AN: Warning! This chapter is more or less 100% fluff. If you're looking for plot go elsewhere.


The Story of a Soul and a Struggle for Control

The Best Summer of His Life

Harry eagerly scanned Tom's bucket list to see what was on their agenda. Then he scanned it again, feeling slightly puzzled.

"Why are these lines here all blurred out?" He asked, pointing at some items that were completely illegible.

Tom blushed. "I wrote that list before I knew that anyone other than me would be reading it. Some of the items on there are a bit personal. I blurred out some things I wanted to keep to myself."

Harry nodded. "That's fine. I did have a question though, about the first item on your list: You want to go to the moon?"

Tom's eyes lit up. "Yes! It was so exciting when they announced in the Daily Prophet that muggles had gone to the moon! Marvolo hadn't believed it, of course, most pureblood wizards didn't. They couldn't let themselves believe that the muggles accomplished something they couldn't. Everyone was ranting about how it was faked, but I just knew it was real, and I've always wanted to go."

Harry hated to deflate Tom's enthusiasm, but there was nothing for it. "I'm sorry, Tom, I don't think that's something we can do."

"I know that booking a trip up there is probably very expensive," Tom said. "But I actually have a lot of money. Donations from the richest families in the magical community for the 'war effort'. I'd be happy to pay for your ticket too, so you mustn't worry about it."

Harry shook his head. "It's not a matter of expense. I just don't think the muggles send people up there anymore."

Tom's face fell. "Really? Why not?"

Harry shrugged. "I think it was just a very expensive project, and aside from some good publicity for their scientists they didn't get much out of it. I'm not sure, though."

"Are you sure they don't send people up there anymore?" Tom wheedled hopefully.

"Pretty sure. If you like, though, I can ask Hermione just in case."

Tom nodded. "Please do."

"I can ask her now." Harry ventured. "She and Ron would actually really like to meet you, and you don't need to worry about them ever giving away your hideout to the Ministry. I could quickly go and bring them over."

"They know about... about everything?" Tom asked cautiously.

Harry nodded. "I told them about everything I saw in the mirror. They know you're not really the same person as Voldemort. And after I- I helped you with the dementors I told them about that too, and they agreed that I did the right thing. No one else knows, but I completely trust Ron and Hermione."

"You did more than 'help me with the dementors', Harry." Tom said seriously. "You saved my life."

"I don't think about it like that." Harry protested. "I don't want you to think that you owe me anything."

"I do, though." Tom insisted. When Harry opened his mouth to argue he held up his hand to silence him. "I know you don't think I need to pay you back somehow, but I want to. If it makes you feel any better, whatever I do for you won't be out of a sense of obligation, it will be because I genuinely want to do something for you. I just hope you'll come to me if you think of anything I can help you with."

"You can give me permission to introduce you to Hermione and Ron, and we'll call it even." Harry said hopefully.

Tom laughed. "Nice try. They're welcome to come, but that's hardly calling it even in my book."

Harry stuck out a tongue at him before going to get his friends.

A few minutes later, and he was back, Ron and Hermione in tow.

"Tom, I'd like you to meet Ron and Hermione. Ron, Hermione, this is Tom." Harry introduced them eagerly, hopeful that they would all take to each other. Then, he paused, a thought suddenly occurring to him. "Is it alright that I called you Tom?" he asked Riddle. When it had just been the two of them they hadn't needed to address each other by name.

Tom laughed. "Yes, of course it is. Nice to meet you Ron, Hermione."

He reached out his hand, and Ron shook it. Hermione, on the other hand, ignored his hand and went in for a hug.

Harry blinked at her, startled. Hermione wasn't a big hugger. At least not like Lavender and Parvati, who hugged each other every time they met, even if they'd seen each other a few minutes earlier. Hermione wasn't like that, though.

Tom looked taken aback, but returned the embrace awkwardly, and when Hermione pulled back and smiled cheerily at him, Harry realized that it was her way of showing Tom that she didn't view him as Voldemort but as a new friend. Bless her heart.

"Tom, Harry told me you were interested in space travel. I was thinking that we could go to the local library by my house. They have a few computers there, we could both research the issue and you'll learn how to use a computer at the same time, it's a very valuable skill. Also, since we'll already be at the library, I've compiled a list of must-read books that have been published in the past fifty years."

Ron groaned. "We're on vacation. Don't we have enough of the library at school? Must we visit there in our free time?"

Hermione smiled at him. "You'll enjoy this more than the school library. We'll get you some comic books to read."

"Comic books?" Ron sounded intrigued. "I suppose I might enjoy a book if it were funny. A short one, though!" He cautioned her.

Hermione ignored him in favor of fishing in her pocket to dig out a long roll of parchment and handing it to Tom.

"The Chronicles of Narnia," Tom read out loud. "To Kill a Mockingbird, The Phantom Tollbooth, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest..." His eyes scanned down the list, and then he looked back up at Hermione. "Can I get a comic book too?"

Hermione sighed. "A comic book isn't quite what you think it is. But maybe you'll enjoy them too."

Tom shrugged in easy acceptance, and then turned to Harry. "What about you, Harry? Are there any books you recommend?"

Harry had never been much of a reader, but he hated to disappoint Tom, so he wracked his brain for a book he had liked in his pre-Hogwarts days. After a bit of a think, it came to him: "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." Harry declared triumphantly.

"That is a good one." Hermione said approvingly. "And I can see why it would appeal to you especially, Harry."

"Why would it appeal to Harry especially?" Tom asked curiously.

"Why don't you read the book and find out?" Hermione replied.

"I will." Tom said. "In fact, Harry, I'll read that book first of all the ones on the list." He then shot an apologetic look at Hermione. "No offense to your taste in books, Hermione, your comment just had me curious."

Hermione glanced at Harry, and then gave Tom a warm little smile. "None taken."


Hermione and Tom had ended up getting on like a house on fire, just as Harry had suspected they would. In fact, during some evenings, when Tom would choose to spend his time with his nose stuck in a book Hermione had recommended to him rather than play Exploding Snap with Harry, Harry felt that they got along too well.

Tom had also won Ron over by taking him and Harry outside one day and showing them how to fly without brooms. Soon it felt as if Tom had always been part of their little group.

Harry and Tom were on their own, though, today. Tom had finally deemed it safe to reabsorb the Horcrux in Harry, and Ron and Hermione hadn't wanted to get in the way.

Since it was just the two of them, Harry felt it safe to broach a subject that had been bothering him, but that he had not yet had the courage to ask about.

"Tom." he said softly, as Tom sat down on the couch across from him in preparation for the process. "I wanted to ask you something."

Tom turned his attention to Harry and gestured for him to continue.

"When you were still doing research about the soul magic to make sure it was safe to reabsorb the Horcruxes, I was paging through one of the books you had laying around. There was a section that talked about reabsorbing Horcruxes, and it said that it was incredibly painful. It even said that it was possible for the pain to kill you!"

Tom smiled at him. "Harry, I-"

"Wait!" Harry interrupted quickly, "I wasn't done. Let me finish before you decided what your answer will be. The thing is, Tom, that I'm worried about you. I'm worried about you dying, or even just enduring unnecessary pain. And it got me thinking: is having a whole soul really necessary? I don't mind having a bit of your soul in me, I really don't! And just think, if you leave the Horcrux where it is, you won't have to worry about dying as long as I'm around. It's really the safest option. You should consider it."

Tom had waited slightly impatiently during Harry's rant, and when he was sure Harry was done immediately launched into his own speech: "Harry, I really appreciate your worry for me, but it's unnecessary. I know what the book says, I've read it too, but reabsorbing the Horcruxes wasn't like that for me at all. I think that it's because my Horcruxes weren't made willingly, that it somehow made my soul more connected to the Horcruxes than they would generally be. When I reabsorbed the other Horcruxes it didn't hurt at all. It felt like- like completeness. Like suddenly finding something long lost. I'm looking forward to reabsorbing this last Horcrux."

He smiled at Harry gently. "I'm glad you don't mind playing host to that little bit of me, but I don't value immortality half as much as I do finally being complete after all these years."

"Oh," Harry said, deflating. "In that case, I guess reabsorbing the Horcrux is for the best." He could admit to himself that he was slightly disappointed. The shared piece of soul between him and Tom had been a tangible proof of the connection between them. Tom's life had been intertwined with Harry's since he was only one year old. Harry had saved Tom, and Tom had, in his own way, saved Harry. The Horcrux in him was a manifestation of that, proof that Tom was more than just a stranger he had only truly met a few weeks ago. If they no longer shared a soul, would Harry have no more claim to Tom than Ron or Hermione did? He hated the thought.

Still, he could hardly resent Tom wanting to have a whole soul. "Let's do this. What do you need me to do?"

"I held the other Horcruxes when I absorbed them. I think it might be helpful if I were touching your scar. Would you mind?"

Harry swallowed and nodded, allowing Tom to take one of his hands in his own and place his other hand gently over his scar. Tom closed his eyes, frowning in concentration, and Harry let his eyes fall closed as well.

There was a great rushing sensation within him, a pulling, a yearning. Harry realized that the bit of soul in him longed desperately to reunite with Tom, and with a breath of wistful nostalgia, Harry let it go and return to its proper place. There was a great swooping sensation throughout his body, and for a moment he felt like he was flying- or falling, he wasn't sure which. Then it was over and he was left feeling strangely empty.

His eyes opened and met Tom's wide startled ones.


Tom opened his eyes. Harry's green eyes opened a second later, and Tom met them, trying to adjust to the way the world had suddenly changed around him.

The Tom that had closed his eyes, sans Horcrux, was not the same Tom who opened his eyes, with a complete soul. What he had just experienced was nothing like the re-absorption of the other Horcruxes. The other Horcruxes had resided in empty, lifeless vessels. They had returned to him happily. This Horcrux, however, had spent almost two decades nestled up against another soul. It had experienced love and friendship, and all the things Tom had always wished for and had never had.

It was like trying to fit a puzzle piece back into place only to find that it didn't quite fit anymore, and Tom closed his eyes again, trying to reorient himself.

"Tom?" Harry asked worriedly, when Tom had been silent for too long.

Tom found it difficult to meet his eyes. He felt like he was suddenly looking at Harry in a different light.

He had fancied Harry before, of course. The heroic boy who had saved his life. The brave soul who had stood up to Voldemort defiantly when more powerful wizards had quailed. It would have been stupid to deny he had had feelings for Harry before this.

Now, though, there was no longer a flutter of nervous excitement at being in Harry's presence. Rather, there was a deep sense of certainty. Harry was no longer the dashing teenager who had entered his life and made it so much better, he was now someone that Tom knew as well as he knew himself. A permanent fixture in his life. However aware or unaware the soul that resided in Harry had been, it carried with it the knowledge of who Harry was and that he was the person for Tom.

"Tom?" Harry asked again, when Tom forgot to answer, "Is everything alright?"

Tom nodded. "Yes, everything's fine."

He had been nervous before at the prospect of revealing his feelings to Harry. He had debated between trying to give a hint, and just letting it go and hoping his feelings went away on their own. That was no longer an option.

Tom had pursuing to do, and he needed a plan.


"Where did you meet this friend of yours, again?" Mrs. Weasley asked Harry for the nth time that day.

"Tom used to live in my neighborhood." Harry replied again, as patiently as he could. "We would play together when I was younger, but his parents moved away a few months after we met. I didn't even know he was a wizard until we ran into each other again just now."

"And he knew that you were a wizard because they told him about Harry Potter when he was in Beauxbatons?" Mrs. Weasley asked, repeating the story Harry had told her, and thus proving that she had been listening the first ten times he had gone over this with her.

Harry nodded.

Mrs. Weasley sniffed. "If he's such a good friend of yours, I don't understand why he never bothered to contact you once he realized who you were. What kind of friend doesn't offer his support at times of hardship such as those you went through?"

"He was afraid that I wouldn't remember him." Harry explained. "And would think he was just a random bloke trying to get connections through the 'famous Harry Potter'."

"Ridiculous." Mrs. Weasley said, "Anyone would be thrilled to get contacted by an old mate they hadn't seen in a while. That sounds like an excuse. What it seems like to me, is that he's a fair-weather friend who only wants to be associated with you now that there's no risk involved in being around you, and you're the brave hero who killed You-Know-Who."

"A lot of people are insecure at that age." Harry replied, sighing. If Mrs. Weasley was so suspicious of Tom after being told such an innocent backstory, how would she react if she ever learned the truth?

Mrs. Weasley softened. "I don't mean to discourage you, Harry dear, I just want to make sure you give your friendship to people who are worthy of you. Now that you're no longer a leper in the wizarding community, do you know how many owls I got from 'old friends' I hadn't spoken to in ages, who wanted to meet and catch up? And inevitably, halfway into the conversation, they'd slip in a casual: 'By the way, I hear your children are close friends with Harry Potter. What is that like? Is it true that he's filthy rich?'. Not everyone is like that, of course, but you need to exert your judgement carefully sometimes."

"Can't you at least give him a chance?" Harry asked, "All I'm asking is that you wait until you meet him before making a judgement."

Neville and Luna as well as a good portion of the Order were coming over for lunch, as had become a Sunday tradition in the past month. This was the first meeting to which Tom was invited.

"I'll tell you what." Mrs. Weasley said, relenting a bit. "I'll observe him this afternoon before making any judgements. If I see that he's nice to Luna, he has my stamp of approval."

"Luna?" Harry asked, "Why Luna?"

"Because, Harry, he'll obviously make an effort to be nice to all your friends. This is the first time he's meeting everyone, and he'll naturally try to be nice and make a good first impression. And usually, it's very simple to be polite and friendly to everyone for a couple of hours. Luna, though, is an odd girl. Some people will find it natural to treat her condescendingly, or roll their eyes at her. If he can be kind and respectful to her when she says something outlandish without sharing a secret smirk with everyone else behind her back once she turns away, then I can know that he's a good sort."

Harry had seen Zacharias Smith smirk at Luna condescendingly with a superior little quirk to his eyebrow too often not to know what Mrs. Weasley was talking about. "Alright, then." Harry said. "Just hold off judgement until this afternoon, and you'll see."

"I will." Mrs. Weasley promised. "And don't you go warning him now that he needs to make sure to be nice to Luna! No insider knowledge! Either he does it on his own, or he doesn't."

"I promise." Harry said solemnly. Then, after a few seconds of silent contemplation he asked: "Do people really come up to you and ask you how rich I am?"

"Harry, dear, that's one of the least outlandish questions I get asked. Do you know that the other day Mrs. Fawcett asked me if it was true that you were the heir of Gryffindor?"

"The heir of Gryffindor? What's that? It's not anything like the heir of Slytherin, is it?"

Mrs. Weasley rolled her eyes. "Apparently it means that you inherited a huge secret vault at the very bottom of Gringotts filled with piles of money, mysterious artifacts and journals containing magical knowledge lost to the ages. Honestly! Where some people get their ideas I will never know..."


Tom had, of course, been perfectly charming from the moment he stepped foot on Weasley property. He greeted Ron and Hermione warmly, introduced himself to Mrs. Weasley politely and offered to help with meal preparations, and had been friendly, engaging, and pleasant to everyone he was introduced to. Charisma practically seeped out of his pores. His most charming behavior, though, was reserved for Harry.

Despite meeting new people and getting into animated conversations with them, he never left Harry's side. He engaged Harry in conversation whenever he fell silent for too long, and spoke to him in a manner that was so warm and engaging it bordered on flirtatious.

"This has definitely been the best summer of my life." Tom was saying to Luna and Neville, as he flashed Harry a significant grin. Harry wasn't sure how much of a compliment to him this was, considering it was the first summer of his life without Voldemort latched onto his soul like a parasite, but Tom seemed to expect him to take it as a compliment. "Have you done anything interesting this summer?" Tom continued, turning to Harry's friends, as Harry wondered what message Tom had tried to convey to him.

"Well," said Luna "Daddy took me to Sweden for two weeks to hunt for crumple-horned snorkaks. It was quite fun, even though we didn't manage to catch any."

"Crumple-horned snorkaks?" Tom asked curiously, "What kind of animal are they? I've never heard of them."

"The reason you've never heard of them is because they don't exist." Hermione said firmly.

"Of course they do!" Luna replied indignantly. "Tom, crumple-horned snorkaks are omnivorous semi-aquatic creatures, rather like the platypus, only their fur is green, and they have a yellow horn that, while normally crumpled, straightens out when they're trying to attract a mate. They're really fascinating creatures."

"They sound like it." Tom replied, sounding slightly bemused. "So why does Hermione believe that they don't exist?"

"Because she's close-minded." said Luna harshly.

"No, I'm not!" Hermione said indignantly, "It's because there's absolutely no evidence whatsoever that any such animal exists!"

"Well, there has to be some evidence." Tom replied reasonably, "I'm sure Luna didn't imagine a crumple-horned snorkak one day and decided that they must exist. There must be some basis for her belief. Maybe footprints that don't match any other local animal's, or some sightings from far away? You might disagree with Luna about her interpretation of whatever findings there are and think there's a different explanation for them, but there must be some evidence to support the existence of crumple-horned snorkaks. Luna wouldn't just make it up out of whole cloth, would she?"

"Wouldn't she?" asked Hermione, raising an eyebrow.

"Would you?" asked Tom, surprised, turning to Luna.

Luna smiled mysteriously. "Wouldn't I?"

Tom considered her for a moment, trying to discern if she was serious. "So say I've just thought of a creature that's called a pot-bellied snuffer. It's huge, walks on two legs, and is covered in yellow feathers, and it only eats rhubarb. Would you now say: That must exist?"

Luna smiled. "Don't be silly, Tom. There no such thing as a pot-bellied snuffer. What you just described is an obsk."

Tom laughed uproariously. "Very well, Luna. It's awfully hard to argue with that logic."


As the night became late and the various Order members began to disperse, Tom yawned and declared that it was time for him too to go home.

"Are you okay to apparate?" Harry asked worriedly.

"I'm fine." Tom replied reassuringly, "I only had two butterbeers with the meal, and that was over an hour ago."

"Are you sure?" Harry asked, "Because if not, you don't need to take the Knight Bus. It's no trouble if you want to spend the night."

Tom smiled. "Honestly, Harry, butterbeer is barely alcoholic. I'll be perfectly safe."

"Alright, then." Harry conceded. "Come, I'll walk you out."

Once they had left the gathering behind, Tom broached another subject. "Your comment about butterbeer reminded me- one of the items on my bucket list that we haven't yet done is going to a muggle pub. We should do that some time next week."

"That sounds fun." Harry said enthusiastically. "Dudley had a fake ID, and he always went with friends. They seemed to like it."

"Shall we go on Tuesday?" Tom asked innocently.

"Ron and Hermione have a date on Tuesday evening." Harry reminded him. "Ron already made a reservation in that fancy new restaurant off Diagon Alley. Do you mind going-"

"We could go without them." Tom said quickly, "Unless-"

"-just the two of us?"

"-you want to wait for them?"

"I'm fine with going without them, if you don't want to wait." Harry said in what he hoped was a casual voice.

"Yeah, it's probably for the best not to have a drunk Ron in a muggle area." Tom replied immediately.

"Alright then." Harry smiled.

Tom smiled back. "It's a-"

"Get down!" Harry suddenly whispered harshly, pulling Tom down behind a bush and crouching low.

"Harry?" Tom whispered worriedly, "What is it?"

Harry put his finger to his lips, and gestured with his head. Tonks and Lupin were walking down the dirt path from The Borrow on which Tom and Harry had been standing a moment earlier. It sounded like they were in the middle of a heated conversation.

"Tell me, Harry," Tom whispered sharply in Harry's ear, "whenever you hear two people talking is your first instinct just to hide and eavesdrop on them?"

"Shh!" Harry replied.

"-you need to stop bringing it up." Lupin was saying. "I've made my decision. I refuse to make you an outcast like me, to condemn you to the scorn of society!"

"That's the most condescending thing I've heard in my life!" Tonks replied indignantly. "Do you think I can't make my own decisions? That I don't know what's best for me? You're not being gallant, Remus, you're being an arse!"

Remus sighed. "It's not that I think you can't make your own decisions, you know that's not true. But you've never experienced what it's like to be hated blindly by half the people around you. You've never been refused service at a store, or had someone cross the street to the other side when they see you approaching. I love you too much to want that for you."

"You... You love me?" All the anger was gone from Tonks' voice.

When Remus replied, he sounded puzzled. "I thought that was obvious."

Tonks shook her head. "At first I thought you had feelings for me, but then you were so resistant to the idea of a relationship that I began to think that maybe it was just physical attraction on your side and the whole werewolf explanation was your way of letting me down easy."

"Dora, that's so far from the truth-" Remus sounded pained.

"Remus," Tonks interrupted him, "I don't care about 'the scorn of society' or if some bastard refuses me service. I love you too. The offense or annoyance that idiots like them will cause can hardly compare with the happiness that being with a man as wonderful as you will give me." She smiled slightly. "I believe I'm my mother's daughter in that regard. So if you love me too-"

"I do." Remus replied, leaning towards her.

They began to kiss, at which point Harry began to muster up enough shame to consider looking away. Just as he had determined that he probably should, though, they broke apart. Tonks whispered something in Remus's ear and in response he wrapped his arms around her. A moment later they vanished with a crack.

"Wow!" Harry exclaimed gleefully, the moment they had vanished.

Tom shook his head. "I can't believe we invaded their privacy like that. That was way too personal a conversation to overhear."

"I didn't know the conversation would go like that!" Harry said defensively, "I just wanted to get some insight into what was keeping them from acting on their obvious attraction. I had no idea it would get so intense!"

Tom was insistent. "It was still wrong. We shouldn't have listened to them. Besides, now I have dirt all over my clothes. And you have a leaf in your hair." He plucked if out deftly.

"If you regret staying to listen so much," Harry said grumpily, "how come you're smiling like a loon?"

Tom looked down, but the smile didn't leave his face. "It's just really nice to see;" he admitted, "how despite all the circumstances which on paper would make it seem like there was no chance for them, they still managed to become a couple. I think they'll be very happy."

"So do I." Replied Harry contentedly.


Three days later Harry had occasion to think back on that conversation and realize the hidden meaning in Tom's words.

It started the night before, when they had gone to a nearby muggle pub together.

It was getting rather late when Tom shook Harry's arm. "Harry!" Tom's voice was worried. "Harry, I can't find my wand!"

Harry tore his eyes from the television screen where a football game was being broadcast. He wasn't sure who he was rooting for, but he was having fun cheering along with all the other people in the pub whenever a goal was scored.

Tom was searching the table for his wand, and coming up empty. Harry tried to think where the wand could be, but found he was feeling too happy and light to think about a problem as complicated as that.

He tried to spur his sluggish brain into action. "Maybe you left your wand at home." He finally suggested.

Tom considered that for a moment. Then he frowned. "No, I definitely had it. I used it to confund the waitress into selling us alcohol, remember?"

"Oh, right." Harry got up to help Tom look for the wand, and found that the floor was feeling far less steady than it normally did.

"I found the wand!" He announced. "It's in your back pocket!" An old memory came into his head and he giggled. "I'm glad you didn't blow your buttocks off." he told Tom, laughing to himself.

Tom frowned. "I can't believe I didn't notice it was in my back pocket. I think I might be drunk." He contemplated the notion for a second and then laughed. "I'm drunk! I've never been drunk before."

"I think I'm drunk too." Harry confided in a whisper.

"You're definitely drunk." Tom told him, and laughed again.

Having come to this conclusion, it was decided that they would have to take the Knight Bus home.

After som wild waving of their wand arms, some fumbling with money (Stan Shunpike had to help them count out the sickles), and one nauseating bus ride later, they were finally deposited outside of Tom's house.

"What do we do now?" Harry asked, stumbling dizzily into the house, "I'm too happy to go to sleep!"

"Maybe have a drink of water?" Tom suggested responsibly, "We don't want to get dehydrated."

That was when Harry had a wonderful, marvelous, brilliant idea. "I know what we should do!" He exclaimed, "We should play spin the bottle!"

Tom frowned. "I don't know that game."

"I'll explain it to you!" Harry offered generously, "It's very easy. You sit in a circle, and put a bottle in the middle. When your turn comes you have to spin the bottle, and when it stops spinning you have to kiss the person it's pointed at."

Tom looked puzzled. "But there's just two of us playing. Wouldn't that mean-"

"Tom," Harry interrupted, "it has nothing to do with math. It's really a very simple game. You must be really drunk if you're having trouble understanding it. Here, let's start playing, and you'll pick it up as we go."

Tom frowned for a second, but then shrugged. "I suppose I am quite drunk." He admitted finally. "Alright, I'll get a bottle."

Tom insisted that Harry go first, since he understood the game better, and Harry spun the bottle. When it stopped spinning it was pointing some fifty degrees to Tom's left.

"Sometimes it doesn't point directly at a person," Harry explained, "and then you need to see who's the closest person to where it's pointing. In our case, that's you. That means you have to kiss me. Or do I need to kiss you? I can't rememb- Mphh!"

He was suddenly being kissed by Tom quite fiercely. A moment later, Tom's tongue was in his mouth and his hands were on Harry's arse, and Harry forgot all about the game.


Harry woke up the next morning with a pounding headache and a horrible taste in his mouth. He was lying on the carpet in Tom's living room. Tom was lying on his stomach beside Harry, and Harry took a moment to admire how handsome he was, even with his face half smushed into the carpet.

Tom must have sensed Harry's eyes on him, because a moment later he stretched, and his eyes opened.

Immediately, his eyes closed again, and he let out a low groan. Harry, knowing exactly how he was feeling, conjured up a glass of water and handed it to Tom.

"Thanks." Tom said gratefully, taking the glass from Harry and gulping it down. A moment later he paused, and his eyes focused on Harry. "I kissed you last night!" He exclaimed, and smacked himself on the forehead. "I can't believe I kissed you last night! This is terrible!"

"Look," said Harry, trying to disguise his hurt, "if you don't have feelings for me that's fine, we'll just-"

"It's not that!" Tom said irritably, "It's just- I had a plan."

"A plan?" Harry asked.

"To woo you!" Tom explained. "It was a great plan. It involved flirting and me being charming and romantic and gallantly winning you over. It did not involve drunkenly kissing you while my breath probably smelled like beer!"

"I don't mind." Harry said quickly.

"You don't?" Tom asked hopefully.

Harry shook his head, and then winced at the pain.

"I'm glad." Tom replied softly. "Because this-" he gestured between them- "is too important to me to mess up."

"It's important to me too." Said Harry happily.

And that was that.


AN: Like I said, pure fluff. I hope you enjoyed it, though. I felt like Tom deserved a break.

Only the epilogue left now. :)