~*~
It was flavored differently than he'd expected, sort of a cross between bubble gum and mouthwash. It wasn't completely pleasant, either, and he struggled not to make a face as the candy key began to dissolve on his tongue.
"Well?" Ron asked, eyeing him as if he were one of Snape's specimens.
"Give it a moment," Harry said around the candy. "It took you a bit, didn't it?"
"Not really," Ron replied, looking uncomfortable. "I just managed to keep it in for a while, and then--" He broke off, glancing at Hermione.
Hermione was busy watching Harry's face with more than a bit of concern. "You don't look so well, Harry. Maybe you should spit it out. I don't think I trust Fred and Geo--"
Harry shook his head. "I'm fine. I don't feel anything." He glanced around the Great Hall, but his eyes didn't fall on anyone in particular.
"Maybe you don't desire anyone," Ron said with a shrug.
Harry snorted. "Well that's… I mean…" He blushed, realizing he'd nearly blurted out something about wanking in front of Hermione. He lowered his voice and gave Ron a meaningful look. "You know that's not true."
"Hmmmph," Hermione said, looking a bit annoyed. "When you're quite finished scanning the school for your one true love, we've got a lesson to get to."
"He's not looking for love," Ron said, grinning. "He's looking for a shag!"
Hermione's cheeks turned pink, and she was momentarily speechless. She opened her mouth as if to reply, but no sound emerged. After an awkward moment, she picked up her large stack of books and walked away. Ron's eyes lingered on her as she left, his gaze fixed on a part of her anatomy that was swaying a bit more than usual.
Harry sighed. "I don't think it's working."
"Maybe you got a bad one," Ron said, peering into the box at the remaining keys. "Why do you need three, anyway? How many girls could you possibly be in love with?"
"Think I should try another one?" Harry asked, reaching for the box. "Maybe they don't all have to do with people. Maybe one of them is for your favorite food, or something."
"Craving anything?" Ron raised an eyebrow and grinned.
Harry felt a weird twist in his stomach. He frowned. "I just ate but I'm kind of… hungry. I think." He looked back at Ron, but he'd already got up to leave.
"I'm skiving off potions today," he said over his shoulder. "Have fun."
Harry started to grumble, and then found himself staring at Ron's arse as he walked away. He blinked, but Ron had disappeared through the door.
~*~
Potions without Ron was worse than usual, because Snape seemed to assume that Harry was not only aware of Ron's whereabouts, but also was complicit in his absence. The way Snape had hovered over his desk and demanded to know where Ron was in a deep and rumbling voice had made Harry feel distinctly uneasy. Normally he just felt hatred for Snape, but today it was somehow different. When Snape had threatened to force Harry to try his boil-producing potion on himself, Harry had found he could only stare at him in response. Snape had seemed unsettled by this, and cast odd looks at Harry for the rest of the lesson.
"See me after class, Potter," he hissed as the other students were packing up their bags.
Harry grimaced; he'd been extraordinarily distracted throughout the lesson, and now he was probably about to get a detention with Snape. Maybe he could serve it concurrently with his occlumency lessons. Those always felt like punishment anyway.
"Need more remedial potions, Potter?" A sneering voice asked. Harry turned, a foul reply poised on his lips, but froze at the sight before him: Malfoy's usual sneer looked more like a smile today.
Harry closed his eyes and opened them again, confused. Malfoy didn't look any different than usual, but somehow it seemed different. He realized he'd said nothing for several seconds, and managed a half-hearted, "Sorry?" He felt quite stupid, but there was nothing for it. Malfoy stepped closer, his expression incredulous.
"Weasley must have possession of the brain you two share today," Malfoy said, casting knowing glances at Nott and Goyle, who flanked him.
Harry felt dizzy. He took a steadying breath, but all he could smell was Malfoy, for some reason. "I… yeah," he replied. He stared at Malfoy, transfixed.
"What's your problem, Potter?" Malfoy snarled, stepping even closer. He glanced down Harry's form, and Harry felt as if he were on a cheap carnival ride, the sort Dudley used to try to push him off the top of. "What's this?" Malfoy asked, and Harry realized with a start that Malfoy was holding the open box containing the two remaining keys. It had been sitting on the desk next to his bag.
"Give it back!" Harry sputtered, reaching for it.
Malfoy's face split into a wicked grin. "Don't you Gryffindors know how to share?" He plucked one of the candy keys from the box and raised it to his nose.
"Malfoy," Harry groaned, still trying to grab the key away. "It's just some stupid candy."
Malfoy raised an elegant eyebrow and then popped the key into his mouth.
Harry froze. He had no idea what to expect. He watched Malfoy's face screw up in displeasure.
"Ugh, it's revolting! What kind of candy is this?"
"If it's so horrible, spit it out," Harry replied, a bit too hastily.
Malfoy's eyes narrowed as he read the label on the box. "The keys to desire? What sort of rubbish is this?"
"Nothing," Harry retorted, turning back to his books. It hadn't worked for him, anyway. "Never mind. Enjoy it."
There was a strange coughing sound, and Harry turned back to see that Malfoy had gone rather red in the face. He was staring at Harry with a look of mild horror. "This is your idea of a sick joke, is it?"
Harry gazed back at him, his face carefully blank.
Malfoy grasped him by the front of his robes and hauled him forward, so close they were inches apart. Harry swallowed. Under normal circumstances, they'd be swinging at each other now, but Harry found he could only stare back into those cool grey eyes. He managed to shake his head, though his lips wouldn't quite form the words, "No joke."
"Mister Malfoy, are you quite finished?" Snape's sneering voice asked. Malfoy looked startled, but he let Harry go without argument and backed away. Goyle and Nott were staring at him, both uncertain. "You will be late for Defense Against the Dark Arts," Snape continued, staring pointedly at Malfoy.
To Harry's surprise, Malfoy simply nodded, picked up his satchel, and left, his lackeys trailing behind him. Harry turned back to Snape, feeling an odd stab of excitement mixed with his typical loathing.
Snape stared at him for what seemed like several seconds, looking thoroughly un-Snapelike. "You'll be late for your next lesson," he said at last, turning away.
"I…" Harry began, and then stopped himself from pushing his luck. This had to have been the oddest morning of his life.
~*~
Lunch was far more uncomfortable than it had any right to be. Harry's odd morning had left him edgy and distracted, and he found himself staring after nearly everyone that walked by the table: Seamus Finnegan, Colin Creevey (which had the unfortunate effect of making Colin rather excited), Blaise Zabini, Zacharias Smith…
Harry swallowed, feeling his cheeks heat. He'd only been staring at boys, now that he thought of it. That was odd.
Ginny Weasley sat across from him, blocking his view of Thomas Everhart. Harry frowned at her.
"What's with you?" she asked, reaching across the table for the butter.
Harry shrugged. "Nothing. I dunno. I think I'm just tired."
"Hunh," she replied in a sort of disinterested tone. "You didn't happen to eat one of Fred and George's love keys, did you?"
Harry's head popped up. "What?"
"They're just having some odd side effects." She gave him an appraising look. "Maybe you should go lie down."
"Right," Harry replied. Odd side effects That was an understatement.
Of course, he had Defense Against the Dark Arts next lesson, and if he skived off he'd likely be carving I must attend lessons into his hand for three hours Friday night. With a groan, he gathered up his things and left, not even saying goodbye to Ginny.
~*~
Harry couldn't manage to study that evening, no matter how hard he tried. Everything was distracting him -- Ron brushing his hair out of his eyes every so often as he bent over his parchment; Dean and Seamus wrestling on the rug in the middle of the common room; Marcus Dillory chewing on the end of his quill as he watched Lavender Brown bend over to pick something up off the floor.
"Harry, mate?" It was George. He'd appeared at Harry's side without him noticing.
Fred peeked out from behind him. "Can we have a word?"
They jerked their heads toward the portrait hole in perfect unison.
Harry sighed. "Yeah, sure. I'm not getting anything done here anyway." He gathered his things and followed them out into the corridor, trying very hard not to stare at their arses. Those two were on the verge of growing out of their second-hand trousers.
"We forget to tell you," George began.
"The keys," Fred continued, "you know, the candy we gave you yesterday -- they each do something slightly different."
Harry stopped walking and turned to stare at them.
"Right," George said, looking uneasy. "Ginny said you--"
"That's not important, though," Fred interrupted, shooting his brother a look. "Which keys did you eat?"
"I…" Harry fumbled through the pocket of his robe for the box. He opened it to show that the middle one remained.
"Did you eat both of them?" George asked. The apprehension in his tone was quite apparent.
"No," Harry replied, feeling a bit queasy. The Weasley twins were tall, and he hadn't been this close to them in a while. He had to look up at them, and he was feeling weirdly dizzy again. Just like he had that morning after potions, come to think of it. "I ate this one," he continued, pointing to the empty space to the left of the remaining key. And… someone else ate the other one."
Fred and George looked visibly relieved. "Oh, well then," Fred said. "Nothing to worry about."
"Nothing at all," George quipped. They grinned at Harry and started to turn away.
"Hang on," Harry said. "What were you worried about?"
The twins exchanged a look. "Well, you see," Fred began, "we forgot to tell you that the first and second keys are for you, but the third is for someone else."
"Someone else?" Harry felt a sinking feeling in his stomach replace the mildly butterflied one. "Who?"
"You see," George said, "the second key is just a stronger version of the first."
"If you ate the first one, you only got a hint about what you desired. If you ate the second--"
"Like you made Ron do," Harry interjected.
"He needed a good kick in the arse," Fred continued. "Anyway, it's at least twice as strong. And the third is the one you give to the person who is the object of your desire."
"And if they desire you as well, you'll know," George finished.
Harry felt all the blood drain from his face. "So… what if someone eats the third one… accidentally?"
"Same general effect," Fred said with a wink. "How did she react?"
Harry swallowed. "I have to go," he said, and turned and sprinted down the corridor.
He'd intended to go to the library, but he was so distracted he soon found himself in a dusty corridor, not even having noticed that the staircase had moved while he was on it. He stopped and stared around him, as things began to fall into place in his mind. The key he'd eaten was just a mildly powered one, a hint -- and ever since he'd eaten it, he'd done little more than gape at every boy in the school.
He dropped his bag and pressed his face into his hands.
"This corridor is off-limits." Harry looked up to see Malfoy stepping from the shadows, his customary sneer gone.
"So take points off," Harry spat.
"I might," Malfoy replied. He leaned against the stone wall, looking almost feline. "We need to talk, Potter."
Harry snorted. "About what?" He had a fairly good idea about what, unfortunately.
"The candy you forced me to eat this morning was--"
"I didn't force you to do anything," Harry grumbled. "You stole it, remember?"
"-- hexed, or had some sort of potion in it," Malfoy continued. "It was rather clever, I must admit, but enough already. Reverse it."
"I can't," Harry replied, finally looking up to meet Malfoy's gaze. He saw Malfoy swallow, as if unsettled. "It was one of Fred and George Weasley's inventions. Even they aren't sure how to reverse it."
Malfoy's jaw clenched, but he didn't react as Harry expected. He just stood there, looking somewhere between sad and angry. "What does it do, anyway?"
"It shows you… " Harry paused, uncertain how best to proceed. He was actually starting to feel a bit sorry for Malfoy, and that was uncharted territory. He looked away. "Who you secretly desire." That was almost true.
Malfoy walked closer, so close that Harry could smell him again. He must have showered recently -- no one could always smell so clean like that, could they? Harry looked up again and found himself looking at a face he'd never quite seen before. Malfoy's expression was almost soft, curious and uncertain. He felt that dizzy tingly sensation again, and this time it made sense.
"So what do you desire, then?" he asked. He marveled that his voice didn't break from the tension.
Malfoy didn't speak. He didn't change his expression, even -- he just leaned forward and kissed Harry.
Harry was stunned into immobility. This was nothing like the slobbery teary kiss he'd shared with Cho before Christmas holidays -- this was somehow everything he'd ever imagined a kiss would be like.
Except that it was Malfoy who was kissing him. Malfoy, who was not only someone Harry despised, but also a boy. He felt himself tense up, and Malfoy pulled away, staring at him.
"I--" Harry began, but Malfoy cut him off, his expression fierce.
"If you ever breathe a word of this to anyone, I will kill you."
"Who would I tell?" Harry retorted. "Who would I want to tell? Merlin, Malfoy!" He wiped a hand across his lips, making a face.
Malfoy's features hardened. "Ten points from Gryffindor for being in an off-limits area of the school."
"Fuck you," Harry said, and turned to walk away.
The spell that hit him knocked him to the floor, and he found himself scrambling to his feet again. Malfoy's wand was trained on him, though, and there was nothing he could do but stand there and glower back.
"You should show more respect for a Prefect of the school and a member of the Inquisitorial Squad," Malfoy said.
"Do you treat everyone like this after you kiss them?" Harry retorted. "No wonder you only hang around with goons all the time."
"I only kissed you because of that stupid love potion," Malfoy hissed.
"It wasn't a potion," Harry said. It was remarkably easy to keep his voice level and calm. Something about seeing Malfoy coming undone like this enthralled him, and he stepped closer. "It revealed a truth about you, something you didn't want to know, and you can't reverse that."
Malfoy kept his wand trained on Harry, but his hand was trembling.
"You want me," Harry said, moving close enough that Malfoy's wand touched his chest.
"I want you dead," Malfoy replied.
"No, you don't." Harry plastered a wicked smile on his face. "You want me on my knees in front of you, sucking you off."
Malfoy just stared at him in response, as if he didn't know how to respond to that.
"So you should ask me nicely," Harry continued, pushing Malfoy's wand aside and leaning close enough that he could see the little beads of sweat on Malfoy's forehead. "And maybe I'll think about it."
Harry slid one hand around the back of Malfoy's neck and pulled him into a hard kiss, then pushed him roughly away. Malfoy stared at him, dumbfounded.
Harry walked away.
~*~
Back in his bed, Harry opened the box again and stared at the last key. He'd considered eating it, but in truth, he didn't want to know if Malfoy was the one he truly desired. For now, it was far too beneficial to be the one holding the cards. He knew how Malfoy felt, and he could use it to his advantage. He had a feeling he was going to need it.
He closed the box and put it into his trunk, and settled under the sheets. One hand snaked into his pyjama bottoms, but he didn't let himself think of anyone in particular.
He smiled.
~ fin ~
Author's Chapter Notes:
Author: Emma Grant (
emmagrant01)
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Harry/Draco
Summary: Harry finds that the Keys to Desire open doors that should remain firmly closed. Unless he can turn things to his own advantage...
Warnings: None
Originally posted here .