Day 4
Harry didn´t sleep well that night. How could he, when every time he closed his eyes he saw Draco reaching for the topmost button of his shirt with a smile that was simply Draco. Harry thought he was going to pass out from the mere memory of those elegant fingers.
In the morning he had to borrow moisturising cream from Hermione. The lack of sleep had left its traces in his face, especially around the eyes. Harry dipped a finger into the cream jar and applied a thick layer around his eyes.
"What are you doing, mate? Putting on raggery?" snickered Ron.
"Just for your information," snapped Harry, "I´m applying an emergency treatment on the wrinkles around my eyes. You could do with some yourself."
Ron elbowed him aside and scrutinized his face in the mirror. "You´re right!" he cried. "There´s a wrinkle!" He pulled at his facial skin here and there, and turned in front of the mirror.
Hermione laughed. "There´s no wrinkle that´s not supposed to be there. Stop it, Ronald Weasley." She watched Harry trying to spell his robes smooth in amusement. "Really, Harry. I don´t think that´s necessary."
"Of course it is!" Harry snapped back. Couldn´t they see? "I´m seeing the most gorgeous boy of the whole school! I want to look good!" He had to accept that he couldn´t improve his robes any further, therefore he stepped back in front of the mirror and massaged the remaining cream into his cheeks gently. "I ask myself how people are doing it! Being in love and look well rested at the same time."
Ron looked at Harry suspiciously. "What happened? Until yesterday you slept like a baby despite being in love. You didn´t do anything unwise?"
"What do you take me for?" cried Harry. "I´m not a scarlet boy! Nothing will happen unless I´m wearing his ring!" Oh God! Wearing Draco´s ring! Why had he put this image into his tortured brain?
Harry was glad to follow his friends downstairs to the Great Hall. He needed something to distract him for now Draco was reaching into his shirt after opening the topmost button and producing a silver chain with a ring hanging from it when Harry closed his eyes!
-x-
The blond was already there when the three Gryffindors arrived. He sat on a wooden stool behind Harry´s seat, holding a harp. He started playing when Harry sat down. The Gryffindor had never thought that Draco would be the one to learn how to play a musical instrument, but the Slytherin´s fingers moved over the strings quickly and unerringly.
Harry felt a bit uncomfortable having breakfast while Draco got nothing to eat. He turned around and patted the bench beside him. Draco put his harp aside and sat beside Harry. The Gryffindor smiled and started to feed the blond porridge.
Harry enjoyed the sight of his boyfriend licking the spoon clean between spoonfuls, but they were interrupted by the arrival of a huge barn owl. It dropped a red envelope into Harry´s porridge bowl.
Draco and Harry looked at the smoking envelope in shock. Draco composed his features first. He opened the howler before it could explode.
An unknown female voice thundered for everybody to hear:
"DRACO MALFOY! HOW DARE YOU MISLEAD HARRY POTTER! THIS BOY IS TOO GORGEOUS FOR YOU, FILTHY RAG! KEEP YOUR DIRTY FINGERS AWAY FROM HIM OR I WILL HEX YOU AND YOUR OFFSPRING FOR THE NEXT TEN GENERATIONS TO COME!"
The letter combusted and ashes rained down on what was left of the porridge.
"Wow, that was heavy. Ten generations. I don´t want to be in your shoes, Malfoy," Ron broke the silence.
"What was that about?" asked Hermione.
The question was answered by Crabbe, who came running to Draco, waving a Daily Prophet.
"England´s most eligible bachelor claimed" screamed the headline.
"Is that me or you?" asked Harry. He leaned closer to Draco to look at the article.
"This reporter learned from a reliable source," the article said, "that Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, is no longer eligible. Draco Malfoy, heir to the Malfoy fortune, snatched ..."
"The headmaster wants to see you. Now, gentlemen," professor Snape said from behind Harry.
Harry and Draco followed the Head of Slytherin out of the Great Hall. By the time they reached the door, they were followed by a bunch of owls carrying red envelopes. Several of them were already smoking.
"DRACO MALFOY!..." another woman screamed.
"I think not!" muttered the professor and pointed his wand at the howler. It exploded with a poping sound.
"Can you teach me that spell?" asked Draco. "I guess I will need it."
"Certainly not," drawled Snape. "Your father wouldn´t thank me for that. Dealing with the howlers will teach you to behave properly."
"We didn´t do anything inappropriate in a courtship!" protested Harry.
"Didn´t you?" Snape raised an eyebrow and leaved through the newspaper, still walking upstairs in the process. By the time they had reached the spiral staircase behind the gargoyle guarding the headmaster´s office, he had found what he was looking for. He showed the paper to the two boys while they rode the moving stairs.
There was a photo of them kissing in a doorway. Photo-Draco was snogging Photo-Harry enthusiastically and when they finally pulled apart, Photo-Harry licked Photo-Draco´s lip.
"So?" smirked Snape when both boys paled.
They had reached the office door and the professor ushered them inside.
Harry thought about bolting, when he saw Lucius Malfoy pacing in front of Dumbledore´s fireplace.
"Father!" Draco stood rooted to the spot.
Lucius stopped pacing and turned to face his son. His blond hair flew like a veil. "Feeling guilty, Draco?" he sneered. "Come in and close that door, boy."
Draco obeyed.
"What do you have to say in your defence?" the older Malfoy continued his rant. "How do you justify the shame you inflicted on the name of Malfoy?"
Draco hung his head. Harry stepped closer to the other boy and squeezed his hand reassuringly.
"Going by this article I´d say you blotched that potion on purpose in order to get hold of Potter. Though I have no idea why anybody would want that."
Draco glared at his father defiantly before he turned to Harry. "He doesn´t mean that, sweetheart." He pressed a quick kiss to the Gryffindor´s cheek.
Lucius slapped Draco impatiently. "Draco! Did you or did you not manipulate that potion on purpose?"
"Of course not!" cried Draco. "We made both mistakes, but I´m very glad about that! I found the love of my life thanks to those mistakes!" He wrapped an arm around Harry possessively. "And stop accusing me! I haven´t even read that bloody article! So basically I have no idea what you are talking about!"
The blond wizard stalked back to the headmaster´s desk, picked up the copy of the Prophet and shoved it into his son´s hand angrily. "Read what you have done!"
Draco pulled Harry to the headmaster´s sofa (two cups of tea appeared on the armrests when the boys settled down) and together they read Rita Skeeter´s latest work.
England´s most eligible bachelor claimed
This reporter learned from a reliable source that Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, is no longer eligible. Draco Malfoy, heir to the Malfoy fortune, snatched said toffee away from the ladies and seems to be only too happy about being snatched.
and were seen on an outing in the village of Hogsmeade yesterday. They had only eyes for each other. After a romantic lunch at Madam Puddifoot´s (the matron wasn´t ready to give away what the young couple had) they went to Gladrags, the wizarding world´s most hip clothes store.
They never let go of each other´s hands all day. Can this be normal? Or is the victim of dubious – if not dark – magic? (For details on banned love spells see page 54) A neutral spectator is tempted to say "yes". He has to be. It is hardly conceivable that the saviour of the wizarding world fell for Mr. Malfoys limited good looks.
"Limited good looks?" sqeaked Draco.
Harry leaned over and pecked him on the cheek. "You´re very goodlooking, love. You were rude to her yesterday and she´s out for revange. Don´t believe a word that hag says."
"Page 14," professor Snape said from the back of the room.
Hastily the boys searched for the indicated page. There was a photo of Draco, which must have been taken after a quidditch match. The blond´s face was covered in sweat and dirt and his hair was wet and lank. Photo-Draco tried to wipe his face with his sleeve and smeared more dirt onto it in the process.
It took several minutes for Draco to calm down enough to read the rest.
Furthermore showed no affinity to boys in the past. This and ´s possessive behaviour indicate that our teenage hero has been trapped.
But what did Draco Malfoy use as bait? Well, that question seems to be easily answered. The Malfoy fortune. This reporter saw walk into the village in old muggle clothes and leave it clad in silk. Although it is rather disappointing to learn that the Boy Who Lived isn´t immune to material temptations, it is only too understandable. Despite being the heir to the Potter fortune, our hero lives more than modest since he won´t have access to his fortune before he graduates.
The article was continued on page 18, under the photo Snape had shown them on the spiral staircase.
A reliable source within Gladrags informed this reporter that seems to enjoy ´s approaches.
"I didn´t know where to look," says the – anonymous – source. "They insisted on sharing a changing room and they were all but ravishing each other while they changed. It was so embarrassing!"
It can be assumed that whatever magic was used on Harry Potter contained a lust component. (for information on lust potions see page 69)
We wish the wizarding hero all the best and warn . Don´t you dare break Harry Potter´s heart, Draco Malfoy!
"Oh my God!" muttered Draco and looked up at his father. "No wonder there were howlers."
"And there will be many more," sneered Lucius. "And you deserve every single one!" He turned to Dumbledore, who had been watching the scene silently so far. "I insist my son be restricted to the castle until the potion wears off. And I insist he hears all those howlers. Can you arrange a room for him, where he can receive his mail?"
"That can be done." The headmaster´s eyes twinkled. "Follow me."
The old wizard led the group to an empty classroom. "You will stay in this room until curfew. Lunch and dinner will be served."
Draco stepped into the classroom as if walking to his doom.
"I´ll stay with Draco!" Harry said insistantly.
Lucius looked as if he was going to object, but the headmaster nodded. "It seems only just that you share his punishment. Ah, Lucius, didn´t you mention a message from Draco´s mother?"
"I nearly forgot," said the blond. "Narcissa would have my hide if I brought it back home." He handed Draco a parcel.
-x-
Harry conjured a blanket and they sat comfortably on the floor at the back of the classroom.
"Thanks for staying with me," whispered Draco and leaned closer.
Harry thought he was in heaven when the blond´s lips touched his. The kiss wasn´t passionate and urgent like those they had stolen the days before, but slow and loving.
They were interrupted by the arrival of the first post owls.
Several people were telling Draco off for messing with the hero of the wizarding world, but there were also some howlers for Harry.
"HOW STUPID CAN YOU BE? TO BE CURSED BY A SEVENTEEN YEAR OLD? HOW CAN YOU HOPE TO OVERCOME THE DARK LORD WHEN YOU CAN´T EVEN COPE WITH A LITTLE BOY?" one howler said.
The boys tried to ignore the screaming voices, but it wasn´t easy. At last it was Draco who found a solution. He conjured earmuffs for both of them.
Opening ´s parcel brought a nice surprise. It contained an assortment of finest sweets and cakes.
They spent most of the day snogging and feeding each other chocolates. The only thing they had to be mindful of was preventing the howlers´ ashes from falling onto their food.
Harry thought it was his best weekend ever.
Day 5
Monday morning came inevitably and Harry was taken back to reality rudely.
"Harry! What happened to your lips? Were you stung by a bee? You should go to Madam Pomfrey before breakfast!" cried Hermione when he came down to the Common Room (he had decided on vanilla shower gel this morning after he had learned that Draco loved the taste).
"A bee?" laughed Lavender Brown. "No, Hermione, our Harry here overdid his snogging. I´m not surprised that you didn´t recognize the symptoms." She winked at Ron, who blushed.
Harry felt his cheeks heat.
"Harry!" Hermione squeeked. The girl looked scandalized.
Ron, on the other hand, looked pale. "I´d congratulate you, mate, if it hadn´t been Malfoy." He made a face.
Harry didn´t grace his friend with an answer, but climbed through the portrait hole and left for the Great Hall instead.
Draco wasn´t there. Harry was a bit disappointed for so far the blond had never failed to surprise him upon his entry to the hall. But then, he mused, perhaps this was the right occasion to do something for his love in return.
The Gryffindor drew his wand and waited on tenterhooks for Draco to make an appearance. The blond arrived five minutes later. He blew a kiss at Harry before he made his way to his usual seat. Harry waited for the blond to sit down before he cast his spell.
Under the Slytherin´s bottom the hard wooden bench changed to soft velvet upholstery and Harry was rewarded with a brilliant smile.
"Really, Harry," drawled Seamus, "you´re pathetic, both of you. I just look forward to the fight when you come back to your senses. You´ll want to hex each other into next month." He rubbed his hands in glee.
"That won´t happen!" Harry spat back defiantly. How dare Seamus!
Hermione muttered something about scarab beetles.
The Gryffindors had Charms first thing in the morning. Professor Flitwick spent the first half hour lecturing them not to try the love spells mentioned in the Sunday issue of the Prophet before he started explaining about basic healing charms.
It wasn´t a pleasant lesson. The students were given daggers and had to cut their fingers to practice the new spells on the cuts.
"A pity he didn´t teach us a spell to decrease a swelling," grinned Lavender when she passed Harry on her way out.
"Do you reckon Snape will discuss the Prophet?" asked Seamus when they went downstairs for their single potions lesson.
"I´m not sure I want Snape of all people to explain lust potions to me," moaned Ron.
Dean giggled. "I don´t think Harry would be opposed to the idea. He likes boys now."
If asked later, Harry couldn´t have told when he decided to do it. One moment he was walking down the stairs and the next he was rolling on the floor hitting Dean for all he was worth.
"I don´t like boys!" he screamed. "I like Draco! Exclusively!"
"Harry!" shouted Hermione. "Stop it!" Several girls joined her fearful cries.
Suddenly Harry was pulled off Dean.
"Mister Potter!" Professor McGonagall´s lips were so thin they were barely visible. "Stop this shameful behaviour at once! Twenty points from Gryffindor!"
Harry felt tears of fury well in his eyes. He tried to blink them away, nevertheless his hand was wet when he wiped his face with the back of his hand.
"You´re bleeding!" cried Hermione.
"Potter, Thomas, go to the hospital wing," ordered professor McGonagall. "I will notify professor Snape of your absence."
The two boys went to the hospital wing side by side in silence, scowling at each other from time to time.
Madam Pomfrey was bustling about the room when Harry and Dean entered. At the far end two boys were sitting on hospital beds. Harry´s heart missed a beat when he recognized the nearly white mop of hair. Draco´s usually well dressed hair stuck up in all directions. The boy looked as if he had just come out of a fist fight.
"Sweetheart!" Harry hurried to the blond´s side. "What happened to you?"
Draco was pressing a bloodstained cloth to his nose.
"Nothing, love," the Slytherin reassured him. "But you look dreadful. Who´s responsible for that nosebleed?" He looked around. "Thomas, if I learn that this was you, mercy on you! – Come here, dear." He used his cloth to wipe the blood off Harry´s nose.
Harry craned his neck to see who the second boy was. Blaise Zabini.
Madam Pomfrey ordered Blaise to stick out his tongue and administered some drops of a potion. Harry hoped it tasted vile.
"Now, Mister Thomas, Mister Potter, let me have a look at you." The matron cast a spell on Dean first. "I really want to know what got into you boys," she muttered.
Dean was sent back to Potions ten minutes later, Harry after half an hour.
Snape was in the middle of a lecture, not on lust potions, but on the properties of cherry root.
At lunchtime the Great Hall hummed with rumours. The Gryffindors exchanged stories about Blaise Zabini teasing Draco about Harry and the blond attacking him like a harpy.
"Ernie Macmillan from Hufflepuff says Draco tried to throttle Blaise," Neville informed his housemates. "And Hannah Abott swears he broke his nose. Blaise´ nose will never be the same again! It´s going to look like Dumbledore´s!"
"Thanks for this image," groaned Ron.
Harry couldn´t help but smile. Draco was so protective! Who had ever thought that! It was good to know he had somebody to stand up for him, which enabled him to take a break from being the wizarding world´s hero.
Harry and Ron had Divination after lunch. They had proceeded to taking the auspices, which was – according to professor Trelawney – the most difficult way of telling the future. The only good thing about this branch of Divination was that they needed the windows open, which did the atmosphere in the seer´s tower room a world of good.
"Welcome, my children," the professor greeted them in her usual hushed voice. "Today we will have a look into the future of one of the class. The flight of birds can't be interpreted for several persons for the purpose of individual predictions."
Several students raised their hand to volunteer, most of them girls, but the professor ignored them.
", the orb told me that you had an exceptional week. Let´s see whether the next will be equally exciting. Come to the window and tell us what you see."
Harry sighed and accepted the inevitable.
"There´s a dove sitting on the roof of the greenhouse. It coos. There are several crows near Hagrid´s hut. They´re fluttering about silently. And a sparrow´s sitting on the roof of your tower."
The rest of the lesson was spent analyzing Harry´s future. The dove, he was informed, meant that love was around the corner, but as the dove didn´t fly, there was no happy ending in sight. (Harry was just glad it didn´t mean his imminent death.) The crows, on the other hand, had the professor in fits.
"You poor boy!" she cried, "you poor, poor boy! It´s always the best that go first. Oh! Oh! Oh! Miss Patil, kindly prepare me a cup of tea!"
Parvati hurried to obey. The seer sipped the tea singing Parvati´s praise for the excellent brew. When she had finish her cuppa, she swirled the cup in her hand and looked into it.
"Aaaargh! Aaaaaargh!" she shrieked. "Oh my God! Oh my God!"
"What is it, professor?" asked Lavender and Parvati.
"The grim again!"
"Oh, I´m so sorry, professor!" cried Lavender.
"Not me, stupid child," sobbed the professor. "I was still thinking about Potter when I drank my tea. Potter has the grim! Oh you poor, poor boy!" It took nearly all the rest of the lesson for the woman to calm down.
"Professor," asked Parvati just before they left the classroom, "what does the sparrow mean?"
"That Potter doesn´t believe in augurs," sighed the professor.
The last lesson for the day was History of Magic. Again Harry spent it drawing hearts and writing his love´s name. Hermione kept glaring at him angrily and once she even whispered that she wasn´t going to lend him her notes if he missed the lecture so deliberately. Harry couldn´t have cared less.
As soon as professor Binns had dismissed them, the teenage hero rushed out of the classroom in order to run to the hospital wing. Draco hadn´t been at the Great Hall for lunch and Harry was nearly mad with worry. The blond hadn´t seemed so badly hurt.
Harry didn´t need to go as far as to the hospital wing to see his boyfriend, though. Draco waited for him just around the corner and together they ran to Moaning Myrtle´s bathroom.
As soon as the door had closed on them, Harry was shoved against the wall and his lips were claimed hungrily. The Gryffindor reacted without a second thought and pulled his boyfriend closer. The door handle dig in Harry´s back, but the passion in Draco´s kiss was worth the slight discomfort.
"Not that I will complain," panted Harry when Draco moved on to nibbling his earlobe, "but what caused this?"
Draco abandoned the earlobe in favour for an answer. "A reminder. I needed a reminder. After having beat up Zabini and Macmillan I needed to remember what I was doing this for." He attacked Harry´s ear with new gusto.
"Macmillan?" piped Harry. "When did you beat up Macmillan?"
"On the way to lunch. He asked what you saw in a filthy rag."
"You should have left him to me. Oiiiiii! Can you do that again?"
Draco was only to happy to oblige and bit down on Harry´s earlobe. Gods! Draco was a well of surprises. Who´d have thought that the blond had such a skillful mouth!
"Are you sure that this is the right thing to do for a courting couple?" gasped Harry. "Not that I don´t like it, mind you."
Draco disentangled himself from Harry´s embrace. "You´re right, love. I´m glad that at least one of us doesn´t forget to think. Come, let´s find ourselves a spot to sit down."
He pulled Harry around the next corner, into the first cubicle. The toilet had been removed and a checkered picnic blanket lay on the floor. In the middle of the blanket stood a big basket.
"I had a word with the house elves," grinned Draco. "Dobby was only too happy to be of assistance when he heard this was for you." He sat down and patted the spot beside him. Harry was only too happy to oblige and settled down beside the blond.
They had a delicious dinner of roast chicken and salad and treacle tart as a dessert.
"This is so much better than the Great Hall," whispered Harry.
"Isn´t it," drawled Draco. "I can stare my fill of you and nobody will think anything of it. You know, love, I think we should forego our breakfast niceties. It´s too public. What about we have dinner here together every day instead?"
Harry nodded. "I hate to admit it, but I think it makes sense to be more discreet."
Draco smiled and leaned over for a kiss.
"Let´s do our homework. It won´t do to get into trouble and be caught in detention without each other."
Harry had to admit that Draco had a point again. He rummaged in his bag for his divination text and started to make up his predictions.
"What are you doing?" asked Draco, looking up from his arithmancy homework.
"Predicting the future."
"I´m not an expert, but shouldn´t you work with tealeaves or cards or something?"
"Birds. We´re taking the auspices. You don´t want me to go outside to find some birds, do you?"
"Of course not!" Draco leaned over to steal another kiss.
"So I have to make up what I see."
"Won´t Trelawney notice?"
"Nah, I´ve been making up predictions for more than three years now. She buys anything."
"Anything?"
"Anything!"
"A flamingo flying over Hogwarts?"
"Draco! You´re a natural!" giggled Harry. He noted down the flamingo and leafed through his textbook to look up its meaning. Draco rolled his eyes. "You sly dog!" cried Harry. "A flamingo means passion and as it was flying, I will get a lot of it in the near future."
The blond put down the roll of parchment he was working on. "Now, what will I do in order not to ruin my reputation as a seer?" He looked at Harry predatorily.
There was much giggling and kissing over the next half hour. Then they returned to their homework and by the time they had to leave, Harry had finished all his homework but the History essay. But he had plenty of time to finish that until Friday, so there was no harm done.
After reminding each other to lay low at breakfast the next day, they parted. Despite the unpleasant morning, it had been a good day, Harry mused.