After their discussion, he had to admit Remus probably had it worse than he did. Figuring out you were gay because you were in love with your best friend sounded a lot worse than falling for your enemy. At least Harry could ignore his if he wanted to.

Remus was also much better at talking through things than Sirius was. They had been able to work through the previous year, so that Harry could see just how much he had transferred his feelings from Cedric to Cho. Remus even helped him analyze he and Malfoy's relationship, and Remus had to admit that Harry was probably a bit too oblivious for his own good.

If there was one thing that left Harry unsettled afterwards, it was Peter. Remus explained how James had accepted him and Sirius right away, but Peter took some convincing. Although he did eventually come around, given how everything turned out, Harry did not feel very comforted. He was sure Ron had not totally come to terms with things, and had only said so to not be the odd man out. Harry wondered if Peter had done the same all those years ago.

It didn't help that Ron had still not spoken to him since St. Mungo's. He could understand the rest of the Weasley's being suspicious, but Ron knew what was going on. Harry had spent day wandering the house. He was in Buckbeak's room, feeding him some rats, when he heard a knock on the door. It opened to reveal a mane of bushy hair.

"Is this the part where you ignore me?" Hermione asked.

"Why would I ignore you?" Harry asked confused.

"Ron said you've been ignoring everyone since the incident at St. Mungo's," Hermione answered.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Oh, well I'm so sorry if I don't want to sit around and have everyone stare at me like I've suddenly become a Death Eater."

"You could try talking to them," Hermione suggested. "Explaining things. Working stuff out."

"I shouldn't have to explain myself to Ron," Harry said. "He knows what's going on."

"Does he?" Hermione counted. "Do any of us?"

"Seriously!?" Harry asked, growing angry. "I'm having visions, not being possessed Hermione. Ron knows that."

"But we don't really know what exactly these visions are Harry," Hermione. "Isn't the whole reason for you studying occlumency is to stop Voldemort from finding out about the connection and using it?"

"Yeah so he can't put visions in my head," Harry said. "No one ever said anything about me being possessed."

"So just because the adults haven't told you something, that means it's not a possibility?" Hermione asked, hands on her hips.

Harry sighed. "Okay, okay. Whatever." He got up and dusted himself off. "Let's go then." The two made their way downstairs to the bedroom Harry was supposed to have shared with Ron. The others were all there.

"Oh look George, Harry's still here," Fred said.

"Yeah Fred. I thought he'd vanished days ago," George said.

Harry grabbed a pillow and threw it at the twins. "I wasn't hiding," he said. "And I won't apologize for not wanting to be around people who treat me like a freak of nature."

"We just thought you'd want to talk to us," Ron said.

"What do I have to talk about?" Harry asked angrily. "I know what's going on." Hermione raised an eyebrow and opened her mouth, but Harry cut her off. "Or at least, I know enough." He looked at Ron. "And you know everything I know, so if its explanations everyone wants you could have certainly gave them. But no, you were just as suspicious as the rest!"

"I thought you were having weird dreams mate!" Ron said. "No one said anything about you being possessed!"

"That's because I'm not!" Harry spat back.

"Are you sure?" asked Fred.

"I think I would know if I was being possessed!" Harry insisted.

"Would you thought?" George countered.

"You know," interrupted Ginny, "you could ask the one person here who has actually been possessed by Voldemort."

Harry sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I didn't ask because I already know," Harry said. "But since everyone else seems to be in doubt, Ginny what do you think?"

"Can you remember everything you've done?" Ginny asked. "Whenever he possessed me, there were always gaps in my memory. I'd wake up places and not know how I got there."

"No," Harry answered. "That's never happened to me."

"Then you're not being possessed," Ginny said simply.

Harry looked at the others. "Convinced now?" he asked. "Because I'm really getting sick of all of this." The others quietly nodded. Harry sighed again and sat down on one of the beds. Hermione decided to change the topic.

"So Harry, how are your lessons with Snape going?" she asked.

"They're going fine," Harry answered. "He's actually helped me a lot. Why do you ask?"

"Well, it's just that…" she began hesitantly. "Well, it's not that I'm upset that you saw Mr. Weasley be attacked, because he likely wouldn't have been saved without it, but isn't this the exact thing you're supposed to prevent?"

"Well I'm trying Hermione," Harry said. "Snape is good. I'm getting better, even he said it. But it takes time."

"You've been practicing all term," Hermione said. "I'm just worried you're not taking it seriously."

"If you think I enjoy seeing through Voldemort's eyes—"

"That's not what I'm saying."

"Sounds like it." The others looked between Harry and Hermione nervously.

"Okay, well yes," Hermione admitted. "I did wonder if it gave you some sense of importance. But I'm also worried for your safety. You shouldn't be seeing these things."

Harry grit his teeth and bit back his anger. He really wasn't in the mood to get into it with Hermione right now. "Like I said, I'm trying. It's not that easy." He sighed. "I even tried hiding stuff from him, but it didn't work."

"Maybe try again," Hermione suggested. Harry glared at her. "Look I'm not saying you haven't been trying, but you need to try harder." They were all quite for a moment before Hermione's eyes got big. "I've got it! Harry you should hide all the times Snape helped you!"

"What?" Harry asked confused.

"Voldemort doesn't know that Snape is working for the Order right?" she asked. Harry nodded. "So if Voldemort looks into your mind and sees Snape helping you, that could be a problem?" Harry nodded again. "So hide away all the memories of Snape being nice and you can use that to practice AND have the added bonus of if Voldemort does realize the connection the stuff he really shouldn't see is hidden."

"That makes sense," Harry said. "But I'm still telling you it isn't as easy as you're thinking."

The day before Christmas Eve, Harry was sitting in his bedroom contemplating. Ever since Remus had brought up the idea about spending the holidays with Draco, he had lamented that the idea had not come to him sooner. Though he could not fully regret his decision to spend Christmas with Sirius. They had spent many hours in the past few days talking. Harry discovered he enjoyed having a parental figure he could talk to about his life.

Remus was there a lot a well. He had great advice, usually better than Sirius if Harry was honest. And Harry was pleased to see the two of them spending more time together. Perhaps things were improving for them.

And yet, he couldn't help but think of the possibilities of having a nearly empty castle with little to no one there to bother him and Draco. It would have been a wonderful time to build their friendship. He had asked Remus and Sirius for advice earlier that day, and Sirius had suggested he write to Draco. Remus cautioned him to be careful with what he said in case the letter ended up in the wrong hands, and that perhaps he shouldn't use his real name.

Harry thought this was a good idea, but after staring at a sheet of parchment for an hour, he had not come up with the right thing to say. What do you tell someone who is your sort of friend that you have a sort of crush on? Eventually, Harry settled on something he felt comfortable with.

Dear Draco,

Thank you for the warning. It is appreciated. Though, honestly at this point I don't think it is possible for Umbridge to hate me more than she already does.

I'm sorry I left before getting the chance to say goodbye. There wasn't time for discussion. They wanted to get us out of the castle before she found us and starting asking questions.

I am sure you know about Mr. Weasley. If you don't, he was attacked by Nagini. He is doing alright. We even got to visit him. The Weasley's are all a bit somber, but I can't exactly blame them. We are making the best of things for the holidays. It helps that I have my, uh, uncles here to talk to. I don't get to spend as much time with them as I would like.

Speaking about time, I wish we had more. One of my uncles mentioned how nice it would have been if you and I had been at Hogwarts for the holidays, and I can't help but think of how right he is. Without any obligations, and a great deal less people, we would have had so much free time.

Oh, well. Perhaps this is an idea for the future. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas. See you when we return.

Sincerely,

Lion

Harry knew "Lion" was not the best name he could use, but he could not come up with anything better. Harry read his letter one last time before rolling it up with a sigh. It would not get any better. Remus had warned Harry not to use Hedwig, so Harry went to give his letter to Remus to mail off for him.

He spent the night with his friends. After Ginny helped him clear the air, everyone had settled down and things had gone back to normal. He still wasn't sure that Ron was completely okay with everything, but unless Harry was in the mood to duke it all out with him, which he wasn't, it was best to just let things lie. And yet, he couldn't quite let it go. After stewing on it for several days, he thought he should ask Sirius and Remus. He quietly made his way over to Sirius.

"Hey, can I talk to you guys?" he asked.

"Sure thing," Sirius replied. "Let me grab Remus and we'll meet you in the study." Harry nodded and left headed to the study as his godfather went fetch his best friend and former lover. Harry was standing in front of the Christmas tree inspecting the ornaments when the two walked in.

"What's bothering you Harry?" Remus asked, sitting on the sofa.

"Well…Ron actually," Harry admitted.

"Ron?' Sirius asked in confusion. "I thought everything was good with you guys?"

"Well it was for a while," Harry explained. "But things have been off since I came out."

"I thought he came around after a few days," Remus asked.

"He said he did, but I can't help but get the feeling that he's not okay with it," Harry said. "And then, when we were at St. Mungo's we overheard some of the Order talking about how they think I might be being possessed by Voldemort, which I know for a fact isn't true. And Ron should have known that too because he knows everything that's been going on, but he was just as scared and skeptical as the rest of the Weasley's."

"So you're upset that he didn't believe you?" Remus asked.

"That, and I just have a gut feeling he's not okay with me being gay," Harry answered. "And I haven't even told him about Draco yet." Harry looked at Sirius and Remus helplessly.

"Have you tried talking to him?" Remus asked.

"No," Harry admitted. "But I'm scared that if I do we won't be able to reconcile and I'll lose a friend. I already lost him once last year when he didn't believe me about the tournament. And I know that over the summer I was the one who stopped talking to him, but there's that too."

Sirius and Remus exchanged a look. Remus sighed and Sirius ran his hand through his hair.

"Look, Harry," Sirius began hesitantly. "You aren't going to resolve this by talking to other people about it. If you truly want to get to the bottom of things, you need to talk to Ron. And if all of your worries are founded, then—and I hate to have to say this—but maybe Ron isn't the best friend for you."

Harry looked at Sirius in alarm. "That idea scares me," Harry said quietly. "Ron wasn't just the first friend I made in the wizarding world. He's my first friend ever. And the Weasley's, they've become like a family to me. If I lose Ron, I lose a lot." He looked at them helplessly.

"Neither of us is saying this is going to be easy Harry," Remus said, putting a hand on Harry's shoulder. "But if you want to know where Ron stands, you need to ask him. And that can have both good and bad consequences." Harry hung his head. "Look, Peter was one of the first people I met on the way to Hogwarts. Sirius and James hit it off immediately, but it took some time for Peter and I to be accepted. Looking back, I can see that I chose to ignore a lot of signs in favor of not losing a friend."

"Keep in mind, we're not saying Ron is going to turn like Peter did, because I don't think he would, but you can't ignore the signs if you think the friendship could be a problem," Sirius clarified.

"No I don't think he would ever turn," Harry agreed. "That's not who Ron is."

"He can still be a good person and a not so good friend for you," Remus explained.

Harry nodded. "I guess that makes sense," Harry admitted. He sighed. "I suppose I'll have to man up then." He gave a lifeless laugh.

Sirius patted his back. "It will be better in the long run," he assured. "Either you guys will clear the air and go back to the way it used to be, or you'll decide it's time to end the friendship. As sad as it is to think about, not all friendships stand the test of time."

"And you'll never know if you don't take that step," Remus added.

"You're right," Harry agreed. Then, a thought hit him. He didn't see why he was the only one who had to have a hard conversation with someone he cared about. "You know, you guys could take your own advice."

Sirius and Remus looked alarmed. "Uh, what do you mean?" Sirius asked nervously.

"Well, you won't know whether you guys could ever be in a relationship again if you don't talk about it," Harry said, trying to hide his smirk and their panic.

"We have talked about this Harry," Remus insisted.

"When?" Harry asked innocently.

"What do you mean?" Sirius countered.

"When did you last talk about it?' Harry asked.

"We had a long conversation when I left Hogwarts," Remus said. "We sat down and worked through a lot. That conversation is the main reason our friendship is as strong as it is."

"Well, as good as that sounds, a lot has changed in two years," Harry protested. "Don't you think you guys should touch base again?" He looked between the two of them as they both refused to meet his eyes. "You'll never know if you don't try."

Remus shot him with a glare. "You know, we keep saying how much like James you are, but you are so your mother's son." Sirius nodded solemnly and Harry burst out laughing. When he finally stopped, he saw both Sirius and Remus were smiling.

"I'll just leave you too shall I?" With that, Harry got up and made his way out.

"I expect you to talk to Ron before break ends you little sneak!" Sirius yelled as he left. Harry laughed again. He would talk to Ron, he decided. But there was no use in ruining everyone's holiday. The last day of break should do nicely.

Harry awoke on Christmas Eve to an annoying tapping sound. He put on his glasses and opened the window to find a very ordinary looking barn owl carrying a letter for him. He eagerly untied the scroll and gave the owl one of Hedwig's treats. Hedwig hooted disapprovingly, but Harry ignored her. He was a bit embarrassed at how eager he was to read Draco's message.

Dear Lion,

Lion? Really? Were you even trying? You're lucky this wasn't intercepted. I don't think anyone would have been fooled by your "cleverness."

In terms of the pink she-devil, you may be right. I don't think she could hate you anymore. But the year is not over yet. There is still plenty of time for you to annoy her, and I am sure you will not disappoint! You've certainly never disappointed me.

Thank you for the apology. Though I am loath to admit it, I was a bit disappointed we did not get a proper goodbye. In lieu of doing it in person, I wish you a Merry Christmas.

Speaking of disappointment, how dare you tease me with what could have been? I've always come home for the holidays. It never even occurred to me that it would be a good time for us to build our friendship uninterrupted. Much like you expressed, I too can't help but wonder at what could have been. However, I doubt my father would have allowed me to stay even had I asked. We have many important events during the holidays, and as the Malfoy heir I am expected to attend all of them. It is exhausting, but I can't say I don't enjoy it.

I'm am sure you would disagree. There are many formal dinners and parties with what I am sure you would refer to as "stuck-up purebloods." Perhaps it is simply because of how I was raised, but I do enjoy the business side of things. Trying to find the right words to say to both please whoever I am speaking with AND ensure that things go the way I want them to is quite thrilling.

Of course, the part you would hate the most is that many of them are your enemies. I am almost ashamed to admit to you the kind of company I have been keeping. I have had to be on my best (worse?) behavior. I am grateful for the occlumency lessons. I believe they have come in handy.

Of course, given the crowd I have been associating with, I obviously am aware of what happened to Arthur Weasley. Half of them boast about how close "we" came to ending him, and the other half lament that "we" did not finish the job.

I know that I do not know any of them personally, but there has always been hatred between the Malfoys and the Weasleys. I have no love for that family, but for your sake, I do not wish them dead. I do not know how it was managed, but I am glad your side was able to save him. You must know, that they will not stop. I am sure you don't need me to tell your side this, but they must be careful. Everyone is growing ever more frustrated on this end, particularly the Dark Lord.

As a parting note, I fully expect you to make up for your lack of goodbye when we return! I do believe you owe me.

Sincerely,

Snake

P.S. If we're being obvious with the codenames we may as well go all the way.

Harry was smiling to himself by the end. And yet, there were parts of the letter which unsettled him. As Sirius had pointed out, he was putting Draco in great danger. All of the blonde's talk of the "other side" served as a reminder for this. Harry suddenly realized in full force how dangerous writing to Draco had been.

Draco's words also served as a reminder of the kinds of people his crush associated with. The Slytherin had assured Harry he did not agree with their stance, and yet he enjoyed their company. How can those two things be reconciled? Could Harry overlook it?

He wasn't sure.