Paid In Blood - Revised

Chapter 8

Daphne couldn't keep the smile off her face as she stared at the spot where Harry had just vanished. She didn't regret a single thing that had happened between them, and she decided she was going to embrace whatever would come. She liked Harry, Harry liked her; he wanted a partner, she wanted to be his. So why not?

She walked into the Three Broomsticks and saw that every table was filled with Hogwarts students. She stood up on her tip toes trying to spot someone familiar, thinking that her year mates should still be there finishing up their meals. As luck would have it, she saw Tracey, Millie, and Pansy sitting together at a table towards the back and moved to join them. There was no sign of the other fourth year boys.

"Where have you been?" asked an indignant Tracey, rising from her seat when she saw Daphne.

"Having lunch," replied Daphne, raising an eyebrow at her friend. "Why?"

"We looked for you two forever; we were going to ask you to join the rest of us for lunch," Millie replied, taking a sip of her butterbeer. "Where did you have lunch?"

"Did he plan something romantic?" Pansy asked teasingly, but with a little touch of envy. Daphne couldn't help but crack a small smile when she responded.

"Harry took me to the lakeshore, and we had a picnic in a beautiful clearing," she said, the other girls paying rapt attention. "He charmed the area so that it would be warm for us too, it was very pleasant," she added.

"And?" asked Tracey, impatiently. Daphne smirked at her friend and decided to have a little fun with them. They could wait a while longer to learn that she and Harry were now dating.

"We talked a bit...well, a lot, actually, and then he had to leave to take care of some other business," she said, and almost cracked up at the look of disbelief on Tracey's face.

"You talked? You only talked?" she spluttered. After being subjected to her teasing for weeks, Daphne was really enjoying torturing her friend like this.

"And he just left you?" asked Pansy, raising her eyebrow.

"No, he didn't just up and leave me," Daphne replied. "He really did have some important business to take care of, and I knew all along that he'd have to leave as soon as we'd finished eating."

"I don't understand, what sort of business could Potter possibly have?"

"Pansy, trust me on this, we know next to nothing about Harry Potter. Whatever Malfoy or Professor Snape have told us, Harry is nothing like that," she countered, taking on a serious tone. "He told me a bit about the last three years here and believe me, it's nothing to take lightly."

The three girls looked at Daphne, a little surprised by the turn the conversation had taken.

"I know," Pansy confessed in a whisper. Now Pansy was the focus of the other girls' staring, who couldn't believe what they were hearing. The was Pansy Parkinson – second only to Draco in anti-Potter behaviour over the years, and easily the most outwardly bigoted girl in their year, although to be fair it wasn't entirely by choice.

"I saw what he did to the dragon, Daph. We all saw it. I saw him dismantle Draco as if he were nothing. Harry's proven he's a true Slytherin. Trust me, I know what kind of things I've said about him, but even I know he deserves our respect. He's powerful, Daphne, and he's our age. What will he be like a few years from now?"

Pansy shifted in her seat while the girls silently looked at each other. They had never seen Pansy like this before, but apparently she wasn't done.

"That's the other thing. He doesn't seem to be looking for followers like some wannabe Dark Lord, or even like Draco. He's looking for allies, and I think it would be prudent to consider it. There are even rumours that Alistair Pince, Brian Carrick, and Eliza Culberth are interested in having him join them."