Chapter 5
To be Whole Again
Last Time
She did enjoy their little talks and gossip, but she longed for a friend with whom she could talk to in a more mature way. Until Harry came along, she could not discuss politics, the economy, or the inventions that the muggles were coming up with.
But even with Harry there, she still longed for a friend, with whom she could talk practically to, and have mature conversations and also talk things about girls with, and for that, she needed to befriend a girl, especially someone who could keep a secret, as she was sure that the two girls in front of her, would cause the whole of Hogwarts to know that she was going with Harry to the Yule in record time.
The Great Hall, Hogwarts, 18th December 1994
The last few days had been interesting in the snake's pit. For starters Daphne had noticed that Malfoy had suddenly gone a lot quiet, he no longer used to boast around, nor was he ranting about Potter.
She of course knew the reason for this.
" It's so funny that you consider yourself as the next Lord Black when the Gringotts and Ministry of Magic documents have recognized me as the Heir Black, making me the next Lord Black once I come of age."
Potter had revealed.
She had written to her father about this, wanting to know how true Potter's claims actually were, while she did not actively distrust Potter, neither did she trust him. Turns out her father also did not know of this, which was a surprise in itself, as her father was a prominent figure in the Wizengamot. Him knowing about the Heirs and Lords was imperative, and with the way Lucious Malfoy boasted about his son being the next Lord Black, even her father had accepted it to be true.
But after a bit of digging and paying some people to let him sneak a peak into confidential files, what he did find was shocking. Potter really was the Heir to the Black family as well as the Heir to the Potter family.
She knew that Malfoy had probably written to his father about this and had gotten the same response as her. That was the reason Malfoy was so quiet. He would have been instructed by his father to keep his head down for now, and not to do anything that would cause the Malfoy family to face the wrath of the next Lord Potter Black.
Even her father had specifically requested her to try her best and make Potter an ally of their family, after all being the ally to two of the most powerful houses would prove beneficial to anyone. The only obstacle she saw that was in her way, was that Potter was a Gryffindor, if she was found allying with a Gryffindor, that too the Boy Who Lived, her house would be very angry at her. And while she could protect herself, she would not be able to protect her sister every time.
That issue resolved itself when Potter was resorted into Ravenclaw. At first, she was confused, Potter had average scores, so how was he sorted into the house where all the studious students resided? That's when it clicked.
' He could not be placed anywhere else, Gryffindor was out of the question, and if Potter was sorted in Slytherin, either he would be dead in a day, or half of the Slytherin house. And seeing his performance in the last task. It would be the latter. Same with the Hufflepuffs, they hated Potter, and Potter could not exactly be placed in a house known for loyalty when he was betrayed by his own house, that only left Ravenclaw.' Daphne reasoned.
Another interesting development to happen was the friendship between Potter and Bones, according to the rumor mill, they had become close friends, often seen in the library, walking on the grounds, and yesterday were even seen holding hands while walking through the Hogsmeade village. Which caused many to speculate that Potter and Bones had started dating each other.
This made allying with Potter even more important, now not only was he the Heir to 2 Most Ancient and Noble Houses, but he might also be dating the Heiress of a third. That in itself makes 3 out of the 7 seats of the Most Ancient and Noble houses under their combined control, is she did succeed in allying herself with them, then their alliance would hold the majority, and would easily be able to disrupt the power balance of the Wizengamot, which was currently tipped in the favor of the pureblood supremacist faction.
On a personal level, she did not know why, but hearing about Potter and Bones, got her feeling a bit agitated. Surely she did not have a crush on Potter, she did not even know the boy. Granted his raven black hair and his bright eyes had an appeal to them, but that did not mean she was going to swoon for the boy. He did not even wear decent clothes.
Currently, she was sitting in the Great Hall with Tracey and Blaise, having their breakfast, when she was shocked out of her musings by a gasp from Tracey, who she noticed was reading the Daily Prophet.
"What is it, Tracey? Another one of Skeeter's articles detailing the rise of the Dark Lord Potter?" Daphne scoffed as she asked this. She knew all that Skeeter was sprouting was all bull shite, and honestly, she was getting frustrated by it. Due to the Prophet not giving accurate information of course.
All she got as an answer was the shaking of Tracey's head. She was still staring at the Prophet wide-eyed. Daphne shared a curious look with Blaise before snatching the paper from Tracey's hand and reading it herself.
' Harry Potter, The new Lord Potter Black'
Detailing below was the full article about how being forced into participating in this tournament had caused him to become an emancipated minor, due to which he was eligible to take over the lordship of his families. There was also an article apologizing to the new Lord for the recent articles one of their ex-employees used to print.
She now had to change her plans a little, even though allying herself with Potter had become more crucial, she would have to let the commotion around this to die down a little, unless she wanted to be labeled as a harlot going after Potter only for his titles.
Just then in walked the very person she and most of the students were reading about.
Lord Harry James Potter Black.
The Great Hall, Hogwarts, 18th December 1994
As Harry prepared himself to enter the Great Hall, he knew that he was once again going to be the center of attention, after all, it was him that had gone to the Daily Prophet office after gaining his Lordship to threaten the chief editor. To retract and apologize for all the rubbish they had printed, or suffer the wrath of the Potter and Black families.
So, Harry very well knew what was going to be there in today's Prophet, and also knew that by now many would have read the article about him becoming the new Lord Potter Black. So, Harry decided to give them something else to talk about as well.
Taking a deep breath he entered the Great Hall, as expected all conversations stopped, all looking at him and he noticed many of them had the Prophet in their hands. He let his eyes roam over every table, and when he met eyes with Daphne, he made sure to send a cheeky wink her way which caused her to narrow her eyes at him.
Once taking in the reactions, he quickly walked over towards his destination, but instead of sitting on the Ravenclaw table, he walked straight to the Hufflepuff table, kissing Susan on her cheek before sitting beside her.
If the silence before this was much, now you could hear a needle drop on a grass field from a mile away. All conversations had stopped, and anyone who was not looking at Harry with wide eyes was definitely doing so now.
"Hey Harry! How are you?" asked Susan, causing her friends' eyes to go comically wide when Susan just casually responded to Harry kissing her on her cheek.
"I am doing great! Still trying to figure out the clue for the next task." Harry replied in the same causal tone as if nothing had happened.
"So, caused quite a commotion now dint you?" Susan replied, gesturing towards the still gawking crowd.
"I try." was Harry's cheeky response.
Outside the Charms Classroom, Hogwarts, 18th December 1994
As Harry walked towards the Charms class, he hoped that Daphne was there already. Charms was the only class that Ravenclaw shared with Slytherin along with Transfiguration. So, he hoped he would be able to have a playful back-and-forth with her.
' God, I miss those playful banters with Daphne. It also used to amuse Susan to no end, while she kept a tally of who was in the lead.' Harry reminisced.
As Harry hoped, Daphne was already standing in front of the Charm's classroom door with her friends with her. As he approached the group, he was regarded by Daphne with a raised eyebrow, Tracey was giving him an amused look, while Blaise was already suspicious of him.
"Hey Daphne!" Harry called out.
That caused quite a few of the students that were there to go silent, Harry Potter was talking to a Slytherin.
"Since when did we become friends? Since those are the only ones, I am on a first-name basis with." Daphne asked, but instead of the frosty tone that her friends expected, they found her amused more than anything.
"Since you started staring at me whenever I am near you." Harry replied.
"That's very presumptuous of you since I have caught you ogling at me quite a few times, don't think I don't notice those glances you send my way when you think I am not looking." Daphne countered but did not deny the accusation.
"A guy appreciating a beautiful girl. Can you really fault me for that?" Harry teased.
This caused Daphne to heat up a bit in her cheeks, but her neutral expression stayed. She did not know why but she suddenly felt a warm feeling in her chest, if any other boy had said this, she would have just shown them their place and moved on. This alone caused Tracey's grin to widen while looking between the two of them, and Blaise to lose his suspicious look and gape at Harry.
' 1 Point to Me!' Harry was definitely going to keep a track of this.
"So, who are you going to the Ball with?" Harry questioned.
Daphne in response just rolled her eyes, but still looked amused. "Please don't tell me you're about to try and ask me out to the Ball. I would have thought with your actions today you would be going with Bones." She did not know but she felt agitated while talking about Potter going to the Ball with Bones.
"Nope, not asking you to the Ball, just a question. And yep, going with Susan to the Ball." Harry replied, but did notice Daphne's eye twitch when he confirmed that he was going to the Ball with Susan.
"I guess you will just have to wait and find out won't you." Daphne replied, while she anyways knew that she would be going in solo, there was just no other boy that caught her attention or interested her.
' Even if there was, he was already going with someone else.' Daphne thought to herself while trying to stop herself from gritting her teeth. Of course, she wanted to go with Potter, but only because she would have gotten closer to solving his mystery and gaining the Greengrass family a valuable ally. There was no other reason for it.
Looking towards the corridor and noticing the ferret walking towards them, he suddenly had a brilliant idea.
"Tell you what, wanna place a bet?" Harry inquired.
"About?" Daphne replied.
"If I get Malfoy to kiss a muggleborn's feet, you owe me a dance at the Ball, if not I owe you a dance at the Ball." Harry replied.
Before Daphne could reject it, based on the stupidity of it. Tracey replied, "She accepts!". Which caused her head to snap towards her best friend and her eyes to widen a bit.
But before she could let Potter know, that the bet was off, and Tracey accepting does not count, they heard a thud.
Looking down the corridor, the saw Draco Malfoy sprawled on the floor, his face on a terrified Justin Finch-Fletchley's shoe. Almost like ' kissing' it.
Looking back at Potter and noticing a smug smile on his face, Daphne had only one thought running through her head.
' I am going to kill Tracey.'
Harry's Room, Ravenclaw Tower, Hogwarts, 25th December 1994
Harry was standing in front of the mirror in his dorm room, wearing the formal robes that Susan had selected for him, black with emerald green borders. Which really did compliment his eyes now that he had moved away from wearing spectacles. That was due to one of the first rituals Harry performed when he got here.
Being sent back in time more than he wanted, he had noticed that his current body was scary thin, and scars covered his back, which Harry did not like, not one bit. So, to rectify this, he could either do it the long way, where he keeps on taking nourishment potions, maintaining a diet, and working out, or he could perform a ritual to help him make the same process faster.
As a result, Harry no longer was the shortest guy in his class, he was around 5 feet 9 inches, a healthy 60kgs, and had built up some muscles, and that for a fourteen-year-old boy was pretty impressive. He made sure to maintain this body by working out daily in the Chamber of Secrets.
Once more making sure he looked presentable, he made his way out of the dorm and towards the kitchens, where he knew the Hufflepuff common room to be. He knew that the common room entrance was in a nook on the right-hand side of the kitchen corridor and required no password to enter, but he did not think that the Hufflepuff students would much appreciate him entering their common room.
So, after making sure he had not messed up his robes, he walked and leaned against the wall opposite the entrance.
' So, what if I don't mean to scare them by entering their common room, it did not mean I can't make them uncomfortable.' Harry thought deviously.
And surely whoever came out of the common room and found Harry Potter standing in front of them, surely was feeling uncomfortable. The boy whom they had harassed, the boy whose retribution they feared, knew where their common room was. And they only hoped that he did not find out that there was no password required to enter.
Just then out came the other Hogwarts Champion, Cedric Diggory.
"Hey Harry, what are you doing here?" Cedric questioned, confused as to how Harry knew where their House entrance was.
"Hey Cedric, just waiting to escort my date to the Ball." Harry replied, smiling at the older boy.
"But why here?" Cedric questioned, wanting to find out if Harry really knew that this was the entrance to their common room. All he got as a reply was a devious smirk on Harry's face.
"Hey Harry! What are you doing here?" a voice interrupted Cedric before he could question any further.
Looking around Cedric, Harry was left speechless, there was his date. Susan was wearing an emerald green form-fitting dress with no sleeves and black trims. Her long red hair falling behind, reaching to the middle of her back, and Harry noticed she was also wearing a hint of make-up. Not really covering her face with foundation, but just enhancing the beauty that she already had. As she approached, Harry noticed that she was a bit nervous.
Harry pulled her closer and hugged her with one arm by her waist.
"You are looking gorgeous Susie." Harry said, kissing her on her cheek.
Which caused Susan to blush a little, but also raise an amused eyebrow.
"Susie huh?" Susan questioned, not really minding the nickname, and finding that she quite liked Harry calling her that.
"Ready for the ball, my lady?" Harry asked, offering his arm to Susan.
"Certainly, my Lord." Susan replied while taking the offered arm.
As they neared the entrance to the Great Hall, Susan asked the question all Hufflepuff students had on their mind
"How did you know the entrance to our Common room?" Susan questioned.
She got the same reply as Cedric a few moments prior, the same annoying smirk, letting her know that he had a secret and that he was not going to share it right now, just to annoy her. "Prat" she said, while slapping him on the arm she was holding onto playfully.
Once they reached the entrance, they were informed by Professor McGonagall that the champions and their dates will move towards the side room adjacent to the Great Hall, to receive some instructions for the grand entrance.
After leaving the entrance hall, they joined the remaining champions in the adjacent room. Viktor was already there with his girlfriend, a Durmstrang student, also there was Fleur with her date Roger Davis, a seventh-year Ravenclaw that currently looked to be in a comatose state while staring at Fleur, with a bit of droll forming on the corners of his mouth. Cedric arrived moments after them, with Cho Chang on his arm.
After a round of greeting the champions were instructed to fall in line by McGonagall, and were told that they would be entering with Cedric and his date going first, followed by Fleur and Davis, followed by Viktor and his date for the evening, and at the end would be Harry and Susan.
As they entered the great hall, they noticed how different it was, decorated with Christmas themes. Snow falling from the ceiling, disappearing before it reached the guests, the house tables had been replaced by several circular smaller-sized tables.
They were greeted by a round of applause from the occupants, who were standing on the side of the room, making a direct path for them towards the head table, which housed all the judges of the tournament and several of the staff members and authorities from the ministry.
The champions reached their destination, but before that Harry had the unfortunate fortune of seeing the person, he hated the most, the one that had taken his loves from him. Harry's blood boiled looking at the said person, but he knew he will have to let it be for now. When the time was right, he would strike.
Susan noticing that Harry's muscles tightened, and jaw clenched, squeezed the arm she was holding, looking at him with concern. Harry just responded with a small smile and shook his head while patting her hand that was holding onto his other arm.
As they came to a stop, Harry noticed that as in the original timeline, Crouch was missing, and in his place was the pompous git, Percy Weasley. With a groan, Harry tried to sit as far away from him as possible.
Once the all were seated and the males had helped their dates into a seat, Dumbledore stood up, and after a speech, the dinner was underway.
The dinner was going as expected, Harry and Susan were mingling with the Champions, and even Fleur was acting friendly towards Harry, especially after she realized that her date was probably not going to be able to hold a conversation with her, in his dazed state.
"You fought well against the dragon, Potter." Krum said while gaining Harry's attention.
"Thank you, Krum, you did well too." Harry replied
"Yes, I too was impressed, you might be young, but a worthy Champion no less. I would like to apologize for my previous words." Fleur said, while also apologizing to Harry for her earlier comments.
"You save me a dance, and I will accept your apology." Harry replied cheekily, while also making sure Susan was not uncomfortable with it.
Fleur hesitated at this, looked towards Susan, receiving a smile and nod in response finally accepted Harry's offer.
' It's not like my date is going to be focused enough to dance properly.' Fleur thought while glancing towards her still drooling date. Then she turned her attention back towards Susan.
"You are looking beautiful ." Fleur said, praising Susan.
"Not as beautiful as you ." Susan replied, before starting to make small conversations with each other.
With his date occupied at the moment, Harry finally had a chance to glance around the table and with growing dread realized that Percy was looking at him with a sour expression. Deciding to get to the point, Harry met Percy's eyes and asked. "Is there a problem ?"
Percy, not noticing that many of the table occupants were lending him an ear, while trying to be discrete, with a sneer said "You. I don't think you should be even allowed to sit at this table. Performing such a blatant display of dark magic in your first task, putting the public in danger, and using parseltongue in public. The ministry should have arrested you by now, and stripped you of those titles you hold."
Before Harry could put him in his place, he was interrupted by Susan, who was currently looking at Percy with narrowed eyes said, "If we are going to talk about danger to the public, maybe Lord Potter Black should let the Prophet know how the ministry was so inept in providing proper safety measures, that caused a dangerous dragon to be able to break through its chains and walk free. Shall I also inform you, a ministry employee, that speaking in a different language is not a crime. And did you just suggest that the Ministry should strip the titles of a Lord of not one but two Most Ancient and Noble houses, did you ?". Making sure to emphasize certain points to make sure that the git understood, that he was out of his depth and fighting a losing battle.
In that moment, Harry did not see the insecure Susan Bones, he did not see the underconfident girl that she had been just a few days prior. In that moment Harry saw her as the woman that stood up to anyone who tried to defame their family, as the woman that put idiots in their place, and the Lady Black, the head of the DMLE.
While Percy tried to become as small as he could, Harry reached under the table and grabbed Susan's hand, looking at her with pride clearly shining through his eyes.
The conversation post that continued, but at a sated pace until Harry started cracking jokes. Which prompted Dumbledore to start sharing the pranks the Marauders pulled during their schooling period. Which got the entire table laughing, one could even see McGonagall trying to fit off the smile that was threatening to spill all were having a wonderful time except a highly embarrassed Weasley.
As the dinner came to a close, the opening dance was announced, accompanied by the lights going dim, soft music playing in the background, and the Champions accompanied by their dates moving towards the center of the hall.
"Nervous, Harry?" Susan asked, a bit of a mischievous look in her eyes.
"After hours of being tutored by the best, how can I be "? Harry replied.
"Good. Make sure not to embarrass me in front of the whole school. You would not like the consequences." Susan replied teasingly.
That had Harry shuddering, he could take on a dragon and win, but not in a million years would he want to face the wrath of an angry redhead, especially the one in his arms right now.
As the four couples took their position, and the dance started, Harry and Susan looked into each other's eyes and nothing else mattered at that moment, not when the song ended, nor when the other couples joined them on the dance floor.
Harry did not know how long were they dancing for, content in having her in his arms once more, in that moment, he made a promise to himself.
' I will make sure nothing happens to you, the smile remains as it is, no harm shall come to you as long as I live, that is my promise… to the both of you.'
After a few dances, Susan feeling a bit tired asked Harry to have his dance with Fleur while she rested. Harry had a pleasant conversation with Fleur while they danced, and they started a tentative friendship along the way, Harry only hoped that it would grow to become what it used to be in the original timeline.
Once Susan came back, they danced to a couple of more slow songs before Harry asked Susan. "Do you fancy getting a drink?"
"Yeah, that sounds good." Susan replied
"Let's go a bit away from my friends, they can be a pain in the arse sometimes." Susan said, as she took Harry's hand and moved away from the table where Hannah, Su Li, and their dates sat. Both of the girls looked quite inquisitively at her. Harry knowing the gossip and squeals that those two girls were sure to do if they went to meet them did not argue with her, and quickly followed her towards the table that held the punch.
"You look like you are having fun Potter." A voice spoke up from behind them. Turning around he saw it was Daphne. Looking as beautiful as ever. Wearing a form-fitting green dress, that seemed to cling to every curve of her body, showing a hint of her developing cleavage that left much to the imagination.
"Hey Daphne! Are you having a fun night?" Harry questioned.
Daphne looked towards Susan, before turning her attention back at Harry and with a raised eyebrow replied. "As good as it can be."
Harry understood what that glance towards Susan was about. It meant ' Introduce me to your date dumbass.'. After living with her for so many years, he had learned what meaning her actions held.
"Right, Susan, this is Daphne Greengrass, Daphne this is Susan Bones." Harry said, introducing them to each other. He was a lot nervous all of a sudden, they were compatible and hit it off quickly when the two had met one another in the original timeline, but they were a lot more mature back then. Now, both being a few years younger, Harry could only hope that they hit it off just as quickly this time around too.
Hearing the casual introduction caused both the girls to roll their eyes at Harry, while Susan also made sure to lightly slap him on the arm.
"Hi Heiress Greengrass, I am Susan, Heiress to the Most Ancient and Noble family of Bones, it's a pleasure to meet you." Susan introduced herself as she moved her focus towards Daphne.
"The pleasure is all mine Heiress Bones, I am Daphne, Heiress to the Most Ancient and Noble family of Greengrass." Daphne replied.
Before any of them could continue, they heard a groan coming from Harry. "Is this really needed? It's a school ball."
"Yes" came the reply from both the ladies.
Which caused Harry to groan in frustration again.
That was enough for Susan to snort and start giggling, and even Daphne was trying to hold back her smile.
"How did you two meet, I did not know you two knew each other?" Susan questioned, genuinely curious.
"The first time we actually spoke was after Potter's first task, and ever since he has been trying to annoy me, making ridiculous bets." Daphne replied while giving Harry a flat look.
"What bet?" Susan asked.
"Potter here, placed a bet that he could make Malfoy kiss a muggleborn's feet, and if he wins, I will owe him a dance, and if I win, he owes me a dance, and before I could comment about the stupidity of it, my idiot friend, Tracey accepted it on my behalf." Daphne answered.
"So, either way, you have to dance with him?" Susan clarified, looking thoroughly amused.
"Yes" Daphne replied flatly.
"So, what happened? Did he make Malfoy kiss someone's feet?" Susan laughed.
"I do not know how, but he made the blonde pounce trip, just when he was in front of the Fletchley boy, causing Malfoy's face to connect with Fletchley's shoes." Daphne said, looking curiously at Harry
' Potter did not even wave his wand. Nor did he not even have it in his hand. Then how did he trip Malfoy?' She wondered.
Instead of looking jealous that she would have to see yet another gorgeous girl dance with Harry, Susan just looked more amused and was laughing at Harry's antics.
"You sure your date won't mind Harry dancing with you?" Susan inquired, after all, Daphne was a drop-dead gorgeous girl, and anyone who brought her as his date would get jealous seeing his date dance with another boy.
"I did not come with a date, I just tagged along with my friends." Daphne replied, shrugging as she did so. Susan did notice that Daphne glanced in Harry's direction while saying this though.
Susan was not dumb, but rather quite the opposite, so she knew when a girl was interested in a guy, and Daphne was clearly interested in Harry. Which strangely did not make her feel jealous, as she knew that even if she and Harry started dating, which she hoped for, she would have to learn to share him sometime down the line. He was the Lord of two of the oldest families and hence was required to have two wives as a way to make sure the continuation of both family lines.
So, she was not opposed to sharing Harry, and as much as she had heard about Daphne, she knew her to be a mature girl, cunning, smart, intelligent, and beautiful. Someone whom she could easily see herself being friends with, in fact, a friend like her is what she needed.
So, with that in mind, Susan said. "Go on then, a bet is a bet. And Harry, make sure to show the girl a good time, she has no date after all." Susan replied. Pushing them towards the dance floor.
Daphne was thoroughly surprised, she had thought that Bones would become jealous and a bit angry after hearing about the bet, as most girls their age would have been if they saw their date dancing with a girl like her. But she thought wrong, and was pleasantly surprised by the maturity Bones was showing.
Harry for his part was incredibly happy, both the girls had hit it off as he had hoped. He did not really want to be forced to choose one of them. He loved both of them equally. Both were special to him, and he did not like the thought of losing one for the other. So, when Susan instead of becoming jealous chose to encourage them to go dance, he was ecstatic.
As Harry and Daphne turned to walk towards the dance floor, he offered her his arm, which after a moment of hesitation on her part took it, and both walked towards the dance floor. Choosing to completely ignore the students that had noticed them and were staring in their direction.
As they started dancing, Daphne placed a hand on his shoulder, while Harry placed one of his on the small of her back, and used his other hand to hold Daphne's. As the two danced, it caused quite a murmur to go around the Hall, after all, Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, the defeater of the Dark Lord Voldemort, was dancing with a Slytherin, but they did not let it affect them much, just enjoying the peace and dancing.
"So, you do know how to dance." Daphne stated.
"You doubted my dancing abilities?" Harry questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"I had thought for sure I would have to go to Madam Pomphrey after the dance to get my dislocated toes fixed." Daphne responded, her tone having a bit of a mischievous edge to it.
"I must admit, I was never a good dancer, all you are seeing is due to the tutelage of a lovely teacher. Dancing with a beautiful and skilled partner like you might also have something to do with it." Harry replied.
"Trying to flirt with me Potter? Bones might not like it." Daphne responded.
"She looks quite happy to me. But the question is, is it working?" Harry replied while waggling his eyebrows, which did cause Daphne to gain a bit of red tinge to her cheeks.
And as Harry said, Bones was looking over at them with a smile when Daphne turned her head in the direction they came from.
"You are incorrigible you know that, Potter." Daphne stated, not quite meeting his eyes.
"Harry" he said, causing Daphne to look at him a bit confused, which prompted Harry to clarify. "Use my name, Harry, I would expect after spending such a lovely time with each other, we might as well become friends.".
This caused Daphne to be surprised. Yes, she did want to make Potter an ally, and she knew he was trying to be all friendly with her, but she thought he was only joking around. But looking at him now, she saw that he was entirely serious about making her a friend. And surprisingly, she was not entirely opposed to it either. Harry was an interesting person, she quite liked the back-and-forth that they would share whenever they crossed each other's path in the corridors, or when they shared charms and transfiguration classes. Although a bit annoying at first, she did find it amusing and found herself looking forward to the next ones.
"Sure, Harry." Daphne responded a bit quietly, not really sure of her decision and the consequences of it that she would face from the Slytherin students.
"While I know you are more than capable of putting the blood-supremacist gits in their places, let me know if they give you any trouble, I would be more than happy to teach them a lesson. The ferret specifically." Harry added, knowing what Daphne was worried about.
Daphne was relieved hearing that. She had the support of Lord Potter Black, and anyone would think thrice before messing with him, especially after his stunning performance in the first task. But she was confused a bit. "Ferret?".
Harry just shrugged and pointed towards where Malfoy and his gang sat. "Tell me that the blonde daddy's boy does not look like a ferret to you. I dare you."
This only caused Daphne to start laughing into Harry's shoulder.
She was having a wonderful time. But after a dance or 2, she thought it would be rude if she kept Harry away from Bones for more than 2 dances when she was Harry's date. So, with that thought in mind, they made their way back to the table Susan was sitting on.
"Had a good time, Daphne? I hope Harry did not step on your toes. I had to get mine healed for the first two days of tutoring him." Susan questioned, glancing at Harry, who was looking indignantly at her.
"So, you were the 'lovely' tutor Harry was talking about. Thank God, you taught him. Even after your tutelage, he managed to step on my toes twice now, I shudder to think what would have happened if you had not taken one for the team." Daphne replied, keeping the joke alive, and saw Harry looking at her with a mock betrayed look.
"No. I did not step on either of your toes!" came Harry's indignant reply.
This caused both the girls to start laughing at Harry's plight, which in turn caused Harry to pout. But all that achieved was to make the girls laugh harder.
"Oh, you poor baby!" Susan mock cooed while pinching Harry's cheek, only for it to be slapped away by a scowling Harry.
And just like that, the conversations continued. They conversed about many things, the ball, the tournament, and the next task, before moving on to discuss politics and their respective favorite subjects. Daphne found that she quite liked talking to these two. They were a breath of fresh air, and she got on surprisingly well with Susan. Yes after a few minutes of conversation, she had started to use her first name.
She found it quite different, she was so used to Tracey's gossiping and girly talks that the conversations that she had with Susan left her pleasantly surprised. She would definitely not be opposed to having more of these conversations. In fact, she was looking forward to it.
As the night was coming to a close, Daphne decided to head back to her dorm after a quick farewell. While Harry and Susan decided to go out for a walk, for a bit of quiet time.
Harry made sure to avoid the area he knew Snape and Karkaroff were sure to be at. He already knew of the conversation between them, he did not have the need to listen in.
While they were walking, content in just being there and not really talking much, Harry contemplated on all that had happened since he jumped back in time. It had gone exactly according to plan, and he could not have been happier.
"I had fun tonight." Susan said, moving closer to Harry while wrapping her arms around his waist. "I am glad I met you, I am glad I finally found the courage to talk to you on that day."
Harry looked down towards Susan, meeting her eyes, he leaned down and pressed his lips against hers, his arms tightening around her, and after a moment he felt her reciprocate. Her own arms tightened around him, pulling him closer towards her, running her hands through his messy hair as she deepened the kiss by slipping her tongue in his mouth.
After a while when breathing became a necessity, both separated a bit before resting their foreheads against each other. Looking into Susan's eyes all Harry could see, was the warmth that she held for him. It was the same way she looked at Harry before she was… killed.
"Susan, the past few days have been the most memorable days of my life. I have had the pleasure to know a strong, beautiful, and amazing girl like you, and I am feeling quite blessed. I am not ashamed to say that I am falling for you." Harry admitted.
This shocked Susan, while she was also falling for Harry, and knew that in some way he reciprocated her feelings, hearing it from him was a bit of a shock. Here was a boy, Lord of two of the wealthiest and most powerful families, more famous than anyone else, confessing that he was falling for her. It was quite shocking. But before she could respond by saying that she too was feeling the same way, she was stopped when Harry placed a finger on her lips.
"Before we take this any further, I just want to let you know what you are getting yourself into. I am a famous man, celebrated by some, but even hated by many others. There would be many that would want to harm me, and being with me would mean you could become one of their targets." Harry whispered, but before Susan could respond he continued. "Also, there is the fact that I am Lord Potter Black, so I am required to marry twice, so I bring with me would also mean you would have to share me with someone else. Are you okay with that, Susie?"
"I am already a target Harry, my aunt is the head of the DMLE that has put many dangerous criminals behind bars, so I am already a target for anyone who would want to take revenge against her, and my aunt has made sure I can take care of myself, so I do not think you will have to worry about me getting targeted. And coming to the point of sharing you. Harry I was raised knowing the Pureblood laws and culture, and I already knew that if we ever start a relationship, I would have to share you, and I have come to know enough about you to know that while you may not be able to focus all your attention on me, you will make sure that we both are happy." Susan assured Harry, before pulling him in for another kiss.
Once they broke up, Harry looked into her eyes and said. "Well then, there is only one thing to ask. Susan, will you be my girlfriend?"
Instead of replying, all Susan did was pull Harry back in for another kiss.
AN
Thanks for sticking around guys.
So, yeah, that was the Yule ball. A bit of Daphne POV, Harry/Daphne interaction, the yule ball, the dance, a bit of Susan/Daphne/Harry interaction and then the kiss.
Sorry if it was not up to the mark, I am not really great at writing romance scenes.
So, next up, some more HP/DG/SB interactions, maybe a confrontation with Malfoy, and the second task.
Its going to be great
And thanks for your kind words, all of you. Especially Alhpie and Peve, my 2 support staff XD.