au_muses October topics: Flirt
Harry Potter was a natural flirt. Boys and girls alike were exposed to his teasing. If questioned he would swear that it was all his godfather's fault. You try being raised by Sirius Black and see if you don't walk away with too much charm and self-confidence. On the first trip to the Diagon Alley Harry had worried that girls wouldn't like him. Sirius had laughed off the mere thought of it. It turned out that his godfather had been right. Harry had no problem finding girls who liked him. His problem was remaining interested in them for longer than fortnight.
For several years he worked his way through a variety of girlfriends. Could one really be called a girlfriend if you dated less than a month? His focus was on Quidditch. He excelled on the pitch and loved the sport more than anything else at Hogwarts. It was on the train to the castle that he had met Cedric and struck up an instant friendship. It was on a quidditch pitch two years later where they went head to head for the snitch. Out of everyone that Harry had played against, it was always Cedric who pushed him harder. They were both natural athletes. They were both focused and competitive as well.
The only time Harry lost the snitch had been to Cedric. They were in their fourth year and playing in the rain. As always it was close, but this time Cedric inched forward just a moment sooner than Harry did and his hand clasped around the golden snitch. Harry had been so infuriated with himself he could barely see straight. In the lockers he had stood under the shower and pounded at the wall as if it was the wall's fault Harry had missed the save.
What he hadn't expected was to find Cedric sitting on a bench in the changing room with a mug of hot chocolate for Harry. He'd already showered and changed, and managed to find time to go back to the castle for the drink. Harry cast him a curious look as he changed into dry clothes and tried his best not to be a sore loser. It wasn't too hard to relax though. Cedric had natural charm and a smile that could soothe any beast. Including one irritated Harry Potter. Harry accepted the drink and smiled.
The following year they were set to play each other in the first match of the season. Harry was more determined than ever to catch the snitch. They were fifteen and both were anxious to be the one to end the game and secure the victory for their team. It was Harry who caught it and Cedric who looked a bit infuriated with himself. It was Harry who showered and changed first, and then decided to skip the celebration in his common rooms to bring the hot chocolate to Cedric in the prefect's bathroom. Sitting on the edge of the large bath, he laughed a little too hard at the bubbles that had given Cedric a Dumbledore like beard as he reached for the hot chocolate.
Cedric in turn tossed Harry, fully clothed, into the swimming pool sized bath. The water fight of the century occurred thus making a mess of the bathroom and deeming the hot chocolate undrinkable. Somewhere in the horseplaying, Harry noticed how flawless Cedric's smile was especially when his eyes danced along with it. If asked, even two years later, he wouldn't be able to explain what possessed him to lean in and kiss the other boy. He'd flirted with mates before, but never seriously. The kiss just happened and the reaction was what you would expect from any two fifteen year old boys caught off guard by their hormones. For while Cedric hadn't pulled away, it was clear he was as surprised by not being appalled as Harry had been. Not bothering to clean up the bathroom or dry off, Harry had jumped out of the bathtub and made a run for it. He figured Cedric took his time cleaning things up and getting dressed before making his own escape. They didn't speak of it for a fortnight. It took nearly that long before Harry could even dare to look at him. Once they got over the initial shock, the natural flirt, made yet another move on the loyal and charming Cedric.
The rest, as they would say, is history. More like a mystery as neither had felt like sharing their secret. There were some times, usually at night when they were studying in the library or practicing on the pitch, that Harry wondered if the reason he couldn't call any of those girls girlfriends was because the only person who managed to hold his attention for longer than a fortnight was the polite boy he met on the train to the castle years before.
For several years he worked his way through a variety of girlfriends. Could one really be called a girlfriend if you dated less than a month? His focus was on Quidditch. He excelled on the pitch and loved the sport more than anything else at Hogwarts. It was on the train to the castle that he had met Cedric and struck up an instant friendship. It was on a quidditch pitch two years later where they went head to head for the snitch. Out of everyone that Harry had played against, it was always Cedric who pushed him harder. They were both natural athletes. They were both focused and competitive as well.
The only time Harry lost the snitch had been to Cedric. They were in their fourth year and playing in the rain. As always it was close, but this time Cedric inched forward just a moment sooner than Harry did and his hand clasped around the golden snitch. Harry had been so infuriated with himself he could barely see straight. In the lockers he had stood under the shower and pounded at the wall as if it was the wall's fault Harry had missed the save.
What he hadn't expected was to find Cedric sitting on a bench in the changing room with a mug of hot chocolate for Harry. He'd already showered and changed, and managed to find time to go back to the castle for the drink. Harry cast him a curious look as he changed into dry clothes and tried his best not to be a sore loser. It wasn't too hard to relax though. Cedric had natural charm and a smile that could soothe any beast. Including one irritated Harry Potter. Harry accepted the drink and smiled.
The following year they were set to play each other in the first match of the season. Harry was more determined than ever to catch the snitch. They were fifteen and both were anxious to be the one to end the game and secure the victory for their team. It was Harry who caught it and Cedric who looked a bit infuriated with himself. It was Harry who showered and changed first, and then decided to skip the celebration in his common rooms to bring the hot chocolate to Cedric in the prefect's bathroom. Sitting on the edge of the large bath, he laughed a little too hard at the bubbles that had given Cedric a Dumbledore like beard as he reached for the hot chocolate.
Cedric in turn tossed Harry, fully clothed, into the swimming pool sized bath. The water fight of the century occurred thus making a mess of the bathroom and deeming the hot chocolate undrinkable. Somewhere in the horseplaying, Harry noticed how flawless Cedric's smile was especially when his eyes danced along with it. If asked, even two years later, he wouldn't be able to explain what possessed him to lean in and kiss the other boy. He'd flirted with mates before, but never seriously. The kiss just happened and the reaction was what you would expect from any two fifteen year old boys caught off guard by their hormones. For while Cedric hadn't pulled away, it was clear he was as surprised by not being appalled as Harry had been. Not bothering to clean up the bathroom or dry off, Harry had jumped out of the bathtub and made a run for it. He figured Cedric took his time cleaning things up and getting dressed before making his own escape. They didn't speak of it for a fortnight. It took nearly that long before Harry could even dare to look at him. Once they got over the initial shock, the natural flirt, made yet another move on the loyal and charming Cedric.
The rest, as they would say, is history. More like a mystery as neither had felt like sharing their secret. There were some times, usually at night when they were studying in the library or practicing on the pitch, that Harry wondered if the reason he couldn't call any of those girls girlfriends was because the only person who managed to hold his attention for longer than a fortnight was the polite boy he met on the train to the castle years before.