Harry Potter and The Vanished Slytherin Prince

Chapter 12

Harry and Draco tell Ron and Hermione

~~~

Harry entered the living room and flopped into a chair. Neville glanced up briefly.

"Trouble sleeping?" He teases. Neville knows Harry started sleeping through the night when he got a pet.

Harry rolled his eyes.

"Draco's asleep, I came down for a cuppa, water's heating up now." Harry explains.

"Draco has a spell to almost instantly boil it." Neville says. "I've asked him about it but he says it's nonverbal and he doesn't know how to explain it. All he could say was that he just 'thinks really hard about tea.'"

Harry chuckles. He's seen that spell before.

"Draco is going to end my life." He says dramatically, lounging back in the seat.

Neville snorts, finally setting his lap desk covered in pages aside.

"Oh yeah, Voldemort? Whole bands of dark wizards? No problem. But that twink, Draco Malfoy in your bed, yeah, he's going to kill you."

Harry laughs. He's very relieved Draco and Neville have gotten along so well, he had been a tad concerned about that.

"You're honestly alright with him here?" Harry confirms. Neville shrugs.

"He stays out of my way for the most part, and he's pretty nice when we cross paths. Yeah, I'm alright."

"I'm glad." Harry says, rubbing his eyes beneath his glasses. "I'm glad, because I really like him, Nev."

Neville doesn't look at all surprised.

"You've liked him for almost two years."

"He's only been here less than one."

"Harry, you're lying to yourself and me if you say you weren't going to that bookshop to see him and hear what he has to say about things. He's not even here right now, you don't have to pretend with me. I know you better than that."

Harry sits forward, looking at Neville closer.

"You didn't say anything before."

"I didn't think it would matter if I said something. Besides, you'd get around to doing something about it eventually. And you really enjoyed having him as a cat, I didn't want to make that awkward."

"He said I'm the love of his life." Harry says quietly. Neville's eyebrows shoot up to his hairline.

"Really? Already?"

"Well- I mean, not to me. But I heard him say it."

"Who was he talking to?"

"Himself. He does that when he's by himself, I don't think he knows I heard him."

Neville rolls his eyes.

"I doubt it, he'd be very embarrassed about it I think. He's not particularly forthcoming with his feelings."

Harry scoffs.

"No, not at all. It's hard to read him sometimes. I think he was easier to figure out when he was a cat."

Harry's bedroom door creaks open, and he looks up to the top of the stairs to see Draco - in pants, for Neville's sake - rubbing his eyes and looking extremely cute.

"Hey, I'll be there in just a moment." Harry says, getting up to pour his tea.

"Bring me a cup?" Draco requests, turning around and heading back into the bedroom.