drao looked at him, baffled. he ould have run the idea by him first, but he supposed harry was oo ask for fivehan permission.
“i suppose it would ra i don’t think it would be wise to alle of the astle just beause he beloo someohink…it would be fine for him to aompany you aroule in his animal form. should he want to. never alohough, mr. malfoy. never alone. i will leave you t, then. not that you dohe time in the world. and don’t your studies, mr. potter. maybe mr. malfoy will be so kind as to help you. he was a better student...” prall said, turning on her heel a the door.
the boys smiled politely at her as she exited.
drao turo harry the momerane had losed behind her.
“i may be ier, but that doesn’t mean i am your pet. your familiar, how very ute,” dra it as the other boy fli his words.
“i did like that, malfoy. i was only thinking that it the best pe to hide is in pin sight. no one will snoop ar they see all the time. think about it. hagrid has faime, and no one is urious as to k fang is really a dog,” harry sputtered nervously.
“beause fang is s, potter. anyway, you’re you. everyohihing you do is iing. you’re sudden aquisition of a on’t go unsrutinized.”
“well, i mean, sure people will a ertairiity omes with being the boy who lived, espeially now after all is said ahink you would be quite safe. anyao ss would be l than just sitting around here all day for the rest of your life,” harry said, motioning at the room around him as he fell uneremoniously into one of drao’s armhairs. he propped his feet up o, leaning bak agaiher.
“shoes,” drao hastised, tapping harry’s toe as he assed to him settle ie hair, sitting upright like a ivilized human being.
harry rolled his eyes and kiked off his shoes, whih bouning haphazardly aross the floor.
“who says that would be m? who says i doo do here?” drao asked, leaning forward aing his elbows on his knees.
“for ohere,” harry said.
“and y?”
“you seem to think so, based on those albums you’ve—”
“don’t start with the album. fet the album. i should burn the album,” drao huffed. “it’s the reasohe first pe, pyied game of house where i’m the pet dog.”
harry smiled at him, though it appeared fored.
“unfortunately for you, i wohe srapbook. did obliviated, you see. tell me, what do you have to do here that is m?”
“reading,” drao replied shortly.
“reading would be more fun than going to ss with me? think about it. you ome with me to the defense ss room. we’ll keep something for you to lie on up by my desk. you keep ahe students, ahey do something stupid, we an talk about it together instead of me having to do the funny thiell you about my day,” harry answered.
“so i’ll be some glorified version of mrs. norris. who says i wa your day, potter?” drao sryi that that did, in fat, sou. nothiy quite like gossip, and drao had always loved a good bit of gossip himself.
“the albu—”
“what do i have to do to get you to drop the album?” drao asked, s of the pleasant musings brought o of spending time around people and bak iy.
“akhe elephant in the room,” harry said.
“whih is?” drao tensed.
“i just vowed to protet you with my life for the rest of my existene, malfoy.”
“i know, i was there,” drao replied, the words as loh shall live ehh his mi piking up again as he repyed harry’s answer, a slow, deliberate, and above all else, inredibly o i will.
“so. that means i—”
“don’t hate me. i know. you’ve mentioned.”
“i was going to say don’t mind being around you. might even go so far as to say i would like to be around you,” harry ontinued.
“thanks very muh, kind of you to say,” drao said. he didn’t want to say it. not so pinly. .
“so i guess what i am saying, drao, is is that album what i think it is?”
drao suppressed the leap his heart made at harry’s use of his give wasime he had said it, but he seemed to o for momehis, moments that tug at drao’s hest, threatening to make him spill every seret he’d held lose for the st deade.
“what do you think it is?”
&hat maybe you’d like to be arouoo.”
“maybe i would. seeing as we’re as good as haher forever, it seems like it would be io like to be around you.”
“you just an’t stoop so low as to admit you don’t hate me so muh, either, an yhed.
“to your fae? never,” drao said, a pleasant warm feelihrough his stomah as he returned harry’s smile.
so maybe the familiar idea was one he had ever had, but it ertainly was. after all, he was to make sure drao didn’t feel like a prisohe rest of his life. it was irohat this was the life he hose when it was highly unlikely he would have ended up in azkabarials, espeially when harry would have vouhed for him. harry hated to say it, beause it made him souant, but his wo a long way ihs just after