Harry’s breakfast in the Great Hall that morning consisted of Ron’s yawning and Hermione’s relentless lecturing. Last night, Ron decided he’ll try the double date idea, under the condition that Harry and Ginny stayed with them during the date, like a chaperon system. More like bodyguard system, Harry thought. Hermione accepted the compromise helplessly. The news he even agreed surprised Harry. Ron only grumbled, “Hermione kept talking about it. I couldn’t talk to her normally anymore, not even about S.P.E.W. Passive-aggressive tactics. Merlin.”

Right now, Hermione was determined for the day to go well. Maybe more so after Ron’s hitman strategy involving Harry and Ginny’s abrupt participation. Ginny still didn’t know of their plans, so Harry hoped that she was free for the day. He’d be such a fifth wheel if he went alone.

“You have a bad habit of eye-rolling every time a Slytherin is in a five-feet radius,” Hermione, who sat beside Ron, chastised for the seventh time, “At least try to stop it.”

“Blimey. It’s called a habit for a reason,” Ron eyerolled. Goyle passed behind Ron simultaneously, by total coincidence. Harry snickered.

“What are you looking at?” Ron appeared usually aggravated this morning. Not hard to guess why.

“You just did it again,” Harry pointed out. Ron turned red, his freckles becoming even more prominent.

Hermione sighed, “Just seriously try to stop it.”

Harry’s eyes wandered to the Slytherin table. Pansy, Theo and Draco were yet to be seen. Their friend Blaise Zabini was at the table though, eliciting a few laughs from his friends as he hexed himself to breath blue-ember flames, the fire snarled dangerously close to a girl’s hair.

Ron followed Harry’s gaze.

“Can’t help it if this is what it is,” Ron pointed at Zabini behind him.

Hermione watched the fire performance with wary, “Pansy and Theo are safer than that.”

“Yeah right,” Ron snorted, taking an aggressive bite on his bread.

“Ron,” Hermione started with a warning manner.

“Sorry, just don’t want to let my girlfriend fall into one of their hexes,” Ron grumbled. Reasonable. After years of rivalry. Mocking. Bullying even. Harry knew Ron trusted Hermione, but the protective instincts were hard to turn off.

Ginny plopped down beside Harry moments later, not after stealing Ron’s yoghurt bowl.

“Seriously, you and Pansy felt like bloody soulmates with what you told me last night. Are you sure it’s not because someone finally agreed with you about house-elves?” Ron continued complaining.

“It’s called a healthy relationship,” Ginny inputted, annoyed at Ron’s as she threw an apple, aiming at her brother’s forehead, “I’m not sure which Pansy you guys are talking about though. Is it the fifth grade Hufflepuff?” Harry leaned in to tell Ginny as Hermione debated with Ron.

“We’ve made progress, me and Pansy” Hermione defended with pride, “The Ministry’s starting to listen. But, Ron, you must stop holding grudges if we want to move forward.”

“I know, kind of hard to change old habits though,” Ron muttered.

“There’s no enemy anymore. No us and no them. We all need to realize this, move on and grow-up,” Hermione said, mirroring Ron’s softer voice. She tangled her hand into Ron’s hair, mindlessly fiddling with the red curls. Ron just hummed comfortably at the gesture.

“Hermione’s right. Fixating on the past won’t help,” Harry stated. Some things need to stay in the past so new things could come. Their own, almost petty, rivalries needed to stop for the sake of every Slytherin student. For the past few days, Harry noticed, how they were automatically isolated by the other houses, how other student carry prejudices without even realizing, how they shut themselves out, masking indifference to the hostility. Harry hadn’t discovered for months, he regretted not finding out.

Harry glanced at Ginny. Her eyes were still wide, as her mouth hung in a small “o”. The girl still hadn’t recovered from the shock that Pansy was Pansy Parkinson, the presumed Slytherin bully.

Ginny went unnervingly quiet before she exploded, her eyes darted between the trio like the Golden Snitch in a game, “Hermione!”

“And Harry’s hanging out with the ferret,” Ron supplied, not bothered by the extra chaos, “And we need you to chaperone a double date for us.”

Ginny took another moment to comprehend, “You’re going on a date with Malfoy. Bloody hell, little gay.” She commented, still in a daze.

“No!” Harry spluttered in protest, “Ron, Hermione, Pansy, Theo! That’s it.”

“Me and Draco aren’t even friends,” he supplied a little too quickly. Harry glanced to where Draco used to sit, still nothing. Harry frowned a little. He hoped the Slytherin wasn’t ill. Colds were rarer with help of magic, but still common.

Meanwhile, Ginny’s eyes burned furiously. She seemed to loom over Ron, “You’re with Theo?” Harry almost laughed at the sheer absurdity of the scenario.

“No one’s with Theo,” Ron leaned back, away from his sister.

“Pansy is with Theo,” Hermione replied tiredly, acting as the only sane one the table. Harry believed she is.

As Harry wandered in the Entrance Hall with his friends, he caught eyes of Draco. A shadow seemed to pass over the Slytherin, but at least he wasn’t ill. Draco leaned against the wall, slouching. Why had Draco wore jeans? His clothing style too … comfortable? Casual? Muggle. Harry decided Muggle would be the word. It intrigued him more than he liked.

The forest green sweater hugged his frame. Almost cuddly. Harry’s eyes trialed down. He gulped. Draco’s jeans hugged his legs in ways suit trousers couldn’t. The way the sweater stopped just above Draco’s hips… The rips showed the pale skin underneath them. Tantalizing.

Draco’s fashion change didn’t go unnoticed though, Ron glanced and snorted a laugh. Harry snapped out of his trance, cheeks warm.

“Is that… Draco Malfoy?” Ginny asked, her voice tinted with amusement.

“Jesus, he looks like Eminem,” Hermione muttered, Harry chuckled a laugh as Ron and Ginny shared confused glances.

“I’m asking Pansy what this is about,” Hermione dragged an unwilling Ron away.

“What’s the thing with you and Malfoy then?” Ginny probed as she linked arms with Harry, “You’re staring like an abandoned damsel.”

“There’s nothing going on. Maybe it’s like Hermione and Pansy in a way, but not that friendly,” Harry rambled. Was it? He still hadn’t decided whether to accept Draco as a “reforming” person. Harry felt like he only got garbled messages, no sound reasoning could be made from his situation with Draco.

Harry added, “Honestly, I have no idea about the whole thing either. There’re small moments where I feel something, and sometimes I remember the Draco from before. It’s terrifying, in a way.”

Ginny pondered for a moment, “Just be safe. I don’t mean it as in a ‘carry your wand around’ way. I don’t worry about you being hexed by him. It’s just, it’d always hurts less with you set yourself up to disappointment. If he turns back to himself any day.”

Harry glanced back at Draco. The boy stared back at him. Harry’s heartbeats suddenly thumped in his throat. A group of Hufflepuffs passed between them. When they were gone, Draco already turned his head, his face flushed red as Zabini laughed beside him.