Deux Visages [Drarry]

8 [Truth be told]

Why he made that promise last night was beyond him, but none the less, a promise was a promise. So, with Lia's gaze piecing through him, Harry sat down next to Draco and greeted the boy with a nervous smile.

"Oh, come off it!" Draco snapped at Lia, who had not stopped glaring at Harry. Harry's eyebrows shot up in surprise at the sudden outburst, but also the sound of Draco's voice. It was a pleasant surprise. His voice no longer sounded like a girl's and instead had a nice rasp to it and it sent a tingle up Harry's spine. He couldn't help but smile at that, the sound of Draco's voice, his real voice.

Lia let out an annoyed grunt and turned her gaze to Mika, as if to calm herself down. Mika only smiled at the blonde and took her hand before looking over at Harry. "Is it too bold of me to assume you two have worked things out?" she asked gently.

"We have," Draco confirmed, smiling at Harry before turning back to his meal and grabbing a piece of toast. 

A moment of silence fell over them before it was finally broken by Lia, "You know Harry?" she prompted and Harry looked at her with a fearful expression. She smiled a smug smile before continuing, "I'm actually surprised you didn't work things about Draco out earlier."

He looked at her in confusion, not really knowing what she meant. He was able to voice a 'Huh' that earned a laugh from Lia.

"I mean, you know his surname is Malfoy, yes?" Harry nodded. "And you didn't think to look into one of the most prestigious pureblood lines out of curiosity?" 

Harry pondered on that for a moment. It had crossed his mind once or twice, but he never really felt compelled to look into anything. He was never really that interested in bloodlines and the pureblood families. So, he shook his head at Lia with a sheepish smile. "Never really got to it," he admitted.

"Well, if you had bothered looking into it you would have found out that my father, Lucius Malfoy had two children. One daughter and one son."

Harry let the information sink in and all he could muster was, 'Oh.' Lia and Mika started laughing and Draco sat shaking his head at their antics, though it could also be at Harry's stupidity. All in all, it was relieving.

It felt a bit surreal, to be back at the Beauxbatons table after so long. The trademark French whispers floated around him and Lia was back to her old self, chatting away like he'd never left. Harry smiled at the familiarity. It was a comfort, serving as a distraction for what was waiting for him later that afternoon. He wasn't sure that he was fully prepared, but really, he wasn't sure if he would ever be. Just thinking of the third challenge sent his gut twisting in nervousness again.

As if sensing his inner turmoil, Draco's hand rested on top of his, that was gripping a fork so tightly his knuckles were turning white. Draco gestured for Harry to take a breath, and he did, following the boy's actions and taking a deep breath in and letting it out. He smiled appreciatively and relaxed into the touch of the hand on his. He wasn't scared to admit that he missed the feeling of Draco's comforting touch. There was just something about it that seemed to immediately calm him down. With one final smile he tore his gaze from Draco's and took a sip of pumpkin juice.

-

It was safe to say he was positively terrified. The branches of the maze seemed to loom over him as he walked through the entrance. With one final glance back at the opening he caught a last glimpse at Draco's reassuring smile and Professor Moody pointing him in the right direction, before finally, the entrance closed, and he was enveloped in darkness. 

It took a few moments for his eyes to adjust, but eventually he could somewhat make out his surroundings. It was endless branches and leaves and there was a mist that hung low and clouded Harry's vision. He started walking and took the first left turn, like Moody had shown him.