UnExpected

Chapter 40

Second Year...

"Your turn," she said, grinning triumphantly, chewing on her bean.

Harry closed his eyes and reached into the bag. Please be normal. Please be normal. Picking a piece from the pile, he pulled it out, and with one swift move, dumped it into his mouth. Ugh! Earwax. It had to be earwax, didn't it? But he couldn't lose now, Buffy was already ahead. So, with great effort, he forced his face to remain still.

"You twitched," she accused.

"I did not."

"I saw your nose move."

"It's called breathing."

"No one breathes that harshly."

"I do."

She glared at him as he chewed on his candy. "Cheater."

"You know it's not nice to call yourself names."

Grabbing a Drooble from her pile, she aimed for his head, but Harry caught it without hesitation. Stupid Seeker skills.

"Doesn't matter, I'm still winning," Buffy said smugly.

"Yeah, yeah."

Unexpected. Unexplainable. Totally topsy-turvy. That was the only way to describe it. One day, which seemed like ages ago, they were at each other's throats, belittling each other as much as they could, and now...now...

"Your turn," he said with a self-satisfied grin.

Now, they were playing the Flinching Game.

After that first night, Harry went back again and again. Night after night. After everyone had gone to sleep, he sneaked into the hospital wing and kept Buffy company until she drifted off into dreamland herself. And if you had asked them how things had changed so much between them, in so few days, they would answer you with the most honest answer they could give. They had absolutely no idea.

It slowly began simmering on the first night. When Buffy had let her guard down and Harry had caught a glimpse of the softer side of Buffy so few had seen. It began to grow on the second, when Harry had told her everything that had happened down in the Chamber of Secrets, from what he knew at least, and when Buffy showed honest concern for his wellbeing as well as for Ginny's, his opinions began to change. Then on the third night...on the third night, that's when things really turned.

Harry had absolutely no reason to be there on that night, other than the fact that he wanted to be. Simple as that. And though it was a little tough at first to ease into a flow of conversation, by the end of it, there seemed to be no trouble at all. Mostly due to three things: one, Buffy seemed to have an opinion on everything and Harry felt the freedom to express his own ideas without restriction; two, Buffy actually had a wicked sense of humor that Harry enjoyed, and Buffy realized Harry had a funny bone or two inside his body as well; and three...well, as it turned out, two people with competitive streaks made for one strange comfort zone.

So now, it was the fourth night, and here it was, the Flinching Game in its second round.

"My turn," she said nervously, and sneakily glanced into the bag before closing her eyes and putting her hand in.

"You peeked," he accused, and rightly so.

"No, I didn't," she brushed off, and picked her bean.

"Cheater."

"You know it's not nice to call yourself names."

Smiling brilliantly at Harry's narrowed eyes, Buffy popped her mystery flavor into her mouth. Right before scrunching her face up in disgust.