Hufflepuff In The Family

Secret Love Affair

Through the whole morning, Kelly forced us to revise. She quizzed us and forced us to quiz her, never stopping. It was actually painful. As it neared lunch, Danielle and I had both had enough and we basically dragged the brunette down to the Great Hall to eat something.

We were chatting casually when a hand touched my back. I spun and grinned as I looked up and saw beautiful emerald eyes, shielded by round spectacles.

"Fancy a walk?" Harry asked. Forgetting the rest of my food, I jumped up and mumbled a quick apology to the girls who were barely containing their smiles. I glanced over to the Gryffindor table where Hermione was in an intense conversation with my brother, yet her eyes not so subtly followed us out of the Great Hall.

We walked in comfortable silence as I allowed him to guide me through the halls and onto the grounds. We made our way to a far tree that sat overlooking the lake. We sat beneath it and only then did I allow his hand to find mine.

"Hermione knows about us doesn't she?" I asked, glancing at him. He looked down, sheepishly and looked at me with apologetic eyes.

"Kind of... yeah. Well, she's been the only one to know how I feel about you because I couldn't exactly talk to Ron about it, could I? Anyway, I never told her. You know how she is." I laughed, immediately understanding what he meant. "She agreed to help us keep it from Ron for a bit but she says we have to tell him soon."

"And we will," I assured him as I squeezed his hand. I knew how hard it must be for him to hide such a secret from his best friend, but I was just so happy and I knew Ronald wouldn't exactly be thrilled.

It was a fairly warm day for a September afternoon and the sun shone down on us. There were a few clouds dotting the otherwise clear sky, rolling by lazily. I closed my eyes, drinking in the beautiful day, and lay my head on Harry's shoulder.

"And it's okay by the way." Upon seeing his confusion I smiled and elaborated. "That you told Hermione. I told Danielle and Kelly... and Jacob... who's probably told Becki."

Harry threw his head back and laughed and I nudged him playfully. "So what you're saying is your entire friendship group, plus Malfoy knows about us and yet my best friend doesn't."

"Okay, but those are completely different situations! My friends are objective and just want to support me; your friends are my brother."

"I can think of another motivation Malfoy might have."

I rolled my eyes and lifted my spare hand to his chin, gently shifting his face to look at mine. I leaned in and kissed him gently. "I am not having this argument with you, Potter. Draco is my friend and that's not going to change just because I'm with you."

Harry's eyes softened and he leaned into me again. His fingers curled against my cheek as he kissed me, soft at first but then with more urgency. He broke our grip to bring his other hand to hold my face and my fists gripped his shirt.

***

This went on for weeks. By the time it reached Halloween, Harry and I had snuck off whenever the opportunity presented itself. Sometimes we just found a quiet spot to sit and talk and sometimes, it was a little more.

My friends continued to tease me relentlessly about it and Hermione took every moment she could to remind us that we needed to tell my brother. Speaking of which, he seemed to try his utmost to ensure that the blissful time that Harry and I spent together was limited. He always seemed to be around and asking where we were going. It got to the point where we had to start breaking curfew just to see each other because Ron seemed to be around at every moment.