𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐘 𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐌𝐀𝐆𝐔𝐒 2008

Fur and Feather

Author: gin_biscuit
Title: Fur and Feather
Pairing(s): Harry/Draco
Rating: NC-17
Summary: Sometimes everything goes wrong and the only proper pick-me-up is one (or several) pints in the next pub. And sometimes an evening in a pub is only the beginning.
Warnings: none
Total word count: 5,000

Fur and Feather

Harry stared down at his pint. It was his fourth now and nearly empty already. He sighed. Even the beer wasn't improving this crappy day - though Harry certainly wouldn't stop hoping. The patron next to Harry sighed too, just as deeply, heartfelt, and alcohol-sodden. Harry turned his head to give his co-sufferer a sympathetic nod.

"Malfoy!" He startled the other patron.

"Potter!"

Despite working together in Auror training for nearly two years now, his and Malfoy's mutual animosity had never completely vanished. Oh, who was he kidding? There had been five occasions where they had had to be pulled apart, three visits to the training camp's infirmary and whenever they saw each other they both mentally counted the verbal hits they landed.

"What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same, Potthead. You look dreadful. Why don't you go and stuff your head into the toilet so I won't have to see your ugly mug anymore."

"Why don't you fuck off, Malfoy? You're poisoning the air I'm trying to breathe." They glared at each other for a couple of seconds, before Harry sighed and turned away from Malfoy and back to his pint. Not even insulting Malfoy could lift his damn mood. Usually he just had to turn to Malfoy for a good fight and everything would be alright again. But not today. Oh no, this weighed far too heavy on his soul.

A sigh from his right made him glance at the blond – quickly, not lingering, mind you – and he found that Malfoy didn't look too happy either. He wondered what had caused that mood in Malfoy. Maybe his boyfriend had dumped him. Harry frowned. Did Malfoy have a boyfriend? Everyone knew that Malfoy was gay – just like everyone knew that Harry was, too. They had both outed themselves whilst drunk at a New Years Eve party about two years ago, but neither of them had considered that a reason to bond over.

"Your boyfriend left you?" Harry mumbled into his pint and licked the last bit of beer-foam off of the rim of the glass. A bit got onto his nose – not that he noticed.

"What boyfriend?" Malfoy downed his beer and raised his hand. His glass was full again in a matter of seconds. Magic was so wonderful!

Harry nodded to himself. So there wasn't a boyfriend. Interesting. "Why interesting?" Harry wondered aloud and his eyes widened as much as they were still able to at that thought.

"Huh?" Malfoy blinked at him owlishly. "You suck, Potter."

"Uh-huh." Harry waved his hand for a refill. At least he was slowly forgetting the humiliation of today's training session. Animagus Training had been something the whole group had been excited over for weeks now. It had taken ages to get all the Auror trainees tested and to determine who exactly was talented enough for 'The Special Training Unit'. In the end there had been fifteen out of forty who had been able to attend Animagus Training.

They had started out with normal and temporally restricted self-transfiguration. Had gone over the basic principals with their instructors, had read this text or that until none of them had been really that into Animagus training anymore. At least until three days ago, when it had been announced that the actual Animagus transformations would be attempted this week.