(A/N): Going to just clear up any and all confusion about this story. The main relationship is Harry x Daphne X Tracey, a polyamorous relationship. Simple as that, hope that clears things up!


Everything. He told them everything. Even Harry was surprised by his own brutal honesty and was silently glad that the two girls he confided in didn't bother asking about his home life. What happened in his first year with Quirrel cane spilling out like some old folk tale, the stories about The Chamber of Secrets in his second year, - including how he knew the location of the Slytherin dorms and his strange introduction to house-elves - were all shared with extreme depth, even how an accused mass-murderer was his god-father was explained. There were more than a couple of worried glances shared between Daphne and Tracey throughout.

Hours passed by in what felt like fractions of seconds as Harry recounted his numerous tales; being sure to withhold as little information as possible. The trio sat in silence. Tracey, and Daphne trying their best to comprehend the vivid recollections that were shared while Harry leaned back to watch them; his mouth twitched in an amused manner on several occasions

"That's... wow," Tracey sat gobsmacked, her mouth flapping open and closed. Daphne was faring no better, her eyes were wide but her mouth was clamped shut in a tight line.

Harry chuckled at their reactions. "It's quite a bit to take in isn't it?"

Both girls nodded dumbly at the question, their eyes focusing on Harry once again as they processed everything they had heard. Sitting in silence, the three students all stared at each other with an air of clarity around them.

"We should probably apologize for the dorm room fiasco, shouldn't we?" Tracey let out a dry chuckle as she turned to face Daphne. Her friend still sat wide-eyed, but she nodded her head nonetheless.

"I suppose we did over-react, an apology would seem most fitting," Daphne said. Harry cocked an eyebrow up, his attempts to suppress a grin failing with each passing moment.

"Suppose?" Despite the evident levity in the question, Daphne shot an icy glare at Harry, receiving two hands raised in mock surrender from the boy; though his grin remained.

"Be grateful I'm apologizing, Potter, it rarely happens," Tracey nodded at Daphne's assertion, giving Harry a shrug.

"It's true. It's always 'I suppose' this and 'I guess' that, with her," Tracey rolled her eyes, but a small smile rested on her face. "So, we suppose we're sorry."

Harry smiled softly, shaking his head in amusement. Daphne's scowl had since faded, a smile of her own resting on her face, her hands were folded in her lap. Looking up at the two girls, Harry's smile grew wider.

"I suppose I'll accept your apology," Harry quipped. The trio let out a chorus of chuckles. Once again, Harry noticed the duality between the two friends.

Daphne's laugh was soft and hidden behind a polite hand, while Tracey held her sides as she let out a large belly laugh, leaning back in her chair with her beanie threatening to fall off of her head. As the three calmed down, Tracey eyed Harry with a raised eyebrow.

"Speaking of over-reacting," Tracey leaned forward in her chair, her lips quirked up into a smirk. "Harry here was quite scared by a couple of glares from two lovely little ladies back in the great hall. Don't tell me the big, bad, Boy-Who-Lived, was scared of a few pointed looks now."

Harry's resting smile faltered ever so slightly, his mouth instantly drying as he thought back to the moment. Remembering Daphne's fierce gaze as she questioned him. The way her nose scrunched upwards, her eyes turning into thin slits as her lips turned into a tight 'O' shape. She looked a lot like Aunt Petunia at that moment, but with far more attractive features and not those of a horse.

"Er, n-no… no, not scared. Just wasn't expecting to be interrogated at noon is all," Harry's attempt at a joke fell flat, Tracey perking an eyebrow up at his explanation. Her grin widened as she leaned back in her chair. If Harry was uncomfortable with the situation, he didn't show it.

"Or he's just good at hiding it," Tracey snorted at the thought. What exactly was he supposed to hide?

Harry's eyes flickered over to a nearby clock. His posture straightened in his chair expectantly, his eyes creasing in determination.

"We still have a few hours until our sudden disappearance would be considered suspicious, how about we start planning like we initially… well, planned?" Harry grinned, his hands gesturing towards Daphne.

Daphne's once slightly joyful look contorted into a very cold and calculating mask, any hint of lighthearted-ness vanishing instantly as she put a hand to her chin. Tracey had taken a lollipop out of her pocket, unwrapping it to give an experimental lick before placing it on her tongue. Daphne crossed a leg over her knee, resting her hands on the top of her bent leg.

"Dragons are very territorial creatures, so I don't think we'd be too far off to assume they'll be protecting something," Daphne surmised, raising an eyebrow in thought as she gave Harry a once-over. To her amusement, Harry met her raised eyebrow with a mirthful grin.

"If it is protecting something that you have to get… Well, It might seem simple," Tracey stated, once Daphne's attention was on her she continued. "But, what if you just tried distracting the thing?"

Daphne hummed in thought, giving both Harry and Tracey a ruminative look.

"It's definitely simple, but that's not necessarily a bad thing," Tracey gave herself a small smile, sinking further into her chair as she let Daphne ponder.

Tracey noticed all of Daphne's little quirks as she raked her mind in thought, being her best friend for four years had made spotting them a cake-walk. She watched as Daphne flared her nostrils twice before craning her head to the left ever so slightly; shortly after, she began to nibble on her thumbnail, only to run it down the length of her right cheek. A decision had been made.

Snapping her attention over to the boy in front of her, Daphne straightened herself in her seat.

"Potter, you're a Parselmouth, correct?" The question caught Harry off guard. He let out a strange noise as he fumbled for an answer. Even being perfectly aware that the girls already knew didn't stop Harry from his sputtering.

Cursing himself mentally, Harry took a breath to steady himself. Staring down Daphne vehemently, Harry nodded. The eldest Greengrass daughter let a wry grin form on her face. Tracey, however, had a confused frown present, her lollipop stick jutting downwards from the corner of her mouth.

"Parselmouth…. that means you can talk to snakes right?" Tracey asked. Harry gave a stiff nod in confirmation.

Tracey turned her head over to Daphne, her friend sitting serenely with her small grin still on her face. Tracey raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms over her chest as she gave Daphne a cynical look.

"What exactly do you plan on having him do, Daffy? Is he gonna ask the big dragon nicely for its treasure?" Tracey queried in an overly-cutesy voice, batting her eyelashes dramatically.

Daphne scoffed at the question as she rolled her eyes at her friend's antics. Mimicking her friend's pose, Daphne crossed her arms.

"Of course not, that's far too Gryffindor-ish," Daphne looked over Harry, watching him squirm under her scrutinizing gaze gave Daphne a strange sense of satisfaction.

"Well, I am a Gryffindor," Harry gave the two a lopsided grin as he shrugged. Daphne rolled her eyes at the remark but still held her small smile, it's polite demeanor growing more mischievous by the second.

"Oh yes we know, far too much so, I say," Harry gaped at Daphne in mock offense, putting a hand on his chest aggrievedly. The blonde-haired Slytherin only laughed softly, Tracey joining in soon after.

Flipping a small section of hair over her shoulder, Daphne eyed Harry with the same roguish shine from before.

"If we're to win this, Potter, we're going to win the Slytherin way," Daphne leaned in close on her chair, her devilish grin stretching wide.

"By making someone else do all the dirty work, while you reap the rewards."


The more Harry thought about Daphne's plan, the wider his excited grin would grow. It wasn't foolproof, but it did allow him to stay far from any real, immediate danger.

"Well, as far away as you can get with an angry dragon on your arse," Harry snorted at his thought. Maybe he wasn't as safe as he had initially thought.

Only a few hours had passed since he split ways with Daphne and Tracey from the old, musty classroom. The former having left with a polite nod while the latter offered another one of her seemingly hundreds of lollipops before giving a small wave to skip away beside her best friend. Harry himself decided to let himself wander, finding his way to the seventh floor of the school by pure chance.

Harry smiled softly to himself as he walked. He was glad he met the two Slytherins. Daphne may have had her hard exterior of indifference and sarcasm, but she still held her friends - or friend - in high-regard; while Tracey reminded him of one of the Weasley twins; overly cheery and always making jokes, but having an honest amount of care for her friends.

He didn't know if they considered him a friend, but offering to help him with the Triwizard Tournament definitely made them allies at the least in Harry's books. Harry only prayed that Ron or Hermione would lay off questioning him about it, for the time being, the last thing he needed right now was them shouting about him talking to 'Death Eaters in training.'

With a deep sigh, Harry rubbed his forehead. He knew it was an inevitability; him sitting with the two girls earlier today made sure of that.

Reaching into his pocket, Harry pulled out the still neatly wrapped confection that Tracey had given him. He felt his lips twitch upwards into a small grin, the small treat helping to take his mind off of the coming storm.

"Get it from a friend again?"

Harry jumped at the sudden voice, his head whipping to his left to see the standing form of Neville. The taller boy's hand was gesturing loosely to the confection in his hand. Harry looked down at it then quickly looked back up at his friend.

"Yeah," Harry answered simply, unwrapping the confection so he could place it on his tongue. Neville gave Harry a tentative nod. Moving to stand beside the boy as they began walking further down the hallway.

"Can you tell me who it is?" Neville asked. Harry thought about the question.

Harry mimicked Tracey's quirk by tossing the lollipop around in his mouth. He knew he could trust Neville, he was one of his housemates who only disliked the Slytherins that were genuinely mean to him.

"Tracey Davis, she's a Slytherin," Harry replied with a shrug. To his surprise, Neville actually smiled.

"She's nice," Harry gave his friend a surprised look, as his eyebrows rose into messy bangs.

"You know her?" Harry asked, taking the lollipop out of his mouth so his words could become clearer.

Neville shrugged at the question, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Not personally, she was my partner in potions once."

Harry let out an 'ahh' of understanding, placing his sweet back into his mouth.

"She actually got mad at Snape when he yelled at me for a mistake she made," Neville said, his mouth quivering up into an amused smile. Harry chuckled at the statement.

He began imagining a gobsmacked Snape as Tracey stood in front of him; her hands clenched into fists as she gave him a sharp glare. Having seen firsthand the inklings of the small brunettes rage the day he first met her, Harry could already picture Tracey yelling vehemently before letting out a huff as she sat back down.

"How did you meet her?" Neville's question knocked Harry out of his musings.

Harry cast a glance his friend's way, noticing the genuine curiosity in his expression, Harry confided his situation to his friend.

"Her best friend, Daphne Greengrass, offered to help me throughout the tournament. While we were talking in the hallway, Tracey sort of barged into the conversation," Harry explained. Neville let out a snort of amusement.

"Sounds almost Gryffindor like," Neville joked. Harry let out a boisterous laugh at the comment, grabbing his sides as the lollipop stick bounced up and down on his bottom lip.

"Well… she was cursing up a storm like, Finnigan, maybe the Hat put her in the wrong house," The two let out another string of laughter as they continued to walk through the hallways. Once their laughter finally ceased, Harry looked over to Neville once more, his lingering smile an after-effect of his laughter.

"So, what brings you to the seventh floor, Nev?" Harry asked. His friend seemed to pale at the question, his hands clasping together as he wrung them.

"J-Just going for a small walk, clearing my head and all that, ya know?" Neville tried to give Harry a reassuring smile, but the nervousness in his voice betrayed his attempts at normalcy. Harry merely gave his friend a nod of understanding.

The two continued their walk, Harry sending the occasional glance Neville's way. His friend's hands were still being wrung together nervously; the pudgier boy's lips were sucked in, he seemed to be in some sort of internal struggle. Harry thought better of questioning it, the semi-comfortable silence that rested between the two had offered Harry a small escape from his growing predicaments.

"H-Hey, Harry?" Neville asked meekly from Harry's right. Harry turned his head to face the boy, giving his friend a curious look. Neville kept shifting his glance between Harry and his shoes.

"Something wrong?" Harry's puzzled expression remained fixed on his face. When Neville didn't answer, Harry could feel concern slowly start to seep into his veins. "Is it, Pansy? Is she stressing you out again? I swear if she -"

"No! No, nothing like t-that. It's j-just…" Neville cut himself and Harry off, his hands shooting out in front of him to wave off Harry's concern. Taking a deep breath, Neville eyed Harry with a steely gaze. "D-Do you need somewhere to train?"

Harry's worry faded away; being replaced quickly by confusion. Harry could feel his eyebrows crease together, his mind fumbling for an answer to Neville's query.

"W-Well, I certainly wouldn't be opposed to the thought of having somewhere to go," Harry said as he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. Neville nodded at his answer, gesturing with his head for Harry to follow them.

Harry gave Neville a peculiar look as he followed the pudgy boy. Neville had a determined step, any previous nervousness completely vanishing as he led Harry to the left corridor of the seventh floor. Their trek through the endless twists and turns of Hogwarts had led them to a seemingly blank wall. Harry turned to look at Neville with a raised eyebrow.

Harry watched his housemate as he screwed his brows together in concentration, he took a few steps forward before pacing back and forth three times in front of it. As he took his place next to Harry once again, Neville watched the wall expectantly. Harry flicked his gaze between his friend and the wall rhythmically.

"Neville, are you alr-" the sounds of scraping stone cut Harry off. Whipping his head back to the wall, Harry watched as intricate designs etched their way onto the once blank wall. The stones sank inwards as a standard classroom door slowly started to form within the wall.

Harry rolled his eyes. He should've expected something like this, he did go to a magical school after all. Harry followed Neville as his plumpish friend pushed open the newly formed door. As the two entered the newly formed room, Harry gaped at the expanses of the room.

The far end of the room was lined with training dummies of various sizes and builds; bookshelves lined either side, their tall and wide builds filled to the brim with a seemingly endless amount of books. Harry let his fingers run over the spines of some of the books as he read their titles.

Compendium of Common Curses and Their Counter-Actions, The Dark Arts Outsmarted, Self-Defensive Spellwork. Harry could feel his eyes go wide at the titles he read.

"Blimey… Neville, how the hell did you find this place?" Harry turned away from the bookshelf he stood in front of, looking at Neville with wide eyes.

Neville stood fidgeting near the door, his eyes meeting everything but Harry's bright green ones.

"B-By accident. M-Malfoy was being a prat one day. W-When I was in front of this wall, I… I wished that I had someplace I could use to hide from him. I had p-paced in front of the wall three times; then next thing I knew, this giant door h-had formed. When I entered, there was a c-couch and everything," despite his nervous stutter, there was an evident tone of joy in Neville's voice. With his eyes still cast downwards, Neville quietly added. "It was my little hideout."

Harry stood stunned to the spot, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. A thought suddenly occurred to him as Neville's words completely registered in his ears.

"This doesn't look small or at all like a hideout, Neville," Harry's joke roused a small chuckle from his housemate. Harry grinned at the sound. "It looks like you'd prepare for a war in here."

"I thought about a room where I could train, that's why," Neville stated, his nervousness washing away as he moved to stand closer to Harry near the bookshelf he had started rummaging through.

"So, whatever type of room I think of, I just pace three times in front of that wall and it'll appear?" Harry asked. Neville could only offer a shrug in return.

"Seems that way," Neville said. Harry nodded as his eyes wandered the spacious room, taking in its finer details as he did so.

"Do you mind if I tell Daphne and Tracey about this place?" Harry focused his attention on his housemate once more. The smaller boy fidgeted with his hands as he pondered over the question. After a few short seconds, Neville looked back up at harry.

"Go ahead, you guys are gonna need it more than me… hopefully," Harry gave his friend a lopsided grin as he wrapped his arm around Neville's shoulder, pulling the boy in for a cordial side hug.

"I'll keep it a secret from everyone else if you want," Harry offered. He watched as Neville grew a small smile, the smaller boy wrapping his own arm around Harry's shoulder to return to the friendly gesture.

"Thanks, Harry."


"Potter! It's nearly curfew, this better be worth it!"

Harry dragged Daphne and Tracey through the winding corridors of the seventh floor, leading the two by their wrists as he held them in a firm grip. Harry looked over his shoulder at the blonde Slytherin, giving her a lopsided grin. Looking over his other shoulder, Harry saw Tracey looking at him with an excited smile; the brunette hopping from foot to foot in excitement.

"Trust me! It is," Harry said, his grin stretching with each fleeting moment.

Daphne gave him a hard glare, relenting in her struggles as she let Harry lead them to their unknown destination. Daphne watched as numerous doors and decorations passed by them in a flash, the flickering fires of the torches that lined the walls providing dim lighting. Looking over to her best friend, Daphne paled at the expectant look on Tracey's face; the brunette was running just as fast as Harry, the two of them almost running side by side.

The trio stopped in front of a blank wall; Harry finally released his hold on the girls' wrists. Daphne pulled her arm back with a sharp tug, rubbing the spot Harry had grabbed her.

"There are better ways to get a lady to follow you, Potter," Daphne's snide remark seemed to fly over his head, as Harry's gaze was focused solely on the wall in front of them.

Daphne looked at the wall then back at Harry, the boy had closed his eyes in concentration. Daphne let out an unladylike snort, Tracey's eyes darting to her friend in amusement at the noise.

"Finally gone loopy, have you?" Daphne joked; raising an eyebrow as her lips quirked up into a grin. She watched as Harry took a handful of steps forwards, pacing back and forth in front of the door three times before taking his place between herself and Tracey once more.

Daphne surprised the urge to roll her eyes, settling on the act of crossing her arms over her chest as she watched the wall with indifferent eyes. As the jagged stone suddenly shifted, Daphne could feel her eyes bulge in surprise. Her arms dropped to her sides as intricate designs inscribed themselves into the wall as the stones shifted and sunk deeper in. Harry seemed to notice her astonished expression; if his delighted chuckle was anything to go off of that is.

Daphne continued to stay planted in her spot as a large oak door finally formed in the wall. Tracey all but bolted towards it, pushing it open with a fervor that Daphne has rarely seen. She could feel Harry tug lightly on her sleeve; turning to face him, he looked at her with a small smile, gesturing with his free hand in an 'after you' manner.

Daphne took her first few hesitant steps towards the door, her hand reaching out to push it open. Daphne watched as her slender fingers stretched out as she pressed her hand against the cold oak, putting some weight behind her push, Daphne heard the hinges creak in protest as she slowly walked into the room behind. Daphne could feel the air leave her lungs as she entered.

The far back wall housed a large fireplace, it's embers glowing in the dim lighting as it warmed the two couches and coffee table that sat in front of it. The left wall had large bookshelves that reached the roof; filled with fiction and non-fiction books alike; large windows split the shelves into three equal segments. The right wall had various shelves, all containing various candies and sweets; Tracey stood in front of the shelves, her eyes wide as her mouth curled in happiness. Overall, the room had a very cozy feel, almost like a second common room specifically designed for the tree of them.

"Neville calls it the Room of Requirement," Harry's sudden voice sent a jolt through Daphne, making the girl jump on the spot. She spun around quickly, hoping to send a glare at the Gryffindor boy for scaring her, but only managing a gaping mouth.

The amused grin that plastered his face only managed to irk her more.

"Didn't your parents ever teach you not to sneak up on someone?" The words left her mouth before she could stop them. Daphne's eyes widened again, this time in horror rather than astonishment as she clasped a hand over her mouth as if to stop anymore more words from spilling out.

The way his mirthful grin fell instantly and genuine hurt flushed over his features made Daphne's heart, ache unusually.

"How could I say that! To HIM no less!" Daphne bit her tongue, the metallic taste of blood causing her to wince at her own actions. She forced her gaze downwards, fidgeting nervously on the spot.

"I…" Daphne watched Harry's shoes as he walked past her, not daring to look up only to meet an angered or sad expression.

Daphne turned around slowly, looking up cautiously like a child who had just been seen with their hand in a cookie jar. Daphne saw Tracey shoot a confused glance her way, her gaze flicking between herself and Harry with a bewildered frown. Tracey dropped the handful of lollipops she had grabbed from the shelves into her pocket as she made her way over to Harry, sitting down beside him on one of the couches near the fireplace. Watching Tracey place a hand on Harry's shoulder and whisper something into his ear made the ache in Daphne's chest only increase.

Daphne wrapped a lock of her hair around her finger, walking over to one of the various bookshelves to browse through its selection. The awkward silence that enveloped the room did nothing to quell her worries.

Daphne heard someone clear their throat, but didn't bother to turn around, her gaze transfixed on the bookshelf in front of her as she let her finger roll over the spines of the books.

"Neville showed me this room so we could plan and train in peace," Hearing Harry's attempts to hold a normal tone caused a frown to form on Daphne's face. Her hands fell limply to her side as she surrendered to the act of turning around.

Daphne was prepared to meet an angered sneer as she looked up. She mentally prepared herself for Harry to kick her out, to tell her that he didn't want her help anymore; the thought pained her. The one time she dared to push herself outside of her comfort zone by offering her help to Harry was going to end all because of some stupid comment.

But the order for her to leave never came, instead, Harry gave her his best attempt at a grin, a sight that did its best to soothe the growing spike of fear that built itself in Daphne. She tried her best to smile back but could feel her cheeks protest at the attempts.

Tracey looked between the two other occupants once again. The tension in the room made her uneasy; fidgety if you will. Suddenly standing up. Tracey put on a look of determination.

"Right, I'm gonna stop by the loo while you two figure out… whatever this awkwardness is" She announced, quickly walking towards the large oak doors that lead out to the hallways. The creaking hinges cut through the silence like a knife, only to be rebuffed by the thud of the doors closing.

Once again, it was quiet.

Daphne looked over at Harry, her eyes meeting the back of his head, his attention solely on the crackling fireplace in the center wall. She was tempted to stay silent, to return to her musings near the bookshelf until this whole thing blew over; if it ever did.

Daphne shook her head, she couldn't do that. No, she needed to apologize this time. Daphne piled together all the Gryffindor courage her mother had told her she had in her chest in the form of a steady breath. Daphne took tentative steps towards the couch Harry sat on. Slowly sitting down, Daphne expected Harry to turn around to face her; whether it be because of the sudden shift of the couch or because of some other factor, Daphne didn't really care.

Daphne could feel her resolve crack when he didn't move. Daphne noticed Harry's hands clasped together in his lap, and with a shaky breath, she reached out. She recoiled once; mentally cursing herself for putting herself in this position before she cautiously pushed through his clasped hands. She could see Harry look down at his hand in confusion as she slowly interlocked their fingers together, his gaze flickering over to her face in confusion.

"I…" Daphne started. She bit down on her bottom lip apprehensively, her eyes not daring to meet Harry's. Taking another deep breath, Daphne steadied herself. "I'm sorry for what I said. It was rude and uncalled for."

Daphne didn't raise her head to meet Harry's eyes. Shame and embarrassment nearly caused her to hastily relinquish her hold on his hand as she spoke. She still expected him to shrug off her apology; to cast her out and forget she ever existed.

"Whatever happened too rarely apologizing?"

Daphne's head shot up, her forehead nearly colliding with Harry's nose. She could feel her jaw go slack as she stared wide-eyed. Harry merely looked at her with his lopsided grin, all traces of pain vanishing from his features. Daphne smiled to herself slightly as her gaze slowly lowered.

"So you forgive me?" Her voice was barely above a whisper. The lingering fear in her voice made Daphne wince. She looked up cautiously, watching as Harry tapped a finger against his chin as if he were in thought. With a playful grin, Harry looked down at her.

"I suppose so."

Daphne could barely contain the relieved chuckle that escaped her throat. Harry laughed with her, the jovial tune that their laughter made caused a small dusting of pink to caress Daphne's cheeks. Another bout of silence filled the room; this time much more comfortable and serene. Daphne could feel her lips rest in a small smile, relief filling her from her toes to her head. The giddiness that filled her made all her previous grievances seemingly vanish.

"Do all Greengrass women move this quickly?" Daphne looked up at Harry with a confused look, her head cocked to the side as she tried to decipher what he meant.

Harry smirked at her, gesturing towards their still interlocked hands with his head. Daphne could feel her face beaten with embarrassment as she quickly moved to dislodge her hands.

"Prat," Daphne muttered under her breath as she crossed her arms over her chest. Despite her flushed features, Daphne could still feel an amused smile form on her lips as she watched Harry laugh beside her. It only took a few seconds before her own bout of chuckles once again filled the room.

At that moment, there was no tournament: No dragons, no lingering fear of death, no fear of being a disappointment to her friends.

And Daphne loved it.


Chapter 3 and we're already getting into the fluff! Sort of. This is, after all, a Haphne story so its only natural. Even if we're only three chapters in, the triangle is beginning to form!

I hope you enjoyed, and I hope you stick around!