Take A Bad Song And Make It Better

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LaLiHo! I\'m back again, everyone! Sorry, but this is not a continuation
of any of my multipart fics... No, this is just one of the longest one
shots I have ever written. Man, it was killing me! It took me forever
to write, between all my WIP multipart-ers and my bit Potter Project...
Yes... My big Potter Project... O_O (insert shameless plug here) Go see
my big Potter Project... The Owlery, an RPG! YAY! We need more
characters if you would like to join, and so many of them are
available. You just don\'t know how hard it is to play a full cast
game... without the cast... *sigh* This will be quite an interactive
group, once we get more folks playingjor jor events are all staged in a
chatroom, other events are told thru owls (emails). I\'m working on the
first of monthly issues of a students\' newsletter... anyone want to
join The Owlery and help me? I know someone out there wants to play
Snape and be hateful to our poor Potter boy, or a George to go with our
Fred... At least be a sweetheart and check us out! Go to
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/the_Owlery_RPG or
http://www.geocities.com/chibimonoakuno69/mainpage.html.

Now on to my pitiful fic....



title: Take a Bad Song And Make It Better  (1/1)

author: Chibimono Akuno

email: chibimono@msn.com

category: romance, a bit angsty, kinda fluffy, watch out for sap...
because it makes stuff sticky...

spoilers: SS/PS, CoS, PoA, GoF, OotP

pairing: Harry/Mandy Brocklehurst of Ravenclaw, Harry/Draco

rating: R for snogging, I guess…

disclaimers: These characters are not mine. They belong to the
wonderful goddess J.K. Rowling and all the other companies that own
them. I bow before you and beg for your forgiveness of using these
characters. I only wish to entertain, not make money.

A/N: I love the Beatles... They have to be my favorite band of all
time... The weird thing is, they are not even from my time period. I
wasn\'t even born when John Lennon was killed... T_T  I was born in
\'83 and I think he died in New York in \'81...? If I\'m wrong, me me
know. Hey Jude does not
belong to me. In fact, it was written and sung by the great Sir Paul
McCartney! ... I think Michael Jackson owns the rights to it now,
though... Again, if I\'m wrong, let me know... I did change a few of the
words around in the song, mostly gender related words. I need it to fit
the purpose of the song being in the fic... If you like it, tell me. I
love feedback! If the feedback is especially good, I might just write a
fic in honor of you one day... If my violent muse does not kill me
first...



Take a Bad Song And Make It Better

by Chibimono Akuno

/lyrics by Paul McCartney/



\"Aren\'t you even going to tell me what you are going to do?\"

Draco Malfoy looked over at his friend and shook his head. \"No,\" was
all he said.

\"You\'re sadistic, you know,\" pouted Harry Potter. \"I don\'t even know
why I gave in and let us become friends anymore.\"

The blonde broke out in wild laughter. \"Oh Potter! You\'re pouting!\"
Draco nearly fell out his seat. \"You look like such the little child!
Are you going to pitch a fit as well? Perhaps throw a tantrum?\"

Harry only rolled his eyes anghedghed. Then Draco\'s laughter became
contagious. He snickered at first and soon was swept into the laughter.
They continued on way way until they were spotted by Hermione Granger
and Ron Weasley who had just entered the Great Hall for lunch. After
Draco recounted the event of pouting with the new arrivals, another
bou lau laughter broke out at Harry\'s expense. Harry got up from his
seat with a wave to his Slytherin friend and moved to the Gryffindor
table along with his house mates.

Draco smirked at the back of the retreating students, his former
enemies. If his father had not been a failun thn the eyes of the Dark
Lord, this easy friendship would never exist. Though he missed his
father and mother greatly, he smiled as he saw it really was for the
better.

His father was imprisoned at Azkaban at the end of his fifth year at
Hogwarts for attacking the Ministry of Magic and Harry Potter. At the
time, Draco had wanted to place the blame all on Harry. Since then his
feelings on the subject had shifted, placing the blame solely on his
father and his ridiculous following of the walking dead known as
Voldemort. After all, it was Voldemort that sent the orders to Azkaban
for anyone to kill Lucius Malfoy. At the beginning of his sixth year,
he was fatherless, and two months into the term, he was motherless as
well. Voldemort saw that she was dead, too. If Draco had not been at
Hogwarts, he, too, would have been struck with Avada Kedavra.

It was Potter that approached Draco first, holding out a hand in
apology and consolation, while they were sitting at dinner in the Great
Hall.

\"I know how it is to be without parents,\" he said softly, an expression
of pure sorrow on his face. \"It may be more painful for you, since you
got know your parents, but, I still know how you feel.\"

Draco had flew into a rage at that, claiming that Potter knew nothing
about how he felt and that he didn\'t need condolences from the likes of
him. From the Slytherin table, Draco had stormed off and had a good cry
in privacy. That night, in bed, he ranted to himself over Potter\'s
stupidity. Then he remembered the look on the boy\'s face, the look of
complete misery, and how kindly he had spoken. Draco began to wonder
why he had done it and how much courage it took to muster all that
emotion. Unless it was some sort of prank... But, no. The loss of
parents was a touchy subject for Potter, even if the boy put up a good
front regarding it.

It was the next day when Draco approached Potter. He pulled Potter
aside and down an empty corridor after double potions and apologized.
\"I flew off the broom handle at dinner yesterday. I did not mean to be
that undignified... and I am... sorry...\" he said with gritted teeth.
Potter\'s face blossomed into the brightest and most relieved smile
Draco had ever seen. It was followed up with the words, \"I won\'t take
it personally then,\" and, \"If you need to talk, I am more than willing
to help.\" With a quick clap on the shoulder, Potter had turned and
left, leaving behind a very confused and mentally short-circuited Draco
Malfoy.

How anyone could be so trusting and kind, even to his own worse rival
and archenemy, was beyond Draco. Maybe it was a Gryffindor thing? But
Potter was sincere and Draco decided he would pursue this sincerity to
see if there was another reason behind it.

It was all the modivation he needed to find himself suddenly on the
other side of the fence. Because it was then that Draco had learned
just how trusting and friendly Harry Potter could be. The friendship
Draco had been seeking among his Slytherin house mates was only found
in Blaise Zabini, but even there something was lacking. In months,
Draco realized that something he was looking for he found right there
in Harry and in his spitfire rise to every challenge Draco threw at
him. This was the playful intelligence and snappy charm he was
searching for.

Dark Lord and family duty be damned! Draco Malfoy found he was becoming
best friends with Harry Potter. Over time he even came to admire
Granger\'s brilliance. He was still at ends with the Weasel until a
forced game of chess found them both extremely challenged. Draco
finally admitted defeat with amazement and he was finally able to see
Weasley in a new light. Through Potter, no, Harry, all grudges seemed
to slip from Draco into the world with the memories of his living
parents and the Death Eaters he left behind.

With Granger and Weasley becoming closer and closer, finally announcing
that they decided to begin dating, Harry was being left behind more and
more. Draco willingly took up the place beside his friend, influencing
each other into a much more subdued, but nevertheless just as
troublesome, ruckus. Hateful taunting of the underclass became good
humored, yet riotous teasing. They dueled constantly in the hallways
for entertainment and practice, promising to always keep each other on
their toes. Because of Harry\'s funding into Weasley\'s Wizard Wheezes,
he received nearly weekly packages of new and prototype products. Harry
Potter and Draco Malfoy quickly took up the spot of school pranksters
left behind by the infamous Weasley Twins. Draco shared with Harry
impressive magic that belonged in his family for generations. Harry
shared with Draco the wonders of the Muggle world.

By the end of their sixth year, they were inseparable.

Since Draco was without parents, he was not able to return to Malfoy
Manor that summer. Dumbledore pulled strings for the boy at Harry\'s
request, and Draco found himself at Number Twelve Grimmauld Place, in
the mists of the Order of the Phoenix. He told them every secret he
knew about the Death Eaters that summer and, in exchanged, received
their promised of protection.

Harry visited once a week to spend a day with the blonde, giving Draco
a CD player and batteries and letting him borrow different CDs he had
purloined off of his cousin Dudley. Very quickly, Muggle music became
one of Draco\'s favorite things. To Harry\'s surprise, Draco especially
liked the Beatles.

\"What\'s so wrong with that?\" the blonde had asked.

Harry smiled \"Their actually my favorite band, too.\"

\"Really?\" Draco was happy to find another common bond with his friend.
\"Which song is your favorite?\"

After a moment of thought, the Gryffindor nodded. \"I like style=\"font-style: italic;\">Hey Jude. I would have to say that
one is my favorite.\"

That night, Draco listened to the CDs again, and found that he, too,
liked Hey Jude.

When school started up again, Harry and Draco willingly went back.
Seventh year was supposed to be the greatest year of their schooling
lives, even if they needed to get ready for their N.E.W.T.s. For Harry,
everything was perfect. He had the classes he wanted, he had the best
friends in the world, and Mandy Brocklehurst had gotten the courage to
ask if he was interested. Of course he was! He had fancied her since
half-way through last term, he just did not have the gall to talk to
her after the experience he had with Cho Chang.

Draco should have been ecstatic for his friend, afall all Pansy
Parkinson had been hanging all over him since first year... That is, up
until his father died. Her family did not want her associating with a
failure\'s son. It was not like he cared; Draco could not stand Pansy
anyways. He could not put his finger on it, but he felt funny about
Harry seeing Mandy. Look at Hermione and Ron. They were there for
Harry, but they spent more time with each other than with him. Would
Harry do that to Draco? Was Draco... jealous...?

Absolutely not! Never! No way in the Wizarding world!

Yes.

It was stupid to feel that way, he knew, but he could not help it.
Since his parents had died, Harry had always been there for him. He had
really gotten attached to the green-eyed boy... When he had noticed
Harry\'s eyes were green, he did not remember... But, Merlin! They were
a beautiful green...

Harry only really saw Mandy on Hogsmeade weekends and every once in a
while between classes. Other than that, Harry and Draco were joined at
the hip, as they say. For that, Draco was grateful. When Harry was not
with him, he felt rather lonely.

\"So, what do you think?\" Harry said, flopping down in a seat across
from Draco at the Slytherin table before dinner one evening in early
October.

\"What do I think of what, precisely?\" the other boy returned, a slim
blonde eyebrow raised in question.

The raven-haired boy leaned forward to put his elbow on the table and
his chin on his upturned palm. He was looking at Draco over his round
frames before he pushed them up his nose, and said conspiratorially,
\"Mandy. What do you think of Mandy?\"

Draco was suddenly aware that he was not thinking. He was steadily
staring at those amazing green eyes. Where the hell did this boy get
green eyes? And why in Morgana\'s name were they so alluring... Gods!
Alluring! Not good thoughts, Draco decided to himself. He shook his
head to clear his thoughts and recalled the question.

\"I think she\'s intelligent, but I know she\'s not my type,\" the blonde
found himself saying.

Snickering into his palm, Harry smiled brilliantly. \"Yes, compared to
Pansy, she\'s too much chest for you, hm?\"

\"Way too much,\" Draco said a little too fast.

A dark eyebrow quirked. \"What is your type, Draco?\"

Anything with green eyes, Draco thought.

Draco was so glad he closed his mouth before he spoke. He made a show
of thinking about it. \"Beautiful eyes. Intelligent. Tall. Nice arse.\"
Harry Potter.

No! Not now! Where were these thoughts coming from?

Harry gave a snort. \"I didn\'t think you were an arse man.\"

A roll of his eyes. \"Did you think I was a tit man, like you? Oh gods
no, Harry! In my opinion, boobs are for boobs,\" he drawled in return.

Sitting up straight from his slouched position, Harry gave Draco a
critical look. \"Don\'t like boobs. But you like arse. Is there something
you are not telling me Draco?\"

Gray eyes turned to his friend in annoyance. \"Are you trying to imply
something strange?\"

Harry\'s expression became serious. \"Please don\'t be offended, but may I
ask if you are gay?\"

Draco glared icy gray daggers. \"Absolutely not! You may not ask me.
But, it seems you already have!\"

Green eyes went wide, and Draco forced himself to look away. \"You are,
aren\'t you?\" The Gryffindor asked, his tone low.

\"I don\'t know.\" The blonde could not meet his friend\'s eyes.

\"You don\'t know?\"

\"This is just hitting me now!\" Draco nearly yelled in frustration.
\"Stupid Gryffindorks and their ridiculous curiosity!\" He turned on
Harry with the most venomous expression to see a look on the boy\'s face
that closely resembled the preverbial puppy being kicked. \"I\'m
sorry...\" Draco found himself saying softly, knowing that he had hurt
the other boy\'s feelings. \"I just don\'t know what is wrong with me... I
just don\'t know...\"

And truly, he did not know. Until Harry had brought up the word
\"gay\"... He really had no idea what to call his slowly twisting
feelings. He was not really interested in females in any way. Well, he
had been, just like every other teenaged boy, but they did not seem as
appealing as he thought they would. And truthfully, he was not
interested in males either... Just Green Eyes right there across from
him. The realization had come to him so suddenly.

\"This isn\'t going to ruin a good friendship... is it?\" The seriousness
returned to Harry\'s face.

Draco swallowed a lump that was stuck in his throat. \"If you don\'t mind
that I might turn out to be gay, I would like us to remain friends.\"

The Gryffindor smiled and nodded. He rose from the table as he saw
Hermione and Ron coming in the Great Hall. \"Good! Then I will see you
in the library for our potions essays after dinner!\"

Their friendship remained as it had. Harry did not push Draco away or
think any different of his friend. In fact, it felt to Draco that Harry
had forgotten the conversation completely. At first it seemed like a
good thing that the raven-haired boy had forgotten... But over time,
the feelings seemed to get worse. Draco began having dreams about Harry
Potter. He was thinking about Harry Potter\'s body in ways that were
extremely inappropriate for double Potions class. He was swearing to a
god in which he did not believe that if Harry Potter brushed up against
him one more time, he was going to forget that the other boy was
straight and that they were in a class full of other students, and have
his wicked wicked way with him. He needed no one\'s body, except for
Harry Potter\'s.

Suddenly it seemed jealousy began to run rampant. Of course Draco
wanted Harry; the blonde felt he always would. But now Mandy was
showing signs of unrest. In short order, Harry was walking her to every
class, everyday, even when it made him late to class. She wanted to
talk to him before lunch and dinner, instead of letting Harry sit at
the Slytherin table those few moments before the meals started. When he
was not practicing Quidditch during the evenings or on the weekends,
she found some way for them to be together.

\"This is our last year here, Harry,\" Draco heard her say one evening as
they drifted into the Great Hall for dinner. \"Let\'s spend as much time
together as we can. Who knows what will happen when we graduate from
here.\" Harry was about to say he was going to be an Auror when he was
quickly cut off by a squeal from his girlfriend as he was dragged
forward to her little group of giggling girlie friends.

Draco was sickened by the way she hung all over Harry in front of her
friends. A growing trend began to form right before the blonde\'s eyes.
He knew Harry would never betray his trust, so he knew that Mandy had
no idea that he was sexually undecided. But it was becoming obvious to
Draco that Mandy was trying to keep Harry away from him. Did she really
think Draco was a threat? She better! But she was going about the
situation the wrong way. No one keeps anything Draco wants away from
him.

With the N.E.W.T.s coming along later in the year, Draco made more and
more study dates with Harry. Since grades were more important to Harry,
he apologized to Mandy and willingly went with Draco for studying. She
tried throwing guilt trips at the raven-haired boy, but he knew where
his priorities lay, and so did Draco. Once while Harry\'s back was
turned, the Slytherin was on the receiving end of a bitter sneer. Just
because he was friends with Harry now and was much kinder, it did not
mean that he was no longer the Crowned Prince of Wicked Slytherin Ways.
He jinxed her face to remain frozen with the sneer for three days.

On a cold November afternoon, Harry and Draco sat in the back corner of
the library. It was their favorite place to study, as no one could even
tell they were there unless they walked around a row of bookshelves.
The table where they sat was pushed up against a wall and the bright
early winter sun came streamin. in. Text books were open all over the
table and parchment was unrolled and half-filled.

The blonde was reading over his notes from Transfiguration class when
Harry, who was leaning against the shelf beside Draco, spoke without
looking up from the book he was reading. \"Justin Finch-Fletchley is
gay.\"

\"So I hear,\" came the uncaring reply. \"Good for him.\" Why was Harry
bringing that up?

\"Well, um... If you think you may be, er... gay, then...\"

Draco looked up to see the raven-haired boy blushing. How cute! But
suddenly green eyes met gray. Draco forced a polite smile. \"Unless it
bothers you, don\'t worry about my sexuality, Harry. Besides,
Finch-Fletchley isn\'t my type.\"

Harry frowned. \"He\'s tall. He\'s rather intelligent for a Hufflepuff.
Girls say he has nice eyes and great ars-\"

Putting a hand up to stop the boy as he realized Harry was repeating
his preferences in the shape of another person. No, no one was to match
those characteristics but Harry Potter, and nothing could change
Draco\'s mind. \"Harry, don\'t worry about it.\"

The Gryffindor passed behind the other boy\'s seat to get to his own.
Sitting down, he turned to his friend and all his words came out in a
rush.

\"I feel so bad. I know you still hang out with Zabini, Crabbe, and
Goyle, but, like you said, they were never really your friends. I\'m
your friend, but when I\'m with Mandy... And you\'ve got no one! I mean,
I really like hanging around with you, really I do, but I feel bad
about leaving you behind because she wants to do this or do that-\"

They were so close, sitting knee to knee. The green eyes boy\'s face was
so serious and full of emotion. Draco loved that. Just the fact that
every feeling Harry felt showed on his face made Draco love him more.
Love? Yes, Draco now loved Harry Potter, among other things. He took
the fidgeting hands in his own and smiled. \"Don\'t worry, Harry. I\'m
happy right now. Thank you for caring, though.\"

Draco was lightheaded as he looked at Harry; those green eyes so full
worry and care. He was sure the dizziness was even more from the fact
that he could feel the warm breath coming from his friend\'s parted
lips. They wer clo close... And there was this feeling in the
Slytherin\'s chest, a feeling that was pulling him towards Harry like a
magnet... A feeling to capture those parted lips.

Suddenly a nervousness showed on Harry\'s face, and Draco could not help
but to wonder if his own desire showed on his face. He watched as the
dark-haired boy quickly turned back to the book he had set down on the
table a few moments before.

\"Thank you, Harry,\" Draco had whispered again as he returned to his
work. Out the corner of his eyes, he saw a flush spread across Harry\'s
face, and fought off a deep sigh.

The discussion was never approached again.

Harry continued to see Mandy, and everyone thought they were the cutest
couple in the whole school. Draco and Harry continued with their study
dates, working and joking as friends normally do. In his free time, the
blonde spoke with Blaise Zabini, Vincent Crabbe, and Gregory Goyle
about Muggle music. He convinced them to start a small band, and they
practiced covers of Beatles songs. By early spring, they were really
quite decent. On some afternoons, Harry watched the practice sessions.
Draco\'s heart flip-flopped when Harry nearly squealed, so excited that
the blonde had managed to mimic Paul McCartney\'s voice and pitch
perfectly.

\"When you become famous for music, you\'ll let me be your groupie, won\'t
you?\" Harry asked, looking quite star struck. Draco nodded and with a
smile he told him of course.

It was some time in March when there was an announcement of a talent
show that was to take place in the Great Hall the day after the N.E.W.T
exams were over. The students were quite amazed at this sudden new
tradition; nevertheless they were alry ery excited. Between studying
for the exams and the upcoming talent show, Hogwarts was heavy with
hustle and bustle. Draco was juggling study time with Harry and
practice time with the band. In the end, the exams seemed like a cake
walk compared to the sudden nervousness that was filling him about the
upcoming show. He had this funny idea to woo Harry through music. He
knew it would not work, but he would try. The thought made him quite
anxious.

\"Draco Malfoy? Nervous?\" Harry asked, his expression incredulous. \"I
didn\'t think those words could be packaged in a sentence together.\"

With a growl, Draco turned to his friend. \"You think it\'s so easy, do
you?\"

The raven-haired boy shrugged and laughed. \"You got yourself into this.
Don\'t take it out on me.\"

The blonde sighed, the only voice of agreement he uttered. \"I know. And
the show must go on!\"

\"Yes, keep psyching yourself up,\" Harry grinned. \"You only have until
after dinner this evening.\"

A role of gray eyes. \"Must you continue to remind me?\"

\"Sure. The show is after dinner tonight. Don\'t forget!\" Harry burst
into another appeal of laughter.

\"Bugger off!\"

\"Aren\'t you even going to tell me what you are going to do?\"

Draco Malfoy looked over at his friend and shook his head. \"No,\" was
all he said.

\"You\'re sadistic, you know,\" pouted Harry Potter. \"I don\'t even know
why I gave in and let us become friends anymore.\"

The blonde broke out in wild laughter. \"Oh Potter! You\'re pouting!\"
Draco nearly fell out his seat. \"You look like such the littlild!ild!
Are you going to pitch a fit as well? Perhaps throw a tantrum?\"

Harry only rolled his eyes and sighed, before Draco\'s laughter became
contagious. He snickered at first and soon was swept into the laughter.
They continued on that way until they were spotted by Hermione Granger
and Ron Weasley who had just entered the Great Hall for lunch. After
Draco recounted the event of pouting with the new arrivals, and another
bout of laughter all around at Harry\'s expense, Harry got up from his
seat with wave to his Slytherin friend and moved to the Gryffindor
table with his house mates.

\"So, is Malfoy ready to make an arse of himself this evening?\" Ron
asked Harry in the old venomous tone that had now become a teasing
manner.

Harry shook his head laughing. \"I should hope not! He says he thinks he
could be ready for the big time. He\'s so full of himself sometimes,
it\'s just ridiculous!\"

\"Well, he is Draco Malfoy, after all,\" Hermione smiled.

The raven-hair boy nodded to that. He knew his friend all too well;
perhaps better than he wanted to.

\"Did he even tell you what they were going to play?\" Ron wondered.

\"No,\" Harry said dejectedly. He wished he knew. There was something
important he needed to do. Maybe I would help him along with the talk
he was going to have with Mandy this evening.

The talent show started right after dinner that evening. The Head table
disappeared to become a stage when the teachers rose from their seats.
Students played piano, sang, and told jokes. Seamus Finnigan and Dean
Thomas just about brought the house down with their hilarious parody of
Harry and Draco\'s former rivalry. The next act of the evening took a
few moments to set up, which gave Harry terfeerfect opportunity to get
Mandy\'s attention and lead her out the Great Hall. He pulled her aside
from the doors, but remained close enough to hear the acts continuing.

\"Mandy,\" he said slowly, his heart hammering in his chest. \"There is
something I want to talk to you about...\"

She was looking at him with her full attention. He could tell she knew
she was not going to like what he had to say. \"Tell me, Harry. A
relationship is nothing if there are secrets between us.\"

He kept his eyes to the ground. He could not look at her, seeing her
face was going to make it hard. It was going to make him feel guilty...
Guilty for looking for his own happiness. This was not the right
relationship for him. She would never last with the Order of the
Phoenix or in a battle against Voldemort. He could not have her at his
side.

\"Have you been seeing someone behind my back?\" she nearly demanded at
his sile \"I \"It\'s Malfoy, isn\'t it? I knew he was gay! You\'ve been
cheating on me with Malfoy!\"

\"No!\" Harry said quickly, bringing himself to look at her, even though
he did not want to. \"All this time, he and I have only been friends.
Only friends!\"

She did not look convinced. \"What do you want to talk about, then?\"

\"I want to be honest with you, Mandy,\" Harry said softly. \"I\'m sorry,
but... I don\'t think I ever really loved you to begin with.\" She looked
flabbergasted, to say the least, but he plowed on. \"Don\'t get me wrong.
You are a sweet and loving girl... But I don\'t think I am what you
need. I might die any day now. Lord Voldemort,\" to which she flinched,
\"is still after me. Nothing has happened within the past two years,
but, you know, he will not rest until I am dead. Do you really want to
be involved with that?\"

\"A fine time to get a case of the morals, Harry!\" Mandy replied, a
haughtiness covering her hurt tones.

Harry looked at her seriously, his voice still low. \"You won\'t make it
in my world. I want someone beside me who can!\"

\"FINE!\" she yelled. \"Go get Malfoy! I\'m sure he could give you
everything you want!\"

She stormed of, leaving behind a rather deflated Harry. That was not
what he wanted to happen. Why don\'t things ever work out right between
him and girls? Harry sighed.

The final act of the evening was being announced; Viridis, Draco\'s
band. Harry went back into the Great Hall and leaned against the wall
between two sets of entrance doors. He watched as Draco, dressed in a
green button up silk shirt and tight velvet pants, walked on to the
stage to take the stool at the piano. Blaise and Gregory joined him on
stage with their guitars and Vincent parked behind the drum set, all
wearing green tops and black slacks.

Draco struck the familiar cords and his voice picked up perfectly in
time, harmonizing with the melody. Harry held his breath as Draco began
to sing to him his favorite song.

/Hey Jude, don\'t make it bad. style=\"font-style: italic;\">
Take a sad song and make it better. style=\"font-style: italic;\">
Remember to let him into your heart, st style=\"font-style: italic;\">
Then you can start to make it better./

The simple change of words caught Harry\'s ears. \"Remember to let *him*
into your heart\"? Draco changed the gender. Why?

/Hey Jude, don\'t be afraid. style=\"font-style: italic;\">
You were made to go out and get him. style=\"font-style: italic;\">
The minute you let him under your
skin,

Then you begin to make it better./

In his heart, Harry felt it. There was a purpose to this song as Draco
sung it. Why else would he not tell Harry what he would be singing his
favorite song? Why else would he change the lyrics? \"What are you
trying to tell me?\"

/Anytimytime you feel the pain, hey
Jude, refrain,

Don\'t carry the world upon your
shoulders.

For well you know that it\'s a fool
who plays it cool

By making his world a little colder./

He felt his lips moving of their own accord to mouth the lyrics with
the blonde Slytherin. He found himself moving through the crowd of
swaying and humming students.

/Na na na na na na, na na na, hey
Jude.../

He was finding his way to Draco.

/Hey Jude, don\'t let me down. style=\"font-style: italic;\">
You have found him, now go and get
him.

Remember et het him into your heart, style=\"font-style: italic;\">
Then you can start to make it better./

He was up against the stage, his hands resting on it where it came up
to his waist. He was standing right in front of the piano. Right beside
his friend as the boy pounded on the keys and sang along to the melody.

/So let it out and let it in, hey
Jude, begin,

You\'re waiting for someone to perform
with.

And don\'t you know that it\'s just
you, hey Jude, you\'ll do,

The movement you need is on your
shoulder./

The pieces were falling into place in his mind. Harry knew the reason
for the song now. He suddenly knew more about Draco than he thought he
knew. And before he thought he had knew all about the Slytherin. But he
was a Slytherin, after all and they do keep their secrets.

/Na na na na na na, na na na, hey
Jude.../

Harry had been oblivious for a long time. And with his eyes open,
finally… He knew the truth.

/Hey Jude, don\'t make it bad. style=\"font-style: italic;\">
Take a sad song and make it better. style=\"font-style: italic;\">
Remember to let him under your skin, style=\"font-style: italic;\">
Then you\'ll begin to make it style=\"font-style: italic;\">
Better better better better better
better, HEY!/

Draco lead the whole student body in rousing chorus. They all got out
of their seats and danced with one another as he banged on the keys and
sang out the final repeating notes, wildly breaking in just as the
original artist of the song had.

Draco per chanced to look at the stage’s edge and found green eyes with
their full attention on him and only him. They looked star struck once
again, with a hint of something else. He smiled his brightest and
brought the song in to its end. Even as the instruments stopped, the
students continued singing, filing out of the Great Hall and into the
corridors. The school was filled with the wonderful tune.

The musicians were ushered off stage, and Draco suddenly found himself
wrapped in warm arms. He breathed it in surprise and breathed in the
deep scent of butterscotch that was so familiar. “Thank you,” came an
even more familiar deep voice against his ear.

Oh, Harry…

Something was slipped into Draco’s hand and he held it tight as Harry
pulled away from the friendly embrace and walked down the aisles to the
doors of the Great Hall. When his friend was out of sight, he opened
the parchment in his hand.

_ D -

   Meet me in the Astronomy Tower at midnight tonight.

   I want to talk to you about Mandy.

 -H_

Something caught in his chest. Harry looked so happy. He didn’t… No,
Harry would have said something to Draco if he was going to propose to
her. What did he want to talk about?

The blonde found himself on pins and needles all the way up until
midnight. He had been to the Astronomy Tower after hours before with
Pansy, but nothing ever went anywhere between them. Walking through the
hall, he heard some scuffling and muffled sounds of other students.
Draco desperately focused his mind on other things as not to hear them.


Looking in a small room, he found Harry, sitting silently with a candle
lighting his face. Draco shut the door behind him and moved towards his
friend. “I’m here,” his voice drifted out in a whisper from his dry
mouth. “What did you want to talk about?”

“We don’t have much longer here at Hogwarts, do we?” Harry said softly,
his tones sounding melancholy as Draco took the seat beside him. “Just
a few more days, and then we are gone from here.”

The Slytherin nodded. “Yes. But we will still see each other, you and
I. We will both live at Grimmauld Place, right? You’re not going back
to the Dursley’s.”

In the candle light, Draco could see a smile brighten on Harry’s face.
“You will stay with me, then?”

“Of course, you git!” laughed the blonde. “You are my friend. You
offered me a place to live. I still don’t have anywhere else to go, you
know. At least, not until the Dark Lord is killed. Besides, I want to
be right there with you when you kill that wanking bastard!”

“I want you there with me.”

A breath caught in Draco’s throat.

“I went to break up with Mandy today…” Harry said, sounding nervous.
“Well, she sort of… turned around and… dumped me first…”

The words, “I’m sorry,” had to be forced out of Draco’s mouth. He could
not breathe. Did he want to hear this? Was Harry going to say what he
wanted him to say?

“She could never live with me, you know… With all that has happened
and… What will happen in the future…”

This was true, Draco thought. And staying beside Harry, he knew he
would be dragged into it all. But at least he knew he was going
willingly, and not forced, like he would have with his family.

A silence fell between the two boys. It was Harry that broke the quiet.

“You were singing about yourself, weren’t you?”

Mercury eyes flew up to meet emerald shielded by glass flickering with
candle light. “You knew?”

“When you changed the lyrics.”

Sighing, Draco shook his head. “I’m sorry, Harry. I promised myself I
would not reach out to you. You are my friend, and-“

“Since we have learned to trust each other, we have both been there we
the need came,” Harry whispered, quieting his friend. Slowly, aing ing
Draco to refuse, the raven-haired boy took his hand. “If you promise to
be there for me no matter what happens, I will be there for you just
the same.”

“I promise,” said the blonde, his voice choked in a small sob. Oh gods!
What was Harry doing to him!

Harry gasped and brought his free hand to Draco’s cheek. “Oh please!
Don’t cry. I didn’t mean to hurt you-”

“No, I’m just happy!” Draco smiled. He closed his eyes and leaned his
face into Harry’s warm hand, gently nuzzling it. He opened them when he
heard a rasped sigh from the other boy’s mouth. The candle\'s flame made
a bouncing glare on Harry’s glasses, and without thinking, Draco
brought his hand up to pull them off. Those green eyes… They looked so
lost. Like Harry was staring at a daydream.

“I never thought to look at you this way,” Harry said slowly, as if his
mind was drugged and it was difficult for him to think. “You are very
beautiful…” His thumb slid across Draco’s pouting bottom lip. Tears
made a slow stream down Draco’s face. The Gryffindor moved ever so
slowly forward, and brought his lips to the wet tracks, kissing them so
lightly away. “You’ve loved me for a long time…” came the warm breathe
against his cheek. “Haven’t you…?”

“Oh Harry!” Draco found himself melting. This was like a sudden slice
of heaven. When did he lose it all, his composure, his confidence, his
strengtis pis pride? When did he become putty in Harry Potter’s hands?
When he knew Harry cared. He could not ever recall his mother and
father caring as deeply as Harry did. It hurt to remember it, but at
least he knew he was loved now.

Harry pulled the boy into his arms, against his body. “Don’t cry,
Draco… I have you,” he whispered so kindly into the blonde’s ear.

“I love you,” Draco whispered to his former enemy. He turned to look at
those green eyes he love muc much, but his own eyes slipped closed as
his lips met with Harry’s instead.



~ the end ~