Daphne was busy brewing her potion in the extra Slytherin-exclusive class Snape provided when Professor McGonagall appeared at the door.

"Miss Greengrass, would you be so kind as to follow me?" McGonagall said, in a tone that Daphne couldn't decipher.

Snape tutted at the interruption. "We are in the middle of a practical. Could this not possibly wait?"

"You will find that this is rather urgent," McGonagall said firmly.

Daphne looked towards Snape, who looked uninterested. "Very well," he said. "You are dismissed." He nodded his head towards the exit.

Seeing as her potion was at a critical stage where timing was of the essence, Daphne figured there was no point in leaving her stuff behind. She disposed of her work and quickly collected her things, before leaving the room where McGonagall was impatiently tapping her foot.

McGonagall's brisk pace and the constant ascent from the dungeons left a sour taste in Daphne's mouth as she felt slight annoyance that she would have to restart her potion sometime later. Even though her potion was technically beyond syllabus, she would've still quite liked to have completed it.

Since she had obviously done nothing wrong to stimulate McGonagall's potential ire, she wondered what could've happened for McGonagall to recall her so urgently.

Fortunately, she didn't have to wait too long as they had soon arrived at what Daphne surmised to be McGonagall's office. To her surprise, however, there were already other students present when she had arrived. For some reason, she had assumed McGonagall had sought only her, possibly to commend her on her recent Transfiguration assignment.

There were three people standing roughly two meters apart from each other: a young blonde girl who Daphne had never seen before, an Asian Ravenclaw that was in the year above, and Granger.

With the reputation and calibre of the students present, maybe she was getting commended for her essay after all. But she wasn't sure why the blonde girl was here.

"As you are all likely aware, the second task of the Triwizard tournament is scheduled for today." McGonagall said as the door to her office closed itself with a wave of her hand. That is very true, Daphne mused, she had only heard Harry stressing about it a thousand times the last two weeks. "You are here because each one of you are dear to one of the champions. The pass condition of their task would be to successfully retrieve you through any obstacles they may face."

"Right, so what would we have to do?" the Ravenclaw said.

"We will put you in an enchanted sleep and place you in the Great Lake where the champions will come to retrieve you. Don't worry," McGonagall quickly added when Granger and the young girl bristled. "This is an instance where we can guarantee your safety. Should the champions fail to retrieve you, we will simply collect you when their time is up. Do any of you have a problem with this?"

McGonagall took their silence as affirmation. "Perfect. In that case, I will leave you here for a few moments while I confirm the logistics." With a curt nod, she strode out of her office.

Daphne hummed under her breath as she processed this information. The blonde girl resembled Delacour a lot now Daphne thought about it, so she must be her sister. The Ravenclaw was Diggory's date for the Yule Ball and Granger was Krum's. The pairings were very self-explanatory, she mused, which meant she was only here because she was very dear to Harry. She smirked at the thought.

"Why are you here?" Granger was the first to speak, abruptly so, and Daphne realised that she was being spoken to.

She raised her eyebrows in faux innocence. "How do you mean?"

"Which champion would be coming to collect you?" she reinforced.

"I would've thought that was clear," she said. "A simple process of elimination would suffice in this instance."

Granger paused as she looked around the room. Daphne could sense the cogs turning in Granger's head before turned back, narrowing her eyes. "You're here for Harry."

"Indeed I am," Daphne's smirk widened. "Why, did you assume it was you instead?"

"Maybe, but you can't blame me for thinking that's the case," Granger scowled. "How come though? Did you trick the system? Was it you who put his name in the Goblet of Fire?"

"Huh?" Daphne laughed at the ridicule. "No, I did not trick the system. I am here because, as McGonagall correctly phrased, I am very dear to Harry."

She supposed that since it was inevitable that by the end of the day people would know about her affiliation with Harry, there was no point in attempting to hide it from Granger as she would've done in the past.

Damn, if only she knew this would happen, she would've gone with Harry in the Yule Ball. It was needless to say that neither of them had a particularly swell time, seeing as they had absolutely no interest in as their respective partners.

Granger's mouth flopped open like a fish. "You – how…" she stammered as she scrambled for words. "How did this happen?" she said as she narrowed her eyes again suspiciously. "You've never even interacted."

"We were literally partners for the potions project two weeks ago," Daphne deadpanned.

"Even then, you never spoke to each other. Is that it, then? Two weeks and you've become Harry's closest friend? No way. So how did you trick him?"

"I've feared your ginger friend is having a bad influence on you and it appears I'm correct," Daphne said, trying her best to not make it come out as a groan. "No, I did not trick him. I was actually fortunate enough to be the first witch he's met. This was before our first year began: I bumped into him shopping for robes with the giant. As for potions, we never spoke since our relationship has developed to a level that our usual communication has transcended normal speech." The last part was absolute nonsense, but it was nonetheless amusing to see Granger flounder the way she was now.

"You are lying," Granger said. "I have never seen you two even around each other. Ever. You seemed repulsed when Snape assigned Harry to work with you."

"It appears I'm a better actress than I gave myself credit for, then." Daphne smirked. "We see each other a fair bit but evidently you haven't cared enough to notice. What, you think he got the idea to speak Parseltongue in the first task by himself?"

Granger looked positively angry now. "What is your plan then, Greengrass? What are you going to do to him?" she accused.

"Offer my support and friendship, as is well within my rights," Daphne responded evenly. "In fact, Harry is more a Slytherin than you might think. If it wasn't for that ferret Malfoy, he would've been sorted here with me."

Daphne knew she was perhaps giving a more malicious impression than she intended, but it was still amusing to see Granger worked up. She knew Granger would conduct countless background checks on her the first chance she gets. Perhaps it would distract her enough for her grades to slip, and then Daphne could restore her rightful position at the top of her class.

"You –" Granger started but McGonagall chose that moment to re-enter.

Granger shot Daphne a last glare that clearly signalled her unwillingness to let this conversation terminate. Daphne, on the other hand, looked at the Ravenclaw and the blonde girl who she had forgotten were here as well.

She smiled at them, but they didn't smile back.


Harry was stressed. He had lost track of time by now but given he felt his Gillyweed was going to run out soon, the hour mark must be nearly up. And he had still not located where Daphne was.

The last line of the song echoed horribly in his head. Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.

Panic held Harry in a vise grip. He paddled his legs as fast as he could as he descended deeper into the dark, almost black, lake. It was at this moment he really wished he had taken Dudley's wasted swimming lessons; it really would've helped at this moment.

His first stroke of luck came when he saw Victor Krum swimming straight past him in the opposite direction, carrying Hermione in his tow. Not only did that give Harry some reassurance that Hermione would be alright, but it also gave him a direction as to where the hostages might be. Where Daphne might be.

Harry shot towards where Krum swam from and could've cried with relief when he saw Daphne in the distance, guarded by some creatures Harry couldn't identify.

Daphne was clearly unconscious when Harry was close enough to make out her features. It was only her and Fleur's sister that were still there, which meant there was no way Harry could get a good score for this round. He honestly didn't care too much about it because he just wanted to get Daphne out of here.

The creatures guarding the hostages thankfully didn't stop him while he disentangled Daphne and within no time, she was free. He held onto her arm and was about to head out when suddenly the image of Fleur panicking about her sister sprang to his mind.

Harry tutted as he looked at Daphne, then at Fleur's sister. When was Fleur going to come? It didn't feel right to leave, especially when there was so little time left and he didn't want to think what was going to happen to her sister if he didn't rescue her.

He swam towards Fleur's sister and made a move to free her before he was stung with sharp pain. The creatures snarled at him, shaking their ugly heads.

"The time's nearly up," Harry pleaded, unsure how his voice would carry through the water. "Please can I take her with me?"

The creatures didn't not respond, but they kept scowling at him. Harry reached for Fleur's sister but was again stung by the creatures.

He could feel his presence in the water start to be sluggish and he knew his time with the Gillyweed was almost up. But he looked at Daphne and as much pain as it gave him, he knew what to do.

He grabbed Daphne's arm and started to swim away, trying his best to not think about Fleur or her sister as he ascended. Daphne was a lot heavier than he remembered.

Faint light finally appeared in the distance as Harry scrambled for the surface. He was just about to take a breath in before he realised the Gillyweed had ran out completely and he was completely by himself now.

Now would be a very good time for you to wake up, Harry thought helplessly, tugging Daphne along him as he tried desperately for the surface. You could cast that bloody bubble charm on both our faces.

After what seemed like eternity, through one miracle or another, Harry was eventually at the surface which was good because if there were two more metres to climb, Harry would've blacked out. His head popped out from the surface, and he did not register the noise from the audience as he gasped desperately for air.

He was so busy trying to regain his breath that when he finally came to, he realised he was no longer holding onto anything. He cursed. No way was he dumb enough to let go of Daphne as he climbed, surely?

"Golly, are you done making love to the air?" an amused voice intoned from behind him, and Harry whipped around.

Harry blinked a few times, and there Daphne was, colour restored to her face, alive as ever.

"Daph," Harry breathed before he surged forward and wrapped Daphne in a tight hug, vaguely aware that the whole school was possibly watching but honestly, he didn't care at this moment. "Oh my god, you're okay."

"Why, of course," Daphne said as Harry gripped her tightly. "Although it will soon be my turn to be exhausted of air if you crush me any longer."

"Oh, sorry," Harry said as he relaxed his hold, but his smile was as wide as it has ever been. He was sure that he went over the allotted time, seeing as he was given more Gillyweed than he needed, but seeing Daphne well and also smiling rendered that insignificant. "I can't believe they put you down there, what were they thinking? Oh my god, wait, Gabrielle. I tried to save her but they wouldn't let me, I need to –"

Daphne put a finger on his lips. "Don't fuss. We were never in any danger. She should be being brought out right now, seeing as you took your sweet merry time to get me out that darned lake. I would quite like to be back on land, a few warming charms would also be quite nice."

"Oh yes, yes, of course," Harry nodded. "Are you well enough to swim?"

"Even if I'm not, I would still swim better than you. You can imagine my apprehension when I realised you would have to swim to retrieve me."

Harry shot a glare at her, to which he was met with by a smirk. She swam ahead towards the shore and Harry quickly followed behind her.

A towel and many drying and warming charms later, Daphne and Harry walked into the tent where he spotted Fleur on her knees, crying whilst holding her sister's face with both hands.

"Harry!" Hermione suddenly appeared and wrapped Harry in a bear hug. "We were so worried! When you didn't appear after the time was up I thought you were going to –"

"Oh nah, I was perfectly fine," Harry said. "Made it close for the headlines, of course," he joked.

Hermione shook her head at Harry's antics before she looked at Daphne and her smile faded.

"Oh, don't mind me," Daphne said. "You guys go on about your business."

"What is she doing here?" Ron said.

"Funny, Granger asked me the same thing earlier," Daphne mused. "Why, I was Harry's damsel in distress, or did you not bear witness to that?"

"I didn't know you knew each other," Ron said suspiciously.

Daphne sighed. "I have been stuck under a lake for hours and I am too tired to debate this again," she said flatly. "Yes, I have known Harry for a long time. He is rather famous."

"Don't give me cheek," Ron scowled. "You know very well what I mean."

Daphne rolled her eyes. "Harry and I go way back. It only goes to show how much you care about Harry that you have never noticed. In contrary, I have always been fully aware of you three's friendship."

"You wore a Potter Stinks badge," Hermione accused.

"I did," Daphne confirmed, and Harry could sense the air start to turn hostile. While he had never expected his friends to take his friendship with Daphne well from the get-go, he would still very like to diffuse this situation.

"Yes, because I told her to wear one," Harry quickly said. "We'll talk about this later."

"Bet you wished you were Harry's damsel to save, Weasley," Daphne smirked.

"Hey, zip it," Harry admonished.

"Mr Potter and Miss Greengrass," Poppy Pomfrey appeared behind them. "Could you follow me, we need to do some check-ups."

"But I feel fine," Daphne said.

"Yes, but we should still check you just in case anything went wrong."

"Alright, we're coming," Harry said, grateful for this well-timed intervention. "I'll see you guys later, okay?"

Hermione and Ron were still glaring at Daphne suspiciously as Poppy Pomfrey led them around the corner towards the Hospital Wing.


Hermione huffed in frustration as she managed to find no dirt on the Greengrass family through conducting thorough research in the library.


Harry had managed to sneak away from Ron after dinner. If Hermione was here it wouldn't have been so easy, but after the Gryffindor common room celebrations she had stated she needed to go to the library. She hadn't specified what she was going to do there, but Harry didn't bother questioning it.

He was now in the Room of Requirement which Daphne had fashioned to be a cosy living room with a fireplace. It was where they had been spending most of their time after Daphne showed him in first year, claiming that it was where her parents used to hang out back when they were still at Hogwarts.

Daphne was sipping on some obscure tea as they sat comfortably on sofas facing the fireplace. It was quieter this evening since they had both had a rather tumultuous day but Harry didn't mind too much as the silence was more comfortable than anything. They would do work together from time to time, but work was the last thing on Harry's mind at the moment.

Harry cast a glance at Daphne who was still looking pensively into the distance, sipping her favourite tea. She had offered to make Harry some, but he refused: being a tea fanatic was unfortunately not something they shared in common. Now he thought about it, Harry wasn't sure when he started to notice, but Daphne's features were starting to mature and sharpen, and dare he say it, she was starting to become remarkably attractive.

"You know, if I had known everybody was going to find out about us, I would've asked you to the Yule Ball," Harry said.

"Funnily enough, I was thinking the same thing," Daphne looked at Harry over her teacup. "I suppose this afternoon was rough for you then?"

"It wasn't too bad," Harry shrugged. "I did get a lot of questions, but most people were more curious about you than anything."

"Hah, can't say the same," Daphne chuckled. "As I have feared, I am now being accused of being a blood-traitor. A little ironic, considering Potter is one of the biggest names in pure-blood society. It's nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be, Malfoy's little shocked face made it all worth it. Besides, I'm sure it will all blow over soon."

"I'm sorry you have to go through this," Harry said.

"Oh, I don't mind that much. I guess it was inevitable after all," she mused. "Even though technically we don't have to meet in secret anymore, I wouldn't mind still coming here."

"Yeah, of course." Harry nodded. Then he sighed. "You know, I was very stressed out when I thought I wasn't going to find you."

Daphne smiled. "Kind of got that memo already."

"Yeah but," Harry gulped. "It made me think about things, you know? Put things into perspective. I… realised that it is entirely possible that I, uh… that I…"

Daphne raised an eyebrow. "Hmm?" she encouraged.

"Well…" Harry paused and broke eye contact. His cheeks were heating up and he feared his voice was getting squeaky. "I might like you more than I initially thought."

Daphne blinked. "That's reassuring."

"No, you're not getting it," Harry said, wringing his hands. "What I'm trying to say is – what I'm asking is… maybe you'd be up to taking what we already have, you know, a bit further?"

Daphne tilted her head. "In what sense?"

"Well, uh, you get what I'm trying to say, don't you?"

"Actually, I don't."

"You don't," Harry echoed as he tutted, feeling his throat dry up. But then he looked up and saw Daphne smirk broadly. "You do."

"Well," Daphne drawled. "Maybe I do, maybe I don't," she grinned. "What are you trying to tell me?"

"You're trying to get me to say it, aren't you."

"Maybe," Daphne put a finger to her lips, smiling. "Would it help if you knew I would say yes?"

Harry widened his eyes as his jaw slackened. He couldn't stop the goofy grin that spread rapidly across his face. "Oh yes, totally. Well, Daphne, what I'm trying to say is… I like you. A lot. And I'd really like it if you would go out with me sometime."

Daphne's smile disappeared and she frowned. "Oh, that's not what I had in mind."

Harry felt his heart was being scrunched up like a piece of A4 paper. "Oh, what?" his voice was a lot smaller than he expected.

Daphne stared at him for a few moments before she laughed. "I'm just kidding. Yes, I would love to go out with you some day."

"Oh, for fuck's sake," Harry huffed as he tried to control the palpitations in his heart. "You can't do this to me, man."

Daphne laughed loudly as she got up and plopped herself down next to Harry on his sofa. "I've suspected this for quite a while now. Good to see my intuition remains sharp and intact. Congratulations, Harry, you have officially made it out of the friendzone."

"You're not supposed to be this devious," Harry said. "Since when did you grow a sense of humour?"

"Why, from you," Daphne remarked. "You are a very funny person, whether you try to be or not."

"I'm not sure if that is supposed to be a compliment or not."

Daphne simply smiled. "So, now this has been established, what changes between us?"

Harry thought for a moment. "Honestly, not much, now I think about it."

"True," Daphne said. "Nothing at all. Well, our excursions can now fall under the date category."

Harry chuckled. "Hopefully they'll be a lot more of those to come."

"Indeed," Daphne nodded. "I would be intrigued to see how our friends would react, actually. In their eyes, we went from being strangers to dating within twenty-four hours. That seems like an extraordinary feat for even the great Harry Potter."

"And that also seems like an extraordinary feat for the great Daphne Greengrass."

"Ah, doesn't have the same ring to it," Daphne grimaced and Harry laughed.


AN: I've always wondered what would happen if Harry was to meet Daphne in Madam Malkin's, maybe he could even be a Slytherin :)