I tried to process the shock which was still processing through my brain.
"I don't remember you telling me about that," I confessed to Harry.
"It was nothing," Harry shrugged his shoulders carelessly, "but I thought you said you wanted to change the subject?"
"Right, sorry, but I do have one more question. Do you remember that one fight you and Malfoy got into? The one where I punched him?"
I realized in the Astronomy Tower that night and I was reminded when you took a punch to my face.
"Just as if it were yesterday. What about it?"
"Who exactly started that fight?"
Harry glanced up at me and raised an eyebrow as if the answer to my question were obvious.
"Who do you think? It was that bleach blond prick."
Well, Malfoy did actually lie about one thing. I always had a feeling he had initiated the first verbal insult only to cause a scene which no one would forget. Of course, that was not in Harry's nature so I don't know why I even considered that it was him. Malfoy did lie about that, but why?
Now, I suppose I can understand why Harry would seek out Malfoy and say all those things to him. After all, he is a protective boyfriend. However, I never actually told Harry that I had wanted nothing to do with Malfoy nor any of those other things. Well, not at that time anyways. Of course, we can agree times are much different now. I assure anyone that it is safe to say that Malfoy wants nothing to do with me presently, and the feeling is mutual. Though, one thing which did trouble me was that Malfoy had actually been telling the truth. However, this does not mean I feel even the slightest pity for Malfoy. He has only brought all of this upon himself. It does turn out that he was not just lying about Harry only to cause me to feel sorry for him, but he has put me and several others through much more difficult situations. There is no help which I can give to Malfoy. Although, it does seem oddly suspicious he told a truth in one area and a lie in another.
"Anyways," I began, "I will actually be changing the subject now. When is the first task for the Triwizard Tournament?"
We both chatted for a few minutes on how he was going to defeat a dragon without a wand for the first task. Fighting a dragon proposed to be an impossible task to conquer, and also sounded unreasonable for a fourteen year old boy to do on his own. He presented his theories to me on how he would survive the task, but all of them came with an inconvenience and could possibly never work.
"Hey Harry, are you sure you don't need a haircut?" I randomly suggested.
"No, why?"
"Well, you continue to push back falling strands of hair away from your face every two seconds it feels like," I teased.
"It's alright. I actually kind of like it this way."
"Very well then."
"Anyways, how long have we been here?" asked Harry, looking around for a clock.
I glanced over at the grandfather clock which stood idle in one of the corners of the room.
"About an hour or so I believe."
"Don't you think the date is over now?"
"Oh...well- I mean- I never intended to have a time limit, but I suppose we can be done."
Harry appeared to be in a rush to leave, yet we also have also been here for over an hour. I guess it was reasonable enough.
"Thank you. I need to be coming up with a way to survive the first task." Harry said as he got up from his seat. "Hermione says the first place to start would be the library."
"Could I come with you? I may can help."
"I guess you can, but I doubt it will be anything exciting."
"Anywhere with you is exciting," I replied with a wink.
Harry blushed at my response, and helped me clean up everything after we had decided the date had officially come to an end. Sure, I may have wanted me and Harry to enjoy some more time together, but whatever he wants I will comply with. There's no harm in making a sacrifice occasionally.
While in the library, Harry and I searched across rows of hundreds of books. I honestly had no idea which book to skim through first. I seriously doubted there was a book on "How to Defeat a Dragon Without a Wand". What type of rule is that anyway? No wand? That's ridiculous! I refused to let Harry get slaughtered by a dragon. I thought until my thoughts seemed to fog with numerous useless ideas taking up space in my scattered brain.
"How are you supposed to fight a dragon with no magic?" I finally let out.
"Well, I can use spoken spells, but none of the ones I'm reading about seem useful. Plus, I'm not supposed to necessarily fight it. I have to retrieve the golden egg that it will be guarding."
"Have you got any idea on how you are going to accomplish that?"
Harry flipped a few pages in his book, deep in thought.
"Not at all. Do you?"
"I have no idea," I sadly admitted.
"Maybe we should come back another day. It is getting pretty late."
"I agree. Maybe once our minds are refreshed in the morning, we will have a plan."
"I hope so. I really don't want to get blown to pieces by a fire-breathing dragon."
I gently held his hand from across the time.
"Hey! Don't say that. I will come up with something. I promise."
Once we departed ways and announced our final good nights, I made it my mission to completely consume my thinking with nothing but how I was going to help Harry finish the task and also help him return in one piece. In fact, I had been challenging my mind so greatly that it took me a moment to notice Kasper was walking right next to me.
"Oh hey Kasper. I did not see you there."
"I know. I was waiting for you to realize. Anyways, what are you doing out here so late?"
"I could ask you the same thing," I examined as I halted in my path.
"You tell me yours and our tell you mine," Kasper said decidedly.
I crossed my arms, a suspicious expression forming across my features.
"I was just with Harry in the library. Now your turn."
Just hanging out with Blaise a few minutes ago. He went back to the common room though, which is where I'm assuming you're going."
"That's all? Just hanging out with Blaise?"
"Well, that's the shortened version of it. Let me tell you what we witnessed though."
Kasper goes on to say that while him and Blaise were simply getting to know each other while taking a friendly stroll near the Black Lake, they spotted Malfoy and Parkinson doing the same thing. Kasper and Blaise then decided to spy on them and hid behind a random bush.
"They were hiding behind a large tree," Kasper continued on with his story, "They were fairly well hidden for the most part, except from the angle from where which me and Blaise watched. We both had to look away shortly after though, because they started kissing!"
Kasper began to cackle hysterically as if it were a comical joke and not a traumatizing sight to see.
"Kas! That's disgusting! Are you serious?"
"Oh yes! I'm more than serious," claimed Kasper as he attempted to hide his laughter. "They were also really deep into it too."
"Okay! I've heard enough!" I declared, noticeably horrified.
Perhaps Kasper was just laughing from the unforgettable trauma he must have developed during that course of events. Just hearing all of it made me want to throw up in my mouth. Personally, I would have drowned myself in the Black Lake after witnessing that atrocious monstrosity.
"I guess that means they're dating," I concluded.
"Most definitely," replied Kasper, "Anyways, I forgot to ask how you and Harry's date went."
"It was remarkable," I answered, well pleased. "Although, he mostly ranted about Malfoy the entire time."
"Did that bother you?" asked Kasper in consideration.
I began walking again and he followed right beside me.
I had to be truthful with myself. It did bother me. Several things Harry has done has bothered me. However, we all have our flaws. I'm sure he was just not aware that his ranting had mad me a bit upset. Of course, I could always speak to him about it later. He would change, I would forgive him, and we would move forward.
"A bit," I finally answered once I had thought about it, "but I do the same thing, so it's fine."
"I'll never forget the big fight between Harry and Malfoy. That was hilarious."
"That was embarrassing," I corrected his choice of words. "We did actually discuss that too. I still find it hard to believe Malfoy would start a fight over me basically."
"Malfoy?"
I felt my heart fall from within myself. Kasper's tone of voice suggested he was asking a question.
"Yeah, Malfoy..." I stated carefully, making sure he heard me correctly because I was sure I had said the right thing.
I did not want this conversation to travel a different direction.
"Malfoy started it, right?" I asked, beginning to suddenly doubt myself.
"Well, if my memory serves me correctly, I swear I can remember Harry charging towards Malfoy."
"Are you sure?" I interrogated him, a hint of disbelief in my tone.
"I am. The whole school gossiped about it for at least a month. I thought everyone knew it was Harry."
"But I mean- are you 100% sure?"
"Who told you it was Malfoy?"
I paused for a second, letting the shock sink in before saying my next response.
"Harry."