When Living Ain\'t Easy

AN: First off, many thanks to those of you who took the time to review. Your comments have been of much reassurance to me! Individual replies will be offered if you wish, but here\'s a blanket bearhug for everyone.
Second, I\'ll try to clear up a few things in this chapter, and make it slightly longer. My apologies for not posting more often, but I have very limited access to internet -- expecting more than one post per week will likely lead to disappointment.

And lastly... this first section is in Harry\'s POV, taking place during parts of Chapter Two. It is intended to give the reader an understanding of his outlook over the current situation. But don\'t expect me to go back and redo too many more chapters, boys and girls! Pay attention, there may be a quiz later *lol*


Chapter Three : Appreciation of Plain Talk

For just about a month, Harry had coasted on a plateau of apathy. His surroundings held little interest for him, and since they seldom changed, he was hardly in danger from his distraction.

When it finally sunk in that Snape\'s actions were not only forgiven before the fact, but actually sanctioned by Dumbledore himself, Harry was made to re-evaluate his opinions of the dark wizard. And from there, it seemed only logical that his judgement of Draco Malfoy might also be misguided. True, the Silver Slytherin Prince was still a total prat, but he seemed to have as little free will in recent events as Harry had.

This being the most probable case, the Gryffindor made a few more snap decisions when he found himself an unexpected guest of the Slytherin icons. After all, he reasoned, if he had misjudged Draco... mightn\'t the elder Malfoy have some redeeming qualities as well? From what little he knew of Lucius, Harry saw a more refined version of his classmate -- fewer raw edges, more subtlety, nicer hair.

That last thought stopped him short. Since when did he take note of such things? And especially about men?

This worrisome topic distracted the Boy Who Lived from his underlying nerves and well-deserved concern. Surely he should have reacted more... more... more *anything* to being sold off by his uncle.

But if he was to be totally honest with himself, Harry felt more secure in the presence of Death Eaters than locked away with the Dursleys. At the very least, he could justify using magic against dark wizards, whereas the Ministry would very likely not listen to any pleas of self-defense against his muggle relatives. On top of that, he really did not want the press to discover how their beloved savior (at least for this week) was unable to defend himself against non-magical bullies.

Ah well... moving back to a less depressing subject...

The last few months prior to Dumbledore\'s death had forced Harry to accept his potions professor\'s better attributes. Granted, it nearly took an act of Merlin to make him drop old prejudices, but the Headmaster had shown him a number of memories to ensure his trust in the prickly man.

Harry had to wonder if he owed Ron the dozen galleons, however. One of Dumbledore\'s memories let slip that the Head of Slytherin was one-eighth vampire. Not enough to make him register at the Ministry, but enough to offer a few not-human characteristics -- such as heightened senses, a more graceful body, and that wickedly dark chocolate voice.

While the two Malfoy men were sharing their silent conversation, Harry mentally slapped himself once again. Why on earth was he noticing men\'s hair and voices? The next step would be admiring the cut of their robes, or their expressive eyes. He barely caught the groan before it alerteed his \"hosts\" to his disturbed thoughts.

And speaking of the devil (at least one of them), enter Severus Snape with full cloak swirl and sneer loaded and ready to fire. Harry really needed to stop listening in on Dudley\'s video games. He was starting to think in terms of armed warfare. Or those neat leather outfits they pour the main characters into.

Luckily, his participation in the conversation was expected, preventing Harry from detouring into even more uncomfortable mental debates.

~ * ~

Draco showed Harry to his room, the floating trunk and cage bobbing merrily behind the teens.

Opening the second door down a long hall from the parlor, Draco ushered his classmate inside. \"You\'ll be sharing this room with me, Potter. Sorry, but there\'s only two bedrooms in this safehouse.\" A flick of pale wrist sent Harry\'s belongings to the foot of a neatly made twin bed. A second, much messier bed rested against the opposite wall, covered in random detritus.

\"Wow Malfoy, you\'re a closet slob?\" Harry couldn\'t help but snicker at the ever-immaculate young wizard. A quick grin took the sting from his jibe. \"Not like I haven\'t seen worse. Who do you think plays house elf at the Dursley\'s?\"

Silver eyes locked onto Harry\'s face, seeking every nuance of the Gryffindor\'s words. Finally deciding that no insult was intended, Draco grinned and said, \"So that rumor had some truth to it after all?\"

He\'d said too much. Harry could happily curse himself for forgetting to whom he was speaking. He\'d only ever shared rooms with Ron and the other Gryffindor boys. It would take some effort to remember that this was *not* one of his good friends.

\"Yeah well, they liked having free labor,\" was all he said in response, turning to open his trunk.

Watching his classmate\'s face shut down of all emotion, Draco did something that was rarely witnessed even by his fellow snakes. He pushed himself off the wall and approached Harry, stopping just two feet from his rival. Reaching out a hand, he grasped the brunet\'s shoulder and gave it a quick squeeze.

\"Not every family is like that, Potter. Hopefully you don\'t believe all the rubbish they\'ve said about you.\" His voice almost as smooth as his father\'s, Draco kept his place long enough for Harry\'s evident shock to develop into weak gratitude. \"Now, let your owl out for the night and let\'s rejoin the elders. We\'ve got some items to discuss before bed.\"

~ * ~

After his son had led the Gryffindor back to their bedroom, Lucius took a breath and turned to face his friend. It wasn\'t often that he got to see such an unguarded expression on Severus\' face, the lines of worry and fatigue overrun by speculation and curiosity.

\"He\'s certainly grown up from the self-righteous little prick of second year.\" Softening the criticism with a smile, Lucius located a bottle of brandy and two snifters before joining his friend on the sofa. \"I hadn\'t given much thought to how much anyone else\'s child must mature -- as you know, Draco is in a class all his own -- however, Mr. Potter seems to be developing nicely.\"

He left the statement open in hopes of catching Severus\' blunt opinions. Not long after their first appreciative sips were consumed, Lucius\' patience was rewarded.

Thoughtfully tapping his finger along the stem of his glass, the Head of Slytherin replied, \"Hmm, yes. Five years ago, I would have laughed long and loud had anyone told me I might find something to admire in a Potter. It is unfortunate, to be sure, that young Mr. Potter has been forced to maturity so quickly. Of course, he must show that same intellectual development if he is to survive and vanquish the Dark Lord.\"

Lucius was expecting his attempts to be redirected from the youg Gryffindor, but he wasn\'t quite willing to give in just yet. He summoned a genial chuckle, drawing Snape\'s attention away from whatever thoughts had ensnared him.

\"Still, you must admit how nicely he\'s grown, in all ways. As with Draco, Quidditch seems to have developed our little savior, hmm?\"

Severus\' eyes widened, his brow almost disappearing into his hairline. \"Why Lucius, one would be inclined to think that you fancied *young* Mr. Potter.\"

The emphasis on Harry\'s age was not lost on the blond, simply ignored. \"Come now, Severus. He is almost of legal age -- a mere month away. Surely there is no harm in appreciation of physical beauty, simply innocent speculation.\"

An undignified snort greeted that comment. \"Lucius, my oldest and dearest friend, there hasn\'t been one iota of innocence in either your mind or body since before we started at Hogwarts.\"

Exchanging looks of humor quickly devolved into healthy laughter, the old friends sharing a long-standing inside joke at their own expense. Truthfully, neither man could claim such innocence beyond an early age, as their respective families had not-so-subtly encouraged them to fight for their own survival.

It was to this cleansing laughter that the teens re-entered the parlor. Harry glanced at his classmate, tossing a question with his eyes, to which Draco shrugged and went to pour two short glasses of brandy. He handed one to Harry, then perched on the arm of a side chair.

\"So, care to share the joke? I\'m sure Potter could use a good laugh today.\"


AN version2: sorry, being kicked off library\'s computer for now. will try to type up the next chapter this afternoon, but no promises. uh, also discovered that this particular puter has a problem with its E and H keys, so if you discover any duplications with those letters, try to ignore it please.

hope you all enjoyed :)