Chapter 20
It was late when Natasha felt the shift, and she glanced at her bedroom door to see Harry standing, nervous, in the doorway.
She pat the bed next to her and he scurried over, immediately tucking himself into her side, arms wrapping around her waist, face pressed into her stomach just like he’d done when he was younger and afraid.
She stroked a hand through his hair, waiting for him to relax, waiting for him to share what worried him.
It relieved her, that even with everything going on, with how much more grown up he seemed every single day, he still needed these little moments.
When he finally relaxed, still she waited.
“How do you know if you like someone?” He mumbled into her shirt, pulling back to look up at her with eyes filled with mild embarrassment. “Like - like like them.”
She didn’t so much as blink at the words, continuing to stroke her fingers through his hair, and watched the embarrassment fade.
“It depends.” She admitted. “Some people say you get butterflies in your stomach when you see them.” She poked fingers at his stomach and he squirmed, laughing. He shifted, head just pillowed on her lap now, facing the ceiling, smile on his face.
“What else?”
“Physical attraction.” She told him bluntly. “It's common to know you like someone if you want to kiss them. Or at least more than you want to kiss others.” Her tone was wry. Harry blushed, shoving at the hand that had been creeping towards his stomach again.
“I don’t want to kiss everyone, aunt Tasha.”
She hummed, but didn’t argue.
“Sometimes,” she confessed, “rooms seem brighter when they come in. Problems are easier when you can share them with those people.”
His gaze cut to hers, an understanding she hadn’t expected, but he kept mum on whatever he saw.
“What if it is people?” He asked, voice quiet, never looking away. “What if it’s not just one person. Most people only like one person.”
“We’re not most people.” Her voice held the same promise that always made his heart swoop in his chest.
“No, we’re not.” He agreed. He turned onto his side, insecurity flitting across his features.
“What if they don’t feel the same way?”
“There’s only one way to find out, isn’t there?”
“But telling them could ruin our friendship.”
She nodded, because it was true, but she had a feeling it wouldn’t.
“Not telling them could too, especially if it hurts you and they don’t know. How do you think they’d feel about that?”
Harry smiled, closing his eyes a moment. He was so glad he hadn’t had to say who he meant for his aunt to know. So glad that she didn’t find him a freak for it. Despite the fact that he knew she never would, sometimes he couldn’t help the old fears from resurfacing.
“Do you think they’d let me have two dates to the Yule Ball?” He asked then, and Natasha shrugged.
“Who knows, but since when have the rules mattered?” He laughed, delighted, and when he pushed up, she grabbed him in a hug, smothering his face in kisses. He laughed again, squirming, cheeks flushed, but there was no real fight in him.
“If you’re going to have a real date, we’re going to have to get you real dress robes. Something special.”
Harry rolled his eyes, but there was no denying the pleasure that filled his gaze.
“Okay but we can’t let uncle Tony make them weird.”
Natasha laughed, ruffling his hair.
“I would never.”
>>>
Fred and George sat in the library, heads bent together and muttering. It wasn’t unusual to find them like this, but it was unusual when they didn’t have their usual notebook or materials that said they were working on pranks.
It only took hearing one word, Harry, for Hermione to approach them.
“Just what are the two of you up to?” Hermione accused, eyes narrowed as she came up behind them.
In tandem, they both turned to look at her, regarding her contemplatively. A hand from each of them snapped out then, dragging her in. She was pulling into the huddle with barely a yelp, and listened, wide-eyed at their whispered explanation.
For a moment, it looked like she might walk away, but then she settled down, offering a grim nod, even as a pleased smile flirted with her lips.
“Right then. This is what you have to do.”
>>>
Ron, Draco, and Neville found the three of them like that nearly 2 hours later, and for a moment they stared as the three of them muttered, drawing elaborate plans on parchment. Fred’s hair was standing on end from his hands repeatedly running through it, George had ink smudged on his nose, and Hermione’s hair had been bundled into a messy bun on top of her head, wand shoved through it to keep it in place.
The three of them looked so serious as they worked together, and it was Ron who recovered first, taking a step backwards.
“Blimey we do not want to be involved in whatever that it.”
Neville and Draco looked at each other, sharing a commiserating look, and then they each grabbed an arm, hauling Ron forward, despite his dragging feet.
The first thing they noticed was that two of the pages were actually covered with sketches for dress robes, while the third seemed to be in some sort of short hand none of the newcomers could parse.
“Is this about the ball then?” Neville asked, curious, and the twins and Hermione all jolted in surprise, looking up at them. Hermione actually flushed, earning rakish grins from both twins, but they didn’t deny the thought.
“Sort of.” Hermione hedged, glancing up at them even as she batted away the arm George had teasingly tossed around her shoulders, slapping at Fred’s hand that had crept to her knee.
“Are the three of you going together?” It was Draco who asked, and what was more surprising was the disappointment he couldn’t quite cover.
The twins, understanding perfectly, took pity on the snake.
“Unfortunately not. Our dear ‘Mione is stuck on someone else,” George lamented.
“Despite our efforts to seduce her.” Fred added with a lascivious smile.
Hermione just scowled at them both, pushing to her feet so they would stop teasing her.
“Oh, stop it, both of you. Or we’ll see how much more I’ll help you.”
“Help them with what?” Ron’s eyes narrowed suspiciously, and Fred swept the papers into his bag, standing to smirk down at Ron.
“Never you mind, Ronnikins.” Fred dismissed as George stood to join him. Hermione glared at the two of them a moment before huffing out a breath.
“I’m going to go clean up for dinner.” She sniffed, striding off with a huff. It took only a moment for Draco to make a hasty excuse and follow.
Ron watched them go with a frown, scratching at his head.
“What’s his problem?”
Neville nearly face-palmed as the twins cackled, hooking their arms around their little brother.
“Oh, little brother, you just wait and see.”
With that, they also left the two fourth year Gryffindor’s standing alone in the library. Ron turned to Neville, frowning, and Neville just shook his head, grinning.
“Come on, let’s go to dinner.”
Ron grumbled, but followed.
>>>
Harry came up for air with a gasp, treading water and blinking the water from his eyes.
“How was that?”
“Not bad.” Clint told him, moving to the edge to offer him a hand out. “But you didn’t notice anything was behind you until it was too late. If it had been a real enemy you wouldn’t have been able to kick them off so easily.”
At the reminder, James surfaced behind them, accepting Clint’s help as well to be hauled out of the pool.
“Kids slippery though,” James allowed, offering Harry a smile as he started to towel off his hair.
Harry beamed.
“See? I can do it.”
Clint hummed.
“We’ll try again tomorrow.”
Harry groaned but Clint just patted his shoulder.
“Now hurry up and get dressed. You’ve got guests.”
In all the stress of practicing for the second challenge (since Newt had known about the merpeople, the egg had been very easy to figure out), he’d almost completely forgotten about Christmas.
He shot to his feet, streaking out of the pool room, and leaving Clint and James alone.
“Do you think Newt’s plan will work?” James asked in his wake, and Clint shrugged.
“It has to, doesn’t it?”
Despite the fact that they trusted the man, it left them both with a sour taste in their mouth to have things so out of their control.
>>>
“You’re here!” Harry shouted, delighted, slamming bodily into Ron who just laughed and nearly toppled them both over. Would have if Mr. Weasley hadn’t been there to steady them, though they almost sent him over as well. He let go of Ron in time to be dragged between Fred and George, hugged tightly between them.
He laughed, wiggling free in order to greet Ginny, Percy, and Charlie, along with their parents.
“I can’t believe Christmas is only 2 weeks away!” He exclaimed, all but bouncing off the walls.
“And with it, the Yule Ball.” Percy reminded him. “Headmaster McGonagall was wondering who you were planning to bring, by the way.”
Harry flushed and waved the question away.
“Who are you going with, Percy?”
It was Percy’s chance to blush, and Ron snickered.
“He’s going with his girlfriend, Penelope.”
“She’s in Ravenclaw, right?” Percy nodded and Harry turned his gaze on Ron. “And who are you going with then?”
At that, Ginny cut in, jamming an elbow into Ron’s gut and making his breath whoosh out.
“Ron asked Luna to the ball.”
Harry blinked in surprise, before beaming.
“That’s great news, Ron. What about you, Gin?”
“Neville asked me.” She announced proudly, and Harry was sure his face would split.
“Wow.” His gaze passed over the twins, but he just smiled at them, unable to bring himself to ask, in case they really did have dates.
“Why don’t you all settle in? Then we can decide what to do with the rest of the afternoon!” He forced a skip into his step, as he turned to face forward. “Draco and his mum are supposed to arrive before dinner, so that will be nice. Sirius will be with them.”
“Sirius went to Malfoy manor? Alone?” Ron’s mouth was agape and Harry gave a laugh he didn’t quite feel.
“Sirius is a powerful wizard, Ron. No need to look so shocked.”
Ron’s mouth snapped shut, but he noticed along with everyone else how forced Harry’s tone was. It was clear he was just as worried about Malfoy Sr..
“I’ll go unpack and then what do you say to a round of Quidditch?” Ginny proposed, saving them all, and Harry turned back with a genuine smile.
“Great idea. I’ll meet you out there!”
And he skipped off, wondering just when he’d suddenly started feeling so awkward around his closest friends.
The Weasley’s all watched Harry dart off, and while the elder two shrugged it off as normal behaviour, following his directions to settle in, the youngest 4 watched him go with some trepidation.
It was Ginny who realized first and she cast a sly gaze at the twins, at how they frowned after Harry.
“Right. Come on, Ron. The faster we unpack, the faster we get to pick our brooms.” She announced, grabbing Ron’s arm and dragging him off down the hall.
Fred’s gaze slid to hers and she smiled wickedly, nodding off after Harry. Fred’s returning smile was grateful, and with a nudge to George’s shoulder, the two of them started off after Harry.
>>>
“Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.” Harry scolded himself, kicking at the ground as he approached the pitch behind the house. He felt like such an idiot, running away like he had, but he hadn’t really considered how he would feel if they had dates to the ball, and now he didn’t know what to do.
Miserable, Harry flopped back down on the field, staring up at the sky.
With a crack that had him jerking up, Harry found the twins standing over him, looking down at him with matching grins.
“You know, Harry, you never asked us who we were taking to the ball.” George noted, dropping down to the ground so he was facing Harry, all but hip to hip, but leaning back on his hands to give Harry his space.
“Funny that, since you asked everyone else.” Fred added, dropping down on his other side and caging him in.
Harry tried to smile, but the nerves got the better of him.
“Oh, well, um.” He swallowed, looking down at his knees.
“Thing is,” George continued, saving Harry from having to answer, “We had someone in mind, isn’t that right, Fred?”
“It is, George, but see, we weren’t sure how to ask.”
Harry’s head shot up to look at them, eyes wide as he blinked between them.
“Other problem is, some people might think it was odd if we asked the same person.” Though the words were bold, Harry knew George well enough to see the nerves, knew Fred’s face just as well to see the worry lurking in his gaze as he looked between himself and George.
“Well, we’re not some people, are we?” He asked, echoing the sentiment his aunt had told him only a few days before.
He was pinned in place by two pairs of brown eyes, and he felt his mouth go dry as they regarded him.
“No, we’re not.” Fred agreed.
They spoke the next words in tandem.
“Harry, will you go to the Yule ball with us?”
>>>
Harry was on cloud nine when the Malfoy’s arrived, Sirius with them. He smothered Draco in a hug that was returned with equal enthusiasm, and returned the kiss on the cheek offered by Narcissa.
He hugged Sirius too, since he looked like he needed it, before grabbing Draco’s hand.
“Can Draco come play Quidditch with us?” He asked, barely waiting for Narcissa to nod her head before he was dragging the blonde off.
Even as he pulled Draco around the corner, he stopped gripping the other boy’s hands tightly. He couldn’t keep the news to himself.
“You’ll never guess who asked me to the ball.” He blurted, and Draco’s eyebrows winged up.
“Who?”
“Fred. And George.”
Draco’s eyebrows almost disappeared into his hairline, but he was smiling back just as brightly.
“Both of them?”
Harry nodded, laughing in disbelief, and Draco joined in.
“That makes a lot of sense actually. They’ve been planning something about the Yule Ball, but the only one they’d speak to about it was Hermione.”
At the name of the witch, a slight flush spread across Draco’s cheeks, and in the haze of his own happiness, Harry latched right onto it.
“You asked her, didn’t you?”
Draco nodded, biting his lip nervously and glancing back towards where they’d left his mother with Sirius. Harry just squeezed his hands.
“I think it’s brilliant.” He told the Slytherin fiercely. “We’re all going to have so much fun together.”
It earned him another smile from Draco, and so Harry started off again, keeping Draco’s hand firmly in his.
“Now come on! We really are playing Quidditch.”
>>>
Narcissa shifted in the doorway, turning her gaze to Sirius and keeping it level despite her nerves.
“I’m glad to see the distance hasn’t affected their friendship.” She noted, and Sirius hummed, turning to meet her gaze head on.
“Harry wouldn’t of let it. He talks about Draco all the time.” Then he waved her forward, further into the house. “I’ll show you to your room, then I believe Natasha’s in the common room with James, Molly, and Newt. Arthur’s been dragged off for experiments.”
“I see.” She regarded her cousin, taking in how much healthier he looked then the last time she’d seen him. “I won’t be long then.”
She turned into the room he’d lead her to, but stopped at the touch on her arm, turning to face the man she barely recognized.
His expression softened into something wry, and it was familiar in all the ways he hadn’t been before.
“I’m glad you’re here.”
“Me too.” And she meant it. She would forever be grateful for Sirius' reaching out and making it clear she was still family. It offered her and Draco a protection from what was coming. A protection she already knew they were going to need.
>>>
Harry adjusts his bowtie nervously. He’d worn many suits before, but there was something different about this one - and he knew it was because who he was going with. He’d always gone to this sort of event with his family, but this one wasn’t for them, it was for him and he had actual dates. He still couldn’t get over that fact.
He hands were stilled by his aunts, and she smoothed it as she offered him a soft smile. He looked up at her and saw the same sadness in her eyes he’d been seeing often lately, and he hated to see it there. Unable to help himself, he darted forward, hugging her tightly.
“I love you, aunt Tasha.”
“I love you too, Harry.”
Then he stepped back, putting on his best smile for her.
“How do I look?”
She stepped back as well, regarding him with a critical eye. The robes were deep black, with small but intricate silver detailing along the collar, lapels, and the cuffs. His shirt was crisp white, and he’d even managed to comb his hair into a more artful mess than usual.
“Handsome as ever.” She promised, knowing it was important to him. His smile grew brighter.
“Do you think we’ll match?” He blurted, and then blushed at the question. It was silly after all. Natasha laughed, and barely resisted the urge to ruffle his hair.
“I wouldn’t worry.” Then she steered him towards the door. “Come on, everyone’s waiting for you. And we want pictures before you go.”
Harry allowed her to push him through to the common room where all his closest friends were waiting.
Luna was dressed in a pretty, pale violet dress that floated around her as dreamily as her smile. She was smiling up at Ron as she tucked a flower of the same colour into his lapel, and the redhead was smiling back down at her, even as he blushed a furious crimson.
Neville and Ginny were practicing their dance moves in another corner, giggling at their purposefully over dramatic actions.
Hermione was standing next to Draco, in a beautiful pink dress, and Harry knew his aunt Tasha had spent time with her, helping her tame her curls into the smooth, sleek style she now wore. Draco was in black dress robes of his own, but there was a pink flower in his own lapel, and he held Hermione’s hand as he stood before his mother.
Narcissa bent to kiss Draco’s cheek, then Hermione’s, and Harry felt his eyes tear up, quickly dashing them away before anyone could see, but he was so happy for his friends he almost couldn’t help himself.
Percy had gone ahead to get ready with his own date, who’d wanted to prepare with her own friends in Ravenclaw, and the only ones missing were the twins. He felt the tug of nerves, and then the tug on his consciousness, and he just knew they were behind him.
He turned and his mouth dropped open, cheeks flushing.
Fred and George were in Silver dress robes, matching his exactly, with black detailing where his were silver. They had a black rose in each lapel, and at his expression, they grinned and swept forward. George took the lead, flourishing a silver rose, and when Harry nodded, sure he was blushing furiously but too thrilled to mind, Fred plucked it from George’s hand to secure it to Harry's own lapel.
“There, now there will be no mistaking it.” There was a possessive glint in Fred’s eyes, and Harry laughed despite himself.
“None at all.” He reached out with both hands, and felt his heart trip in his chest when both were accepted. He turned to the room, flushed and grinning, and knew this was just going to be the best Christmas ever.
>>>
Hours later, after the dancing and the music and the soft, chaste kisses, he was proven right.