sasha

(And Harry doesn’t quite fit there anymore.)

“We’ve been listing the fit girls in fourth year.” Dean picked up a crumpled piece of parchment and tossed it to Harry before placing his own card.

Harry frowned and shook his head, looking at the blotted, crossed-out list.

“Ignore Cora Cattermole. Neville insisted on adding her.” Seamus rolled his eyes.

“She’s pretty.” Neville murmured, nudging a bit of fluff across the floor with his wand.

“I can’t believe you crossed out Heidi Hallowes.” Ron complained, tossing a Chocolate Frog into his mouth. “Her legs are something else.”

“But she’s got that weird mark on her cheek, Ron.” Seamus said, wrinkling his nose.

“Why are you looking at her face when you could be looking at the rest of her?” Ron laughed. “Though I think we could add Maya Mallow. She’s got this innocent smile that makes you think… other things.” He raised his eyebrows with exaggerated suggestion.

Harry threw his card and looked back at the list. It probably sounded dull, but he didn’t find any of the girls on it particularly striking.

Seamus flicked a quill with half-dried ink at him. “You can put down three girls, but we’ll vote on who stays.”

Harry looked at the paper with one eyebrow raised, holding the quill like a dagger.

Was there any fourth-year girl he actually found attractive?

Luna was very pretty and wonderfully endearing, but he didn’t think of her that way.

There was Ginny too, but after seeing Snape’s memory, he couldn’t stop himself from comparing her to his mother, and he had absolutely no desire to follow that train of thought any further. It was horrifyingly uncomfortable.

The cards exploded, making Harry jump and sending the quill flying from his hand.

Everyone laughed, while Harry could only manage an awkward smile.

Redemption of the Blood on Ao3

Chapter 9 fragment of the story (Yes. Slow burn)

Draco was breathing in short bursts. He was on his knees, palms pressed to the floor. His sweat was cold and his hair was sticking to his forehead.

“Come on, Draco, it’s not so bad.” Pansy said, trying to encourage him from where she stood beside him. Her own legs were trembling slightly.

“I’d love to have your optimism, Pans.” he murmured, pushing himself slowly back to his feet, then looked at Sirius.

“I’ve already told you, you need to break the habit of throwing up magical shields when you hear an Unforgivable.” Sirius said, leaning forward to help him to his feet completely. “You have to dodge it physically, or use whatever’s around you.”

“Oh, I didn’t realise it was that simple. Now that I know, perhaps I’ll manage it perfectly.” Draco said, rolling his eyes with perfect sarcasm.

“Right, I think we’re done with the Cruciatus for today.” Sirius gave him a firm pat on the shoulder and stepped back. “Let’s move on to the Imperius.”

Draco exhaled with relief and turned to go back to his position. It was then that he noticed the training room door standing half-open… and Harry Potter, standing behind it, with skin so pale it was nearly white and eyes so wide they looked about to fall from his face.

“What are you doing here?” Draco snapped, covering the distance to the door in two strides.

The humiliation of having been seen by Potter—even for a single second—writhing and crying out in pain when the Cruciatus caught him was worse than anything he could have imagined.

“You said-” Potter blinked, clearly struggling with what he’d just seen. “You said you’d be back in an hour-”

“And you thought that gave you the right to spy on our training?” Draco narrowed his eyes.

“I just-” He looked at Draco, then at Pansy, then at Theo. Both of them looked as bad as Draco. Skin with a greenish cast from the residual effects of the curse. Then his eyes went to Sirius, and something in them shifted to a growing, burning anger.

When they reached the small sitting room on the upper floor, Draco shut the door and turned to face Potter.

“You’d better have made yourself useful.” He pointed his wand directly at his face. “Legilimens!”

Potter’s mind reacted strangely. It felt like a strong wind all around him, and then, as he adjusted to it, the image became clear.

He was flying on a broom, as though trying to outrun the shadow that was Draco’s mind.

It took the Slytherin just over a minute to break through, long enough to find the pattern of the flight path.

The image that came was the last one he would have chosen to see.

Potter slowly pushed open the door to the training room and at that exact moment, the Cruciatus curse caught Draco before he could pull one of the training dummies into its path.

The scream from the Draco in the memory was devastating. His back arched violently and he crumpled to his knees.

“Enough!” Potter shouted, throwing him out of his mind.

Draco exhaled and let himself fall into the nearest armchair, trying to push the image away.

“You’re on the right track. The flying idea is interesting. But speaking as someone who’s flown against you for years, I can tell you it won’t take long to learn your patterns. So either you learn to vary them, or you adapt the shield. Understood?”

Potter simply looked at him and leaned forward. “You’re pale.” His expression was neutral, but his eyes were overflowing with concern. “Are you all right?”

“Did you even hear the feedback I just gave you?” Draco looked at him with weary exasperation.

“I heard. Less predictable.” He nodded once. “Are you all right?” he insisted.

Me at 17: “god I can’t wait to go home and read fanfic”

“Do we?” Draco’s laugh was humorless. “Tell me, Potter. What happens if you stop competing with me? If you just let me win?”

Harry opened his mouth, then closed it.

“Everyone says you didn’t deserve the scholarship,” Draco continued relentlessly. “They say you only got in because they needed to fill a quota. Prove that wrong by losing to me and see how fast it becomes a fact.”

Harry’s throat suddenly went tight.

“And what happens if I lose to you?” Draco’s voice turned quiet. “My family has very specific expectations. Second place isn’t one of them.”

“So we’re just supposed to destroy each other?” Harry’s voice cracked.

“Yes.”

“That’s psychotic.”

“That’s Hogwarts.” Draco said dryly. “Welcome to the pecking order, Potter. Try not to bleed too visibly.”

------

art by @ @irinakulish_fanart on instagram - please go check them out!

------

Halcyon - a drarry slowburn - ao3

It's a no-magic, boarding school au and the story takes place in a Hogwarts Academy, known for their excellence BUT it also has a toxic academic culture.

------

harry and draco hate each other. they're competing for first place and it's brutal.

but they both have insomnia and somehow keep ending up in the same place at 3am. so they make a truce: they can hate each other during the day, but at night they're just two lost wanderers who can't sleep.

turns out it's hard to despise someone when they're the only person who gets it.

------

it gets dark. but it's a story about hope - i promise.

cw: c-ptsd, depression, anxiety, eating disorders, self-harm, suicidal ideation, panic attacks, referenced child abuse.

Harry: Everyone knows I’m wearing yesterday’s clothes.

Draco: You’re being paranoid.

Harry: Bill stared at me for two solid minutes when I came in.

Draco: So go home and change.

Harry: Because that wouldn’t be suspicious.

Draco: Are you trying to hide this? I wasn’t aware I was your dirty little secret.

Harry: I’m not trying to hide anything. I wasn’t aware this was something you would want everyone knowing about.

Draco is typing…

Draco: I wouldn’t mind.