Draco Malfoy had been waiting for Harry Potter to talk with him. He didn't want to be the person running around hanging on a Hufflepuff's words. And yet, a full day had passed, and Curt hadn't even so much as glanced momentously at him. So he wasn't sure exactly what to do. In frustration, he had begun to walk the halls of Hogwarts, not really caring how dusty he got (and that was a change, wasn't it?). Mentally, he reviewed what he had learned in the past few days.
Snape. Shite, it always came down to Snape, didn't it?
... and Snape had gotten his information from Potter, hadn't he?
At about this point, Draco Malfoy wanted to punch the walls until his knuckles bled, because he started to see exactly why Curt hadn't said a word.
He had been told not to, and for once in the miserable bloke's existence, he seemed capable of following the rules.
Worse, it made a miserable sort of sense - if Draco had gotten himself obliviated, Curt would need to react to what Draco had conjured in place of "Why I am Curt's friend." And, like many things mental, that could have been anything.
So, obviously, Curt wasn't supposed to go and talk with him.
Draco found himself a floor above Curt - as the other boy trudged towards the Great Hall, his mind clearly on anything rather than where he was walking. "Psst!" Draco hissed, jerking his head when Curt looked up. "Walk with me."
Draco could almost swear that he saw a faint anticipation steal over Curt's features, as he headed up the steps.
Curt walked placidly beside Draco, while Draco wanted to scream forbidden questions at him. Curt merely smiled at Draco's increasingly frustrated glances that were slowly turning into a constant, melting glare. Curt laced his fingers behind his head, and he said, "If you want to remain my friend, you owe House Hufflepuff an apology."
"They got to you already, did they?" Malfoy said, nearly spitting his words.
"I should try to get along with my house, shouldn't I?" Curt said reprovingly.
"I always do," Draco agreed, "But then again, I'm not in the House of Friendship. They might like you better if you played hard to get."
"Befriending a bully isn't 'playing hard to get' - it's just a way to get ostracised." Potter continued, a shade colder than Draco had ever heard him (and considering what Draco had said about his parents... that was saying something).
"I'll apologize," Draco said promptly, and Curt relaxed - Draco found himself gratified that Curt was... concerned about him, at all, really.
[a/n: You've been there. You know you have.
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Draco's right to not expect immediate friendship from Harry...]