"Cruci-"
"Sectumsempra!"
Draco's body dropped to the floor in a flash. Blood quickly seeped through the white shirt he had on and spilled onto the ground, leaving the Slytherin laid in a puddle of his own blood.
"Merlin.." Harry looked wide eyed at his wand, not expecting that to have happened. "Malfoy!" Harry ran to the lifeless body. "Shit, shit, shit. Healing spell...Healing spell... just enough to get him to madam Pomfrey.." He muttered to himself, scratching his arm roughly—A habit he's picked up—
Harry remembered the book, the counter curse. There's a counter curse to it!
Now Harry just had to remember the counter curse.
"Vulnera Sanentur!" He spoke out of instinct, hoping it was the correct spell.. if not he's just making it worse..
•
Slowly opening his eyes, Malfoy felt a searing pain in his side, hissing as he moved to sit up. The noticeable scent of a hospital filled his nose, his eyes snapping open.
Now finally aware of his, he could hear snoring to his side.
"Potter." Malfoy looked at his rival who was resting his head in the edge of the medical bed, an invisible cloak covering him from view of Madame Pomfery.
"Oi." Draco nudged his hand making Harry fall forward on his face.
"Huh-" Harry looked up with surprise in his green eyes. Then when he noticed that Draco had woken up and quickly sat up.
Draco grunted in pain as he shifted to face Harry. There was a long gash along his chest that was scabbed over but still tender.
Draco glared at Harry as he rubbed his sore head. "Watch where you're flailing that mop you call hair, Potter," he spat. But beneath his biting words, Draco felt confusion and something more - gratitude, for Harry had saved his life with the counter-spell. Their eyes met for a long moment before Harry spoke.
"I'm...sorry about before, Malfoy. I didn't mean to curse you." Harry's gaze was open and sincere. Draco looked away uncomfortably, wishing his traitorous heart would stop racing at Harry's words. But then Madam Pomfrey bustled over, fussing over Draco, and the moment was lost.
That night, Draco lay awake replaying the scene in the Hospital Wing, trying to understand the strange feelings stirring within him. He had always hated Harry Potter...hadn't he? But if so, then why did the memory of Harry's emerald eyes, full of concern, make his stomach flutter so? Draco clutched his bandages, more confused than ever.
Draco tossed and turned, unable to stop thinking about Harry. His stupidly cute messy hair. His dumb kissable pale skin or his stupidly hot pink lips.
When the sun finally rose, he reluctantly dragged himself out of bed, dreading the day ahead.
At breakfast in the Great Hall, Draco peered over at the Gryffindor table with his normal scowl, watching as Harry laughed with his friends. A strange pang of jealousy arose in his chest.
Harry glanced up then, catching Draco's eye. A flicker of something unreadable passed between them before Draco quickly looked away.
In Potions class, Professor Snape assigned the students to brew healing potions in pairs. To Draco's surprise, Harry spoke up. "Sir, may I work with Malfoy? I want to ensure he understands the potion after his...accident."
Draco's eyebrows furrowed knowing full well he was ahead of all the other students in potion, even if he missed a couple classes he'd still be fine, and his cheeks reddened at the word "accident", remembering how it was really Harry's curse that put him in the hospital wing, and it brought back memories of when he had woken up to the mess of hair next to him.
But he said nothing as Snape nodded curtly and the two gathered ingredients separately.
Working together was awkward at first, with lingering tension from the previous day. And a few mistakes with wrong proportions. But as their potion slowly turned the correct shade of periwinkle, Harry smiled faintly at Draco. "Well done, ferret. Looks like we make a good team after all."
Draco's heart flip-flopped at the smile, hating how Potter had this effect on him now and hating the nickname even more so. But maybe, just maybe, there was hope for something more between them beyond rivalry. The future remained uncertain, but for today, a truce had been formed.
Later, as night fell at Hogwarts, Draco paced in the Slytherin common room, restless. His mind kept replaying the events of the day with Harry.
"Brewing potions with Potter...who would've thought?" scoffed Blaise Zabini from an armchair.
Draco shot him an annoyed look. "We were just working on the assignment, nothing more."
But was that really true? Draco thought about Harry's smile, the grudging respect in his voice. His heart still fluttered at the memory.
A tapping sound broke his reverie. Draco turned to find an owl pecking at the window, a scroll attached to its leg. He took the note curiously. Unfurling it, Draco's eyes widened at the words written in familiar messy scrawl:
Meet me at midnight in the Astronomy Tower. We need to talk.
- Harry
Draco's pulse quickened. What could Harry want at this late hour? Anxious speculation swirled in his mind. As midnight approached, he slipped silently from the common room and made his way upstairs, drawn by an irresistible magnetism towards the Gryffindor who had come to mean so much more than a mere rival.
When Draco arrived, Harry turned from the window, green eyes gleaming in the moonlight. "I'm glad you came," he said softly. "There's something I've been meaning to tell you..."
Draco's breath caught in his throat as he approached Harry slowly under the moonlit sky. A thousand thoughts raced through his mind.
"Well, Potter?" he said, proud his voice did not betray his nerves. "What is it you wanted to say?"
Harry met his gaze steadily. "We've been dancing around this for a while now, Malfoy. Ever since that day in the hospital wing." He took a hesitant step closer. "I know there's something between us, more than just rivalry. I feel it too."
Draco's heart pounded. Was it possible Harry returned his secret feelings all this time? "Say what you mean to say clearly, Potter," he replied, trying to mask his hope with scorn.
A faint smile touched Harry's lips. "What I mean is...I like you, Draco. More than I should." He reached out tentatively, as if waiting for Draco to pull away. But Draco found himself leaning into the whispered confession, emotion welling within him.
Their gazes met and lingered, the air growing thick with longing. Then slowly, hesitantly, Harry's hands found Draco's chest, grabbing the collar of his shirt and drew him nearer, as if asking a question. Draco's breath caught before he whispered "yes" against Harry's lips, and they kissed softly under the stars. In that moment, all the tension and rivalry between them melted away into something sweeter.
A new chapter was beginning for the two former rivals, written not in the history books but in their hearts.
