𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐄 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐋𝐔𝐄

Chapter 7

There was a gurgle. Harry thought it might have come from Draco, but he wasn't entirely certain. He opened his eyes and everything was blurry.

"Oh, Harry!" Hermione sounded as though she'd been crying. Mmph. Go away Mrs. Tiggywinkle. I want to have my scones. Draco was clearly still passed out cold, and Harry couldn't figure out where he was. He was lying on something soft, and there was something very warm on top of him. When it shifted a little Harry realized the warm thing was Draco.

"Mr. Potter." Snape sounded annoyed to the extreme. "Please do wake up."

"I'm awake." No. Don't take away my tea, you scabby-faced rat-woman. "Draco is not, but I am. What happened?"

"You know very well what happened, Mr. Potter. I must say I'm not surprised. I should have used a protection charm on Mr. Malfoy rather than give you and your ridiculous friends a chance to have at him." Urgh. Potter. Make it stop. I don't want to go to breakfast. I want to stay here. With you. And Mrs. Tiggywinkle. And your fine array of transparent underpants.

Harry groaned. Hermione slipped his glasses into his hand, and he shoved them onto his face. Snape continued. "Miss Granger has explained to me what she attempted to do and I'm appalled. Utterly appalled. One hundred points from Gryffindor for presuming to be able to do something I cannot." It's not stopping, Potter. The annoying voice is still there. Rub my belly, that will make it go away. Hermione looked crestfallen. Harry could only imagine the stern talking to she'd received before he woke up. "Miss Granger has received three weeks' worth of detention for her cheek, and you, Mr. Potter, will be severely punished as well. As soon as this...this mess is sorted out." Snape sniffed.

"What exactly happened?" Harry said fuzzily, noting that he was now lying on Draco's bed in the hospital wing, with Draco partially draped on top of him. At that precise moment Draco was nuzzling into Harry's bare shoulder. He wondered idly at what point he became half-naked, and suddenly felt a bit self-conscious with Snape looking down on him like this.

"Your silly friend here," Snape spat, "tried to use a common separating spell. Foolish girl. She had no idea what she was dealing with. A separating spell! As if we didn't already think of that and dismiss it. I'm horrified to think that after six years of instruction any student would-" WHO IS DOING ALL THIS SQUEALING?

Draco groaned loudly and rolled off Harry.

"No!" Hermione shouted. "Don't!"

For a split second Harry wondered what all the fuss was about. Don't what? He had kept his hands to himself, more or less, except stroking Draco's lower back only the tiniest bit, and Hermione couldn't possibly have seen that under the blankets. He hadn't been conscious long enough to piece together exactly why Snape and Hermione would be watching him and Draco ostensibly cuddling half-naked on a bed in the hospital wing, and he couldn't fathom what Hermione didn't want them to do that they weren't already doing the moment before. But in the next second all he could think about was the pain in his arms, his legs, and his head, rocketing through his spine and into his fingers. They both screamed. I MUST BE IN HELL. THERE ARE NO BATHROOMS AND EVERYTHING HURTS.

Suddenly Snape and Hermione were on either side of the bed, shoving them back together. Draco's head landed back on Harry's shoulder and the pain subsided.

"Don't move, either of you, you have to be touching!" Hermione hissed. Her eyes were full of tears.

Draco whimpered. Potter, what's going on?

'Apparently,' Harry sighed, 'Things just got worse.'

*

Madame Pomfrey tut-tutted and made the bed only slightly larger. "I'm sorry boys," she said. "But you appear to have gotten into this mess all by yourselves and you'll have to deal with the consequences. We'll have a big meeting in the morning with all the professors to see what can be done. For now...sleep well!" She grinned at them. "Would you like me to strap you together, or can you keep in skin-to-skin contact on your own?" Harry thought she seemed way too amused about this entire situation.

"Doeth id not theem evend the thlightest bid strange to anyone elth that profethors are encourajig two horbonally charged teenagers to sleep together dearly daked?" Draco asked innocently.

Snape's eyebrows rose nearly to his receding hairline. "Mr. Malfoy. In case you hadn't noticed, Mr. Potter is a boy, and therefore there is nothing untoward or hormonal going on here at all. Surely there is nothing more wholesome than two teenaged boys in one bed together."

Hermione and Madame Pomfrey looked at each other. Draco and Harry looked at each other. Everyone avoided looking at Professor Snape.

"What?" Snape asked, exasperated.

Oh my God. And here I thought you were the naive one, Potter.

'For some reason, I find it all quite reassuring, really. Perhaps I too can live in Snape's fantasy land.'

I'm sure you DO live in Snape's fantasy land, Potter. Picking daisies and wiggling your ripe teenaged bottom at him.

'I think you've mistaken Snape's fantasy land for yours, Draco.'

Hermione leaned toward Harry and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "I'm so sorry, Harry," she said, choking back tears. Grrr. Jealous jealous jealous.

"It's okay, Hermione. I know you did your best. We'll work something out." Hmm...yes, we can work something out. Like my sexual frustration. Hermione and Snape filed out of the room, followed by a rather amused-looking Madame Pomfrey. "I know for a fact," Snape was muttering to himself as he closed the door behind him, "that Lupin and Black often shared a bed together when we were at school, there was nothing untoward in that..."

Hmm. So...we have to...be touching each other, eh, Potter?

'Apparently.'

Too bad I'm so sick.

'My saving grace.'

Well, shove over a little. I'm nearly falling off the bed.

'You've got three quarters of the bed AND you're lying on top of me.'

Well, I like my space.

Harry sighed. 'Something tells me this is going to be a very long night.'