I Love You, I Hate You

"I love you."

The words hang in the air between us as you watch me, expectantly, hopeful. Why did you have to bring love into what we have?

I want to scream at you, to yell at you until I am hoarse. There are so many reasons for me not to love you. Can't you understand this?

Your family stands for everything mine has fought against, since before my birth, everything I am expected to fight against.

We are polar opposites, you and I. One is ice, the other fire. One the hero, the other personifying everything the hero should oppose. The Serpent and the Lion, enemies in nature, as we should be, as we have been for years.

My friends hate you. Your friends hate me. There is no love lost on either side. The feelings are mutual amongst all parties. Our friends have tried relentlessly to make us see what they view as the error of our ways.

How can we be in love? We argue endlessly, often coming to blows. Neither of us is willing to give an inch, to abandon our ideals.

I hate you, you know. I've hated you from the moment I found out who you were, found out who your family was. I thought you were everything I could never be. Had everything I could never have. Influence, power I could never imagine, a family that loved you - how could they not, you being who you are? - friends. These were all things I had secretly longed for, and yet, never had, and you had them all. And I hated you for that.

Never mind that I later found out the truth. All the things I thought you had were the very things you envied me for. The family I was so sure worshipped you. In truth, they merely tolerated your existence. The friends I was jealous of only befriended you because of who you were. The influence and power? Only an illusion, because of your name. It was when I started learning these truths that I realized how truly alike we were, and I hated you even more for that.

I hate that you make me see the flaws within myself. I hate that you can tear me apart so completely with your cutting remarks about my family and friends, only to turn around and put me back together so perfectly with your kisses. How has it come to this, that the one that I should hate above all others, is the very one I cannot foresee living my life without?

You're still looking at me now, awaiting my response, be it what it may. I open my mouth to say all this to you, to tell you that I hate you. The words that come, however, are the words formed by my heart, not by my mind.

"I love you, too, Draco."

And, with those five words, everything has changed. I see the warm, genuine smile take over your features, the look of true joy, and know, in both my heart and mind, that this was the right response.