Chapter Three: The Dreaded Move
Harry moved down the stairs wordlessly and entered the hallway, trying to keep a cool head, letting Dumbledore lead the way. The Headmaster wandered through a series of complicated passages, most of which Harry had never been through before.
The boys followed Dumbledore up two flights of stairs, through three tapestries, waited as he gave a password to a painting of a Gringotts goblin, and finally, after what seemed like an eternity of walking, they came to a large oak door with a great H embedded into it.
Dumbledore took two golden, old fashioned-looking keys from the inside of his robes. He handed one to each of them and stood back expectantly, waiting. Harry stepped forward after seeing Malfoy give the key a dirty look.
What met his eyes when the door swung open made Harry gasp. A huge room swam into view.
There were two long magnificent staircases on either side of a huge fireplace. Two couches- one green with silver trim and one red with gold- stood in the center of the room facing each other. There were four doors that lined the left wall, each with a house symbol on the front of it. Harry supposed that these were the magical doors Dumbledore had spoken about earlier.
A small table stood by an enormous window with a pitcher of pumpkin juice on top of it, accompanied by two empty glasses. There were also twin desks located in a corner of the room, their only difference being that one was painted with Slytherin colors and the other with Gryffindor's. The final thing Harry noticed, before Dumbledore spoke up, was another door located near the corner opposite the desks.
"This is your room, boys, though I hardly think I needed to explain that," Dumbledore said, opening his arms. Harry couldn't help but be overwhelmed.
Neither boy said anything, but Malfoy made a quiet, disgruntled sound and crossed his arms.
"I've seen better," he said snobbishly out of the corner of his mouth so that only Harry could hear, though his eyes gave away the fact that he was impressed. Dumbledore simply smiled and proceeded to give Harry and Malfoy a tour of their new quarters.
"These are the house doors which lead you into the common rooms," the Headmaster said, gesturing towards the doors. He then walked over to the fireplace. "These staircases lead up to your bedrooms, which you can explore later, I am sure."
Malfoy looked around sulkily. "Professor, I just want to be absolutely sure that-" he began.
"Yes, Draco, you are Head Boy no matter what," Dumbledore said with his characteristic calmness. Malfoy's face fell just a tad and he said nothing more.
"Obviously, there are two of everything and the items that belong to you are in your own house colors," Dumbledore continued. "That table over by the window is a newly added luxury for Heads only. Instead of water you get a pitcher of pumpkin juice. It certainly does taste better- oh and it refills itself." Despite Harry's feelings about rooming with Malfoy, he couldn't suppress a tiny grin at the old man's enthusiasm.
He found himself wondering how much he and Malfoy would honestly need to see each other, not too much he supposed, since he now knew that they had separate sleeping accommodations. Harry had thought that they would be sleeping in the same room, but this new knowledge made him feel much better.
"Ah," said Dumbledore, seeming to remember something. "This last door leads into your bathroom." He took a few long strides before coming to the door in the corner and beckoned the boys to him. Harry joined him and Dumbledore patiently waited as Malfoy came with his long, exaggerated steps. Once they were both at his side, Dumbledore grinned and told them in a rather proud voice, "I happen to be very pleased with the outcome of this room; it's the best bathroom, or one of the best, in the school. I believe it even rivals mine." He chuckled and opened the door with the air of someone cutting a big red ribbon at a public store opening.
The tiles on the floor glittered, sparkling clean. They were red and green, reminding Harry of Christmas. There were two enormous sinks that lined the right side of the room, their silver taps shined. The room was brightly lit with over 100 candles placed cleverly about for optimum lighting. A golden, golden, toilet stood a few feet away from a huge bathtub, that reminded Harry of the prefects' tub he had used in his fourth year. The bathtub stood on the right side, just begging to be used. Harry looked around and walked to the very back of the room where there was a long vertical gap in the tiled wall, reaching from floor to several feet above Harry's head. Harry poked his head through it to see five silver showerheads. Harry turned back to Dumbledore who said, "What do you think, boys?"
Harry smiled tightly at him, trying not to seem reluctant. "I've never seen a bathroom like this," he said truthfully.
"Yes well, it did take quite some time to complete. I like it very much, and I hope you don't mind, but I look a dip in the bath when it was first finished. I simply couldn't resist," Dumbledore said, sounding quite amused with himself. Harry gave a little laugh.
"What do you think, Mr. Malfoy?" Dumbledore asked turning to face Malfoy. Harry turned as well. Malfoy was standing at the door. He hadn't moved or spoken since laying eyes on the opulent bathroom.
"We have to share a bathroom?" he asked incredulously.
Dumbledore's eyebrows came together and he looked at Malfoy as if confused. "Is that a problem, Draco?"
"Well…" Malfoy started pointedly. "I don't particularly want to share a bathroom with Potter," he cleared his throat, "honestly, to be as polite about it as possible, I would rather ahem…eat a maggot then share a bathroom with him."
Dumbledore's eyes seemed to narrow just the tiniest bit. "Mr. Malfoy, seeing as you're both boys it doesn't really matter does it?" he said calmly.
"Well, if Harry were a girl would it then be alright for us to have communal showers?" asked Malfoy, still appearing courteous, but Harry could hear the spite and malice stewing quite near the surface.
"Well naturally, if you or Harry were female it would be necessary for separate bathrooms, but because you're both male we used one bathroom to give you more desk space," Dumbledore said, as if that solution were the most obvious in the world. Malfoy's nose flared and his eyes flashed dangerously. For a moment he looked as if he were going to give up on his false courtesy but then he put on a simpering smile and continued on with his debate.
"I certainly don't mean to be rude, but I would much rather have a separate bathroom than extra desk space," he said respectfully. Harry wanted to vomit.
"Everything is already set up, Mr. Malfoy; there really is nothing I can do about it. I'm sure you and Harry will get along just fine and even more so with time. You have all year after all."
Draco couldn't hold back the look of disgust that flitted across his face. Harry had to admit that he quite agreed with Malfoy. It would be the day that Harry professed his undying love for the giant squid when he learned to get along with Ferret Face.
Dumbledore smiled and then placed a hand on Harry and Malfoy's backs and led them out into the main room. He turned to them both and reached his hand into his pocket.
"Here are two extra keys for you both. They're for one of your friends to keep, so that they can come and visit you whenever they like. All of your keys work with the doors in each of the common rooms. I want to make sure that you both take care in who you pick to give the keys to, because if given to an untrustworthy person… well I'm sure you could fathom that outcome." Dumbledore then smiled and held out his arms once more.
"I suppose that is all I need to address," he said cheerily. "I'll leave you two to get better acquainted on a more personal level." Dumbledore then turned to leave but Malfoy made a quick jerky movement toward him.
"Wait!" he called out quickly. "I just- is this really the only way, Professor?"
Dumbledore sighed. "I assume you're speaking about your being Head Boy?"
"Um, well, yes," Malfoy stated bluntly.
"This is indeed the only way, Draco," Dumbledore said with finality in his voice.
Malfoy's face turned unmistakably angry. "I'm afraid to say that I'm going to have to write my fathe-" he began, but when Harry and Dumbledore stared at him with raised eyebrows, his face turned pink and he finished, "mother about this." And with that he stormed across the room and out the door.
Dumbledore shook his head with disappointment in Malfoy's direction. He then turned heavily to face Harry, who was glowering after Malfoy.
"I know that you do not want to be in this situation, Harry," he said, placing a hand on Harry's shoulder. "But I ask that you work with what you're given to show the responsibility that I know you possess." Harry sighed. "It may not seem like it, but there is a reason that you were chosen to be Head Boy, and the same goes for Mr. Malfoy." Dumbledore paused and pulled out his silver pocket watch. "Well, I suppose I should be going- very important meeting with Nymphandora Tonks and Remus Lupin this afternoon. Harry, if you have any more questions concerning anything, come and see me. I believe you have the place to yourself for now… I do expect Mr. Malfoy will be joining you later, once I've had a word with Narcissa… Good day to you, Harry- oh and tell Ms. Granger that I would've chosen her in a heartbeat. She'll want to have known." Dumbledore turned and exited the room, muttering to himself about a horny toad.
As the door clicked shut, Harry reached up and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He made his way over to the large red and gold sofa and flopped down upon it. The couch felt soft and warm but he would've given it up in a second for the cozy feel of his old common room and the nice feeling of simply sleeping in the same bedroom as his friends. He rubbed a little harder at his nose.
He was Head Boy. He guessed that in a few days time the Prophet would run a story on 'Heroic Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived, and now Hogwarts' Head Boy'. He sighed heavily, knowing that he would never be able to fully avoid the public eye. He should've been used to his fame by now, and to an extent he was, but it still bothered him. He supposed Malfoy would really let him have it.
After sitting on the couch and sulking for a private moment, Harry decided to go up and take a look at his new room. He walked over to the staircase on the right and began to make his way up. At the top was a large oak door much like the one that opened into the Head room itself. Harry stepped forward and pushed the door open.
There was enough red and gold in the room to please any Gryffindor. A canopy bed, that looked as if it could fit four people comfortably, stood on Harry's right. Its comforter and pillows all had the image of a lion stitched onto them. There were two dressers, one long one with only drawers, and one wide one with a huge mirror. There was also a full-length mirror located next to an extremely big walk in closet.
"Here we go, Hedwig," Harry said, walking over to the owl who was perched in her cage on the other side of the room. "This is going to be one hell of a year, huh?"
Hedwig hooted in a dignified way, and Harry laughed softly at her, stroking her feathers. He looked dismally around at the room. This was too much, too much of everything. He didn't need any of this. Harry was a simple person with simple needs. Sure everything was nice, but he didn't want it. Luxury didn't sit well with Harry; it wasn't something he was used to or something he had really ever desired. He needed food, water, somewhere to sleep, and his friends, the latter being the most important. That's all it took to make him happy.
He gave one last weighty sigh and turned back to Hedwig. "I suppose I'll go and get Ron and Hermione," he said, stroking her again. "They'll want to hear all about everything, I suppose." He turned and made his way out of the room.
When he came to the bottom of the staircase, he walked over to the door with the big Gryffindor lion carved into it. He put in his key and turned. The door swung open and, crossing the threshold, Harry realized he was at the very top of the boy's dormitories. He had never bothered to climb all the way to the top of the spiral staircase, because he had just supposed that it held someone else's dormitory. Harry should've known it was there because he owned the Marauder's Map, but he'd never had any real reason to examine his own corner of the castle nor closely examine any of the other house dormitories.
He climbed down the staircase and emerged into the Gryffindor common room. Ron and Hermione were seated at one of the round tables. They seemed to be arguing about homework, but upon setting eyes on Harry, Hermione jumped up and rushed over to her best friend. Ron followed closely behind.
"What happened?" she asked breathlessly. "What did Dumbledore say? Did he explain why there are two Head Boys? Did he give you the Head rules? Did he tell you why-"
"Merlin, woman, let the man talk!" Ron said, looking at Hermione sternly.
Hermione glared at Ron, but did shut her mouth, allowing Harry to speak. He smiled resignedly at the both of them. The three friends returned to the table where Ron and Hermione had just been.
Harry went into a long explanation about what Dumbledore had told him and what had happened in the room with Malfoy, being interrupted every so often by Hermione who would say, "Ah yes, I thought so", and by Ron who would exclaim, "That fucker!"
Hermione shook her head at Ron. "Ronald Weasley! Would you say that in front of your mother?" she said hotly.
Ron turned to her and in a smart-aleck tone said, "No I wouldn't, but do you see Molly Weasley around anywhere?" He looked around the room exaggeratedly. "I don't. So anyway, he just walked out of the room? Just like that?"
Harry nodded. "He more stomped out if you ask me."
"And he almost said he would write his father?"
"Yeah, but then he corrected himself and said mother."
"Priceless, I wish I'd been there," Ron finished in a satisfied way. "I bet that made him really angry- you're so lucky, Harry."
"Says who?" Harry asked dejectedly. "Believe me, Ron, I'd much rather be in your shoes right now. Yeah it did make him angry, but that means I'm going to have to deal with him being an arse later, assuming Dumbledore gets his way."
"I think it's likely that Dumbledore will get his way, Harry. I can't believe that Malfoy would speak like that to the Headmaster," Hermione said sounding anxious.
"Well I can, the stupid git. He really does think he's something doesn't he?" Ron said, leaning back in his chair. Harry nodded.
"I have a feeling it isn't going to be easy to keep my hands to myself this year," Harry said angrily.
"Well who cares? Sock him one and I'll help," Ron said eagerly, sitting back up again.
"Dumbledore kind of put some pressure on me. He wants me to 'show the responsibility that he knows I possess'. I can't fight with Malfoy now that he's said that, although I'm not sure how long that could sustain me if Ferret made me angry enough," Harry said sounding exasperated.
"It's all for the best really," Hermione said matter-of-factly. "Heads are supposed to set an example, not fight and rip each other's faces off." Ron gave her a disgruntled look.
"I suppose that's why Dumbledore said he would've chosen you had the choice been up to him," Harry said, grinning.
Hermione spluttered. "He said that?" she asked with a badly suppressed beaming smile. Harry nodded. Ron shook his head but smiled too.
"Well let's see your room, mate," he said getting to his feet, "before Hermione wets herself." Harry laughed as Hermione swatted Ron on the arm and the three of them set off up the boys' staircase.
Harry showed Ron and Hermione around his room. Ron stared at everything enviously, especially when Harry showed him his bedroom.
"Look at all the space you have!" he said opening Harry's closet door. "This is amazing! Why don't you ask Dumbledore if a friend could move in with you?"
Harry chuckled and secretly wished Ron could move in with him, simply so that he wouldn't have to be alone, but then he pushed that out of his mind because he wasn't five. He absentmindedly watched Hermione fix her hair in his huge mirror. She immediately stopped when she noticed him watching her.
"What does that door lead into?" she asked indicating a door hidden in a corner by the right side of Harry's bed.
"I don't know," Harry said with a shrug. "I didn't notice it before."
He walked over to it and pulled it open. It was a door into Malfoy's room. The room was the exact mirror image of Harry's only decked out in green, silver, and snakes.
"Why is there a door leading into Malfoy's room?" Ron said disgustedly.
"Probably for emergency situations," Hermione said, looking around at Draco's furnishings. "It would take too long for Harry and Malfoy to both run all the way down those long staircases."
"Is there a lock, Harry?" Ron asked in the same disgusted tone. Harry examined the doorknob and shook his head.
"Good luck with that then, mate," Ron said raising his eyebrows. "You might wake up one morning looking like a troll." Harry sighed and returned to his own room. Ron and Hermione followed shutting the door behind them.
They all climbed on Harry's bed and sat down.
"This is really nice, Harry," Hermione said.
"Yeah, the only downside is that you have a connected room with Malfoy's and you have to see him naked," Ron said fairly.
"I don't necessarily have to see him naked, Ron," Harry said, sounding slightly annoyed. "I don't have to take a shower at the exact same time as him."
"Well I'm just saying…" Ron said, amused.
Harry flopped down on his back, followed by Ron and Hermione.
"Oh, here Hermione, before I forget," Harry said, reaching into his pocket. "Spare key Dumbledore gave me. He said I could give it to a friend to use, so here." He placed the key in Hermione's palm and she tucked it safely away.
"Where's mine?" Ron asked expectantly.
"He only gave me one," Harry said.
"So then why does Hermione get it?" Ron said, looking at Harry with a raised eyebrow.
"Because, Ron, you would lose it," said Hermione sounding quite pleased with herself. "Besides you can use it too, I'm just going to hold onto it."
"I would not lose it," said Ron, sounding a little angry.
"Yes you would," said Harry and Hermione together, and they both laughed at Ron's look of outrage.
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