Black Truth [READ DESCRIPTION]

chapter fourteen

Chapter Fourteen: Sidestepping the Question

Draco had showered and eaten breakfast (or lunch if one was being completely accurate) before he encountered Harry. Well, in all truth, Draco had showered, eaten, finished the homework he had been putting off for some time about how one defends oneself from a creature that could only be described by its looks as a puff ball, and started dozing off at the lateness of the day before Harry showed up. Most of this was forgotten in the next chain of events, but later Draco would remember that they did happen.

However, later Draco would not be able to work out why the next chain of events happened, except to say that he was losing his mind due to the bond that was now present between himself and Harry. He started out in control of the situation, he really did, when Harry walked in cursing at Medusa who had not been happy to see that he was still breathing.

"Potter."

"Malfoy."

"Interesting Quidditch game, I hear."

"Nice bunch of friends you have," Harry replied in an almost amicable tone as he sat down on the leather couch opposite Draco.

"There is a rather large difference between those in Slytherin who are privileged enough to be my comrades, and those who merely fear me."

"I couldn't tell," Harry replied sarcastically.

Draco glared at him. "The difference, since you're obviously too thick to get it, is that my friends would not have done what that group of morons did. They never respected me in the same way."

"Considering you bought your way on to the team, I'm not surprised," Harry noted and Draco chose to ignore him.

"They are part of the division in Slytherin that chooses to ignore the power of the Veriae and instead focus on the fact that I do not have wizarding blood."

"You know," Harry grinned, "I was thinking about that. It's rather ironic that the pureblooded Malfoy family isn't as pure as people thought."

"I am pureblooded," Draco hissed.

Harry decided never to bring up the subject again as the look of fury swept across Draco's face. "Not in wizard blood, and that is what causes the division."

"Exactly." Draco calmed down and Harry looked at him strangely.

"What's up with you?" he asked curiously. "You're wound up tighter than a spring."

"I thought you would understand why better than anyone, Potter," Draco drawled. "After all, you are to blame for my emotions at this point."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. Which brings me to a question which I'd like answered. Why didn't you play today?"

"There wasn't a point."

"There's always a point, Potter. Gryffindor barely won. What really stopped you from playing?"

"I don't think I need to tell you that, Malfoy." Harry glared at him and the words were out before Draco could even register that he was saying them.

"Was it because Potter cared that little me wasn't playing? I'm flattered."

"Don't be, Malfoy. You had nothing to do with it."

Draco blinked as he saw something strange register in Harry's eyes as he said that, and the Slytherin side of him got another idea. He smirked at Harry, his features shifting to those of someone who has figured out a secret.

"I think you're lying, Potter. I think it was because of me that you didn't play." Something in the bond's magic stirred inside him at those words, but he ignored it. It had been acting weird for all the time Potter had been denying it anyway. But this was too good to start worrying about something else right now. Watching Potter squirm was so much fun.

But Draco hadn't been prepared for what might happen if Harry didn't squirm like he'd planned for.

"Maybe that's because I actually care about what others feel sometimes, Malfoy." Harry sent a glare his way before getting up with the intent of leaving the room.

Harry started to walk away but was stopped and spun around so that he was eye to eye with an affronted Veriae. He barely had time to register the black silken wings that had ripped holes in the back of another of Draco's shirts, before he was brought back to the swirling silver eyes.

"Don't ever assume things you do not understand, Potter," Draco hissed, releasing his hold on Harry's shirt slightly. He started slightly, realizing that there would be a problem, as he felt the bond-which had been stretched out of proportion by Harry's denial of it-contract happily right as his mouth crashed onto Harry's own.

Power shot through them, joyfully dancing through their veins as it resettled both itself and the bond that had been forged by their first kiss. Its power coursed through them and seemed to take on a life of its own as two tongues entwined around each other like living snakes.

It ended abruptly as Draco pushed Harry away from him.

"What was that?" Harry gasped.

"The bond just resorted itself," Draco breathed. "You had it so out of proportion it went a little overboard. Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go wash your taste out of my mouth."

Harry watched Draco leave, one hand rising to touch where the magic had connected them for a moment.

I wasn't supposed to enjoy that... was I?

Harry woke the next morning to a rather slurred: "Potter, kindly remove your hair from my mouth," so he couldn't say that his day started off in the best of ways. And then the thoughts of that kiss or whatever it was the night before came crawling into the back of his mind. The worst part was that he'd enjoyed it, and there was no way to rationalize it this time. It wasn't just a kiss that had been done well. No, Harry Potter had enjoyed a kiss with Draco Malfoy. Bond-prompted or not, bond-enhanced or not, there was no way around it. But what did that mean? Harry could still very easily hate Draco. In fact they'd yelled at each other that morning. But he couldn't deny that whatever that kiss was, it had definitely turned him on. That could just be teenage hormones though... but the last time could have been teenage hormones as well and he had not reacted in the same way.

And then half way through his afternoon class he got a thought. Maybe it was just the bond resettling itself that had affected him that way. Yeah. That would make sense. But the only way to test it would be to kiss Draco again... and exactly when had he decided to call Malfoy "Draco"? Oh well, back on thought. The only way to confirm anything would be to kiss Draco Malfoy. But how could he do that without starting another problem? Like Draco actually thinking that Harry might like him, or maybe the bond would go crazy because of it.

But the question persisted in his mind throughout the day. In fact, it persisted in the minds of both boys though neither admitted it to the other. And yet the only way for either of them to work anything out would be for them to kiss again, right?

Wrong. But it took them another week to find that out.