Desperate Measures

Chapter 16 - Holidays

Draco slowly woke to an annoying voice accompanied by a slight shaking. "G'way,' he mumbled.

"Get up, Draco," Pansy said impatiently. "I've got the paper."

"Don' care," Draco mumbled petulantly.

"Of course you do, dear," Pansy disagreed. "After all, you always do like to know when you're right."

Draco cracked open his eyes to see a disgustingly bright and cheerful, not to mention fully awake and completely dressed, annoying girl sitting on his bed. "Wha' 'bout?" he managed to get out semi-clearly. He figured this was an appropriately advanced accomplishment since he was only semi-awake.

"About Harry dismissing everyone who didn't invite him for the holidays," Pansy elaborated cheerfully. "It's right here in the paper."

Draco gave a passing thought to batting away the paper being shaken in his face but quickly dismissed it. Even half-awake that would be too undignified. Then Pansy's words finally processed and his eyes widened and he smiled. "Knew it."

Pansy rolled her eyes. "Yes, of course you did. Now get up."

"Why?" More awake he might be now, but he still saw no reason to climb from his nice warm bed. "And don't you know how inappropriate it is for you to be in my bedroom when I'm undressed?"

"Because we have to go shopping," Pansy said innocently. "And you would never touch me."

Draco blinked. He wasn't fully awake yet, but he was quite awake enough to know that look. That look meant Pansy had done something he wasn't going to like. "We can go shopping later," he said suspiciously.

"We have to get an early start," Pansy insisted. "All the better to hide the appointment I made for you at 10 o'clock with Healer Monroe."

Draco blinked again and waited for his brain to decipher his friend's words. Finally, they did. "What!" he squawked. "You didn't!"

Pansy grinned unrepentantly. "I did. You might as well get the appointment over and done with as soon as possible so you don't stress over it. Plus, it'll be much easier to hide an hour absence on such a busy shopping day than later when you won't have as much of an excuse to get away from the manor."

"But...but...," Draco protested ineffectually. Damn, but he hated being woken with shocking news. He had planned on a completely lazy day – not one that required him to go shopping and keep appointments.

"Here. Read," Pansy said as she once again shook the paper in Draco's face.

Draco groaned and reluctantly sat up. He grabbed the paper with one hand while the other rubbed his face and smoothed back his hair. He gave a mighty yawn then set himself to the task of reading whatever it was that Pansy found so important.

Three hours later Draco was back in the hotel room they had rented for the day, red-faced and grumbling as he changed out of the same boring grey sweater and robes he had worn to Harry's first gathering. The glamour hiding both himself Pansy from discovery was also dropped.

"So how did it go?" Pansy asked, letting her curiosity free now that they were in a secure environment.

Draco looked up in shock at the question. "How did it go?" he squeaked out. "How can you ask that? I've never been so embarrassed in my life!"

"Why?" Pansy asked in confusion. "What exactly happened?'

"What happened? What happened?" Draco practically yelled. "I'll tell you what happened! I just had to wank off in front of a woman that had to have been at least 100 years old she was so shriveled! That's what happened!"