Harry Potter and The Boy Who Had No Choice

A Staged Breakup

Chapter Thirty-Two

"Are you ready for this?" Draco asked Harry, who was nervously adjusting his tie in the hallway by the entrance to the Great Hall. Parkinson was picking at her nails, paying him absolutely no attention.

"I just have to sit there, right?" he asked, reviewing their plan once more.

After Harry's run-in with Jane a few days before, Draco explained the situation to Parkinson, and together, they hatched a scheme. Harry had never really thought about it before, but having a Slytherin, or in this case, two Slytherins on your side was quite useful.

"Yes," Draco answered, rolling his eyes. "Pansy and I will be doing most of the work, but you still have to react convincingly."

"Right." Harry nodded.

"I'm heading in," he pressed a kiss to Harry's cheek, and Harry blushed, knowing that Parkinson was standing right there. "Remember, you and Pansy come in a few minutes after me."

So Draco abandoned the corridor and entered the Great Hall, leaving Parkinson and Harry by themselves.

"So..." Harry shifted awkwardly. "Thanks for doing this."

Parkinson shrugged, her blunt bob bouncing.

"You didn't have to."

"I would do anything for my darling Draco," she purred in a way that Harry didn't appreciate; he especially didn't appreciate her use of the word darling. "And besides, I owe you."

"For what?" Harry tried to think of a single instance where he ever did something for the Slytherin girl in front of him.

"For trying to offer you to Voldemort last year," she stated unblinking. She, unlike Draco, had no issue using Voldemort's name.

"Right. That." If he was completely honest, he'd almost forgotten about that at this point. After everything he and everyone else had lost, it seemed important in the grand scheme of things. "So are you apologizing?"

"I don't apologize," she remarked, flicking her hair over her shoulder. "Actions speak louder than words."

"I see," Harry nodded. "Well, for what it's worth, you're forgiven." This earned him a slightly shocked expression. "I get why you did it. You were scared; we all were. It was my life versus everybody else's."

"Right." She nodded curtly and there they stood in awkward silence.

"I have to ask," Harry blurted out suddenly. Parkinson gave him an odd look that made him quiet for a second. "'Darling Draco?'"

"That's not a question," she pointed out, examining her nails once again. Harry opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off before he could. "If you're asking if I'm at all interested in Draco, the answer is no." Harry gulped and her face softened just slightly. "Even if I were, you wouldn't have anything to worry about. He's head over heels for you."

"Really-"

"Don't tell him I said that," she interjected sharply.

"Right."

"Right."

Harry peeked his head out into the Great Hall, and spotted Draco tugging on his ear: it was time. He gestured Pansy to follow him in and she did so obligingly.

When they entered the Great Hall together, all eyes immediately shifted towards them. Harry pretended not to notice the whispers that erupted around him as he made his way to the Gryffindor table and sat down. He looked towards Parkinson, hoping his face held an expression of longing rather than the anxiety he was feeling inside.