Stand Up For Judas

Stand Up For Judas

3
A Time Of Not Much Happening

     'Harry! Harry, wake up!'
     Harry heard the voice as if from far away at first. In his still mainly asleep state, he mumbled and turned over, wishing they’d leave him in peace.
     ‘Go away,’ he thought, ‘I want to sleep.’
     ‘Harry!’
     Reluctantly, Harry slowly blinked his eyes open, his vision still hazy from sleep. He blinked a bit more and Ron and Hermione swam in to focus.
     'Whuzgoinon?' Harry took in his surroundings. He seemed to be in the Gryffindor common room. On the floor. His two friends were standing over him with looks of concern on their faces.
     ‘Oh Harry, we were so worried about you!’ Hermione practically jumped on him as he started sitting up, nearly knocking him back to the floor ‘Where have you been?’
     ‘Where have I been?’ Thought Harry, sleep addling his brain for the second time that day. Ron crouched down next to the other two
     ‘You missed breakfast, mate’ Though anxious, Ron seemed unable to understand how anyone could possibly skip a meal through choice.
     'I did?’
     ‘Yes!’ Even through her concern for him, Harry could sense Hermione’s exasperation ’Harry, what’s going on?’
     Harry shook his head.
     'I don’t know, Hermione.’ It wasn’t a lie.
     ‘C’mon, Harry, you can tell us.’ Ron gave him an encouraging look.
     Harry put his head in one hand, rubbing the side of his face in the manner of someone who’s just been woken up against their will. What was he going to tell them? Not the truth, that was for sure.
     He’d stayed in the alcove until he’d stopped crying, and by then he’d lost track of time. The sun had started creeping in he windows as he’d dragged himself back to the common room.
     ‘I think the sleeping potion I took must have reacted badly with some of the bubbles I put in my bath’
     Hermione quirked an eyebrow
     ‘Harry, you were asleep on the floor.’
     ‘I know, Hermione’ Harry covered the rest of his face with the other hand ‘And I don’t know how I got here’ Well, that bit was true at least. After his encounter in the bathroom and the amount he‘d run afterwards, he could hardly remember the walk back to the common room, let alone what he’d done once he’d got there.
     His two friends looked at each other, clearly unconvinced by his story, and still very worried about him. Hermione sighed.
     ‘We’ve got double Defence Against the Dark Arts first, you better go get changed quickly or Snape will kill us.’
     Grateful for an excuse to get away, Harry bolted up the staircase and in to the dormitory. He was going to have to think up some more convincing excuses in future.

     By the time they arrived at Defence Against The Dark Arts, the rest of the class had already gone in and taken their seats, something for which Harry was thankful. He didn’t think he would have survived having to stand out in the corridor with Malfoy.
     'Ah, Potter, Weasley, Granger. How good of you to grace us with your presence.’ Snape looked up from a book he was apparently engrossed in, ‘Ten points from Gryffindor. Each.' A smirk appeared on his face as the three of them walked in to the classroom and took their seats at the back. Harry was too tired to respond to the remark, but he could feel Ron bristling beside him.
     ‘Leave it, Ron’ Hermione whispered, almost dragging him to his chair.
     Harry took a look around the rest of the class. Everyone was bent over their desks, quills trailing across sheets of parchment and there seemed to be no spell work going on. Hermione put her hand up.
     ‘Yes, Miss Granger?’
     ‘Sorry sir, but what are we supposed to be doing?’ The smirk on Snape’s face widened at that.
     ‘You’re supposed to be writing me a sixteen inch essay on the principles behind non-verbal spells, as you would have known, had you been here on time.’ He returned to his book ‘But I think you, Potter and Weasley can write me a twenty-inch one for your tardiness.’
      ‘Slimy git,’ Ron was fuming now ‘he didn’t tell us what was going on just so he could do that’
      The three of them took parchment and quills from their bags, but Snape’s voice drifted up from behind his book just as Harry was taking out his copy of Confronting The Faceless.
      ‘Without the textbook, Potter. Or have you not learnt anything in this class so far?’
      Despite his fatigue, Harry couldn’t quite help but get annoyed at that, but restrained himself from retaliating and went to start on his essay. He stared blankly at his page for a moment, then wrote

The principals behind non-verbal spells

     And stopped again. He glanced at Ron, who didn’t seem to be doing any better than he was. Hermione, however, had apparently written half the essay already. Harry groaned inwardly and turned his attention back to his own nearly blank parchment.
     So far he’d managed to keep most thoughts of Draco at bay, but in the silence of the classroom he felt the blonde sliding back in to his mind, images of what Harry had seen in the bathroom coming back to haunt him. He didn’t want to think about what had happened the night before. Malfoy must know how he felt now, and his life was going to become living hell. He could just imagine the cat-calls and jeers he was going to get, the whispering behind his back again, back to how it was last year. What would the world think if they found out their chosen one was gay?
     He some how ended up looking over to where Malfoy was sitting. Luckily, Harry was sat a few rows further back, so Draco didn’t notice that he was being watched.
     Gay. That was what he'd decided when he was curled up in the alcove, he must be gay. Final, cold realisation. Given the horrified way Malfoy had looked at him, he couldn’t have put Harry under a spell.
     ‘But why him?’ Harry thought. He’d thought back to Ron’s words, surprised at himself for taking the opposite angle. The main problem was that it was Malfoy he fancied, not that he was another guy. Hell, it as only one bloke, so it could be that he wasn't gay. Couldn't it?
     Harry shook his head, violently, trying to clear it. All the night time logic and reason he'd used in the alcove that had made so much sense at the time seemed to be unravelling in the cold light of day. He thought of his classmates again, and what they'd think of him. It was too much.
     He rested his chin in one hand, looking across at Draco. Despite his inner emotional turmoil, he found himself smiling at the way the blonde ran his fingers through his hair. He seemed to be doing as well on the essay as Harry was.
     ‘Potter’ Snape’s voice broke both Harry’s reverie and the silence in the room ‘would you be so ask kind as to tell us what is so fascinating about the back of Mr Malfoy’s head?’
     Harry felt as though his insides had turned to lead. The entire class spun round to look at him, he could feel his cheeks burning under their gazes and dropped his eyes to the floor. Snape sauntered up to where Harry was sitting, a malicious look in his eyes.
      'Well?' He was clearly enjoying this.
      'Nothing, sir' Harry mumbled, hating Snape more than he ever had in his life.
      'Then why, Potter, were you staring at it so intently?' Harry clenched his jaw. He could hear giggles coming from the corner of the room where Pavarti and Lavender were sitting. His cheeks burnt redder than ever.
     ‘I don’t know, sir’ He gripped the seat of his chair to stop him from lashing out. Snape sneered at him, picking his parchment.
     ‘Oh dear, Potter, looks like you haven’t learnt anything after all. Or was Mr Malfoy really so alluring that you couldn’t tare your eyes away from him?’
      Harry said nothing, and Snape sneered again
      ‘You know what I think, Potter?’ He started leaning over Harry’s desk ‘I think you’re a qu-’
     ‘Professor Snape!’ All heads in the room snapped to the doorway, where Professor McGonagall was standing, her cheeks the same colour as Harry’s ‘I will not have you insulting members of my house with such profanities!’
     Harry had no idea how she had come to be outside the classroom, but was too relieved to dwell on it.
     Snape withdrew from Harry’s desk, rearranging his momentarily surprised features into a sneer again.
     ‘Potter is in my class, and it will be my choice how I deal with him’ Professor McGonagall gave him a hard stare.
     ‘If you wouldn’t mind stepping outside, Professor Snape, I would appreciate a moment of your time’
     Snape opened his mouth as if to retort, but the look Professor McGonagall gave him made him shut it again. Scowling, he stalked out of the room, slamming the door behind him.
     As soon as he left, the class erupted.
     ‘Did you see McGonagall’s face? It looked like she’d swallowed a bowtruckle!’
     ‘Did you hear what he nearly said?’
     ‘Do you think it’s true?’
     ‘Bloody hell!’ Ron leant back in his seat ‘Someone’s got their wand in a knot this morning.’ Then looking at Harry ’Hey, mate, that was totally out of order, can’t believe he was going to say that!’ He seemed completely oblivious to Harry’s agitation, although Hermione was shooting him nervous little glances again.
     ‘Are you alright, Harry?’
     Harry wasn’t really listening. He’d taken the opportunity to snatch a look at Draco, dreading how he’d reacted to Snape’s words. The blonde was facing away from him, his eyes firmly trained on the floor.
     ‘Maybe he’s as embarrassed as I am’ Harry thought. At least the insults hadn’t started yet.
     ‘Harry?’ Hermione was giving him another one of her odd looks.
     ‘What?’ He must have completely missed what she’d said.
     ‘I said are you alright? You’re staring at Malfoy again’
      Unfortunately, Hermione’s words came at a gap in conversation. The murmuring class stopped talking at once to stare at him again. His blush returning to its full velocity, and with no teacher to restrain him, Harry got up and ran from the room, ignoring the Snape’s shouts of complaint as he raced past him and down the corridor.

      Harry kept running until he was almost at the entrance hall, looking back over his shoulder only once to check if he was being followed, and as he did so running in to what appeared to be a giant black bear.
     ‘Oof’ Harry felt winded as he fell backwards on to the floor
     ‘Hey, yeh alrigh’ there?’ Harry looked up to see Hagrid’s friendly face staring down at him ‘Oh, it’s you, Harry’ He offered Harry his hand and pulled him to his feet.
     ‘Thanks, Hagrid’ Harry said, dusting himself down
     ‘Shouldn’ yeh be in a lesson?’ Hagrid asked, suspiciously.
     ‘Er, Professor McGonagall needed to talk to Snape so we were let out early’ Harry was amazed how easily the lie rolled off his tongue.
     ‘Professor Snape’ Hagrid corrected him, frowning slightly ‘I wonder wha' she needed to talk ter him abou'’ Harry hoped Hagrid never found out. ‘Wha' abo't Ron and Hermione? Where are they?’
     ‘Oh, erm, Hermione had something to show Ron. Something to do with Spew, I think.’ Harry hated himself for lying again, especially since it had become so easy
     ‘Ah, I see’ Hagrid winked ‘Say no more, say no more.’
     ‘Anyway, Hagrid-’
     ‘Hey, tell yeh wha’, Harry, seein’ as yeh’ve got the lesson off an‘ yeh all by yeh self , d’yeh wan’ ter come help me with the Skrewts? I’ve jus’ had another batch hatched an’ they seem ter on’y wan’ ter kill each other ah the momen’’ Hagrid was looking at him with such happy expectation that Harry found himself unable to refuse.
     As they walked down the grounds Hagrid chatted contentedly about the Skrewts, informing Harry that his time he’d managed to bread about thirty. Harry tried his best to look pleased by that, but must have failed because Hagrid gave him an odd look, similar to those Hermione had been giving him recently.
     ‘Somethin’ wrong, Harry?’
     ‘No, nothing, I’m fine Hagrid, thanks’ Harry attempted a smile. Hagrid continued to look at him funnily.
     ‘Yeh can talk to me abou’ it, yeh know’ Harry sighed. He’d lost count of the number of times people had said that to him recently ‘Have yeh had a row with Ron and Hermione again?’
     ‘No, Hagrid, it’s nothing, honestly’ Harry protested, but Hagrid seemed reluctant to let go of that train of thought
     ‘I’m sure it’s nothing can’t be fixed with time and good will, yeh’ll jus’ have to get used to those two bein’ sweet on each other.’
     ‘Hagrid, it’s not that’
     ‘Yeh three’ve always got over yeh differences in the past-’
     Harry could feel his temper rising, he was fed up of people trying to understand how he was feeling and explain it away. Heck, even he didn’t even know how he was feeling.
     ‘-An’ tha’ can’t be abou’ to change now-’
     ‘No, Hagrid!’ Harry practically shouted ‘It’s not that, it’s-’ He stopped himself, seeing the hurt look on Hagrid’s face ‘Argh, Hagrid, I’m sorry, it’s just, I- I-can’t- I’m sorry’
     And with that, he turned round and, for the third time that day, ran back towards the castle.

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Authors note: Thank you everyone who reviewed, I hope this chapter lived up to your expectations ^^;; Sorry for the lack of anything interesting happening XD I think Harry needs to get his head fixed a bit before we can go any further ;] or I’ll just launch him in to a hideously awkward situation with Draco and see what happens. I did plan to get two chapters up today but I accidentally went to see POTC - I promise I’ll do the next one tomorrow.
Oh, and any comments on that Hagrid scene would be great - I had my copy of all 6 books lying around me for reference when I wrote it XD
Lady Jerrillith - thank you! It was great, but did involve lots of drunken 50-60 year olds XD
And finally - special Thanks to my friend Joo for helping me loads with this chapter, it wouldn’t have happened without him =]
Heh, this seems to have been almost as long as the chapter itself -.-