Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Contract Under Love	By : CelticKitsune Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 32702 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 9
Disclaimer: I do not own, or make any money from Harry Potter or anything related to it.

Chapter List
- 5
- 6
- 7
I LIVE! And so does this fanfic! I am so so SO sorry this has taken far longer to update than I ever intended! So thank you everyone who has waited patiently for this, and sorry again for everyone who may have given up hope of this story being updated. It may take me time between updates, but please believe me when I say that I don't ever plan on abandoning a story, and if I do, I will be announcing it, instead of just leaving it sitting there. So I won't waste time babbling about things now, and let you all get on with the story! Please read my authors notes at the bottom as well as I have made an announcement about one of my fics.

Contract Under Love

Chapter 6

Harry wasn't too happy with how the last few days of vacation seemed to just fly by and he had found himself on the Hogwarts Express far too soon for his liking. They had got there in good time and so he and Draco had already found a compartment and Harry was now sat quietly, staring out of the window, watching the other students bustle around on the platform, hurrying to get themselves onto the train before the rapidly approaching eleven o’clock.

He still didn't want to go back to school and had voiced this complaint to not only Ron and Hermione, but to Draco as well. His two best friends had told him more than once that things were going to be fine and, while he knew they were both right and hearing them tell him he was over reacting should have calmed him at least a little, he hadn't fully relaxed until Draco had told him the exact same thing. It was strange, to say the least, and more than a little confusing. Harry had no idea why he felt more comfortable and at ease with Draco lately, but when the blond teen told him things would be okay, Harry couldn't help but believe him.

Harry was fairly sure he didn't really like Draco much more than he had done a year ago, but there was undeniably something different about the blond, and Harry found himself being drawn to it. Over the last few weeks Harry had been discovering new and surprising things about his fiancé, and the only thing that Harry could conclude was that the war had changed Draco far more than he had originally thought.

"You're thinking again," Draco said as he sat down in the empty seat across from Harry. He watched Harry curiously when the other teen didn't turn his attention away from the window right away. Draco could see the small smile forming on Harry’s face and knew that he had heard him and wasn't actually ignoring him, even if the smaller teen didn't look at him right away.

"Am I not allowed to think anymore?" Harry asked, turning to give Draco a questioning look.

"You are allowed to think, but past observations show that that usually leads you into trouble," Draco replied smoothly and Harry laughed.

"Can't argue with that," Harry agreed, still looking amused. "But this thinking won’t get me in trouble," Harry said with a grin before adding, "not just yet, anyway."

Draco gave Harry a skeptical look, trying to judge for himself if Harry's thinking was in fact going to get him in trouble or not, but eventually decided that it didn't truly matter since this was Harry Potter, and trouble always found him either way. "At least I have fair warning. Maybe I will be able to head off any trouble before it starts," Draco remarked casually. Harry laughed again, shaking his head before looking back out the window and the blond couldn’t help but smile. They both fell silent for a few moments before Draco felt the need to speak to Harry again.

"I hope it's not Dumbledore you're so worried about,” Draco said, waiting to see if Harry was going to say anything before he continued. “My father and the other school governors have made special arrangements for everyone returning for an eighth year; we are all considered adults, there really isn't anything else that he can do," Draco said, though wasn't sure if this really reassured the smaller teen or if it just caused him to worry even more.

"Any idea what's going to happen?" Harry asked but didn't look back at Draco. “I mean about what the governors have decided,” he clarified, voicing one of his other concerns. Lucius had mentioned, at dinner the previous evening, that there were going to be changes to Hogwarts, mostly concerning the people attending for an eighth year, but he hadn't gone into detail about what exactly those changes were.

"Sadly I can only give a few guesses based on what my father might have been thinking. But as this will be affecting me and other Slytherins, I doubt it's anything bad," Draco told him calmly.

Harry snorted in amusement looking back at Draco for a moment. "So what is good for you and other Slytherins will be good for everyone?” Harry questioned. “If I had had any of this information before now, I might have changed my mind about returning to school.”

Draco smirked at his fiancé. "I suspect that is why my father waited until last night to tell us anything. To make sure you didn't change your mind at the last minute,” Draco said.

“I really wouldn't have changed my mind," Harry admitted almost reluctantly. "Between the two obvious choices I had of remaining at Malfoy Manor with your father, or returning to Hogwarts and dealing with Dumbledore, I think I will have an easier time avoiding the Headmaster than your father," Harry said with a small sigh. “Do you really think that is why Lucius kept the information about Hogwarts a secret? Why he waited until the last minute to tell us that things were changing at Hogwarts?”

“I am not my father, and contrary to popular belief, I am less like him than people seem to think,” Draco pointed out. “But yes, I believe so; I can only guess, but it is likely that my father didn't want you to have the time to change your mind, and so waited to tell us.” Draco said, though he couldn't help but think that there might be a little more to it; however, as he said, he wasn't his father, and could only make guesses as to what the man was thinking.

"All he told us was that things were going to be different for the eighth years, and that much I had worked out on my own," Harry said as he turned his attention once again back out the window, letting his mind wander. He hated feeling like people were keeping secrets from him, but considering that this time the person keeping secrets was Lucius Malfoy, Harry was less upset than he normally would be. But it did make him wonder if there was more going on at Hogwarts than what they had been told. The only thing he could hope for was that he wouldn't regret his decision to return to school.

Harry caught a flash of red hair in the crowd out on the platform and couldn't help but smile as his eyes landed on the familiar red-headed family. Though there were only a few of them, as it was only Ron and Ginny going to school now, it was still easy for Harry to pick them out of a crowd.

Draco turned his attention to where Harry was looking when he saw the smaller teen smiling and let out a sigh. "I think that is my queue to go find my friends." Draco stood up and smiled at Harry.

"You don't have to go." Harry frowned; he wasn't disappointed that Draco was leaving, at least that is what Harry tried telling himself, but he was confused as to why the sight of the Weasley family was making Draco leave. Both Ron and Draco had managed to get along the few times they had seen each other, and even Draco and Hermione had managed to have quite a few conversations about school and what subjects they were taking. Harry knew better than to call them all friends, but Harry had begun to think that perhaps they could be.

"I will be seeing plenty of them during this school year I think," Draco said, just as the compartment door opened. The blond turned his attention to the person in the doorway, frowning when he saw it was the youngest Weasley.

Ginny ignored Draco, her full attention on Harry. "Can we talk?" she asked and Harry frowned in confusion; the last he knew Ginny was still angry at him.

"I guess so?" Harry shrugged.

"I will be near the front of the train if you want to find me, Harry," Draco said and he moved to push past Ginny, pausing when the red-headed girl gave him a cold look, one that Draco returned happily.

Harry waited until Draco had left the compartment, pushing down that strange feeling of disappointment at seeing Draco leave, before turning his full attention to Ginny. "What did you want to talk about?" Harry asked, though he had a fairly good idea already.

"I..." Ginny started, now looking a bit nervous. It reminded Harry a lot of his second year at Hogwarts when Ginny never spoke to him, and would run from whatever room he was in at any opportunity. "I wanted to apologize," Ginny said firmly, though Harry could still easily see the nervousness.

"You don't have to apologise, Ginny," Harry said; he really didn't think she had done anything so horrible, but she shook her head.

"Yes I do,” Ginny insisted. “I'm still not happy about any of this, I really thought that we could have made it work. But I was acting childish about it." Ginny sighed and Harry couldn't help but give her a small smile.

"I'm not too happy about this either, though things are going better than I ever thought they could. Draco's not that bad." Harry laughed at the skeptical look Ginny gave him. "Alright, he's not as bad as he was before the war."

Ginny sighed and nodded. "Ron told me; he also said that you and Malfoy were getting along really well."

"We are," Harry confirmed. "I wouldn't call us friends, but I think we could get there. And I think given time, maybe even the marriage between us could work." Harry said and Ginny just nodded again.

"It's a little strange,” Ginny said, “I was really upset about it. I thought if I had just given you time, we could be together again. But even when we dated before, you always seemed distant. I thought it was because of Voldemort, but that wasn't right, was it?"

Harry smiled sadly at Ginny and shook his head. "I don't think so. I really did like you, Ginny, you were always fun to be around. But..."

"You don't have to explain it." Ginny smiled sadly. "I just, I wanted to say sorry for being so childish before, and... we can still be friends if you want."

"I think I would like that," Harry said happily. He had been worried that Ginny would have stayed mad a lot longer than this; she did have quite a temper at times. "And, for what it's worth, I am sorry we didn't even get the chance to try and make things work."

Ginny smiled at him and just nodded. "I need to go find my friends. I'll see you later?"

"Of course." Harry watched her leave, sighing as he was left alone again. The train jerked slightly before it started moving and Harry watched as they pulled out of the station.

--------------x

The train ride was quieter then Harry ever remembered it being. Even though a few other students came by his compartment, most of them were just wanting to find out if it was true that Harry Potter was really going to marry Draco Malfoy. However, there were a few that stopped by just to talk with Harry, Neville and Luna, and some others that had been in the DA; he was mostly left alone though. It was during one of these moments of silence that Harry closed his eyes, only meaning to rest for a moment.

Harry wasn't sure when he had actually fallen asleep, as he hadn't really meant to in the first place, but a gentle hand on his shoulder had him snapping awake quickly, his hand automatically reaching for his wand, only to have someone grab his hand and stop him.

"We've really got to work on that reflex of yours," Draco said in amusement.

Harry blinked at the blond boy in front of him, sighing as he relaxed back against his seat again. "It's a good reflex to have, there are still Death Eaters loose out there after all," Harry pointed out. Draco didn't reply to that; it was true, not all of the Death Eaters had been caught, but Draco thought that they would be extremely stupid if they tried attacking the Hogwarts train, when most of the kids on the train had fought in the war, and knew how to defend themselves fairly well by now.

"We're almost there, I thought you might want to get dressed," Draco said, sitting down in the seat across from Harry.

Sighing again, Harry stood up and pulled out his robes before turning to look at Draco. Harry frowned when he saw the blond boy watching him.

"Do you mind?" Harry raised an eyebrow at Draco; the other boy just smirked back at him.

"No," Draco said and he was satisfied to see a blush color Harry's cheeks before the smaller boy turned around so that his back was facing Draco now.

"Could you get out while I change?" Harry requested.

"Why?" Draco raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you embarrassed?" Harry didn't reply, but that was enough of an answer for Draco. "Would it make you feel better if I closed my eyes?" he offered.

"No, that wouldn't help," Harry huffed, grabbing all his clothes and opening the door to the compartment. "I'll just go change in the bathroom," Harry said, not even looking back at Draco as he left.

Draco still found it rather amusing that it was so easy to get Harry to blush. It had become something of a game for Draco, to try and see how far he could push Harry before the smaller boy would either get angry, or run away, sometimes both. Though there was the rare occasion where Harry would get too flustered to even say anything, and that was what Draco found most amusing. Leaning back in his seat, Draco enjoyed the last few moments of quiet before the train would pull into the platform.

----------------x

Harry did not return to the compartment after changing, instead going in search of Ron and Hermione given that he had not seen them once since boarding the train. Though Harry assumed that was mostly his fault for falling asleep for over half the train ride.

He found his best friends easily enough. Sliding into the compartment they were seated in, he sat down with a long sigh and closed his eyes without saying a word.

“Hey, Harry,” Ron greeted, giving his friend a questioning look. “What's wrong, mate? Trouble in paradise?” he asked and Harry opened his eyes long enough to shoot a glare at Ron before closing his eyes again.

Hermione sighed and closed the book that she had been reading. “What did Malfoy do?” she asked. “Or is it just the fact that you're going back to school?”

“No one did anything,” Harry said, running a hand through his hair before looking at Hermione. “I'm just trying to wrap my mind around everything that's been going on recently,” he admitted. “And being forced to return to school isn't helping me much.”

“Going back to Hogwarts isn't really all that bad, is it?” Hermione questioned and Harry let out another sigh, shaking his head.

“No, it's really not, I just hate that I was once again backed into a corner. I'm still not all that happy with Dumbledore and he's going to be inviting me up to his office for tea or something throughout the whole year, I just know it,” Harry grumbled.

“Just tell him no,” Ron said with a shrug.

“If telling him 'no' is so easy, then you do it,” Harry said, with a half-smile toward Ron when he saw the other boy's face turn red. “Yeah, that's what I thought.” Harry looked out the window of the compartment.

“Maybe you should talk to Dumbledore though,” Hermione said, ignoring the look that Harry gave her. “I'm serious, he must have a reason for forcing you into this marriage with Malfoy. You could ask him what that reason is,” Hermione pointed out and Harry frowned but nodded.

“And then I'll get some form of riddle answer and spend half the year trying to figure out what the old coot was talking about.” Harry shook his head. “I do want to ask him either way, I just... I really don't want to talk to him, Hermione. Things with me and Draco, they're working out better than either of expected to be honest, and I think in the long run it may actually work between the two of us, but I can't shake this feeling that me being happily married to Draco wasn't exactly what Dumbledore had in mind,” Harry admitted and even Hermione had to nod her agreement to that.

“Well, what's a year at Hogwarts without some kind of mystery that will land us in a situation that will probably get us killed?” she said with a smile.

“The mystery part I don't mind, it's the almost getting killed part I think we can skip this year,” Harry said, something that both Ron and Hermione easily agreed with. They fell into easy conversation after that until the train slowed down as it pulled into the station.

“Well, I suppose this is it,” Harry said with a sigh, standing up and making his way out of the compartment. Ron and Hermione followed him out onto the platform, ready to follow the flow of other students to the carriages. Over the noise of other children, Harry could hear Hagrid calling for all the first years, the half-giant easily being heard over the excited talk.

“Blimey, were we ever that small?” Ron asked as he saw the nervous first years start to crowd around Hagrid. “I mean, I can believe that you were that small, Harry,” Ron said teasingly and Harry rolled his eyes.

“Eighth year students, all Eighth year students this way!” Another voice was heard over the crowd of other children and Harry blinked turning his attention to where Professor Slughorn was standing, his wand pointed towards his throat making his voice a bit louder so that he too could be heard over the excited chattering of the students.

“Guess we go this way,” Ron said with a shrug and started making his way through the crowd. Harry sighed and followed after his friend, Hermione following behind them as well. There was already a small group of other students around the potions professor and Harry's eyes immediately found Draco, the platinum blond hair easy to spot. Grey eyes locked with his for a moment and Draco smirked but Harry looked away, instead looking to see who else had returned to complete their Hogwarts education.

“There's only fourteen of us?” Harry asked after counting the other students that were standing around.

“Not a lot of students wanted to come back after what happened last year. Even some of the younger years didn't return,” Hermione said.

Harry nodded. He couldn't really blame them, he had had his own reasons for not wanting to return, and after the battle, Harry was sure that it would have been difficult for a lot of students to come back to what had been a war zone only a few months ago, particularly for those who had lost friends or family.

“Alright then, let's make our way up to the castle, shall we?” Slughorn's voice called over the students before leading the way over to two separate carriages that were a lot larger than the normal ones taking all the other students.

Harry remained back, watching as everyone else started climbing in, his eyes drifting to the front of the carriage to stare at the creatures there. “Harry?” Whipping his head around, Harry stared at Draco, who had come to stand next to him. “Are we getting in? Or did you fancy a walk up to the castle?” the blond asked with a small smile. Harry rolled his eyes but climbed into the carriage without saying anything.

"So is he in a constant state of irritation and anger?" Blaise asked, as he came to stand next to Draco.

"No, but his bad mood today is more excusable," Draco informed his friend, who gave him a curious look. "Just leave him alone, Blaise," Draco said and got into the carriage, closing the door behind him before Blaise could follow him.

"That was rude," Harry said but looked a little amused as he glanced out the window and saw Blaise stomping off to the other carriage before that door could be closed in his face as well.

"I thought you would enjoy a few more moments without Blaise poking at your already fragile temper," Draco said with a smirk.

"But I see that doesn't stop you from poking at it," Harry huffed.

"Well of course, school wouldn't be the same if I couldn't get a rise out of you one way or another," Draco said and was once again rewarded with a small blush coloring Harry's cheeks as the black-haired teen fixed his gaze out the window. Because of this, Harry missed the looks he was getting from not only Ron and Hermione, but Neville as well.

No one spoke for the rest of the ride up to the school, and when the carriage finally stopped, Harry could see Slughorn getting out of the first carriage and having the students follow him to wait at the bottom of the stairs.

"Wonder why Slughorn didn't just let us ride up here on our own," Ron said. "I mean, it's not like we don't know where we're going by now," Ron pointed out as he climbed out after Hermione, Neville following them silently. Harry, however, hung back; he wasn't exactly eager to start his final year.

"Think this has anything to do with those changes your father mentioned last night?" Harry asked.

"Quite possibly." Draco nodded. "Now, come on, you can't stay in here for the whole year," Draco said, motioning for Harry to get out first.

"I could try," Harry replied stubbornly, but he moved to climb out of the carriage anyway. He heard Draco sigh behind him before the blond teen followed him out.

"I promise, it isn't going to be as bad as you seem to think it will be," Draco said reassuringly, putting a hand on Harry's shoulder only to have the smaller teen shrug it off.

"I know that. You, Ron and Hermione have been telling me that for over a week now, I get it, I'm over-reacting and should just stop stressing about it all," Harry snapped, glaring at Draco. "It's really not that easy, Draco. Every time I've let my guard down, something else happens that reminds me there are very few people I can trust." Harry sighed, taking deep breath to calm himself down, reminding himself that none of this was Draco's fault, and that it wasn't fair for him to take things out on the other teen.

“You can trust me,” Draco reminded him and Harry nodded slowly.

“I know,” Harry said, giving the blond a small smile before turning his attention toward Slughorn, who was calling for their attention.

“Alright, everyone here?” Slughorn questioned, looking over the small group of teenagers he had in front of him before nodding to himself. “Good, now if you would all follow me, you will not be joining your classmates in the Great Hall tonight, instead a private dinner has been arranged for you all so that your schedule's for the upcoming school year can be discussed,” Slughorn informed them all before he turned to lead them up the stairs into the castle.

“No welcoming feast?” Ron asked, looking a little put out about the fact that he had no idea how long he was going to have to wait before he was going to be allowed to eat.

“It makes sense that they would want to discuss our schedule's with us before classes start, we are all over seventeen by now,” Hermione said, sounding excited about what kind of schedule had been arranged for them.

“So? What does that have to do with anything?” Ron asked.

“Sometimes I have to wonder how it is you made it all the way through school,” Blaise said as he moved closer to walk with their group. “Even someone as dim as you should be able to realise that not all of us have the time to devote to school, as most of us have taken up an internship,” Blaise pointed out, grinning when Ron turned to glare at him.

“Shove off, Zabini,” Harry snapped before Ron could say anything and Blaise turned his attention toward Harry for a moment.

“Go away, Blaise,” Draco said, cutting off anything his tan friend had been about to say.

“I just thought it was something that should be fairly obvious. I mean, after all, doesn't the Weasley's girlfriend have an internship at the Ministry now as well?” Blaise questioned, looking back toward Ron.

“I'm warning you, Zabini,” Harry snapped and Blaise held his hands up defensively.

“I'm not trying to start anything Potter, just trying to help enlighten your friend here,” Blaise said but Harry continued to glare at him. Letting out a sigh, the tan teen shook his head and fell silent as they continued to follow Slughorn into the Great Hall, where all the other students were slowly taking their seats. Their small group of fourteen, however, was lead through the Great Hall and into the room located behind it.

Upon entering the room that Harry remembered back from his fourth year. The first thing he noticed was the amount of people in there; Harry could only assume that these official looking people were in fact the school governors. Harry would have been content to just ignore them, but his attention landed on Lucius almost immediately. “Draco,” Harry said, gaining his blond fiancé’s attention. “Why is your father talking to Dumbledore?” Harry asked, even though he was sure that Draco wouldn't have the answer to that.

“I'm not sure,” Draco frowned, looking in the direction that Harry was. “I doubt its anything we have to worry about though.” Draco looked back at Harry, who frowned at him.

“How can you be so sure?” Harry asked.

“Because there is nothing more my father can gain from making another deal with the Headmaster,” Draco pointed out and Harry just looked annoyed with the answer.

“But, if you're so worried about it, why don't we go over and find out for ourselves what they are talking about,” Draco suggested, half expecting Harry to just let it go, since the smaller teen had made it very clear that he wanted nothing to do with Dumbledore.

“Fine, let's do that then,” Harry said and had started walking in the direction of the adults before Draco could say anything else.

“And here I was half expecting this year to be boring,” Blaise said as he too watched Harry storm off in the direction of Lucius and Dumbledore. “Are you going to let him do this by himself?” Blaise asked, looking at Draco, who shook his head moving forward quickly and grabbing Harry's arm before he could reach Dumbledore and Lucius.

“Will you calm down?” Draco hissed and Harry glared at him, but whatever Harry was going to say was soon forgotten as both he and Draco had been noticed by Dumbledore.

“Harry, my boy,” Dumbledore greeted cheerfully. Harry turned his glare toward Dumbledore, his annoyance with Draco forgotten completely as his mind was flooded with anger for the Headmaster.

Dumbledore reached out to put a hand on Harry's shoulder, only to have his hand smacked away. “Don't touch me,” Harry snapped. “You have no right to talk to me,”

“My boy, are you still upset about what happened at the ministry?” Dumbledore questioned, looking surprised. “I knew that you would be a little upset…”

“I assure you, I am more than 'a little' upset, Headmaster,” Harry growled, ignoring the fact that almost everyone in the room was now staring at them.

“Perhaps you and I can talk about this then, over tea and lemon cakes,” Dumbledore suggested.

"I believe Harry will be far too busy planning our wedding for next summer," Draco cut in before Harry could reply.

Harry shot a glare toward Draco, slightly irritated with the blond teen for cutting in. He turned his attention back Dumbledore and blinked at the surprised look that the headmaster was giving Draco.

"I see, well, perhaps I could be of some assistance with the planning," Dumbledore offered and Harry's frown deepened, that was definitely the last thing that Harry wanted.

"No," Harry said sharply, not waiting for Dumbledore to speak again Harry turned and quickly found Ron and Hermione, taking a seat in between his two friends. Draco watched him before turning back to Dumbledore, finding the look of surprise on the old man's face rather amusing, he glanced behind the Headmaster toward his father only to find the blond man looking at him with narrowed eyes. Letting out a small sigh Draco looked once more at Dumbledore.

"Harry has been a bit stressed recently," Draco explained; he knew that Harry would much rather cut ties with the Headmaster entirely, and while Draco supported that decision and would have left it alone, he also knew it wasn't smart to start out the school year like this.

Dumbledore smiled at Draco, his blue eyes twinkling in that annoying way that more than a few people hated. "Of course. Perhaps I will try talking to him later then," Dumbledore said with a small nod.

"I truly do not know when Harry will have the time; between the planning, and school, his schedule is already very full, but we will get back to you," Draco said and turned to go take his own seat next to Theodore and Blaise. The tan teen was looking at him with an amused smirk.

"That could have been worse," Blaise chuckled.

"Looks like you're going to have your hands full keeping Potter's temper under control," Theodore added and Draco rolled his eyes at his two friends.

"I do not control Harry, but you are correct that I will be rather busy with him if he can't hold his tongue," Draco sighed and looked over to where Harry was sitting, the smaller teen was talking quietly with Hermione, and looked to be calmer than he had been a few moments before. Draco made a mental note to find out how Hermione had calmed Harry down so quickly, because while Draco knew some of the fastest ways to get Harry's temper rising, he had very little practice with calming the other teen down.

Slowly others in the room started taking their seats, and once everyone was settled Dumbledore called for their attention.

"Firstly I would like to welcome you all back to Hogwarts, I am sure this coming year is going to be an adventure for all of us,” Dumbledore said, his blue eyes twinkling. “As most of you have already guessed, or even been told, things for you are going to be quite different this year as we have arranged all your class schedule's differently for those of you who have already taken an apprenticeship,” Dumbledore said, pausing for a moment as he looked over the fourteen students.

“What if we don't have an apprenticeship?” Ron asked, looking curiously at the Headmaster, who smiled at him.

“Then your schedule will remain the same as most of the seventh years. Those of you who have an apprenticeship will be asked to remain here after supper so that someone may discuss your schedule with you, while everyone else will be shown to their new rooms,” Dumbledore said, earning a few more curious looks, and after several moments of silence it became clear that the Headmaster was not going expand on that comment until someone asked about it.

“What new rooms?” one of the Ravenclaws finally asked.

“Ah yes, because of a few special circumstances it has been decided that each eighth year student will be getting his or her own room, with an exception or two of course,” Dumbledore said glancing in Harry's direction.

Harry narrowed his eyes at Dumbledore and looked away from those twinkling blue eyes. The Headmaster couldn't have made it any more obvious to everyone that he was going to be one of the 'exceptions', and Harry wasn't looking forward to finding out what that exception was, unless it meant he could stay in Gryffindor tower, but he doubted that that was what the Headmaster had in mind.

“I think the two most important topics have been covered now and I imagine you are all rather hungry, so I shall let you all enjoy your meal and we will discuss further details after we have all finished,” Dumbledore said moving to take his own seat.

"With all due respect, Headmaster, I believe the other governors and I have the rest of this covered, as I am sure you have other things to do than sit here with us," Lucius said, ignoring the fact that most everyone at the table was now staring at either him or Dumbledore.

“You are quite right,” Dumbledore agreed. “Though I also have a responsibility to these students as well,” Dumbledore said, smiling at Lucius.

“Need I remind you that, while you are Headmaster of this school, you have very little say in the matter of these fourteen students,” Lucius said, his tone also polite but his words had caught the attention of every student at the table. Harry in particular looked rather surprised by this news, and while he wasn't going to be the one to speak up and ask questions, he was very curious about what Lucius actually meant by what he said.

“There are three hundred other students in the Great Hall that you can give your attention to, and we will worry about these fourteen,” Lucius said, and Harry could easily tell that the blond man had just dismissed Dumbledore, and though Harry tried not to smile too much at that, he truly couldn't help it.

“Very well,” Dumbledore said after glancing around the table at the other Governors, none of whom were standing up and taking his side. “If you are sure you have everything in hand, I will return to my own dinner,” Dumbledore said, making it sound like it had been his idea to go back to the Great Hall.

“I suppose that means you really won't have to worry about Dumbledore this year, Harry,” Ron said in a hushed whisper to his best friend. Harry nodded his head in agreement, but he got the feeling that it wasn't going to be that simple. Harry looked at the table when the food appeared; he began filling his plate with his favorite foods, though was finding that he wasn't truly that hungry. Harry's mind was to occupied with what Lucius had said; while he was happy about the fact that Dumbledore wasn't the one in charge of the eighth years, Harry had to wonder if Lucius, or one of the other governors was really going to be all that much better.

Harry picked at his food slowly as conversations started up around him. He was still lost in his own thoughts when someone elbowed him in the side. Blinking up, he glanced at Hermione who nodded toward Draco; apparently the blond teen had been trying to get his attention for quite some time now.

“Why aren't you eating?” Draco questioned and Harry blinked at him before looking down at his plate, before glancing around at others around him. Everyone was nearly finished with their own meal, while his plate was still half full of food that he had hardly touched.

“I am eating,” Harry said back to Draco before taking a bite of his food to actually show his fiancé that he was eating, just at a much slower pace than everyone else. He ignored the looks that he was getting from others around the table. Being stared at while at school was something that Harry had grown accustomed to through the years and, while he still didn't like it, he had at least learned to ignore it.

Draco continued to watch Harry for a few more moments, until he was satisfied that the smaller teen was actually eating now, before he returned his attention back to his own food. Draco wasn't willing to let Harry get away with not eating, just because they were back in school now. He made a mental note to keep an eye on his fiancé’s eating habits, and make sure that he at least ate dinner every day as he had insisted Harry do back at the manor.

"If everyone has finished, then I think it is time to go over your school schedules," one of the Governors said. "For those of you who do not have an apprenticeship, your head of house will be out in the Great Hall waiting to show you to your rooms," they continued. Harry glanced over at Ron when the redhead stood up; glancing around the room Harry frowned when he didn't see anyone else standing up. Sighing, he pushed his chair out and joined Ron as the two of them left the room.

"Are we really the only two who haven't found a job?" Harry asked once the door had closed behind them.

"I think we're the only two who are going to be Aurors, that even came back; I'm fairly sure that everyone else went straight into training at the ministry," Ron replied with a shrug of his shoulder

"I would have done that too, but I'm not sure I even want to be an Auror anymore," Harry admitted. "I really only chose that as an option because I couldn't think of anything else that I wanted to do at the time, and given the fact that Voldemort was still trying to kill me, it seemed like the most logical option," Harry said.

Ron looked at his friend for a moment before nodding his head. "I guess I can understand that. What else would you want to do though?"

"I really don't know, Ron, I'm still better suited for being an Auror, I've practically been training to be one since my first year here, but it feels like that is just something else that everyone else had planned for me," Harry admitted with a small sigh and shaking his head.

"Maybe you can talk to Hermione? She's done all the research there is, and knows the basics about a lot of jobs; she might have a few ideas for you," Ron suggested and Harry couldn't help but smile.

"Maybe I'll do that. Though it sounds like she and all the others are going to be extremely busy this year, between school and their jobs," Harry said wearily as he and Ron came out of the hallway into the Great Hall. They could see the other students just filing out heading to their common rooms, and over off to the side Harry saw McGonagall talking with Dumbledore before she spotted both Ron and Harry. She made her way over to them after excusing herself from the conversation she had been having with the Headmaster.

"Are you two ready to see your new rooms?" she asked.

"We are, Professor, but I'm curious, why can't we just stay in Gryffindor tower?" Ron asked.

"It was decided by the Governors that it would be better for you all to have your own rooms, as most of you have an apprenticeship, and it was Dumbledore's idea that even those who don't have an apprenticeship should also have the chance to have their own rooms. Unless, Mr. Weasley, you would like to stay in an over-crowded room with five other boys?" McGonagall asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

Ron shook his head quickly. "No, that's okay, I was just curious is all," Ron said, grinning, and McGonagall's lips twitched into a smile before she nodded.

"Then please follow me," she said and lead the way out of the Great Hall. They only went up one flight of steps before stopping outside a suit of armor, which moved aside when she waved her wand over it. "You will be able to set your own password if you wish, or just use your wand like I did, Mr. Weasley," McGonagall said as she allowed the boys to go into the room. "This will be your room for the year," she said and watched as Ron looked around. It was a very small room, with a sitting area, and two doors leading off the main room, one leading to the bathroom and another leading to the bedroom.

"A bit small isn't it?" Ron asked looking around but he was still smiling, obviously happy to have his own room even if it was a bit cramped if you compared it to the rooms up in Gryffindor tower.

"It is the same size as the rooms given to your peers," McGonagall informed him.

"Well, it's not like I'll be doing anything other than sleeping in here anyway," Ron said with a shrug before turning to look at Harry. "So where's your rooms?" he asked before the two of them looked up to McGonagall.

"Mr. Potter will have to show you his rooms tomorrow, Mr. Weasley, as it is getting late and curfew will be in effect shortly," McGonagall informed him.

"Oh, well I guess I'll see you later, mate," Ron said, looking at Harry, who nodded before following his Head of House out and further down the hall. They went up two more flights of steps before they stopped in front of a painting of a rather nice garden, though Harry couldn't see anyone actually in the picture to give a password to. McGonagall reached out and ran a finger along the stem of a rose before the door swung open.

Harry followed her inside and stopped when he saw the large space inside, it was nearly twice the size of Ron's and also had what looked like a little kitchen area, there were three doors leading off the main room and Harry frowned. "I thought you said that all our rooms were the same size?" Harry said, looking over at his Professor.

"Each of you have all been given the same amount of space,” McGonagall assured him, much to Harry’s confusion. “However, due to your engagement with Mr. Malfoy it was decided that you two would be sharing rooms," McGonagall informed him and Harry's frown deepened.

"Why?" Harry asked.

"That is something you will have to discuss with Dumbledore I'm afraid," McGonagall said and looked at Harry, who wasn't able to keep the look of annoyance off his face. "I will have your class schedule for you in the morning," she informed him and left Harry to explore the room on his own.

Harry didn't even look behind him when the door closed. Moving further into the room Harry looked around; the common room area had a small sofa and two very comfy looking chairs, which looked as though they could have come right out of Gryffindor tower, except the color of them was a dark burgundy instead of the crimson red that was all over his old common room. Turning his attention away from the seating area to the small kitchen, he realised that there was no stove or fridge, but there were cabinets that already had a few snacks stored in them, and a small table that was just big enough for two people. Though Harry wasn't sure why they would need a kitchen area in their rooms, it was a nice touch.

Hearing a door open, Harry looked over to see the entrance door swinging open before Draco stepped inside and paused just inside the doorway. Looking around, grey eyes landed on Harry for a moment before taking in the rest of the room. “So much for having our own rooms,” Draco said, closing the portrait door behind him and stepping further into the room.

“We still have our own bedrooms if that counts for anything,” Harry said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Surprisingly, no it doesn't,” Draco said, sounding like he was in a rather foul mood and Harry wondered what had happened in the short time since he had seen the blond at dinner. “I can discuss this with my father later,” Draco continued as he looked around the room, his eyes finally once more landing on Harry, who was still standing in the doorway to the kitchen.

“I doubt your father will be able to do anything about the room arrangements, McGonagall told me that if we wanted anything changed we would have to talk to Dumbledore, so you go and have fun with that,” Harry said.

“You can't tell me that you're actually happy about sharing a room with me,” Draco said, raising an eyebrow at Harry and watching as the smaller teen looked away from him.

“I'm... indifferent to the idea,” Harry admitted, glancing over at Draco. “It will give me a chance to get more used to the idea of sharing a room with you. I mean, next year we're going to be living in the same rooms anyway, this could be a trial run to see if we will drive each other completely mad or not,” Harry said.

“Oh, I believe you will be driving me mad within the first week, but I do agree, we can use this time to get used to living in closer proximity to each other,” Draco conceded. “That being said, I have an early morning tomorrow. Good night, Harry,” Draco said and he made his way toward one of the rooms leading off the common room. Harry watched as Draco looked inside before rolling his eyes and closing the door. “That room is yours,” Draco said making his way toward the next one and heading inside, shutting the door behind him.

Frowning, Harry went over to the door that Draco had indicated was his, opening it and looking inside. Harry couldn't help but smile as he saw why Draco had rolled his eyes at the room. It was decorated in red and gold, making it so painfully obvious that this room belonged to a Gryffindor. Shaking his head and deciding that going to bed was probably for the best, Harry went into his own room and closed the door behind him, hoping that a good night’s sleep would help prepare him for whatever tomorrow was going to bring.

TBC

And there we have chapter 6! Again, I am so very sorry for those of you who were waiting for an update! I am also sorry that it wasn't a very exciting update, but this chapter does help move the story along! And I have big plans for our boys! The next few chapters are going to have a lot of “time jumps” in them which are going to be difficult for me to write because I don't want it to seem like time is moving to quickly, but the main focus of this story is Draco and Harry's growing relationship, and now what they are doing at school. So my main goal is to get done with the school year as quickly as possible while still making it seem as if Draco and Harry's relationship isn't to rushed. We shall see if I can actually manage this! Wish me luck!
And if you haven't looked me up on facebook yet, please do so! I have made some announcements on there that I am sure a few of you may be interested in! Such as a sneak peak at the sequel to Unwanted Bonds! And in the coming weeks I hope to start keeping people updated on the progress on each fic I am currently writing as I start setting myself a schedule. Hopefully this means that it won't be another eight months for another update on this fic!
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