Like a House on Fire

"Have you heard the news?"

"What news?"

"About the Auction."

"The Slave Auction?"

"That's the one."

"No I haven't heard the news, tell me."

"Someone has agreed to be sold!"

"Someone?"

"You know... him!"

"Harry Potter??"

"The one and only!"

"Oh my stars! Quick, help me count my savings. Maybe if we pool our money we'll be able to buy him!"

*****

Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, could simply not believe he had agreed to this. The only reason he had was because Ginny had come wheedling to him, giving him the line about how it was all to raise money for Saint Mungo's.

Damn her.

Here he was, standing on the Auction Block, in front of the whole school, while some Seventh Year read out his accomplishments, merits and attractions categorically. The poor sod who had been auctioned before him was now being lead away, looking mournful.

Right near the front, his two best friends were standing together snickering. He had made Ron and Hermione promise to bid for him if someone awful like Mandy Brocklehurst put in a bid.

"I'll start the bidding at 10 sickles."

Immediately people began yelling.

"Fifteen sickles!"

"A galleon!"

"Two galleons!"

"Two galleons, Five Sickles!"

"Three Galleons!"

"Four Galleons, Ten sickles!" This last was the dreaded Mandy Brocklehurst.

Harry looked desperately at Hermione who hastily yelled out, "Four Galleons, Eleven Sickles!"

"Twenty Galleons!"

There was dead silence around the Great Hall as everyone looked for the bidder. Harry didn't need to look. He had recognised the voice. Sickly he searched the crowd for the expected face.

There he was. The smug, spoiled Slytherin brat with oily hair and an arrogant grin plastered on his face. He was going to be sold to Draco Malfoy, which had to be the last thing he had ever planned to do.

Well, actually the last thing he had ever planned to do was perform 'My Aunt Millie is a Hippogriff' naked on a broomstick, but serving to Malfoy definitely came close. Their mutual loathing had become a constant in Harry's life over his six years at Hogwarts.

Harry didn't need to think hard to divine a reason for Draco's outrageously high bid. Obviously Draco was out to humiliate him.

Well, it was working.

"Twenty Galleons, going once!"

Harry looked desperately at his friends, but Hermione was avoiding his eye and Ron gave him a 'what can we do?' kind of look.

"Twenty Galleons, going twice!"

Dead silence.

"Twenty Galleons going three times!"

"SOLD! Harry Potter is sold to Draco Malfoy for Twenty Galleons! I remind you that the ownership is effective for twenty-four hours, starting midnight."

Harry stumbled numbly off the podium. He could see Draco pushing his way through the crowd. When he reached him, the blond boy smiled smugly.

"Midnight, Trophy Room," he drawled. "I'm looking forward to this!" then he paid over his twenty galleons and pushed his way back to the Slytherins.

"Next person up for Auction is Neville Longbottom! A studious and hardworking student, Neville enjoys Herbology and listening to Esmerelda Margarita, the enchanting songstress."

There was silence in the Great Hall. Everyone was staring at Harry.

Harry slunk into the Trophy Room at 12:01. He had begged Ron to come with him. After all, Draco hadn't said he needed to come alone.

Draco was already waiting for him, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle.

Harry gulped and entered the room fully. Ron followed and stood beside Harry, looking fierce.

Draco stared intensely at Ron.

"Leave, now." He commanded.

"Not bloody likely," Ron snapped back.

"Make him leave." This was directed at Harry.

Ron stared at Harry, who scowled.

"It was worth a try, Ron. I guess you had better leave."

"You heard the boy, Weasley. Scat, vamoose, begone!" with a flick of his wrist he sent Crabbe and Goyle on their way, and Ron reluctantly followed.

"So," Draco whispered, stalking around the table. "You're mine... until Midnight tomorrow."

Harry was silent for a long while, watching Draco pace.

"What do you want me to do?" he finally snapped. "Follow you around like a puppy? Wear a sign around my neck saying 'Potter Sucks'?"

Draco laughed. "All that will come, Potter. For now what I want is much more simple. Come here."

Harry glared sullenly at the other boy as he did as commanded. Draco grabbed him by the upper arms and then leaned suddenly and pressed his lips to the other boy's. Harry jerked back in shock, breaking Draco's hold on his arm and retreating to the other side of the room.

"What the hell was that, Malfoy?" he practically screamed.

Draco regarded him for a moment. "Quiet down, Potter. Do you want the whole school to know you just snogged me?"

"I snogged you? I snogged you?"

Draco laughed. "The specifics are irrelevant. You're mine for twenty-four hours, Potter, and I want to know what the Mudblood fool sees in you."

Harry turned towards the one window in the room and stared out, trying to regain his temper.

"Hermione. And. I. Are. Not. An. Item," he ground out.

"Much to her disappointment, I'm sure."

"Shut up, Malfoy," Harry snapped.

"Only when you concede defeat, Potter," Draco retorted, suddenly right behind him. "You have to co-operate, Potter. Binding magical contract and all that."

Harry sucked in breath. "What!"

"Oh come off it, Potter. You signed the paper. You have to do exactly what I say."

"I signed no paper!"

"That's lovely. Nonetheless, you're bound by a magical contract."

"What exactly do you want, Malfoy?" Harry asked, slightly distracted by Draco's breathy whisper in his ear.

Draco smiled coldly. "What do you think, Potter?"

"I honestly don't know. I'm not a sodding pouf, Malfoy."

"You won't know until you try."

"What if I don't want to know?"

"Well, that's awfully repressed of you. Besides, you have no choice."

Draco caught up with Harry's frantic pacing in a moment. A moment later, Harry was pinned against a wall.

"Let... me go!"

"No."

Once again, Harry's lips were captured by his enemy's.

As the Gryffindor boy squirmed, his Slytherin enemy just pinned him closer against the wall. Soon Harry gave up on the squirming and he just submitted passively to Draco's attentions. Soon after, Draco's hands left the wall and clamped onto Harry's shoulders. Then they started to move feverishly along his arms. All this time, the kiss continued. All this time, Harry remained passive.

Finally, Draco broke the kiss and glared at Harry.

"You know, people who are passive aggressive are the most annoying of all."

"I always knew we annoyed each other," Harry retorted, though to his ears it had the sound of a drowning man reaching for a buoy just out of reach.

Draco was silent.

"Ah, no matter. Go to bed, Potter. I'll expect you up here, bright and early--Say, 6AM--to discuss our plans for the day."

With that, he swept out of the room laughing and leaving a very confused, very disturbed Harry Potter behind him.

When Harry finally remembered to leave the room, the last words that echoed were, "I hate... I despise that rich, stuck-up Slytherin sod. He'll pay for that."

Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, was now a slave.

And if that wasn't enough to put him in a bad mood, the facts that,

a) He belonged to Draco Malfoy

b) He now had to do whatever Draco said for 24 hours and

c) Draco wasn't even here yet

certainly were.

He paced angrily up and down the length of the room, pausing at each turn to glowering at the still-closed door. This was in vain because when the door finally swished open, Harry was mid-pace and Draco escaped a wrathful glare.

"Hey Potter. I'm here," Draco snapped. "Stop pacing."

"You're late," Harry growled.

"Your little Mudblood friend was following me. I had to lose her," he retorted. Then, as an afterthought, "Or did you want her here?"

"No!" Harry squawked.

Draco nodded, "I was right, then. On to business."

Draco produced a large sign.

Harry tried to peer around and see the other side, but Draco caught him.

"Nuh uh, uh... first of all, this."

He brandished the most repulsive outfit Harry had ever seen.

It consisted of shiny green lycra tights, a big white shirt with a green and red spotted bow-tie. A large green headband finished the ensemble.

Harry, stared, aghast.

"Slytherin green and everything," Draco said, smugly.

Harry choked. "Come on, Malfoy. You can't expect me to wear that now, can you?"

Draco said nothing and settled down into a chair, staring at Harry thoughtfully.

"Binding magical contract."

Harry knew he was going to get very sick of that phrase. He reluctantly retrieved the awful outfit from Draco' outstretched hands.

Then he stared at Draco, eyes narrowed.

"I'm not going to strip with you in the room, Malfoy."

Draco remained silent, and just stared at Harry.

Harry stared back.

Finally, Draco sighed. "Shall I close my eyes then, Potter?" he snapped.

"Oh, please. If you would," Harry retorted sarcastically, turning away from Draco and preparing to change.

He quickly slipped out of his customary black pants and into the lycra tights, wincing at how closely they fit his form. He was about to change his shirt when a small snigger behind him made him freeze. He spun around to see Draco sniggering and looking pointedly at his crotch.

"You have a nice ass, Potter," Draco said with a smirk.

"Shut up, Malfoy."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Carry on." A haughty hand gesture accompanied this comment.

Glaring the whole time, Harry quickly removed his shirt and shrugged into the white one. It fit him like a tent.

At least it goes to my thighs, Harry thought with relief.

"Tuck it in," Draco commanded.

"What?" Harry spluttered.

"Tuck it in, Potter."

Muttering hateful curses all the while, Harry complied.

"There. Happy?" he snapped.

"Ecstatic, but we're not done yet," Draco replied, his eyes glinting.

He leapt out of his chair and went over to the sign, turning it over with a flip of his wrist.

Harry's heart sank.

" 'Potter sucks,' " he read. "Oh, I can see a lot of the famed Malfoy wit went into thinking that one up."

"An oldie but a goodie, methinks."

"Whatever," Harry muttered. "Prat."

Draco strode over and slipped the sign around Harry's neck.

"Now," he announced cheerfully. "We're ready to face the day!"

With that, he bounced out of the room and left Harry to skulk along behind.

Thankfully, there were very few people in the hallway. Only one or two and no-one Harry recognised, though they sure recognised him. His face became progressively redder as they traversed the corridors around the Astronomy Tower.

Eventually, Draco ducked into a room, motioning Harry to follow. Harry was incredibly tempted to just keep walking and make good his escape, but sense asserted itself and he followed his enemy into the room.

Harry's first thought was that this must be an old dance room, for one wall was entirely mirrors. He glanced at his reflection and blushed more.

"Flatterin," Draco noted with a smirk.

"Malfoy, I look like a colour-blind ballet dancer."

"Ah, but a cute colour-blind ballet dancer," Draco corrected.

"I despise you."

"Most people do. Shall we go down to breakfast?"

Harry muttered.

"What was that?" Draco chirped.

"You know, your cheerfulness frightens me."

"I'm only happy when you suffer, darling."

They left the room again and walked down the corridor separately, the laughing whispers from the students they passed echoing and gathering, rushing like a wave ahead of them. Draco strode ahead of Harry, his grin widening every time he met another group of students.

By the time they reached the Great Hall, the echo was a roar, a roar supplemented and surpassed by the roaring of Harry's own heart. Abruptly, he dug his heels in.

"Malfoy, I can't," he said desperately.

Draco just looked at him. "Can't you?"

Harry shook his head.

"Do you want me to release you, so you can run back to the Gryffindor common room and hide?" he asked mockingly.

Harry held his breath.

Draco laughed. "You ruined Hogwarts for me, Potter. Now I'm returning the favour."

With that, Draco turned and stalked into the Great Hall, pausing only once to say scathingly, "Get that pretty ass in here, Potter."

Harry stared after him, stunned.

May as well get this over with, he thought, numbly.

With a deep breath, Harry plunged into the Great Hall and all Hogwarts turned to meet him.