Play The Game

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

The door slammed loudly as Draco stalked right through the centre of the class and dragged his chair back with a great screeching of wood on stone. He sat down heavily, dropping his broom beside him, and glared ahead, as though daring anyone to make anything of his interruption. He still wore his clothes from the day before, only splattered with mud. His hair was streaked with soot and dragged back from his face.

Severus Snape noted the arrival of his 'favourite student' with a slight wrinkling of the nose. He pulled a vial of some smoking liquid out of his pocket and carried on his lecture to the class. Had any other student been late, Harry was sure that they would have not got away with it so easily.

Harry leaned back in his chair and braced his hands on the desk so he could crane his neck back to see along the row and catch Draco's attention.

"Mr. Potter," Snape drawled.

Harry slammed back onto the four legs of his chair.

"Kindly stop peering around the classroom and pay attention."

Harry nodded mutely.

"Now, there are many ways in which a concoction such as this can be useful in every day life..."

Draco continued to scowl mutinously, picking dirt from under his fingernails in sharp, jerky motions, hands resting on his stomach. He pushed his chair back and rested his left ankle on his right thigh, nostrils flared, brows knitted together and eyes fixed on the floor beyond his desk.

Blaise coughed and nudged Draco in the side when Snape had stopped looking at their half of the classroom and had began his usual round of 'torture the Gryffindors'.

"You okay?" he asked, under his breath.

"Mm," Draco grunted, flicking his eyes around the room under his brows before returning his attention to his fingernails. "Yeah."

"Pansy mentioned that you'll need some of my clothes for tonight," Blaise said quietly, concentrating on scribbling something on a stray piece of parchment.

"Yeah, do you mind? Potty's not the most presentable type, and I plan to be able to leave him while I get shit-faced without having to worry that he'll get lonely."

Blaise smirked. "No problem."

Snape finished his usual round on the Gryffindors and strode back to the front of the room where he began to address the class with what their assignment would be today. Five hundred words on how a potion could beat a wand. Great. Blaise stifled a yawn before turning to Draco.

"You'd better cheer up before you go, or Alexei will have a fit."

"I'll make a vague attempt," Draco said, adjusting his tie. "I'll be happy once I get there. I'm a fast drinker; it won't take long."

Blaise laughed and ceased his pointless scribbling as he began to work on the assignment.

Harry leaned backwards on his chair again and stared at the ceiling, doing a great impression of someone who was in deep thought. He looked at Draco out of the corner of his eye to see that, although the boy had brought his broom in with him, the invisibility cloak was nowhere in sight.

Draco finished his nails and took out his wand, twirling it absently across his fingers. He tapped his quill into the ink and started to write with his left hand, arching it over the page so that he didn't smudge what he had already written. He glanced across and took aim at Harry's page, then snatched the scrap Blaise had been drawing on and turned it over. He released his spell at Harry's and tapped his own page before slipping his wand down the side of his boot.

The cloak's in my dormitory. I'll fetch it when I get some clothes for you,

he scrawled.

Harry, for the second time in so many minutes, slammed back onto four legs as writing began appearing on his page. Cheers, he wrote in reply. All go well then?

Piss off, Draco wrote rudely, slamming his quill down so hard on the full stop that the nib snapped and he had to repair it with his wand.

Harry frowned and, checking that Snape wasn't looking, shot a glare down the row at Draco. We'll talk later.

I'm sorry, Draco wrote once he was sure that the nib was fixed. I'm a little irritable.

I figured, Harry replied tensely, gripping the quill a little harder than was necessary as he began to write his Potions work.

Oh don't get pissy as well. I'll tell you about it later.

Draco scratched his neck wearily, putting up his hand.

"Sir, I had to go to visit my mother, as I received an owl that my aunt - her sister - had died. She was very upset and I needed to comfort her. I haven't had time to change or anything since midday yesterday. May I be excused to wash, change and catch some sleep?" Draco asked in his best snob tone.

Snape nodded his head, "You are excused, Mr Malfoy."

Draco smiled flatly, slipping the parchment into his pocket and picking up his broom. "I'll catch up the work another time," he promised, walking out.

The corridors were satisfactorily empty as he made his way the short distance to the Slytherin dungeons. Shifting his broom onto his shoulder, Draco pushed the door open with a murmured password and made his way into the dorms. He threw his bags into a corner and wandered into the bathroom. He showered slowly, his mind running over what had happened.

He had arrived at the Manor two hours after leaving Hogwarts to find it swarming with Deatheaters, the wards jacked up to full power. It had taken him a while to actually find the place, with the Mislocation Charm so strong. Draco wove his way through the busy Death Eaters, frowning and staring at them. They ignored him totally, so he pushed through the front door and looked around in shock. The house was empty. Every stick of furniture had been moved away, including the precious paintings and the expensive curtains.

Draco had eventually located his father in the main ballroom, covering the marble railings in bubble wrap.

"What's going on?" he had asked, noting his father's ragged appearance and short hair.

"Nothing," Lucius had answered unabashedly. "Welcome home."

"Welcome to you too," Draco said warily. "What's happening?" he persisted.

"I'm getting the place fumigated," Lucius told him. "It's a good excuse to get certain items out of the house before the Weasel Squad arrive."

"Are they inspecting?" Draco asked curiously.

"Aren't they always?" Lucius replied, wrinkling his nose. "Come with me, we can talk in my study..."

He had led Draco upstairs, where they had discussed his term in Azkaban and his escape. Draco had picked up a few items from his room and been hurried out as though he was merely a nuisance. He had practically been given a little pat on the bottom to send him on his way. Smarting as though he had been slapped across the face, Draco had returned to Hogwarts, flying through the night and taking several detours.

He towelled himself dry and dressed in his pyjamas, planning to sleep right through break, into Ancient Runes and wake up at lunchtime. Draco fell back on his bed, staring up at the ceiling, before drifting off into utter exhausted sleep.

~

Blaise Zabini slunk into the Slytherin Boys dorm at five-thirty, slipper-clad feet hardly making a sound as he crossed the room to Draco's bed and looked down at the peacefully sleeping boy. "Draco," he called softly, shaking his shoulder. "Wake up. It's nearly time for Alexei's party."

"Bollocks," Draco murmured in surprise as he woke up. "What time is it?"

"Getting ready to shag Potter time?" Blaise suggested, walking over to his bed and kicking his slippers off, swapping them for a pair of expensive black leather boots. "Five-thirty."

"Christ," Draco exclaimed, looking at his watch - fairly needlessly. "I slept for over seven hours." He swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood up, removing his pyjamas and pulling on some underwear before going through his cupboard.

"I didn't want to wake you," Blaise replied, standing up and pulling on a cloak. "But if you're to go to this party and dress Potter in my clothes I thought you better be woken up soon."

"Thanks," Draco said, scratching his head. "What should I wear?"

"No clue," Blaise admitted. "You'd be better off without my judgement anyway, you have a different style to me clothes-wise."

"Humph," Draco said, biting his lip. He frowned as he pulled out a black silk shirt with silver dragons curling around the back and sides. They had tiny flakes of blue gemstone for eyes, which sparkled in the light. "Is this okay?" Draco asked, slipping it on and buttoning it up. He did not wait for a response before returning his attention to the contents of his wardrobe.

With a delighted laugh, he pulled out a black leather knee-length kilt. "I forgot I had this!"

"You're not going to wear that, are you?" Blaise asked, eyes wide.

"I could," Draco said reasonably, pulling the kilt on and belting it up. He posed, grinning.

Blaise shook his head, smiling. "You're mad."

"No I'm not, I'm just confident in my own sexuality," Draco said, but nevertheless he took it off. "Should I just wear some jeans?" he asked. "Or these?" He held out a pair of leather trousers with a huge grin on his face.

"The trousers, let every girl in the Great Hall become envious," Blaise replied, falling back onto his bed to pick up his Arithmancy book.

Draco shrugged and pulled them on. "You might need to peel me like a carrot when I get back, though," he said, zipping up and raiding Blaise's drawer for a belt.

Having found a suitable one, Draco slid his own dragon buckle onto it and reached down to touch his toes, loosening the rather tight trousers with a pained expression.

"Do you still have that burgundy shirt?" he asked Blaise thoughtfully, swinging his legs back and forth.

"Give me a second," Blaise said, rolling on to his front and pulling a box out from under his bed. He put it on his bed and flicked the lid off with a tanned finger, taking the folded shirt out carefully. "Still not worn it."

Draco rolled his eyes. "It's really great, why the hell...? Never mind. Can I borrow it for Potty? I'll replace it exactly if anything happens to it."

Blaise laughed, throwing it across the room to Draco. "Potty? And to answer your earlier question, red's not my colour."

"Hmm, alright," Draco said, laying it on his bed. "You're the same height as Potty, and I don't think any of my trousers would be long enough for him. What do you think he should wear? Black?"

"I have a pair of old black jeans somewhere around here, but they're a bit ripped." Blaise rolled off his bed and began rooting through the trunk at the foot of his bed for said jeans, finally coming up triumphant with the jet-black jeans, artistically ripped on the knees and one of the back pockets. "These do?" he asked.

"Beautiful," Draco enthused, beaming and snatching them before slinging them over his arm. He tugged his long trench coat from the stand by the door and waved goodbye to Blaise, heading for Harry's room.

As Blaise had suggested, girls stopped to stare after him in the hallways. Draco grinned, feeling much better than he had in weeks. He rapped his knuckles on Harry's bedroom door, flicking some hair behind his ear.

Harry stretched his arms above his head as he walked over to the door, wondering who it could possibly be at this time. "Hello," he greeted as he opened the door and froze, eyes taking in exactly what he was seeing. Draco Malfoy, in leather pants. Draco Malfoy in leather pants. Harry's brain didn't seem to be able to register any other words than 'yum'.

"I brought clothes," Draco said, extending his arms. "Can I come in?"

Harry opened his mouth, then shut it, and then opened it again. "Yeah..." he said slowly, stepping away from the door to allow Draco room to walk in.

Draco smiled, stepping in and shutting the door behind him.

"Blaise dug these out" - he held out the ripped jeans - "and this has never been worn." He handed Harry the shirt and walked over to the window, presenting Harry with an admirable view of his leather-clad behind.

Harry managed to close his mouth as he took the shirt and jeans off Draco, turning to walk into the bathroom and change. "I've already eaten," he called out, once he had regained his composure - no longer being faced with the Malfoy in leather. "It would have looked strange had we both walked in, dressed up for what looks like a party."

"I don't want anything to eat," Draco called. "I'm looking to be sick as a dog by the end of this, and also the emptier your stomach, the faster you get pissed."

"Okay, and why are you telling me this now?" Harry asked as he emerged from the bathroom, fully changed.

"You'll manage," Draco said with a grin, and walked over to him and slid his hand across Harry's arse, hooking a finger into the hole in the back pocket.

"You know," Harry murmured, his arms wrapping around Draco's waist, "Leather really suits you."

"Yep," Draco said modestly. "I was going to wear a kilt, but Blaise said I shouldn't." He looked a little sullen. Looking up, Draco frowned. "Comb hair, now."

Twisting away from Draco, Harry opened the "knicker drawer" and pulled out a comb. Looking at it blankly, he sent a pleading look to Draco.

Draco snatched it, running it under the tap in the bathroom and combing Harry's hair. "Have you got a coat?" he asked, pulling bits of his fringe into place. "And put some contacts in." Draco dropped the comb back onto Harry's bedside table. "If you wear glasses, they'll get smashed," he explained.

Rooting around, Harry came up triumphant with a pair of contacts and walked over to the mirror to put them in.

"Where are we going anyway?"

"London," Draco answered helpfully, putting his hands in his pockets.

Harry rolled his eyes, and pulled a plain black overcoat out of his wardrobe. "Train from Hogsmeade?" he asked.

"Yeah." Draco nodded. "It'll be leaving soon, so we'd better hurry. Pansy and a few others are going, so if you've got a hood, put it up."

Harry did as he was asked, and pulled up his hood. "We're going to sit with them?" he asked, walking over to Draco and grabbing the key to his room off the table.

"No," Draco answered, frowning. "This train doesn't realise it goes through Hogsmeade. Alexei's crowd diverts it to pick us up. We have to spread out through the carriages so people don't notice that we just popped out of nowhere. I don't get it, but we'll sit somewhere else anyway. Come on."

He grabbed Harry's hand and pulled him out of the door, down the corridor and out of the school into the dark.

"This Alexei sounds like a great guy," Harry commented. He put his free hand into his pocket and glanced back at the school momentarily. In one of the windows facing them, he saw a silhouetted figure. Light glinted off what could have been the person's watch briefly before the lights turned out.

"He's brilliant. You'll love him," Draco assured Harry, eyes scraping the path for obstructions. "And he'll like you too, I reckon."

Harry turned back to look the way they were going and idly counted how many steps they were taking. "Is it his club?"

"Yeah," Draco answered, blinking as they moved out into the lights of the station. "It's a part of his house, but he opens it up every few months for huge parties."

"How old is he anyway?" Harry asked, mentally keeping track of the numbers. '4, 5, 6'

"Oh, nineteen. It's his party," Draco answered.

'9, 10, 11' "Does he look anything like you?" Harry wondered aloud, trying to picture the elusive Alexei in his mind.

"Not really. He's German, floppy sandy hair, dirty look in his eye, good sense of humour..."

"Distant relative?" '13, 14, 15'

"No, not as far as I know, but he's Pureblood, so he might be."

There was silence as the two boys entered the station and Harry looked around, immediately noticing Millicent Bulstrode and ducking his head so she could not see him. '20 steps to hell?' he wondered.

***

Draco stormed towards the huge doors, coat flaring out behind him. He flashed his invitation at the bouncer and pointed at Harry wordlessly. The huge man nodded and waved them in. Draco waited without turning for Harry, nostrils flared and a scowl painted across his face.

Harry frowned as he followed Draco to the entrance and stood warily a few steps away. Everything had been going fine until Harry had asked Draco about his visit to the Manor, and why he had returned looking so pissed off, a conversation that Harry now realised he could have done without starting.

"Are you coming?" Draco snapped, casting a glance over his shoulder at Harry. "I need to introduce you to everyone."

Harry made a sound of murmured agreement as he followed Draco into the building and pulled his hood down warily.

Draco reached out a hand to a tall boy in a white shirt.

"Alexei," he greeted.

"Draco!" The man grinned, turning away from the half-dressed woman he was with to throw an arm around his friend. "I vas starting to think you wouldn't make it. And I'm presuming this is the one and only Harry Potter?" He spoke with a light German accent, pronouncing nearly all of his Ws as Vs.

Harry nodded mutely, casting glances around the room. "Nice to finally meet you, Alexei."

"He's been plaguing me with questions," Draco said flatly. "Is the bar still where it was last time? I feel the need to be pissed."

Alexei raised and eyebrow and waved over a man in a suit. "Let Wolf take your coats. You can get pissed over there as usual Draco, Lutz is on the bar this year."

Alexei leaned in to talk to the woman he was with, smirking. "I'm afraid I have to be going for a vile, bring Harry up to date on the who's whom front, Draco. I'll be up on the balcony later if you vant me." Placing one hand on the woman's arse, he led her further into the crowd.

"Balcony?" Harry asked Draco, handing his coat to Wolf.

Draco pointed at a balcony over the dance floor that provided a view of the entire room. "He goes up there and gets the pick of the company," Draco explained, appearing to have calmed slightly as he handed his coat to Wolf. "Coming?" he asked Harry.

"Yeah," Harry replied, dodging between two people to follow Draco to the bar.

Draco slipped a hand around Harry's waist as they continued, nodding to various people and getting waylaid by several. He kissed three girls in turn for about two minutes whilst Harry stood watching. "Old friends," Draco explained with a shrug, hooking his thumb in the waistband of Harry's jeans.

Harry tried to not look fazed, as it became apparent that most of the girls here had obviously already had Draco before him. As they arrived at the bar, Harry felt someone tug at the sleeve of his shirt and turned to face a girl with such a striking resemblance to Cho Chang it was unnerving.

"Hey," she said in a lilting drawl. "You are dancing with someone?"

Harry, feeling backed into a corner, shook his head as another girl joined the first. "No."

"You like dancing?" the next girl pressed, shooting a glance at her friend.

Harry shrugged, thinking of how Draco had been on the train. "You asking?"

The girls laughed excitedly. "We teach you anything you need to know," the first insisted. "I Zara, this Zenzi. You?"

"Harry," he said, looking the girls up and down. "Potter," he added for clarification.

Zenzi and Zara gasped delightedly, one wrapping an arm around his waist and the other around his arse. They led him away from the bar and onto the dance floor, watched by Draco's stormy grey eyes.

The young Malfoy turned away with a snort. It was, after all, what he had intended, but he was far from happy about it.

"Whatever will get me pissed fastest and most painlessly, in a double helping," Draco ordered of the barman.

Lutz smirked, and placed the glass he was holding down on the bar, turning to grab some bottles. "Where's Blaise?" he asked, pouring various liquids into the glass, turning it blood red, then yellow, then silver, finally setting on dark green.

"He can't come," Draco answered, catching the glass as it was slid along the bar to him and taking a breath before downing it in one. He kept his eyes screwed shut for a moment before exhaling slowly. "Wow, strong stuff. His parents said that he needs... I don't remember, but he can't come. Can I have another, please?"

"Another coming up," Lutz replied, sliding a few glasses down the other end of the bar then one across to Draco.

Draco caught it and cleared his throat of the burning from the previous shot before downing that one. He breathed out sharply and shook his head, alcohol burning in his nostrils and at the very back of his throat.

It struck him that he felt rejected - both by Harry, who was meant to stick by him regardless of how mean he was, and by his father. Lucius had barely told him anything of what was going on. Draco turned slightly to see Harry sandwiched between Zenzi and Zara and turned back in disgust.

Two hands landed lightly on his shoulders, and began to massage them gently. Breath caressed his neck as someone leant forward to whisper in his ear. "Long time no see, Draco."

"Long time no sexual proclivities," Draco said softly in a voice made richer by the alcohol. "Are my sexual impulses deceiving me, or is it Mitzi?"

There was a laugh and the hands on his shoulders moved to circle his neck. "Who else?" she asked playfully. Her long dark hair brushed the back of his neck and cheek.

"Well, well, well," Draco purred, turning to face Mitzi within the circle of her arms. "I'd say that I never thought I'd see you here, but that's an outright lie. How are you, beautiful?"

Mitzi pursed her lips and moved to sit in Draco's lap, playing with the soft hair at the base of his neck. "Lonely," she decided, looking at him from under dark eyelashes.

Draco pulled her close to him. "Ever heard of Harry Potter?" he asked, almost rhetorically, tongue fluttering along her neck.

Mitzi turned her head to the side, allowing Draco more skin. "Hmm, he is that boy you hate, right?" she asked.

"He's that boy who's my guest tonight," Draco corrected, nipping her skin softly. "Want to meet him?" Perfect excuse to rip him away from those two sluts.

Mitzi pouted, flicking some hair away from her face with an elegant dark purple nail. "Can't I have you all to myself?" she asked with a grin, showing him all of her pearly white teeth.

"Hmm," Draco considered it. "No, as I did bring him here." He snatched another of the dark green drinks from behind him and poured it down his throat. "Come and meet him," he wheedled, sliding a cool hand up inside Mitzi's rather minimal black top.

"You're no fun," Mitzi moaned, leaning in to kiss Draco's eyelashes before sliding off him and leaning on the bar, waving Lutz over with her hand.

"I'll go by myself then," Draco teased, walking off towards the dance floor.

Quickly downing a clear liquid of some sort and shaking her head, Mitzi sidled up beside Draco. "I'm not letting you get away that easily," she replied, tracing one of the dragons on his shirt as they walked.

"Alright." Draco shrugged, draping an arm around her shoulders. He wove through the crowds of people dancing under the surreal strobe lights, following some internal instinct. He eventually came up behind Harry and reached a hand around his abdomen, resting it on his groin.

"Can I borrow you?" he murmured into Harry's ear.

Harry flinched, not expecting someone to appear out of nowhere, especially not Draco. Harry wasn't sure whether he was happy with Draco at the moment, after having to endure Draco first pushing him away when they arrived, then kissing three people other than him straight after.

He turned his head slightly to the side to reply. "Depends."

"On what?" Draco continued seductively, removing his arm from around Mitzi's shoulders and also wrapping it around Harry's stomach, slipping his fingers under the waistband of Harry's trousers.

Harry smiled, half-closing his eyes. "On whether you can show these two I'm not interested," he replied, voice too low for Zara and Zenzi to hear.

Mitzi frowned, flicking her hair and resisting the urge to place her hands on her hips. "Draco," she reminded him. "You've got to introduce me."

Draco nodded absently to Mitzi, leaning forwards over Harry's shoulders so that his hand slid deeper into Harry's trousers.

"Girls, I'll make it up to you later," he told the surprised Zara and Zenzi. "I need to borrow him just now."

The two girls pouted, but relinquished their grip on Harry. "We hold you to that," Zenzi promised Draco ominously.

"Depends on what you hold," Draco said with a suggestive grin. He turned Harry around to face Mitzi. "Mitzi, Harry, Harry, Mitzi."

Mitzi looked Harry up and down thoughtfully and tapped one of her purple fingernails against her lip before pulling Harry to her and crushing their lips together.

Harry froze. Having never kissed anyone properly but Draco in a long while, he was at a bit of a loss until Mitzi released him with a laugh.

"I like him," she decided, turning back to Draco.

Draco laughed, clapping Harry on the back and kissing Mitzi's forehead.

"I knew you would," he said, tongue playing with Harry's earlobe. "I'm sorry I was mean earlier," he said in an imploring tone, batting his lashes.

Harry wavered, still slightly taken aback by this Mitzi girl. He reached behind him, knowing exactly where Draco would be, and slipping a hand under Draco's shirt, using the same hand to bring Draco around from behind him.

Mitzi watched the whole interaction with interest, before craning her neck to look up at the balcony. "I think Alexei's back," she said over the roar of the dancers as they noticed also.

"Good," Draco grinned. "I want to talk to him. Coming, you two?" he asked, one hand caressing the inside of Harry's hipbone.

"Of course," Mitzi replied, dropping her gaze to look at Draco and Harry. "Can I talk to you later though, Draco?" she asked.

Harry looked up at the balcony, moving his arm around Draco's waist but keeping it under the shirt, to pull Draco against him. "We didn't see much of him earlier," he murmured to Draco. "Too busy."

"Of course you can," Draco said graciously. "Busy, Harry?" he inquired, eyes sparkling.

Harry smirked, looking at the balcony and Alexei who had his arms around three different girls, another with her arms around his neck. "Very busy," he confirmed.

"He usually is," Draco conceded. "You just have to ignore them. He usually does."

"Estavan!" Mitzi exclaimed before suddenly diving into a crowd of dancers. She re-appeared a few minutes later, dragging a dark lad with dreadlocks behind her by the front of his shirt. "Look who I found."

"Staf!" Draco cried, tugging on the boy's dreadlocks.

"Nah," Estavan discouraged, detaching his hand. "Don't pull dem."

Draco let go, grinning. "How are you?"

"Good," Estavan said descriptively. "Dis is?" He pointed a joint hanging from between his fingers at Harry.

"Harry," Draco introduced him. "This is Estavan."

"Hey," Harry greeted, glancing at the joint then at the guy Draco who had just introduced, he looked a lot older than them both, possibly Alexei's age, maybe older.

Running his fingers up and down Draco's side, Harry followed Mitzi and Estavan up to the balcony.

"Having fun so far?" Draco asked Harry as Estavan put the joint between Mitzi's lips with a low laugh. Mitzi rolled her eyes and took a drag before taking it out to waggle her tongue at Estavan.

"Anything's better than being sat in the Common Room with a chess tournament going on," Harry replied with a grin, blowing some hair out of his eyes, "Having you here as well is an added bonus."

"You wouldn't be here without me," Draco reminded him, jabbing him in the ribs with a finger.

Harry tried his best to dodge the blow. "Though you almost did a good job of getting rid of me before," he pointed out.

"I was being childish," Draco mumbled, looking down at his feet before tipping his head back.

Harry shrugged, tucking his hand neatly in the top of Draco's leather pants. "I'm still here aren't I?"

"Yes." Draco smiled, looking self-congratulatory as they wound their way up a white staircase that led to the balcony.

"Alexei!" Mitzi grinned, tackling the startled nineteen-year-old and forcing him to fall backwards onto a red leather sofa. "Do stop being busy so much."

"Vat?" he asked, "Even vith you?"

Mitzi giggled, moving to sit more comfortably in his lap as the other three made it up the stairs. "I'm the exception."

"Ah, but of course." Alexei nodded at Draco, Harry and Estavan in turn. "Lovely you could join me."

"Yah," Estavan drawled, draping himself across a sofa covered with black fur. Several girls piled themselves up beside him immediately. He grinned lazily.

"Are you too busy to talk?" Draco asked, grinning and leaning against the fur-draped rails around the balcony.

"Not pissed enough yet," Alexei replied modestly, taking a glass of a fizzing blue and white drink off a girl sat next to him and downing it in one.

Harry laughed and joined Draco at the rails. "Being pissed makes everything better."

Alexei raised an eyebrow and looked up from kissing Mitzi's hairline. "It's the morning after you have to vatch," he replied with a laugh, running his hands through Mitzi's hair.

"Some in more ways dan udders," Estavan put in.

"Well, depends on your preferences," Draco said reasonably. "Sometimes all you have to worry about is the hangover." He slid his arm around Harry's waist demonstratively.

Mitzi giggled as Alexei's hands began playing with the straps on the back of her low-cut tank top. "It's so much harder being a woman; we have to be careful when we get pissed."

"Das never stopped you before," Alexei murmured knowledgeably.

"No," Draco agreed. "I guess we get off easy."

He suddenly smiled, a sparkle coming into his eyes. He turned to Harry, putting his lips to his ear.

"Remember what I said about wanting to get pissed and do various things to you that aren't mentioned in polite society?" he asked in a low voice, smirking.

"Finally going to walk the walk?" Harry asked, turning his head slightly to the side, Draco's hair brushing his cheek.

"I'm very pissed," Draco confessed. "I think I just drank most of a bottle of vodka with extra added green dye." He rested his forehead against Harry's, looking up into his eyes playfully. "How about you?"

Harry raised his hands apologetically, palms facing up. "Completely sober," he admitted.

"I thought Draco vas going to be yours this year," Alexei said in an undertone to Mitzi, nipping at her neck.

"Me too, but from the moment he walked in he's been taken," she replied, glancing over at Draco and Harry talking. "I wouldn't have believed it had I not seen it."

"Ja," Alexei agreed, his hands moving lower to rest on Mitzi's waist.

Draco held onto Harry's shirt, laying his head against his chest and closing his eyes reluctantly.

"Ar-leck-see," Estavan drawled, lifting his head up from the sofa. "Are we havin' deh card tournaments?"

Alexei glanced up and over at Estavan. "Ja. Go get Wolf and send Rafe up with the drinks. Draco would like some time with Harry at the bar, so take your time." Nodding to Draco, Alexei returned to Mitzi.

Draco smiled gratefully, his tongue grazing Harry's lips.

"You won't enjoy these games unless you're pissed," he warned him. "Come on."

He tugged on Harry's arm, leading him back down towards the bar. "Hey Lutz, can I have three of those green things?"

"Maribellas?" Lutz checked, flipping two bottles up behind his back, shooting the lids off with his wand and placing them on the bar for someone else. "Sure, two Maribellas for Draco and his friend."

He made the drinks and shot them along the counter to Draco and Harry.

Warily, Harry lifted the glass to his lips, Draco's earlier words stuck in his mind. Just what kind of games were they going to play? Well, if he were to enjoy them... He drowned the drink in one go, and closed his eyes for a few seconds as it burnt a trail of fire down his throat. He exhaled with a grin. "I can see why you like these."

"I thought you would." Draco smiled, watching Harry lasciviously. "Drink up, don't want to miss the games."

"Draaaa-ko," Estavan called.

Harry snickered, finishing his second Maribella. "I think he's stoned," he said with a slight slur in his voice, though it was not very noticeable.

"He's always stoned," Draco said scornfully. "Great guy."

Harry laughed, finishing half of his third glass. "What kind of games, anyway?" he asked Draco.

"Strip poker, a modified form of spin the bottle... Lots of things. I don't usually remember by the end."

"You're right," Harry confirmed. "I'd have to be pissed."

"You should be by now." Draco smiled again, removing the glass and draining it. "Let's go."

Harry stood up, wrapping his arms around Draco from behind. "After you."

Draco grinned as they made their way back through the crowds. The music rumbled in his stomach and the lights skittered over them both.

"Are you OK with this?" he asked Harry loudly over the music and the roar of the crowd.

"If I'm not I'll tell you," Harry replied, leaning in to Draco to be heard. He put his hands in Draco's front pockets and rested his chin on his shoulder.

"And you haven't mentioned it yet," Draco added, walking up onto the balcony. The steps were swimming under his feet.

Alexei was stood in the middle of the balcony, directing people around with a cigarette between his lips. "Hallo Draco, Harry," he greeted. "Ready?"

Mitzi had drifted off and was sat next to a new person. Her arms were folded around her waist and her legs were crossed.

"Ready as we'll ever be," Draco answered.

"Draco," the newcomer greeted. He had long dark red hair with a couple of strips hanging over his eyes. A tiny goatee covered his chin, and he had a ring with a plectrum dangling from it hanging from his left ear.

"Hey Rafe!" Draco grinned. "Haven't seen you in months."

"Hey," Harry greeted, taking an arm from around Draco to wave at Rafe.

"You're Harry Potter," Rafe said in a gruff voice, a ring through his bottom lip catching the light.

"And you're a guy I've never met before," Harry replied, taking his other arm from around Draco so he could lean on the rail.

Rafe grinned, rising languidly to his feet. He was tall and lean and incredibly attractive.

"Cool scar," he complimented in his rough voice. "Rafe Jennings." He extended his right hand, weighed down with rings, brightly coloured bracelets and doodles.

Harry shook his hand, studying Rafe's face with a little more interest than he showed other people. "Nice lip ring. Get in the way much?" he asked.

"I'm more with the fingers," Rafe explained. He flicked the plectrum hanging from his ear. "You get used to it."

"I guess if you wanted to you could work around it," Harry replied with a grin.

"Finally," Alexei drawled as everything was set up and he draped himself into a seat on one side of the table.

"I frequently do," Rafe murmured, taking a seat and pulling out the one next to it for Harry. Draco took the chair on the other side of that and Wolf sat beside Estavan. Out of the girls, only Mitzi joined them.

"What do we play first?" Draco asked, watching Wolf's long, pale hands as he shuffled the cards expertly so that the edges did not catch to give any indication of which card it was to an observant player.

"Vingt-et-un," Alexei replied, taking the cigarette out of his mouth and flicking it over the railing without much care as to whether it hit someone. "Mitzi, bring Potter up to date."

Mitzi grinned, brushing her hair away from her face. "In English, twenty-one. Everyone's dealt two cards, and then we go around the group, everyone picking up a card till someone goes bust or gets twenty-one. If you get twenty-one, you get to pick someone to lose an item of clothing, and which item. If you go bust, you have to lose an item for each point you go over twenty-one. Ace counts as one or eleven, you get to choose, and kings, queens and jacks are tens."

Rafe grinned, leaning back and stretching his long legs out in front of him under the table. "Load us up, Wolf."

Wolf, almost always silent, looked up, the light casting shadows beneath his eyes. He dealt two cards to each person so fast that his hands seemed to blur. He sat back.

"I will watch you all and check the rules," he said in a deep, rusty voice. "Everyone knows the game."

Draco, Rafe and Estavan all nodded. Estavan stubbed out his joint and threw it over the railing, sitting forwards. Draco ran his hands back through his hair.

"You understand, Harry?" he checked in an undertone.

Harry nodded silently, glancing between all the people sat at the table, a little nervous. The alcohol was currently the only thing keeping him there.

Mitzi leaned forward, placing a hand on her cards. "Say we can pick them up already, Wolf, I'm getting bored."

"Okay, pick up," Wolf commanded, shuffling the cards he held in his hand.

Draco glanced over his cards. "Twist," he said to Wolf. He took the card and looked over his new hand. "Okay, stick."

Harry flipped his cards up, making sure no one could see them. A five and a two, nothing interesting. "Twist," he said, taking the card and adding up mentally. "Twist," he said again, taking the fourth card and keeping his face impassive. "Yeah, stick."

Rafe took one glance at his cards and laid them face down on the table. "Kiss my ass," he smiled to Wolf, fiddling with his plectrum.

Wolf smiled flatly. "Okay, so you stick. Mitzi."

"Twist," she replied, tapping the table with her nail. "And - whoa - stick."

"Alright," Wolf shrugged. "Alexei..." He shuffled the cards in his hands elegantly.

Alexei stretched his legs out in front of him, leaving the cards face down at the table and not looking at them. "Tvist." As Wolf threw the card onto his others Alexei smirked, still not looking at them. "Tvist me tvice more." He grinned, raising an eyebrow. Once this was done he cracked his jaw. "Stick."

"Alexei plays by instinct," Draco whispered to Harry. "He usually wins, but it's helped by the fact that he enjoys the booby prizes."

"Stick, man," Estavan said, shaking his head.

"Turn your cards over," Wolf commanded imperiously, looking around. Draco turned his to show two fives and a King.

Harry and Mitzi turned theirs over simultaneously to reveal a five and a Queen on Mitzi's side, and a two, a five, another five and a six on Harry's.

Estavan revealed an ace and a ten as Rafe showed two queens.

"Alexei?" Wolf asked, looking around at the cards.

Alexei flicked his cards over with his thumb and forefinger. "Five card trick, can't beat it."

Harry watched in awe as the cards were turned over, a five, a four, a four, a six and a two. "Whoa," he breathed so only Draco could hear.

"Told you he was good," Draco said a bit resentfully.

Rafe laughed a soft throaty chuckle. "So who are you stripping mentally, Lex? Share it."

Alexei chuckled and ran a hand through his hair. "All too obvious. Mitzi, darling, lose das top."

Mitzi placed her cards on the table then reached behind her for the straps on her top, undoing them slowly and never taking her eyes off Alexei as she did so. Finally, the final strap came undone and she pulled it over her head revealing a black silk bra. She grinned up at Alexei coyly. "The top is so small you see the same with and without."

"True," Rafe said, sliding a hand up inside the back of her bra. "But it's more fun this way."

Wolf gathered all their cards together and dealt again. This time, Draco twisted twice before spreading his cards out despairingly.

"Bust," he mumbled.

"Vell that is vun of the kvickest games in history," Alexei mocked lightly, sliding his cards across to Wolf.

Harry grinned. "Hey, I need a drink if I'm to stay here," he said, looking around absently.

"No worries, Harry." Mitzi smiled, tapping a man on the shoulder. "Damien, go get us some drinks while we watch Draco lose something."

Draco stood up. "What first?" he asked the group. "Highest score picks."

"Not me," Alexei shrugged. "I had a measly total of elf."

"Fourteen," Harry added his own score and leaned back in his chair to get a better view of Draco.

"Sixteen, if I use my ace as an eleven," Mitzi added her own score, playing absently with the fabric on her skirt.

"Nineteen," Rafe murmured.

"Six." Estavan beamed proudly, taking a drink from a tray.

"So that would be Rafe, then?" Draco surmised.

"Fun," Mitzi decided, taking a wineglass filled with a dark purple liquid to match her nails.

"Alright Rafe, what'll it be?" Draco asked, tossing his hair back.

"I don't mind, what does everyone else think?" Rafe asked, looking around them all, his lip ring glinting. "Shirt?"

Harry nodded, as did Alexei, before reaching for another Maribella off a tray.

Draco grabbed one and downed it, plonking the glass down and unbuttoning his shirt slowly. He slung it over the back of his chair and flexed his back before sitting down again.

"Very nice," Rafe congratulated him, looking him up and down. "I like the shirt, too, though."

Wolf dealt again. Draco stuck this time, looking at his cards closely.

Harry scratched his chin, deciding to stick also and placing his cards face down on the table, taking another drink.

"Harry, you'll drink yourself under de table." Estavan grinned.

"Don't stop him," Rafe laughed. "Twist." Wolf handed him an eight and he grimaced. "Stick."

Harry laughed, "I'm the luckiest sod at Hogwarts, I have my own room and am excused from lessons. Two years of having to do jack all. I've got to have some headaches."

"Twist me," Mitzi said, reaching for the card. Alexei grinned and caught Mitzi's eye.

"I'd stick if I vere you," he said, right as she opened her mouth to say twist.

"How do I know I can trust you," she said suspiciously.

Alexei shrugged. "You can't."

Mitzi frowned. "Twist." The card came sliding across the table and she groaned. "Bust."

Draco laughed victoriously. Rafe gave a confident grin and removed his hand from beneath her bra.

"Keep going for the best score," Wolf insisted.

"Tvist," Alexei asked, as Mitzi sulked in her chair. "Und, stick. Stef, you're the last one."

Estavan looked at his cards doubtfully. "De numbers look de same. I stick in case dey are tens."

"Must be a new record," Mitzi announced, checking her watch. "Normally takes you longer to lose your vision, Stef."

"You don't know where I were before dis." Stef grinned. "For all you know, I could have been lickin' de ass of a cat." He paused. "As it is, I was smokin' dope."

"You alvays are," Alexei replied with a laugh.

"Almost always," Stef conceded. "But den, you are always fucking your brains out. I'd radder smoke dem. Takes less energy."

"Turn your cards over," Wolf said with a hint of a grin.

Harry grinned, flicking his cards over, a five and a ten. "Come on... I wanna see who gets Mitzi."

Draco turned over two nines. "This should be fun."

Rafe grinned, flicking his plectrum idly. "Nineteen," he announced, turning his cards over. "But then most of us have seen all of her anyway." He flicked Mitzi's chin.

Mitzi bit the air next to Rafe's finger playfully. "Most, but not all," she reminded him.

Alexei pushed his cards over to reveal a ten, a ten and a four. He glanced up calmly and shrugged. "You vin some; you lose some."

"Both of them, then?" Draco grinned, scratching his chest absently, the key on the chain swinging.

"More fun that way," Alexei grinned, standing up and pulling Mitzi with him.

"Woohoo," Rafe grinned. "I vote Mitzi takes off her skirt and Alexei takes off his trousers."

"I second dose motions." Stef grinned lazily.

"Ah, but Lex is wearing a belt," Draco pointed out, taking another drink. "He can't take the trousers off without taking that off first."

"How about," Alexei offered, "I take the belt and trousers, so Mitzi doesn't lose anything?"

"That's honourable," Rafe approved. "Who thinks it's a good idea?"

"Me!" Mitzi yelled, hugging herself.

Harry shrugged and downed another drink. "Throw in another Maribella and you get my vote."

Draco passed one across to Harry.

"And I thought Gryffindorks couldn't hold their drink. I reckon Lex could do both and not show us anything we haven't seen before. If he's up for it, then it's fine with me. Wolf's the expert, though." Draco yawned.

Wolf frowned. "Typically, whoever's more bust loses. Alexei's three over and Mitzi's four over, but if Alexei wants to take two off then that's fine."

Alexei grinned, pulling Mitzi to him with one hand to kiss her, and using the other to pull out his belt. "You owe me."

Mitzi grinned, pecking him on the nose before sitting down to watch him unzip and kick off his trousers to reveal another pair, this one in white. "After last year, I decided to vear two pants," he explained with a smirk.

"Cheat," Draco groaned.

Alexei shrugged and sat back down elegantly. "I promise there are no other tricks like this."

Wolf dealt out another hand contentedly.

"So how's your band?" Draco asked Rafe as he picked up his cards.

"It's going well. We're playing a load of Muggle venues to get our name in the books, but it's not bad," Rafe answered. He picked up his cards. "Oh well," he shrugged.

Harry picked up his cards and stared at them, bored, leaning his head on his hand. He picked up another glass of some unknown liquid and downed it in one, coughing slightly afterwards. His eyes began to droop and the conversation around him became muted, like an annoying fly buzzing around, one of those flies you couldn't see but desperately wanted to squash. 'I have a king and an ace.' His brain managed to register this before his eyes closed and he fell asleep.

~~~~~~~~

It really is annoying, Harry decided, when you wake up freezing cold and half-on-half-off a chair. His eyelids fluttered open and emerald green eyes darted around, widening when they saw why he was so cold. Harry Potter was sat butt-naked in the chair he had fell asleep on, save for his - that is to say Blaise's - jeans, which Rafe was in the process of unzipping.

"Hey!" Harry mumbled in a slightly croaky voice. "What the fuck?"

"You were losing," Draco answered with a smile, ruffling Harry's hair. "You went bust on every round, somehow."

Rafe grinned and tugged Harry's jeans down. "It's only fair," he laughed.

Harry scowled, wrapping a hand into his jeans to pull them back up. "No fair," he said, pouting. "I may be the Boy-Who-Lived, but I can't play cards in my sleep."

"It's your fault for drinking yourself under," Draco drawled with a grin. His grey eyes were very, very bright, almost sky blue. "Lightweight," he accused.

"Estavan's passed out," Rafe supplied. He seemed to be basically sober. His plectrum earring swung back and forth as he shook his head. "Keep your pants, man, but you're not allowed to put your clothes back on. It's the rules."

Rafe himself was down to his T-shirt and long boots. Draco was now just in his boxers and Estavan was completely naked, eyes crossed and lidded, a spliff dangling from his fingers.

There was no sign of Alexei or Mitzi anywhere, just a pair of white trousers, two shirts and a belt.

Harry yawned, his jaw cracking. "How long was I out?" he asked, resisting the urge to throw something at Estavan to see if he was alive.

"Ten minutes or so," Draco answered. "My watch seems to be spinning pretty fast, so I can't say for sure."

"You played cards for that long? Hell that must have been boring." Harry grinned, scratching his chest absently.

"Not when it involved removing your clothes indiscriminately," Draco answered, standing and straddling Harry's lap. He bent his head and licked up the centre of Harry's chest. "That was amusing."

Harry's grin widened slightly. "Would've been more fun if I was awake," he replied playfully, bending his head to nibble at Draco's earlobe.

"Nah, I'm kinky like that." Draco grinned, shivering. "Come on, I feel like dancing... Or at least doing something on the dance floor." He stood up, grabbing Rafe and Harry's hands.

Rafe tugged his hand away. "I'm going to find Zen... whatsit. You guys have your fun."

Picking up a guitar from under the table, he wandered off into the shadows outside the pool of light.

Slipping one hand into the waistband of Draco's boxers, Harry pulled the Malfoy boy closer to him. "I really don't want to sleep again. What were you saying about those awakening Potions?" he asked, his other hand moving to Draco's waist.

"Was I saying anything about them?" Draco asked, speaking fast. "I don't remember. Christ you're gorgeous."

Ramming his hands into Harry's hair and gripping tightly, he pulled the boy against him and kissed him furiously, teeth clashing against Harry's.

Harry laughed against Draco's mouth, twisting his tongue around the other boys. He moved the hand on Draco's chest to run through his hair, as soft as spiders' silk.

"I love the effect alcohol has on you," Draco purred, pushing Harry forcefully back onto a sofa.

"Me too," Harry decided, pulling Draco down on top of him, and meeting his lips once more. "Shame I can't get pissed every night."

"You can," Draco said, and frowned, holding himself up on his elbows.

Harry shook his head. "Wouldn't be as fun when I do."

"I suppose," Draco conceded. "Come with me," he insisted, rolling to his feet and dragging Harry after him down the stairs.

The lower part of the huge room was crowded, hot, muggy and noisy. The music rumbled through the floor and shook in Draco's stomach. People jostled past them. Some were totally naked already. Draco pulled Harry right into the centre, sliding his hand right down the back of Harry's underpants and groping his arse happily.

Harry, initially startled, leaned in to Draco, wrapping one arm around his waist, and moving the other to the back of Draco's neck.

"How many of these parties are there?" he asked, the thought occurring to him that this might be the only party to which he could go with Draco.

"If we join the circle, there's one every couple of months," Draco answered in a muffled voice, his other hand creeping across Harry's bare stomach.

Harry moved his head to nuzzle Draco's neck, grazing a certain spot with his teeth. "What do we have to do to get into the circle?"

"We just keep coming to parties... There are favours involved," Draco purred, one finger following the line of hairs down from Harry's belly button and under his waistband. "We can manage it. Lex'll give us a good deal."

Harry grinned and picked the hand up, taking it away from its course and slipping one finger into his mouth. "This night's going to stick in my mind for a long time," he decided, running his tongue the length of Draco's finger.

Draco had a few rather dirty thoughts at that moment, melting against Harry.

"This place is fucking huge," he said, after regaining his composure slightly. His voice was heavily slurred as dilated eyes watched Harry. "We could go off somewhere and make it even more memorable."

Harry laughed around Draco's finger, nibbling the end slightly. "I'm having fun right here."

"We could have more fun elsewhere," Draco mumbled, but he diverted his eyes.

Harry slowly took Draco's finger out of his mouth and raised the hand, kissing the palm before entwining their two hands together.

"Define fun," he asked with a smirk.

A smirking grin lifted Draco's lip. He lifted Harry's other hand and licked his palm.

"There are all sorts of things we could do," he purred. Moving his lips close to Harry's ear, he proceeded to suggest a number of things in an undertone.

"I don't think anyone would be able to say no to that," Harry murmured. One of his hands managed to slip out of Draco's grip to trace the faint scar on his cheek.

Draco laughed evilly. "Shall we excuse ourselves, Potty?" He made a sweeping gesture with his arm. "They'll miss us, but this is in the name of education." Draco made an obscure gesture at the darkness over the balcony and pulled Harry's arm. "It's time," he said ominously.

Harry raised an eyebrow, throwing an arm around Draco's shoulders absently. "I don't think many people approve of student/teacher relationships," he said, and grinned, referring to Draco's comment on education.

"I'm a special kind of teacher."