Harry slugged back to Three Broomsticks in a daze. Draco ran away, literally.

When Draco acknowledged it, Harry realized, everything. The tension, the glances, even a small touch that sends Draco, and Harry himself, flustered and helpless.

Worst thing, Draco saw the realization. The want that Harry hadn’t hided fast enough. And Draco ran. Harry didn’t chase after him, barely registering his own feelings.

Harry glanced down at Lion, whining and grumbling. Yeah, me too. He stared solemnly.

He stroked its mane, the same way Draco did to open the bracelet. Just a test. Instead, the Lion huffed, ignoring him. Great. He couldn’t get it off. Harry swore to never impulse-buy any sentimental bracelets ever again.

Harry opened the bar door to the usual chaos.

Ron beamed smugly at Theo, who already turned three shades paler as he stared at the chess board. They shook hands, Harry could feel Theo’s grip hardening out of spite. Ron returned the grip as their hands, turning unhealthy shades of white and red, locked together for more than what was needed.

Hermione watched Pansy try on her necklaces. Luna sat beside them, sipping on her Butterbeer as she read the Quibbler.

Harry relaxed, the fact that Pansy and Theo had gotten along with Ron and Hermione felt weirdly normal, how they all click together. Harry sat beside Luna, back to familiar territory. Devoid of a certain blonde. Safe. Manageable. He grinned at his friends.

“Hey Harry, where’s Draco?” Pansy asked in concern.

“He went back early,” Harry shrugged. It was not his place to share. Draco could tell them if he wanted. If he even wanted to tell.

Pansy and Theo exchanged concerned glances, but they didn’t push Harry.

After a few more hours, the sun lowered, signaling the time to go back.

Harry and his friends left Hogsmeade early. The forest trial filled of crunched, fallen leaves. Harry stared at the gloomy sky, postponing the snow this year. Christmas at the Burrow, now repaired and expanded. Hermione and Ron would go back to her parents. Then a DA reunion at Grimmaulds, just before New Years.

Everyone, back together, the new generation of DA, at Sirius’s old house. The image felt refreshing, hopeful.

Harry managed a genuine grin as Ron continued recounting Nott’s chess strategies.

“Blimey, he’s brutal. The git had both of his knights up for sacrifice without blinking. Glad I dodged that trap. If I eat one of the knights. In my position, checkmate, maybe. The guy is terrifying.”

“Speaking on terrifying, he’s also strategizing for the next Quidditch game. Pansy told me,” Ginny inputted, deliberately enjoying winding Ron up.  Right, the game next weekend. Then Christmas break immediately after. The team hadn’t discussed game tactics. Harry winced, being seeker meant forgetting rest of the team existed.  Not his proudest trait.

“We should talk about tactics tomorrow training. No… The Slytherins taking half of the field. Maybe we should add a few specialized drills. Bell’s dive could use more precision. And add like, three more practice sessions during the week... Blimey,” Ron descended into panicked muttering.

Ginny watched Ron’s miniature breakdown with amusement. They discussed Quidditch tactics more while Harry walked up front to Hermione. His fingers flicking over his bracelet, turning to a habit.

“Hey ‘Mione.” The witch hummed in response, brushing her brunette hair out of her face every few seconds.

“How do you feel about the date?” Harry asked, eying the panicking redhead behind them, “Ron’s progress level, on a scale on 1 to 10.”

“Solid seven,” Hermione laughed lightly, “I’m honestly surprised. You have no idea how much I fretted. It’s almost embarrassing.”

“I don’t think he letted go just yet,” Hermione sighed, “but, what can we do? Baby steps.”

“Baby steps for the baby boy,” Harry tilted his head to Ron, mocking halfheartedly.

“Not just him. All of us. And I know you have more than what you’re letting on,” Hermione pointed out. Does she have to be observant about everything? Poor Ron wouldn’t stand a chance.

“It’s nothing,” Harry dismissed. Bloody hell nothing. The Lion protested in small roars, vibrating against his wrist. Harry stuffed his hand into his pocket.

Hermione hummed suspiciously before she added, “This is not the issue I’m worrying about. Me and Pansy today. We have sort of a plan. For the Ministry.”

Harry froze, today had been a massively distracting hurricane of Butter beer, banter-fueled chaos, and the bracelet incident with Draco. He’d almost forgot about the looming shadow. Almost.

Despite all this, Harry knew he doesn’t want Draco, or anyone to be marked. The cold dread tuned back, fully fledged. The Ministry, less than a month away.

“Pansy told us the only difficult factor left, perhaps the most important, is the interview of acquaintances at school. Which includes students,” Hermione explained. Harry paled, less than a week of school, to turn around the Slytherin reputation. Almost impossible. They couldn’t set up Hogsmeade trips with everyone, couldn’t force friendships.

Hermione noticed his bewilderment as she continued, warm but firm, “We need to regroup the DA, as fast as we can. Tell them. We can’t have everyone on our side. But we can spread the news. In the meantime, Pansy will take care of gathering everyone who has been targeted.”

“How about tomorrow afternoon? Room of Requirement,” Harry reigned his panicky state, “We can tell everyone the meetup at dinner.”

Hermione smiled briefly, “Sound plan. We might need to bring Slytherins. Just for the sake of the argument. Not Pansy, her “grab Potter” moment was too noticeable. Maybe Zabini. He has a certain thing,” Hermione gestured vaguely, “I’ll tell Pansy about it later.”

At dinner, the Hall was filled with its usual buzz, banter, teasing and the casual conversations. A wave stirred underneath. A message.

Hermione approached McGonagall to address the Ministry issues and their plan, leaving Harry, Ron, Luna and Ginny at the Hall. They decided they would tell the DA members tonight, everyone else tomorrow.

“Utter bollocks,” Dean exclaimed as he read the letter. Seamus frowned behind him as Ron nodding grimly.

Luna handed Nevile the Ministry letter, his jaws tightened, “Why would they?”

Ginny confronted Katie, her eyes widened with disbelief and outrageousness as she read over the letter.

“There’s a meet-up in the Room of Requirements, tomorrow afternoon at 3. It’s something important. Pass this message along,” Harry told Jenkins, a Hufflepuff girl he’d known from Quidditch.

She smiled good-naturedly as she nudged her giggling friends, “Will do, Potter.”

Harry huffed as he straightened himself up, mindlessly grabbing a cup of water. Almost through the list of people. He thought victoriously. Lion purred, his tail trashing with pride. Harry stared at his bracelet, his fingertips caressing it gently. Pass the message, Room of Requirements, 3 PM. He doubted he needed to finish the list. The message already taken into life, waltzing through the students. Room of Requirements, 3 PM. There’s something important. Hogwarts knows, Harry knew, his eyes fleeting across the Hall’s stone wall. Hogwarts grounded him. It was something damaged perhaps, but it will be fixed. All it needed was time.

Almost out of instinct, Harry glanced at the Slytherin table. Draco sat there eating with his usual annoying elegance, almost indifferent. He hadn’t taken the necklace off. Snake laid against Draco’s neck, stretching his tail every few seconds, restless.

Then, Draco raised his head. Their eyes locked. The Slytherin panicked, his head jerked to Pansy in almost stiff and robotic movements. The tip of his ears slightly pink.

Harry smirked.

Such a coward.

Yet the coward still hadn’t taken the necklace off. Lion scraped its teeth on Harry, stirring with impatience. Harry fixed his bracelet, pulling Lion’s teeth away from his skin. I know, Lion. Trust me, I know.

When he reached the end of the Gryffindor table, Harry plopped beside Ron, the redhead spoke with a mouthful of eggs, “Nice work mate. I had three people telling me about the meeting, as if I didn’t know already.”

“You too,” Harry replied mindlessly.

“So, Quidditch tactics,” Ron pointed out. Lion huffed and turned away, suddenly uninterested in the conversation.

Ron’s jaw dropped, “What is THAT? Harry!” Harry sighed. Ron could be painfully oblivious at times.

“The bracelet I bought at Pips,” Harry deadpanned.

“Yeah, I know, obviously. Why is it roaring and judging me?”

“It’s sentient,” Harry watched with amusement as Ron dug his face into his palms.

“Genuine question,” Ron continued. Oh no. “Why did it stick itself to Malfoy’s necklace like long-lost lovers?” Ron saw that. Maybe he’s not that oblivious.

“They’re a um… pair,” Harry almost choked out the last word.

Ron raised an eyebrow, unimpressed, “That’s why you two were doing the aggressive staring thing. How come Malfoy didn’t come back from Pip’s?” Harry glanced at his bracelet. Lion trashed his tail. “Fortune favors the bold”, Lion wanted him to tell.

“I asked if he was gay, he said yes and ran away,” Harry concluded.

“From that? That’s it?” Ron glanced at Draco, “Geez, I thought you guys kissed or something.” Harry choked on his pumpkin juice. Kissing Draco… the thought wasn’t unpleasant, just new. Harry glanced at the Slytherin. What would Draco taste like? Posh and clean, mint maybe. The image of Draco pulling him by the collar, pining Harry against the wall. The silver eyes hooded, cheeks flushed red, and lips parting. Harry shivered, in a daze.

Beside him, Ron smirked, “You’re thinking of kissing him, aren’t you?”

“‘m not!” Harry snapped back.

Ron eyed him pointedly. Are they that obvious? Even Ron seemed to catch on to what’s happening.

“Seriously, I’m mad at you for not telling me about this earlier. But whatever, the guy hasn’t hexed you or broke your heart yet. He was tolerable when we played that round together. Hasn’t insulted any people for ten minutes straight, except the chess pieces,” Ron mused.

Harry blinked. No interrogation. No “but that’s Malfoy!” Just acceptance. Lion purred at Ron.

“Anyway, Quidditch,” Ron continued like nothing had happened. Classic Ron avoidance. Harry thought as he proceeded.

“We should let Coote and Peakes prioritize protecting Ginny. The Slytherins aren’t dirty this year, just aggressive,” Harry analyzed. Lion blinked languidly, bored at the turn of conversations. Harry poked at its stomach, earning a grunt.

“Me and Ginny were thinking the same. Maybe not specifically her. She said she could deal with it. And we could also practice the new tactic,” Ron glanced around, leaning down to a conspiratorial whisper.

Lion perked up with interest. Harry’s eyes widened as Ron continued whispering. “Bloody rich,” Harry exclaimed.

“They wouldn’t know what happened until it’s over,” Ron beamed, almost wickedly.

Harry glanced at Draco. The Slytherin ate in peace. He wouldn’t know what had hit him, Harry thought as a plan formulated in his mind. Draco took a tentative bite of something Pansy just passed him, he scrunched up in the cutest way possible. Painfully oblivious of Harry’s scheming.