Chapter three: revenge is sweet

Malfoy extracted his revenge the next day in Transfiguration. He didn't bother going through the whole (1) dragon and hippogriff show. Instead, he just opened a piece of parchment and began to read.

"Mr. Malfoy," McGonagall said, noticing immediately. "What are you doing?"

"Reading," Malfoy answered back not looking up from his letter.

"There is no note passing in this class. Give that here." The woman snapped and held open her hand. Malfoy looked up from his note at her.

"Do you really think I'd give it to you willingly?" He sneered folding the letter. McGonagall's face went red with anger.

"Accio note," She said pointing her wand and the piece of parchment flew out of Malfoy's hand and into hers. "Just for that back talk, I do believe I shall read it aloud."

"Oh no," Malfoy mocked. McGonagall glared at him before turning and going back to her desk at the front of the room.

"Alright," She said and began to read the letter.

"My dearest Draco," She looked up at Malfoy questioningly. He just shrugged.

"There's no doubt that the letter in Potions was false. I know that you did not write it. But I must confess, hearing such words that have your name to them left me in a state of euphoria.

Why, you may ask, did I feel this way?

Because I, like 'you' said in 'your' letter, have longed for you for years. I crave your presence and yearn for your touch. Oh, your touch. If you'd only touch me, I do believe I would surely die. My heart would explode from bliss and my skin would turn to liquid fire from sheer ecstasy.

You, my dear dragon, are like a sunset. You, like a sunset, are a seemingly common phenomena yet your mere existence and presence sets the sky ablaze. Your beauty holds me and captivates me. I cannot look away nor do I want to. I feel honoured just to be able to look upon you.

I cannot begin to describe you. No adjective could do you justice. No word is enough. All I have is all the adoration and longing in my heart and hope that you can see it though my eyes.

If only you were mine. I would be whole.

Forever yours,

Harry Potter." McGonagall looked up, her blue eyes swimming with tears. She gave both boys a maternal look. The tears leaked out of her eyes as she smiled. "Oh, look at me, what a silly woman I am." She said swiping away the tears and straightened up. "Detention for both of you, tonight at seven." She said and turned back to her lesson.

No one in the class was listening. They were not only stunned by the letter but that McGonagall had cried and then given them detention.

Malfoy, to everyone else, not only looked pissed, and bit ill, but very irate. But on the inside he was smiling widely. Revenge was sweet. He chanced a glance to Harry. The black-haired boy had his head buried in his arms. His shoulders were shaking and the tips of his ears were the colour of an overripe tomato.

As if he could feel Malfoy's gaze, Harry looked up at the other boy. His face was equally as red as his ears and his glasses were askew but it was easy to see that they boy hadn't been crying or shaking with anger or embarrassment but that he had been laughing. Harry gave the boy a quick grin before hiding his face again.

Malfoy looked at him and shook his head. The exchange went unnoticed by everyone else in class but a certain clever little witch who watched with interested eyes.

XxXxX

"Mr. Malfoy, Mr. Potter, I don't know what is going on between the two of you." Professor McGonagall said from behind her desk. Harry shifted uncomfortably, in his chair, under her intense gaze. "I've spoken to Professor Snape and he informs me of a similar incident just yesterday." The old woman glared between the two boys in front of her. "It is obvious that Mr. Malfoy has written the letter I read today and there's not doubt that you, Mr. Potter, wrote the other." She left off to glare at them some more. Neither boy looked up from the floor. "You are to do serve your detentions separately. Potter, you will go to the forest with Hagrid and Malfoy you are to clean the trophy room with Flitch. "

"Yes ma'am," the boys intoned.

"Good, now go," She ordered. Both boys rose from their seats and left the Transfiguration Professor's office.

"Well," Harry said turning around to face Malfoy. "Good Luck?"

"Good Luck," Malfoy said with a nod and then he smiled. A true, genuine smile and Harry found himself smiling back. Malfoy gave another nod, turned and walked down the corridor toward Flitch's office. Harry watched him go until he disappeared around a corner.

With a smile on his lips, Harry turned and went down the opposite corridor toward the Entrance Hall. His chest seemed to be buzzing and as he walked down the hall the buzzing became a hum and then it was a whistle. Neither boy noticed the bespectacled cat that slinked out of a dark alcove and slip into the office.

"What do you think?" Severus Snape asked as he stepped out of a dark corner of the office. The cat looked up at him and moments later it turned into a woman.

"I'm not sure," McGonagall responded.

"I, to, am baffled at this. I think more observation is needed." McGonagall turned around.

"Oh, Albus, I didn't know you were there."

"That's quite understandable, Minerva. I can be very stealthy when the need arises." The old Headmaster said smiling at the woman. His blue eyes twinkled merrily in the dark.

"Yes, well, back to the task at hand." Snape said uncomfortably.

"You are right, Severus. We must discuss what this could mean." Dumbledore said. He waved his wand and a flowery and fluffy armchair appeared before him. "Let's have some tea while we talk." He said with another wave of his wand and a table appeared with all the things needed for tea.

The other two adults conjured up their own chairs and sat around the table.

"What do you think this could mean, Albus?" McGonagall asked.

"Well, if my suspicions are correct, than I do believe that history might just repeat it's self." The old man said.

"You don't mean…" McGonagall said.

"That's exactly what I mean." Dumbledore said. McGonagall shared a look with Snape.

"Oh bugger," Snape groaned.

"Hmm, quite," The headmaster mumbled as he spread jelly on a piece of toast.

All this was watched by a very bewildered and confused pair of chocolate brown eyes.

XxXxX

The next day, Draco was struggling to keep awake in History of Magic when a note tapped his ankle. He looked around quickly to be sure no one was looking before he bent down and scooped up the note.

Draco opened it quietly though he wasn't sure why. Binns wouldn't know if a nuclear bomb went off and most of the class was in such a stupor that if he suddenly jumped up and ran around naked no one would notice.

The note said;

Hey Sunshine,

First off, what do you think of the nickname? I think it suits you, you with your sunset beauty.

Heehee and you call me vain. You're a fine one to talk. Did you spend hours in front of an enchanted mirror to try and think of a way to describe yourself you great big (2) pilliock? Or did you just piece together the praise of your many conquests over the years?

Don't think I am criticizing. It was a good letter. Very enticing. I wonder what it'd be like to for someone to receive a genuine love letter from you. You do have a way with words. Compensating for something?

No, don't tell me. I shall leave that to my imagination and let's just say I have a big imagination. wink wink.

Yours,

H. Potter

Draco covered his mouth as he read the note to keep from laughing. Once he was finished he looked around the room. He was puzzled as to how the letter had come to him. The Slytherins had History with Ravenclaw.

Deciding that he really didn't care Draco shrugged it off and took out a piece of parchment and wrote a response. While doing so he also ignored the voice in the back of his head, which sounded very much like his father, which asked him why he was doing this…whatever it was, with Potter. Once again, Draco decided he didn't care and shrugged it off.

XxXxX

"Harry, why are you continuing this…what ever it is with Malfoy? You never told me what happened between you two in detention. Did he say something? And that letter…well I just don't understand." Hermione said as she walked beside Harry and Ron on their way to Charms.

"It's just a bit of fun, Hermione. And I am not really continuing with the prank. It's just a note to Malfoy. Nothing to worry about." Harry told his friend. After his detention with Hagrid (and his bath due to the lovely swamp they had ran into, remains of Fred and George's flight the previous year) Harry had immediately sat down to write his note to Malfoy.

He wasn't sure why he did it, but it seemed like a good idea. He had wanted to talk to Malfoy about his letter as they had talked about his but the separate detentions made it difficult. It was just a harmless little note. Just a joke. It didn't mean anything.

And as he walked toward class he tried to convince Hermione of this.

"I don't know, Harry. I have a feeling that something more is going on here." Hermione said with concern.

"Hermione, it's just fun. That's all." Harry said getting a bit annoyed. "I'll catch up with you guys later," Harry said and slipped off down another corridor.

"Something's up with him." Hermione said more to herself that to the oblivious red-head next to her.

Harry quickly made his way down the corridor to the History of Magic classroom. He stood on his tip-toes to peer into the room. Though it was only five minutes into the class period the class looked dead to the world.

His eyes were immediately drawn to the head of white-blond hair that was, thank Merlin, sitting at the table closet to the door. Harry shoved a folded piece of parchment under the door. Then, pointing his wand, he sent the note skidding over to Malfoy were it proceeded to tap his ankle.

Harry watched as he looked around as he picked up the note. He really wanted to stay and watch him read it but he was already late to class as it was and he really didn't want detention again.

Harry took off down the hall and made it to the Charms classroom in record time.

"Mr. Potter, ten points for being late. Take your seat." Professor Fitwick said looking at the black-haired teen with disappointment.

XxXxX

That afternoon at lunch, a regal eagle owl landed on the Gryffindor table right in front of Harry and succeeding in knocking over his pumpkin juice.

"Bugger!" Harry shouted as the icy liquid fell into his lap and soaking his trousers, chilling the sensitive skin of his thigh. Harry grabbed a napkin off the table and began to scrub at the wet spot. Once it was relatively dry, he threw the napkin on the table and sat back down. "Malfoy's owl," he muttered to himself as he leaned forward and untied the note from its leg.

The owl hooted reproachfully at him before grabbing the meat out of his sandwich and flying off. His eyes met with Malfoy's and the blond smirked at him. The smirk, despite how Harry was feeling about the other boy during the last few days, was still infuriating and caused Harry's blood to boil.

"Like Master, like bird," Harry grumbled.

"Who's it from?" Hermione asked curiously on Harry's right.

"Malfoy. Must be responding to my letter. I asked him a few questions." Harry explained hurriedly. Hermione tried to catch Ron's eye but he was more interested in his plate of food to notice. Harry began to read his letter.

Sugerbum,

Harry had to bite back a laugh at the nickname and all his ill feelings toward the blond and his owl faded.

I hope that name is sufficient enough for your perfect arse. If not, well I am a Slytherin and I really don't care either way.

Your comment about my many conquests has left me to wonder if out fair Gryffindor is jealous. No worries, baby, at the moment there are none, well unless you count Pansy which I never do. It is just a fact that I am devastatingly handsome.

It is the way Nature intended it. I was made to be gorgeous and everyone else was made to pine for me and praise Its handiwork. It's just the way of things.

But I must admit that it was difficult to write about oneself. I did have help but my source shall remain nameless. They are of no consequence.

As for my being a pilliock, I do believe you are a fine one to talk, Potter. I have heard of your many exploits in the Astronomy Tower. As well as under the Quidditch stands, in McGonagall's classroom and in several broom cupboards throughout the school.

Though, I too have had my romps. As for the love letter, I don't believe I have ever written one for anybody. It is my experience that love is always over in the morning. Ah, look at me; I do believe I shall end that topic right there.

Until next time,

D. Malfoy

Harry shook his head as he read the letter. Malfoy really was a vain little peacock but for some reason Harry didn't find it as annoying as he use to. It seemed…endearing now. Harry shook that thought out of his head. Oh well, time for class.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

(An: (1) Wizarding equivalent of dog and pony show.

(2) A pilliock means 'rouge' but in a fond way.

I LOVE THE NICKNAME SUGARBUM! It leaves me in stitches all the time.

I tried to appeal to McG's feminine side but keep her in character. And I KNOW Draco is a little shit in this chapter but once again, keeping with character)