AU! EWE
Warning: a bit of swearing
WRITTEN FOR QLFC, SEASON 10, Round 8
Puddlemere United
Seeker: "My reputation's never been worse, so." - Delicate
WC: 2026
"Are you sure you want to do this, mate? You know what people will say," Blaise Zabini trailed off as he glanced over at his childhood friend.
People walked past them into the Ministry without sparing either of them a glance. And if they did look at them, they would quickly lower their gaze and hurry away. They were still scared of them even years after the war was over.
Draco Malfoy stared at the gates of the Ministry and his lips turned up in a slow smile. Shaking his head, he murmured, "My reputation's never been worse, so…it's not like I care anymore. I'm doing this and no one can stop me."
With an uncharacteristic shrug, quite unbecoming of the heir to the supposedly vast Malfoy fortune, Draco walked towards the gate as if someone was dragging him to the gallows. He dragged his feet under him, his shoulders remained hunched, and he didn't meet anyone's curious gaze at all.
Blaise trailed after him like a lost puppy.
Pin-drop silence echoed through the crowded lift when they got on it. Blaise amused himself by staring at an old woman and smiling at her like a pervert. She inched away from him as best as she could, and Blaise's smile widened.
Draco kicked him in the shin pointedly, at which Blaise mouthed, "Ow," but didn't stop staring at the woman.
She reminded him of that bitch Umbridge from Hogwarts; her dress was shocking pink and her hair was white and curly. Blaise—and every other sane human—had hated that woman with a passion, though Blaise was a Slytherin and refused to let others (except his closest friends) see his true emotions.
Unfortunately, before Blaise could get wand-happy and prank her, the old woman rushed out of the lift as soon as it reached her floor. Blaise pouted but leaned back against the wall. The other remaining people gave both Draco and Blaise a wide berth, as if they were scared the two Slytherins were going to start spewing Avadas at them.
At the thought, Blaise glanced at Draco, whose face was stoic as usual. But the slight tick under his left eye gave him away. Blaise had known Draco since they were children, and along with Theodore Nott, their other best friend, he knew how Draco really felt.
Blaise had seen Draco's mental and physical health deteriorate during their sixth year. He'd seen how living in the same house as the Dark Lord had affected Draco. He had also seen the beginning of Draco's silent rebellion. And he had silently supported him throughout because that's what best friends did.
Of course, because Blaise's mother wasn't stupid and whichever husband she'd been married to back then wasn't important or rich enough to join the Death Eaters, Blaise hadn't needed to become one either. For that, he was eternally grateful. Walking around with a giant snake and skull tattoo on his arm wasn't his style.
But because he was Draco's friend, people thought him guilty by association. Most of the time, it was funny seeing them scurry away, thinking he was going to gobble them up or something. But Draco didn't think the same way. He'd often tried to push Blaise and Theo away, but Blaise now called himself and Theo 'Draco's personal human leeches.'
Theo, the pain in the arse that he was, always grumbled and said, "You can just call us his vampires. They suck blood."
Blaise's repetitive reply was, "They just suck. Period. We're human leeches. It makes us sound more villainous and evil."
Maybe we should dress up as leeches this Halloween. It would give Pansy such a fright if I sneak into her house at midnight through the window…Ooh, maybe I could smear blood on my face and—
"Level three," a monotonous voice rang out in the lift. "Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes."
The doors slid open, and Draco stormed out of the lift without a backward glance. Blaise hurried after him.
They found Theo, who was pacing in the hallway, wringing his hands and glancing at the clock on the wall. He looked up when Blaise and Draco approached him. He cried, "Why are you two so late? Blaise, I told you to bring Draco here on time. Do you know what time it is?"
Blaise looked at his own Muggle designer Swiss watch and said, "We're exactly three minutes and forty seconds late…forty two…forty four…forty—"
"Oh, shut up, you!" Theo slapped Blaise's shoulder.
It felt as if a gnat had just smacked into him. Blaise made a mental note to drag Theo to the gym with him next time. Muggles might not be able to do magic, but Blaise thought they did have some magical things—like gyms, designer watches, and Nutella (of course, he could be biassed because Nutella was Italian like him).
"Is…Is he here?" Draco whispered, suddenly scared. He swallowed and glanced around the empty corridor.
Theo's tone softened and he smiled as he jerked his chin towards the Marriage Registrar's office down the hall. "He actually dragged me down here."
Draco's eyes misted over and he quickly turned his head away. Theo smiled and looked away to give him some privacy, but Blaise had no qualms about pointing it out.
"Mate, are you crying?"
"No!"
"You're crying! Are you seriously crying that your fiance got here before you?" Blaise asked incredulously.
"Shut up, or else I'll kill you," Draco hissed, straightening his shoulders and glaring at Blaise.
Just then, Hermione Granger materialised behind them and piped up, "As much as I would love to see you kill Zabini, I'm afraid any murder you have planned must wait until after the ceremony. Harry's waiting and you know he's not a patient man."
"Don't I know it?" Draco muttered before licking his lips.
"Ew. Gross, we don't need to know that," Blaise said and gagged dramatically.
"Blaise…I swear!" Draco fisted his wand and glared at him.
"Just think of it…The Prophet's front page news would be that the saviour of the wizarding world was saved from getting married to a Death Eater because said Death Eater got caught murdering his best friend," Blaise teased and jumped out of the way just as Draco's wand sparked in annoyance.
Granger sighed and put her hand on Draco's forearm, stopping him before he could do something. "Malfoy. Go. You're stalling."
Draco's eyelids fluttered a bit, and Blaise knew Granger was right. Was Draco getting cold feet all of a sudden? No, he loved Potter—which had felt so very strange in the beginning but now felt like it was the truth of the universe. Exercising made you strong; wearing wrist watches made your forearms look hot; Nutella was the most delicious thing ever invented; Draco loved Potter.
Simple.
"Do you think he's doing the right thing?" Draco asked quietly, not moving from his spot.
Granger's eyes widened. "What?"
"Potter. Is he—"
"She's not deaf, Draco," Theo interrupted quickly. "She wants to know what you meant."
Of course, the two nerds in love understand each other's language. Blaise remained silent though; he wanted to hear what Draco had to say.
Draco didn't show any outward sign of nervousness, but he was staring at the door of the marriage registry office without blinking. He finally said, "He can do so much better than me."
A joke was on the tip of Blaise's tongue, but Granger and Theo both shot him a pointed glare and shut him up before he could even open his mouth. Damn nerds.
"Harry loves you. Why would he want to marry someone else?" Granger was logical as usual.
"I'm a Death Eater. I was in Azkaban. I bullied him as a child. I made his life a living hell. I—"
"Has Harry forgiven you?" Granger asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
"I—He—"
"Has he forgiven you?"
"Yes…but—"
"If he's forgiven you, then why would you bring up the past again and again? You bullied me more than you did Harry," Granger said.
Blaise couldn't help himself. "And you've done Potter so many times."
Theo snorted and looked away when both Draco and Granger glared at him. "Sorry! It's Blaise's fault!"
Blaise didn't have time for Draco's melodrama. He was already late for his gym session. He reached forward and whacked Draco's head. Draco cried out, "What was that for?"
Blaise noticed the door of the office opening and a familiar black-haired man peeked out. Blaise cocked a brow at him and jerked his chin towards Draco. Potter frowned but started sneaking up towards them.
Pretending he hadn't seen Potter yet, Blaise said to Draco, "You're the one who said your reputation couldn't get any worse."
"Mine can't get worse, but what about Potter's?" Draco demanded and slammed his foot down like a child. "I can't let him do this to himself!"
Potter snuck up behind Draco and slapped him upside the head. His face red, Draco whirled around, ready to hex the intruder, but he paled when he realised who it was. "P-Potter! You!"
"Yes, me," Potter said with a roll of his eyes. He tapped his foot impatiently and demanded, "How dare you think you can make a decision for me? You know how much I hate it when people do that. First the Dursleys, then Dumbledore and Snape, and now you?"
Draco tried to argue, "It's not like that—"
Potter reached up and cupped Draco's face. It was too intimate for Theo and Granger to handle, so they politely faced away from the couple. Blaise, of course, didn't care how intimate they were getting. He'd seen too much of Potter's and Draco's arses than he had ever wanted, so a bit of face-holding was nothing for him.
"I love you. I want to get married to you. I asked you to marry me," Potter said firmly, leaning forward and pressing his forehead against Draco's. "If you don't want to marry me, tell me."
"I do!" Draco barked, his eyes wide with horror. "I really do, but I don't want people to hate you for it."
"People can go…" Potter cursed creatively, a sign that he really was the Weasel's friend.
Speaking of the Weasel…
"Hey, where's the Weasel?" Blaise asked conversationally, interrupting Draco and Potter.
They turned to look at him silently, but Blaise didn't understand. Granger cleared her throat behind him and hissed, "Let them talk, Zabini."
"But the Weasel…"
"He's getting everything ready for the reception at the Burrow. He doesn't really care about Draco and Harry eloping," Granger explained impatiently. "Now, let these two talk or else there won't be a wedding reception."
Blaise quickly shut his mouth and waited for them to get on with it already.
Potter turned to Draco and said calmly, "Tell me if you want to marry me or not."
"I told you I do!" Draco scowled and crossed his arms. "But I don't want you to regret it later when people talk badly about you for marrying a Death Eater."
"You were a shitty Death Eater and we all know it. Don't use that excuse with me."
Draco had no words left. He opened and shut his mouth like a codfish until Potter rolled his eyes, grabbed Draco by his collar, and dragged him towards the marriage registry. Potter called out over his shoulder to them, "We'll meet you at the Burrow when we're done!"
Grinning, Blaise gave them a thumbs-up and turned to Theo. "So, how about I take you to the gym in the meantime? Your muscles really need a good workout. A strong wind could blow you away!"
Before Theo could retort, Granger grabbed Theo's hand and declared, "I like my men weak. And for your information, he gets great workouts in the bedroom."
Blaise gawked as she dragged a blushing Theo towards the lift.
Of course, Blaise didn't believe the part about their workout being 'great.' What did the nerds get up to in the bedroom? Read dictionaries and encyclopaedias for fun?
"Hey, isn't it funny they've got the Marriage Registry on the Accidents and Catastrophes floor?" Blaise asked out loud as he walked after them.