Come On Harry

Chapter 7: Defined Answer

Dean was gathered up on his bunk, hunched over his sketchbook, and sending angry glances every now and again to Seamus when he made Dean's hand digress from its planned course. He had no idea why Seamus was shaking the bed so violently, but he kept his mouth shut because Seamus would only call him a querulous ponce and go back to his business if Dean complained.

He was grateful when Harry entered the room, attracting the Irish boy's attention. "Harry, we heard you passed out at the party last night. Too much drinking? Doesn't surprise me, you don't strike me as the type that can hold his liquor."

"Yeah...I guess I found out the hard way," Harry lied, trying to hide his face as he made his way to his trunk. He'd had a sharp pain in his stomach since he'd woken up that morning, but he thought it might be because he couldn't stand to be looked at anymore.

Hermione had been waiting for him and Ron to return to Gryffindor tower last night, and Harry noticed a darkness around her eyes and a lacking where her full cheeks had once been. She'd been biting her nails and attempting to read her Arithmancy textbook when they arrived, and from the moment she heard them enter through the portrait hole, she ran over and laid her arms and body upon Harry.

"Oh, Harry, I love you," she'd said, gripping his shoulders even tighter. "Please don't ever scare me like that again."

At that moment, Harry's heart sank, and he could not think of anything to say in return. He let her hug him silently for another minute, feeling her coarse hair against his neck, her sweet scent climbing up into his nostrils...

He felt sick and needed to sleep. He excused himself appropriately and was out before he hit the pillow. He only woke up when he felt a warm hand slip inside his. Opening his eyes wide enough to make out long red hair and bright brown eyes, he allowed his mouth to smile before losing consciousness again. He wasn't even sure if there had been someone there at all.

"So it's Ginny, eh?" Seamus continued, now inches away from Harry. "Parvati's had her knickers in a twist over it, I've heard."

"Yeah, maybe for a minute," Dean added from his corner of the room, lifting his head from the sketchbook for only a moment. "Then she went off and shagged Terry Boot." He let out a chuckle.

Seamus turned towards his best friend and said, "She's quite a woman, isn't she?"

"If being 'quite a woman' is measured in chest size, then yes, she is," Dean answered, this time without lifting his gaze.

The fair haired boy looked again towards Harry, who was now viciously digging through his trunk and successfully covering his face. "How's Ginny in bed, Harry?"

Harry choked for a moment.

Dean said, "You don't have to answer him if you don't want to."

Pulling out a black jumper from his trunk, Harry slid it on over his head deliberately slowly.

Seamus waited for a moment before saying, "He only doesn't want to because they haven't done it yet." He began to laugh.

Noticing Harry's growing frustration and embarrassment, Dean quickly said, "They've only been dating for a few days, Seamus. You expect too much."

"Ginny's not one to wait. Hasn't she been shagging Draco Malfoy since the beginning of the year?"

Harry slapped his forehead, not expecting it to resound so loudly throughout the room. Seamus looked at him with wide eyes. "Yes," he replied through gritted teeth, "Yes, she has been."

"Sorry, mate," he said somberly for a moment before bursting out, "There have been some odd rumors about you going around lately. Is it true you like to watch Ron and Hermione shag?"

"No," Harry replied, finding it simple to keep a straight face when he was feeling so disgusting like this. "That is definitely not true."

"It isn't? I thought for sure that was one of the true ones."

Dean looked up suddenly. "I'm afraid to know what the others were then," he said lightly, hoping the mood would catch onto Harry.

At that moment, Ron burst into the room, looking completely disheveled. The front of his robes had slid all the way to the side and his hair was messier than Harry had ever seen it. All three boys stared at him. "What?" he asked, attempting to look casual.

"Ah," Seamus said, dramatically sniffing the air around Ron. "Post-coital musk."

The tips of Ron's ears tinged a bright red colour. Walking over to the mirror to adjust his robes, he returned weakly, "Is not..."

"So I suppose the rumors aren't true then, eh, Harry? Otherwise you'd've been out there watching them," Seamus said, laughing.

Harry could not find his roommate funny, although Dean had started laughing as silently as he could manage from the corner of the room.

"What's he talking about?" Ron asked Harry, before noticing his best friend's unusually pale face. "Hey, you feeling alright, mate? Maybe we should've taken you to Madam Pomfrey after all."

"It's okay, Ron. I'm fine, thanks."

"Alright... I think Ginny wanted to talk to you, or something." He gestured towards the door.

Harry was grateful for an excuse to leave but the common room worried him more than his dormmates. At least Ron hadn't asked him any more questions about Malfoy while the rest had been in the room.

He walked down the stairs slowly, hoping to be alone as long as he possibly could. The moment did not last long as he heard footsteps marching up towards him. Spotting Hermione's hair, he tried to think quickly.

"Harry! How are you feeling?" She reached her hand out and stroked his forearm gently.

The touch was soft and Harry felt instantly comforted. "I'm fine, Hermione. Thank you. And good morning." She smiled, and it killed Harry because it was such a beautiful and genuine smile. "Hermione," he repeated, this time more softly. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

He looked to the right, suddenly wondering what the weather was like. "For what I did to you before."

Her eyes searched for his to no purpose. "Harry, it's in the past."

"Not that far in the past." He paused. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me, besides maybe the fact that I feel most comfortable around you... but you and Ron are the best friends I've ever had, and I just wish I hadn't done that. It wasn't fair to any of us."

"Harry, you don't have to explain yourself. You're going through a hard time. I understand. Ginny and Malfoy, Dumbledore's warnings, your fits of unconsciousness... But we'll get to the bottom it, don't worry." Again she smiled, still not having removed her hand from his arm.

He initiated the hug this time, holding her tight and feeling her restricted breath against his stomach. "Thank you, Hermione. I don't deserve a friend like you."

"Don't even say that," she laughed, rubbing his chin. She stepped back and examined him for a moment, then asked him if he'd seen Ron.

When Harry entered the common room, he spotted Ginny across the room talking to her girlfriends. He didn't know them very well and didn't feel comfortable joining in on their conversation, so he waited until Ginny was alone before he wrapped his arms around her from behind.

The redhead didn't conceal her excitement when she felt the strong arms wrap around her waist. She spun around and gave Harry a soft kiss on the lips. "I'm glad you're okay," she said, leaning into him and lifting her arms up around his neck.

"Me too," he laughed.

"How'd things go with Draco last night?" she whispered so no one else would hear.

"How do you know?" he asked, not remembering if she had seen them leave together or not.

"Well, he said that you two were talking before he found you... I figured you were bonding."

Harry smiled edgily. "Yeah, I guess you could call it that."

"He's awfully fond of you, Harry," Ginny said in a concerned tone all of a sudden. "I hope you won't lead him on. I know you're not into him in that way, so please don't tease him or anything."

"Well, the thing is..." Harry started, but then realized that he didn't know what the thing was.

Ginny was about to ask him to continue, when Ron came by with Hermione. "Hey you two, want to get some breakfast with us?"

***

In the great hall, Harry noticed Malfoy eyeing him. He turned back to the three Gryffindors in front of him who were all staring at him as though he might disappear any second. "I'm fine, you know," he told them because he knew it would temporarily satisfy them until they asked him a few minutes later.

"We're just worried about you," Hermione explained, glancing down when she felt Ron's hand on her thigh.

"Dumbledore was right to tell you to watch out, I reckon," Ron said with a specific look towards Harry. Ron had spent every minute he could telling Harry to stay away from Malfoy because he might be working for "You-Know-Who". But Harry didn't know what to believe.

He ate silently, and when he spotted Draco watching him again, he dropped his gaze to his food. Later, when Harry left the great hall to go to class, Malfoy pulled him away from the others so quickly that they didn't even notice. He whispered, "Potter. About last night... I just have... certain rules."

"Like what? No handjobs on the first date?" Harry asked bitterly.

"You call that a date?" Draco said lightly, then met Harry's glare. "No, not exactly that. I just... I can't really say right now. Let's discuss it later, all right?"

Harry looked into Draco's eyes for a while longer than he told himself he would. "Okay," he answered.

"Well we can't right now," Draco said. "We have Potions." He smiled. "You go ahead first. It would give everyone too much of a shock if we walked together."

Harry scrambled into the Potions classroom grumpily and took a seat next to Ron. Harry lied when Ron asked him where he'd gone.

He couldn't help but notice Draco's glamour as he ambled into the classroom casually and took a seat next to Pansy, who quickly batted her eyelashes. Harry hissed with jealousy, and Ron asked him what was wrong, until he noticed that Harry was looking towards Malfoy. "Don't worry, Harry. Ginny'll realize that you're the only one soon enough." Then he added with a breath, "Hopefully."

Potions started and today Snape was paying particular attention to Harry, who couldn't help but glance back every now and then to see how Draco was doing. Pansy kept writing him little messages, and Draco kept responding. Harry was getting angry.

"Is this lesson too much for you, Potter?" Snape asked, noticing Harry's unusual redness.

Harry looked back towards the front of the room and directly into Snape's eyes. "No, Professor."

"Good. Then I trust you'll be able to write me a special paper on the uses of dragon's blood."

"I could," Harry said, annoyed beyond anything.

"You will, Potter. And didn't I tell you to always call me sir?"

It seemed like an order to Harry. "Yes, sir."

"Eight inches of parchment, due tomorrow. Fifteen points from Gryffindor."

"What? What for?" Harry yelled. Snape glared at him, and Harry corrected, "Sir."

"For be so utterly irritating," the Professor answered, before he turned and sauntered back to his front desk with a victorious sneer. Malfoy would usually have laughed at such a comment, but this time, Harry could see that the blonde boy didn't even look amused. He was staring down at his table in an unorthodox manner, while Pansy, oblivious, continued to scribble down messages and slide them over to his side of the table.

***

After classes, Harry followed Ron up to the common room. He wanted to ask Ron something, but the redhead was acting pretty unusual. "I'm off to bed," he told Harry, looking a bit sick.

There was no one left in the common room, so Harry headed down to the library because he knew Hermione would be there. He hoped Draco wouldn't be, because as much as he wanted to resolve what had happened the night before, he didn't want to remember what he had done or figure out why he had done it.

Sure enough, Hermione was near the back of the library hunched over her Arithmancy textbook. She was diligently taking notes and sniffling every few seconds.

"Have a cold?" Harry asked, taking a seat across the table from her.

"No," Hermione said, in an unusually stiff tone.

"What's wrong then?" Hermione was silent. "Hermione?" She didn't answer again, and now all he could hear was the scratching of her quill. He finally remembered how abruptly Ron had gone to bed earlier. "Does it have to do with Ron?"

"Yes, it has to do with Ron," Hermione burst out. "He promised he wouldn't be angry with me. But then he just blew up. He just can't control himself. Ever. I don't know what I'm going to do..." She took a deep breath.

Harry didn't know what to say. "What... are you talking about?"

"I was going to tell you both sooner..." she said slowly, as if stalling for time.

Harry blinked. "Well what is it, then?" he asked, leaning across the table, closer to her.

"Look, Harry," she said, leaning in very closely. She said softly yet firmly, "After this year, I'm going abroad."

Harry leaned back, in utter shock. "Where to?"

"India, actually," she said with a gleam in her eye. Harry didn't answer, so she just continued. "I didn't tell Ron until this morning. And now he's angry with me, telling me I shouldn't go... you see, I won't be back for a few years, and it's just..."

"A few YEARS?" Harry screamed. "WHY?"

Hermione looked around and was thankful to see that no one was staring. "Harry... calm down. I have to go. It's for my own sanity."

"Why?"

She crossed her legs uncomfortably and avoided his eyes. "Well," she began, "They've got some extraordinary wizarding programs in India, Harry, and it's going to be so wonderful! I'm going to be an intern, and Kaushal Baldev is going to be my mentor! Can you imagine?"

He shook his head and asked, "Who - who's Koshle Baldy?"

"It's Kaushal Baldev, and he is only one of the most inspirational Arithmancers in the world today." Hermione raised her copy of Numerology and Grammatica and added excitedly, "There's a whole section about him in here."

"Wow..." was all Harry could say.

"Oh, Harry, be happy for me. At least one of you would be..."

"I'm sorry. I'm very happy for you Hermione. I'm just... I'll miss you."

"Thank you, Harry," she said genuinely, leaning across the table to touch his arm. "But you have me for a whole year until then." She sighed. "Oh, Ron was being such a git, saying I couldn't leave, saying we could get married and then I wouldn't have to go... He can be so melodramatic sometimes. We're only eighteen. We have our whole lives ahead of us. Besides, what difference is a few years going to make? I'll be able to Apparate to visit every once in a while."

"Well, I can understand why he'd be mad. He does love you very much and maybe he just thinks it's unfair - "

"How is it unfair that I'm pursuing something that I want to do?" She stood up, looking irritated, but then her face softened. "What do you think I should say to Ron? He's been too angry to speak with me since I told him."

Harry stood up now, too. "Tell him that you love him, and you'll be fine with getting married and having kids after you two are old enough to have jobs and support yourselves."

"I tried. He won't listen," Hermione said, looking as if she was losing hope.

"Then just distract him from it."

"How?" Hermione asked.

Harry smiled. "Come on," he said, "I'm sure you can think of something."

Hermione blushed and picked up her books and parchment. "Well I'll try," she said as she stuffed her quill into the top of her bag.

At that very moment, Draco Malfoy strutted into the library, carrying a grin that was larger than the bag on his back. He flung the bag onto the table that Harry and Hermione were standing above. "Haven't started that special paper Snape asked you to do, have you, Potter?"

Harry looked up at him, staring wide-eyed at the sparkles that seemed to be coming from Draco's hair. "No, no, I haven't."

"I figured as much," Draco said, handing him a large piece of parchment. "So I wrote it for you." Hermione stood in awe. Draco caught her eyes. "What are you looking at, Mudblood?"

Hermione opened her mouth and shut it again. Then she said, "That's gotten old, Malfoy."

"Has it?" He said, dropping down next to Harry, who was now quickly reading the parchment Draco had handed him.

"This is brilliant," Harry said, still scanning it.

"I know," Draco exclaimed, smiling.

Hermione's mouth cracked open, revealing her teeth. "That's decent of you."

"Nobody asked you," he said, not even bothering to look up at her.

Harry stopped now. "That's not very nice, Malfoy."

"What? I thought you said it was brilliant!"

"It is!" Harry exclaimed. "But you're not very nice to Hermione. She's my best friend, you know."

Hermione looked at Harry fondly. Draco saw. "I am very well aware of that, Potter. But it doesn't mean a thing to me." He rethought, studying her body. "She does have nice curves, though," he said and smiled a seemingly genuine smile.

Hermione took it as a compliment, but didn't return any. Instead she left the room with a simple goodbye to Harry.

"Don't think that just because of this, you're going to be on my good side now," Harry said, raising the parchment in his hands.

"I already am on your good side," Draco replied at once.

"Why do you say that," Harry muttered, thinking.

The other boy smirked. "You don't hide jealousy well, Potter. Not to mention, you kept staring at me throughout all of Potions today."

"Only because you were staring at me."

"Oh, excuses..." Draco didn't say anything for a bit. But he finally opened his mouth to remark, "You look extraordinarily hot today."

"Thanks," Harry answered. "And what exactly do you mean by that?"

"You're making me horny." Draco paused. "The way you're moving your knees up and down. I can't stand it any longer." He pressed his hands onto his own forehead dramatically.

"So why haven't you kissed me yet?" Harry asked, looking quirkily at Draco.

"We're in the bloody library. That's why."

The other boy laughed indignantly. "Now you're the one making the excuses." Draco looked as if he was about to protest or deny it, but Harry stood up and said firmly, "No. I'm glad. I don't think I could endure another awkward moment with you, Malfoy."

Draco looked confused. "What are you talking about?"

"I can't do this, whatever 'this' is," Harry replied, stepping away from the other boy. "Not with you. I don't care if Ginny won't let me be with her anymore. I can still be her friend, and I can still protect her from you."

"You self-righteous son of a bitch. Did she ever need protection from me before you came along? No, she didn't. In fact, if it weren't for me, she probably wouldn't have even considered dating you."

"It was a mistake then."

Draco folded his arms. "Shows how much you care about her."

"I do!" Harry shouted and waved his arms around for emphasis. "I love her more than you ever will!"

Draco puffed up his chest, a gesture he had mastered over the previous summer. "Open your obnoxiously green eyes, Potter. You don't even know her."

Perhaps Draco was right. Perhaps he didn't know Ginny at all. A million thoughts rushed through his head and he couldn't think of a single word to utter in response.

"That's what I thought," Draco said in a tone altogether too bitter to sound victorious.

Harry started to bite on the inside of his cheeks, waiting for the other boy to hex him or say something else nasty to him. But instead he stood there, silently staring at him, which Harry suddenly felt was infinitely worse. He picked up the parchment from the table and whispered, "Thanks for the paper", before exiting the library in a hurry.

He wasn't two steps outside the library when he heard rushed footsteps behind him and he was suddenly forced onto a wall. "Harry!" the blonde boy yelled in desperation.

Watching the other boy's intense grip on his arm cut off his circulation, Harry answered calmly, "Let go of me." Draco let go. "And don't call me Harry."

Ignoring him, the blonde boy continued, "I won't let you leave Ginny."

"But - "

"No. Just pretend like everything's alright with me, okay? Just pretend." He looked up hesitantly, his breath coming out in heavy puffs.

"Fine," Harry replied darkly. Then he pushed Draco away, thoroughly annoyed that he'd been thrown against the wall of the corridor. "But from now on, if you get any closer to me than you are now, it better be because you are kicking the sodding shit out of me. Understand?"

Draco began involuntarily clenching his fists. His face grew pale as he watched the unflinching boy in front of him. He had been expecting a more positive response, and he wasn't quite sure how he could handle this one. As the Slytherin's heart then began to beat faster, he looked at the boy in front of him, waiting for him to hex Draco or perhaps say something else nasty. Instead Draco spat out in response, "Fine. Then I'll just take you up on your fucking offer."

He had never done such a thing before. He lifted his arm and drew it back, and when he released it, it flew forward with a mind of its own. His knuckles hit Harry square in the jaw, causing him to bounce back into the wall in shock.

But Harry did not hit Draco back, nor did he curse or complain or say a thing. He just walked away with the parchment gripped in his large hands and little stream of blood trickling down the side of his lip.

***

Ron was still sleeping when Harry left his dormitory room the next morning. He might have been pretending to be asleep though, Harry thought to himself as he found Hermione standing anxiously at the foot of the stairs, biting a few strands of her hair.

"Is he awake yet?" she asked him.

"I don't think so. You can go in there though. He's all alone." Harry half smiled.

Hermione examined her best friend's face curiously and lifted his chin with her cold fingers. "Harry, what's wrong with your lip? It looks as if someone punched you."

"Oh... er, that's nothing. I just ran into a... door, yesterday. Yeah. I'll go fix it up in a second."

After nodding encouragingly, Hermione sprinted up the stairs without another word.

Harry stared at the dormitory door for a moment after it slammed behind his best friend, then continued into the common room, hoping to avoid everyone before he could fix up his lip.

But then another possibility crossed his mind: he could leave it there as a sign to Malfoy that he was tough. After all, wouldn't Malfoy think him a coward if he just healed it right away?

Having made his decision, Harry sat down on a couch and rested his feet on the table in front of it. Suddenly he felt lean arms swing around his shoulders. "Guess what I found out this morning." Ginny's lips grazed his cheek.

He turned around. "What?"

"Harry! What happened to your lip? Looks like someone took a smack at you." She reached forward and lifted his chin with her soft hand. "And there's a bruise on your jaw... Did you get into a fight with Draco?"

"....what did you find out this morning?"

Ginny bent down so that she was eye to eye with him. "Is he okay?" she asked, giving him a suspicious stare that he wasn't sure he deserved.

"What? You automatically think I hit him too?"

"Harry..." He crossed his arms. "Okay, so you didn't hit him back. I'm proud of you. Why'd he hit you in the first place?"

He elevated his eyes slowly, hoping that he wouldn't have to meet hers. She was staring at him expectantly, so he began softly, "I told him that if he ever got close to me again... it would have to be because he was hitting me."

"Oh," Ginny laughed. "So you asked for it."

"He could have stayed away." He crossed his arms again and looked down into the folds of his shirt.

Ginny sat down on the couch right in front of him and held her wand up to his face. "Here, I'll charm it away for you."

"No!" he yelled, pushing the wand to the side suddenly.

"What, you want to keep it there? You are odd," she added, smiling eccentrically.

"You're right. Do I really want everyone to know that Malfoy punched me? Only the three of us know at this point, but I'm sure he'll publicize it." He put his head in his hands hopelessly.

"He won't. If it was anyone else, he would. But it's you. And he likes you."

Harry put his hand on his girlfriend's shoulder and stated truthfully, "And I still don't understand why."

"I do," Ginny said, as she put her wand down. "So do you want to know what I found out this morning or not?"

Harry put his right foot on top of his left knee and leaned forwards. "'Course I want to know."

She reached her hand forward and stopped Harry's foot from shaking up and down. "I know who the elected students for the duels are."

"I take it you were elected, otherwise you wouldn't be grinning as excitedly as you are now," he said with half a smile.

Ginny laughed, and put in, "You were elected, too, Harry. And so was Hermione... And so was Draco."

"I see," Harry responded, his hands coming up to stroke his chin thoughtfully. He hadn't learned much about the end of semester duels outside the little Snape had told them in class. He wasn't even sure when they were. "And do you get to duel our year as well?"

"Unfortunately, no."

"No, that's probably a good thing. Otherwise, you'd beat me," he laughed.

Ginny stood up, smiling. "Stop complimenting me, Harry, or I just might do anything that you ask of me."

"And how could that possibly be a bad thing," he asked her, also standing up.

She grabbed his wrist and dragged him to the exit of the common room. "Come on, Harry. I'll show you the list. They've got it posted right outside the Great Hall."

***

At breakfast, the Gryffindor table seemed emptier than usual. Ron and Hermione were absent, as well as Seamus and Lavender. Parvati chatted easily with Dean, who seemed too distracted by her transparent blouse to say anything back. And Neville was clumsily flipping through a book, although he stopped at no page to read or take notes.

Harry purposefully sat with his back to the Slytherin table, while Ginny sat across from him, still excited about the end-of-semester duel.

On the other side of the Great Hall, Draco sat silently next to Crabbe and Goyle, who looked more puzzled than usual about their leader's sudden indifference to everything. Occasionally, Draco would discreetly glance at the Gryffindor table. He was glad that Harry's back was towards him, but he was even afraid to face Ginny now. What Harry had told her, Draco wouldn't know until Ginny confronted him about it, either confused and demanding to know what had happened, or angry and demanding to know what had happened.

But perhaps Harry hadn't mentioned anything at all. It seemed like something the Boy Who Lived would do after all: charm away the bruise and pretend as if nothing had happened lest he worry someone who cared about him. In fact, it seemed more than likely.

Which was why Draco gasped after breakfast when he saw Harry walking down the hallway towards Potions with his jaw bruised and his lip cut. Draco ran to the other boy and pulled him by his arm into an empty corridor. "What in the bloody hell do you think you're doing, Potter? Let me charm away the bruises."

The black haired boy started to walk away when Draco jerked him back. "Oh, you're not going anywhere."

Harry lifted his eyebrows, but decided not to comment. Draco had pinned him against the wall again, and this time the Gryffindor was thoroughly unable to move. The blonde boy was gritting his teeth and grinding against Harry uncomfortably. Harry couldn't help it and said disgustedly, "Have your way with me then. If you will."

Draco's intense eyes suddenly lost their fervor. His arms went limp and he almost let Harry go, until he remembered what he was trying to do. He grabbed his wand from the front of his robes and shoved it in the other boy's face.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Harry asked.

Still gripping the wand unwaveringly, Draco spat, "Why wouldn't I?"

"Don't you want everyone to know that you punched Harry Potter?"

"I don't look at it that way."

"What way do you look at it then?" Harry managed, under the pressure of Draco's hips.

The Slytherin muttered a quick healing charm and then a concealing charm, and the bruise and cut immediately disappeared. Draco loosened his grip, letting the other boy almost fall to the ground. "You thoroughly enjoy being that close to me, Potter. Don't you dare deny it. I've just felt the evidence." His face carried a triumphant look, a perfect combination of surprise, amusement, lust, and complete adoration.

Blushing insanely, Harry swung his robes in front of his body and hurriedly left the corridor. He could not believe what had just happened.

***

Ron was not present in Potions class. When Snape called his name, there was an uncomfortable silence in the room as everyone shuffled in their seats to look towards the seat that Ron usually occupied and found it currently empty and lonely looking. Ron was never sick, so they all knew something was wrong.

The very first second Snape turned around, Hermione put her quill down and said, "Harry, I spoke with Ron this morning."

"How'd it go? And where's Ron now?"

"In bed. I'll tell you everything after class." She picked up her quill swiftly as Snape turned back around.

Harry quickly glanced at Malfoy, who seemed to be in a conversation with Pansy about something. She hit him playfully and giggled. He laughed in return. It seemed that he had made up with her after the shocking display in the great hall the other night.

"Seriously, Pansy," Draco said jokingly. "You were elected merely based on appearance. There's no way you were selected according to your actual dueling ability. I suppose everyone remembers that one time that Theo froze on the counter-attack because he was too intent on staring at your boobs."

"Hope I can use that to my advantage again," she replied, biting her lip and smiling at the same time.

Harry was dreadfully relieved when class was over. Hermione followed him out of the classroom closely, paying attention to his every move and clever avoidance of Malfoy. "So," he said, once they were on their way to Defense Against the Dark Arts. "Tell me about you and Ron."

"Well, I think he's starting to get used to the idea. I tried to distract him a bit. And it worked for a while, until he purposefully tried remembering that I was leaving again. I don't know. He just doesn't seem set on letting me go. Or even leaving his room."

"Well, he's going to have to," Harry added matter-of-factly.

Hermione looked hopeful that her best friend had a plan. "How's that?"

Harry smirked and said, "We have Quidditch practice in an hour and a half."

***

That afternoon was the first snowfall at Hogwarts. Ron stood in his gear in front of the Gryffindor team. He was intensely focused as he instructed his team, and even the snow did not tear him from his concentration.

The team sat silently on the benches, while Ron, standing, spoke to them about technique. Ginny began to shiver, so she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Harry, who had been obediently listening to his captain speak. But once he felt her arms around him, he leaned back and reveled in the warmth they were creating together.

Ron narrowed his eyes. "No flirting during practice," he said, emotionless.

"We weren't flirting," Ginny shot back. "We were trying to keep warm. It's bloody freezing out here."

"The weather isn't going to change to suit your needs during a game, so you're just going to have to get used to it," he said in a commanding voice.

Ginny leaned back up, and Harry sighed. Kirke was giggling on the other side of the bench beneath his quidditch gloves, while Sloper was still brooding as he had been since Harry and Ginny had started dating.

"Now, everyone, start warming up. We'll do drills in five minutes. Except you, MacDonald, come here. I think you need a little help." Natalie MacDonald, through her apparent diffidence, walked towards Ron, gripping her broom tightly in her left hand.

The two beaters had already pushed off into the air and were flying around boisterously.

Lavender approached Ginny, and said, "Your brother doesn't seem to be in a very good mood. Do you know why that might be?"

"Probably something to do with Hermione. Doesn't really matter, he'll get over it," Ginny answered, knowing full well what was wrong.

"Oh, well. You know better than I. What do you say we start passing?" She lifted up a quaffle and threw it into the air before striking off on her broom and going after it.

Harry held Ginny's hand momentarily before she let go and followed Lavender into the sky. He was the last to lift off the ground onto his broom. It felt oddly disconcerting, knowing that last year, he'd have been the first.

***

Harry watched as Ron shook the gloved hand of Zacharias Smith, professionally as always. His red hair turned white as the snow gathered on top of it. "Ready?" Ginny asked Harry beside her.

"Do I need to be?" he said quietly, wishing it weren't true.

It had been snowing continuously for almost a week, yet Harry had not grown tired of it. It was calmer than rain, and it made him feel at ease.

At the blow of Madame Hooch's whistle, both teams lifted into the air. Ginny put in a goal after less than a minute, and Harry could feel his cheeks burn with admiration.

"GINNY WEASLEY SCORES for GRYFFINDOR," the loudspeaker said. "What a looker! I mean... Chaser!"

At this point, Harry didn't know what it was that made him search through all the screaming students for Malfoy. But his attempts were fruitless, so he decided to drop it and pay attention to the game.

Ginny had just passed the quaffle to Lavender, who threw it through the hoop forcefully, right past Ernie Macmillan. Ernie looked embarrassed as he tossed the quaffle to Zacharias, who was already speeding off towards Ron.

Harry steadied his broom and searched the field for the snitch. Instead he saw a bludger heading straight for him. He jerked out of the way and barely dodged it, and then watched it, unscathed, as it continued off into the field. The bludger was getting dangerously close to Lavender, so he called out for her to avoid it, but she didn't hear him and in less than a second, she was hurtling towards the ground.

He started to dive down to catch her, but she was already sprawled out on the ground, most likely with a broken bone or two. He watched as Madame Hooch moved onto the field to take a look at her. At that moment, he caught sight of something glimmering in the distance, and he immediately took off for the snitch.

"BAD FALL for BROWN. Looks like she's going to end up in the infirmary for a few days. Meanwhile, looks like POTTER has found something. Boy, is he moving fast!"

As soon as Susan Bones heard the loudspeaker, she followed Harry as quickly as she possibly could. But even her flying skills, much less her Seeking skills, were completely under par. His hand was already gripping the snitch before she could get within a few meters of him.

"And another VICTORY for GRYFFINDOR!!"

Harry landed on the ground as Lavender was being carried off the field. He wanted to apologize that he hadn't been able to warn her, but it would have been impossible with all the students and teachers that had gathered around her.

Instead Harry searched for Ginny, but it seemed that she had already left the field and had most likely headed for the changing rooms. He walked there quickly, hoping he'd be able to talk to her before she got into the showers.

At the front of the girls' changing rooms, Harry knocked loudly on the wooden door. "Ginny! You in there? Ginny!" No one answered. She must have been in the shower already.

He walked dejectedly towards the other side of the field, avoiding the swarm of students moving across it like a mob. He sat down on the steps, which had turned white from the snow. After thinking about nothing for a few minutes, then thinking about everything for another few, Harry stood up and, for a reason unbeknownst to him, walked behind the building where he had first heard Ginny and Malfoy together.

Sure enough, the snogging couple was there again. She was on her tiptoes, tall as she was, to reach his mouth, and he was allowing her to lean on him.

Harry stood watching for a few minutes, glad that the sound of the wind was able to cover up his breathing. As long as neither Ginny nor Draco knew that he was there, he figured it would be okay for him to watch.

But even after five minutes, the action had not gone past kissing. Draco's hands were locked behind Ginny's waist, and hers were glued around his neck. They both slowly pulled away at the same time and smiled. Draco brushed the snow out of Ginny's hair and she leaned in towards him. "It's dreadfully cold," she said.

"Perhaps you ought to take a hot bath then. May I come?"

"Most certainly not. It's a girls' changing room. They would be absolutely terrified."

"Terrified? Of me?" He smiled cheekily. "I think not."

She laughed. "Harry would be, then."

"And he would be in the girls' changing room because... or have you just been concealing his femininity from me," Draco scoffed mockingly. "Although I find it hard to believe that he's a woman, considering..." His voice died away as it became clear he did not want to share.

Harry found it difficult to keep silent.

Ginny asked, "Considering what?"

"Oh, I just, felt him before."

"You felt him? What exactly does that mean?"

Draco looked away. "It wasn't by choice, mind you, though I didn't mind. He was just very excited once because we were..." he swallowed hard, "...in close proximity."

"Oh. So that's why he told you to stay away from him that one time," Ginny said, trying to piece it all together.

"No, the 'excitement' definitely came after that."

She ran her fingers through her hair, examining the ends of her strands carefully. "I don't see why you two were in close proximity after he said that to you."

"Well... to be perfectly honest, it wasn't exactly his choice..." Draco responded, while scratching the back of his neck absentmindedly.

"Draco...you forced him! What did I tell you about that?"

"Yes, I know. 'Don't force Harry to do anything.' I couldn't help it. He's just so... tempting."

Ginny crossed her arms. "Even so... he takes things personally."

"He should take it personally. I still want him. And I don't know what his sodding problem is. First he kisses me, then he basically makes me punch hi - "

"He kissed you?" Ginny asked, raising her arms. "Why didn't you tell me?! I know why he didn't tell me, but why didn't you? I thought you would've run around the castle screaming it at the top of your lungs!"

"Very funny." He looked away again. "It didn't end well. I didn't want you to think I was doing badly."

Ginny coughed through laughs. "Draco, I already know you're doing badly."

He ignored her last comment. "You cold? Maybe we should go inside. Wouldn't want you to catch a cold; Pepperup Potion really hurts." He put an arm around her.

"Don't change the subject, you pathetic git."

"Oh, ouch." He removed his arm from her shoulders. "I take it back. I don't care if you catch a cold."

"Just tell me what happened."

Draco swallowed hard. "Halloween. During the party, you remember. We went outside to talk. I don't remember exactly how it happened, but he kissed me. And I kissed him back. Quite a bit. And it was....nice, for lack of a more appropriate word." He paused and sucked in a breath. "But then he stuck his hand down the front of my trousers, and I backed away. He was quite offended. Thought I had been playing some sort of trick on him or something."

"Why'd you back away? Were you scared?"

"No, nothing like that. If it had been the other way around... it would have been better. I mean, if it had been my hand down his trousers."

"Oh yes." She looked up at him mockingly. "I forgot that odd thing about you."

"You don't have to make fun of me for it."

"Oh, on the contrary, I do have to make fun of you for it." She paused. "I can't believe he did that. He must like you way more than he lets on... or even realizes."

Harry choked on his breath.

"I won't believe it until I hear it from him," Draco said wearily.

Harry focused on Draco. The blonde boy seemed to be momentarily lost in thought, and he was slowly licking his lips. The snow barely made any contrast in his hair as if fell down slowly on top.

"Harry?" he suddenly heard. Ginny was staring at him, completely surprised, and Draco jerked his head over.

"How long have you been standing there?" Draco demanded.

"Er... I just got here. I was wondering where you were, Ginny. But I guess... I found you, so are you going to come back? Or... I'll just leave you two here," Harry said a bit softly, playing uncomfortably with his hands.

Ginny stepped forward and said, "No, no, I'll come back. It's getting too cold anyway." She looked back at Draco, who seemed unable to speak. "Or... I'll just..."

"Stay," Harry said a bit angrily. He turned his back and started off towards the boys' changing rooms. Ginny called to him but he didn't turn around.

She looked towards Draco, nervously. "I don't know..." she whispered.

He put an arm on her shoulder and said. "This is my fault. Let me talk to him." Without another word or a response, Draco went bounding off after Harry like a jaguar after its prey.

When he caught sight of the Gryffindor, he yelled, "Potter! Oi! Hold on a minute!"

Harry stopped walking and turned around. "What is it that you want? Come to force me against another wall, have you?"

"You have quite an ego, you know. Not everything is about you," the other boy yelled as he came closer and could see Harry's face in full light. "Okay, well, maybe it is. But that's not the point."

"So just what is the point?" the other boy asked, holding one of his arms up. It was getting dark very quickly.

He watched several emotions pass over Draco's face, and all of a sudden the blonde boy dropped to his knees in the snow. It didn't seem to matter that his right knee had just hit solid rock and that snow was slipping down the inside of his robes. He looked up at Harry with an expression he had never used before, one he wasn't sure how to use. "Let's resolve this once and for all," he whispered from the ground.

Harry was surprised at the how unlike Malfoy the action was. He bent down to listen to the other boy, at the same time watching him intently, because the Slytherin clearly had something to say.

"I hate you," Draco proclaimed without a tone of falsity in his voice. His eyes looked intensely into Harry's, and then they caved in as he opened his mouth hesitantly, unsure of the consequences if he said what was on his mind, and unsure if his mouth was even able to pronounce the words. "But I'm giving you my heart here. If you can't accept it, I don't know what I'll do."

Harry did not wait before responding, "Mock me, I suppose. Try to make my life a living hell. Feel sorry for yourself. Run to Ginny and beg her to talk me out of my stupidity." He paused and sighed. "See, even I know what you'll do."

Draco looked up slowly. "So that's it then? You're going to subject me to a life of mockery and self-pity?"

Harry reached out his hand. It hovered there, above Draco's face for a moment and the other boy could feel the warmth of it, desiring it to move closer, to touch his skin and complete the circuit. Harry brushed the silver hair out of Malfoy's eyes. "If that's what you want," he said softly.

"Well, maybe the mockery, but definitely not the self-pity." Draco's eyes looked suddenly hopeful as his face burned from the ghost of a touch.

Suddenly Harry's hand was on his face, and his lips were touching Draco's own. Draco felt a hint of a tongue crawl through his lips. And then it was gone, and so were the other boy's lips. Instead Harry drew back a fist and punched Draco straight in the jaw. "Now we're even," he said affectionately.

"Oh, we'll never be even," Draco replied very slowly, gripping his mouth harshly with his right hand.

"I don't have my wand," Harry admitted, "Otherwise I'd charm it."

The blonde boy laughed a bit. "Then what would have been the point of you hitting me in the first place?"

"Is it okay?"

He moved his jaw from side to side, cringing when he heard a certain grinding noise that he knew could mean nothing good. "Yeah."

The dark haired boy paused for a moment before pushing up his glasses and asking, "Functional?"

Draco looked up curiously. He could not make out Harry's expression. He hated having to ask and sounding so stupid. "...meaning?"

Harry dropped back down towards the other boy in the snow producing a loud thump. He reached out to Draco again and smiled, taking in the other boy's pained expression. Harry knew he had hurt him; he hadn't meant to. He just realized how hard Draco was trying to cover up the pain he was in just to impress Harry. It was working. He leaned forward and let his breath touch Draco's right cheek, the side he had not punched.

The Slytherin began to smile, realizing that he had finally gotten his defined answer.

Harry whispered close to his face, "Can you kiss?"