Decorus Draco

Harry walked determinedly over to Hermione's favourite seat in the library, and plopped down in a chair next to her.

"Harry!" she exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"What? Can't I decide to study?" Harry asked, putting on a mock offended look.

Hermione merely raised her eyebrows.

"Oh, alright, I need to talk to you." Harry sighed and started playing with his fingers.

Hermione placed a bright red feathered bookmark in the book that she had been reading, a large brownish coloured book titled 'Dissecting the Flobberworm - a truly miraculous creature or a slug?' She put the book away and looked expectantly at Harry.

After waiting a few seconds while Harry continued to play with his hands, she tapped her foot on the floor and said, "Go on, Harry, what's wrong?"

"Well," Harry started, letting out a big sigh again, "There's nothing wrong as such. It's just that I've been having these dreams recently..."

"Nightmares?" asked Hermione, a frown crossing her face.

Harry blushed. "No, I mean...dreams about a person. Very graphic dreams about them. I feel like...like I'm under a spell or something. Nothing else matters but them. I...I want to do something that I shouldn't and I feel really guilty even having these thoughts. I know it's not right, but I just can't help myself."

Hermione's frown got deeper. "Is that the problem?" she asked.

"Well yeah," Harry said, avoiding Hermione's eyes.

"Oh Harry, I'm not sure that I'm the right person to be telling you about the birds and the bees. But...these feelings are completely normal. Your body is just telling you what it needs, and if it means taking your needs into your own hands, that's perfectly acceptable and you shouldn't feel the least bit guilty about..."

Harry, who had been staring at Hermione with increasing amounts of horror, interrupted her speech quickly.

"Stop! Stop! That's not what I wanted to talk about. I don't have a problem with...with 'taking my needs into my own hands,' as you so nicely put it. Merlin, I'm seventeen, not twelve! I can't believe you thought I needed to talk about that!"

Hermione huffed, and asked, "So, what's the problem then? If you like someone, why can't you just approach her?"

Harry hesitated. "It's not that easy...I'm not supposed to have these feelings towards this particular person."

Hermione's eyes widened. "It's not me, is it?"

"No! No! Gosh, no Hermione!"

"Hey, a simple no would have sufficed. You don't have to be that vehement about it, you know. I'll have you know that a lot of boys think I'm quite pretty."

Harry started to protest, but stopped when he saw Hermione's teasing grin.

"So," Hermione prompted, "who is it then?"

"It's somebody I really, really should not be having any of these feelings about."

"Is it one of the Slytherins? Pansy? Milicent? Oh wait, is it a Professor? Madam Pomfrey? It's her, isn't it...with all that time you've been spending in the hospital wing..."

"Urggh...Hemione! Stop. It's not...it's not a girl."

A stunned silence followed.

"Oh?" Hermione finally ventured.

"Yeah."

"Oh...okay...so...is it Snape? He has this dark, evil, sexy bloke look going for him."

"Ewww...no!! Please!! Please stop guessing, okay. It's...it's Draco."

Another stunned silence.

"Malfoy?"

"Yeah."

"Malfoy?"

"Yeah."

"Malfoy?"

"Yeah, I know! Exactly my point!"

Hermione brought her fingers to her temples and started chanting something that sounded suspiciously like 'Harry's my friend. I will not hit him over the head with a heavy book.'

Harry quickly scooted a little further away from Hermione. She looked decidedly scary with her eyes all scrunched up, and her fingers twitching slowly on the desk.

"So, tell me more," Hermione said, in strangely calm, girl-next-door-about-to-turn-into-a-crazed-mass-murderer sort of voice.

Harry, not really making too much of Hermione's cool tone, ran his fingers through his hair as he started.

"Well, it started the first day we got back to school. D'you remember how Draco and Zabini entered really late, and looked like they had...you know. Seeing him all flushed and rosy made me think...I mean...I just...and then the dreams started. And when I see him, I can't control myself - all these crazy thoughts keep popping up in my head.

He was silent for a bit, and then continued, "And just now, I was arguing with Zabini when he-- "

"Why?"

"Why what?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Why were you arguing with Zabini?"

"Because he's a stupid prat who can't keep his hands to himself."

"Hmmm."

"Yeah, so anyway, Draco walked in, and he poked me with his finger, but it wasn't just a finger - he had claws. And fur. And he purred. Like a cat. Like a very beautiful cat."

Harry got a dreamy look in his eyes, but was brought back to reality by a sharp "A cat? Are you sure? Not a furry goat-like creature?"

"No, he wasn't a goat, I told you, he purred," Harry replied, in an annoyed tone.

Hermione stared thoughtfully at a spot just behind Harry's head, before she said, "A cat...hmmm...he's probably some kind of magical creature. Harry, the feeling that you got when you first saw Draco this term, was it anything like what you felt when you first saw Fleur Delacour?"

"Fleur?" asked Harry, frowning.

"Don't you remember the way you and Ron were mooning over her all the time?"

"Oh yeah," said Harry, a goofy grin spreading over his face. "Um...I don't know, I guess what I felt when I saw Draco that first time was a bit like that, but much, much stronger. I mean, I really do not know what I'll do when I see him next. I just want to..."

Harry shook his head, and looked back at Hermione. "But why did you ask about Fleur?"

"Well," Hermione began, "I haven't read too much about this particular topic, but from what you've told me, it does sound like Draco could either be a Decorus or a Zygoporus."

"Er...and that in English would be?"

"Zygoporuses are hermaphrodites. They possess male, female human and goat organs. When angered, they turn into ferocious, goat like creatures that are capable of causing serious with their sharp horns. Males are usually very attractive and elegant. Come to think of it, Draco could be one - he's so girly."

"He is NOT girly. He's just...pretty."

"Okay, so he's a pretty boy."

"God, you make that sound so gay."

"Harry, considering what you've just told me, shouldn't you be hoping that Draco is gay?"

"I...oh God!"

"What now?"

"I...does that mean I'm gay too? I mean I've had girlfriends. Cho--"

"Dumped you after one date."

"Alexis--"

"Warned you never to steal her eyeliner again. And before you say Ginny, she was tired of being the man in your relationship."

"Hey, just because I'm a gentleman and do not stoop down to molesting my girlfriends does not mean that I'm gay."

"Do you want to molest Malfoy?"

"Hell, yeah," said Harry, quickly clamping his hand over his mouth once the words had escaped.

"I...look, I don't want to talk about that, alright. What was the other thing you said Draco could be? A Decorum?" Harry continued quickly.

"A Decorus. Decoruses are male Veela. They usually possess human form, but, like Veela, transform when angered. They turn into creatures called Cattus, which are a lot like cats. Oh Harry, if Draco really is a Decorus, you need to be very careful. In their Cattus form, Decoruses are extremely powerful."

"Wow, that's a lot of information, Hermione. How do you know all this?"

Hermione frowned and mumbled, "I read a lot about Veela during our fourth year. Not that it did me any good."

"What was that?"

"Oh, nothing. Anyway, now that you mention it, I have felt the urge to check out Malfoy's bum ever since the term started."

At Harry's frown, Hermione quickly continued, "Not that I've given in to the urge, of course. I mean, it is Malfoy we're talking about here..."

Harry merely grunted in response, not feeling very happy at the thought of Hermione checking out Draco's cute little bum.

"Well, there is one way to find out for sure," said Hermione, getting up and walking towards an aisle filled with dust-covered tomes, not unlike the one she had been reading before she'd been interrupted by Harry.

~~~~~

Meanwhile, in a corridor not far away, Blaise Zabini looked over at the furry boy walking a few paces behind him.

'By Salazar, he is so hot! How could I have been with him and not realised how incredibly sexy he is? I just want to rip his clothes off and...'

Blaise's lustful thoughts were interrupted by a loud groan.

"I can't bloody walk like this. My...my toe-claws are killing me. And my pants are so tight, I'm suffocating here."

Blaise swallowed. "Your pants are tight? Would you like me to help with that?"

"Help?" Draco looked confused for a minute before he screamed. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Blaise. I've got a bloody tail in the back of my pants."

Draco sighed and leaned against a wall.

"D'you want me to carry you to a classroom so that no one sees you like this?" Blaise asked, feeling a strange warmth in his heart.

"Would you?" asked Draco quietly.

"Of course," said Blaise, as he picked up the delicate blond creature and walked into the nearest empty classroom. Once there, he gently put Draco down on a bench, and stared at him.

"Draco, is this...the fur and all...does it have anything to do with what you told me over the summer?"

"Yes, it seems like my Decorus powers are creeping up on me. Father warned me about losing my temper. I need to meditate for a bit to get back to my human form. Would you mind waiting for me while I do?"

"Not at all, love," said Blaise, not even thinking twice about the endearment that had slipped past his lips. He sat a few benches away from Draco, and watched as Draco sat cross-legged on the floor, holding his knees with his hands and taking deep, calming breaths.

Blaise found himself staring deeply at Draco, as his mind wandered to the incident earlier. He had been scared out of his wits by Potter's threats - after all, Potter was someone to be taken very seriously. And then, Draco had transformed into this...this ethereal creature. He was beautiful and strong, and Blaise had felt incredibly drawn to him. And then Potter had touched Draco. That filthy half-blood had touched his Draco, and made him purr. Blaise had felt his blood boil when Draco rubbed noses with Potter. Draco was his boyfriend. His. Potter had no right.

Blaise looked over at Draco again, and was mesmerised by how beautiful the boy, or whatever he was now, looked. Contradictory emotions flowed freely through him, a fierce possessiveness, an unimaginable jealousy, an avalanche of lust, and a warm, fuzzy feeling he couldn't quite identify. All he knew at that moment was that he would gladly give up his life for Draco, if asked. And, more surprisingly, the thought did not scare him even a bit.

After a few minutes, Blaise was brought out of his reverie by Draco, now with hairless hands and perfectly manicured nails.

"Shall we?" asked Draco, getting up off the floor and walking towards the door of the classroom.

Blaise followed Draco quiety, and the two of them made their way to the Slytherin dungeons.

Suddenly, the gravity of the situation crashed upon Blaise. Harry Potter, the freaking Boy Who Lived, had put his wand to Blaise's throat and threatened to kill him if he stayed with Draco. What had he been thinking?

"Draco, listen. We have to talk."

"What about?"

"About Potter."

"What about him?"

"Look Draco, I...I don't think we should see each other any more."

Draco stopped in his tracks.

"What??"

"It's just that...it's Potter. He wants you and he warned me to stay away from you. And he's really powerful; all the Death Eaters fear him. I can't afford to have him after me, Draco."

"Don't let him get to you, Blaise. Potter's just being a wanker, same as he's always been. If we break up, you're just letting him win."

Blaise frowned. The elation he had felt a few minutes earlier was gone, leaving behind only a dread about what Potter would do to him if he didn't stay away from Draco.

"I'm sorry; I just can't do this anymore. Let's just take a break for a while and see how it goes alright?"

Saying that, Blaise leaned over and gave Draco a quick kiss before hurrying along the corridor.

~~~~~

Albus Dumbledore stroked his beard as he stared at the greasy haired man seated in the chair opposite him.

"So, you basically told young Mr. Malfoy that Harry is his soul mate? And your reasoning behind that was...?"

"Well," Severus started, "I thought that if Draco believed that Potter was his soul mate and he would not survive without him, then he would be protective towards Potter. He was under the impression that Potter was out to kill him, and was screaming Azkaban. You know as well as I do that if news of Potter's condition reached Lucius, he would figure out how weak Potter is right now and send someone after the boy. I felt that under the circumstances, Draco thinking that Potter was his responsibility and his life-partner would be highly conducive to Potter's well being."

"I see," Albus replied. "And what was Mr. Malfoy's reaction to this news?"

"He didn't really believe it immediately, but I think behind all that hatred, he does have a soft spot for Potter. I think he will do what he can to protect him, if he believes Potter to be his soul mate. And Potter, no doubt, will be thrilled by the idea, considering the fact that he's been pursuing Draco like the hormonal adolescent that he is."

Albus sighed loudly. "I can't lie any more to Harry, Severus. I will tell him the truth, and leave him to do as he pleases with it."

Severus snickered. "I'm sure Potter will be ecstatic about it. He doesn't look like he cares how he gets Draco, at this point. He almost blew up my classroom because he couldn't control his hormones."

"Very well then, would you have one of the house-elves summon Harry then, Severus?"

"As you wish, Headmaster."

~~~~~

Harry looked on as Hermione scanned the shelf of dusty books.

"...'Vermin repelling potions,' 'Violent blood-sucking plants', ah here we go - "Wizards who have interbred with magical creatures.'"

Hermione pulled the book off the shelf and almost fell down under its weight. She quickly cast the levitation charm, and transported the book over to where Harry was sitting, a sceptical look on his face.

She opened the book, and a sneezing fit followed, caused by the huge cloud of dust that floated up. A great many 'Excuse me's and 'Bless you's later, Hermione cast a Coagulation spell and the dust collected into a disgusting looking ball, which she threw at Harry.

"Ow!" said Harry, rubbing his arm. Will you stop playing the fool and look it up already?"

"Keep your pants on!" Hermione exclaimed, as she leafed through the index. "Here they are," she said, excitedly looking up a page number, "listed under pretty, pretentious gits with beautiful, blond hair."

"They are NOT listed under that," shouted Harry, trying to snatch the book away, but given its massive weight, only succeeding in inching it towards him a little. He peered down at the index, which merely said, "The Malfoys."

Harry turned over to page 5736, and after finding the appropriate entry, began reading aloud.

"Malfoy Lucius, 39.2 percent Decorus...height, weight, age...Wow, I didn't know he's only thirty-five. That would make him only...eighteen when Draco was born. Hah - torturing house-elves is listed as one of his hobbies." Harry's chuckles drowned away as he turned to look at Hermione's stern face.

"Hey, I'm just reading what's in here," Harry said defensively, before continuing to read aloud, "Malfoy Narcissa (formerly Narcissa Black), 41.7 percent Veela..."

"Oh my!" interrupted Hermione, excitedly. "That should mean that Draco is 40.45 Decorus. I was right!"

Harry tried to conjure up a calculator to confirm Hermione's calculations, but being pretty miserable at Conjuring, he managed to come up with a rusty looking abacus. Hermione promptly banished it away, and conjured up a Casio FX-260 Solar Scientific Calculator, and offered it to Harry, a smug look on her face. Harry fumbled around with it for a bit, trying to turn the correct mode on, then gave up and threw it to the side.

"Okay, so he's part Decorus. What does that mean?"

Hermione bit her lower lip thoughtfully. "I'm not really sure. If Malfoy was a pure hundred percent Decorus, he would be irresistible to everybody. We'd probably have Dumbledore fawning all over him. Somehow, you're the only one who's vulnerable to his charms. Hmmm...that could be because of your low magical resistance right now. Oh Harry, you have to try and resist what you feel for him. If Malfoy has any inkling of how magically weak you are right now, he will run and tell Daddy exactly what's going on, and the Death Eaters will hatch some more evil plans to get you."

Harry frowned. "And how exactly are you so sure that Draco will know that my resistance is low? He's so conceited; he will probably think I've just fallen for his natural beauty."

"Yes, but if you pursue him successfully...he's a Decorus Harry, and you have no chance against him in your current state. You'll probably be handing yourself over to You-Know-Who just for a chance to get into Malfoy's pants."

Harry stood up angrily. "I will not. Look Hermione, I don't care what you say, I want Draco, and I don't care whether he is a Decorus or not. I'm not going to defect to Voldemort's side or anything. I just want to have some fun. Am I not entitled to that?"

"Of course," said Hermione, standing up too, "but Harry, you really need to be careful..."

"I'm tired of being careful. I'm tired of my life being dictated by Voldemort and Dumbledore's whims and fancies. For once, there's something I really want in my life, and I'm going to get it! And no one's going to stop me, not even you!"

Harry was about to storm angrily out of the library, when a squeaky voice interrupted him.

"Harry Potter sir"

"Dobby?"

"Yes, Harry Potter, sir, the Headmaster wishes to speak to you right away. Would you come along with me?"

"Of course - why not? I'm his little puppet after all. I'll just follow you like a good little Golden Boy now, won't I?" asked Harry, unintentionally making a few of the lamps in the library explode.

"Er...I'm sorry Harry Potter. Professor Dumbledore sir asked me to..." Dobby began nervously, but was shushed by Harry as the boy followed him to the Headmaster's office.

~~~~~

Harry followed Dobby up the steps that led to Dumbledore's chambers, rolling his eyes at Dobby's whispered "Chocolate éclairs" as the staircase revolved, and he was granted entrance to the Headmaster's office. Dobby stood aside to let Harry enter, and then disappeared.

"Ah Harry, don't just stand there. Come on in, have a seat." Dumbledore's voice floated over to him. Harry grumpily walked over and sat in the bright red and golden plush chair that the Headmaster conjured up for him.

Harry waited for a few minutes, waiting for one of the professors to speak. For a few minutes however, Dumbledore merely played with his beard while Snape hovered around, looking rather vampire-like.

Dumbledore finally broke the uneasy silence. "Professor Snape has been telling me about your recent...interactions...with Mr. Malfoy, Harry. Is there anything you would like to talk to me about?"

Harry frowned. "No, not really, Professor. It was all a misunderstanding, but I've got everything sorted out now."

"You have," asked Dumbledore, his eyes snapping up to Harry's. "And what does that mean?"

"It just means that I know what I have to do now," Harry replied, a defiant edge in his voice.

"Harry, there's something you should know about Mr. Malfoy before you do anything rash. He's a -"

"Decorus, yeah, I know."

"I see," said Dumbledore, calmly. "And did Mr. Malfoy tell you about this himself?"

"No, Hermione figured it out. But it doesn't matter. What I do with Draco is nobody's concern but my own," said Harry, irritation pouring out of every vein.

"Of course, Harry. I am only concerned about your well being. You see, Mr. Malfoy has been led to believe--"

"I know, he thinks I want to kill him. Or at least he used to. But don't worry about it, I plan to make my intentions very clear to him."

"Harry, if you would just listen for a while, I can tell you that Mr. Malfoy thinks--"

"I don't care!" shouted Harry, jumping out of the chair. "I don't care what Draco thinks, and I certainly don't care what you or Professor Snape think about it. This is my personal business, and I don't see why anyone else needs to interfere with it."

"Mr. Potter--" Dumbledore began, but was cut short by the sound of a sudden gush of liquid. A small Pensieve on a shelf nearby had cracked and was overflowing. Dumbledore hurried over to repair it.

Harry closed his eyes tightly and tried to control himself.

"I'm sorry," Harry mumbled. "I...I don't feel so good. I didn't mean to do that. May I be excused please?"

"Very well, Mr. Potter," said Dumbledore, frowning at his Pensieve, and waving Harry along with his hand.

Harry slowly walked out of the office, stopping sharply as the doors closed, as he heard Snape exclaim, "But you didn't mention my telling Draco about them being soulmates!"

"Soulmates?" Harry gasped, raising his hand to knock on the door once more, but resisting the urge. He brought his hand down, and slowly sank to the floor, head in his hands, not knowing what to do next.

~~~~~

In the corridor to the Slytherin dungeons, Draco gaped at Blaise's quickly retreating figure. He could not believe what had just happened. Potter had done it again. He had snatched Blaise away from him simply because everybody's hero had suddenly decided that he wanted Draco instead. Well, he was NOT going to have him. This was one time the bloody Golden boy of Gryffindor was not going to win.

Not realising what he was doing, or the fact that it was suddenly difficult to walk again, Draco stormed towards the Slytherin dorms.

~~~~~

Blaise sank into the most comfortable sofa in the Slytherin common room, unceremoniously chucking out the previous occupants, a shy second year couple. Blaise scowled into the fire, angry with himself, with Potter, and with the world in general. He couldn't believe he had just broken up with Draco, but it wasn't like Potter had left him any choice. Bloody Potter, thinking that he could get away with anything because of his stupid scar. And what irked Blaise more than anything in the world was the fact that he had given Potter exactly what he wanted, by giving up on Draco.

Blaise was distracted from his ruminations by several loud gasps. He looked towards the door, and noticed cat-Draco gliding gracefully, but purposefully towards him.

"I won't accept it, Blaise," Draco hissed, as he walked up to Blaise, and stood in front of him. "I won't let Potter win."

Blaise stared dreamily at the fur covered creature in front of him. His eyes drifted over to the rest of the room where all the Slytherins present were almost drooling over his Draco. Blaise instinctively grabbed a hold of Draco's hand and pulled him down to the sofa with him.

"You didn't mean what you said earlier, did you, Blaise?" whispered Draco, the whiskers on his upper lip swaying softly with his breath. Draco reached out a clawed finger and pulled a lock of Blaise's hair towards him. Blaise moaned quietly.

"No, Draco. I don't know what I was thinking. I could never leave you. You're everything to me...everything..."

Draco smiled wickedly and sprang up off the sofa with a feline grace. "Prove it to me then," he said, holding on to Blaise's hand and dragging him over to his dorm. Blaise followed, as if in a trance, stopping only to glare at his entranced housemates who were devouring Draco with their eyes.

Blaise let himself be dragged into the dorm, and heard Draco mutter a locking charm on the door. All thoughts of Harry Potter torturing him and orchestrating his untimely demise were forgotten as Blaise found himself drowning in Draco's heady scent.

~~~~~