Exceeds Expectations

                                    

                                          
"Potter, have you decided whether you will be returning to Mr and Mrs Weasley's home for Christmas yet?" McGonagall asked.
                          
"Uh, no I haven't," Harry admitted.
                          
"The deadline was Friday, Potter," McGonagall sighed. "You have until the end of the day." Harry nodded.
                          
"And, I would like to address another matter," McGonagall said gravely. Harry inhaled slowly, he was not in a mood for a lecture about his diet, or his grades, or tutoring. "Would you happen to have any insight as to why, a mere five minutes after breakfast, that it was brought to my attention that five Gryffindor fourth years were found with bright purple skin, unable to provide any evidence of their attacker because all that could come out of their mouth was, and I quote, 'I will never bother Draco Malfoy again'?"
                          
It took all of Harry's self-control not to laugh. "I wouldn't know about that Professor," he said innocently. "I was on my way to Herbology."
                          
"Of course." Harry sort of knew that McGonagall didn't believe him, but she dropped the topic so he wasn't too upset. "I'll let you go to Potions now, remember, I need your decision by the end of the day."
                          
"Of course, Professor," said Harry as he picked up his bag to leave.
                          
Looking at his watch, there was only around fifteen minutes left of the Gryffindor and Slytherin Potions class so Harry took his time as he made his way to the dungeons. He thought about McGonagall's request. Sure, he'd love to return to the Burrow with Ron, Hermione and Ginny for Christmas. But on the other hand, he knew Draco would not return to the Malfoy Manor but him being alone at Hogwarts was an idea that Harry wasn't comfortable with. He was hopeful that all of his bullies would leave for the holidays but he knew that Malfoy had been damaged by the horrors of his past just as much as he was. Being alone in the castle was not something he'd wish upon Malfoy, not after the events that occurred in the past two years.
                          
He knocked on the large wooden door of the dungeon classroom where his friends would be bent over textbooks and taking notes. Nobody looked up when Slughorn opened the door to let him in, that is, except Malfoy.
                          
He took his seat next to the blonde haired boy and decided that there wasn't enough time to start making his own notes. He leant towards Malfoy till their shoulders were a hair's breadth apart, his eyes scanning his notes made in his elegant penmanship. Harry noticed Draco's cologne for the first time, it was this that made Harry realise the two had never been so physically close. Harry had the sudden desire to know which brand of cologne that the Slytherin was wearing, he seemed intoxicated by it. He had never been so enraptured by such a masculine scent, he remembered the sweet and flowery fragrances that followed both Cho and Ginny around and how he had become infatuated by them, he tried to tell himself that this was not the same.
                          
"Are you okay?" Malfoy whispered. Harry did not register the question until Draco nudged him with his elbow.
                          
"Yeah, I'm just reading," Harry assured him.
                          
"Mr Potter?" Harry looked up to see Professor Slughorn clasping a piece of parchment in his manicured hands. "It's good to see you returning to your previous standard, perhaps Mr Malfoy's tutoring is paying off." He places the parchment down in front of Harry before returning to his desk at the front of the room.
                          
Draco reached for the paper before he could. "Well, good job, Potter."
                          
Harry finally got to see the parchment. It was his latest Potion's essay, marked with a large 'E' circled in green ink.
                          
"I mean, it's not an 'O'," Malfoy pulled out his own essay which he must have received at the beginning of the lesson which did, in fact, have a green 'O' on it. "But, you exceeded even my expectations."
                          
"Are you saying you didn't believe in me?" Harry laughed quietly as he raised an eyebrow. Malfoy shoved him jokingly before returning to his notes.
                          
     
                          
Harry walked to the owlery alone. Every step he took reminded him of Hedwig, the owl he had formed a deep bond with before she became but another casualty in his war. The dark clouds had returned to the sky and promised rain, perhaps even snow, in the near future.
                          
He made it up to the owlery, clutching his cloak around himself tightly to conserve his heat in the frighteningly cold weather. He found a school owl easily enough, they were everywhere, and attached his reply to McGonagall to its leg.
                          
He watched it fly away and wondered whether he made the right choice.
                          
      
                          
Harry saw Malfoy wander up the stairs to the dorm rooms and he excused himself from watching Neville and Ernie's heated game of Gobstones to follow him.
                          
In the dorm room was empty except the two of them as Harry stood in the doorway.
                          
"Do you need something?" Draco asked without looking at him.
                          
"This is my dorm too," he began slowly walking toward his bed next to Malfoy's. "And I need to tell you something."
                          
For a second Malfoy's head shot around to look at him before returning to focus on whatever he was doing. "Yes?"
                          
"I'm going to the Burrow for Christmas, you'll be right on your own, yes?"
                          
"I'm not a child, Potter," he spat. "And why wouldn't I be?"
                          
"Well," Harry sat down on his bed facing Malfoy. "I was thinking about staying here, with you." Harry's voice was so quiet that Draco had to stop what he was doing to hear him.
                          
Draco walked over his bed to sit and face Harry, their knees were but inches apart. Something the back of Harry's mind told him to shuffle even closer to Malfoy. He ignored it.
                          
"Why on earth would you do that?" Draco's voice was judgemental but his eyes gave him away. Most people thought Malfoy's grey eyes were unfeeling and cold but being this close to the boy revealed just the opposite. The grey irises were practically translucent windows to his soul, if he let you, you could see right in.
                          
"Because I think we're friends now," said Harry, taking full advantage of this moment of vulnerability not often seen from Malfoy.
                          
"We're not friends," he insisted.
                          
"Will you be okay here?" Harry ignored him.
                          
"I'm eighteen, older than you I may add, I do not need to be babied!" Draco folded his arms.
                          
"How do you know when my birthday is?" Harry frowned.
                          
"This might come as a shock to you, Potter," Malfoy began in a very thick sarcastic voice. "But you're famous. When you defeated the Dark Lord the entire wizarding world knew everything about you from your birthdate to all the colours that specked your stupid little eyes."
                          
Harry raised his eyebrows at the last comment but Malfoy was too busy sulking to notice.
                          
"I'll write to you, and I expect a reply," said Harry.
                          
"Yeah, whatever," Draco grumbled. "I'm sure Weasley will come up here any second for you, Merlin forbid he catches you talking to me."
                          
Harry got to his feet, knowing that Draco was probably right. "I'll see you later."
                          
Harry got no reply but as he turned to leave he had a feeling that Draco was smiling behind him.