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“Oh Merlin, look at those poor girls,” Pansy giggles next to Draco, stealing his attention from the snack table. He follows her gaze, finding the Patil twins looking absolutely miserable next to Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, the two girls watching the dancing student body with envy. Draco downs the rest of his drink, sharing a look with Pansy. “We should fix that.”
“I happen to agree,” Draco smirks, peering over the crowd. He finds his friends at the edge of the crowd and pulls Blaise and Theodore away from the other students, pointing toward the girls. “See those two? You guys should invite them to dance.”
Blaise follows his gaze and grins. “Oh, I would so like to be the bloke to steal the Chosen One’s date!” Theodore snorts and the two immediately set off for the twins. Draco smirks as he leans back against the table, listening to Pansy’s barely concealed giggles as Blaise and Theodore swoop down on the unsuspecting dates. As Blaise wanted, Parvati eagerly jumps at the opportunity for a dance with him, leaving behind a dumbfounded Harry Potter. Padma is just as eager when Theodore asks her, seeming unbothered when Ron Weasley takes no notice of his date disappearing.
Pansy finally lets out a laugh, brushing back a few loose strands of hair. “Look at his face! Potter looks so miserable!”
Draco snorts in amusement, eyeing the Gryffindor as he slumps back in his seat, watching the student body enjoy their night. It was rather odd that out of everyone here, Harry is one of the few not enjoying the dance. He expected the boy to at least be dancing with his friends, but Weasley looked unbothered and Granger was off dancing with her own date, Victor Krum. Draco himself took Pansy as a date as the two weren’t romantically inclined with anyone at the moment, so it seemed fitting they would dance as friends. Though, of course, they both were aware of Draco’s interest in the Chosen One.
In fact, for the next hour, Draco couldn’t help but glance over at the table often enough for his own friends to notice. Granger had, at some point, gone over to the two boys, but she had walked away in a sour mood after talking with them. Eventually, Weasley abandoned Harry to, what Draco believes, go talk with Granger. Harry once again looked miserable before he too left the table.
Pansy nudges him when he walks off, a knowing glint in her eyes. Draco sneers at her for a moment, his pride refusing to give in to the idea, but when Blaise and Theo shoot him mocking grins, he can’t help but roll his eyes in defeat.
Slipping from the thinning crowd, Draco spots Harry heading for the exit. His hopes sink for a moment, about to decide to turn back, but he notices Harry heading for the courtyard rather than the dorms. Curious, Draco goes to follow, only to be distracted when he bumps into another student. He scowls for a moment but frowns when he notices Granger glaring up at him, much different from the joy she had on her face just an hour ago. “What’s up your arse?”
“Oh, stuff it, Malfoy,” she snaps, storming past him for the punch table.
Lips quirked, Draco trails after her, a teasing note in his voice. “Oh, did someone get abandoned by their date? Were you that bad of a dancer?”
She whirls on his, her pretty pink dress swishing as she does so. Her face is thunderous. “I already heard it from Ron, so I don’t need to hear it from you!”
Now he’s too curious to back down. “Weasley? What did he do?”
“Why should I tell you?”
Draco shrugs. “Fine, go tell Potter then. He just went outside.”
Granger frowns at him for a moment, considering, before she groans and nearly stomps her foot like a child. “Ron- he’s bloody selfish! Being so upset about not going with me when I was his last resort! He won’t stop going on and on about Victor using me, and-” She breaks off, her eyes shining. Draco stares, surprised by how upset she looks. He’s never actually seen her cry before. “It’s just… frustrating.” She laughs bitterly, crossing her arms and looking away. “I can’t believe I just told you that…”
He’s not sure how to respond for a moment. They weren’t exactly on good terms given his bullying toward her their first few years. He learned, however, to stop messing with her after she held him at wand point then punched him right in the face just last year. She could pack one, that’s for sure.
“Fuck him,” Draco finally states. She splutters at his bluntness but he just grins. “Come on, it’s the Yule Ball. Once in a lifetime chance. Don’t let Weasel spoil your night.”
Granger stares at him, mouth hanging before she laughs. “Did you… just give me advice?” Draco shrugs and she covers her mouth, laughing again. “Malfoy, what have you become? Giving a Mudblood advice?”
Draco grimaces. “I, uh… you’re a Muggleborn, Granger.”
Her eyes sparkle at his words. “Thank you.” Draco nods curtly, ready to end it there, but a knowing smile graces her features. “Malfoy, out of sheer curiosity… do you fancy Harry?”
Okay, he did not expect that. “What?”
Her smile widens. “Come on, I’m not stupid. I’ve seen the way you’ve been looking at him all year. I thought it was contempt at first, but now…”
Draco opens and closes his mouth, looking away with a grumble. “I don’t know.”
Granger peers past him. “Well… better catch him before he turns in.”
Draco can’t help but look over his shoulder, spotting Harry coming back inside. He looks back at Granger and the two share a small smile before he turns and heads for the boy. Harry doesn’t notice him at first, seemingly trapped in his own thoughts, but he looks up right before he can run into Draco, features twisting into a scowl. “What do you want, Malfoy?”
Draco merely smirks, holding out a hand to the Gryffindor. “A dance.”
He can see the moment Harry’s brain malfunctions. “What?”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t know you weren’t aware of the concept of a dance,” Draco chuckles, taking Harry’s arm and tugging him to the dance floor. The crowd is not as big as before, but the music is still very much alive and energetic. Harry follows him, clearly dumbfounded, but Draco spots him finding Granger off to the side. He hides his grin when she shoots the both of them a thumbs up.
“What are you playing at?” Harry has to shout over the music, still frowning at Draco.
“Well, I thought the champion deserves to have a dance,” Draco states, holding out his hands for Harry to take. When he hesitates, Draco glances around for a moment before he spots two Hufflepuff boys dancing together, grinning and pointing them out. “Look! No one will care, okay? Just stop being a prat and take my hands.”
Harry stares at the boys for a moment, cheeks turning a light pink when he turns back to Draco. Finally, he grabs his hands, clearly still very wary of Draco’s intentions. Gently, Draco began to tug on one hand and push with the other, rocking back and forth to encourage Harry into the groove. Tugging and pushing repeatedly gets them moving, immersing them into the music. When Harry’s shoulders loosen, Draco releases one hand to tug on the other, pulling Harry close enough to grab his waist and spin them.
For the first time, he hears Harry laugh.
They spin a few more times before they separate, Draco lifting their arms up to allow Harry to spin underneath. Harry’s face twists with amusement and embarrassment. Draco begins to realize as they dance how easily Harry allowed this to happen. For four years, they’re been enemies, always at one another’s throat. He realizes with a jolt Granger must’ve known something if she encouraged him to pursue Harry.
That makes his confidence spike.
Yanking Harry close, he wraps an arm around his waist and the two spin again, his hand wrapped around Harry’s. They almost knock into other students but they couldn’t care less. He notices his friends watching them, glee written on their faces but also the hint of future teasing. Oh well.
He’s not sure how long they dance for. Eventually, the crowd thins as the music slows, but they remain put. Their spins die down to a gentle rock with Draco leading - after seeing Harry dance with Parvati, there was no way he would let him lead - and with Harry resting his head against his shoulder, seeming tired. Draco can’t help but chuckle, the sound causing the boy’s eyes to flicker open. “What?”
“You fancy me, huh?” Draco smirks.
Harry’s face turns red and he sneers at him. “No.”
“Come off it, Potter,” Draco chuckles, squeezing his hand. “There’s no way you’d dance this long with me - or at all - if you still hated me.”
Harry’s brows pinch. “Then the same goes for you.”
“Mhm,” Draco hums, leaning down close enough for their noses to touch. Harry’s breath catches, eyes flickering over Draco’s face in confusion and excitement. Draco hovers, voice barely a whisper. “Still hate me?”
Harry stands there for a long moment, either dumbfounded or shocked, before he leans up and connects their lips. Draco can hear a few students gasp but ignores them, tugging Harry closer as he, obviously, takes the lead on the kiss. He can tell Harry has never kissed anyone in his life with how frozen he is.
When they pull apart, Harry looks dazed and ridiculously happy. Draco’s not entirely sure how they ever hated each other the last few years, but it doesn’t matter now. Their feelings were mutual, and apparently, Granger knew.
Not shocking, really.
“Come on,” Draco murmurs, keeping his grip on his hand firm as he tugs him away from the dance floor. Harry follows without protest, a stupid smile still plastered on his face. After the year he’s been having, Draco isn’t too surprised by his absolute glee with how the night is turning out.
They run up a few flights of stairs before Draco rounds a corner and presses Harry against the wall, a smirk gracing his lips at Harry’s stunned expression. “What? Never had a secret make-out before?”
He already knows the answer, but seeing Harry splutter amuses him. “What- I- we just-”
“It’s the Yule Ball,” Draco interrupts, sliding his hands beneath his dress robes to grip his waist. “Live a little.”
Harry seems to hesitate but when Draco leans in close, lips brushing his, he immediately melts and presses close, their lips melding together once more.