Date: 5/18/05
Size: 31.5, 1820 words
Beta: Wolfmistress
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“I don’t want to play,� Harry glared at Ron. For the past hour the red head had been begging, pleading and nagging Harry to play the wizards version of Truth or Dare.

“Oh, Harry, it will be fun,� Hermione giggled. Harry rolled his eyes; Hermione, in a celebration of perfect NEWT scores, was getting drunk. It wasn’t pretty. Then again, she wasn’t the only one; most of the people in Gryffindor house were in various states of drunkenness.

Putting down his book that he was writing in, he folded his arms across his chest. “IF I play for one round, will you leave me alone?� Harry asked hopefully.

“Five,� said Ron stubbornly, also crossing his arms over his chest.

“Three,� Hermione offered with a giggle, falling sideways into Ron, who smiled, wrapping an arm around her shyly.

Harry threw his arms up into the air,�fine, three. Let’s just get this over with!� He stormed off to where a circle had already formed and then sat down on an arm of a chair, hoping to go unnoticed. Seamus did the charm to make him speak only the truth. Harry fidgeted nervously; there were many things he really didn’t want to tell the truth about. Then again, the dares had been very rude and inventive in nature. The last one had sent Dean off to write a love letter to Argus Filch.

With a gleam in his eye, Ron turned to Harry. “Truth or dare mate?�

Harry gulped, watching Dean write the love letter to Filch in the corner while crying. “Truth.�

Ron and Seamus gave each other a high five. There was a new sinking feeling in Harry’s stomach. He seriously wondered about running for it.

“So, Harry, who’s been starring in your wet dreams every morning that makes you run for the showers?� Ron grinned. Hermione’s eyes went wide and the rest of the circle leaned forward to hear the answer.

Harry could feel the sweat break out on his forehead as he fought the truth spell. ‘Damn,’ he thought, he shouldn’t have agreed to play. The magic twisted within him, he could almost sense it grabbing the answer and forcing it into his mouth. He sucked in his lips as he fought against it, but it was impossible. He doubled over while spitting out the reply. “Malfoy.�

“WHAT!!!� Ron roared in disgust. Seamus howled with laughter, falling over into Hermione’s lap, not that she would have noticed since she was totally gobsmacked. Harry’s answer seemed to have sobered her up but fast.

“See why I didn’t want to play!?� Harry yelled back.

“How can you want that GIT!?� Ron yelled, jumping to his feet. Harry jumped up too, going toe-to-toe with Ron.

“He’s not the same person he was before the war!� Harry yelled.

“How can you forgive him for years of being…being HIM!� Ron spat back.

“BECAUSE I LOVE HIM!� Harry screamed.

“No.� Ron hissed.

“Bloody hell,� Seamus gasped. Hermione began to cry. Harry stood there seething before getting up and marching out of the Common Room, never looking back.

Ron paced back and forth feeling his friendship with Harry being consumed with rage, betrayal and mistrust. Seamus stood in his path. “Aren’t you going to go after him?�

“WHY SHOULD I?� Ron yelled.

Seamus jerked back in surprise. “He’s your best mate. Don’t you get it? He never made a move on Malfoy because of his friendship with you.�

“What are you talking about?� Neville asked, standing up from the circle. He too had been shaken to hear Harry’s secret, but didn’t understand why Ron was so angry.

“Harry told me once he was supposed to be sorted into Slytherin, but asked to be put into Gryffindor because Ron here,� Seamus pointed angrily at Ron, �convinced him every person sorted into Slytherin was a dark wizard. Draco met Harry before any of us. He even offered to share what he knew about who was good and who wasn’t the first day of school. Remember, he tried to shake Harry’s hand?�

Neville nodded. Hermione stood up,�if I have to choose between Ron, or Harry being with Draco Malfoy, then I choose Ron. Harry’s clearly got his priorities mixed up. He’s just going through a phase or something. Maybe he was injured in the war and is delusional.�

Seamus shook his head in disbelief. “Harry Potter saved the entire wizarding world; doesn’t he deserve to be happy? Malfoy was neutral in the war; his father has donated millions of galleons to rebuild the ministry of magic, where YOUR FATHER WORKS, WEASLEY!�

“Money doesn’t make him a better wizard than anyone else!� Ron retorted. “Lucius and Draco Malfoy are evil. If Harry goes for EITHER of them… well then, I never knew him and I don’t want to.�

“I stand by Harry. He’s my friend and Gryffindors are LOYAL. You wanted him to play, remember? If you were a real Gryffindor you would be there for Harry the way he was for you, keeping it all inside so he wouldn’t upset YOU. Now who’s the real Gryffindor?� Neville stated, coming to stand beside Seamus.

Soon the entire Gryffindor house had taken sides, standing either by Ron and Hermione or by Neville and Seamus. Those loyal to Harry left the house to find their friend. Spreading out, they searched Hogwarts to try to find him.

But they weren’t the first ones to find him, Dobby was, not that he knew Harry was being sought. Harry had gone straight to the kitchens for some comfort food, starting with a nice hot cup of tea.

The two had been friends for some time and Dobby knew when something was wrong with Harry. “What is it, Harry, sir?�

“The Gryffindors know, Dobby. I let them talk me into a stupid game and now they know. What do I do?� Harry hung his head dejectedly.

Dobby climbed up on the bench to sit next to Harry. “Maybe you should tell him now.�

“Oh right, because my world hasn’t gone done the pipes enough? I should give it another flush then shall I?� Harry sipped at his tea, hoping it would make him feel better. It didn’t and his shaking hands gave him away.

“Mister Harry is not the only student that comes to visit Dobby.� Harry looked up in surprise at this.

“Who else comes to visit you, Dobby?� Harry asked.

“I do,� a soft voice from the corner entered the conversation. Startled, Harry jerked around to see Draco standing by the doorway. “Word travels fast here, I’m sure you know that. There’s a very interesting rumor going around that half of Gryffindor is moving into the Room of Requirement for the last week of school. But that’s not all; the other half of it has to do with you, Potter.�

“Malfoy,� Harry half-whispered, frozen in place with fear, watching as the handsome Slytherin seemed to glide ever closer.

“I never imagined that you felt this way,� Draco whispered. “Father tried to tell me, but I refused to listen.� Harry stood and made toward the door when Draco stopped him. “We need to talk.�

“Why?� Harry asked in a wretched voice somewhere between a sob and self-pity.

“How long has this been going on?� Draco asked softly.

“Too long,� Harry admitted, turning his face away in shame. “Don’t worry, I’ll leave you alone.�

Draco was about to ask him not to, when the Gryffindor search party walked into the kitchen. Taking one look at Harry’s long face they quickly assessed the situation. With pity on their faces they escorted Harry away to the Room of Requirement before Draco could finish talking to Harry.

The last week of school was torture for the Gryffindor. He did his best to stay clear of Draco Malfoy, but he seemed to be everywhere. Yet, his friends ran interference for him, knowing he was upset.

So Harry graduated with a broken heart, his housemates were divided, the man he was in love with didn’t want him, and he’d lost his two best friends, Ron and Hermione.

After graduation Harry moved in with his old professor and friend, Remus Lupin, who had been living at 12 Grimmauld Place. But Harry’s heart was still torn in two. Remus suggested he start anew in another country and Harry thought it was a very good idea. Not a week after graduation Remus waved goodbye as Harry took a long distance port key to Spain.

He settled into a small town outside of Barcelona and hoped to be left alone to nurse his heart. Harry had taken to walking or biking along the roads, when weather permitted. He started to make some friends and began to write his memoirs. Harry had settled easily back into the Muggle world and was putting his life behind him. So he was rather surprised one day, almost a month after graduation, when an owl arrived at his house.

Expecting it was Seamus or Neville, he was in for a shock when he saw it was from neither.

Dear Harry,

I tried to talk to you before school ended, but I couldn’t get near you. We never finished our conversation in the kitchen. Then I found out you moved to London and now to Spain. So before I lose you again, would you please agree to see me? My owl will await your reply.

Sincerely,
Draco Malfoy

Harry found his hands shaking. Flipping over the parchment, he scribbled down one word. “Why?� He tied it to the leg of the owl and watched it fly out the window before he felt something odd begin to grow in his heart. It took him awhile to recognize it as – hope.

It was two days of living on pins and needles, waiting for word, before he received a letter again. He gave the owl a plate of bacon as a treat, he was so happy to see it.

Dear Harry,

I can see you won’t make this easy on me. Suffice to say when I first found out how you felt in regards to me, I was surprised. Mind you, it was a pleasant surprise. My father cares not what I do, so you need not concern yourself about that. Yes, I am interested in seeing you on a more personal level. We can date if you wish, but I already know I love you. Won’t you please come home to me?

Love,
Draco

Harry got out a pen and wrote a reply, sending it off with the owl, then packed his bags and closed up the house before saying goodbye to his friends. Back in Malfoy Manor a very happy Draco Malfoy smiled as he read the one word response over and over.

“YES.�