A/N: I want to go ahead and warn for dubious consent here. Nothing actually happens in the story itself, and I've done my best to imply that anything more that happens in the future will be consensual. However, in my mind, Draco and Blaise are both characters who want to be in control, so there's something of a power struggle happening here that I wouldn't necessarily label as healthy.
Written for two events on the Hogwarts Challenges and Assignments forum: Slash September, where it was written for Draco (using Draco/Blaise) and Back to School using the prompt "exam". Word count: 746
Name Your Price.
Draco blinked to clear the fatigue from his brain. One could only focus on Ancient Runes notes for so long, and he was stretching himself to his limits. He scowled at the runes he'd copied from his book onto his parchment, wishing he could make sense of them with ease.
He pressed his forehead into his hands, willing the less helpful thoughts that kept appearing to go away. It didn't work. He was too aware of the others in the common room, of Blaise across from him at the table.
Suddenly, Blaise's notes caught fire. Draco gaped as the notes burnt to ash.
"They were exhausting to look at," Blaise said as if that explained everything.
He stowed his wand in his pocket and stretched his arms over his head as Draco stared at the charred spot left on the tabletop.
"Are you insane?" he asked. "Do you not care about your future?"
Blaise shrugged, a smirk gracing his lips that Draco tried his best to ignore.
"I've decided studying isn't worth it," he said. "It's too exhausting."
When Draco's shock didn't subside, Blaise laughed.
"Your family has more connections than mine, Draco. Surely you don't think some stupid Ancient Runes score will mean anything in the long run."
Draco shifted in his seat. He'd only been focused on beating Granger and not humiliating his parents. What his score would mean after Hogwarts hadn't been on his mind much.
"Are you going to let a Mudblood beat you?" he asked instead, pushing thoughts of a post-Hogwarts future from his mind.
"There are plenty of ways to get a good score on exams besides studying."
Draco glanced around the common room to see if anyone was close enough to hear them. They weren't.
He wasn't morally opposed to Blaise's idea, but it never would do to have rumors spread of the Malfoy heir resorting to such measures.
He leaned in close.
"What do you plan to do?"
Blaise motioned towards Draco's notes.
"I was thinking you'd be a big help," he said.
Draco felt familiar stirrings deep in his abdomen that he always had to ignore around Blaise. He took a deep breath, rolling his eyes to feign annoyance.
"A Malfoy would never let a Zabini cheat off them. I'm not someone you can use for your own benefit."
Blaise's smirk didn't lessen. He leaned over the table, and Draco forced himself to remain as he was. He tucked his hands between his thighs to hide the way they trembled.
Blaise had captivating eyes. Draco had never been disarmed by a look the way he was Blaise's. For the first several years of Hogwarts, he had kept away from the other boy out of fear that Blaise would gain too much influence over him, but that had been a failure.
"What's the harm?"
There was a greater fear in Draco's mind than the cheating. It was the fear that Blaise understood his thoughts far better than Draco wanted him to. Draco squeezed his hands together to ward off his anxiety. He refused to look away from Blaise's eyes.
"What if I feed you the wrong answers on purpose?" he asked. "What then?"
Blaise shrugged.
"My future is in your hands, Draco. You enjoy that, don't you?"
Draco had to remind himself that Blaise was taunting him, not flirting. No matter how much Draco wished for the latter.
"If that's the case, I should get something in return," Draco said.
Blaise's smirk widened. He somehow leaned closer despite the table between them.
"Name your price," he said. "I'm willing to pay it. Anything you want."
Draco's breath caught in his throat. There was no mistaking the way Blaise's eyes travelled down his body. Heat spread from his abdomen out to his limbs, overtaking him.
"You don't want to say that," Draco said, voice trembling in spite of himself. "You really don't."
Blaise didn't say anything as he stood from the table and walked around it as if heading for their dormitory. He stopped by Draco's chair and touched his spine just below his neck, making flames erupt along Draco's skin despite the clothing that acted as a barrier. He leaned in close to whisper in Draco's ear.
"Do I? Think long and hard about what you want, Draco. Chances are, I'll be more than happy to give it to you. If not, I'll be sure to let you know."
He disappeared, leaving Draco staring down at notes that made even less sense than they had minutes before.