Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns H.P. universe, and always will.

A/N Enjoy the chapter, and forgive any grammar/spelling mistakes in advance.

Important Notice: In this story, there will be a few things that are very obviously AU, one such thing, Fred Weasley did not die in the war, and Neither did Severus Snape. I like both of them too much to let them go. I hope that doesn't bother anybody.

Softening Around the Edges.

September Eleventh

I'm not sure how I feel today. I got a good sleep last night, and now, with the morning sun clear in the sky, and my dorm mates moving about, you'd think I had a plan ready. Theo is now in the bathroom, having woken up about a minute after myself. Does that boy have some sort of stalkerish charm on me or something? I mean, seriously. I was up for about thirty seconds before the bloke started stirring; mumbling like he usually does.

The second his eyes open, they flutter for a minute before landing directly onto mine. I don't flush, because I have enough control to do so, but Theo doesn't seem to care. He ambles out of bed, his face lit with happiness; and without waiting for my permission, he smacks a kiss on my lips, and then slips his tongue into mine.

I only responded because it was automatic, but after a minute, when my mind finally caught up with me, I pushed him away gruffly, and muttered that we were definitely not dating. He seemed put off for a minute, but kept his cheerful mask on, as if I didn't know it was a mask. I had perfected a façade for myself as well, so I knew that his true feelings were hidden behind a cheerful aura. But I knew better, I knew that I had hurt him by my words, but I couldn't bring myself to care. He already owes me a week of 'slaving' so to speak, and I fully intend to make use of it.

I was wondering if I should make him dress me, to make him even more uncomfortable with the whole idea, and then perhaps with his pride so humiliated he'd call off the deal.

He was gay, and if I was, because I enjoyed kissing him, I couldn't really care less. I would lust or love after whomever I wanted, and that was the end of that.

Theo just came out of the bathroom. He looks pristine. Not like he usually does. It seems like he put in a double effort, perhaps to woo me. I'd laugh in his face if it weren't socially awkward to do something like that. Besides, I'm a Malfoy, I need to keep my name as high as I possibly could. I'm the Slytherin Prince, after all. And princes need to take care of their kingdom.

Everyone besides Theo and myself are sleeping. In a last ditch effort to get rid of this deal, I plan on standing up, and making Theo dress me. Ha, that should definitely be fun. I'll bring this with me today, in case my thoughts somehow turn dirty, and I need a nice quiet, comfy place to vent.

Draco shut his diary, and did exactly as he had planned. He stood up, directly in front of Theo, and for a second, Theo's mask slipped, a look of hope crossing it before he shut his expressions off, and looked at Draco inquiringly.

"Draco?"

"I would like for you to dress me today." Draco replied, his mask on, and his voice not cold, but not warm either. He didn't want Theo to get the wrong idea. Dressing him, was, definitely a service, was it not? The other boy had not thought to negotiate further, and for that, he would have to suffer; if he considered it suffering, probably not.

Theo let out a sharp breath, and actually smiled. "I'd love to, Draco."

Draco knew he shouldn't have been surprised, that Theo would take this as an opportunity to be able to touch him for longer, but he'd already gotten himself into this, and there was no way in hell he would back out now. He was not a coward.

By the time Draco and the rest of his Dorm mates had descended into the Great Hall, he felt extremely claustrophobic. Theo felt the need to stick by his side the entire time, even going as far as to take a bagel and put on cream cheese on it, without waiting for a say so. If Draco hadn't liked toasted bagels, he would have wrung Theo's neck and hexed him into tomorrow. As it was, he flushed a deep scarlet. Theo was acting exactly the way he hated; like an excitable puppy, waiting to appease and excite his master. If Draco had his way, there was no way he would give Theo another sexual orgasm anytime soon. Theo needed to learn to bugger the fuck off!

For some strange reason, he felt a draw to look up. His eyes met the cool stare of Harry Potter, and he sighed. Was the guy homophobic? It was certainly possible. He wasn't known to do anything with blokes, but then again, he barely ever did anything that would suggest he wasn't bent. The only two girls he ever showed a fancy too, was never in the picture for too long.

The she weasel was still attached to Potter, as they had gotten together again once the war was over. There was a certain amount of smugness and relief coursing through Draco's body, as Potter seemingly shooed her away, and then met Draco's gaze once more.

The glance was anything but innocent. The emerald orbs held so much mystery, and intensity, Draco found himself catching his breath. His face had gone a few shades paler, as he realized with a start that Potter still affected him. Even in their Eighth Year at Hogwarts.

Two things happened then, the Great Hall doors opened, to reveal two very familiar red heads, along with a red headed woman, who seemed to be dragging her sons to a very peculiar looking Professor McGonagall. At the same time, a body landed in his lap, and a very high pitched voice began chattering loudly in his ear.

"Drayyyyy!" The voice shouted, her exuberance and public displays of affection made the entire hall think that they were an item. Theo was glaring. And if he had looked, he would notice that a certain raven haired boy was glaring as well. As it was, he saw neither.

"Pansy, if you don't get off my lap this instant, I will slip a permanent ugly potion into you're drink, and no one will ever give you a second glance."

Pansy's monologue abruptly stopped, and she glared dangerously at him. It looked as if she was tempted to slap him, but then her features softened, in a very Slytherin like way, and in a sultry voice said "Of course, my dear Draco, we can continue this in the privacy of our rooms; I'm sure you'd love to get reacquainted with my body again."

Draco colored, and although Pansy was a girl, he pushed her off him, and abruptly stood up.

"If anyone dares follow me, they will not be happy." He looked particular in the direction of Theo, but included everyone in the vicinity.

He was the Slytherin Prince. No one questioned him.

He was thankful not to hear any footsteps following him, and ignored the angered shout of "I don't see why we need to go back to school! We already have a bloody job!"

Draco rolled his eyes. If the Weasley twins were indeed forced back for the School year, it would be extremely interesting.

He had made it to the entrance of the dungeons, when he suddenly became aware of soft padding heading towards him. It didn't sound rushed, and that alone made him wait. When he saw Potter turning 'round the bend, he wasn't sure if he should be happy or sad.

"Potter?" his voice was tired, and he was in no mood to fight with Potter. They hadn't fought in a long while, but then again…They hadn't exactly spoken to each other either.

"Did you see the Weasley twins?" Potter asked him, his voice filled with mirth. This alone had Draco pausing. Harry Potter was making fun of a Weasley? Was he dreaming?

"Potter?" he asked, this time his voice portraying his uncertainty of the very possibility of the conversation.

Potter didn't seem to have heard him. The glint was still there, and his eyes were shining brightly, a small smile plastered on his face. Draco had no doubts that it was real.

"The way Mrs. Weasley was dragging them in by the ear? That was absolutely priceless. It makes no sense though, why do they need to come back, they're both 20 years old…." Potter drifted off, and then finally realized what he had been saying, and shut his mouth abruptly; his cheeks staining a pretty red color.

Draco hadn't realized he had started walking again, but it didn't seem to matter, because Potter seemed to be following him, deep within his own thoughts.

"Any particular reason you followed me?" Draco asked, wanting to get Potter out of his musings before they would reach the Slytherin Common Room.

"Oh," Potter said softly. "I-I guess it must have been a reflex."

"A reflex?" Draco snorted, not quite believing his Gryffindor counterpart.

Potter said nothing else, and Draco sighed and let it pass. Potter would talk when he was ready. They would have to enter the snake pit after all.

The two of them sat in a quiet corner of the Slytherin Common room, hidden away from any possible curious eyes. It was only after nearly half an hour had passed, and Potter still hadn't said anything, that Draco began to get annoyed.

He watched as Potter fiddled with a loose thread on his jumper, and controlled a deep desire to rip it off.

"Any place we'd get more privacy?" He finally asked, his voice near silent.

It was only because of the depressed way Potter was looking at him, that he gave in, and led the two to his bed.

Mercifully, no one was there, and he quickly drew the curtains closed, as soon as the two of them were securely sitting on the bed. He cast a privacy charm around them, and then muttered a sticking charm on his curtains so he wouldn't get any unsightly interruptions. Least of all Theo.

It was a good thing the two of them had first period off, because at the slow rate Potter was going, they'd be there all day.

"Well?" Draco asked finally, real worry finally settling in. Potter was usually talkative and smiling, and now all he got was a grimace for his tentative tries.

Another minute passed, and finally Potter spoke. His voice was in a whisper, and a trace of hurt could be heard.

"Ron broke off our friendship." He said finally, his voice breaking.

Draco could not comprehend why Potter was telling him this; but decided to humor him until he could understand what Potter was going through.

"The pathetic weasel-bee broke off the friendship with you?" he reiterated, just to clarify.

Potter nodded, and Draco was surprised that the former did not bother to correct him for the rude way he had spoken of his friend.

"Why?" Draco could not understand why someone, who had been friends with someone for seven years, would just break off a friendship, like Potter was insinuating.

"Because I became friends with you."

Draco, who had been drinking water, choked, and spit the water out compulsively, spraying its contents all over Potter.

The latter didn't even flinch. A quick spell cleaned up the mess regardless.

"You have got to be fuckin kidding me!" Draco said, finally letting the words sink in. Potter had chosen his commitment to be friends with Draco over a seven-year friendship with Ronald Weasley. That was so not a Potter thing to do. Potter had a hero complex, and an absolute strive to do anything and everything right.

"Why?" he asked again, this time referring to why Potter would choose him over the Weasel.

"He made me choose. He called me names, called you names, and well, said that if I were to even think of spending any time with you he'd stop talking to me. That I was deranged, and mental, and a git, and that you're a death eater, which I replied that you're not, but he wouldn't listen to me…and he just left, and slammed the door, and now he ignores me."

"But we hardly spoke in almost two weeks that we've been here!" Draco replied, unable to keep the astonishment hidden.

Potter gave a small smile at that, and shrugged. "According to Ron, it's because I haven't been calling you names every spare second. He only just realized recently, and asked why we don't fight as often as we used to. So I told him that I've sprung up a friendship with you, and had no reason to begin stupid fights with a friend. That was when he blew up."

Draco didn't know what came over him, as he leaned over and pulled Potter towards him, cradling the smaller boy in his arms. When he heard a sniffle, and felt his shirt get slightly wet, he did not yell, or cuss. Instead, he tightened his hold on the Boy Who Lived, and let him sob it out. He had lost his best friend after all, it was the least he could do.

September 15th

Four days have gone by, since Potter and I had a what I would call 'heart to heart' it probably couldn't be categorized as a 'heart to heart' by normal people, but I've got to say, Potter and I are most certainly not normal.

Potter cried on my shoulder for what seemed like hours. He had no qualms about leaning against me, and I've found that after five minutes of the feel of his body against mine, I quite liked it. I didn't tell him this, though, because if he is somehow Homophobic, (which I doubt,) he most probably would have stiffened when I took him in my arms. Needless to say, Potter and I didn't emerge until lunchtime. Should I call him Harry? Maybe to myself, I'm sure he'd feel uncomfortable with the extra closeness and familiarity first name contact brings. Anyway, It's definitely a good thing that neither Potions, Transfigurations or Charms were during the day classes, because both Harry and I would have been screwed.

When Harry finally calmed down, I peeked through my curtains surreptitiously, and seeing no one, jumped at the opportunity to see if anyone was in the common room. It was blessedly empty. I ran back to Harry, who was laying exhaustedly on my sheets, and helped him up. He looked a mess, and so, being a Malfoy, and used to a clean and pristine appearance asked if he would mind being refreshed, he glumly shook his head no, and so, I quickly freshened him up with a wave of my wand, and he looked a lot better after that.

I smiled at him, not sure why I felt a much closer friendship with him. But needless to say, it made for a very happy four days, thus far.

When we had gotten back to the Great Hall, I looked around, and once again, seeing no one, I took it at liberty to give Harry a hug, and a few words of reassurance. He smiled gratefully at me, and then turned to enter the Great Hall. I gave him a two-minute head start, and then entered myself.

Nobody at the Slytherin table questioned my disappearance, as they knew something of the sort would result in being thrown down of whatever social ladder they existed on.

As I snuck a look at Potter's table, however, he wasn't as lucky. I saw the Mudblood (do I need to say Granger, now that Harry and I are better friends? I hope not, she's still a bloody know it all, but I guess that will have to wait for a different conversation.)

Everybody in the vicinity Potter now sat by, clambered to him, and began bombarding him with questions of his disappearance, he shrugged them off, and told them he hadn't been feeling well. The Weasley twins took it well enough, and offered him some puking pastilles, if he wanted to cut class for the rest of the day. I had to hold in a snort at that, typical Gryffindors. That got Harry to smile though, So I didn't mind the Weasley twins, they'd be a good buffer, if the situation ever called for it. I glanced at the Muggleborn witch, and observed her watching Harry's every move. Though she asked him how he felt, she didn't offer any advice or help. She was probably siding with the Weasel-bee. Bloody bitch! The She-Weasel wasn't any better, she tried kissing him to make it better, but like a gentleman, (not) Harry pushed her off him, albeit gently.

That got the Weasel-bee to glare daggers at Harry, and the She-Weasel to call him a very obnoxious name. (Bloody Poofter.)

I was sure, that had Harry not just entered the Great Hall a couple of minutes prior, he would have jumped and ran, I've come to realize he doesn't like attention. The very opposite of what I've thought him to be for the past seven years.

It was to my greatest surprise, when I saw Orion jumping onto the Gryffindor table, and ambled towards Harry, nuzzling his cheek. Orion didn't generally go to people like that. But he seemed to be quite comfortable the Savior of the Wizarding World, and this time, I could not restrain a true laugh that had managed to pass by my lips. People looked at me strangely, but I ignored them. It was with a welcome relief when the table cleared, and people began to head to their classes. Potions was now, and instead of running, like I usually do, I waited patiently for most of the student body to leave, before I approached my godfather.

Him, seeing that I've waited, figured I wanted to speak, and had waited as well. I took him aside, and asked if he would have time to talk for a couple of minutes after class. He merely said yes, and with that, I took off to the class, knowing that I'd be on time, but you could never know with Severus. He seemed to know a heck of a lot of shortcuts.

I was lucky, I had just reached the classroom when Severus approached behind me. He gave me a smug look, which I returned with a pseudo glare. I loved my godfather. I never insulted him, and actually meant it.

The seat near Harry Potter was empty, and although I was shocked, I shouldn't have been. It was obvious that for the time being, The Golden trio had broken apart. I took the opportunity though, and sat down next to him. The smile he gave me was completely brilliant, and in a true fashion, I smiled back at him.

Potions class ended, and once Severus distributed the homework, (2 feet of parchment for the newest potion they were brewing.) Draco made his way towards the Professor. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Harry stood there waiting, almost uncertain. I nodded discretely at him, and Harry took this to mean that he should wait for the former.

Once the Potions room was empty, and Severus had packed away a couple of his belongings, the two males left the room and entered into the potions masters' personal suite.

Draco made himself comfortable, while Severus bustled around, making tea.

"So what brings this on, Draco?" Severus asked, his eyebrows raised.

Draco shuffled around in his seat, before finally meeting his godfather's gaze. "I was wondering if there was any means of communication a person can have besides owling. Something that would have privacy guaranteed, and still be able to communicate."

He paused for a moment, thinking deeply about what he was trying to explain.

"For example, I've heard of Muggle's using things as Mobiles, to keep in contact with each other, something called tecting or something like it."

Severus rolled his eyes, and waited patiently for Draco to finish his assessment of Muggles.

"So, you want me to help you create some sort of device that will help you keep in contact with someone, that has privacy guaranteed…?"

"Yes, that is what I want."

Severus nodded his head, and with a twinkle in his eye, that no one in Hogwarts had ever seen, told Draco to wait, while he began rummaging in his drawers.

"How many people do you want to…errrr communicate with?" Severus asked, his motions stilling for a moment, as he lifted something out of the drawer.

"Just one," Draco replied softly.

"Just one." Severus sneered, and turned to face Draco. "This might work, for what you need."

Severus handed him a small looking device, that was the shape of a small mobile phone, but it had a piece of parchment instead of glass.

"Severus?"

"You write to whoever you want, and the other person will get it on their slate, they will know they have received something, because each time something is sent, the slate will grow hot, so even if it is in the person's pocket, they will still feel it. The privacy option is there as well. As soon as you finish writing whatever it is you want to say, it will vanish on your slate, and appear on the other one. When the other person responds, both your response, and the other will disappear as soon as it is sent back to you. Thereby, nothing will ever remain on the slate for too long a time, thereby remaining private. Does this help you?"

Draco had his mouth gaping open, and quickly shut it. Yes, that would be perfect for Harry and I. He didn't say this aloud, however, all he said was. "Yes, Severus, that will do."

Professor Snape nodded, and handed two slates over to Draco.

Draco nodded his head once more, before exiting the room, his gait natural, and normal. No need to make Severus suspicious. He turned his head to either side, as he left the potions classroom, but was surprised not to see Harry. The boy wasn't the type to just leave without saying so. Feeling like something unfortunate had happened, he quickened his pace, and looked around for his raven haired friend. He wasn't anywhere near the dungeons, and Draco hoped this was because Harry had gone to his next class already, even if it meant that he didn't wait for him, as long as nothing ominous had happened, after all, with Harry Potter, that was normal, trouble always seemed to find him.

Draco found him in an empty corridor, close to where the Transfigurations classroom was located. But he wasn't smiling, and standing, like a normal person should be, instead, he was laying prone on the floor, blood dripping freely from his nose, and his lip spread open, dribbles of Harry's blood there as fwell. He lifted Harry from the floor, anger entering his chest for his new friend. He looked around the empty corridor, hoping to see the perpetrator, only to find a flash of red on a tall broad male running away from the scene.

A/N: cliffhanger? Maybe…LOL want to know what happens next? Leave a review! If I can reach 50 reviews, I will update fairly quickly. I know it isn't difficult, I get loads of hits on this story, so I'm not worried,

The one shot deal is still on the plate, however, this is for the 50th reviewer, that's 27 reviews from now. Really, not that difficult at all :p

As you can see, there will be some Ron bashing, and depending on my mood, some Hermione bashing. I brought the Weasley twins back, because I love them, and they will be on Harry's side, as the story progresses. I did not write in Harry's POV, because not enough people requested it, and I'm afraid of losing the flow of the story, if you'd like to see some parts of the story in Harry's POV, leave a note saying so in part of your review.

Also, if you have a question, and want it answered say so. That way I will be quicker in getting back to the reviewer.

That's all for now, thanks in advance for the reviews, and for reading See you next chapter :D