The Bet
Chapter VIII - Intuition
Harry/Draco, Harry/OMC, Harry/OFC, Draco/OFC, Seamus/Ginny, Ron/Hermione, Neville/Luna
R/NC-17 | 2,921 words | 2004-present
Beta: Eva
Summary:AU. Post-war. It all started with a little bet. Draco Malfoy has never been one to back down from a perfectly do-able bet. But when that bet involves Harry Potter? Draco is realising that this bet is not as cut and dry as it seems, nor as easy...
Notes: Written before HBP and DH.
***
Have you ever had that feeling like something's going
on behind your back, but every time you try to find out what it is,
it completely evades you, and you're left wondering if you're just
exceedingly paranoid for no reason?
Well, that's how Harry Potter felt at this moment.
He was sure there was something going on between Hermione,
Ron and Neville; something to do with him, and if he knew his friends
well enough, and he'd like to think he did, than he knew that they
were just like him: curious enough to kill the cat five times over,
and brave enough to find out all about it first.
And again, he knew that nothing of any great importance
was really going on in his life (well, perhaps except his increasing
friendships with Malfoy and Raven), so he also knew that Hermione
was probably trying to make a mountain out of a mole hill with the
small showing of friendly affection that had passed between him and
Raven on Sunday afternoon.
It was now Thursday; three days after he cried on
Malfoy's shoulder, and there had been no other contact with either
of the Slytherins. But that night, when Hermione, Ron and Neville
all went over to Number Two, 'just to get some class notes,' he had
the distinct feeling that he was being left out of something. And
so, being the most curious Gryffindor of all (probably enough to flat
out take all nine lives), he snuck out after them, grabbing his broom
so he could hover just outside Hermione's window and see what all
the fuss was about.
He knew he really shouldn't eavesdrop on his friends,
but since their behaviour was so odd, he felt that he should at least
see if there was anything untoward about their little meeting. He
was even more suspicious when he saw Hermione cast a silencing spell
on the room. And knowing that he couldn't hear anything, he was about
to just give up when he studied Hermione's face and the words her
mouth was forming. Something about...Raven...likes Harry and
Malfoy...I'm still suspicious, but that...mean that...I think everything
will be fine...let Harry...
But she was talking too fast for Harry to really
catch anything more, and Ron and Neville weren't facing him. Lip-reading
was hard. Even with Hermione's slight push of the perfect enunciation
of words. So Harry landed and headed back to Number One, letting what
little pieces of information he had mull around in his mind, trying
to find a logical explanation for it all. It was like opening an old
box of puzzle pieces, only to realise a few hours later, that nearly
half of the pieces had been lost at one point in time.
So all that Harry could really gather, but which
was more like an assumption, really, was that Hermione must have talked
to Raven. How else would she have known how Raven felt about him and
Malfoy? Harry was a little put off that he couldn't find out what
the trio was going to do with that information, but realised that
he really couldn't care less. He was tired of everyone messing with
his life. It was time he took a bit more control of where his life
was going. And with that decision, he put his broom away and made
his way back outside, across the courtyard and over to Number Four.
***
"What do you mean, Raven likes Harry and Malfoy?
How can she like two people at once?"
"Ron, it's really not all that hard." Hermione said.
"You can't help who you become attracted to."
"What do you mean? Do you like someone else?"
"No, of course not."
"Then how can you say-"
"Do you remember Victor Krum?" she cut off.
"Yeah, of course I remember that ugly, Bulgarian,
sorry excuse for a-"
"Well, I liked you both. You and Victor. But
you were being such a prat at the time that I-"
"Me? How was I being a prat?"
"Um, guys, can we get back to subject?" Neville said
in a rather timid voice.
Ron huffed slightly; obviously not ready to let it
go. Slouching on the bed and crossing his arms, he said, "Yeah. Fine."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "As I was saying, I'm still
slightly suspicious, but Raven didn't seem to be trying to hide anything.
If she wanted to keep me in the dark, she could have."
"Who says she's not just lying to you? About everything?"
Hermione thought for a moment. How to explain
this... She settled on, "Women's intuition, I guess."
Ron deadpanned for a moment. "Women's intuition?"
"Yes." Since Ron was obviously not buying it, and
Neville just seemed rather confused by the whole mess, she said, "Look,
I just think it would be better if we just let it be. We should trust
Harry's instincts. They are the reason most of us are still
alive today. Besides, Raven seemed to be very aware of how Harry has
been doing lately, and genuinely wanted to help."
Ron sighed. "Well, I suppose so..."
"Well...if you still feel weird about it, why not
talk to Harry yourself, Ron?" Neville said.
Ron smiled. "That's a good idea, Neville."
"Thanks."
"So, that's settled then?" Hermione said. "Ron, you're
going to talk to Harry, and then we're just going to leave it alone
for now?"
"Yeah," came the simultaneous response.
Hermione smiled. "Good."
***
To say that Raven was a bit surprised to see Harry
at such a late hour on a Thursday was actually quite true. She tried
to not let anything take her by surprise, and as such, politely invited
Harry inside and upstairs to her room, where they could have at least
a little bit of privacy.
Daphne Greengrass was sitting on her bed, trying
in vain to get through her Arithmancy homework when Raven walked in
with none other than Harry Potter.
"Daphne, I'm not sure you guys ever met, but this
is-"
"Harry Potter. I know." She quirked up an eyebrow
at the girl then turned her gaze over to Harry.
Harry just stood there, his hands shoved in his pockets
and looking altogether a bit nervous. "Hello, Daphne," he said.
"Hello...Harry." It was only polite to say his first
name when he said hers, after all.
At the rather awkward atmosphere, Raven cleared her
throat and asked, "Daphne, I don't mean to be rude, but do you think
Harry and I could have a moment alone? I don't want to interrupt your
studying or anything..."
"No," Daphne said quickly. "It's fine. I was just
thinking of taking a break anyway. Arithmancy still is a hard one
for me. Just call me when I can come back up." And then with a rather
calculating look at the dark-haired, green-eyed pair, she scooted
off her bed and out the door, closing it behind her.
Raven turned to Harry. "So...Harry. What do you want
to talk about?" Sitting on her bed, she patted the space next to her.
Blushing slightly, Harry sat down next to her, leaning
his elbows on his knees. "Er...well, it's not a secret or anything...I
was just...well, I've decided to take you up. On your modelling proposition."
Raven's eyes lit up and she smiled. "Really?"
"Yes. And you really don't have to pay me. I don't
want payment."
A smirk placed itself on Raven's lips and she said,
"And may I ask what provoked you to want to do this for me?"
Harry shrugged. "I just wanted to try something new,
I guess. And you needed help with your paintings anyway."
Raven nodded in understanding. "So...what time is
good for you? I'm open all weekend."
"Well, I have Quidditch practice tomorrow after school,
but after that I'm open."
"That's right, I nearly forgot about your daily Quidditch
practice. Are you sure you won't be too worn out?"
"No, I'll be fine. I don't have morning class on
Fridays, so I can just catch up on my beauty sleep then," Harry grinned.
Raven chuckled. "Oh, yes. I'm sure you Gryffindors
need all the beauty sleep you can get."
"Hey, I don't just roll out of bed looking this good,
unlike you and Malfoy. It takes effort!" he joked back.
Raven rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, sure."
"Besides," Harry said, "I should probably let Malfoy
take on more of the practicing, and just watch."
"Why?"
"Because he doesn't get enough practice...and I've
been thinking of asking the captain if he'd let Malfoy play more often."
Raven cocked her head to the side. "What makes you
think he'd like to play more often?"
Harry shrugged. "I don't know. Seeker's intuition,
I guess. He's really not all that bad; he was my only real competition
at Hogwarts, after all."
"I think Draco would have a heart attack to hear
you complementing him."
Harry furrowed his brow quickly, like he just realised
that he did just complement his long-time rival. But he smiled and
said, "Now that's something I'd like to see."
Raven rolled her eyes. "And here I'd thought the
two of you had made progress."
"Really? Did Malfoy tell you that?"
"Sort of. He skimmed over the details, but did mention
that you seemed rather comfortable around him at some point Monday
night."
"Oh."
"Don't worry, Harry. Draco and I are both private
people. We both understand about keeping others' privacy. Like I said,
he really only told me that you guys seemed to have made some progress
in your relationship."
"We have. A little. But it's still strange." There
was a small pause before he said; "Anyway...I'm a little tired of
stealing the limelight all the time. Malfoy should have the same opportunity
I have to go pro, if he wants to, that is."
"What about you? Do you want to, Harry?"
"To be honest, I don't know. I mean, I'm studying
medicine on top of my N.E.W.T. classes, and I'd really like to work
at Hogwarts as Madam Pomfrey's apprentice, but I really love Quidditch
too. And it would give me the opportunity to go and see the world."
"Maybe you could try Seeking, and then work at Hogwarts,"
Raven suggested.
"Maybe. It's something to think about at least."
Harry chuckled. "You know, it's funny. Even though I've been studying
medicine for a few years now, I still feel like I don't know what
I want to do with my life."
"There's nothing wrong with that, Harry. Wizard's
lives are longer than muggles...you have plenty of time to figure
out what your true passions are."
Harry sighed, sagging slightly in defeat. "I know.
But it's just...well, I've never told anyone this, but...ever since
the war's been over, and I've had time to focus on other things besides
killing Voldemort, tracking down the remaining Death Eaters, and helping
the survivors...I've realised that I had never expected to survive
the war. I really thought I was going to die. That Voldemort would
take me down with him. It's something I think about everyday, even
as I throw myself into what ever it is I'm doing, to help forget about
it all."
Raven put an arm around Harry's shoulders. "To be
honest, I didn't quite expect that you felt that way, Harry. But a
part of me understands. I mean, I wished I could die...when
I was in the infirmary. But I couldn't. I couldn't do that to Draco,
I couldn't do that to my parents...I couldn't do that to myself. Draco,
Blaise and I...we're what's left of those who chose to follow the
Dark Lord, and now, all I can be, every day, is...grateful. Grateful
that we were given another chance at life, instead of killed or put
in Azkaban."
Harry smiled softly, realising what it was that Raven
was trying to say. "You're right, Raven. I really shouldn't be focusing
on feeling like I was supposed to die. I should focus on how I want
to live, and make the most out of it."
Raven ran a hand through his unruly hair. "Exactly,
Harry. You're still young. You should do whatever it is you fancy,
before you're so old that you become as bizarre as Dumbledore."
Harry laughed. "Could you imagine me, acting
like Dumbledore?"
Raven laughed too. "Not particularly, no."
When their laughter died down, the two looked at
each other for a moment, both forgetting the conversation momentarily,
and then the world started to revolve only around each other and their
sudden intimacy.
Raven felt those little butterflies flutter in her
stomach as she realised the close proximity of the Gryffindor. She
had never been this close to him; her arm was still around his shoulders,
her fingers were playing with his hair. She could count the freckles
on his nose; there were five. His cheeks were this constant flush
of pink, making it look like he was always blushing, and it was only
getting darker at the closeness of the nearly identical girl. Harry's
lips were parted slightly, and Raven noticed just how full his bottom
lip was, and how red the flesh was.
Harry was having a hard time breathing. The last
time he had been this close to a girl that he was attracted to, was
Cho. His spine tingled as her fingers massaged his scalp. He had thought
that Raven's skin was as fair and pale as Malfoy's, but now he noticed
that she had a few light freckles on her cheeks and nose, and a slight
flush to her skin, but he had a feeling that that wasn't normal for
her. Her green eyes were wide and searching, obviously looking at
him as well. And when her eyes landed on his lips, he automatically
looked down at hers as well.
Unconsciously, both parties leaned forward, and just
before their lips touched, they both jumped apart in shock.
"I...er..." Harry mumbled. Oh God.
"Yeah..." Raven breathed. Oh Goddess, what just
happened?
Harry fidgeted in his seat next to her. "Maybe I
should..."
"Yeah...I'll..."
"...See you tomorrow." Harry stood.
"Yeah." God, can't I say anything else?
"Bye, Raven." Harry quickly went to the door and
opened it.
"Bye, Harry." She watched as Harry left her bedroom.
As Harry walked back home, only one thought permeated
his mind:
Malfoy's going to kill me.
***
When Ron and Neville returned from Hermione's, Harry
was nowhere to be found. So Ron sat in the lounge and waited, hanging
around with Seamus and Owen, as they vainly tried to finish their
homework, but were too talkative to stay on track. After a few moments
of waiting, Harry finally came home, kicking off his shoes and wearily
trudging upstairs.
"Oi! Harry!"
Harry stopped his ascent to turn around and look
at his best mate. "Oh, hey Ron. What's up?"
"Where ya been?"
"Oh...over at Raven's."
Ron frowned slightly and said, "I see. Um...actually,
I was wondering if you had a minute to talk."
Harry was in a slight mental anguish at the moment,
considering what had just happened, but realised that Ron probably
wanted to talk about whatever it was exactly that Hermione had told
him. So he decided to just get it all over with, and see what the
three had decided to do.
"Yeah, sure. Come on up." And Harry started walking
up to his room again, waiting for Ron to follow him inside, and then
closed the door behind them. Flopping down on his bed, he asked, "What
do you want to talk about?"
Ron shifted his stance slightly. "Er...well, I was
wondering...how you felt about...Raven," he finished. Harry raised
an eyebrow. At his hesitation to answer, Ron continued. "You know
you can tell me anything, mate."
Harry sighed. "Yeah, I know. And to tell you the
truth...I'm not sure. I mean, I know I'm attracted to her, and I think
I might like her, I definitely feel comfortable with her, but...I
also know that she likes Malfoy, and he likes her. They've known each
other a lot longer, and I know I can't compete with that."
Ron nodded. "I see. So you're not going to do anything?"
Harry shrugged. "What can I do, really? Without over
stepping my bounds?" He shook his head. "No, I don't think I'll do
anything."
"But I thought...I thought that Raven liked you..."
Harry gazed back steadily at his friend. "Yes, she
does. And I suppose you and Hermione and Neville had to go find that
out for yourselves?" he said in an accusing tone.
Ron blushed and stammered, "Er, y-yeah. We did. Hermione
talked to Raven yesterday."
"I thought so."
"Are you mad?"
Harry sighed. "To be completely honest, yes. I'm
tired of everyone butting in on my business. And I know you guys are
just trying to look out for my best interests, but I wish you'd trust
my judgement."
"We do, mate, we do. But you have to agree, that
this situation is a little odd."
"I suppose so. Honestly though, it's just nice to
have some change right now. I was feeling like I was in a bit of a
rut there."
"I understand. Hermione and I just don't want you
getting forgotten as we both start focusing on the wedding as well
as N.E.W.T.'s."
"I know, Ron. But I'll be fine. Honest. I think I'm
just going to live life up a little. Do whatever takes my fancy. Have
more fun. Stuff like that."
"That's fine, mate. Just try and stay out of trouble,
eh?"
"I will, Ron. I will."
|
