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Wind Rider	By : SuishouTenshi Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 13758 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 9
- 10
- 11
Wind Rider

- Suishoutenshi

REPOST: November 10, 2007

Chapter Ten

�

If the
rest of Hogwarts had noticed the awkward drift between Harry and his two best friends,
they didn�t voice it, though the tension was clearly there for the whole world
to see. Ron avoided Harry�s eyes at every possible chance, and Hermione was
always sighing and shaking her head. No actual fight had broken out between the
Golden Trio, they still sat together during meals and classes, and their
familiar figures could still be seen trotting down the halls next to one
another. But the warmth and the smiles were no longer there, as if some barrier
had been erected between them, a magical force that kept them away like awkward
strangers.

The fa�ade
was overwhelmingly difficult for Harry to keep up. His two friends hadn�t
brought up Tuesday�s incident again, but he had noticed Ron�s angry growls of
discontent and Hermione�s dejected frowns more than enough times to recognize
their sentiments for this unexpected situation. For some reason, they still
stuck by him, and so no matter how awkward sitting next to Ron and Hermione
became, he would stick by them too. On Friday, he was going to get his answers,
and he would relay Malfoy�s reply word by word to his
companions, as a show a trust and an apologetic gesture.

Seeing
Malfoy just about everyday didn�t help matters. It seemed like after Tuesday,
the blond Slytherin was once again denied of his calming draught. His eyes were
practically glued to Harry�s body, the gaze so heated that Harry found himself unable to attend meals anymore. Perhaps it was a
good thing that the majority of the school was so enamored with Harry�s allure
to notice Draco Malfoy�s passionate stares.

Classes
were worse. Slytherins and Gryffindors
generally sat on opposite ends of the classrooms, and so Malfoy had the perfect
opportunity to devour Harry with his eyes. The bespectacled boy, on the other
hand, couldn�t stop thinking about Malfoy�s attention
on his person, and his allure would always spin out of control during these
instances, causing the people around him to resort to inappropriate touching,
which would then cause a chain reaction from Malfoy in the form of a loud and
possessive growl. Since Malfoy�s hatred for Harry
bordered on legendary, everyone thought of these vocal protests as shows of
menace and didn�t take much notice of it.

On Friday
afternoon after Harry�s last class, Charms, the Gryffindor Seeker waved a
half-hearted goodbye to his friends and retreated back to their common room.
After a whole day of sharing classes with Slytherins,
he was honestly in no mood to sit through a painful study session with Ron and
Hermione. They let him go without a word of protest, just another jab at his
heart.

He was
entertaining himself by staring into the flickering embers within the fireplace
and doing a good job ignoring the soft chatters of the lower years around him
when the portrait swung open with a bam. The Fat Lady�s appalled rebukes were
overshadowed by the entrance of Ron Weasley�s lanky
body. Hermione followed tightly behind, calling out Ron�s name in frustrated
urgency.

Harry
looked up as his best friend stormed in and saw with an open mouth that Ron was
carrying a blackened eye and a bleeding nose.

�Ron!� He
stood up immediately and ran to his friend�s side, previous tension all
forgotten. �What happened?!� he inquired Hermione since Ron looked quite shaken
and dazed.

Hermione
shot a pleading look to the Gryffindor Seventh-Year Prefect, Amanda McManus.
The older girl understood the Trio�s need for privacy right away and led their
house out for an early dinner. Some protested, wanting to see the scene
develop, but one look at Ron�s haunted expression and all knew better than to
complain.

Once
everyone was out of earshot, Harry asked again, �Ron, who did this to you?�

Instead of
answering, Ron just breathed heavily and seized Harry�s shoulders with tight
grips and said, �Harry, mate, we�re best friends, always.� Here, he suddenly
brought Harry forward in an inhumanly tight embrace and let him go just as
quickly. �And that was a manly hug; I�m not interested in you or anything.�

Harry
nodded numbly and wiped away some of the blood that Ron accidentally smudged on
his shirt. �I know, Ron,� he said softly, �but... that still doesn�t explain
who did this to you.�

�We ran
into Malfoy,� Hermione answered, �and... well...�

�What?!�
Harry�s aura began to flare. �That bastard! Tell me
you got him good, Ron!�

Ron gave
him a goofy smile. If Harry didn�t know any better, he would�ve thought that
Ron�s eyes were misty.

�Look,
Harry, just know that whatever happens, I�m not going stop being your friend. I
don�t care what you and the ferret get up to, as long as he doesn�t hurt you.
You�re my best mate in the whole world, and just because you�re shagging a
Malfoy doesn�t change that fact. Okay, I�m going to go find Ginny now; she does
the best healing charms.� He grinned wildly and left.

Harry
stared after his best friend utterly perplexed. He turned to face a half-amuse,
half-mystified Hermione and asked as calmly as possible, �Okay... what part of
his head did he fall on?�

Hermione
shook her auburn curls and laughed, drawing Harry into a tight hug. �We�re both
very sorry, Harry.�

�So Malfoy
got to you too.�

�No! Stop
being so pessimistic, Harry.�

�I�m not being
pessimistic. I�m being confused.�

Hermione
tossed his hair fondly. �Malfoy talked some sense into us, and clobbered Ron
while he was at it. That�s all. He literately stalked us until we walked into
an abandoned corridor and started insulting us like usual. You know, Weasel, Mudblood and other
cheerful things. Ron mentioned your name and how he must�ve cursed you, made
you �perverse�. Malfoy lost it right there and jumped on Ron so fast we didn�t
even see him until it was too late.�

Harry
snorted. He knew all too well how sudden Draco�s pounces were. He wrinkled his
forehead a bit and asked, �Ron called me �perverse�?�

She nodded
with a small shrug. �Ron�s a bit of a thickheaded, you know that. He didn�t
mean anything by it, and Malfoy pointed that out straightaway, started
psychoanalyzing Ron like Freud on steroid. I didn�t even see it,
guess I was too involved in this to consider everything clearly. Malfoy began
calling Ron immature and selfish, pointed out the fact that he was probably
startled by the fact that you, Harry, liked boys and Ron must�ve been insecure
about his own sexuality.�

�I�m not
gay, Hermione,� Harry tried to explain. He felt nothing when Seamus kissed him
or when he exchanged fluids with Justin. But by the incredulous look on Hermione�s
face, he thought it would probably be a waste of energy trying to defend himself anymore.

�That�s
not the point anymore. Oh God, Harry, you should�ve been there, you should�ve
seen how mad Malfoy was. He was so close to hexing both of us, calling us
cowards and traitors because we were abandoning you and alienating you just
when you needed us the most. He...�

�Hey,
Hermione, I�m fine. Please don�t cry,� Harry pleaded with alarm. After all this
time, he still couldn�t deal with Hermione�s tears.

She wiped
the corners of her eyes and pulled Harry into another motherly embrace. �But he
was right, we were acting like jerks. We were just so confused and worried for
you, and upset because you kept secrets from us. And then... and then Malfoy
brought up how you�re still number one on Vol... Voldemort�s hit list, and you needed our protection and
support at all times, something that he couldn�t give you because you despise
him. He... he asked us how we�d feel if you just dropped dead one day, and Ron
shoved him off and ran back here like a madman.�

Harry felt
his heart twinge at Malfoy�s uncharacteristic show of
affection, and another pang of guilt. So Malfoy genuinely thought Harry hated
him... he had not wanted the blond to think that way.

�Do you
mean Malfoy placated Ron just by using his words?� Harry added an incredulous
tone in an attempt to lighten the atmosphere. He didn�t expect Hermione to look
up at him harshly and glaring as if he was a child caught with his hand in a
cookie jar.

�Don�t you dare make fun of Ron!� She slapped him
lightly on the arm. �Of course Malfoy�s words got to
him. Have you forgotten the beginning of all this mess? You were �dead� for
twenty-five days, Harry! We were all worried sick and Ron was just about to cut
his own throat and follow you across the river Styx!
He was the one you�d miss the most, remember? Don�t you think Ron feels the
same?

�I... I
think that�s why he gave you such an odd acceptance speech. Harry, Ron can�t
lose you again. And I can�t either.�

Harry
nodded slowly, suddenly worried about Ron�s well-being. �I hope Ginny heals him
well.�

Hermione
snorted through her tears. �Don�t be daft, Harry. Ginny is hopeless at healing
charms. I�d reckon Ron had run off to the Prefect bathroom or somewhere private
to sulk and cry.�

�Why?�
Harry had a hard time picturing Ron cry. Whenever Ron was hurt, he�d always transfer
his pain into rage. Punching a hole in the wall seemed more fitting for the
redhead than salty tears.

�He�s a
big boy, Harry,� Hermione smiled warmly, shaking her head to express her wonder
at Harry�s naivet�, �but seeing your unmoving body once is enough to break the
bravest of men.�

----------------------------

By Friday
morning, Harry was a nervous wreck. He pasted a rather convincing stony mask
and went to Herbology class �� of which the Gryffindors shared with the Slytherins
� and was determined to not show a single emotion toward Malfoy until their
meeting that night. The result, however, wasn�t as pleasing as he had hoped
since Ron pointed out ever so bluntly that Harry�s emotionless mask made him
look constipated.

Malfoy, on
the other hand, was acting very strange, even by his abnormal standards. Unlike
the previous days where he simply stared and glared, today his eyes were
twinkling like mad, and his lips would often quirk up with a mysterious
triumphant smirk, as if he knew the secret of the century and wasn�t afraid to
flaunt his knowledge.

After
dinner, Harry made way toward Gryffindor tower alone, not bother to give his
friends an excuse. He told them simply that he had to meet Malfoy, and Hermione
just smiled and Ron actually gave his hand a firm squeeze.

A thorough
search over the Marauder�s Map told Harry that Malfoy was in fact making his
way from the Great Hall to Greenhouse Three. Harry sought him out with a
thundering heart and the brightest Zephyr glow.

Opening
the door to Greenhouse Three, the first thing Harry saw was Malfoy�s
backside. The Slytherin was clipping the branches off a magical geranium.
Malfoy seemed to have sensed him right away and waved Harry toward a stool in a
work-safe area. He himself joined the Gryffindor a minute later.

�That yours?� Harry asked, surprised that his voice was still steady.

Malfoy
nodded. �It�s my last year�s final Herbology project.
Sprout gave me a 99 percent, and I couldn�t just leave it here to die,� he said
as he pulled his own stool closer to Harry, shamelessly intruding on the dark
haired boy�s personal space. As he spoke, he smirked slightly and looked up at
Harry from under his eyelashes, the gesture so devilishly feminine that Harry
didn�t know whether to shiver or laugh.

�So...�

�So...�

�You hurt
Ron.�

�He
deserved it.�

�Hmm...�

The two
boys stared at one another for a while, and then Malfoy suddenly jumped up from
his seat and tugged Harry into a tight embrace. He dug his nose into Harry�s
hair, and whispered as he took a long whiff of the boy�s scent, �I�ve missed
you.�

Harry
gulped.

Malfoy ran
his middle finger down Harry�s covered spine, passing
through the center of his back, causing Harry�s sleeping wings to hum with want
for release. Malfoy pressed a kiss to his head, held him for a bit longer, and
as if satisfied with the brief contact, let go and took out something from his
pocket.

With a
simple �Engorgio�,
a bunch of miniscule rectangular blocks changed back into their original sizes
upon the ground. They were books, nearly twenty of them.

Harry
looked at the workload and groaned. �I have to read all of this?�

�No,�
Malfoy replied mischievously, �I could simply summarize the main points for
you. My room, starting tomorrow?�

Harry did
a double-take and shook his head. �I think it�s better if I actually read
these. But I still have questions for you.�

�Of course.�

�Do you
have any idea how I came to this lineage? My parents were normal humans.�

Malfoys
smirk turned into a full-blown grin. He reached out and took Harry�s hands into
his own, stroking the flesh with his thumbs. Harry let him, not seeing anything
wrong to allow the long-tortured Malfoy some leisure.

�I
actually just figured this out during breakfast. It�s simple, your family never
did have any Zephyr blood, and your parents didn�t give you your wings.�

Harry
gasped and his face turned into one of complete shock and horror. �Wait? What?
I�m adopted, is that what you�re saying? But that can�t be, everyone says my
dad and I...�

�No, no,
Potter,� Malfoy smiled, keeping in mind to not call Harry by his given name,
�that�s not what I mean at all. Well, I guess to explain this; I�ll have to
give you a synopsis of Zephyr nature and history.�

�We have
all night, Malfoy.�

�For
starters, you must realize that Zephyrs do not exist for any specific
altruistic purpose. Our tears don�t have healing powers, our hairs can�t be
made into wand cores, and our feathers are as useful as that of a chicken�s.
Frankly, the original Wind Riders couldn�t even use wand magic. We existed for
our community, for our clans, and for our Intended. It�s said that hundreds of
years ago, there used to be many more of us, but still rare by the standard of
magical creatures, and we lived in a very much enclosed community.

�Zephyrs
only mated those with Zephyr blood, so as a child, I�ve always wondered how the
Malfoys, who were originally pure-blood Zephyrs, came
to have wizarding blood if the first wizards didn�t
have Zephyr blood in them. That�s when I discovered an odd fact: For the first
few centuries of Zephyr existence, no matter how many Zephyrs were dying or
being born, the number of Zephyrs with wings existing at one time always
remained two hundred and fifty-six.�

�What
about the other Zephyr children?�

�They were
the equivalents of wizarding squibs. Once two hundred
and fifty-six Zephyrs were living and using their powers, no matter how many
children were born, they wouldn�t receive wings.�

�And what
does that mean?�

Malfoy
lowered his hands to rest on Harry�s knees, taking advantage of Harry�s
enraptured attention. �Equilibrium, Potter, that�s what. Two hundred and
fifty-six is a very magical number in Arithmancy and
Ancient Runes, as it connects the numbers four, eight, and sixteen. It directs
the four elements, and that of course includes air, in other words, wind power,
a Zephyr�s power.

�A lot of
things still didn�t make sense to me, so I read through these tomes and came up
with a hypothesis that seems to match up with my ancestors� records. After the
disturbance in the singular Zephyr community caused by the plague, our kind was
scattered throughout the world, and less and less evidences of living Zephyrs
were recorded. The wizarding world thought we had
died out, but that was not the case, Potter, because no matter how badly things
get, there will always be two hundred and fifty-six Zephyrs in existence.�

�Speed it
up, Malfoy.�

�Potter,�
Malfoy chided sultrily, �and here I thought we were going to spend the whole
night together.�

His jibe
successfully brought up a blush on Harry�s cheeks, half from anger and half
from embarrassment.

�Anyhow,
keeping up this equilibrium will always present some problems, especially in
present times when most of our kind are no longer born with wings and must call
their inheritances upon reaching sixteen.�

�Another magical number.�

�Exactly.
This is the more morbid part of collecting our inheritance that most of us
don�t ever think about. Because of this equilibrium, and because Zephyr powers
must be passed on, each time a sixteen-year-old calls forth his or her wings,
another old Zephyr somewhere in the world, must die.�

Harry�s
eyes widened, digesting Malfoy�s worlds, and shook
his head in frantic disbelief. �No, you�re lying. I won�t be held responsible
for another person�s death again. I didn�t call for these... wings, I didn�t
kill anyone!�

Malfoy
chided him with a silent glare, lifting a palm to cup Harry�s perspiring cheek.
�I might�ve caused some old fart�s death, but you didn�t. The one who gave you
your wings had already died.�

Green eyes
locked tight with silver, finding a trace of emerald around the iris. The
intense and familiar gaze started a chain reaction within Harry�s head. Draco, Narcissa, Malfoy, Bellatrix, Lestrange, Black, Black, Black...

�Sirius....�
It was no more than a whisper.

Malfoy
nodded. �When Black fell through the Veil in June, he was in fact still caught
between life and death, and thus he still had a grasp on his Zephyr blood. For
weeks, he held on to that power and kept the Zephyr species in equilibrium. When
you became sixteen, he sent out some of his powers to protect you, to shield
you, until you could be reborn with his power in you, until another suitable
Zephyr could come to his inheritance and be able to protect you, help you. I�m
guessing he finally and truly died when you woke up, when I got my wings. You
did wake up at 3:13 on
August 25, right? Severus told me but...�

Of
anything, he didn�t expect Harry to punch him. As frail as Harry currently
seemed, his punch delivered quite an impact. The physical bruise, however,
didn�t hurt Malfoy half as bad as the deep pang in his heart.

Now he
knew why Lucius would always fall into a slump whenever Narcissa
slapped him.

Harry�s
left arm swung back to get ready for another blow, but Malfoy snapped out and
grabbed Harry�s wrist. Lifting his bruise head and pride, Malfoy glared at his
rebellious mate and wondered if he and Potter could ever get along. At the
moment, his dislike for Harry�s stubbornness was threatening to outweigh his
Zephyr�s desire to be compliant to his mate.

�Damn it,
Potter, what did I say now?� he hissed.

�It�s all your fault, Malfoy!�

�What?!�

�If you
hadn�t called your stupid wings, I�d still be half-dead and Sirius wouldn�t be
completely gone. Dumbledore probably could�ve done something to save him from
behind the Veil.�

�For
Salazar�s sake, Harry, you can�t save someone who had fallen through the Veil,
you just can�t, and...�

�Don�t say
my name!�

�Fine, Potter! You know, instead of being so
stubborn about this, why can�t you consider the fact that your Godfather, the
one who gave his life to you, had his magic choose me, out of the other two
hundred and fifty Zephyrs in the world, to be the only one suitable to take
care of you?�

�Probably
because there weren�t that many to begin with, and you just happened to be
there!�

Harry had
blatantly opposed Malfoy�s claim and authority over
him, and the denial was like a sharp slap in the face. The ache within was
become harder to ignore, and Malfoy was torn between hexing Harry to oblivion and
throwing the boy down on some flat surface to show just who was the dominant
one. The second option actually wouldn�t work very well, because Harry could
easily dominate from the bottom. Malfoy was putty in his hands.

�Okay,
Potter,� Malfoy breathed deeply, �I�m not going to argue with you about this,
because frankly, I can�t help the fact that I was born on that day, nor could I
have persuaded Black to pick some other bloke.�

�Yeah,
that�s another thing I don�t understand. Why did Sirius pick a guy? He knew I�m
into girls.�

Malfoy
just glared.

�Whatever
you say, Potter. You know, I came here today in extremely high spirits because
I thought my theory could help erase some of your doubt and suspicions and make
you see that giving up your powers isn�t doable. And here you are, acting like
the thickhead Gryffindor you are, and this fucking pain in my chest is going to
make my fucking heart bleed until I die of fucking blood loss!�

Harry
gaped, his hero complex already running. Swallowing down his frustrations and
confusions, he forced himself to inch forward and placed a shaky hand over Malfoy�s chest.

�Does it
really hurt that much?� he asked softly, not meeting Malfoy�s
eyes.

Inhaling
deeply and forcing away the hatred that he held for Harry which was almost
second nature, Malfoy let his Zephyr tenderness take over and used the chance
to pull Harry taut against him.

�It�s getting
better.�

Harry
struggled within his arms, occasionally murmuring protests for Malfoy to let
him go. The blond just rolled his eyes and squeezed Harry�s flailing arms
against his body.

�Come now,
Potter, this can�t be that bad.�

�I like
girls, Malfoy.�

�Draco.�

�I�m not
calling you by your given name.�

�My heart
hurts, it wants you to say �Draco�,� Malfoy said flatly.

�Draco...�

�Good
boy.�

�Draco,
explain the stages of bonding to me again?�

�All right. First is eye contact. A Zephyr has really intense eye color, and upon
the first contact, our bodies will exchange bits of magic with each other,
making the dominant one experience more accurate instincts, itches that
actually vary with his emotions and desires. The submissive sends out an
allure, the most powerful of all magical pheromones, mainly targeted toward
her, sorry, his Intended, but
sometimes attracting the attention of unwanted suitors as well. The allure
comes and goes, and is strongest when the submissive is thinking about his
dominant. Once the two finish bonding, the submissive will cease sending out
this pheromone.

�Second is
an exchange of the mind. The two must be involved in some sort of physical
contact and must be thinking about the same thing at the same time, and then
they will exchange essences for a day, so that they could experience what it is
like to be in each other�s position. That�s why you can�t lie to me about your
feelings, Potter. When the second stage began for us, I know I was thinking how
we were going to mold into one entity, you had to be thinking of the same for
anything to have happened.�

Harry kept
his cheek glued to Malfoy�s chest and said nothing,
causing a triumphant smile to drape over Malfoy�s
countenance.

�And then
it�s bonding through intercourse.� Malfoy chuckled when he felt Harry�s shiver.
�I think that one is self-explanatory. Unlike elves, male Zephyrs can�t become
pregnant. We don�t need to in order to pass on our lineage due to the natural
balance of things.�

Harry was
standing very still in Malfoy�s arms, nothing moving
or even looking up. He stopped struggling long ago, and was even unconsciously
grabbing onto the side of Malfoy�s cloak.

�Did
Sirius have a mate?� he asked softly.

�Maybe, but most likely not. Even if nature did pick one out for him, the girl (or
boy) was probably living on the other side of the world and could be over a
hundred years old.�

�He lived
his life in despair then? That doesn�t sound like him.�

�Well...�

�What?�
Harry sensed the hesitancy in Malfoy�s voice and
finally lifted his head.

Malfoy
smirked. �Maybe your Godfather wasn�t a dominant Zephyr, then
he wouldn�t feel any despair.�

�That�s
not true, when you tried to hex me during Defense, I cr...�

Harry
blushed immediately and looked away again, letting his words linger on the edge
of his tongue, words that if said, would give Malfoy the ego boost of the
century.

�What? You
cried?� Malfoy asked, his voice trembling with an unknown emotion. When Harry
didn�t answer, Malfoy cupped his cheeks and brought their lips to a meet for
the first time in days. It was like finding oasis in the middle of the Sahara. Harry let him move as he wished, and responded
with mild hesitancy.

It was
nearly funny how Harry could never keep his promise to stay away from Malfoy and
his dangerous lips.

Harry�s
submission eased Malfoy�s previous anger a bit. He
could only wish that Harry was like all the time. The Gryffindor Golden Boy was
sometimes way too stubborn for his own good. Why did he have to be the strong
one all the time, always jumping out in his shining armor, waving his sword,
saving maidens and kittens and other things not worth his time? If Harry weren�t
so famous, then Draco would�ve accepted him a lot more easily.

After the brief
kiss, their conversation went back to Sirius.

�I didn�t
even know he was a Zephyr,� Harry remarked solemnly.

�He had
probably forgotten himself. I could count the number of times my parents had
actually used their powers on one hand. It�s too painful for them, and the
abilities, although useful, are nothing that can�t be achieved through other
means. Most mix-blood Zephyrs don�t think about it until their death. They say
it�s to keep up the family tradition. But others, like my grandfather, are
scared that one day their powers will be taken away from them forcefully and
they�ll die from it.�

�That�s a
shame. Although I really hate this predicament, flying without a broomstick was
really fun. Have you tried it?�

Malfoy
shook his head.

�Oh,
speaking of flying, I�m back on the Quidditch team.�
Harry�s face was so open that Malfoy couldn�t help but feel lighter inside. But
his joy at seeing a happy Harry didn�t ease the dread of having to face a very
strong opponent. �But McGonagall made me promise that I won�t use my powers
during matches. Did Snape give you the same warning?
If you cheat, I won�t hesitate to...�

�Don�t
worry; I can�t really control my powers. It�s easier for you because you took
the Zephyr essence from Black in its entirety, and since there wasn�t any
Zephyr blood in you to begin with, you became full-blood without that
interference. I�m only a half-blood, it takes a lot of
magic out of me to be able to control my abilities.�

�Oh.�
Harry sounded mildly disappointed. �Wait, does this mean that I�m more of a
pure-blood than you are?� His eyes were suddenly filled with mirth.

�Shut up,�
Malfoy mumbled and shoved Harry away.

The
Gryffindor Seekers laughed loudly and edged closer, mocking his Slytherin
counterpart all the while. �Aw, is wittle Draco
jealous?�

�Shut up,
Potter.� Malfoy turned around and began to shrink the books again three or four
at a time. �Curfew is approaching, you�re not a Prefect, Potter, I�ll have to escort you to your dormitory.�

Harry
shrugged, feeling loads better that he�s no longer completely in the dark, also
knowing that he finally had something to hold over Malfoy�s
head with. The next time he tried to call Hermione a mudblood, Harry would know exactly what to say.

As Malfoy
worked on shrinking the books, Harry sauntered over to look at Malfoy�s geranium. The gigantic flowers were already bright
red. Harry didn�t remember studying magical geranium last year and sought to
touch its petals.

In the
next instant, he heard Malfoy�s horrified scream
behind him, and saw the plant come to life within half a second, its enormous
petals snapping open to reveal visible black ridges that looked like rows of teeth.
The flower head snapped toward Harry, striking forward like a cobra. Its top
row of �teeth� grazed Harry�s left cheek, and then Malfoy tackled Harry from
behind and forced him onto the ground. Malfoy shielded Harry�s body with his
own and cast a fire charm which instantly burned the plant to a crisp.

The
plant�s attack left Harry stunned. His head was still in the clouds when he
realized that he could no longer swallow saliva. Within the next few seconds,
his legs lost their sensations as well. Harry felt his body being turned around
by Malfoy, and a pair of harsh and desperate lips quickly descended upon his
own.

Malfoy�s
kiss muffled his words, syllables of frustrations and anger. His tongue
breached Harry�s weak defense and probed the insides of his crevice. Harry
responded as much as he could, and felt his legs slowly coming back to life.

Fingers
found their way toward Harry�s waist, and then lower to the fly of his
trousers. Malfoy�s hand was cold as he breached the
flap of Harry�s boxers, his mouth smothered Harry�s surprised exclamation,
cries of protests which were turning into moans as Malfoy worked diligently on
the task at hand, or rather, in hand.

With the
attack of his mouth and skilled fingers, Malfoy quickly brought Harry into
completion. As Harry�s hardness died down and his body stopped quivering, he quickly
pushed Malfoy away from him and tried to compose himself into some semblance of
dignity. But with his soiled pants, flushed lips, and jelly-like legs,
composure wasn�t really working.

�Potter...�

�Get away!
Who gave you permission to do that anyway?!�

�Potter...�

�I don�t
want to see you or hear you ever again! Go away!�

�Listen to
me, Potter, a magical geranium�s bite is very poisonous. Without a proper
inoculation, it causes immediate body paralysis and eventual death.�

�Oh, so
you thought you could take advantage of me before I die, is that it?�

�No! You�ll
understand after you read those books. Any sort of magical influences in or on
a Zephyr�s body will be eliminated after a particularly intense physical
intimacy. The cuts on your face, however,� he said as he stroked Harry�s bloody
cheek, �I can�t do anything about.�

Harry
seemed to believe him a little. Malfoy, seeing how edgy Harry still was,
shuffled closer and quickly cast a cleaning spell on Harry�s trousers, erasing
the evidence of Harry�s source of embarrassment.

They sat
like that on the ground in silence, face to face. Finally, Harry, after
successfully and discretely zipping up his fly, gestured toward the remains of
the geranium. �I�m sorry about your plant.�

Malfoy
eyed the ashes and growled. �It hurt you, I couldn�t possibly let it live a
minute longer.�

Harry
nodded, staring at the dark patches and went into a state of silent
contemplation.

�Malfoy...�

�Draco.�

�Draco... why are you such a duality?�

�I don�t
know what you mean.�

�Well,
when I was walking around with your personality, I was big-headed, egocentric,
manipulative, a scheming bastard, and on top of all that, cowardly as hell. But
just now, you weren�t afraid at all; you dived after me and shielded me, but
then...� he continued with red cheeks, �but then you didn�t throw it in my face. I don�t get it.�

Malfoy
raised a well-defined eyebrow and shook his head in exasperation. �You were
walking around with my basic essence, the personality that I was born with, the
personality of a Malfoy and a Slytherin. People do grow and change, you know.
And I was like that when I was younger, and have only gotten a little better.
Just like when I was with your essence, I felt so meek and passive. I let
things happen to me, felt guilty about every little thing I did. But that�s not
exactly the Harry Potter I know. The current you is
still passive about a lot of things, but you also have the guts to stand up for
yourself, and when you�re provoked, you could easily be angered.�

Harry
buried his face in his hands and shook his head. �I�m not brave at all. I...
Draco, I can�t say no to you. I don�t understand why, but I just can�t say no
to you.�

�Maybe
it�s a sign that you weren�t meant to deny me. I�ve tried that path myself,
didn�t really work.�

The
silence which followed was absolutely deafening.

The
moonlighted seeped through the ivy vines overhead, casting a glow on Malfoy,
contrasting the now plain-looking Harry. Emerald eyes stared at his fellow
schoolmate over folded arms, blinking owlishly. Draco stared back calmly,
waited patiently.

�Draco?�

�Hmm?�

�I... Would
it be terrible to say that I want to kiss you right now?�

Draco
smiled and inched closer from his spot, leaned in toward Harry and whispered,
�See? Told you you were brave.�

Harry
nodded and arched his neck. Draco didn�t make him wait, just swooped down and
gave him a sweet peck that lingered far too long. Harry made the next move,
puckering his lips against Draco�s thin ones, smoothing them over the delicate
redness. He opened his mouth and let his tongue venture out, joining Draco�s in
a surprise meeting halfway. Draco seemed to realize his need for some dominance
and snaked his own tongue back in, letting Harry explore him this time. Harry
touched him from within, thin arms wound around Draco�s neck, pulling the two
chest to chest. The kiss was slow and soft, like a first encounter into the
unknown. Draco�s patience was being tested, but he willingly allowed Harry the
pace that he preferred, knowing that it was the only way things would ever work
between them; especially after all they�ve talked about tonight.

Harry
finally pulled apart. He gathered up the tiny books that Draco shrunk and put
them into his pocket.

�Can I ask
for something, Draco?�

�Anything...
Harry.�

�Can you
not seek me out until I�ve read all of these?� Harry�s eyes were pleading.
Malfoy was absolutely horrified.

�Harry...
there are eighteen texts here.�

�I know...
I just...� Harry sighed. �I like girls, Malfoy.�

�Harry...�

�I mean, I
thought I liked girls, Draco.�

�Can you
like me too?�

�I�ll need
time.�

�It�s not
impossible then?�

�I guess
not....�

Malfoy
lifted Harry�s chin with a finger. �But you better be a fast reader, Harry. I
can�t keep myself away from you forever.�

�Okay.�
Harry�s expression wavered for a second. He then voluntarily gave Draco a soft
peck on the lips and disappeared out of sight.

------------------------------

�Any progress, Draco?� Narcissa�s floating head asked
with worry. Draco was sitting in front of the fireplace with a sweater, not a
good sign.

The blond
Slytherin sighed. �I guess he�s coming through. But he�s so stubborn. If I
could swallow my hatred for him, you�d think he could too. He said that he
doesn�t want me to approach him until he finished reading all eighteen of the
books I gave him. I don�t think I can wait that long, mum.�

Narcissa
smiled a mysterious grin. �Well, when he does come around, bring him over to
the Manor, would you?�

�Mum?�

�Oh, your
father�s calling. Have fun at school, Draco.�

�Mum!�

With a �woosh�, the green fire was gone.

- TBC
- 9
- 10
- 11
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