Head over heels

Chapter VII

*****

Draco had slept the entire morning away. He woke up when a sharp tapping against the window interrupted his sleep. Groggily he threw the blankets away, stood up and sauntered to the glass, opening it and letting the owl in. The Dailey Prophet again.

“Oliver Wood Attacked!” it said in big, bold letters. Draco groaned. Lovely, he thought, another ‘celebrity’. He grabbed the paper and moved to the living room, grabbing a cup of coffee as he passed through the kitchen, and sunk down in his chair.

‘Last night, Oliver Wood, famous for his Quidditch skills and share in the war (being great friends and once-trainer of Harry Potter), was attacked by person(s) unknown. Mr. Wood, also called the most talented Quidditch star of all times, was found last night in the alley next to Gringots, his body mutilated by multiple stab wounds. Mr. Wood is currently residing in St. Mungos receiving intensive care. No one can tell us anything about his current condition, but we hope to find out more very soon...

For more about Wood’s Quidditch talents, achievements and personal affairs turn to page 3...’
Sensational buggers, Draco cursed inside. The media and press loved cases like this one. Attacks on celebrities meant that people like Rita Skeeter had another opportunity to drag someone’s name through the mud. He never liked Wood, the guy was obsessed with Quidditch all the way, but he didn’t wish this on anyone. And if the culprit wasn’t caught, the aurors name was dragged through the mud as well. Not that he particularly cared, almost no one thought good of him anyway.

He was thankful Keith had given him the day off.

*****

The case was as cold as ice. Granger had come to him multiple times, asking with those big brown eyes of her if we found anything. Of course we didn’t, there is no lead to go on. Draco had researched every possible lead: Molotov cocktails were Muggle things, Muggleborns with the means and ends and knowledge to acquire it...nothing. Hermione haters...nothing came up, nothing at all. He even went as far as tracking down all the magical signatures of who was in Diagon Alley that evening and questioning them.

‘No sir, no one suspicious,’ a pudgy lady that reminded him of Mrs. Weasley had said.
‘I’m not sure, it’s not as if I pay attention to who walks by here,’ a teenage girl had said after batting her eyelashes at him, ‘but I do now...’

‘I never saw anyone who looked suspicious! Just shoppers and people who are supposed to be here sir. I saw Tom from the Leaky Cauldron, Higgs from Flourish and Blots, Madame Grey from the...shop further down Knockturn Alley and Madam Malakin walked in here for a chat. She said she was going to get herself lunch from the Leaky Cauldron and about how Tom always made that Tuna salad taste so appealing...’ another old woman with a big grey wig rambled on. She claimed she knew everything about anybody. Some skill to be proud of, Draco thought drily.

He sighed deeply, he couldn’t do a thing for Granger like this. Two weeks had passed since the attack and...nothing.

The only good thing that happened was that he hadn’t been tempted yet...he was halfway through his victory. Weasley would so lose.

When he glanced sideways to his bedroom table he saw the teddy bear staring at him with vacant eyes, daring him to wank. Draco shook his head, nope no wanking. He wasn’t taking his chances: he would not lose this bet.

He dragged himself out of bed, took a shower and got dressed. It was another Saturday which he wanted to spend in peace. Relax, let the stress flow away, take a bath, do nothing in particular. Sounded good.

Unfortunately he knew nothing would come of that when he heard a knock on his door and mumblings behind the wooden object.

Blaise and Theo stood on his doorstep, smirking cheerily.

‘Goooood morning mate!’ Blaise said while barging his way past Draco in his living room.

‘Wait a-‘, was as far as he got. Theo also barged in as well and both men dropped down on Draco’s couch. He stood in his doorstep, a frown on his face, staring into nothingness

‘Wait, wait, wait! This wasn’t planned,” Draco said as he slammed the door and turned around with a spin.

Theo just grinned.

‘So what, it’s time for a lousy Saturday...’ Blaise said.

‘You always have lousy days Blaise, you don’t do shit!’ Draco said.

‘Don’t interrupt. As I was saying, a lousy Saturday, drinking whiskey all day long and watching football. Since you are the only one with a television...’ Blaise trailed off, looking at Draco innocently.

He knew he wouldn’t say no.

‘Fine,’ he said grumpily as he sunk down next to his friends and turned on the TV.

‘So where’s the firewhiskey?’ Theo asked happily.

‘I thought....’ Draco said, but he saw the looks on their faces, ‘Bloody hell, I’ll get it...’

******

Draco couldn’t figure out what the reason for their mystery visit was. They just took down his front door and demanded TV and whiskey. There must have been something more to it and it hindsight Draco was right.

After feeding them three tumblers the truth spilled out.

‘You remember that Pansy works for that horrible, un-classy nude magazine Cherry?’ Blaise asked.

‘You mean your favourite magazine to wank off on? And unclassy isn’t a word,’ Draco retorted.

‘Yes that one. Who cares about words? Anyway, I bumped into her yesterday and she told me some interesting news. This month they have this really special...’ Blaise paused for the dramatic effect, ‘...edition...you know, since the defeat of You-Know-Who five years ago.’

Draco began to feel uneasy.

‘What’s in it?’ he asked.

‘Better question is ‘who’ is in it!’ Theo said, while sitting on the edge of the couch.

‘Give it to me,’ Draco said. Blaise fidgeted with his bag and hauled the magazine out of it.
Draco felt as if the world was spinning. And he hadn’t even drunk one sip of whiskey.

There Hermione was, on the front cover. The headline screamed:

‘HERMIONE GRANGER, GRYFFINDORS GOLDEN GIRL POSES FOR CHARITY’

Hermione was sitting with her back to the camera, head slightly tilted backwards and to the side. Draco was entranced by how her brown curls tumbled down her back, hanging into mid air.

‘Merlin no,’ he said as he peered at the cover. The bold red letters of Cherry, the headline, Hermione’s picture. Merlin this was a joke. Her beautiful body, for everyone to see, naked.

‘This is a joke right? Ha-ha very funny,’ Draco said with a high pitched voice. ‘Seriously, do you want me to lose that bloody bet? What are you thinking putting this in my hands, how am I suppose to sleep tonight?’

‘No but we thought it might be funny if you knew first. This is a first edition you know! So no white stains! They’ll be in the stores tomorrow.’

Everyone got to see what should be his alone...Draco closed his eyes. He refused to open it. He plainly refused to open the magazine.

‘Aren’t you going to have a peek?’ Theo asked while peering over Draco’s shoulder. Draco leant his elbows on his knees.

‘Hand me the firewhiskey will you?’

******

After four tumblers filled with firewhiskey Draco didn’t care anymore. After ten of them he couldn’t tell top from bottom. After eleven he passed out.

Until a knock on the door brought him back to this world. He groaned. Where the hell were Blaise and Theo? He looked around. Nowhere in sight, the couch was empty. Had they even drank anything? He couldn’t remember. What time was it? Holy hell, it was four in the afternoon. And he was drunk as hell.

Again, the person on the other side of the door knocked. Draco groaned and stumbled towards the door.
‘Yeah, yeah coming!’ he said.

‘I hope not, that meant you would have lost your precious bet,’ his father said as he stood smirking on the other side of the door, his arm linked with his mothers.

‘True, so true,’ Draco said drunkenly.

Narcissa took a step forward, bowed her head and peered into her only son’s eyes.

‘Are you..okay?’ she asked carefully.

Draco wobbled on his feet.

‘Never been better actually!’ he grinned stupidly, ‘Come in!’

Draco stumbled back into his apartment. ‘So what is it today with all those people *hiccough* dropping by?’

His parents looked each other in the eyes. Lucius went to the kitchen and came back with a vial filled with something...

‘Here,’ he said as he offered it to Draco, who swallowed it all in one go. Immediately he felt the effects. The alcohol disappeared from his body and replaced by ...water probably.

‘Talk about a mood killer dad,’ he grumbled while rubbing his eye. ‘What are you doing here anyway?’

‘We came to take you out for dinner of course!’ Narcissa said as if it was the most obvious thing in the entire world. ‘We were going to-,’ his mother stopped in the middle of her sentence, ‘Is that Cherry? Draco that is so unclassy!’ she pursed her lips in the way only mothers could.

‘Unclassy isn’t a word mum!’ Draco said for the second time this day. ‘And no! I didn’t buy it. It’s not even out yet! Blaise brought it here!’

Lucius looked at his son with a knowing twinkle in his eye.

‘Of course Draco. Now if you ladies are done talking? Let’s get a move on, I made reservations for 4:30.’

*****
A/N talk about a fillerup chapter! Constructive criticism is appreciated!!