The Butterfly Effect

Returning to Hogwarts after the best Christmas, he’d probably had in forever, left Harry in a bit of a mood. The magic of it had faded away entirely too quickly leaving him to deal with the cold splash of reality.

It did not help that he was being tortured to attend Occlumency lessons with Snape. Each lesson leaving him in a peevish mood afterwards that had his friends steering clear of him until he calmed down.

To add to the pressure, news of Bellatrix Lestrange breaking out of Azkaban had them all reeling. Malfoy diving even deeper into that shell of his, reading the papers with an almost obsessive compulsion that had Harry worrying for his friend. It was as if Draco consumed all the guilty actions of his family and drowned in it, despite none of it being his fault. He could barely even acknowledge Neville anymore, casting aside the budding friendship he’d been building with the boy in exchange for frigid iciness.

They too were regulated to this treatment, the blonde barely even sat with them anymore, choosing the company of his books or himself over them. He managed to spend time with Malfoy only once or twice a week if he were lucky. This shutout hurt more Harry cared to acknowledge.

To add to that, Umbridge had spread her tyranny over the entire school. A new declaration coming out every other day, forbidding certain behaviours from teachers and students alike. It drove him absolutely bonkers.

The bough broke however, when one morning at the beginning of February, Umbridge happened along the three of them in company with Draco.

Draco not Malfoy. 

Somehow Harry’s mind had forgone the little, occasional slip ups between Malfoy and Draco, and had jumped straight to calling him Draco. Perhaps it’d been Sirius’s comment that had tipped his decision or perhaps it had been a long time coming.

Still Harry was hardly brave enough to utter the name aloud so it stayed in his mind. His little secret. Draco. A thought just for him.

Ron and Draco were conversing about chess, so enthralled that they barely noticed Umbridge. Hermione, who like Harry had been content to let the other two carry the conversation, elbowed him sharply.

“Look, Harry.”

Already dreading the caution in her voice, he glanced up. The pink nightmare drew to a halt as she spotted them, mouth going into a little ‘o’ shape.

“Good afternoon,” she said in that saccharine voice of hers. Eyes dancing from one student to the next. “Gryffindor, Gryffindor, Gryffindor and Slytherin. I thought I’d advised you about inter-house mingling Draco.”

“I rather like my friends, Professor but thank you for the concern.”

Ron covered what sounded like a laugh with a loud cough. Hermione promptly elbowed him. 

Umbridge frowned, “Oh, but what would Lucius Malfoy say if he saw you abandoning your pureblood status for this ?”

Malfoy’s face went stiff and Harry was already opening his mouth to defend him but was beat to the punch.

“I hardly care what my father thinks, he’s a lying Death Eater.”

The Professor tsked disapprovingly, “False accusations, I assure you. Your father is quite innocent. He’s sitting at the Ministry right now. We’d hardly employ a Death Eater now would we ?”

“Oh, but you have Professor.”

The serene expression on her face flattered. “One week’s detention, Draco. It starts at my office, tonight. Take care not to be late.”

Harry opened his mouth again, because he knew exactly what her detentions entailed, but Draco's fingers pressed into his arm painfully tight. A plea to let her be. The urgency in his eyes had Harry swallowing his retort. 

He waited until she was out of ear shot before he said angrily, “She’s utterly insane!”

Draco smiled, tight lipped. “I managed to avoid her thus far, so it really was a long time coming.”

“It’s torture! I won’t stand for it!”

Harry was rewarded with an odd, frowning glare.

“And exactly how are you going to do protest the unjust behaviour of that irksome troll, Potter ?”

“I don’t know. I’m sure I’ll think of something—"

“You endured it, amongst countless others,” Malfoy interrupted, face pinched, “I’ll survive just fine, Potter.”

“But—”

“Enough.”

Harry clenched his jaw. He knew he was being a tad unreasonable and not entirely sane but somehow it was different with Draco. It was different because it was Draco. He couldn’t stand knowing that the blonde was hurt, physically or otherwise.

“I’ll get you some essence of murtlap, Draco,” Hermione offered, ineffectively breaking up the tense stare-off between the two boys. “I’ve still got some left over from Ron’s detentions.”

"Right Hell, that was," Ron chipped in, rubbing a hand over his now healed hand. "You'll get used to it by the third night or so, mate. That essence Hermione made was absolutely brilliant." 

“Thank you, Granger,” Draco gave the girl a tight lipped smile. “Anyways better get started on my Divination. See you lot, later. We’re not done with that strategy, Weasleyby.”

And while Ron would’ve normally bristled and snapped back at the patronising nickname, he simply waved a hand at Draco. “Sure, I’ll explain it again.”

Then Draco hurried off, leaving the three of them staring at his back.

Once he was far enough, Hermione rounded on him with a frown, “Must you antagonize him so Harry ? He’s only just decided to spend time with us again!”

“I didn’t mean to,” Harry said helplessly. “I was trying to—”

“Well you need to stop it,” Hermione told him sharply, wagging a finger. She reminded him quite suddenly of a scolding Molly Weasley. “You’re making it seem as if he’s weaker than the rest of us. You hardly behaved that way when Ron got his detention, last month. It makes him feel as if he’s a bit of an outsider!”

“I didn’t—” he tried again and she softened a bit.

“I know, you’re just a big idiot sometimes.”

Deciding to listen to Hermione, the next evening he dropped into a seat beside Draco with a timid, little nod. It was late, nearly curfew and all their friends had already abandoned their books so it was just the two of them in the library. Draco however seemed more than happy to ignore him in favour of his homework.

He avoided his pleading look and turned his page rather viciously. Harry winced. 

"Alright then, Malfoy ?" 

Another vicious turning of pages. 

Harry took a breath, steeled himself. “I’m sorry about yesterday, Draco.”

Draco’s neck shot up so fast, that an audible snap could be heard in the quiet. “Name calling are we now, Potter ?”

“We’re friends. Friends don’t bother with the whole surname nonsense.”

“Whatever,” Draco said but he was smiling, just a little. Harry applauded himself.

Deciding to push his luck, Harry reached down and plucked Draco’s left hand up. The back of it was bright red, bleeding slightly and he knew that by the end of the week it would be scarred. He felt a vicious stab of hate towards Umbridge. If she’d been standing in front of him, Harry was sure he’d have hexed her. Without a single thought.

Instead of spewing his hatred, he squeezed Draco’s hand and surprisingly the other boy returned the gesture. Harry felt his cheeks flush and asked the first thing that came to his head.

“Did your mum say anything about Bellatrix ?”

Draco dropped his hand and rubbed his palm across his jaw. Harry mourned the loss of contact. “Only that she’s utterly nuts and to stay as far away as possible from her. I think it hurts Mother, seeing how much our family has broken up. She doesn’t talk about it much. I think she misses my father and her sister despite them being terrible people.”

“Do you regret it ? Leaving ?” because if Draco had stayed in the Manor, then his family would be whole. Terrible but whole.

Harry did not think he could begrudge Draco if he’d chosen to stay that time long ago in the hospital when Cedric had been killed. He would’ve hated and mocked his weakness but he would’ve understood, in a way. He’d wanted family so much, still did, that he’d do almost anything for it.

“No,” Draco replied, shaking his head vehemently. “I chose right. Father was never abusive or any of that drivel but he's always been ambitious. That trait marred our entire relationship. I could never just be his son and he could never just be my father. Too much expectations.”

The ache in Harry lightened yet somehow deepened at Malfoy's words. He was glad that the blonde was here, sitting beside him but he was sad that it had been at the expense of life as he'd known it. 

“I’m sorry.”

“Enough about me and my sob stories, how are you, golden boy ? More importantly, how are lessons with Snape ?”

He groaned, falling against the table. When he spoke his voice was muffled by the wood, “Rubbish. Those classes are entirely useless. I’ve been trying to do the mind clearing exercises like you instructed but I’m hopeless. I think I only know how to point my wand at things and make them explode. I don’t know any of the intricacies of magic like you, Draco.”

Laughing softly, he said, “Obviously not, Potter. I’m far superior to you in every sense.”

“Superior, my ass. Hey I forgot to ask you, what are you doing next week, for the Hogsmede visit ? Maybe we could hang out, I feel I haven’t seen you in forever.”

“I—uh,”

Harry’s head shot up from the table. “What ?”

“Well, it’s Valentine’s Day next week.”

“So ?”

Draco rolled his eyes, “So Potter that means I can’t hang out with you because I’ve got a date.”

“A date! With who ?”

He was not jealous. He was not jealous.

“Thornbury. He’s a Ravenclaw. Sixth year. I think half the school knows I’m bent, so I decided why not confirm it with a ridiculously hot, Valentine’s Day date ?”

Harry knew Thornbury. He was ridiculously buff and a bit of an airhead (despite being in Ravenclaw, ironically) but half the girls in the school mooned over him. Why Draco even liked that sort of thing was beyond him.

He was not jealous. He was not jealous.

“Maybe after then.”

“Maybe,” Draco’s smile curved into something devilish, “Or maybe I’ll be snogging him behind the Three Broomsticks where the reporters lurk for juicy bits. Father would have a coronary if he heard. It's about time I  give him back a bit of the trauma, he gave Mother and I.”

Fuck it, he was jealous. Just a bit.

Just residual feelings of his stupid crush.

“Right well, have fun I guess ?”

Draco nudged him, “Granger told me you asked Ginevra out, after Christmas. How’s that working out ?”

“Fine, I guess ?”

Honestly the most they saw of each other was during DA classes and even then they barely spoke much. Harry sighed, he was so tired of being so confused all the time, but there wasn’t really anything for it.

Draco had a thing for buff, Ravenclaws; something of which he was neither. Ginny had a thing for him.

“Define fine, Potter.”

“I don’t know, we don’t really see each other much. And when we’re alone, it’s kinda awkward.”

“I have an idea. Why don’t you and Ginevra join us next week, a double date of sorts ? We can start the conversation and by the end of the night, we’ll disappear then you and Ginevra will be much more comfortable with each other.”

He'd rather clean a Blast Ended Skrewt’s cage than see Draco on a date with someone else. Ten maybe even twenty cages. 

But then Draco was smiling at him with those dancing eyes and really, how could he say anything other than, “Alright. Sure.”