I'll Take That Chance

CH 17 - He Smiled Back, Uncaring of Who Saw

Harry walked into their next Potions class ready to conquer the work they had to do. He and Draco hadn't spoken at all and it was making him grumpy. People had been making snide comments to Harry about him since Ginny had spread the first rumor and he could only imagine what Draco was hearing.

"Good morning, Harry! Homework all done?" Professor Slughorn asked as he walked to his table.

"Yes sir," Harry said eagerly. He was ready to get it turned in and be done with it. He was also going to be glad when he no longer had potions to deal with.

Harry sat down at his desk and started unloading his bag and cauldron. The other students were coming in and taking their seats so Harry scribbled his name on some parchment to look busy. Ron and Hermione were unloading their things as well and Ron leaned over to talk to him when Draco came into the classroom. Everyone started talking quietly and he knew they were watching them like hawks. Draco breezed between them and scattered his papers all over the floor. He dropped his bag on the table before going to turn his own homework in. Harry scowled after him, rolling his eyes and snatching up his papers.

"Potter," Draco scoffed loudly as he took his seat.

"Malfoy," Harry retorted, fighting hard not to laugh as reorganized his papers. Draco was pulling his books from his bag and Harry could see from the corner of his eye that he was grinning mischievously. He turned the pages of his book and listened while Professor Slughorn gave them their instructions.

"You go get the ingredients and prepare them, I'll do the hard work," Draco said forcefully, and Harry bumped his knee with his own under the table, Draco bumping back. Harry got up and went over to the cupboard and met Hermione there.

"Ginny didn't mean to hurt you, you know. She was upset with herself all night."

"Yeah well, she should have thought about that before trying to ruin something good. Or slapping me, for that matter."

"Harry, I'm sorry. I wish I could say something to her but she's just in a really difficult place right now and she doesnt know how to handle it." Harry felt a little guilty.

"Hermione, I know shes upset with me, ok. But I couldn't keep up with what we had. It wouldn't have been right. Leading her on only would have hurt worse later on."

"I know," she said gently, and she patted his arm as they headed back to their tables. Harry put his ingredients down, thoughts running wild through his mind. He rolled a bats eye between his fingers, wondering if he should maybe speak with Ginny.

"You realize we're going to need that, right?" Harry's head snapped up and Draco was eyeing him quizzically. He looked around and then back at Harry. "You ok?"

"Yeah, I'm ok." He put the bats eye back down on the table. He watched as Draco started the potion and he started mashing up spleens and eyes. "You know, this really is a gross skill." He shook his head in disgust but Draco actually laughed out loud. Harry looked at him with wide-eyes and Draco wiped the grin from his face but when Harry turned around he noticed everyone was watching them. Harry turned back around and shrugged, going back to his spleens. Draco elbowed him gently and smiled and Harry smiled back, uncaring of who saw.

***

Friday morning had come quicker than he was ready for and Draco's stomach was in knots. The week had flown by too fast and he was almost to the point of being physically sick at the prospect of dealing with this weekend. He was up before the sun because he had decided not to see Harry before he left. He would write him a quick note though. Aside from a few glances and a few snippets of conversation here and there, he and Harry hadn't seen much of each other.

"Harry,

Leaving early this morning, probably long before you wake up. Enjoy your classes and the weekend. If I get back earlier than expected I'll send Orion with a note or something.

Don't miss me too much while I'm gone,

Draco"

That was alright, and he hoped it would make Harry chuckle. He sent the note off with his owl and packed a few things into his overnight bag. He made the short walk to McGonagall's office and waited a moment before knocking. He hadn't really thought about what he was going to say to his father or if he would even speak to them. When they had last seen him, it was at his trial and he had turned his back on them, refusing to look at them. He sighed and knocked softly on the door.

"Come in."

"Good morning, Professor."

"Good morning, Draco. How are you doing?"

"I'm doing fine. I was able to get a couple hours of sleep last night which was more than I had expected." He noticed she looked tired as well. "How are you doing, ma'am?"

"You know, not many students ask me how I am, so thank you. I'm doing as well as can be expected. I would like to apologize again for what happened to you, and I hated to pull you from quidditch but I believe its best. I knew that the students might try to bully you, but I never realized the extent to which they would take it."

"Thank you, Professor. I was somewhat shocked myself, but other than a few sore spots and a couple new scars, I'm fine. Besides, I've got worse scars to worry about." His arm tingled at the thought and he dropped his gaze and looked at his reflection in the shiny tips of his shoes.

"The right people who come along in your life won't worry about those scars, Draco. They'll see you for you, for who you are now." He nodded but had a hard time believing it, especially in light of what they were about to face with his father. That judgment could have very easily been his own. He stood up and paced the room a few times and he could feel her eyes pressing on him. He straightened his tie and made sure his shirt was tucked in neatly. "I also want you to know, Draco, that Ginny Weasley was appropriately punished for spreading rumors about you. I was very proud of how you handled the situation."

"Thank you. I wasn't too bothered by it. Not like Harry was, but he calmed down pretty quickly after we talked it over." He smiled at the memory of Harry tossing rocks into the lake. He stopped walking when he noticed McGonagall was quiet and he slowly spun on his heel and looked at her from the side of his eye. She was smiling gently, and she nodded.

"I figured he would have been," she said wisely. She didn't say anything more about it and for that he was grateful. She grabbed her cloak and tied it around herself. She held out her arm and he grabbed it, instantly being pulled from the school.