Some Strings Attached

Chapter 4: Your Weakness, My Weakness

"Malfoy, why the hell have you dragged me to the library?" Harry had been pulled halfway across the school by his wrist, starting to get sick of the fact that he doesn't know where he was going.

"Because you're insufferable and we need to find to reverse the stupid spell." Malfoy replied, still not taking his eyes off the path ahead of him.

"Yeah, but what's the library got to do with it?"

"Books, Potter! Books! Merlin's pants, are you really that thick?"

"No, I just work out." Harry smirked, enjoying that he could tease Malfoy without any consequences.

"Stop fucking with me, Potter. You're all bubbly." Malfoy stopped and turned to face Harry, still holding on to the shorter boy's wrist.

"So are you!" Harry replied.

"Why have you been so playful lately?" Malfoy asked.

"Because you're fun to tease, and from the looks of things you seem to enjoy it." Harry smirked, stealing Malfoy's trademark grin.

"So what if I do? I get to tease you just as much." Malfoy replied, tightening his grip on Harry's wrist.

"I don't understand how we manage to tolerate each other." Harry chuckled, shaking his head.

"We don't. We've just learnt not to hex each other." Malfoy replied, dragging Harry back in the direction of the library.

"Are you sure? It seems that you're starting to like having me around." Harry joked. He suddenly felt some of the bubbles in his chest fade into a dry heat. "Oh, sorry. I hit a nerve, didn't I?"

"What gave you that idea?" Malfoy snapped.

"You can hide your thoughts from me, Malfoy, but I can still feel everything. You're mad at me, I'm sorry." Harry replied in a soft tone. Malfoy sighed.

"Do my ears deceive me, or did I hear Gryffindor's Golden Boy apologize to me?" Malfoy asked. Harry felt relieved when the warm bubbles returned to his chest.

"Maybe you did, but you didn't hear that from me." Harry smiled.

Malfoy released Harry's wrist from his grasp when the pair entered the library, finding a quiet desk in a hidden corner.

Harry sat at the desk quietly, lightly drumming his fingers against the wooden surface. A lot had been running through his mind as of late, with the First Task just a few weeks away, Ron not talking to him and having to spend more time with Malfoy, it was safe to say that Harry had felt very few moments of calm. Just a few weeks longer, then he can talk to Sirius.

"What's on your mind, Golden Boy?" Malfoy's voice dragged Harry from his deep thoughts, the blond placing a large pile of books on the desk.

"Huh?" Harry asked, he had been too far into his thoughts to have heard the question.

"I said, what's on your mind, Golden Boy? You seem lost in thought."

"Oh." said Harry, taking the top book from Malfoy's stack. "It's just all this tournament stuff, Skeeter very blatantly fabricated my interview, and she's honestly becoming a pain in my ass."

"Oh, yes. What is it she said? Tears fill those startling green eyes as our conversation turns to the parents he can barely remember. You seem awfully worried about your image, Potter." Draco said, dramatically flipping his hands as he quoted the article from this morning's Prophet.

"Everyone in the damn wizarding world thinks they know me, I just don't want any more false truths out there for people to believe. And why in the hell did you memorise Skeeter's article?" Harry joked, flicking through the table of contents.

"Because I knew it was the perfect thing to tease you with. And it seems you enjoy it too." Malfoy replied, noting a page number of particular.

"That implies that you're also enjoying this." Harry smirked.

"Search your feelings, Potter. What do you think?"

Harry sat back for a moment, trying to gage the feelings in the back of his mind. There were bright, reflective soap bubbles floating from a warm, inviting bathtub. Harry wanted to jump in but restrained himself, realising that he would be crossing countless boundaries, even if he was curious as to what would happen.

"Potter, have a look at this. Bottom of page 58, notice anything?" Malfoy asked, handing the book over to Harry. For a split second their hands touched, sending a warm buzz up the boys' arms.

"It was believed by many historians that Godric Gryffindor and Salazar Slytherin held a strong pact of friendship, a sign of this being a collection of identical scars that both men shared. It is not unusual for the wizards of old to have self-inflicted wounds, it was a sign of solidarity for some, that true friends carried the same battles and scars."

"This certainly seems to match the Lover's Story, don't you think?" Malfoy asked.

"I normally wouldn't believe such an outrageous claim, but after what has happened, well, it doesn't seem so crazy after all." Harry agreed, closing the heavy book and placing it back on the desk.

"You know, there's a theory I've been wanting to try. All you have to do is answer a few questions." Malfoy said, smirking as per usual.

"Fine." Harry sighed.

"Good. Now, Potter, what do you feel when I do this?" Malfoy asked, tracing shaped along his forearm. Harry looked down at his own arm, feeling a warm finger trace along his arm, even though there was nothing but air.

"I can feel your finger." Harry replied. Malfoy grinned.

"And if I do this?" Malfoy stood up, brushing against a student as he walked past her, then sat back down.

"Nothing." Harry said.

"And how about this?" Malfoy rubbed behind his ear, fingertips brushing the skin as light as a feather. Harry shivered, the soft touch of warm fingers sending chills down his spine. He bit his lip and looked down, gripping the sides of his seat. He couldn't form any coherent words in his brain, and waited for Malfoy to stop so he could answer.

"Oh, you enjoying this, Harry?" Malfoy whispered, seemingly unfazed by the small circles he traced behind his ear. Harry felt even more chills shoot down his back. The bathtub in the back of his mind suddenly frothed with lavender scented bubbles, he felt like he was being pulled into the warm water.

Malfoy kept going, noting how the back of his mind had changed from a warm puddle of water to a steaming hot spring, almost fogging up his own thoughts. It was hot, hot and damp. He suddenly moved his hand back down onto the desk, he went too deep, deeper than intended.

Harry took in a sharp breath, retreating from the warm water he was floating in. There was a part of him saying stay away! It's not safe! But there was another part of him that wanted more, to let the water and bubbles consume him to the point of no return.

"Yes, Draco, I felt that." Harry said, crafting a revenge plan in his head. Malfoy had taken Harry to a place of weakness and it was only fair he did the same. He reached up and ran his finger through his hair, nails brushing and scratching his scalp. Malfoy's eyes shot open. He could feel the moisture of the fog settle across his mind, coating him in warm droplets.

Harry grinned, the bath giving off less bubbles and more steam as the water increased in temperature. He suddenly grabbed a section of hair, firmly tugging his raven locks back. Malfoy gasped, lurching forward to cover his pink face.

"My my, Draco, hair pulling? How kinky." Harry released his hand and sat back into his chair, silently smirking as Malfoy tried to catch his breath.

"That's not fair!" Malfoy whisper-yelled.

"If you take me to a place of weakness, I'm taking you with me." Harry purred, breath brushing against Malfoy's ear. He turned his back to the Slytherin as he left the library, grinning when the steam failed to settle.