Out of the Woods •• Sequel To Cabin Fever

F I V E

Harry was having a miserable, terrible, no-good morning. Not only were last night's wanderings terrorized with flashbacks and guilt, his breakdown had been rudely interrupted as well. Of course Draco would pop up in a moment like that. His presence hadn't really made Harry feel any worse or any better, it simply redirected his anxieties to their broken relationship. He had hardly slept after leaving Draco in the corridor. The screams seemed to have followed him to the dormitory and seeped into his dreams.

He had felt Draco staring a hole into his head during breakfast, but did everything in his power to ignore it. That however, was no easy feat. The Slytherin's stormy grey eyes pierced him like icy daggers, sending a chill down his spine. He was oddly grateful for Ron and Hermione's occasional PDA, as it briefly sheltered him from Draco's line of sight.

"Harry, have you finished your Charms essay yet?" Hermione asked, tearing her eyes away from Ron.

"Uh, no, not yet." Harry answered. He wasn't paying much attention to them, focusing his eyes just far enough away from Draco so that the blonde remained in his peripherals. Hermione made an exasperated noise and began to reprimand him, but Harry hardly registered what she was saying. He watched from the corner of his eye as Pansy Parkinson leaned a little too close to Draco and batted her eyes. Draco, however, blatantly ignored her. Harry chanced a direct glance towards the Slytherins and flushed when he made brief eye contact with the both of them. Draco quickly avoided his eyes and began stabbing at his food. What were they talking about, Harry wondered, surely Draco didn't tell Parkinson about their past? He studied the blonde as he scarfed down the rest of breakfast and bolted out of the Hall. Their eyes met once more, and Harry was taken aback by the panicked expression on Draco's face. He had half a mind to follow Draco, but thought better of it. He was tired of this push-pull thing they had going on. You should move on, Harry scolded himself, move on to someone who is easy to love, easy to be with. Someone who would make his life simpler. He rested his chin on his hand and huffed out a breath. A simple life for Harry Potter? Not likely.

"Harry, go get your Quidditch gear." Ginny said, leaning over him and resting her elbows on his shoulders. Things were back to normal, apparently.

"We just had tryouts yesterday!" Ron exclaimed, toast crumbs littered all over his lips and chin.

"Excellent observation, Ron." Ginny rolled her eyes. "I want to claim the pitch on Sundays, before the snakes do. Sorry, Harry." She ruffled his hair when he sighed at the mention of the Slytherin team. He wondered if Draco would play this year.

"S'okay, Gin. We'll go get our stuff right now, won't we Ron?" Harry raised his eyes brows, waiting expectantly for his best friend to follow.

"Suppose we will, then." Ron grumbled, not so gracefully getting up from his seat. "You'll be okay without us, Hermione?"

"Of course I will, Ron. I'm still my own woman, you know." She replied, pursing her lips. "I'm headed to the library, anyways." She shoved her trademark stack of books into her bag and briskly walked away.

"I swear, half the time I cant tell if she wants to snog me or smack me." Ron said weakly.

"She'll keep you on your toes, that's for sure." Harry nodded solemnly, clapping Ron on the shoulder. "Let's go, before Gin skins us alive."

•••

The Gryffindor team was just getting into their practice when a gaggle of green clad students could be seen lumbering across the grounds towards the pitch. Harry was sure he was going to be sick when he saw a shining head of blonde hair amongst them. He remained in the air, hovering a good 50 feet above the ground. Ginny on the other hand, gracefully landed and took long, purposeful strides towards the Slytherins. Harry couldn't make out what she was saying, but her body language showed she was not about to back down. Draco was at the front of the group, waving his hands dramatically as he argued with the fiery redhead. Oh Merlin, Harry thought, is Draco the captain? He watched them bicker a moment more before deciding he needed to go back Ginny up, as Ron was standing uselessly in the middle of the pitch. He plummeted to the ground, pulling his broom up with inches to spare. And no, he was not showing off, thank you very much. He quickly made his way over to stand beside Ginny, crossing his arms over his chest and tipping his chin up in a haughty manner that even Lucius Malfoy would be proud of.

"Is there a problem here?" He asked cooly. He noted the way Draco's cheeks turned bright pink.

"Sundays belong to us, they always have!" Draco snapped, his eyes dangerously narrowed as they focused on Ginny again.

"Show me the papers, then." Harry said.

"What?" Draco turned his head sharply towards Harry. "What papers?"

"Well if Sundays belong to you, officially, it must be documented somewhere. If not, I'd appreciate it if you left us alone." Harry did his best to seem intimidating. Ginny nodded in agreement.

"That's bullshit, Harry!" Draco said with a sneer.

"We've already started, Malfoy, get over it. Come back when we're done." Ginny said, grabbing Harry's arm and pulling him towards the pitch. Harry spared one last glance over his shoulder and locked eyes with Draco. The blonde's face was full of frustration and hurt. Serves him right, Harry thought.

No it doesn't. He deserves to smile, to be loved, a little voice in his head corrected him. Harry gave his head a quick shake. Shut up, little voice.

The rest of the practice went by without any more disturbances. Ginny was an absolute machine, never tiring and working her team to the bone. Harry admired her for that. He knew he would never have half the amount of control over the team that she did. She definitely deserved to be their captain.

"She's going to kill us, Harry." Ron said breathlessly in the change room. Both boys were drenched in sweat and panting. Harry nodded in agreement, as the stitch in his side threatened to take him out.

"Do I hear you complaining?" Ginny called from one of the shower stalls.

"I'm terrified of her, mate. My own sister!" Ron whispered, a look of genuine fear on his face. Harry busted out laughing, and Ron's scowl only made him laugh harder. It felt good. It had been a very long time since he had laughed like that.

Outside the change room, Draco smiled. He knew Harry's laugh, and his heart swelled when he heard it. He would do anything in the world to hear that laugh for the rest of his life.