Chapter 5

A/N: Has it been too long? I think so. I was so excited to get this up for you guys to read. I'm not sure what I think of it, so as always, I will need you guys to give me plenty of feedback. Speaking of that, I want to give a HUGE thank you to EVERYONE who has read, reviewed, favourited and followed this story so far. It makes me so happy :) -wink wink-

By the way, shout-out to my friend ILuvRumbleroar (review if you know the reference), she was my wonderful inspiration and keeps me going by frequently asking "So, how's the Hedgehog fic going?" (Get it? Harry/Cedric=Hedric=Hedgehog. Cute right? :)) She is awesome.

Sooooooo without further ado, chapter 5!

Harry entered the room with the other champions, and they were told that the first task would be in two months time, along with the rules, including No champion may receive help from professors, students, or other champions. Harry scoffed at that. Yeah, right, my boyfriend and I are both in this tournament, facing deadly circumstances, and I'm best friends with Hermione Granger, and you think I'll do this bloody tournament single-handedly? Even if he wanted to, there was no bloody way that was going to happen.

Harry forced himself to take deep, calming breaths. Cedric looked like he was about to pass out from shock, but he kept quiet. After Fleur stopped throwing her hissy fit, and Krum, well, he just continued to brood as always, without a glance toward Harry,Cedric finally managed to close his gaping mouth (Harry was beginning to worry his jaw would stay permanently dropped like that), and the initial shock of what had just happened began to slowly wear off as he walked like a sleepwalker back to the common room. Harry entered the common room and was swept up into a celebration that was quickly escalating into something Harry didn't want to stick around for, given the copious amounts of alcohol that many Gryffindors had apparently already consumed. Still, it was half and hour and two forced butterbeers later when he finally made it up the stairs to the dormitory and collapsed on his bed, exhausted.

Sometime in the wee hours of the morning, Harry was roused from a troubled sleep by a frantic tapping noise outside the window near his bed. Disgruntled, Harry rose drowsily from his bed, felt around blindly for his glasses on the nightstand, and, upon retrieving them, crossed the space between his bed and the window, struggling to place his glasses haphazardly on his nose. He pulled out his wand and cast a hasty Lumos as he let the owl that had woken him fly into his room. He quickly recognized the handsome black and white bird as Cedric's owl, Artemis. She stuck out her leg and Harry quickly untied and opened the small, rolled up parchment. It read:

Dear Harry,

Meet me tomorrow night during the Witching Hour, on the Quidditch pitch. I have questions.

Love,

Cedric

Harry rubbed the sleep from his eyes and forced them to focus as he stumbled around until he found parchment and a self-inking quill, and penned a sloppy reply.

Cedric,

The Witching Hour? Don't we do stuff like that all the time? Yeah, I'll be there, but couldn't this have waited till breakfast? The Witching Hour was only a few hours ago, you know! But I forgive you.

Your Love,

Harry

Harry wasn't sure why he wrote "Your Love" rather than just "Love" or why he omitted the "Dear" at the beginning of his reply, but he reasoned that it to be because his feelings for Cedric, and more pressingly than he cared to admit, a certain Slytherin, were thoroughly confusing him for the time being. But the one constant was that Harry knew that he would always be Cedric's only "love". So he settled for reaffirming the pleasant obvious rather than attempting to sort out his strange feelings right then and there, at three in the morning, while he was half asleep. With that distorted reasoning on his mind, he fell once again into a fitful and intermittent sleep.

The next day at lunch, Cedric walked Harry to his table, and before departing, whispered in Harry's ear "See you tonight, my love". Harry shivered at the possessive statement, spoken as if quoted from last night's exchange. It made him feel secure, yet confused his emotions to a point where he began to feel ridiculous. Cedric loved Harry. Harry loved Cedric. Harry just wasn't sure if Cedric was the only one. And it frightened him a bit. Okay, more than a bit.

Inadvertently, Harry's eyes flickered to the table surrounded by green, and caught the stormy gray eyes of the boy in his memories. Draco caught him looking and bit his lip in what Harry interpreted as a suggestive manner while he smirked impishly back and mouthed "Hello, Potter". Harry blushed furiously and looked away. What the hell? Draco hadn't shown the slightest interest in him for so long. Why now, of all times? And why did it feel like he knew something?

...Oh, no...

-Flashback-

Draco mouthed "I know" and Harry's eyes were fixed on him. McGonagall admonished the boys for being late, and Harry's face reddened under Draco's stare as he hurried to his seat beside Cedric near the back of the room...

-End flashback-

Oh Merlin...he knew!

As lunch ended, Harry noticed with dismay that he had been so wrapped up in watching Malfoy that he had barely touched his food. He rose to his feet, still dissecting the strange expression that had graced Draco's face earlier in the meal. He hadn't seen that much mischief in those eyes since...well, let's not get into that. More than slightly unnerved, Harry headed for the Hall's exit in a confused daze, and got caught up in the post-meal outflow of students from the Hall. One moment, he was alone in his little bubble of distracted existence that had become the norm as of late, and the next minute, he felt a living, breathing entity come up close behind him. His stomach jumped and he thought desperately Nonononono not him, not now! Just as a breathy whisper spoke in his ear, closer than he thought, saying "If you ever get tired of Pretty-Boy Diggory over there, you know where to find me." Then, to his horror, he felt a hand smoothly stroke his arse as if in passing. How dare he? He leaves and breaks my heart, and now he has the nerve to touch me like that? Harry glared at the boy above him, and furious green met devilish gray.

"Fuck you Malfoy" Harry whispered dangerously.

"Right here? Now? In the Great Hall?" Draco replied with deceptively innocent eyes "Harry James Potter, you kinky bastard. It's been a while, but...I wouldn't say no." His eyes flashed and he grinned devilishly.

"Now you listen here Malfoy" Harry replied, struggling to keep his voice level and quiet "Cedric loves me and I love him back just as much. Only him. So whatever sick game you're playing you'd better stop it and fuck off right now before I do something we'll both regret."

"Is that a promise Harry?"

"I said fuck off Draco!"

Harry realized his slip a moment too late, a wide smile spread across Draco's face and his eyes shined almost wistfully as he whispered "Ahh, it's been so long since my first name has passed those delicious lips of yours, Harry. It sounds so good, especially when you're angry with me."

To his horror, Harry actually blushed as a memory of a fight they once had, or rather, what happened after they made up, intruded into the angry haze that was his mind. At his blush, Draco's smile widened. He reached out and touched the heated flesh of Harry's cheek lightly, stroking down his jaw. Harry was enraged that, through the anger that clouded his senses, he at first did not notice Draco's touch until he whispered "You look bloody amazing when you blush like that" at which Harry became aware that his face was much too close for comfort. Or the safety of Draco's perfect face for that matter.

At his words though, at the feel of his very breath on Harry's skin, Harry snapped out of his enraged stupor. He smacked the blonde's hand away violently and growled "And don't you ever touch me again Malfoy."

Harry strode purposefully out of the Hall, and Draco's eyes followed him with the hunger of the hunter for his prey. Most students had long since left the Hall, but among the few remaining was Cedric, looking upon the quiet exchange with wide eyes. From his unfortunate vantage point, facing Harry's back, he had a full view of Draco's wide impish grin, glinting eyes, and gentle touches, yet no view of Harry's furious eyes and gritted teeth. And it was rather unfortunate also, that Cedric Diggory had a terrible habit of jumping to conclusions.