A/N: Thanks for your patience :-D It's been a while since I've updated, and this chapter is a bit short :-S. Thank you all for your wonderful reviews. And thanks for all the advice :-D Iit really helps when I sit down to write my next chapters. Special thanks at the end of the chapter .

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Harry awoke late the next day, and sat straight up in bed with a sudden feeling of panic – I'm late for class again! – before realising that it was, in fact, a Saturday. He sighed, and flopped back down onto the bed. Thank goodness. I don't think I've ever been this relieved that it's the weekend. Harry reflected unhappily on the past week. God knows I need a break…

Harry was looking forward to a nice hot breakfast of bacon and eggs with a pot of tea when he looked out the window. The sun had already risen quite high in the sky. With a sinking feeling, Harry looked at his watch. It was already going on for quarter to eleven, and breakfast in the Great Hall finished at half-past ten.

Harry wasn't sorry that he'd miss the opportunity to see Draco in the Great Hall – he wasn't ready to open that can of worms just yet – but he was sorry to have missed the food.

I guess I could always just sneak down to the kitchens and pilfer something from the house elves…

Harry was struck with sudden inspiration. Or maybe…

He looked around. There was no-one else in the common room.

"Psst! Dobby!" Harry whispered. After a moment, there was a loud crack! and the house elf Apparated in front of him. "Harry Potter, sir!" he squeaked. "How glad Dobby is to see Harry Potter again!"

"Yes Dobby, great to see you too. Hey, listen," said Harry. "I missed breakfast this morning. Do you think you can grab me something from the kitchens?"

"Certainly, Harry Potter!" replied Dobby. "Is there anything in particular that Harry Potter would like?"

"Er… just some toast would be fine, Dobby," said Harry, and the elf Disapparated. He reappeared a moment later, staggering with a hugely laden silver tray, which Harry lifted from him before the house elf was squashed beneath it.

"Thank you, Harry Potter, sir," said Dobby. "Dobby tried to carry a little bit too much."

'A little bit too much' was an understatement. In the middle of the tray was a mountain of toast, surrounded by about a dozen different little pots full of jams and spreads – honey, marmalade, blueberry jam, peanut butter, and some he couldn't identify – as well as a giant teapot filled with hot tea, plus a milk jug and sugar bowl, and a giant pitcher of fresh orange juice. Harry was extremely surprised that the elf had managed to lift it in the first place.

"Wow – this is amazing!" Harry turned to the house elf. "Thanks, Dobby, you're a lifesaver!" said Harry gratefully, whilst privately wondering if he could finish half as much toast in a whole week of breakfasts.

"Any time, Harry Potter, sir! Dobby is always too happy to help!" said Dobby, bowing low, and with a final crack, he Disapparated.

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After breakfast, Harry wandered down to the lake. He suspected that Hermione and Ron would be in the library – where he ought to be, too, finishing off his History of Magic essay – but he didn't feel like talking to them just now. He wanted a bit of time alone to figure out what was happening between himself and Malfoy, before he had to see Draco again.

But it was not to be. Harry had been sitting under a tree by the edge of the lake for only ten minutes, when a familiar voice startled Harry out of his reverie. "When I didn't see you at breakfast, and couldn't find you in Filch's office or in Snape's dungeons, I started to worry."

"You, Malfoy? Worried? Yeah, right."

"You're right. I wasn't in the least concerned." Malfoy sat down beside Harry, with his back up against the tree trunk and his shoulder almost touching Harry's.

Harry stared. "So why are you here, then?"

Draco took some time to reply. "I'm here," he said, "because I think we need to work through all of that angst that we skipped over last night."

Harry thought for a little while. He thought about how happy Angelina and Mie looked together, and then pondered Angelina's advice to him. "You don't have to shy away from your feelings, and you shouldn't be ashamed of them…"

"Well…if you're talking about the problem with you being a boy…then I'm fine with it, I don't care that we're both guys," Harry said slowly.

Draco looked up in surprise, and was about to say something when Harry cut across him. "But as for you being a Malfoy, that is a bit of a problem. I hate you, and you do a pretty good impression of hating me. Plus," Harry continued, "what about Voldemort?" Draco flinched at the name, but Harry spoke on relentlessly. "What about your precious Dark Lord? I know that your whole family is tripping over themselves to do his torturing and killing for him. And you know what, Malfoy? I have a problem with that. We're enemies, and as long as you're a servant of the Dark Arts, we're going to be enemies. And enemies don't just snog each other in the Room of Requirement. If they did, then by that logic I should be shagging the whole of Slytherin house. So – last night…why did you persuade me to stay?"

"I can't give you an answer to that, Potter. I don't know why I wanted you to stay. But we don't have to be enemies."

He sighed. "Listen, Potter," Draco began, "I'm not a nice person. Funnily enough, many Slytherins aren't. But I realised something this summer." He looked Harry in the eye, and then looked away again. "I'm not Lucius, Potter. I'm not my father. And you know what? I don't want to be."

"Well, that's news to me," replied Harry. "Mr Draco My-Father-Will-Hear-About-This Malfoy, distancing himself from his dear ol' daddy? Who else will you run to when you want to get yourself out of detention?"

"Whatever, Potter. You goody-two-shoes Gryffindors really piss me off," Draco said angrily, "with all of your bullshit about being noble and good and pure of heart. I don't want to be like you guys. I don't want to be like Dumbledore or McGonagall or Granger. I don't want to be a suck-up Gryffindor, but Lucius…" Draco went silent for a second, and then continued quietly, "…Lucius is an evil bastard. And I don't want to be him either."

Harry was struck by Draco's seriousness. There was something so sincere in his manner. In spite of himself, Harry felt himself believing Draco's words.

"So anyway, Potter, since I'm not lining up to kiss the Dark Lord's shoes like every other sorry loser in Slytherin, I figured that, even if we weren't friends, we needn't be archenemies." Draco smirked arrogantly. "I've got much more important things to do with my time than waste it quarrelling with you."

"Yeah, well, frankly, I have better things to do, too," said Harry, "although I will miss kicking your arse, Malfoy."

"In your dreams, Potter."

Without thinking at all, Harry replied, "No, Malfoy, in my dreams I do something entirely different with your arse."

There was a sort of choked pause as both boys processed what Harry had just said, which soon developed into a deeply embarrassed silence that stretched on and on – both boys unwilling to say anything more, and both unwilling to walk away.

Harry was the first to break. He jumped up and ran, trying to escape the intense mortification he felt at his own words. He vaguely heard Malfoy's shout behind him, but ignored it. What on earth did I say that for?

But in the next moment, the ground was flying up to meet him and he was face down in the dirt. He heard Draco running to catch up to him, and the felt himself being forcibly turned over.

"Potter, you great, clumsy git!" shouted Malfoy. "I hope you didn't break that overlarge nose of yours in that fall!"

Harry saw that Draco was leaning over Harry on all fours. Spitting out a mouthful of leaves, Harry rolled over and replied, "Well, Malfoy, you know what they say. Large nose…"

"Large handkerchief, Potter?" said Draco, smirking.

Quick as a flash, Harry knocked one of Malfoy's legs from under him so that he fell onto the brunette boy's chest. "Like being on top, Malfoy?"

"Screw you, Potter," rejoined Malfoy, though he made no attempt to move off Harry.

"Are you volunteering, Malfoy?" sneered Harry.

"You wish," Malfoy replied.

A few more moments passed, and still neither boy moved. Malfoy's shirt was slightly open, and Harry had a glimpse of the beautiful skin that had so entranced him the night before.

Harry looked back up at Draco's face. Their lips were awfully close, Harry realised. Close enough to…

"Not here, Potter," Malfoy said quietly.

"Meet me tonight, then," replied Harry. "Outside the Great Hall at half-past eight."

Draco gave a curt nod and clambered to his feet. Harry smiled as he watched Malfoy march stiffly towards the entrance of the castle. Difficulty walking, hey, Malfoy? Harry made as if to follow him, and then sat back down abruptly.

On second thoughts…

…perhaps I'll just sit here for a little while longer instead, Harry thought to himself.

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A/N: Thanks to a lot of really awesome people who have made writing this fic so much easier! Thanks to Konflickted (Thank you for always reviewing, it's so awesome :-) and your fic is coming along so well!), kawanale (lovely review! More HD snarkiness, but it makes for such fun dialogue .), The Marauderet (yep, arrogance is pretty much built into the Malfoy line . and I think Draco would hardly be Draco without it, lol), Xephia (thanks so much! that means a lot coming from a long-time H/D fan! And your new H/D fic is absolutely awesome! Everybody go read it:-D), SwarmOfFanGirls (never fear, the mysterious voice will reveal its identity soon enough!), Sagey (I agree, it can be awkward sometimes when Harry and Draco just forget all their enmity and go all gooey-eyed at each other… I mean, they were worst enemies!), and suki53 (don't worry, Harry and Draco's relationship will definitely move forward, but it won't be without difficulties) and thanks to spikesbitch and Het-Heru and Avvy Kavvy

Thanks also to Paramour Conspiracy – Haha, long-haired Harry is awesome, but he looked pretty good in the latest movie, too – really buff :-D I attempted to draw the fireside scene from the Room of Requirement, but I can't draw! For some really lovely fanart of Harry and Draco, look for the author Naadi, her website is full of fan art and it is absolutely amazing!

And thanks to LycanthaRose – Thanks for your review! Yeah, that whole 'partner going to sleep' has happened to me – it is horrible! – and somehow Ron just seemed like he would do that accidentally. By the way, your guess is really close ;-)

And thanks to Sparrowhawk…