Doing a Double Take

"So, Gin and I were looking for a new place to get tea," Daisy said casually, leaning onto Harry's shoulder. He looked up at her, momentarily stopping grading exams.

"Sounds interesting," he said lightly, not releasing any information.

"Maybe somewhere in Maida Hill," she continued pointedly. "And Gin has just been so stressed from work, it might be good to get her something with a potion mixed into it."

Harry pushed back from his desk. "Well, good luck finding a place like that," he said briskly. "Very specific requirements though."

Daisy scoffed and grabbed his wrist. "We're going today directly after work. And don't think you're not coming! There's a blackberry tartlet with your name on it."

"The way you said that, makes me really think that you've been to this tea shop before," Harry said pointedly, his eyes narrowing. "Which really doesn't make sense with the fact that you had no idea who Draco Malfoy was when you showed me his 2Wands profile."

Daisy gulped. "I mean, I may have been a few times. I might have a regular order. I may have known that Luna had created a profile for him. But that's all completely hypothetical and impossible to prove. So instead, you're going to go along with your meddling friends and let me and Ginny force you to interact with Draco more."

"Fine," Harry gave in, "but only because I was already thinking about going in today."

Daisy clapped his shoulder. "What a good sport. I'm assuming you're only being so nice because you know that Ginny would never let you win. We're going to meet her there at 3, and we're going to rope Draco into playing a game with us."

She practically skipped out of the room, clearly happy with her manipulations. Harry turned his attention back to the exams in front of him, but he could barely concentrate on them. Sure, students would be there in about 15 minutes, but what if he snuck home to change? He glanced down at his plain trousers and oversized shirt. How could he ever compare to the effortless attraction that Malfoy has? For a moment, he considered using the school floo to run home and change before class. However, his logic got the best of him. His house was keyed into the floo, yes, but they were really only in place to allow for quick transportation for students from wizarding households. This felt like an abuse of power.

Before he could come to a true conclusion as to what he would do, his first students walked in, effectively making his decision for him. He smiled at them and resolved to stop by his place during his lunch break.

When lunch did roll around, he practically sprinted to the apparition booth, relieved to see that there was not a wait. He was able to immediately apparate to Godric's Hollow and rush to his place, where he ran to his closet and stood in front of his closet hopelessly.

"Need a hand?" A voice behind him asked casually.

Harry whipped around, his wand already out and raised, to find Daisy and Carter sitting on his bed. "As if your wards would fail," Carter snorted. "We figured you'd panic about what you look like, since you don't know how hot you are, and rush back here. So we flooed over and apparently beat you here. You were so nervous about checking out your closet that you didn't even see us."

Harry smiled apologetically and put the wand away. "Sorry about that."

Daisy waved off the apology. "We know how you are," she insisted. "There wasn't really a way to get your attention without scaring you. Now, we already picked out some clothes for you. Put these on."

She threw a pile of clothes at him and ushered him towards the bathroom. "Maybe let me do your makeup," she called after him. "I think Draco would love that."

Harry slammed the door shut behind him and unfolded the pile of clothes they had picked out for him. He winced at the navy chinos, ones that Hermione had picked out for him the first time she had renovated his closet. She had brought a pile of pants over, insisting that he wear new clothes for once that were actually his size. He had felt overwhelmed when he saw how tiny he looked in the pants and proceeded to shove them in the back of his closet. Clearly, Daisy's hunted skills were more effective than an accio if she was able to find them.

As a clear compromise, the shirt was a floral one and a bit oversized. When Harry had first began shopping for clothes for himself, he had found himself wildly uncomfortable in new clothing. It all felt to itchy and stiff for him, seeing as he had never worn new clothing besides his robes. He had immediately begun shopping at thrift stores, buying clothes that were too big for him and worn in. This shirt was one of his first finds, a soft and light material that slightly drowned him in fabric without looking too messy.

Harry quickly stripped and dressed, avoiding looking at himself in the mirror. His body was covered in scars, most of them given by Voldemort. Besides the cascade of red lightning on his forehead, he had the veiny remnants of the killing curse down his entire torso, with a dark burn in the shape of a locket in the middle of his chest. Red dots, characteristic of crucio, covered one of his sides. Besides those large marks, other remnants of torture spattered here and there, leaving his body looking more like a bloody canvas than a human form. They took too much energy to cover with glamors, so instead he focused on keeping clothed. He buttoned up his shirt just high enough that his scars were covered and tucked the ends into his belt. He risked a glance at the mirror, where he breathed a sigh of relief at how the shirt kept him from looking too emaciated. He opened the bathroom door, and Daisy immediately rushed in. "We've got about 10 minutes until we need to be back," she rushed. "So let me do your makeup very quickly. Shouldn't take too long, just let me do this."

She lined his eyes navy, keeping the edges slightly smudged, and added a bit of mascara. "Perfect," she declared. "I think this might render Draco speechless."

"Hell, it's rendered me speechless," Carter said appreciatively. "If it weren't for the fact that I know we aren't compatible, I'd definitely want to hit on you."

Harry blushed. "Does it really look good?"

Daisy slapped his shoulder. "Yes, now come on. We have to get back to work."

Harry followed them through the floo back to Sirius's, where they all split to go back to their respective classes. He got a few questions about why he changed from students, which he waved off with a vague comment about spilling tea. He could tell the older ones didn't believe him, but no one pushed him on it, especially when he jumped right back into his lessons.

The rest of the day passed quicker than he had anticipated, and it felt like no time at all until Daisy was dragging him to the apparition booth. "I hate side-alonging," she said dully as they stepped inside, "but it's worth it for your non-existent love life."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Thank you so much for that. So sweet of you."

Daisy grasped his arm when it came to be there turn, and when they stepped out of the booth in Maida Hill, Ginny was waiting impatiently. "There you are," she said. "You did a good job with him, Day. The eyeliner was a nice touch."

Daisy beamed. "Thank you! I really think it makes his eyes pop."

The two of them each linked an arm through Harry's and dragged him to Charming Tea. It was just as adorable as he had remembered. The couple released him to go through the door, and a bell chimed as they walked through.

"Ginny, Daisy!" Malfoy's cheerful voice called. "I wish I knew you were coming, I would have..."

When Harry stepped through the door, it was as though Malfoy's mind stopped working. Harry could practically see the thoughts leave as he took in his outfit. He flushed a deep red when he saw the eyeliner, and his Adam's apple bobbed.

"I, uh," he stammered. "It's good to see you again, Potter- I mean Harry- I mean Mr. Potter- I mean, uh, I'm glad you liked my tea enough to come back. Not that I needed you to come back or anything! It would have been okay if you hadn't. I mean, I hope that these two didn't force you to come in. Which it would be okay if they did, they're very persuasive! But also it would be good if they didn't, and you came to see m- I mean, have some tea because you wanted to."

Daisy and Ginny exchanged a gleeful grin, while Harry blushed. Daisy turned to Malfoy. "Oh, he's been dying to come back, Draco. Couldn't get enough of your-" she ran her eyes up and down his body with a pointed pause- "tea."

If it were possible, Malfoy turned a shade darker. "Ah, well, I'm glad. I, uh, think I should probably serve some tea. Yes, I should do that. Do you two want your regular?"

"Of course," Ginny smiled politely. "And what do you think Harry should get?"

"I mean," he coughed, pointedly avoiding looking over at him. "I don't know what potions he likes. And I definitely don't know that he likes Earl Grey with two sugars and a splash of milk so that wouldn't help. But if he does want an Earl Grey I can recommend trying a Pepper-Up potion or a soothing solution, those go well in an Earl Grey and don't interact with the milk, so maybe that. And then it's Thursday so I have my blackberry tartlets freshly baked with a bit of a healing potion in there to help with any upset stomachs. But he doesn't have to get that, he can do what he wants."

By the time Malfoy had finished talking, he was rambling at twice the speed of a normal person and appeared more and more embarrassed. Harry tried to smile reassuringly, but wasn't sure he was successful with the way he squeaked and looked away. "Earl Grey with a soothing solution and a tartlet sound good."

Malfoy shook his head in a slight nod. "I can do that, yes, okay. Are you guys ordering separately or together? And are you sitting together? Not that there's any reason why you wouldn't sit together, since you came in together. I mean, I'll find where you're sitting and bring you your things."

He quickly turned around and started making the drinks, effectively tuning out the trio. Ginny pulled Harry to a couch in the corner. "Quick," she said, pulling two games from the shelf next to them, "gobstones or uno?"

"Uno, for sure," Daisy said quickly. "I don't want to get soaked by whatever that liquid is in them when you lose. I'm not trying to smell awful tonight."

Ginny set a worn box of uno in front of them and dealt four hands. "I'll just wait until Draco gets here to start," she said lightly. "He'll feel obligated to play when he sees I dealt him in."

True to her word, when Malfoy came over with a precariously balanced tray of tea and baked goods, he flushed when he saw the four hands laid out. "Ginny, I have to work," he whined, setting down the tray and distributing the orders.

"Jonah is here," Daisy dismissed with a wave of her hand. "I'm sure he can handle things. Plus, you don't get busy until the after work rush! That's almost two hours from now."

Malfoy sent a pleading look to Jonah, who shrugged from behind the counter. "I'm fine over here. Plus I think you should talk more to that cutie on the couch. Hell, if you don't want him, I've got plenty of gay friends that definitely would."

"I would never subject him to your friends," Malfoy sniffed. "They'd eat him alive. They're much too loud for him."

"Oh, like you're not," Ginny chortled, grabbing him by the wrist and pushing him next to Harry. Their thighs brushed as he fell, and both of them scooted away quickly. Harry's leg felt as if it were on fire where they had touched, and it took all his self-control not to touch it. Instead, he took a sip of his tea, which immediately calmed him.

They all picked up their cards and began playing. The first round was slightly awkward, with both Malfoy and Harry stammering through sentences and blushing through eye contact. However, after a few rounds, they became more competitive, their old rivalry shining through.

“You absolutely cannot stack a plus four on top of a plus two, Potter!” Malfoy cried, elbowing him. “Take that back right now! You heathen! You villain! You can’t make me pick up fourteen cards!”

“Well, then let’s go back a few turns!” Harry replied sternly. “Back when you put a plus two on a plus four! That’s exactly the same thing as this.”

“Is not,” Malfoy fought back, turning his body to face Harry. “That was different!”

“Is too!”

“Is not!”

“Boys!” Daisy interjected. “We’ve all been mixing plus fours and plus twos. Draco, stop being a sore loser!”

He let out a humph before taking the required cards. He counted them slowly and added them to his pile with a morose expression, his lip slightly sticking out. He pushed back some of him hair which hung loose today and constantly fell in front of his eyes. Harry’s eyes trailed the hand, his heart squeezing as he pictured pushing back the hair himself.

Ginny placed down her last card after Malfoy finally picked up all his cards. “I don’t know why you fought so hard on that,” she mused, leaning back in victory. “I was going to beat you both anyways.”

“It’s because they had to beat each other,” Daisy replied sweetly, playing her own last card. “It’s almost funny when you consider how badly they’re losing anyways. Maybe if they stopped targeting each other they could have beat us.”

“I can’t help it,” Harry moaned. “There’s something about him that makes me feel so competitive.”

“I have no idea what that could be,” Daisy said sarcastically. She looked down at her watch. “Oh, look at the time. It’s almost five, we should really get going. But how about we do this again sometime? I’ll make a group chat for all of us.” She took out her phone and pushed it towards Malfoy. “Put your number in.”

Malfoy added a contact for himself. “You better not text me all night,” he warned softly. “I have to wake up dreadfully early to bake all of the pastries. Oh, and I’m up late working on my side-projects. And overthinking, I definitely stay awake at night overthinking. So I’m really always busy. But I’ll try to respond when I’m free.”

“I’ll make sure he responds!” Jonah called from the register as he handed a to-go mug of tea to an antsy muggle. “I’ll be mean to him until he texts back.”

Malfoy flushed, standing up quickly. “I should really get back to work! I need to prepare more pastry dough for tomorrow, I think. It’s going to be clafoutis! I’m definitely putting a cheering brew in there, it will be wonderful with the cherries. But I don’t know if that will be enough. I’m sure Jonah will talk me out of making a million different desserts. Okay, I’m talking too much again. I’ll just, ah, go. I’ll see you another time? Not that you have to see me if you don’t want! Okay, goodbye!”

He turned and darted towards his kitchen again. Ginny guffawed as he left and led Harry and Daisy outside. “He’s so into you,” she said as they walked down the street. “I give him a week before he cracks and asks you on a date on accident, then immediately backtracks.”

Harry blushed and shook his head. “There’s no way. He’s definitely out of my league as far as it comes to looks.”

Daisy shoved him. “Maybe one day you’ll actually believe us when we tell you that you’re beautiful.”

Harry just looked away from her, far too embarrassed to respond. Clearly Ginny and Daisy noticed, as they exchanged an exasperated look behind his shoulders. Still, they walked him back to the apparition booth. “You go on first, Harry,” Ginny insisted, shoving him forward a bit. “We haven’t decided if we’re going in or out for dinner yet, so we need some extra time to pick the location.”

He stumbled into the booth, dully telling it that he was heading to Godric’s Hollow. With the post-work traffic, he had quite a bit to wait, so he let his eyes wander. Ginny and Daisy were talking animatedly, not exactly looking like two people picking a place for dinner. Beyond that, he could just make out Charming Tea in the distance with what looked like a steady stream of people pouring in and out. Harry smiled at the thought of wizards and muggles alike enjoying the benefits of Malfoy’s potions.

He was jarred from his thoughts by the voice of the booth announcing it was his turn and quickly apparated back to his street. There were plenty of people outside, walking around the nearby park. Some stood near the monument dedicated to him on the corner of the street, which always made his stomach lurch. While Harry did love the general benefits of the combinations of muggle and magic societies, one thing he hated was the lack of escape. Muggles were fascinated by the existence of a war they did not even know occurred with their own members listed as fatalities. Harry Potter had soon become a muggle household name, with many desperate to learn as much as they could about him and his life. Luckily, as long as he kept his head down people did not recognize him on the street. His lightning scar was impossible to hide, but it was also his only identifier. Unfortunately for him, they were fast approaching the anniversary of his parents’ death, meaning traffic always picked up in Godric’s Hollow.

Shaking the thoughts of his status from his head, he quickly made his way to his home, opening the door to a gentle greeting from Daisy. The post for the day sat by the mail slot, and Daisy sat unabashedly on top of said post. He gently pushed her aside before flipping through the envelopes on his way to the kitchen. Most of them were from fans, many of whom gathering their information about him from gossip rags. He did not tend to open them, even though it was safe to do so. After all, the centralization of muggle mail delivery allowed for a very easy malicious intent ward on all mail. The worst he was going to get was a bad limerick (which had a few of!), yet the hero worship wasn’t exactly welcome either.

A buzz from his phone caught his attention, and he opened it to see the groupchat Daisy had promised she would make. Her simple “What’s up bitches!” text made him snort, and he did not bother responding to it. He did, however, look at the contact list for the chat and stared at the one unnamed number.

You know, Malfoy’s number. Draco Malfoy’s phone number. The phone number belonging to Draco Malfoy. No big deal, Harry thought anxiously.

He added it to contacts and was about to put his phone away when, with a burst of courage, he decided to send him a simple “Hey, it’s Harry.”

The phone had maybe been on the counter for a minute before it was buzzing again. Harry hesitated for a moment, not wanting to seem too eager or desperate. Then, once he had counted to four, he decided that he absolutely wouldn’t seem even a little bit desperate and opened up Malfoy’s response. “Hi Harry! It’s Draco. Or Malfoy. Or D. Actually I don’t know what you want to call me but anything is fine, I don’t mind what you decide to call me. I mean I would like it if I could eventually be Draco to you but it’s okay if that’s too soon, whatever you want.”

Harry let out a sigh of relief. There was no difference between the Malfoy in person and the one on the phone, both of them being so inordinately charming without even a little bit of effort. He typed out a quick, “I can work with Draco” and was about to hit send before he considered it and deleted the message. Not personal enough, clearly. He tried typing another response, but halfway through decided it was stupid. And so he stood in the middle of his kitchen for the next ten minutes, typing and deleting responses.

Eventually, he plopped down on the floor, head in his hands, his phone pressed mercilessly to his forehead. “I’m just going to do it,” he said out loud. Daisy meowed in response.

He typed out, “I think we’ve gotten close enough for me to call you Draco”, hit send, and immediately tossed his phone across the room. “I’m hopeless, aren’t I?” he asked Daisy morosely.

The brrp she gave him in response wasn’t really an answer, but it definitely felt like one. He scratched behind her ear, unable to help the grin that spread across his face. “He’s really something, isn’t he?”