Title:Game Without Tears
Disclaimer: I do not own, wish I did, but I don't. I only own my plot line. Full disclaimer, first chapter.
Author: ShaeLynn Teelle
All other information: See first chapter.
Polite constructive criticism welcome. FLAMES WILL BE FED TO THE DRAGON IN MY BED.
Chapter 25: We Will Never Fall
None of the four Slytherins sitting in the main room acted any differently when Harry left Draco's room until they saw Draco standing beside Harry. Then, Pansy simply nodded, accepting that whatever had been the cause of Draco's upset had been settled. The other three got various strengths of smiles on their faces at the satisfied gleam in Draco's eyes.
"I'm sorry for what happened before," Harry began, forcing himself not to think about what had just happened in the room behind him while he explained. "Hermione asked if she could see Draco again and Dumbledore said you all were allowed down to the Great Hall for dinner, if you'd like. After that, Dumbledore said that it might be possible to take off the restrictions around your rooms so you can at least walk around the castle."
Harry's expression became completely serious, not a trace of humor anywhere. "I told Hermione that if she wanted to meet with Draco she would have to meet with all five of you. I will not ask that only some of you come down. I'd like for you all to be there. You are my friends just as much as Hermione and the other Gryffindors are. I will not be forced to choose between you."
The four looked at each other before Pansy stood and nodded, "We'll accompany you to the Great Hall. Thank you, Harry, for including us."
"Like I said, you are also my friends, I refuse to choose."
After a few minutes of silence while Pansy and Harry simply stared at each other, Daphne stood and spoke loudly, breaking the quiet, "Well, perhaps we should all get our robes on, then. We shouldn't really go down in casual clothes, what on earth would they think?"
Draco started to laugh at his friend. Gregory stood up and hugged her from behind, hiding his smile in her hair. Vincent moved over to Pansy and placed a hand lightly on her shoulder before going to their room. Finally, Pansy smiled at Harry and moved off after her husband. Daphne and Gregory went to their own room and came back still pulling their robes about them, but left them open. Pansy and Vincent entered the main room a moment later, Pansy's robes completely closed, but Vincent's were left half-way open. Harry hadn't worn any robes that day and Draco didn't bother putting any on.
The six moved to the door and Harry spoke the password loud enough for the others to hear, thinking as he did that Snape might have killed him had he been in the room with them. They heard the portrait rise and Harry opened the door, holding it politely for the rest of them. Draco led the others out from the suite to meet, not just Hermione, but the majority of the Weasleys, Luna Lovegood, and Neville Longbottom. Harry followed Vincent, whom had gone last of the Slytherins, with a smile on his face, but the smile disappeared as he saw the contingent that awaited them.
"What's going on? Hermione, you only said that you and Ron would meet us here. Why did everyone else come as well?"
"Well," Hermione began nervously, looking about her at the other Gryffindors and Ravenclaw. "Neville asked if he could come when he overheard who we were meeting. He said that he wanted to talk to Daphne about their parents, since the potion was used on them. Ginny came along because she goes everywhere with Neville now, you know that. And Luna… Well, it's Luna, Harry, no one really knows why she does half the things she does, but there's no harm in her."
"Alright, that explains and validates why they are here. Why did Fred, George, and Charlie come?" Harry asked, slightly angry as he had a good idea why they came.
"I'm not really sure, Harry. Perhaps Ron could answer that for you," Hermione said and turned to her fiancée.
"I," Ron started as Harry turned to him expectantly. "I may have mentioned something to them when we left our rooms and Charlie just followed us, but I didn't ask them to come, Harry. I told you I'd be civil to the Slytherins, I didn't ask them to come along."
"Actually, mate," George began with Fred following like usual.
"We wanted to,"
"Thank them."
"They got us a lot of information,"
"And risked their lives as well."
"The least we could do was,"
"Thank them," the two finished the short speech together with a grin.
"As for me," Charlie began, smiling at the slightly horrified looks on the Slytherins' faces after Fred and George were done. "Mum asked me to keep an eye on Ginny and Luna. You know, with them being the youngest and Luna's dad entrusting us to keep her healthy. Honestly that's the only reason that I followed them. However, I think that unless we leave now, we're going to be the last ones into the Great Hall. We might want to get moving."
Fred and George left first, smiles still on their faces. The Slytherins looked at each other and Vincent shrugged. Then, him and Pansy started after the twins, Pansy's arm linked through Vincent's much as she used to link it through Draco's. Then, Daphne and Gregory went next with Neville and Ginny falling into step beside them as Neville began to quietly talk to Daphne. Luna followed Ginny, her attention on something above everyone else's heads, and Charlie walked along beside her, an amused smile on his face as she talked about something only she believed in.
"I'm really sorry about this, Harry, Draco. I didn't know it was going to become such a large group," Hermione said as she fell into step beside Draco, Ron on her other side.
"It's alright… Hermione. It's going to be worse once we reach the Great Hall and we all know that," Draco answered, glancing at the girl.
"I really appreciate what you did for me, several times. I'm glad that you're on our side," Hermione murmured quietly and took Draco's hand with one of her own.
Draco turned to her, startled, but squeezed the hand back tentatively, "You do realize that the things I've said to you over the years, especially the comment about your parentage… It wasn't what I really wanted to say. There were a number of Slytherins, especially in the upper years, that were on Voldemort's side and they watched what the younger ones did until they finished Hogwarts. We all had parts to play, depending on who our parents were and what they expected."
"I believe you, Draco. It hurt a lot when you first started to call me that, but after a while I got a little used to it coming from you. I'm sorry I slapped you."
Draco couldn't help but laugh at that, "It's alright. I deserved it, honestly. No matter what, my behavior was that of a great bloody prat. I deserved that and more, truly."
The two walked in companionable silence while Ron fidgeted, irritated, on Hermione's other side and Harry tried not to laugh at him from Draco's side.
"Ron, if you think you can stomach the Slytherins company long enough, perhaps you would be willing to try a game of chess with Greg after supper. It might be interesting."
Before Ron could answer, Draco spoke up in confusion, "Harry, Greg's never lost a game to anyone since he was ten."
"That's alright," Hermione answered in surprise. "Ron's never lost either."
"Maybe," was the only answer Ron was willing to give, but his irritation faded away as he began thinking of a possible worthy opponent.
The four reached the Great Hall to find the rest of the large group waiting for them. The doors were open, but it seemed that everyone was already inside. There were a number of smaller tables within the room that seated about ten each instead of the long house tables. Many of them were filled already, but there were some that were still empty and some only partially filled. Fred and George had already gone in and claimed places by Bill and his wife Fleur along with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley.
There were four open places at the Weasley table and Ron and Hermione moved towards them, pulling Draco along behind them as his hand was still in Hermione's. Draco looked behind him at Harry to see a worried expression on his face, but he followed without comment. Then, Hermione left him in the chair next to Mrs. Weasley while she went around to the other side with Ron. Immediately Harry took the empty chair beside Draco, hoping that he could at least help if there was a confrontation.
The other four Slytherins took places at a table as close to where Draco was sitting as they could. Neville and Ginny sat next to Daphne and Gregory automatically as Neville continued to talk with Daphne. Across from them Pansy and Vincent sat with Luna comfortably seating herself beside Pansy. Charlie shrugged and sat beside the Ravenclaw, still listening to her talk about what he thought was nonsense.
The Great Hall had gone silent at the presence of the missing Slytherins with only whispers, Luna's nonsense, and Neville's conversation with Daphne disrupting the air. Then, Pansy spoke suddenly to Luna, as though the girl had been talking to her the entire time.
"That's backwards, Luna. Canis Major isn't originally a constellation of a bear, it's actually the constellation that Orion's pet became when he died. The constellation is a dog originally, but some cultures believe it to be other animals, such as a bear."
As though the words were a sign, noise started again in the Great Hall, mostly about the fact that Pansy had known what Luna was talking about and spoke to the girl as if she was just another person. The tables filled with food and everyone began filling their plates with the Slytherins mumbling their quiet words before eating. Vincent listened in amusement as Pansy continued to converse with Luna over various points of mythology during the meal. Gregory was laughing openly at several diners at other tables as they openly stared at Daphne and Neville talking.
Over at the table that consisted of primarily Weasleys, Draco was getting his own surprises. Once everyone had been settled with their food, Mrs. Weasley had turned to Draco with a serious expression on her face.
"Now, Mr. Malfoy, there is something I would like to say to you."
"Mrs. Weasley—" Harry tried to interrupt, but Mr. Weasley stopped him.
"It's alright, Harry. Let Molly speak, you know she will anyway."
Harry nodded slightly and held his breath, hoping that what Mrs. Weasley said wasn't going to be too scathing. Beside him he felt Draco tense a bit as though preparing himself for the same possibility.
"Thank you and your friends for being there and saving my children. Without the five of you, Ginny, Ron, and Harry would likely not be here anymore. I would be honored if you would come and visit me sometime when you are allowed to. And please, bring your friends along as well."
Then, Mrs. Weasley wrapped her arms about Draco's shoulders and hugged him as only she did. For a moment Draco froze in shock before tentatively wrapping his arms about her as well and returning the hug. It was only after they let go that Draco noticed all sound in the room had stopped, even from the other Slytherins. Mrs. Weasley simply ignored it and kept a smile on her face as she addressed Draco again.
"Now, dear, you are much too thin. Eat something, and the same goes for you, Harry. Honestly, skin and bone the both of you. You need some good home-cooked meals is what the two of you need. I'm going to have to have a talk with Albus about the lot of you coming to the Burrow soon. I'll put some meat on your bones."
\/\/\/\/\/
By the time the Slytherins had made it back to their suite of rooms, they were all in varying degrees of shock. That shock hardly lessened when, at the entrance to their rooms, Gregory was politely asked if he would care for a game of chess before the evening was over. The Slytherin looked at Ron in shock, but quickly nodded when the other man started to fidget in the silence.
Neville and Ginny took their leave while hiding their smiles, though Neville promised Daphne that he'd like to meet with her again at some point to continue whatever conversation they had been having. Luna asked Pansy if she could borrow some book the other had on Mythology and followed the girl into the main room of the suite, Charlie trailing behind her as he had been asked to do.
The rest of the group entered the main room as well, Harry smiling at the positive events and the stunned looks on the Slytherins' faces. Gregory fetched his chess set from his room and set it up on the round table where Ron was already waiting, eager for a challenge. Hermione stood behind him, one hand on his shoulder and a proud smile on her face.
Pansy left her room carrying two books and gave both the Luna. They talked for a few moments more before Luna surprised the Slytherin by giving her a brief, distracted hug, then, meandering out of the room. An amused Charlie thanked Pansy and followed after his charge. Pansy sat next to Vincent on their couch and leaned into her husband, surprise still on her face as she tried to figure out the strange girl she had so quickly begun to like.
Draco and Harry sat in their two armchairs in front of the fire. Draco was still surprised at, not only Mrs. Weasley's acceptance and mothering of him, but of the other Weasley's acceptance as well. Harry reached across the small space that separated them and lightly took hold of Draco's hand. Draco looked at Harry, startled, before he glanced behind them at the table where the chess game was just starting. Then, he lifted the hand holding his and gently kissed the back of it where there were no scars, the entire time his eyes were glued to his lovers.
Daphne moved behind Gregory and watched as the chess game began. After a few moments she grew slightly bored as both the men were concentrating on the game and neither were talking at all. Eventually she looked over at Hermione to see the other girl already looking about the room, her attention on what was going on around them rather than the game.
It was obvious when the Gryffindor girl noticed Harry and Draco's actions. She straightened and stared before absently moving towards them. Daphne watched her carefully, hoping that she was not going to react badly to the couple.
Hermione didn't speak until she was behind the two and kept her voice quiet to not alert Ron to the situation. "So when did this happen, Harry?"
Startled, he turned half-way in his chair, meeting Hermione's eyes and thinking the worst, but he only saw a genuine curiosity rather than the horror or anger he might have expected a few short months ago. He gave a slight shrug, a half-smile on his face before he answered her.
"Well, you know that I've been spending time in here with them for a while now. Things just sort-of happened."
"But you never mentioned this the last time I saw you. You spent a week out at the Burrow with us and we had plenty of time to talk before you returned to Hogwarts. You never said more than that you were friends and trusted them. Although, you did seem to talk about Draco a bit more than the others."
"This… I was still figuring things out at that time. When I returned to Hogwarts, I knew what I wanted and how I felt, but I wasn't sure how Draco felt and I wasn't going to say anything until I had talked to him about it. You do understand though? You're not going to get angry now, are you?" Harry answered quietly. He knew how Ron would have reacted, but he hadn't known if Hermione would be supportive or not.
"No, Harry, I'm not going to get angry. I'm glad you've figured out what you want, but I'm still a little surprised. I do have one other… two other questions, though. One, do you prefer men, or do you just not mind if they're a girl or a guy?"
"I think I prefer guys, but I've not really had a chance to find out and I'm not planning to until Draco decides he's tired of having me around."
"Well, that'll be in about… oh… never," Draco replied under his breath, making Hermione laugh quietly and Harry smile as he looked at his lover.
"Are you sure, Draco? Never is a long time to spend with a Gryffindor."
"It's a long time to spend with anyone, Harry. Most adults don't think that the younger generations can make a decision that lasts that long, even though they did around our age, some are lucky enough and know themselves well enough that they can make that decision. It didn't stop us from bonding," Pansy spoke with a smile on her face as she leaned against Vincent.
"You're bonded?" Hermione practically squealed, though she managed to keep her voice low enough not to distract Ron's attention from his game.
Vincent nodded and pulled Pansy against him just a bit more.
"So are Gregory and I," Daphne said from behind Hermione.
The Gryffindor spun about and pulled Daphne into a hug, her eyes shining as she congratulated the girl. Then, she turned back to the couple on the couch and spouted out congratulations to them as well. It only took a few moments of quick chatter for her to have both Slytherin girls agreeing that they'd tell her all about what happens in a bonding ceremony. Before she could get too carried away, Harry stopped her.
"Hermione? You said you had a second question. I know you and you'll think of it and ask in probably the worst situation. So please, ask me now before you forget."
"Oh!" Hermione came over to Harry's side and leaned in close to his ear so the others couldn't hear her. "I already know the answer to the original question I wanted to ask, but I was wondering if I could see you kiss once when Ron's not around. I think it'd be cute."
Harry was blushing bright red at Hermione's question, but nodded slowly just the same, "Sure, Hermione. I think we could do that."
Just as she was turning away, a pleased smile on her face, Harry stopped her again, "Hey, what was the original question you were going to ask?"
She turned back when she answered, a slight blush across her own cheeks, but she spoke loud enough for both Draco and Harry to hear her, "I was going to ask if I could peak in sometime."
Then, she turned away and walked towards the couch that Daphne occupied. It took a few moments for Harry and Draco to figure out exactly what she had just said and when it sunk in they were both red in the face.
"Hermione!" Harry said rather loudly, his voice nearly an octave higher than usual.
"I knew that would be your answer, that's why I didn't ask."
Harry's voice dropped back to normal as Draco moved between laughing and choking, "Since when do you have voyeuristic tendencies?"
"It's not with everyone. I just think it'd be really hot. Besides, then, I'd get some pointers on things I want to try with Ron."
Harry's eyes got wide behind his glasses as he stared at his best friend in shock. He'd learned more about her in the space of ten minutes than he had known about her in years and he almost wished he still didn't know.
It wasn't until Draco finally stopped his choking laugh that he commented on what Hermione had revealed, "I agree with Harry on that. It's a definite 'NO' but if you really want to know something about… um, that… As long as Ron's not around, I'm willing to answer some general questions. I know it's not something you'll find in a book in the Wizarding World. It may be accepted more than in the Muggle world, but it's still considered something that no one needs to openly learn about."
"Thank you, Draco. I'll keep that in mind for later when things have calmed down and Ron's been told about the two of you. Otherwise, he'll get jealous and angry if he thinks I'm spending time with you because I'm interested in you like Harry is."
Then, Hermione turned to Daphne where she sat beside her and looked at Pansy across from her, "Now, Daphne, Pansy, what exactly happens in a bonding ceremony? I know that Ron's parents are bonded, but Mrs. Weasley refuses to tell me anything about it and it's always limited on who's invited."
"That's because it doesn't always work. You know that there's a fair bit of magic involved and the entire ceremony is a magical ritual that goes back past the founder's time. In order for the magic to work, the two people must mentally and emotionally have complete trust in the other and no reservations of any kind about spending the rest of their lives and more at each other's side," Pansy answered, a slight frown on her face.
"It's almost the same as marriage, but a little more lasting," Daphne added, trying to put her thoughts into order. "The Wizarding World doesn't allow for divorces except under special and extreme circumstances. That's why so many adults now are against younger couples marrying or bonding until they're older. It doesn't make sense as an unmarried couple living together is frowned on unless they are living with one or the other's parents who can then supervise them."
"You're right, that doesn't make much sense. How is anyone supposed to know if they can live with the other person for years if they aren't allowed to be on their own together for a while before they make a life-long commitment?" Hermione said back with a frown, her plans changing as they talked.
"It's common for many pure-bloods and those raised in wizarding mixed homes to be raised with the ability to compromise without a fuss. There are still arranged marriages between the upper class families so the children," Pansy paused and looked into the fire for a moment. "I should say the girls, are taught how to compromise and change their way of thinking to fit in with that of their husband. It's nearly impossible to find a bonded pair in the upper class in the Wizarding World. So many of the children are forced into arranged marriages with sometimes disastrous results."
Daphne continued where Pansy had left off, knowing who the other girl was thinking of, "Pansy had an older sister. She was quite a few years older. I believe she had finished Hogwarts a year before we even entered it."
"Two years before. She was almost ten years older than me," Pansy interrupted quietly.
"She was forced into an arranged marriage with another pure-blood from Durmstrang. He had been planning to marry and perhaps bond with a woman a few years younger that he had met there, but she was from a lower class and his parents didn't approve. They removed him from Durmstrang and brought him here, forcing him to marry Pansy's sister. Six months later she was in St. Mungos for a supposed accident that left her paralyzed from the waist down."
"Her husband had been beating her in his anger and bitterness over what his parents had forced him to do. Then, his parents were killed under mysterious circumstances and he hid my sister away and brought the girl that he had wanted to marry back to England. Officially she was a companion to my sister, but they never saw each other. A year later she killed herself. Her husband only learned about it after one of the house-elves risked his anger in telling him."
"That's horrible. I'm so sorry, Pansy."
"It's alright. I only ever saw my sister when she was home from Hogwarts so I never knew her that well. But my father was already in negotiations to marry me off to some pure-blood from Spain whose father was high in the Snake's ranks. The son was even crueler than the father. If I would have returned home, I would have been married to him by now," Pansy paused and wiped away a tear.
After a few moments she continued, holding one of Vincent's hands tightly in her own while he held her close to his side. "But I'm here, and I've found the man I want to spend the rest of my life with. While a marriage can be dissolved if the issue is forced or the marriage was without parental consent, a bond cannot be removed. That's why we insisted on doing this. I have Vincent at my side and I don't need to worry anymore. I know that he'll never hurt me."
"I'm glad, Pansy. You, all of you, deserve to be happy and safe. If you ever need anything, let me know. I'm more than willing to help, but I have to warn you, unless it was written in a book, I might not be too useful, but I'll do my best," Hermione said with a small laugh which the others returned with small smiles.
Before the conversation could return to the bonding ceremony which it had begun as, a shocked noise came from the round table in the corner. The six near the fire looked over to see the two chess players on their feet in surprise. On the chess board were only a handful of pieces left.
"Ron?" Hermione asked from where she was sitting, worried that her boyfriend's temper might get the better of him.
"I… We… He…" Ron sputtered out, unable to complete a sentence.
Then, Gregory choked out a single word that explained exactly what had happened, "Stalemate."
Hermione and Daphne started laughing at the two. It didn't take long for the other four by the fire to join them as the two at the table were still in shock that neither had beaten the other.
"I think it's time for us to go. It's getting rather late and Ron's shock will last for a while yet I think," Hermione said when she got her laughter under control and went to collect her boyfriend who was still staring between Gregory and the chess board in shock.
As she gently escorted Ron out of the room, only stopping long enough to give Harry a hug, Daphne moved over to her husband and led him back to their couch.
As they all got comfortable now that there were no guests, all six of them took off their shoes and those that had put them on for dinner, took off their robes. There wasn't any more conversation that night, though there was some laughter as it still took nearly half an hour for Gregory to completely overcome his surprise. He had never played against anyone where there wasn't a definite winner by the end.
Eventually, the two married couples decided it was time for them to seek their beds. Only Harry and Draco were left and the silence in the room grew slightly tense, though not uncomfortable. Finally, Harry looked to his lover, a question in his eyes. Draco smiled and stood from his chair. Harry returned the smile and stood as well, following Draco to his bedroom where the Gryffindor silently closed the door behind them.
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