11 – Whatever Lies Beyond This Morning

HALEY

For the hundredth time Haley checked whether her cloak was covering her properly. It was just past dinner, so there was plenty time before curfew but she still didn't want anyone to notice her. Would people see her from the castle? Well, they couldn't because of her Invisibility Cloak. But if she weren't hiding beneath it?

She had reached the lake now. All that was left to do was find the willow Malfoy had mentioned in the note. There were still lots of leaves on the trees although they had mostly turned brown now. A few metres to her right Haley spotted a person leaning against a willow tree. It was a boy with suspiciously white blond hair, who was tapping his foot to the ground impatiently. Was she that late? Instead of walking faster she slowed her steps in an attempt to make as little noise as possible. This reminded her oddly of that one time in third year when she had snuck into Hogsmeade and thrown mud balls at Malfoy and his unsuspecting friends. Wouldn't it be fun to re-enact that particular memory? Scooping up a handful of fallen leaves she slowly walked closer until she was almost directly in front of him. If she took one more step she would be able to touch him. Just one more step and then – crunch.

She had stepped right into a heap of dried leaves that were making crinkling sounds underneath her shoes.

Malfoy's head snapped up in surprise. "Who's there?" He asked, surprise evident in his voice. Damn. So much for attacking him with a bundle of dry leaves.

"Who's there?" He repeated impatiently. But something had captured Haley's attention that she found more interesting than giving him an answer. She had been too focused on trying to be quiet before but now she noticed that something was different. Had Malfoy's hair always been this long? Well, she couldn't have known because there had always been tons of gel keeping it hidden. But now… it was framing his pale face, softening his features and coming to rest somewhere between his chin and his ears. It looked really soft and with a blush she realised that she found the Slytherin surprisingly cute like this.

...

DRACO

He seriously felt like a fool. Was he imagining things or was it just a ghost playing tricks on him?

"Who is there?" He asked for the third time without getting an answer. And what was taking Potter so long anyway? He wasn't too early, was he?

There wasn't any more noise from the ghost or whatever it was. Maybe it had just been the wind or an animal or something. But then why did it feel as if someone was watching him? This was more than a tad unsettling. Was he going insane?

A thought was inkling at the back of Draco's mind. No, it was a distant memory actually. It had been during a visit to Hogsmeade… where suddenly out of nowhere something – or someone had thrown mud at him, Crabbe and Goyle. He had thought it was a ghost at first but then… there had been Potter's head floating in mid-air.

Right. This was the answer. Either she was able to cast a disillusionment charm on herself or… she somehow got her hands on an Invisibility Cloak. Since she had only been a third year back then he suspected it was the latter. Well, there was one way to find out once and for all. Carefully, as not to poke out an eye or something, he reached out his hand, feeling only air until… his fingers touched some sort of silky material. One good yank was enough to reveal the Gryffindor he had been waiting for the whole time.

She blinked up at him out of confused green eyes. Her glasses were slightly askew – which was probably his fault for yanking off her cloak so forcefully – and her short hair was up in a small ponytail. In combination with the faint blush on her cheeks it gave her an adorably rumpled look that made it almost impossible for Draco not to grab her and kiss her until they were both breathless.

But sadly for him it seemed Potter had different plans.

"Give that back," she mumbled, reaching for her cloak and swiftly throwing it over herself again.

"I'm not really a fan of talking to air," Draco muttered with a slight pout. He couldn't shake the feeling that he was being made fun of.

"I just don't want anyone to see us," Potter's voice said from somewhere in front of him. See us together, he thought sourly. That had gone unsaid. Great. He had been so happy to finally see her again but it didn't seem like she was happy to see him at all.

"This spot can't be seen from the castle. I already checked," he muttered. It was true. He had gone all the way up the astronomy tower and made sure to choose a spot that wouldn't be visible from there.

"Really?"

Draco rolled his eyes, feeling somewhat annoyed. "I mean even if someone saw us they wouldn't be able to make out more than two dark spots in the distance."

"I guess you're right," she admitted thoughtfully. But she was still not taking off her cloak. It was slowly driving him nuts.

...

HALEY

She didn't know why she was hesitating. Or maybe she did know but it was hard to admit it. Hidden under her Invisibility Cloak she could watch the boy all she wanted without having to fear being caught. Did she like him? As a friend? Or as more than that? She wasn't sure. Didn't know what to call that prickling feeling that arose every time she saw him. It was so different from anything she had felt before.

Malfoy scowled. It was oddly reassuring to see that he could still scowl at her. Softly chuckling at the sight, she took off the cloak. The scowl turned into something more soft instantly.

"Come along then," Malfoy muttered, and not a second later tugged her toward the other side of the tree. Above them in the treetops Haley spotted the umbrella from last time. It was just floating there gently among the branches.

"You brought your umbrella," she noted in a questioning voice.

"I told you, it's not an umbrella it's a time ma-"

"Yeah, yeah I know. A time machine."

Malfoy glared at her almost as if he knew she was trying to rile him up on purpose. With a look above he made sure that they were standing directly beneath the opened umbrella and pushed the button near the handle. Then he whispered something too quietly for her to understand and with a flash of light their surroundings disappeared.

When Haley opened her eyes – she had closed them due to the bright light – the lake and the castle grounds were gone. Instead she found herself in a small meadow surrounded by tall trees. The sun was painting the colourful leaves around them in golden colours and with a start she realised that this was the place in Hogsmeade where they had spent the afternoon only a few days before.

"Woah, it really worked," she said, her voice sounding kind of awed. She hadn't really believed what Malfoy had said about his 'time machine' until now.

"Obviously," the Slytherin said smugly but she had the impression that her reaction pleased him.

"Did we really travel in time? I mean, what do they see in Hogwarts now?" She wondered, still looking around curiously.

"Nothing," Malfoy whispered, coming up next to her, "We're in Hogsmeade now. Five days ago to be precise."

"Huh." How weird. She took a step forward, itching to explore her surroundings. But a hand on her arm stopped her.

"The magic only works as long as we stay within the vicinity of the umbrella."

Haley stepped back. "What happens if we're too far away from it?"

Malfoy shrugged. "You're back at Hogwarts. I think," he added after a second.

"You think?"

"It's also possible that we'll be trapped in some kind of magic void or something. I don't know. I never tried it, okay?"

All at once her sense for adventure kicked in. She would certainly not try that out now but… she filed away the information for later. She turned toward Malfoy, unsure what was supposed to happen now. His eyes were already trained on her. Had he been watching her the whole time? The moment seemed fragile. Intimate.

Then something shifted in his eyes and he lifted an eyebrow before lettting his eyes wander all over her from head to toe. For a moment they lingered on her mint green shirt that she had chosen especially because of the way it made her eyes shine. In a gesture of self-consciousness Haley crossed her arms across her chest. To be fair he wasn't staring at her chest like a creep but the gazing still made her uncomfortable. No one had ever just looked at her like that. Like she was someone to look at. Like she was maybe even pretty. She felt her face heat up. And when Malfoy's eyes went up to her face again his pale cheeks were reddening as well. It was strangely sweet.

Clearing his throat, he turned around to where a blanket had appeared seemingly out of nowhere and sat down on one end of it, gesturing for Haley to do the same.

As the girl slowly sat down, he cleared his throat once more and looked at his hands.

"So… that's quite an impressive cloak you've got there," he noted finally.

"Oh. Uhm... yeah… Thanks, I guess," she offered, reaching for her cloak that was lying on the ground a few inches away. She had dropped it during their time travel but luckily it had travelled along with them.

Hastily, she stuffed it into the shoulder bag she had brought, all the while feeling Malfoy's eyes following her movements. He was clearly curious about it. But for some reason he was hesitant to ask. She wondered how much she should tell him.

"I – It's an heirloom, actually," she explained. And wasn't it odd that Malfoy had used the same words so frequently while telling her about his own curious possessions? She grinned.

The Slytherin snorted. "How very funny, Potter," he scoffed, "I know how rare these are. I bet, you got it from Dumbledore or… perhaps you stole it." He raised an eyebrow at her, silently challenging her to deny it.

Haley rolled her eyes. "Well, it was Dumbledore who gave it to me but… it really is an heirloom. It's… It belonged to my dad," she said quietly, all amusement gone.

She didn't know if she was saying too much. Surely it was okay to share that information with him?

Malfoy opened his mouth as if to say something but after a moment he closed it again. "I see," he answered finally, not meeting her eyes. Haley got the feeling that Malfoy wasn't good with comforting people. Not that she needed to be comforted but when she had mentioned her deceased mum on the weekend he had seemed uncomfortable as well. He probably hadn't lost someone he loved yet. So, of course it was hard to relate to. Haley remembered talking to Luna about her deceased mum only yesterday. It hadn't been awkward or uncomfortable at all. Perhaps death was one of the things you could only really relate to once you have been confronted with it yourself.

Anyway, this wasn't really a good topic for a second date, was it? But then what could she…

Right. Luna. She had wanted to ask Malfoy about her. It was overdue, really.

"Um… how do you know – I mean… since when are you friends with Luna Lovegood?" Haley felt kind of stupid for asking that. It seemed like something she shouldn't have to ask. Something she should already know.

...

DRACO

Luna who?, Draco wanted to ask but he wasn't that much of a jerk. Not any more. Still, that didn't stop the feeling of panic that was creeping up inside him. It was true that he enjoyed Lovegood's company. Kind of. Sometimes. And he might have admitted to himself that they were friends. Sort of. But that didn't mean he was ready to go around and tell everyone else about it. But this isn't someone. This is Potter. Which was exactly why he couldn't tell her. What would she think of him if she knew he was friends with a girl that was commonly referred to as 'Loony'?

"W-why would you think I'm friends with her?" He asked. After all he couldn't pretend not to know the Ravenclaw at all.

Potter rolled her eyes. "I'm not stupid," she informed him, "She was the one who delivered your message to me, for one."

Draco squinted his eyes slightly at her. "That doesn't make her my friend though. I could have threatened her… or blackmailed her even." Well, that sounded reasonable enough to his ears.

"You could have," Potter noted, nodding in agreement. Draco relaxed at once.

"But I don't think you did." What? "Do you mean to tell me that it was your idea to hide your note inside a book called 'The Princess and the Dragon'?"

Well, damn. What was he supposed to say now? "I – well, why not?" He argued petulantly.

Almost reflexively he crossed his arms in front of his chest. But he wasn't pouting. Or maybe he was just a little bit.

Haley chuckled. And it sounded musical and lovely. But… he had to focus. Focus. The battle wasn't won yet.

She snorted. "Say what you want about the book… when I talked to Luna yesterday it didn't seem like she was forced into anything. It was quite the opposite really. She seemed happy to help and… I think she definitely considers you her friend. I don't think she has all that many but you probably know that, don't you."

He was silent for a moment. Thinking about her words. She didn't seem weirded out about the whole friendship thing.

"It's odd but the more I think about it I think the two of you make really good friends." She smiled. And it was so genuine and encouraging that he found himself distractedly nodding along with her words.

"Don't hurt her though. If you do I'll have to hurt you." There was a stern expression in her eyes now but she was still softly smiling despite it. A part of him that didn't find this whole conversation terribly ridiculous wanted to smile back and assure her that he wasn't intending to hurt his friend. But the other part – that was slightly more selfish and wanted her to focus her attention on him solely – rolled his eyes and snorted dismissively.

"It's not like I'm looking for your approval to date her, obviously," he drawled, glancing at the girl briefly, curious about her reaction to that. He wasn't hoping she would say something like 'That would be stupid, since I'm the one dating you'. Or anything like that. He wasn't that stupid. Potter would never say something like that. He sighed.

"I just don't want her to get hurt, I guess," she replied with a shrug. It hurt more than it should have. The girl's careless remark about how much of a villain she thought he was. Did she think he would betray his friends at the first chance he got? Did she think he would betray her? Was he that kind of person? He might have been once. But he was trying to change, wasn't he?

He looked away, feeling slightly miffed. His gaze landed on Potter's bag. He nodded at it questioningly.

"What did you bring that for? Did you think I would bore you to death?" He asked, sounding more self-pitying than he had intended. What was wrong with him? He was on a date with Potter for Merlin's sake. He should be happy. Elated. But it was hard with how much effort he was putting into this while the Gryfindor seemed to appreciate none of it. Or if she did she didn't show it.

"Oh, that's just – well, Hermione caught me sneaking out and she said if I insist on going on secret dates I shouldn't let my grades suffer because of it. So I… kind of brought my… homework," she admitted sheepishly. What. Potter brought her homework? Then something in her words registered.

"Wait. Are you saying that the mu – muggleborn knows we're on a date?"

Potter glared at him. "She's got a name, you know. And well – she knows I'm on a date but she doesn't know who I'm with." That made sense at least. If her friends only suspected their precious golden girl was so much as smiling at him or holding his hand he would have been faced with at least a dozen threats to his life by now.

"So... are you planning to tell her?" He asked cautiously.

Potter's eyes widened considerably. Did the mere thought of telling someone about their date seem this absurd to her?

She bit her lips. "N–Not yet."

"Hm," was all he said in response. He had expected as much. So, there was really no need to feel even a hint of disappointment at her admission.

It was awkwardly silent after that. He looked at his hands. From the corner of his eye he could tell she was looking away as well. There were countless unsaid thoughts and questions floating around them. But neither of them was brave enough to give voice to any of their doubts. Perhaps the time wasn't right. Yet.

The longer the silence lasted the more uncomfortable it became. As if to mirror the pensive atmosphere, the sun that had been shining brightly was now shrouded by dark clouds, that were taking away all the sunshine. Draco sighed. He was doing that a lot today. His gaze fell onto Potter's bag again. A couple of books were close to falling out of it.

"So," he said with a playful grin, "What kind of assignment is so important that it can't wait until tomorrow?"

Potter looked up at him, seemingly surprised by the question that had come so out of the blue.

"Well, we got an assignment for Charms. But that shouldn't be too hard. And," she paused, crossing her arms. Draco lifted an eyebrow. She rolled her eyes. "And there's that essay for Snape, I haven't quite finished," she admitted, pouting slightly.

He lifted the other eyebrow as well. "Quite?" He asked, grinning in amusement.

"Fine," Potter huffed, "I haven't started it. Happy?" Draco chuckled quietly. Happy didn't quite cover it. She didn't seem to know how positively endearing her childish defensiveness was. Or what it was doing to him. What she was doing to him. To his heart that was so hopelessly gone for her.

"I could help if you want," he suggested, surprising himself, "It's not like there's much else for me to do anyway. We don't want your grades to suffer after all," he added with a smirk. It was kind of hypocritical of him, seeing as he hadn't cared much for his own studies lately. He found his mind occupied with other things more and more frequently, making it hard to concentrate. Well, he was sure Snape wouldn't mind too much if he didn't hand in one essay. Aside from that he was one of the best students in their year. It should be okay for him to slack off for once in his life.

...

HALEY

When Malfoy had offered to help her, Haley hadn't expected him to actually mean it. But here she was scribbling her potions essay about the side effects of the strenghtening solution while the boy in question read the passages he deemed useful to her. It was no secret that Haley was rubbish at Potions. And although Haley had expected him to tease her about it mercilessly he seemed to keep his jokes to a minimum. Overall it was surprisingly comfortable doing her homework with Malfoy. For one, he was much more patient than Hermione and unlike the Gryffindor he wasn't as adamant that she find the solution on her own like her friend always insisted on. In fact, the whole final paragraph of her essay was an exact transcript of the passage Malfoy had so conveniently summed up for her. Setting down her quill at last, Haley wondered why he was helping her so readily. He wasn't setting her up, was he?

With a small satisfied grin the Slytherin closed the potions book and dropped it next to her bag. He stretched his arms over his head and looked at her expectantly. Haley glanced over at the book, suddenly suspicious. Maybe she should check whether the boy hadn't completely made up the last passage. Just to be sure. She grabbed the book and flipped the pages toward the chapter dealing with strengthening solutions.

"What are you doing?" Malfoy asked confusedly, "It's done."

"Yeah, I just… just want to check something," she replied, scanning over the words quickly. Before she could read more than a few sentences the book was snatched out of her hands.

"Hey! What are you-?" She began to ask but she got distracted by the head of hair that had fallen into her lap where only seconds before the book had been. She threw her hands up in surprise at the sight of the boy who was so calmly resting his head on her legs. Spread out on his back he grinned up at her lazily like this was something he did every day.

"Enough work for today," he drawled, "I want to do something a bit more pleasant now. You do remember this is a date, right?"

Haley swallowed nervously. What did he mean by pleasant?

"What do you think you're – you – you can't just–" Great. Now she couldn't even form a coherent sentence anymore.

Malfoy chuckled softly. She saw his eyes gleam with amusement for a second before he closed them. It was almost too perfect the way a sunbeam fell across his face, tinting his blond hair with warm glints of gold. She realised not for the first time, that she liked looking at him when he couldn't look back. Like now, with his eyes closed and his features soft and relaxed. He didn't seem like Malfoy at all. In that moment he was just a boy. A rather cute one, she had to admit. And his hair looked so soft… Would it seem too forward if she reached out and touched it?

Almost as if he had heard her thoughts Malfoy re-opened his eyes making her hand that had moved on its own stop in mid-air. It fell to the blanket near Malfoy's head but judging from his raised eyebrow he had already seen it and made the connection. Feeling suddenly exposed, Haley cleared her throat awkwardly and looked away. She was acutely aware of how furiously her heart was beating. Could he hear it, too?

"You know," Malfoy said slowly, "about that massage you promised me last time..."

What? Haley abruptly turned her head to him. "Promise? I never promised anything like that," she protested.

The Slytherin narrowed his eyes slightly. "But you did," he argued, before reconsidering his words. "Well, even if you didn't, I practically wrote that essay for you. I think I deserve something in return, don't you?"

Haley snorted incredulously. He had thought that through pretty well.

Malfoy ran his hand through his hair in a way that seemed positively inviting. Hesitantly, she lifted her hand, letting it hover next to the boy's face. In a quick move, he grabbed it and gently placed it in his hair. Haley made a surprised sound.

"It's so soft," she blurted out, before she could stop herself.

"Do you like it?" Malfoy smirked up at her. His hand was still resting on top of her own.

"I…" She trailed off, shrugging.

"The hair gel was getting tiresome, you know. Don't think I changed my style because of you or anything." He said in a rather bored tone.

Haley frowned. "Why would you change it because of me?" She asked. As a matter of fact, she did like his hair much better without the gel. (It made his features look softer and more... friendly somehow.) But she wasn't about to admit that out loud.

The boy's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "But… the interview…"

"What interview?" She questioned, equally confused.

Malfoy watched her for a moment, a faint blush creeping up his cheeks. Then he looked away.

"Nevermind," he said with a snort, muttering something to himself that sounded like 'Witch Weekly' and 'should have known'. How peculiar.

With him facing away from her, Haley found her fingers combing through the blond strands of hair almost on their own accord. Malfoy's eyes had closed and he was humming softly. He seemed so content. Next thing she knew he was going to start purring like a cat. Haley shook her head, over the absurdity and grinned softly. From this angle his features were kind of blurred. She could easily pretend that he was just… someone. Someone she could let herself enjoy being with. Not her enemy. It was almost too easy. She wondered if that was why Malfoy kept his eyes closed. Did he imagine she was just some… faceless girl? Was he pretending all of the animosity between the two of them had never existed in the first place? As she ran her hands through his hair she noticed that it was just about long enough to be pulled into a small ponytail. She grinned at that.

"What's that?" Malfoy asked nodding his head in the general direction of Haley's school bag.

"Huh?"

"That." The Slytherin reached for the quill that lay on top of her finished essay and held it in front of his face curiously.

"A quill," She answered curtly. She had to fight the urge to snatch it out of the boy's hand in annoyance. It was the quill Sirius had given her.

"Oh really," he drawled, lifting an eyebrow, "Are you sure it's not a miniature broomstick?"

Haley rolled her eyes. It wasn't her fault he was asking stupid questions.

"Fine," Malfoy sighed, seemingly realising that she wasn't in the mood for jokes. "It seems… to hold a special meaning for you… Was it a present?" He asked in a casual tone.

She took the quill from his hands and carefully checked if the midnight blue feather was undamaged.

"Yeah," she answered quietly, "I got it from my godfather."

Malfoy's eyes widened in surprise.

"Sirius Black," she added, "I'm sure you've heard of him." Malfoy sat up but didn't say anything. He sat down opposite her, leaning his back against the tree and pulling up one of his legs.

"Well, everyone knows him, I guess," Haley offered with a shrug, "but only a few people know he's my godfather. Or that he's innocent."

She didn't know why she had said that. Perhaps she wanted to find out how much Malfoy actually knew? After all, she didn't know in how much detail the Malfoy's talked about Death Eater matters at home.

"Did you know that?" She asked, watching him closely and wondering how he might react. His hair looked funny. The way it was sticking up from his head now.

"I… suspected," he answered. He didn't clarify what he suspected in particular. She assumed it was the latter.

"Well. It would be nice if everyone knew," she said almost wistfully.

"You seem… close. I mean it must be difficult, sending gifts while you're on the run." He noted thoughtfully.

"That's true. But since he's not on the run any more–" She stopped, suddenly afraid she had said too much. What was she thinking, telling him all of these details?

"He's not?" He asked, sounding curious.

"Um, no – I mean – yes – I mean – I shouldn't have – I…" Damn. How could she have been this thoughtless?

"It's fine," Malfoy interrupted her stammering. "I didn't – I didn't meant to pry." Suddenly it seemed as if they were walking on thin ice. Both of them treading carefully as not to break it.

"I – I wasn't implying – I mean – I–" She stammered, searching for the right words.

"No – I understand. You don't – you don't trust me."

He sounded positively defeated as he said that. Haley realised with a start that she didn't like the tone of his voice at all. She wanted to contradict him, to assure him that it wasn't true. That she did trust him. But she also didn't want to lie to him.

"Look, I don't think you're spying on me or anything. But I can't just… you know…" She finished lamely, waving around with her hands vaguely in an attempt to make him understand what she couldn't properly put into words.

"Yes, well… I didn't expect you to – It's… probably better that way," he muttered darkly.

It was quiet for a moment. Neither of them knowing quite how to continue from there. There suddenly was so much distance between them. It felt more daunting than it had before, towering higher with each thought and doubt they kept to themselves, unspoken. Perhaps it was time to be brave enough to give them a voice.

Haley took a deep breath. There was one thing she had been wanting to ask for a while.

"You keep saying that you… um – that you… care about… me," she started, trying to ignore the heat that was rushing to her face at those words, "And I'm starting to believe that you are but… I've been wondering… how much have you thought about it?"

...

DRÄICO

Draco wasn't sure he understood the question. How much had he thought about what? About her? Or being with her? He hadn't exactly counted but he knew the hours spent thinking about her amounted to an embarrassingly high number.

"What… do you mean?" He asked slowly, cautiously.

"Well, you know… this…" Potter answered, waving her hand between him and her vaguely, "and… the future."

Draco froze. A sudden coldness had crept into his bones at her words. He had hoped she wouldn't bring up this particular topic so soon. He had hoped he would have more time to prepare and… ideally find a solution first.

"I mean how serious can this be if it all comes down to us fighting on two opposite sides of a war in the end?" She didn't say that in a particularly cruel or uncaring manner but she might as well have. On a rational level, Draco understood that they needed to talk about this. That they couldn't just pretend they hadn't been enemies for the better part of the last five years. But what he heard underneath the words was her doubt. She was doubting him. His feelings, his sincerity. Funny, considering that he had never been this serious about anything in his life before. It wasn't surprising really, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt.

"I don't think this is the right moment to talk about this," he muttered, his lips pursing together slightly.

Potter stared at him incredulously. Nevertheless, she seemed strangely determined. "Great," she said with a sarcastic undertone, "You want to talk about the weather, then?"

Had the topic of their conversation not been that unpleasant Draco might have laughed. He had always liked her sarcastic side.

As it was, he merely rolled his eyes and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"Fine," he grit out, "Let's talk about how this relationship was doomed before it even started."

Potter sighed in frustration. Perhaps that had been a bit melodramatic but he wasn't going to apologize for that. He had every reason to be a tad dramatic.

"Listen," she said in an appeasing tone, "If it's true… that a war is coming… wouldn't it be nice if we could stand on the same side? I mean, did you ever think about... changing sides?"

Draco did not believe this. Of course the idea sounded nice but did she even think about the consequences her suggestion entailed?

"It's not that easy," he answered, sounding much more patient than he felt.

"Why not?" Asked the Gryffindor impatiently, "I could talk to Dumbledore about it and then–"

"And then what?" He interrupted her hotly, "You think he'd help me? Me? A Slytherin? A Malfoy?"

"Why not?" Potter questioned again, "I'd convince him. I know I could." Her eyes, steely with determination were a stark contrast to the fact that she had practically said she didn't trust him only minutes before. This was ridiculous.

"He'd probably think you were under a spell if nothing else," he scoffed.

"But – I – that's not true!" She protested, her voice cracking with indignation. How much of a Gryffindor she was. 'That's not true!' Did she also plan on telling him that it wasn't fair?

He ran his hand down his face, sighing. "Say, you convince him," he offered, "What then? Is he going to help my family, too? My mother? My father?" He paused to glance at her sceptically. She didn't look so determined now. She said nothing. Of course she hadn't thought that far.

"And if not," he continued in a more quiet voice, "should I just abandon them? Should I do that?"

His words were dripping with sarcasm. Potter was shaking her head almost absently. Perhaps that was enough to make her drop the topic now.

"But… couldn't you talk to them? They're… well they're your parents. They won't disown you or anything, right?"

He chuckled. Although he mostly didn't find it funny. He could almost imagine that conversation. Him telling his father over dinner that he was planning on running away with the Chosen One. Why would his father disown him for that? He was their only son after all. But if he was honest he wasn't sure that little fact would be enough to stop him.

"They might," he admitted quietly, "I've thought about this until I almost went mad and… at some point... I gave up. It's actually the reason I've been so mean to you at the start of term. Because it was all too complicated… and I just didn't know… and it was easier pretending… I hated you."

She seemed to be taking that in, while watching him thoughtfully. "But… you're here now. Why?"

"You know why," he replied vaguely. It was too embarrassing to admit it out loud. To admit that he simply hadn't been able to stay away from her. She looked away. Perhaps she felt embarrassed as well.

"So, what's your plan? You must have had a plan," she pondered, "You're not the kind of person to just… barge into a lion den without coming up with a strategy first."

Draco couldn't help but snort because of her choice of words. Well, she was right. He wasn't that kind of person. He rarely did anything without knowing where he would end up or what he could gain from a situation. Usually he avoided uncomfortable or dangerous situations before he even got involved in them. This wasn't him at all. So, why was he treading on such an uncertain path when he had no idea where it would lead him in the end?

The answer was surprisingly uncomplicated. This endlessly irritating girl with her green eyes had somehow touched something deep inside his heart and turned him into a fool with too many feelings. He liked her. Cared about her. Might even be in love with her. And apparently that was enough to make him disregard all the voices in his head, telling him to be careful and that he was behaving in a way that could only be described as reckless and stupid.

"To be honest," he admitted, "I don't have a plan… yet."

Potter blinked. Obviously she hadn't expected that. It looked rather cute.

"You're kidding… right?" She asked, sounding uncertain. Draco shook his head.

"But – this is is ridiculous! You're – I mean – you're the one who asked me out! You can't just do that and not think about the consequences–"

"I have thought about the consequences!" He interrupted her hotly.

"Well, obviously you didn't think hard enough!"

Draco's hand twitched. He had to stop himself from actually reaching for his wand and doing something really stupid. He tore out tufts of grass instead. She doesn't know better, he told himself. She doesn't know how complicated all of this is. It's all black and white to her.

"You have no idea what you're–"

"I don't know how much you've thought about it but – I don't understand how you could just stop." He hated the look she was giving him. It was filled with disappointment and the kind of resignation that you feel for someone you kind of already expected to let you down. It made him incredibly angry.

"Fine! What do you want me to do? Follow your advice and join Dumbledore? And if not – if I can't leave my family behind – will that be it then? Will it mean this is over?" He hadn't meant to say all that. The words had just poured from his mouth, along with his pent-up anger and frustration. No matter how much her answer frightened him, he couldn't take it back.

If nothing else, Potter seemed surprised. She shook her head in silent protest, her eyes extremely wide.

"That's not what I meant – I just – I – this is not…" She took a breath to calm herself down, "I'm not telling you to either make a decision now or... or get lost." She sounded genuine at least. Draco released a shaky breath, he hadn't realised he had been holding.

"What… what are you doing then?" He asked, feeling weak and defeated.

Potter shrugged. "I just… I wanted you to know that… you have a choice," her voice was hesitant. Hesitant but hopeful. "I wanted to show you… there could be another… option. And I was hoping… that you would at least… consider it."

Those words somehow got to him. Their genuine simplicity and the obvious intent behind them. The almost naive hope that was also mirrored in those impossibly emerald green eyes. It was her innocently pure and stubborn belief that there was a choice. That you didn't always have to do what was expected of you. That maybe there was something good in him, too. Potter did care about him. It hadn't seemed that way before but now… Why else would she be that invested in the matter? The realisation awakened a dangerous hope inside him and caused him to say something he wasn't sure he wouldn't regret later on.

"Okay. I'll… consider it."

...

HALEY

"Really?" Haley asked in disbelief. He nodded.

This was… unexpected. One second the boy was vehemently rejecting her suggestions and refusing to even think about them and now… he just agreed? She didn't really understand what his problem was in the first place. She hadn't asked him to betray his family or anything. All she had done was ask what his plans for the future were. Well, more or less that.

"But I do have a condition," Malfoy added in a tone that suggested she wouldn't quite like what was going to come next.

"A condition," Haley echoed sceptically.

"Yes," He confirmed, sitting up straighter, "You have to do the same."

Haley frowned. Did he mean…? "What do you mean – why would I have to consider joining Dumbledore – unless..." she broke off, watching how the Slytherin's eyebrow was raised in an almost challenging way. No, that couldn't be…

"You want me to join bloody Voldemort?" She blurted out, completely thrown. Malfoy visibly flinched at the force of her words. He quickly regained his posture, though, never looking away from her.

"You can't do that? Can't even consider it?" He asked provocatively.

Was that boy insane? Did he know what he was suggesting right now?

"Of course not!" She hissed, "I don't know if you forgot but that man is a crazy lunatic and he killed my parents!" She was feeling too hot all of a sudden and her breath was coming too fast.

"I'm not saying what he did was right. I just – I'm trying to make you understand that it's not that easy. You can't just make that kind of decision over night."

"I know that! I get it. You're trying to-"

"No, Potter. I don't think you get it-"

"Just stop it! There's no way you're going to talk me into thinking, becoming a Death Eater is the same as fighting for Dumbledore!"

"I wasn't saying that-"

"Yes you were. But you're wrong! I do understand you can't make such a decision over night but that's… those are two completely different matters!"

"Are they?"

"Of course they are! Voldemort is a crazy lunatic and – he's evil!"

"So you're telling me Dumbledore is completely sane."

She hesitated. But only for a second. "Who cares if he's a little crazy. At least he's not evil."

"How do you know that?"

"Are you being an idiot on purpose or-"

"I'm serious. How can you know that? How can you trust him?"

He means that. He actually means that, Haley realised, taken aback.
"Well I," she thought about it for a moment, "I just do. I have to." She added quietly. If she couldn't trust Dumbledore… she didn't even want to think about what that would mean.

Malfoy sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. Then he scooted closer to her. Haley wanted to move away but there was something in his eyes that made her stay where she was.

He glanced over at her hand, that was clenched to a tight fist on top of the blanket. He lifted his own hand as if he wanted to reach out and touch her but in the end he let it sink to the grass.

"You know," he began in a soft voice, barely above a whisper, "Evil… and good…" He lowered his eyes to the blanket. "The bad guys never call themselves the bad guys. Most of the time they are convinced they're doing the right thing."

She didn't understand where he was going with this. Was he talking about himself right now? "What are you trying to-?"

Suddenly he looked up, something urgent in his gaze, "Do you know why the good ones always win?" He asked, sounding like he was actually curious what she thought about this. Haley furrowed her brows.

"It's because the ones who lose… they never get to write the stories. Nobody ever hears their side of the story," he muttered almost to himself, while he looked at something to the side. It had started to rain. Just like it had back in Hogsmeade.

She watched him absently sink his fingers into the grass, as she thought about his words another time. It kind of made sense. But…

"That doesn't mean I'm going to consider becoming a Death Eater," she stated. He couldn't seriously think she would do that!

Malfoy chuckled. "I didn't think you would."

"Then why-?"

"I just wanted you to see… that it's not that easy. It's not an easy decision."

"I know that," she argued impatiently. She wasn't stupid.

Malfoy turned to look at her again. There was a daisy in his hand. "But now you also understand it… right?" He asked.

"I think I do," she agreed, "Kind of." She still thought his whole 'there is no good and evil' speech had been over the top and unnecessarily melodramatic. But it reminded her of something she needed to ask him. She had been wondering about that for some time now.

"You don't actually think it's right… what Voldemort does… do you?" She asked hesitantly. It seemed really important how he was going to answer that. She didn't know what she was going to do if Malfoy said he thought it was right.

"Does it matter?" He asked in a casual tone, his eyes trained on the daisy he was playing around with. Haley felt like she was being tested somehow.

"Yes," she whispered, almost tonelessly.

Malfoy chuckled. Then he steadily met her gaze. "Right, wrong... evil, good," he said offhandedly, "A Slytherin does not really care about those." He slowly shook his head. "We care about staying alive and… keeping our families alive."

His tone was playful but his words… they told a different story. Did that mean he would do what his family wanted no matter what? Was it more important for him what his family believed than to do what was right?

"Is… is that your answer then?" She asked. Why did she sound so disappointed?

Malfoy smirked at her. "I believe I already gave you my answer. I said I'd consider it, didn't I?"

Oh. Right. He had said that.

"And now let's talk about something else," he suggested in a tone that didn't leave much room for arguing.

"But-" Before she could even say another word, she found her mouth full of leaves and petals.

"Hey what are you-" She sputtered, trying to remove the flower Malfoy had stuck into her mouth.

"You were about to argue. I was preventing you from doing that." He said nonchalantly, not sounding the least bit apologetic.

"You're unbelievable," she said in annoyance, after having finally removed the last petal from her tongue.

"I'm taking that as a compliment," he drawled lazily. There was an amused grin on his face. "Shame, though. This might have looked better in your hair."

Haley growled, which only seemed to amuse the boy more. She didn't know what to make of this sudden mood change. Somehow being with Malfoy, felt like she was on a roller coaster of emotions. She turned her head to the side, watching the falling rain for a short while.

"How can you just..." She began, shaking her head slowly, looking for the right words. "just… not think about all of this?" She made a vague gesture with her hand, to clarify what she meant by 'all of this'.

Malfoy seemed to think about that. Then he said, "I am thinking about it. Constantly."

Haley turned to look at him again. "Then what-"

"But sometimes," he interrupted her, "I'm doing my best to ignore it because there are things that are more important." He whispered that last part. Was he talking about her? He was so close that she could feel his breath on her face. Was he going to kiss her? She glanced at his lips briefly, realising that she wanted him to kiss her. She looked back into his eyes that were shining silvery and with a hint of blue. They seemed so steady, so sure like he exactly knew what it was that he wanted. But she still didn't know what it was that she wanted. Whether she only liked kissing him because of the kissing or whether she liked it because it was him she kissed.

Shouldn't she make sense of that before she kissed him again?

Malfoy lifted his hand and placed something in between her hair and her glasses. She blindly reached for the thing, tugging it out of her hair. It was a daisy. She hadn't even noticed Malfoy had picked another one.

"It looked weird on you anyway," he muttered, eyes trained on the flower.

This was her chance to avoid the kissing dilemma. She reached for her bag, using it as a shield between them and stuffed everything that was still lying on the blanket or in the grass into it.

...

DRACO

Draco cursed his stupid mouth. He shouldn't have said that. Why had he said that?

"What are you doing?" He asked, trying to keep the uncertainty out of his voice. Did she want to leave already?

"On the other side…" Potter mused, "Has the time continued on without us or did it stop?"

"What?" He asked perplexed.

"At Hogwarts, I mean. Did the time stop or–"

"Oh, that." He shrugged. "I'm not sure. It could be either."

"You don't know?" She asked. Draco tried not to roll his eyes. That was what he had said, wasn't it?

"In that case, I think, it's best if we headed back, don't you?" She suggested. And without waiting for an answer the girl got up and walked into the rain. Just like that. But as soon as she had taken more than two steps away from the umbrella she vanished into thin air. Draco was reminded once again why he had an aversion to Gryffindors. They were stupid and reckless and always acted without thinking about the consequences. Hadn't he said earlier that it was possible she would end up in a void if she just stepped outside of their confined time zone like that?

He surprised himself by hesitating for only a split second before he got up and ran after her.

The first thing he noticed was the darkness. It wasn't black exactly but it was considerably darker than it had been seconds before. And It wasn't raining either. Something to his left fell into the grass with a soft clonk but Draco's attention was focused on the girl standing there with her back to him. He angrily stalked around her until he was standing right in front of her.

"Why do you always have to be so thoughtless?" He asked, glaring at her.

"What?"

"I told you this could be dangerous but you didn't listen because apparently Gryffindors aren't only recklessly stupid but they also have a death wish."

"But it wasn't dangerous. We're back in Hogwarts, aren't we?"

"But you didn't know that. You didn't think. And one day when you're not so lucky this is going to get you killed!"

"Excuse me?"

He was being irrational he knew that. But the mere thought that something could happen to Haley made him mad with a worry he hadn't known he could feel before. The first time he had felt it had been the previous year when he had seen her fighting that giant killing machine of a dragon. And then during the Second Task. And again when she had vanished from the maze together with Diggory. He really didn't want to get used to this feeling.

Haley just watched him for a quiet moment, seemingly looking right at everything that was hidden below the surface. Maybe she realised that he hadn't said that to provoke her but that there was a different intention behind his words.

"It's okay," she said softly, reassuringly, "See. Nothing happened." She slowly reached for his hand, enveloping his fingers in pleasant warmth. It calmed him down somewhat. He really liked holding her hand. Her hands were always so warm.

"What's wrong? Why are you so – I don't know…on edge?"

He was not on edge. He was just…

"It's because I like-"

Holy snakes, he had almost blurted it out! Just like that! He felt his eyes widen. But at least he wasn't gaping like a fish.

"W-what?" Potter asked. Her slight stutter told him, the words made her nervous as well. Was this a good sign? He took a deep breath. Perhaps he should just tell her. She had to know it by now anyway. He might as well say it.

"I really… like…" His heart was beating like mad and everything he saw was Potter's stupidly green eyes. He had to focus on something else or he was never going to say it. His eyes landed on her shiny mint green shirt that was practically glowing in the moon light. It made her eyes shine even brighter. He swallowed nervously.

"I really really like you–your shirt," he blurted finally. Which was not at all what he had intended to say. Well, it was too late to take it back now.

...

HALEY

Haley blinked. Had she heard that right?

"My shirt? Are you sure that's what you wanted to tell me? You like my shirt?"

Malfoy nodded in a way that seemed too forced to be convincing.

Haley chuckled softly. "Do you want me to lend it to you?"

"No! I mean, I – um… it brings out your eyes?" He said it like it was a question.

"Was that a question?" She questioned, not bothering to hide her amusement.

Malfoy tsked, shaking his head. "Here I am complimenting you and how do you thank me? With mockery."

"I just… thought you were going to say something else," she mumbled, biting her lips nervously.

For a moment there, she had thought he was going to actually say that he liked her. She was about ninety per cent sure that he liked her. It was strange how he was expressing his feelings in so many different ways like actions or looks or his behaviour but he had never straight out said that he liked her. Something had to be holding him back… Perhaps he was afraid that she didn't reciprocate his feelings. Maybe he was waiting for a sign that she did. If so… he would have to prepare himself to wait for another while.

Malfoy shook his head. He was blushing. "No," he insisted.

She should just leave it at that. Seriously. "You're sure?" She asked instead, giving him one more chance to confess his feelings.

There was hesitancy in the boy's eyes. Only the hint of it. But it was there.

Then he nodded. "Yes," he said, lowering his eyes to the ground.

"Okay," she whispered then, feeling slightly disappointed for some reason. She looked at her feet.

"I just… I wanted to end this night on a lighter note…" he said after what felt like several minutes.

"So, you didn't mean it after all?" Haley asked in mock offense.

Malfoy looked up in surprise, "No, that's not what I…" he broke off, noticing her cheeky grin.

"You're making fun of me," Malfoy dead-panned, squinting his eyes at her in annoyance.

Haley just shrugged nonchalantly. "I can't help it. Messing with you is too–" She started to say but she didn't get to finish her sentence. Because Malfoy had grabbed her face and cut her off with a kiss. It didn't last more than a few seconds. She hadn't even had the time to close her eyes before the boy pulled back.

"Merlin, Potter, you're infuriating." There was an intense look in his eyes that seemed a little wild but he was smiling despite his words. The smile was reaching his eyes and Haley felt something flutter inside her stomach at the sight. She liked seeing him smile like this. Liked it a lot. And she liked kissing him. Maybe that was enough? His thumb stroked over her cheek gently before he leaned in to kiss her again. Softly… but with an underlying passion that made her think he had been wanting to kiss her all day. Haley closed her eyes and stopped to think. As two arms made their way around her waist and pulled her closer, her own arms came up to rest on the boy's shoulders almost on their own accord.

For once she didn't want to think about what would happen after. She didn't want to think about the fact that they were at Hogwarts, visible to anyone that happened to take a walk at night. She didn't want to think about everyone's reactions if they ever found out she was dating the son of a Death Eater. She didn't want to think about the possibility that she might one day have to fight against the boy in who's arms she felt warm and light. She couldn't. Although she knew she should.

But then she would have to stop. And she didn't want that.

So Haley stopped to think. And instead let herself enjoy being kissed by Draco Malfoy. Two figures in the night, almost invisible against the dark moonlit sky.

…

A/N: I know, I know, I took forever again. But look at that! It's a chapter that's 9,700 words long! The longest chapter I wrote to this day. Impressive, huh? I think it's one of my favourites :) Fun fact: There was this one scene where Haley and Draco were fighting that reminded me so much of Ygritte and Jon Snow and I wanted to use the line "You know nothing, Jon Snow!" so bad but I couldn't because well... it wouldn't have worked as well as it does for Ygritte... But I still think Draco should have just said it. "You know nothing, Haley Potter!"

So, as always leave me your thoughts and I hope you have as much fun reading as I'm having writing this :)

Title is inspired from the awesome song "Simple and Clean" by the amazing Utada Hikaru.

Till next time, Feather :)