Checkmate

The Game Part 5

One of these days, and it won't be long, he'll know more about me
Than he should
All my dreams will be understood

Lyrics from "Heaven Help My Heart" from Chess by Benny Anderson, Tim Rice and Björn Ulvaeus

* * * * *

A short time later, Harry was sitting in a very companionable silence with Draco, a cutting board balanced on his knees, slicing blackcap mushroom gills into tiny pieces. The two boys were sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of the fireplace, next to each other but facing away at a slight angle, so that they could lean with their backs together for support. Harry was in his stocking feet, Draco had bare feet, and their two pairs of shoes were lined up, side by side, by the door. Draco's portable potions set was spread out all around them. The low fire crackled pleasantly, and it felt comfortably warm and very welcome to Harry after the cold tower stairwell.

Harry glanced over his shoulder at Draco, highly amused by the situation, and his misunderstanding of what Draco had referred to as "something more fun." Draco was seriously studying a massively thick, heavy book he had gotten off his bookshelf in the corner. It was titled Potions Through the Ages: A Historical Encyclopedia. Harry suspected, judging by the soft expression of rapt pleasure on his face, that Draco really was reading it, as he had said, for fun.

Harry studied that face for several more moments, relishing the chance to watch the other boy in a rare unguarded moment. The firelight painted such delightful rosy and gilded flickering splashes of color on his skin and hair. "Hey," said Harry with a teasing air, as he nudged Draco with his elbow, "I don't think using your chess move to ask me to cut up potions ingredients quite adheres to the rules of the game."

Draco looked up after a second and smirked at him. "You know I never play by the rules, Harry. And besides," he added, "we have N.E.W.T.s coming up, and I'm sure Snape is going to test us on this potion Monday."

"Oh, bloody hell, Draco," moaned Harry. "That means I'll have to do this all over again on Monday. And Monday is the last day of classes before the holidays."

"Which is exactly why," Draco replied smoothly, "I'm sure he's going to test us. You know he always does. And this Hex Mirror Potion is the hardest one we've studied, so it's certain to be the one he picks."

Harry rolled his eyes. "You're starting to remind me of Hermione now."

Draco raised one brow in a vaguely affronted expression. "I'm not as insulted at that as I would have been once, but you can just plan to keep that opinion to yourself," he sniffed, as he returned to his reading.

Harry chuckled. "It's just that this is hardly what I expected we would be doing together on a Friday night," he said. "When you said 'something more fun,' this isn't exactly what came to my mind."

Draco turned a page in the book, then looked back up at Harry with an alluring smile playing around the corners of his mouth. "I didn't say I was planning for us to do this all night," he said. He regarded Harry with amused curiosity kindling in his eyes. "I'm sure I'd be interested in what youhad in mind. We can quit this for tonight, if you want to."

Harry looked around at all the stuff Draco had pulled out. "No, it's okay," he said with a regretful smile. "As long as this won't take too long . . . and," he added in a resigned tone, "if you think Snape is going to test us on this Monday, I could definitely use the practice. I'm just teasing you about calling it fun."

Harry stopped for a moment to consider what he was feeling now - and was surprised to find he was enjoying himself. "But this isn't really so bad," he said. "I always hated it when Snape made us work together, and you would try to make me cut everything up for you, but now, it's . . . well . . . it's rather . . . nice, actually." Harry felt his face go a bit warm at this confession.