Good Intentions

Chapter 2: Good Intentions

Harry woke up sometime later in the Hospital Wing with a splitting headache. As he slowly remembered the fight with Malfoy earlier, he realized why. Having your head banged up against the wall wasn't fun, especially when it was done repeatedly.

He looked over at Malfoy on the bed next to him. He was already sitting up, looking around.

Harry smirked to himself. He had gotten quite a few good punches in during their little brawl. Malfoy's left eye was swollen and discolored, his lip was busted, and it looked as though he might have a broken jaw. Harry definitely didn't want to know what he looked like.

Somehow Malfoy always seemed to know when Harry was looking at him. He glanced over and caught Harry's gaze. He looked away though, after a brief study of the damage he had done to Potter. He couldn't have said anything sarcastic about the way Potter looked even if he had wanted to, with his jaw hurting so badly. Why didn't that damned Pomfrey woman come back and fix it.

At that moment, Dumbledore entered the Hospital Wing. He looked at them both, then said, "I'll be back in a minute, boys." He poked his head into Madam Pomfrey's office, said a few short words, then came back and stood quietly in front of the two beds.

Then Madam Pomfrey bustled in carrying another smoking goblet. She went to Malfoy's bedside and handed it to him. "Before Dumbledore can speak with the two of you, Mr. Malfoy's jaw needs fixing. Draco, if you will drink that please."

Malfoy nodded and drained the goblet, wincing as he did so from the pain of opening his mouth. Pomfrey then muttered an incantation lightly tapping his jaw. "Now then," she said. "Headmaster, do with them as you please. I'm sure Severus informed you of his wishes?" Dumbledore nodded. "Very well. I'll be in my office if I'm needed."

He studied the two boys for a while longer then finally said, "Harry, Draco, would either of you like to tell me what happened?" Both kept quiet, refusing to meet his penetrating blue gaze.

"As I suspected. Now, Professor Snape and I have talked this over and we have agreed that the constant bickering between the two of you has gone on long enough. Don't you two agree?"

Both Harry and Malfoy looked up at this, meeting his twinkling blue eyes, but neither showed any emotion.

"Now," he said clapping his hands together. "We've come up with a special type of punishment for the two of you. First off, there will be no loss of house points or detentions for either of you." Malfoy and Harry looked at each other in disbelief. It sounded too good to be true.

"However, Professor Snape and myself are going to be performing a charm on the two of you after supper this evening. This charm will be a type of binding charm."

"Binding. . . To each other?" Harry sputtered.

"Me and Potter?" Malfoy echoed.

"Yes. Now, we will explain all of the details to you after dinner tonight. When the four of us have all finished with our meal, we will meet in the antechamber off of the Great Hall to discuss this further." Dumbledore stared them down once again, almost laughing at the looks of total disbelief on their faces.

"I suggest that the two of you pack up a few things that you will need before you head to dinner tonight. That will be all. I will see the two of you tonight." With that said, Dumbledore swept out of the Hospital Wing leaving the two shocked boys in a daze.

"Is he serious?" Malfoy sputtered, or something close to it, because as everyone knows, Malfoys do not sputter. He turned to Harry the minute the door had closed, waiting for some type of answer.

How am I supposed to know?" Harry replied turning to look at the pale blonde boy. "Knowing him, I would probably say yes."

Malfoy started cursing. Some of the words Harry had heard before, but soon he ran out of words to say, and started in again in different languages.

Harry looked startled. "You speak French?" he asked while Malfoy regained his composure after the swearing fit.

"Yeah. So?" Malfoy said, shrugging his shoulders.

"I didn't know that," Harry admitted, almost sheepishly.

"There's a lot about me you don't know Potter." At that, he stood up and left, closing the door behind him.

***

Harry sullenly entered the common room sometime later, muttering to himself. "He just had to go and ruin everything...It was Friday...If only he could have kept his fat mouth shut...All his fault...Not so pretty anymore with that black eye and busted lip..."

"Harry!" Ron and Hermione exclaimed, rushing over to him from their game of chess. "What happened?"

"You don't even want to know," he said, sprawling out in one of the armchairs.

"You are a mess, didn't Madam Pomfrey fix Malfoy and your injuries?" Hermione asked him, still a little wild eyed.

"Couldn't...Snape said not to..."

"Snape!" Ron snarled. "What did Snape do?"

"Dumbledore and Snape," Harry muttered. He didn't feel like talking, or doing anything for that matter.

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed. "For Heaven's sake, just tell us what happened, and stop mumbling."

So Harry briefly recapped what had gone on after Snape had dragged him and Malfoy to the Hospital Wing.

"Binding Spell?" Ron stammered. "To Malfoy?" Ron was so shocked he was unable to think of a suitable insult for his nemesis. Harry shrugged again, got up and headed towards his dorm room.

"Where are you going?"

"Pack."

Harry gathered up most of what he thought he might need, for whatever Dumbledore was planning on doing to them, and packed it in his trunk. He went back to the common room where Hermione and Ron were waiting on him to go down to dinner.

He was more than a bit apprehensive as dinner was coming to a close. He had told Ron and Hermione all he knew about his upcoming predicament and explained that he would know more after the meeting with Dumbledore later.

Eating about all he could manage, he looked over at the Slytherin table where Malfoy was picking at his food. He glanced at the High Table and Dumbledore nodded at him and rose from the table. Snape and Malfoy joined them as they entered the chamber off the hall.

"Now that we are all here, Professor Snape and I will begin to explain more about what I mentioned earlier in the Hospital Wing. I presume you took my advice and packed your things in your trunks?"

They nodded at him so he continued. "Wonderful. Like I said, you, Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Potter, are going to be bound together. Literally. Here are the limitations to this binding. " He paused looking at the two boys for some sort of reaction other than the one of complete shock which he was seeing now.

"First off, when the binding spell has been activated, the farthest the two of you will be able to be from each other will be two feet. There will be no exceptions in this, the spell will not allow you to break this, no matter how hard you try."

Dumbledore was trying not to grin, but the look on these two boys' faces was just too much. "Other restrictions will be as follows: When the two of you are angry with each other and express that anger, the allowance of two feet between the two of you will constrict, joining the two of you at the hip. No separation of space."

He paused again, letting everything sink in. "Professor Snape and I took the liberty to set up a room for the two of you in the staff quarters. This is where you will sleep from now on until we decide to break this binding."

"But Professor," Harry sputtered, it was all he could seem to do lately. "What about classes? We don't share all of the same classes."

"As to that Potter," Snape answered. "You and Mr. Malfoy will be alternating each week on whose classes you attend. One week you will attend classes with Mr. Malfoy, the next, he with you. Easy enough I dare say?"

"Professor Snape, surely you don't approve of this, this--" Malfoy said, trying to find the right word to describe their current situation.

"As a matter of fact, Mr. Malfoy, I do. I believe it is high time you and Potter put a stop to this constant bickering."

"The two of you will have to decide where you will be eating your meals. If you can't come up with a compromise, a small table will be set up near the staff table for your convenience. I believe that covers it all, don't you Severus?

"I believe so, Albus. Are you ready?"

"I think it is time. Harry, Draco, if you will come here please." The boys moved to stand side by side in front of the professors. Both had looks of apprehension on their faces mingled with fear.

Snape and Dumbledore began to mumble a charm under their breath, and then they flicked their wands at the two boys. A flash of golden light lit up the room and surrounded the two boys. The light faded, and everything went back to looking normal.

Harry and Malfoy looked at each other, unsure if the spell had actually worked. Nothing felt any different than it usually did.

"Well," Dumbledore said clapping his hands together again, "I guess that's it. The things which you packed have been moved to your new room. Professor Snape will show you there now." He turned to leave.

"Oh, and remember boys," he added, "We are doing this for a purpose. Please do try and get along."

Snape led them up to the third floor and then through a series of passages. Several of them were hidden behind tapestries or hidden doorways that wouldn't open unless pushed in the right area.

"Err, Professor," Harry said timidly. Snape looked at him inquiringly. "How are we supposed to remember how to get here? I'm already lost."

Malfoy, who was walking close to Harry said, "Now that, Potter, I can handle. I know exactly where we are at."

"Well, if you are sure..." Harry said uncertainly.

"I believe I can handle a few petty directions, Potter. Not all of us are completely incompetent at everything we do."

"Well, excuse me, Malfoy, for not being perfect. Let me bow down to your excellence."

"I really do feel sorry for the people who go through their whole life being dimwitted. It must be a horrible feeli-" Malfoy stopped in mid sentence and yelped. "What the hell?"

"Here is the perfect example of what happens when the two of you get angry with each other. Do carry on if you want. This is all quite amusing for me if I do say so myself," Snape said smugly.

Someone should definitely slap him. Now, Harry thought for the second time that day.

Harry and Malfoy were joined side by side, unable to move unless their hips were touching.

"How long before this wears off?" Harry asked him, having difficulty walking with Malfoy attached to his hip.

"Who knows?" Snape said mischievously. "The longer you stay mad at each other, the longer it will last. Ah, here we are, your rooms. The password is 'Bittersweet'." As he said this, the final tapestry opened, allowing them entrance into their new home. "Here we go boys, sleep well," and with that, Snape turned and left, cackling quietly to himself all the way.

"Our rooms better be decent if nothing else," Malfoy grumbled. He walked in first, with Harry right behind, their restraint now back to two feet.

Both of their jaws dropped as they entered their living quarters. It was huge. It had a large common room, a small kitchen area off to the side of that, the master bedroom to their left, and a suite bathroom connected to the bedroom.

Harry started towards their common room where a fire was crackling merrily, while Malfoy went to check out the bedroom. That definitely didn't bode well. Once the bond had been stretched to its full limit, neither could move forward any farther, unless it was towards each other.

"Potter, come here!" Malfoy snarled. "I want to check out the bedroom." He was still trying to walk forward, but wasn't getting anywhere.

"No! I want to look at the common room," Harry said stubbornly. "You come here."

"Look," Malfoy said sighing, rubbing his eyes wearily. "If I let you look at the damned common area, can we go to the bedroom next?"

"Sure," Harry said grinning. "It won't take but a second." They found it had a nice couch, two comfortable looking armchairs, a Wizarding Wireless Radio, and a small bookshelf that was currently empty.

"Ok, let's go see that bedroom." They wound their way through the furniture making their way to the bedroom. "All I know is there had better be two beds in there." Malfoy actually ginned at him, he had just been thinking the same thing.

The bedroom turned out to be as lavish as the rest of the apartment. Harry let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding when he saw there were indeed two beds. They were pushed together, but there was still two distinct beds.

There were also two separate wardrobes on opposite sides of the room, as well as a dresser with a mirror hanging above it. "All right Potter, let's go check out the bathroom." Malfoy entered through the side door with Harry right behind him, when he choked.

"What's the matter?" Harry asked him.

"There's only one shower," Malfoy said. Harry raised his eyebrows at the boy and fervently looked around the bathroom for another shower, but there wasn't one.

"Well at least there is more than one shower head, or that would have been really bad," Harry said, trying to find something positive to say.

"What's worse than having to shower with you?" Draco asked him.

"Well it isn't going to be pleasant for me either, but we don't have a choice."

Draco sighed, tilting his head backward and looked up. He had a look on his face that clearly said, 'What have I done to deserve this?'. Harry started to tell him, but thought better of it.

"Well..." Harry said trying to break the uncomfortable silence. "It's getting late, and we might as well get some sleep." Harry headed for the door hoping Draco would follow, after all, it wasn't a pleasant feeling when you try to walk and seem to do so, but never make any progress. As a matter of fact, it was just weird.

Feeling nothing, he continued on, going into their bedroom. He started digging through his trunk to make sure everything he would need was in there. He looked over at Malfoy who had just started doing the same.

Harry took his robe off and laid it neatly across his trunk and began to unbutton his shirt. If someone had told him this morning that he would be standing here with Draco Malfoy in their bedroom getting undressed, he would have told them they were messed up in the head.

He now had everything off except for his pants, which he began to undo. Malfoy he noticed was working on unbuttoning his shirt, exposing the pale skin around his neck. Harry looked away and swallowed, now down to his boxers. He tried to go around to the edge of his bed and get in, but damn it, two feet just wasn't that long. He stood there for a minute, crossing his arms over his chest, waiting for Malfoy to get undressed, who seemed to be in no hurry. Here he was, standing almost stark naked, watching Malfoy get undressed. Things just couldn't get any more weird, and if they did, Harry wasn't sure he could take it.

"You do realize I'm waiting on you, right?" Harry said, getting impatient.

"Crystal clear," he said, now showing signs of hurrying up. Once he was finally down to his boxers, he said, "I guess if it would please thee Master Potter, we shall adjourn to thy bed. He walked by Harry and crawled across through Harry's bed to his own.

They both got settled down into bed, resting in silence. Harry had lain there for about five minutes when a thought occurred to him. "Hey Malfoy," he called into the darkness, unsure of whether he was still awake.

"Yeah Potter?"

"Are you a late sleeper or do you usually get up early?"

"Oh, I definitely sleep late when I get the chance," Malfoy admitted. "You?"

"Well, it usually depends. On weekdays though, I used to get up early and fly everyday before breakfast. But now..." he trailed off.

"This really messes up a lot of things doesn't it?" Malfoy asked him.

"Like what?"

"Well, your flying for one. We can't really spend time with friends anymore... not that I had any real friends anyway. Plus, if either one of us had a sex life, this would totally screw that up."

Curious, Harry asked him, "You didn't have any friends?"

"Well of course I had friends, but not really any that meant anything or were worth much."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, my father chose who I would hang out with, who I would be friends with, who I could associate with..." he trailed off, realizing who he was talking to so openly.

"Malfoy, I'm sorry about your dad," Harry tried. Lucius Malfoy had been among those who had lost their life during The Event. "Well, if you want me to be honest." Harry stopped, afraid to go on.

"Go ahead," Malfoy allowed him.

Harry plunged in. "Well, I'm not sorry that Lucius Malfoy is dead, but I am sorry that he was your father, and that you don't have a dad anymore."

"He was never a dad to me anyway. He was more a role model when I was younger, and a bad role model at that." He laughed bitterly. "What would he think of our predicament now? Even I'd be afraid for Dumbledore when he found out this was all his doing."

Harry didn't know why he was lying in the dark, talking to Draco Malfoy of all people about his past, but he found this other side to Malfoy interesting. He didn't know when he would get to see it again so he kept on.

"Afraid for Dumbledore? I wouldn't waste my time on that. Dumbledore isn't afraid of anything," Harry said automatically.

Malfoy sat up in bed. "Do you really think so Potter?"

Harry looked over at him, the now full moon leaked in through the curtainless window, covering him with silver light. His exposed chest was well toned and looked even more unusually pale than normal bathed in the silvery moonlight. Harry found that he had to look away before he could reply to his question.

"Of course I do," Harry said indignantly. "He's the only person Voldemort was ever afraid of." Harry noticed Malfoy was one of the few who didn't flinch when he said Voldemort's name, but some unspeakable fear flashed through his eyes when he was mentioned.

"Nobody is invincible Harry," Draco said quietly. Harry wasn't sure whom he was referring to when he said that. He noted the fact that Malfoy had used his first name and stored it in his mind to think about later.

"I know," Harry whispered. He didn't know why he was being so quiet, but he felt if he spoke too loudly, he would ruin the moment, or whatever it was that was happening.

Draco lay back down, pulling the covers up to his chin, both of them falling into silence.

Harry started laughing when a thought suddenly occurred to him. Draco just turned and looked at him curiously.

Still laughing, Harry asked, "Hey Malfoy, do you snore?"

***