it."
"Potter, I'm sure some other people are also going to use Quidditch positions in this. It's cliché," Malfoy said, crossing his arms.
"Yes, but what if we made it really specific," Harry urged on, leaning forward. "What if we showed one of the exact techniques and positions used for catching a snitch as a bludger is coming head on and to the side and if the other Seeker is closer to it already? That's a very specific situation and I doubt anyone else would think of that exact play. This way, we both can demonstrate it. You heard what he said about going to the Quidditch field for our presentations. So it'll be perfect!
"And we can do something a little extra," Harry added, remembering what Hermione did for one of her classes. "We can make some diagrams of the play with arrows and everything on charmed paper so that the images move. This way we'll have something to turn into the professor as well as show him. And if we explain the positions and techniques in detail on the paper we hand out, all we'll have to do on the day of presentations is demonstrate it."
Malfoy twirled his wand absentmindedly while in thought. Finally, he shrugged. "Fine Potter, we'll do your plan. But I hope that we get a good grade for it."
Harry rolled his eyes. "Malfoy, the directions were pretty vague so as long as we choose an appropriate technique, which I have, and present it accurately, which we will, and also turn in a little something extra, then we'll get a good grade. As long as he sees that we've worked hard and planned it out, we'll get full credit. That means though that we'll have to split the work up for drawing the diagrams and adding detailed explanations. Then we'll have to work together on the demonstration. Can you handle that or is it too much?"
Malfoy's lips curled and he leaned forward. "Is that a challenge Potter?"
"I'm just wondering if you're going to cooperate, Malfoy. It was me who, as you say, desperately wanted to get together to plan this out, but I'm not under any circumstances doing most of the work. If you even cut out a little bit I'm not filling in the gaps even if it means getting a bad grade. You're just going to have to learn to work with me, Malfoy. After all, not only do we have to work together on this project, but all through the four years we're here," Harry said, as Malfoy's eyes narrowed.
"We're on the school's team, Malfoy. That's a big deal to them! And I'm not going to have them lose their fifth victory, and the huge party afterward, because you and I can't work together out there. It's not like Hogwarts; we're on the same team playing against the same opponents so one way or another we'll have to learn to cooperate. I'm up for putting aside our rivalry and differences when we're playing Quidditch or when we're paired up as partners in class. Do we have a deal?"
Harry stuck out his hand toward the other boy who stared at it indifferently. Malfoy continued to twirl his wand as Harry remained like that. There was no way he was going to drop his hand though—Malfoy had to agree or nothing would work out. Finally, after a few minutes of deathly still silence and Harry wondering if perhaps Malfoy was an even more immature asshole than he first thought, the blond moved his hand and shook Harry's briefly.
"Fine, but I'm not agreeing to be your friend, Potter," Malfoy drawled, pulling his hand away. "After all, I offered you that once and a Malfoy never offers twice."
Harry didn't feel like arguing with him so he just nodded his head. Finally they had a mutual agreement on something. Malfoy immediately stood up and Harry followed.
"So when do you want to start working on the project?" Harry asked casually.
"Anytime that doesn't interfere with my plans, Potter," Malfoy said, smoothing his bangs with his fingers.
"Malfoy," Harry said darkly. "The presentation is due in less than two weeks and this weekend I'm not going to be around."
"Really? Leaving so soon?" Malfoy smirked.
"You wish," Harry retorted. "Look, can we make a schedule? Like meet at a certain time each day to work a little bit on it?"
Malfoy crossed his arms and gave him a sarcastic look as he thought. "Fine Potter. If you want to work on this so bad, we'll meet every morning before breakfast."
Harry's mouth dropped open. "Wha—? Malfoy, that means we'd have to meet at seven in the morning."
"Take it or leave it, Potter," Malfoy drawled.
Feeling unbelievable frustrated and furious, Harry decided that it would be best to just agree and get the project over with. "Fine!" he muttered reluctantly. "But you better be there, Malfoy! This better not be some sort of trick to get me up really early while you sleep in."
"Of course not Potter," Malfoy gave him another sarcastic drawl. "I want to get this over with even more than you do."
With that, the blond left without another word. Harry glumly followed moments later and trudged to the dining hall for dinner. He was so close to killing the blond that he could hardly stand it. Malfoy was really making things difficult. Harry remembered what he had said in the hallway and really hoped that the blond hadn't been awake when Harry had accidentally touched him.
He was grateful to get a little something to eat before practice. Harry walked onto the field in his uniform and the captain blew her whistle to signal everyone to get together.
"Alright everyone, practices are going to get much harder. Our match against the Muteki school from Japan is in a month and they're as good as their name. Tonight we're going to do runs and practice several different strategies together. I need to make sure you all know how to work well with one another and that we figure out the best strategic plan as of yet. The Muteki players have a new strategy each year so we're going to do the same. Now, get to it!"
Mariabella hadn't been joking when she said it would be a tougher practice. Not only did Harry have to practice catching the snitch in time, but also avoid being attacked by bludgers and other players. Not to mention he had to watch his other teammates carefully to know when to catch the snitch or when to prevent the other team's Seeker from catch the snitch. Thankfully, he was so distracted with practice that he didn't even notice Malfoy's presence. Surprisingly, the blond hadn't run by him retorting with nasty comments. He seemed to be just as distracted.
Once practice was over, Harry knew he needed a shower. Many of the other boys luckily were too tired and probably would resort to cleansing spells in the morning. Harry felt very fortunate for when he went in there he saw only one other boy and he was already getting dressed to leave. They smiled at each other as he left and Harry entered the changing room. He slipped out of his clothes and into a towel and headed toward the showers. It was communal and it didn't have separate stalls for each of the shower heads so he would be in clear view of anyone else.
Harry slipped the towel on the hanger right outside the large shower room. The moment he went under, the faucet turned on by itself (since it was charmed) and it automatically poured shampoo on his head. Harry sighed contently as he massaged his fingers through his hair, cleansing any grime or dirt that was there. He was so relaxed by the hot, soothing water and the charmed sponges that began washing his body that he didn't hear someone else enter until he heard another faucet being turned on.
Glancing over his shoulder in surprise, Harry's eyes caught sight of the back of Draco Malfoy, who was also running his fingers through his hair as shampoo came down. Harry quickly looked away, embarrassed at having glanced at his rear end without thinking. The other boy hadn't even said anything to him; not even a snide comment. Perhaps he was too tired to think of something, but Harry wasn't taking any chances. He was going to ignore the blond's presence entirely. The sponges continued to scrub any grime off his skin and Harry made sure to keep his back to Malfoy (even though he was certain the blond had already seen everything). For some reason, Harry couldn't stop his cheeks from heating up with embarrassment.
Why the hell am I feeling so embarrassed? It's just Malfoy. He's already seen me naked anyway.
It was still bothering Harry that he wasn't sure if the blond had been pretending to sleep during the massage or not. If he had been awake and felt Harry's hand brush against his penis, then why hadn't he sent him a humiliating Howler about it or even mentioned it? Hopefully, that meant that Malfoy had really been asleep. There was no way Harry could play another drinking game with him. Then again, why had Malfoy asked for a massage? That was a strange request to ask for from someone he didn't like. Perhaps he just wanted to make Harry feel uncomfortable.
Letting a sigh escape, Harry turned off the faucet and stepped sideways to grab his towel. He wrapped it around his waist and went into the changing room without glancing at Malfoy. Once out of sight, Harry's muscles relaxed and he dried his self off. Unfortunately, the second he wrapped the towel around his waist again and picked up his clothes, Malfoy appeared clad only in his towel. Almost instantly, Harry's eyes went to his arms. They were bent as he picked up his own clothes so Harry couldn't be certain if the Dark Mark was there or not.
Malfoy suddenly glanced up at him and Harry pretended to be sifting through his clothes for his wand. His curiosity about the Dark Mark was literally eating him inside, but he didn't want the older teen to realize he was staring.
"Potter."
Harry nearly jumped a foot in the air, startled when Malfoy spoke to him standing just feet away.
"What do you want?" Harry asked, refraining from sounding too annoyed in case they started fighting again.
The blond stood in front of him still clad in his towel and suddenly thrust something into his arms. Harry blinked down at his Firebolt in confusion.
"You're giving it back?" Harry asked, glancing up at him.
Malfoy's lips curled into his familiar sneer. "Of course Potter. I don't normally take things that have already been used. My mother owled me back today and said she'd send me a brand new one tomorrow," he said smugly. "So I don't need your old broom anyway."
Although the blond still sounded cool and impolite, Harry was actually feeling a tad thankful. Perhaps Malfoy had made the connection between the name Sirius and the rumor in his third year about him being Harry's Godfather. There was no way Malfoy felt sorry for him, or sympathized, but perhaps he was really fearful Harry would try and get him kicked out. Harry's eyes darted down to the blond's arms, which had been crossed over his chest.
"Is there something interesting you're staring at Potter?"
He still couldn't see, but perhaps…
"Err, you have something on you," Harry lied, pointing at him (in no particular spot).
Malfoy's eyes narrowed and he unfolded his arms, glancing down carelessly at his torso. Harry got a good view of his muscular abdomen and his arms. A bit stunned, Harry saw that both were completely clear of any Dark Mark.
"Where Potter?" Malfoy demanded.
"Err, it's on one of your arms," Harry said quickly.
The blond glared at him but Harry quickly thought of a spell in his head and subtly pointed his wand at Malfoy when the blond glanced down at his right arm. The spell hit his left arm quickly and Harry pointed.
"There, on your elbow," he said quickly, pointing.
Malfoy turned his left arm over and saw a smudge of dirt on his elbow—very small and hardly noticeable. Thankfully, the spell Harry had used had been a very mild one. Normally the spell would be used for gardens and putting more soil in it, but Harry had learned enough in Charms class at Hogwarts to know that if the spell wasn't said out loud it wouldn't be strong. And since he had aimed for Malfoy's elbow, it had been placed there. The blond luckily hadn't appeared to feel anything.
"You must've rubbed up against something," Harry said, shrugging.
He made sure to keep his wand out of sight so the blond didn't notice anything. Malfoy waved his wand carelessly and the smudge disappeared. The blond's eyes were still narrowed as they stared at him coldly, but Harry didn't keep the gaze since he didn't want the older boy to realize he had been lying.
"Er, thanks for the broom. I'll see you tomorrow," Harry said quickly and rushed out, still clad in a towel, before he could hear Malfoy's response.
Once he was in the hall, Harry waved his wand to change into his clothes and inwardly cursed his self. He had said something nice to Malfoy. Although he hadn't been in the mood to start an argument, there was a chance that Malfoy would get suspicious by his behavior.
How is he ever going to know it was me who put that stuff on his arm? He seemed too distracted and tired anyway. I have to stop worrying over nothing.
The moment he returned to his room, Harry gently put his Firebolt back in his trunk. He didn't have much trouble falling asleep. The next morning, however, his muscles were so sore he could barely move at first. His wand alarm woke him up at six thirty and he was not in a good mood because of it. Harry wanted desperately to just run to the library, hex Malfoy and go back to sleep. Instead, he grumbled as he put on some nice jeans and a green tank-top and made his way to the library.
The whole way there he couldn't stop yawning. And it angered him even more to see the blond sitting at one of the tables casually as if it wasn't too early. Harry slumped down into the seat across from him. Malfoy smirked as he saw how tired he was.
"You couldn't have groomed yourself a bit more?"
"Shut up, Malfoy," Harry said tiredly. "Look, let's just get this over with."
"Fine. I thought since we're going to making such complex diagrams that today we should go out and fly to practice what we're going to demonstrate."
Harry stared at him with his mouth clamped shut, inwardly fuming. His muscles were sore, he was hungry and tired and yet Malfoy wanted to go fly around. The other boy could probably tell Harry didn't have much energy, which was why he chose it. Wordlessly, Malfoy smirked and rose up out of his seat. Harry reluctantly followed him to the Quidditch field. The blond had with him his brand new Firebolt that he had obviously polished up to show how new it was. Harry summoned his new broom, smirking when Malfoy subtly glared at it.
"Well Potter, since you're the team's Seeker, you can be the one to show them how to catch the snitch. I'll be the other player trying to stop you," Malfoy smirked.
Harry rolled his eyes and the two took off in the air in order to practice the routine. They used a random stone that they levitated to pretend it was the snitch, since they couldn't use the real one without permission. Harry did exactly as he did every time he caught the snitch. Even though he was tired, he felt exuberant in the air.
"Potter!" Malfoy exclaimed, swooping down to him.
"What? I almost had it!" Harry said, glancing at the levitating stone.
"Your posture is still horrible! I can't believe how lax the try-outs are getting," Malfoy drawled.
Harry clenched his fists but was too tired to retort nastily. "What's wrong with my posture? This is how I've always ridden a broom."
Malfoy snorted and flew behind him. "Let me show you how to sit properly, Potter."
Harry's stomach flipped as he felt Malfoy's hands on his lower back. His cheeks instantly flushed and he tried not to move. The blond's hands pushed against his spine and Harry almost shivered but he caught himself. He didn't know what was wrong; he had been feeling strange things around Malfoy. Perhaps it was because they were forced to see each other constantly and kept pushing each other's buttons. Or perhaps it was because weird situations came over them that Harry had never imagined before, like when Malfoy had rubbed his erection against him while he was drunk, how they had to French kiss or when Harry was forced to give him a full body massage.
"You keep your back straight unless you're bending forward for speed. If you bend forward, Potter, keep your arms here!" the blond explained, oblivious to Harry's discomfort.
Malfoy leaned over him from behind and grabbed his hands, forcing his left one lower than his right. The blond's hair brushed against the side of Harry's face and once more Harry could smell the cologne. This time he could tell that Draco placed the perfume on the side of his neck and on his collar bone. He wanted to ask Draco what the fragrance was—it smelled so good. Harry's head turned slightly and he realized from the way the blond was bent, he could see straight down his shirt. His abdomen muscles were flexed and his hairless chest was visible. Harry's face immediately leaned closer toward him, very slowly. His nose was only centimeters from Malfoy's neck; the fragrance was stronger and the blond's skin looked as smooth as silk with the rays of the morning sun on him.
Just then, Malfoy pushed against Harry's lower back, forcing him to lean forward. Harry was startled out of his trance and he glanced over his shoulder and locked eyes with the other teen.
"Like this, Potter," Malfoy's lips curled widely.
Up close, Harry could see his eyes clearly. They were oval shaped—delicate yet intense and had different colors of grays mixed in. There was a dark grey just around his pupil and it became lighter as it faded out. When the sun shone in his eyes, the color appeared silver and made his eyes have a sort of luminous glow to them. Harry hadn't ever noticed that before. Immediately, Harry looked away feeling his face redden. What the hell was wrong with him? Why was he staring at Malfoy's features? He knew what he looked like.
"If you can remember that, we might actually pass," Malfoy drawled, giving him another sly smirk as he flew back to his position.
Harry was not having a good time. His feelings were making him more and more confused. He was quite certain he was gay now and probably because Malfoy was a male Harry was reacting differently to him than in the past. But being gay shouldn't have to change his perception of Malfoy just because he was a guy. Maybe these were normal feelings for someone who was gay. Did Seamus ever think about him or Dean as more than a friend after he realized he was gay? And what about those he didn't like, such as Blaise Zabini and others? Had Seamus' perception of them changed once he found out he was gay? He wished he had someone to talk to…
Perhaps talking to Blake wouldn't be such a bad idea. Although it would be awkward, he could at least try. For the next half-hour, he and Malfoy practiced. Harry made sure to do exactly as Draco demonstrated for him so that the blond wouldn't have to get too close again. He just needed some time to think. Finally once eight o'clock came, Harry was relieved when they had pretty much gotten the demonstration down.
"Malfoy," Harry said, as they were heading back inside, "we should start the diagrams soon."
"Fine Potter, but I'm not working on it this weekend. There's another senior party," Draco turned and smirked at him. "Were you not invited?"
"I don't know," Harry clenched his jaw. "It doesn't matter because like I said I won't be here this weekend."
"Pity. I'm sure everyone will be disappointed that you won't be stripping for them."
Narrowing his eyes, Harry refused to comment. His assumption had been right—Malfoy wasn't going to let him forget about that. The two then separated without another word. Malfoy seemed to be heading back to his room for something (or at least in that direction). Harry went to the dining hall for breakfast. There he spotted Blake in his usual place. Wiping his clammy hands on his tank-top, Harry approached him. Blake was busy in a conversation with another boy when he turned and saw him.
"Harry, what brings you to our side?" Blake grinned, staring at him intensely.
Harry swallowed thickly. "Erm, I was wondering if I could talk to you before class."
Blake raised his eyebrows in question, but he smiled. "Sure. Just come get me when you're finished."
"Thanks," Harry said, walking quickly back to where he usually sat beside Liam and Tavis.
"Hey Harry, there's another senior party going on," Tavis grinned in excitement. "Last time I think I got this senior girl, Lina, interested in me! Anyway, you're invited again too."
"Er, sorry Tavis, but this weekend's my birthday and I promised my friends Ron and Hermione I'd celebrate it with them," Harry said.
Tavis looked surprised and a bit disappointed. "Oh that's right. I forgot. How old will you be?"
"Eighteen," Harry said.
"Ah, you're still young," Tavis winked and then nudged him playfully. "Well, I'll let you know if anything exciting happens."
Harry smiled and nodded. "Yeah, thanks. I'm sorry we didn't really hang out at the last one."
Tavis waved it away. "Don't worry about it, Harry. You don't have to spend all your time with me. Besides, I saw you and Draco playing The Eternal Eclipse game. You two seemed really into it. I admit I'm not very good at it."
"Me either apparently," Harry shrugged. "I lost. And I don't think Draco's ever going to let me live it down."
"Well, just because it'll be your birthday," Tavis' smile widened as he leaned closer, "I'll let you know if he does anything embarrassing at the party."
Grinning widely, Harry nodded instantly. "Thanks. That would make my day."
Tavis went back to eating and Harry got lost in his thoughts. He didn't eat too much and got up about twenty minutes before breakfast would end. He approached Blake reluctantly but was surprised to see that he had already finished. Malfoy had also gotten there at some point. He was deep in a conversation with the boy Danny whom Harry had met at the first party. Malfoy glanced up at Danny while the other boy was talking and suddenly the blond's eyes caught sight of him. Harry pretended not to notice him staring.
"Do you mind if we talk outside?" Harry asked, gesturing.
"Not at all," Blake smiled.
The two walked out of the dining hall and Harry didn't even glance backward to see if Draco was watching. When they came to a secluded hallway, Harry turned to him nervously.
"I was wondering if I could ask you a personal question."
Blake leaned up against the wall and shrugged. "Sure."
"Well, are…are you gay?"
Letting out a laugh, Blake threw his head back causing his long sandy hair to flow away from his face.
"Is this because of what I said to you at the party? Sometimes I do come on a little strong when I'm drunk."
"It's not that," Harry said quickly. "I just, well if you are gay I was wondering if you could tell me how you know."
Blake raised an eyebrow and suddenly stepped closer. "That's easy. You have wet-dreams about boys instead of girls. Why, do you think you're gay, Harry?"
The way he asked it suddenly made him feel uncomfortable. Harry shrugged. "Erm, I don't know actually."
"Well which do you dream about?" Blake asked quietly, casually coming closer.
"I…erm," Harry hesitated, not really wanting to admit he'd never had a wet dream. "Both actually," he lied.
"Hmm," Blake said, pausing to think. "In my opinion that either means you're too afraid to experiment with one over the other or you just haven't decided yet. I've been with both girls and guys, actually. I tend to like guys better because there's less drama, if you know what I mean."
"Yeah," Harry nodded.
"You know," Blake said, staring at him. "If you want to experiment with me, I'd be glad to."
Harry suddenly froze and stared up at him with unblinking eyes. Blake gave him a half-smile and reached a hand forward. Harry didn't know how to react and was having trouble registering it was even happening. Blake brushed his fingers across Harry's cheek, moving aside the stray strands of hair. Any words at all that he wanted to say died instantly. He was so shocked he couldn't even move his jaw. It was like he was watching this happen as if he wasn't really there. Blake bent forward, brushing his fingers lower and lifting Harry's chin. Harry's heart was pounding so loudly he thought it might burst through his chest.
A second later a warm pair of lips covered his and all Harry was able to do was to stare widely at Blake, who had shut his eyes. Blake's hand moved to the back of his neck and suddenly Harry blinked. Blake's mouth suddenly moved over his passionately and the other boy immediately slipped his tongue into his mouth. Harry reacted instantly, remembering the kiss with Malfoy, and his tongue lashed out across the other. Harry's voice was muffled as Blake pinned him against the wall and began kissing him fervently. The hand at the back of his neck was coaxing his mouth open wider. Harry let him kiss him and realized that it wasn't as awkward as he thought it'd be.
Finally, Blake broke away breathless and opened his eyes. Harry stared up at him flushing pink with embarrassment.
"So, how was that?" Blake smiled.
"Erm, it was nice," Harry said awkwardly.
"Yeah, it was," Blake licked his lips.
Harry immediately felt his stomach flip. He wanted to know if he was more interested in guys than girls, but he didn't want Blake to get the wrong impression.
"Thank you for offering to…you know, experiment with me," Harry said quickly. "I...I should probably go."
"Harry," Blake said, grabbing his arm. "Tell me, would you want to go out with me?"
Harry's eyes widened. "Blake I…I'm not even positive I'm interested in guys."
"But you liked the kiss, didn't you?"
"Err…yeah. I just…I think I just like you as a friend," Harry said awkwardly.
Blake's expression turned to one of disappointment and Harry immediately regretted ever agreeing to talk to him.
"I'm sorry," Harry offered quickly.
The other boy blinked then shrugged and gave him a smile. "No big deal, Harry. I offered to be your experimentation after all. We're still friends, right?"
"Of course," Harry said instantly, feeling horribly guilty about leading him on.
"I suppose I'll just look forward to any games of Entranced or Cursed we play," Blake winked. "Oh, Harry?"
"Yeah?" Harry asked as Blake began to step away.
The other boy gave him a smile. "I think you already know which interests you."
With that Blake walked away and down the hall, leaving Harry still standing there. He pressed his back against the wall, sighing heavily. Why were awkward events happening to him? Blake didn't seem upset that Harry liked him as a friend, but he still felt guilty. Sighing, Harry decided to head to class a little early. Blake's words ran through his head as he walked. The more he repeated his words, the more he found that Blake was right. He knew for sure now that he was gay. Harry was so caught up in his thoughts he didn't notice a figure, hidden by the entrance to the dining hall, staring at him with intense gray eyes as he walked away.
TO BE CONTINUED…
To Reviewers:
Redmeadow: Yep, experimentation was needed:-) Yeah, Harry did run away a couple of times. He was just very confused about his feelings. He's starting to figure things out now though.
Frogginginsanity: Thank you! I'll try to keep the chapters nice and long!
GreenEyedCatDragon: Lol! Yes, poor Draco and Harry still in denial.
Jonadark: Lol! That's true that Harry didn't tell Draco that. But then again, he masturbated against Draco as well and he didn't want to give Malfoy the chance to remember anything. Lol! Yeah, I figured people would skim past the mild Ginny/reluctant Harry stuff. But I figured that I can't just jump into the story without that bit because J.K. Rowling DID put them together in the sixth book. So I had to find some way to get rid of Ginny. :-) Thank you very much for the compliments! I've been updating every couple of days so I hope I keep it up!
Darkshadowarchfiend: Thank you! I will!
Meka: Lol! Yeah, Malfoy always seems to be passing out, doesn't he? Don't worry though, he can't run forever, muahahaha!
The Earth Mystic: Lol! Haha, yeah but I think poor Harry was too drunk and confused to think about checking out Malfoy's size. He is finally realizing some of his feelings though. So he's progressing. Lol! Yes, think about school until the next update so you don't drive yourself crazy.
Inner Self: Lol! Yes, a massage from Harry would be nice. Well, Harry is confused about his feelings and also he was a bit drunk but not so much that he didn't know what was going on. So that's why he could control himself…but trust me now that he's understanding his feelings he may not be able to control himself much longer.
Pixie9: Thank you! Oh yes, I know what you mean. I hate it when stories suddenly have a nice Draco and they get together almost immediately. That to me is unrealistic. I'll update asap!
Branwen777: Thanks so much! Yes, tension building is fun to write too! Lol! There will be plenty more tension and definitely a climax to look forward to. :-)
wIthOUt A nAmE: Thank you! I'll update soon!
Tiger Eye2: Aww, thanks! Lol! Yes, poor Draco. He's all happy with his new broom now. I'll update soon!
Dragenphly: Oh yes, but I think poor Draco is having even more trouble coping with feelings than Harry is. Plus the two are just in denial. Don't worry, it won't remain like that for too much longer. Tehehehe!
Cuteandnice: Aww, thank you! I'm so glad you like it so far! Well, I think it's already obvious who's going to be dominant. :-)