Colours of Obsession
A story of how the meeting of three colours finally manages to bring together an unknown romance between an obsessed, in-denial Daphne Greengrass and an equally obsessed, and less in-denial, Harry Potter.
*O*O*O*
"If you like making love at midnight,
In the dunes of the cape,
You're the lady I've looked for,
Come with me and escape!"
*O*O*O*
Tracey wanted the scoop and was willing to do anything for it.
After returning to their dorm from the trip, she accosted Daphne like she was robbing her best friend.
Of information, of course.
Daphne swore Tracey must have had some kind of canine's blood in her heritage, or have a future talent for becoming a dog animagus.
Whenever it came time to gather news or gossip, somehow Tracey Davis turned into a damned bloodhound. She could sniff secrets, claw out classified information, or even find the damn bones of the 'skeletons in your closet'!
And now that bloodhound was invading her personal space. Daphne wouldn't have ordinarily minded, but Tracey had decided to follow her into the showers to do it.
The unfortunate realities of having communal bathrooms and showers. Daphne sincerely wished they had the private bathrooms that prefects had access to. Alas, that was not meant to be, and now she had to face the situation of being forced to shower with her best friend.
Thankfully, the other Slytherin girls that had gone for the trip were busy in the common rooms comparing their day, so she had the shared bathrooms and some semblance of privacy to herself.
Well, that was until Tracey decided to attack her while she was at her weakest.
It had taken all of Daphne's remaining energy to fight the equally unclothed girl off. It wasn't until after she had gotten the lathered shampoo out of her hair that she gave up and let Tracey interrogate her while they shared the same stall.
"Boyfriend!" Tracey had cried aloud, wet hair clinging to her skin and giving her the appearance of an excitable wet dog that had just found a particularly large stick. "Harry's ya boyfriend!"
"He is." Daphne tried her best to sound as excitable as possible. She truly was, but was also feeling the effects of a long day now and was incredibly tired. Still, she entertained her friend as much as she could as she scrubbed her toned legs with her soapy loofa.
"I totally saw this coming!" Tracey giggled, before gasping in realisation and began marvelling at both of her hands, "I had a hand in making this happen! I am the ultimate wingwoman!"
"Yes, thank you, Tracey. I owe you. You actually did play a big part in that." Daphne admitted with a hum, very glad that Tracey had suggested she ask Harry out to Hogsmeade in the first place. They had gone out single and returned a couple. Who knows how much longer their relationship would've taken to kickstart if they hadn't gone out together today?
And Daphne still had no idea how the hell Tracey had even known there to be a Hogsmeade trip. Chalk that up to yet another point proving Tracey was part canine.
"I call dibs on the maid of honour!" Tracey proclaimed loudly, and Daphne had to suppress her laughter as she helped to scrub her best friend's back.
She had also let the thought of marriage cross her mind briefly during the trip. And, truth be told, she couldn't think of anyone more perfect to play that role if it came time to it.
"Fine. You get dibs." Daphne relented. Tracey's cheer rang through the shower. "Astoria won't be happy about that."
The fact that neither said anything about it being a little too early to be discussing that topic likely implied how serious they were about it.
Speaking of Astoria, Daphne wondered when she should tell her little sister... Perhaps in due time. The little one wouldn't know how to keep that secret if her life depended on it.
They continued to talk as they showered, helping each other scrub as they spoke. And it was just minutes later that the topic of kissing had been brought up. Daphne had then shared how it had nearly gone down, as well as the kiss on the cheek at the very end.
"And ye guys kissed?!" Tracey spat water into Daphne's face, completely shocked.
Even with water pouring down onto both of them from above, Daphne looked highly unamused at having been spat on.
"No. That was not what I said," Daphne clarified as she flicked Tracey on the forehead, "I said we almost kissed. And then I pecked him on the cheek later because he's my boyfriend now, absolutely deserves it, and has given me possibly one of the best days of my life so far."
"And he gave ya such a pretty necklace too." Tracey stared at the simple necklace that hung from Daphne's neck, the only accessory she still had on despite her bareness. It looked great, contrasting against her porcelain skin perfectly. "He's doing good as a good boyfriend."
"Yes… he is." She blushed lightly, remembering how his finger had brushed against the back of her neck, and made her make such an unladylike
"And ye gave him a… triangle?" Tracey made a face that did not seem too impressed, "Wow. Ye might not be too good at this whole 'girlfriend' thing."
"I got him the triangle first. And, obviously, that wasn't a real gift." Daphne defended herself, rolling her eyes in annoyance at her friend's jab, "I'll get him something better soon… I hope."
While Tracey was wrong, she did still have a point that Daphne hadn't gotten him a proper gift. Especially now that they were dating.
Did the moving photos from the booth count?
Hmmm… She wasn't sure.
Daphne blinked the water out of her eyes as she grew thoughtful.
Oh dear. Was she actually terrible at this?
Was it worse than Daphne had originally thought it to be? Did it make her seem like she didn't take him seriously? Damn it, did Tracey actually have a point? What could she get Harry that he'd really like?
Being as new to a relationship as she was, Daphne didn't know if she had actually made a mistake or not. Surely Harry didn't mind not getting something of equivalent value back. She was certain she knew her cute, hard-working, and kind Gryffindor well enough to say that.
But now, thinking hard about it, she realised she couldn't even think of what Harry would want as a gift.
Obviously, she couldn't drop a few hundred galleons on the newest, high-end broomstick for him. Her family was rich, yes, but not 'Malfoy' levels of extravagance. She was certain Harry wouldn't want her to do so either.
So if not that, then what?
Was he the type of person who liked receiving presents? Chocolates? Flowers? Or did he like affirmation through words? Should she write a card? Maybe she could express it through song? Violin? Piano? Acapella? Perhaps physical touch was his love language. He did seem to enjoy cuddling her. Did cuddles suffice as presents?
Could he want more?
Kissing? Touching?! Sex?! Babies?! Holding hands?!
Wasn't it still too early for all that now? She didn't know if she could do it and—
—ohgodwhywasthisgettingsodifficult?!
If it wasn't for the shower constantly spewing the cool temperature-regulated water down upon her, Daphne was certain she would've overheated from thinking far too hard over such a simple thing.
She mentally slapped herself to readjust herself.
Of course, she wouldn't know what his romantic interests were! She literally just started dating him hours ago!
Argh! Tracey was influencing her thoughts and making her think too hard now.
"-hne. Hello? Helloooo~?" A pair of wet fingers snapped in front of her face, "Ye still with us, Daphne?"
Daphne released a breath she had been holding in, shuddering slightly as she shut the valve of the shower.
The water slowed, before stopping altogether, leaving the bathroom quiet. The pair stood there for a moment, dripping in silence, before Daphne spoke.
"Can we continue this… preferably clothed?" She gestured to their shared state of undress.
Tracey relented, only because it was clear Daphne wasn't going to share anymore so long as she was kept in the bathroom.
*O*O*O*
Again, the pair were completely alone.
They were now garbed in their usual sleepwear and were standing in front of the large mirror, both combing their still-moist hair.
Daphne wore a long-sleeve navy blue nightshirt and a pair of blue shorts. The colours made her look like she belonged to Ravenclaw. The shirt was decorated with small snowflakes, a gift that made fun of her supposed title, given to her mockingly by her best friend.
It was a terrible gift and Tracey knew it. But Daphne did think it looked rather cute on her, so she had kept it.
Said best friend was next to her and had on a pair of sleep shorts and a simple green tee with a giant snake curled up against an equally large 'S'.
Both girls had their wands with them. Daphne's stuck out from the back of her shorts, while Tracey had used hers to pin her hair up in a messy bun.
"...So yer telling me the two of ya just hugged?" Tracey's disbelief was evident not in just her voice, but the look in her eye and her cocked brow.
"Harry was an absolute sweetheart and a complete gentleman, and did not touch anything he shouldn't have… Unlike me!" She gave Tracey a tight slap across her bum with the flat side of her comb as payback for being accosted in the shower.
"Owww!" Tracey yelped at the stinging pain that bit her flesh momentarily, before holding her hands up in surrender, "Okay, okay, won't happen again."
"Good." Then she headed towards her bed with Tracey in tow, "Care to see the pictures we took together?"
"Oooh, the one with the kiss?"
"Yes, and please be careful with it." Daphne reached over and produced the set of photos she had been keeping under her pillow, handing them to Tracey.
Tracey joined her on the bed, flopping onto the green covers on her belly, while Daphne lowered the curtains surrounding her bed and cast muffliato in the event the rest of the room returned.
Tracey was still lying on her belly with her legs up behind her, idly kicking the air and watching the photograph move on repeat with a pleased smile on her face.
"Mmhm. These are cute." She commented softly, and Daphne crawled on over, joining her friend as they leaned into each other. "Ye should ask that kid… uhh, what was his name? Crawley? Creevy?"
"Creevey," Daphne corrected, "Colin Creevey. The one with the camera."
"Right, that odd fellow. Heard his muggle camera works in Hogwarts, and that he's a big fan of Harry too. Couldn't hurt 'ta ask and borrow his camera for a bit. Snap some pictures of you two together. Don't think his pictures move, but still…" Tracey suggested to Daphne,
"Oh, that sounds like a good idea." Daphne hummed in agreement at the thought of going around Hogwarts and snapping pictures of them both. It sounded kind of fun actually. And if she had fun doing so, maybe she could ask Colin for help in purchasing one.
Daphne glanced at her friend, whose attention was still on the photograph, "Remind me again why you're single?"
"We can't all be lucky to have our own Prince Charming to sweep us off our feet, Daph." Tracey gave Daphne a wry look at the memory of her being carried to the infirmary, then she stuck her tongue out and made a sour face as if she had just bitten down on a particularly sour lemon. "Bleh. Astoria was right. There aren't a lot of worthwhile guys around, even at our age."
Daphne said nothing, aware of just how lucky she was to be in her situation. She had snagged the heart of the boy she had spent four years thinking about, and he was more than happy to be hers.
Just thinking about it now gave her that familiar feeling of butterflies in her stomach again.
Tracey had rolled onto her back now, holding the photo up to the ceiling and tilting it to the side, as if expecting to find something new by inspecting it from a different angle.
"Did ya know some say the magic used when the photos are taken actually captures a slight sliver of ya soul?" Her voice had steadily dropped down to a low murmur as she spoke.
"Is that true?" Daphne tiredly cocked a brow at her friend. That sounded a little… dangerous. If some kind of dark magic was involved in such an innocuous act, Daphne didn't really know what to think.
"I'unno…" Tracey shrugged as she held the row of photos of the two teens up to the light. As usual, they were repeatedly laughing in the photos, seemingly having the time of their lives. There was a faraway look in her eye now as she pondered aloud. "But don't ya think it's sweet? Ya essence has been captured for all eternity, and, even if, God forbid, something happens to the two of ya in the future, you'll always live on in the pieces of these memories. Together forever… Eternally happy…"
Daphne was staring in awe at her friend and her heartwarming and very literal take on living in photographs.
"Merlin… That might have just been the most beautifully insightful thing you've ever said." Daphne stared wide-eyed at Tracey, blinking rapidly, "When did you get so wise?"
"Hey, my wisdom is paralleled only by the likes of Dumbledore." Tracey tapped the photo against her temple before she handed it back to Daphne, crawling towards the pile of pillows by the headboard.
"If only your grades reflected Dumbledore's intellect too." Daphne sniped back, before giving Tracey an unamused look. The brunette was already getting comfortable in her preferred sleeping position, slipping underneath the smooth sheets.
"Are you seriously going to sleep here tonight, Trace?"
"C'mon Daph, I'm already tucked in and it's so comfy." Tracey's protest was followed up with a great, big yawn, earning an eye roll from her best friend.
They hadn't had a sleepover in ages. But the last time they did, Daphne distinctly recalled waking up with her best friend's sleeping form splayed out on top of her.
"Fine." Daphne sighed silently, "But you better not start kicking me in your sleep like last time."
"You know I make no such promises."
As the pair settled, back to back in the bed, ready to sleep, Daphne regarded the photograph with one last warm look before she slipped it under her pillows.
Sleep began to take hold of Daphne, and as the young Slytherin began to drift off to the world of her dreams, she vowed to figure out what gift would best suit Harry.
*O*O*O*
Even after it had been a day, students were still very much mingling in the halls, sharing the prior day's events with each other.
Harry was still riding the high of yesterday's events, even more so than his peers, sporting a warm smile on his face as he navigated through the many students who crowded around the hallways.
As Harry made his way to the library, he noticed a few glances going his way, and what little whispered words he had caught discussing him. Though he couldn't be fully certain of it, he guessed it may have had to do with him openly spending his time with Daphne yesterday since they hadn't really bothered hiding it.
Speaking of not hiding things, he had spoken to Hermione yesterday and shared with her the change in their relationship status, thanking her sincerely for giving him the push he needed to speak his mind.
Hermione had congratulated him, and asked him to pass on her blessings to Daphne as well, but had excused herself. Harry wasn't sure if Hermione was feeling unwell as she had left rather quickly, but he figured he ought to give her a small gift for her hand in helping him find his nerve.
While he may have gotten better at reading books, Harry still struggled with reading girls.
Harry finally made his way to the library, and when he did, he noted just how empty it was. Even the Head Librarian, Madam Irma Pince wasn't in at the moment, which was particularly rare considering just how protective that woman was of her books.
Harry assumed she must have taken a step out for a quick break.
Immediately, he headed over to the large desk where Madam Pince usually sat, reached over and took a key from the rack of keys. It was a small key, worn with time and use, and had a small bronze tag that had the number 3 imprinted onto it. Harry then proceeded to one of the private rooms he frequented, located all the way at the back of the library's first floor.
Smooth wooden benches flanked twin tables, suitable to fit about four to five students at once. It wasn't very big, nor comfortable but it did provide privacy from prying eyes.
Although, it wasn't that private.
He lightly knocked his knuckles on the walls and heard the sound echo across the mostly desolate library.
With walls as thin as these, Harry had heard plenty of students try their luck in using these rooms as kissing booths. Harry could see why they'd choose these rooms over any other, really. It was definitely far cleaner and more comfortable than a stuffy broom closet or a dusty, abandoned classroom, but he quickly found out that Madam Pince had a penchant for catching and punishing would-be lovers misusing her private study rooms.
Harry wasn't going to lie. He may have had a heated dream or two of how he and Daphne had appropriated one of these rooms for a non-stop kissing session.
As he unlocked the door, he blanched at the thought of getting caught in the middle of a liplock with Daphne. It wasn't too uncommon for him to hear her next door, quietly chewing out a pair of shocked students for turning study time into something far more intimate.
Entering the room, he found that things were just as he had left them. A number of books regarding DADA, Charms and Transfiguration sat open on the two desks, along with the other pile of books he had been reading from his last visit.
Indeed, it was a lot easier gathering the materials he planned to read here instead of lugging them back and forth from the library and the classroom they were using.
Quickly, he gathered up the ones he no longer needed and placed them onto the return cart outside.
Madam Pince had originally expressed her frustrations with Harry in regards to keeping the books in the shared room for days at a time, but Harry had managed to talk her into letting him use room three in particular.
It had taken a lot of convincing on his part, but Harry had finally been able to make arrangements with Madam Pince more than halfway through their last school year to grant him some leeway with the room he often used.
All he had to do to prove he was responsible enough to the strict librarian was to pull his grades all the way up, and offer a few hours out of his week to help clean up the library. Tacked on the fact that he was good friends with one of her favourite students, Hermione, who had helped vouched for him too and, well, he was as good as gold.
With a contented sigh, Harry settled into his seat and cracked open one of the nearby books on Dark Arts for Fifth to Sixth Year students. Slowly, he began to flip through the pages.
Though his eyes skimmed over the words, his brain barely registered any of what he was reading.
His thoughts were still focused on those books he had requested Daphne to obtain from her father and their family's library. She had made no promises in the Greengrass patriarch actually sending them over, much less them actually having those particular books in their collections.
But if everything went according to plan, those books would be coming in about a day or so. And then Harry would be able to start working on the last of the checklist he had planned for.
'Escape'.
He set the book he was half-heartedly reading down onto his lap and glanced up to the ceiling as he recalled the prior conversation he had with Daphne and Hermione two days before they had left for Hogsmeade.
*O*O*O*
Situated in the same small private room were the trio of students who were nose-deep in their respective books.
It hadn't been long before Harry finally peered from his book and spoke up, breaking the silence.
"I need to escape."
There was a pause as the two girls with him made varying faces of annoyance.
"That was a little rude, don't you think, Daphne?" Hermione's eyes glanced towards the blonde sitting opposite her, the rest of her scrunched-up face still hidden behind the large textbook for Potions.
"I didn't think our company was that bad." Daphne had scoffed, setting her book down and looking back at Harry with an offended face. "That's no way to speak to girls, Harry."
"Oh shush, you two. You know what I mean." He chided the two, who were now smiling wryly at each other, "I meant 'escaping from fights'."
"Was this the other thing you needed help with?" Hermione asked, to which he simply nodded.
"I reckon using your feet's a good start." Daphne suggested rather unhelpfully.
"Running away on foot should always be the last resort, but isn't. Plus, I'd like a little more assurance than just my two feet." Harry produced his well-worn notebook on top of the table, between the towers of books. Daphne and Hermione leaned in to see, curious about what sort of musings Harry had penned down in his notes.
Chicken-scratch writings filled the pages, with all sorts of small diagrams, with arrows, circles and crosses filling the sheets of paper. Honestly, if Harry hadn't been present, Daphne and Hermione would've thought this the ravings of a madman.
Well, truthfully it could still be the work of a madman. But neither wanted to say it out loud.
"Handwriting aside…" Daphne furrowed her brows as she tried her best to decrypt Harry's handwriting before giving up shortly after, "What else are we looking to improve here?"
Hermione snickered. Harry said nothing but cleared his throat, clearly embarrassed by his incomprehensible handwriting.
He quickly brushed it aside.
"I've been in too many sticky situations where just being able to escape quickly would have done wonders. So I'd like to ask the two brightest witches in Hogwarts for assistance in thinking of ways for me to escape from a fight quickly." He looked up from his notes and stared hopefully at the two, who shrugged.
They weren't up to much at the moment besides reading, and this bit of brain-storming sounded like a nice break from all the silent studying they were doing.
"I can't think of anything more fit for using to escape with than your cloak of… um…" Hermione suggested before she stopped, glancing at Daphne and then at Harry. She was unaware if Harry had made that information privy to her.
The last thing Hermione wanted to do was accidentally spill the beans on Harry having an invisibility cloak that put all the rest on the market to shame.
"Don't worry, Daphne knows." Harry was glad she at least checked in with him. "But no, I think it's a little too bulky to carry on me at all times."
"On the topic of legs, can we talk about transportation then?" Hermione switched immediately, pivoting from the previous idea with haste. Harry noted that the scholarly look in her eye when it came time to solve problems was very much present.
"Well, what known modes of transportation do we have?" Harry asked.
With that, the group whipped out their quills and wrote down all possible modes of magical transportation they could think of onto the next few pages of Harry's notebook.
There were no wrong answers for now. All they wanted to do was compile their answers before going through them together.
After a few minutes of thinking and writing, they returned to their discussion.
"The Floo is definitely out of the question." Daphne scratched out the suggestion. Obviously, it was simply impossible to use the Floo at any given moment or time.
Daphne snorted. The thought of Harry escaping danger by simply dashing over to the nearest fireplace, grabbing a handful of floor powder, and making a grand, dramatic exit in a roar of green flames while Voldemort patiently watched was quite amusing though.
"So is the Knight Bus…" Harry noted, following her actions in knocking out the suggestion.
The Knight Bus had a set route and only operated on the roads of a magical Britain. And he doubted that Stan the Conductor and Ernie the Driver would be pleased to ferry him away from Lord Voldemort if it came to it.
However, Harry did wonder if the Knight Bus would be able to dodge the Killing Curse by warping around it. Or was that exclusively for physical objects? Perhaps it was something worth looking into?
That was two down now.
"What about brooms?"
"I thought about it too." Harry had considered the thought even before they had this discussion. But while he was as good at flying as he was at walking, he couldn't imagine lugging one around with him everywhere. "Like the cloak, it's too bulky."
"Then perhaps a shrunken one to carry around?" Hermione suggested with her fingers stroking her chin in thought.
Harry thought it out for a moment before he shook his head. As interesting as that might have sounded, a closed, sealed room meant there was no escape, even with his tool of escape.
"Definitely interesting. But I might not be in a position to use a wand to unshrink it or to ride a broom. I was thinking of something along the lines of instantaneous. Something like teleporting. Still, good idea, Hermione. It's worth looking into as an alternative."
Hermione nodded, a little disappointed that her idea was rejected, but also happy that it was worth mentioning. She struck her idea out but did add a little note next to it.
'Shrunken brooms? Worth investigating?'
That was three.
"Considering your needs, up next we have 'apparition'." Daphne tapped the quill on the word. It was the most accurate spell that matched Harry's needs.
"I would love to…" Harry trailed off, his eyes a little disappointed, "But that takes too long to learn. And I've heard a bunch of people losing limbs trying to do it without the proper practice."
"It would be a shame if you splinched that pretty little head of yours off." Daphne hummed jokingly, though this did earn a wince from Harry at the idea of teleporting his body but leaving his severed head behind, all in front of the enemy.
What a horribly awkward way to die.
"And it would simply be impossible to Apparate while on Hogwarts' grounds, as stated in 'Hogwarts: A History'!" Hermione cut in, clarifying with a proud smile, which then died on her face at the two separate cocked brows she received from Harry and Daphne.
"And also it's illegal to do without a license…" She had hurried out that last part with a light pink tint on her face.
"It's only illegal if you get caught, Hermione." Daphne clarified, "But I suppose that means it's off the table too."
That was four... and was pretty much all their suggestions. There were a few others that weren't going to work either, like finding and appropriating the Weasley's missing flying car or taming another Hippogriff as a mount. None of them were going to be feasibly possible.
Harry sighed as he placed his head in his hands, deep in thought.
Daphne, on the other hand, was still hung up on the word Hermione had used.
Illegal.
She blinked at that.
Hmmm…
Her synapses were fired as she connected the dots in her mind. Then her sapphire blue eyes lit up brightly like someone had cast Lumos on them.
"So what we need is something that can let you escape instantly, likely from danger. It has to be able to work while we're in Hogwarts, and it has to be accessible to you at all times." Daphne repeated, earning nods from both Hermione and Harry.
Seeing their nods, she continued.
"Well, there is one more thing we haven't written down yet. One that also happens to match up to the criteria we need. Are you not thinking of what I'm thinking?" She asked the two Gryffindors again.
They looked completely clueless. Daphne didn't blame them. As a pureblooded witch who had been born into magic, it was only natural that she knew a little bit more about this particular mode of travel than a muggle-born and a half-blood raised amongst muggles.
"A portkey."
"Oh! Of course!" Hermione looked like she wanted to palm her forehead for not realising it sooner. She had gotten into contact with one over the summer!
Harry had only asked a simple question.
"What the hell is a portkey?"
Had Harry gone to the Quidditch World Cup, he would have known exactly what a Portkey was and how one functioned. Still, it was better late than never to find out this information.
And just like that, they had a solution that hit every single point.
*O*O*O*
Portkeys.
Harry tapped at his notebook absently with his fingers as the word played in his mind.
There was not much to be said about them. They were simple and very useful in a pinch.
One-time use objects imbued with the properties to teleport you to a predetermined place, at a moment's notice or at a set time, all through the simple act of a touch.
Of course, making a portkey was another thing altogether.
They were heavily regulated and illegal to own and use outside without the Ministry's jurisdiction. Still, Harry hadn't quite cared what the Ministry thought, especially with the potential for the upcoming games to go horribly wrong for him, spectator or not.
Thus when he found himself wanting to research the topic in the library, and finding that they were practically non-existent due to the Ministry's regulations, Harry had been quite miffed.
He expressed his frustrations to Daphne, who said her family might have a book or two on the subject.
And Daphne had been kind enough to request any tomes that may have carried information about portkeys from the Greengrass Manor Library.
If Daphne's father pulled through in the delivery and Harry managed to find good use out of those books, he'd likely owe the man a lot more than just his thanks. He might've even owed him his life. Especially now that he was dating one of his daughters, which had happened days after she had written to him.
He wondered if the new change would have affected the man's answer, whatever it would be.
Harry hadn't been lost in his thoughts that much longer before the door creaked open. He glanced to the crack in the door, where a single blue eye peered through.
"Hello, Daphne." Harry couldn't help but start smiling again.
"Oh. Give me a moment." Daphne shut the door, and Harry could hear the sounds of clothes rustling. Then, moments later the girl on the other side of the door opened it fully, finally stepping into view.
She had forgone her usual robes today, instead wearing only the collared shirt, knee-high skirt, and long stockings required of the female students.
"G'mornin' Harry…" Daphne said a little drearily as she rubbed the underside of her nose, sniffling from the cold and crisp air of the library, "Have you been waiting long?"
"Just a little." His smile faded, replaced with a look of concern. "You're dressed bare-thin today. You do know it's still snowing out, right?" Harry couldn't help but comment on her current state of dress.
"Yes, I conveniently forgot them today. I was hoping you could help me with that."
Harry blinked.
"Do you want my robes? I could—"
Daphne rolled her eyes.
Only Merlin knew how Harry could go from being the slickest, silver-tongued smooth talker on one day to becoming as dumb as rocks on another.
She supposed he was still getting used to the whole dating thing. And so was she, to be honest.
This was evident as her expression turned demure, now forced to say what she had thought Harry would — her true intentions.
"Just hug me, Potter." Daphne sighed in exasperation.
"Oh!" Harry was sporting that silly grin on his face again as he beckoned her close, "Well, don't just stand there gorgeous, c'mere..."
Daphne slipped into the seats next to Harry, and they were shoulder to shoulder again like they had been the day before. Harry slipped his arms out of the sleeves of his robes and draped half of it over the other side of her shoulders so that the two of them were now both cloaked under it.
His eyes wandered from the side of her face to her slender neck. From this angle, he could see the faintest glimpse of the silver necklace glinting under her collared shirt, slipping around and following the sharp jutting shape of her collar bones. It made him extremely happy to know she was still wearing the gift he had gotten her.
"Feeling warmer yet?" Harry asked quietly as he snaked his arm around her lower back, wrapping it against her waist and pulling her closer to him. His fingers could feel the toned tummy under her shirt, and Harry couldn't stop the grin on his face from growing even bigger.
Even if they had been cuddling lots yesterday, it had been partially driven by the need to make up for the loss of their first true kiss.
Now, it felt a lot more personal.
Daphne smiled, her cheeks pink at Harry's touch. But she was getting comfortable, resting her head on his shoulder.
"Much better."
*O*O*O*
Outside of the room, neatly folded and tucked away between two books on a nearby shelf, was a set of Slytherin robes.
*O*O*O*
The two spent some time in a comfortable silence.
Daphne was really enjoying Harry's heat. She could feel it radiating from his skin from where it was pressed up against her side, around her waist, before stopping right atop her navel, where his palm rested.
She felt like her House's cold-blooded patron animal, the snake, with the way she was enjoying Harry's body heat like he was a living heat lamp.
Hell. This was supposed to have been an attempt to get a rough estimate of his enjoyment of her physical touch, and here she was getting distracted by it instead.
Though, from the way he was clutching her tightly to his side, Daphne figured he must be enjoying it too.
"Have you told anyone about us?" She asked.
"Just Hermione. She gave her regards and blessings, and thanked you for the gift." Harry smiled, "You?"
"Just Tracey." Daphne mumbled back, "It went about as well as you'd expect with Tracey."
Harry laughed. He could imagine the havoc the brunette unleashed upon her best friend at the reveal that they were now seeing each other.
"What about Astoria?"
"I think I'll probably wait to tell her."
That made a thought come to him.
"Speaking of that... Should we make things public? Y'know… between us. I mean, unless you don't want to." Harry asked, rather awkwardly.
As proud as he was to call himself her boyfriend (Hell, he wanted to grab the nearest stranger and share the news with them) he had his own reservations about the ramifications of doing so, but was curious to know how Daphne felt about the situation.
The blonde took a moment to consider his question, her mouth twisting into a small, thoughtful frown.
"Harry, if you wanted me to, I would happily scream from the tops of the castle, but…" She trailed off, her mind already planning for the future, as any reasonable Slytherin would.
Harry didn't seem too concerned with Daphne's pause. He knew her well enough that she had a sound reason for it.
"...But?" He smiled at her hesitation, urging her to share regardless.
"...I think it'd be best if we kept it to ourselves for now. Or at least until you're done with the portkey research." Daphne looked him in the eyes, "That way, you won't be bothered by any of my nasty little housemates until after you're done with this project."
"Fair point..."
Harry nodded as he considered her words. The idea of going fully public would undoubtedly draw ire from Slytherins like Malfoy and his ilk. And while Harry was not in the least bit worried for his own safety when it came to Malfoy, he wouldn't stand for the idea of Daphne getting harmed.
Perhaps, when he was done with his little project, he'd have a stern word with the little vermin.
"...But you were saying something about how you'd… 'happily scream from the top of the castle' if I wanted you to?" Harry's brows lifted as his tone turned a little too faux-innocent for Daphne's liking.
Then he felt Daphne tense up in his arm, finally realising the implication of his statement.
"It was a figure of speech!" She looked aghast, blushing hard at the thought of actually doing it.
The public embarrassment alone at how cringy that would be would likely send her into hiding for life.
"A grand figure, I might add." He teased her.
"I was being hyperbolic!" She whined, lightly slapping at his broad chest now as the Gryffindor absently rubbed his chin. He did not seem to regard her words.
"I might hold you to that."
"You wouldn't dare!"
It hadn't been too much longer before the pair were interrupted by the return of Madam Pince, who was not at all pleased at the ruckus the two were making in her library.
At least they hadn't been caught snogging.
Well... not for a while longer at least.
*O*O*O*
Chapter 7: End.
*O*O*O*
Important A/N:
Hey, sorry it took a while for such a relatively short and uneventful chapter.
There should be another chapter coming in a day or two (or three) after I post this though but it'll just mostly be the introduction to the Drumstrang and Beauxbatons students, as well as lots of character interactions, as well as the whole name-in-the-goblet ceremony, so stay tuned!
Less Important A/N:
My health got a lot worse before it got better. Still not great, but already a hundred times better than it was last month.
Very lucky to have my family and friends with me. And thank you to all of you who kept me in their well wishes!
And we're at 500 followers! What a milestone. Am eternally grateful for you guys and your support!
Also, I realise I made a mistake uploading chapters 5 and 6 at the same time because it seems a bunch of people read chapter 6, but not 5. I understand it's likely because of the email notification showing the more recent one.
I'll try and separate them a day or two apart from now on if I upload multiple chapters in close proximity. So if you haven't read chapter 5 (Heartbreak and Hogsmeade 1) yet, this is a gentle reminder to do so!
Anyway, hope you guys will hang on while I chug along and these chapters as and when I can!