Two Sides of the Same Coin(DRARRY)

CHAPTER THREE

"To love someone is to wish him life; to hate someone is to desire his death." - Unknown

Bloody hell, Draco thought. That could have gone better.

Wasn't he going to try to treat Potter more civilly this year, as a silent "thank you" for what he'd done for Draco last spring? Wasn't he? He was. He owed Potter that, at least.

Draco had thought he would be able to do it, to treat Potter with cordial indifference and not needle him constantly. But then he'd sat next to the flesh-and-blood Harry Potter, with his messy hair and his wonky glasses and his pungent, freshly-washed fragrance and his clenched jaw and that damned scar ... and Draco's blood had boiled.

Damn Potter.

Draco sighed, gusty and self-indulgent. He never had been able to leave Potter alone.

"Draco, seriously, if you want to set Harry Potter on fire you should really just get up and use your wand. I don't think staring daggers at him is going to do anything but creep him out," chided Pansy, who was sitting across from Draco at lunch.

"Honestly, Pansy," said Draco, tearing his eyes from Potter to look at his sometimes friend. He immediately wished he hadn't when his eyes were filled with too-pink cheeks, a large mouth, and an uneven mop of dark hair that Pansy insisted was 'rocker chic' but which Draco thought was just ugly. If she wanted to master the I-can't-be-bothered messy/sexy look she should take lessons from Potter, Draco thought to himself, then immediately questioned his sanity for thinking such a ludicrous thing. "I am not trying to set Potter on fire. How juvenile."

Pansy tried to raise one eyebrow sardonically, but only succeeded in contorting her face. "Then what were you doing?" she asked.

"I was just thinking."

"Well, I think you should stop."

"Pansy, just because one thought is plenty enough to get you through the day doesn't mean it's sufficient for the rest of us," Draco snapped.

"Well," Pansy huffed, looking stung, "you don't have to be so rude."

Draco felt a pang of guilt. He too often unleashed his pent up temper on Pansy. It wasn't her fault she was so ... daft. An apology hung on the tip of his tongue, but he refused to let it out. Instead, he regarded her with cool eyes.

Pansy dropped the bite she was taking back onto her plate and stood up. "I'm done. You can enjoy your Potter fetish in peace now," she announced, in what was surely intended to be a biting tone. However, Draco was unprovoked.

She pouted and stormed off like a petulant child. Draco rolled his eyes. She would be over it by dinnertime. He glanced back at Gryffindor table, but the seat his eyes sought out was pushed back from the table, empty.

Suddenly, Draco felt hollow and tired.

And very alone.

… & …

Harry surveyed the small crowd collected in front of him. There were a few familiar faces – Ginny winked at him and grinned excitedly – but between the unfamiliar players who'd been new last year and the new crop of Quidditch-star-wannabes, most of the faces were unfamiliar.

And ... feminine. Was it just him, or had more girls than usual shown up today?

"All right, everybody," began Harry, calling the assembled group to attention. The action was mostly unnecessary, however, as many of the hopefuls already had their gazes fixed on Harry's legendary face with expressions of rapt fascination. "It's nice to see so much enthusiasm for the house team this year."