Fandom: Harry Potter
Disclaimer: Harry Potter is owned by J.K. Rowling and Warner Brothers. No copyright infringement intended.
Title: The Punching Mistletoe
Author: Faith Wood
Pairing: Harry/Draco
Rating: PG (PG-13 for violence?)
Word Count: ~1,100
Status: COMPLETE
Summary: Sometimes mistletoes want you to punch each other.
Note: I'm trying out this writing thing again after almost two years. Bear with me, if you will.

The Punching Mistletoe

"Malfoy."

"Potter."

Harry shook his head at himself. Meeting Malfoy in an empty Hogwarts corridor was occasionally unavoidable. He wished these run-ins were less awkward. Unfortunately, they never managed more than a quick nod and clipped greeting.

Maybe one day —

Something bumped against Harry's nose. He couldn't move forward. There was nothing but empty air before him, but he couldn't get through. He ran his palms over the barrier, horrified.

"No, no, no," he said, turning back to Malfoy who ran into the same kind of barrier on the other side, not five feet away.

They both looked up. Sure enough, obnoxiously green mistletoe hovered above them.

"They got rid of those!" Malfoy said, panic clear in his tone.

"Not all of them," Harry said grimly. "Some of them were hiding."

Malfoy took out his wand.

"Oh, come on, Malfoy, you'll only make it angrier." Harry was ready to Summon Malfoy's wand if needed. Hogwarts professors had been struggling with malfunctioning mistletoes for a week. He didn't really trust any of the students to finally defeat them. Even Hermione had failed.
There was only one thing they could do, though Harry was loath to do it.

Malfoy fiddled with his wand for a bit but seemed to think better of it. He put it away.

"Whatever, Potter. It's not like I mind." He grinned, flexing his fist in preparation.

Harry sighed. Whatever happened to good old mistletoes that demanded a quick peck on the cheek? More importantly, what the hell happened to him? Not that long he'd have welcomed a chance to punch Malfoy. Especially if the alternative was kissing him.

But well. Harry approached, studying Malfoy's smirk. It could have been worse. Punching Malfoy was still better than punching someone else —

Pain exploded in Harry's midriff. He didn't even see Malfoy's fist coming.

"Goddamn, Malfoy!" Harry doubled over, clutching his stomach.

"You were dawdling, Potter. I don't have time for—"

Harry punched Malfoy in the nose.

Malfoy cried out and stumbled back, hand covering his face.

"Fuck you," he managed. He wasn't even bleeding. Well, maybe a little. Harry's stomach cheered in delight.

"At least I didn't use my foot," Harry said, catching his breath.

"At least I didn't curse you and slice you open," Malfoy spat.

Right. This was why he didn't want to punch Malfoy in the first place. They'd hurt each other enough for a lifetime, he reckoned. Harry sighed. "Aren't we lucky?" he said and turned around, fully intending to leave.

He smacked against the invisible barrier again. "Oh, come on. What the hell?"

"Clearly I didn't punch you hard enough," Malfoy groused behind him.

"I think..." Harry poked the barrier. "I think I heard about this. Apparently, one of them wants you to kiss and make up after punches."

"No. I'm pretty sure my theory is the correct one."

Malfoy's voice was much too close. Harry frowned and turned. Malfoy's fist collided with his jaw.

This time pain hadn't prevented Harry from reacting instantly. He slammed his knee between Malfoy's legs.

Malfoy yelped and jumped back. "Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you!" He was gasping but trying not to. "You hit like a girl." His voice was very high-pitched.

Harry grinned. "Thanks. I did learn that one from girls." He wasn't lying. Tonks taught him that one. More than a year ago, when Harry told her he wanted to be an Auror. "Go for the balls, Harry," she told him when he asked about the best defence methods. "If it's a bloke, always go for the balls."

"Oh? Really?" Malfoy grimaced. "So... what? Girls kept hitting you in the balls? Interesting."

Harry rubbed his jaw. "I think we should kiss."

"As if." Malfoy spun around and tried to leave, but the barrier pushed him back. He stumbled backwards, right into Harry's arms. Harry caught him on instinct.

Malfoy quickly straightened up and fixed his robes. He turned to glare at Harry, nose held high. "I bet this is your fault. I bet you planted these mistletoes. You and the Weasleys."

"Yeah, because we wanted to punch and kiss half of Hogwarts."

"So you admit it?"

Harry grabbed Malfoy's jaw. Malfoy tried to wiggle away, but their movements were restricted. The barrier was closing in on them. "Hold still," he ordered and Malfoy must have realised why because he stayed put as Harry took out his wand and shot a healing spell at his nose.

"Don't you dare kiss me on the mouth," Malfoy said as Harry leaned in, still holding Malfoy's jaw in a firm grip.

Harry gave him a quick peck on the cheek. The barrier pressed hard on the small of Harry's back.

"This is stupid," Malfoy said and Harry's insides did a funny little twist. Malfoy's eyelashes were so, so pale, he realised. It made his eyes seem softer than they had any right to be.

Everything else about Malfoy seemed hard and sharp. Harry pressed his lips firmly to Malfoy's sneering mouth.

Malfoy sucked in a breath and Harry moved his lips against his. The pressure of the barrier lifted, but Malfoy's lips turned soft; they felt full and inviting beneath his, and Harry pressed on, tongue sliding into Malfoy's mouth.

Malfoy made a breathy sound, his tongue moving against Harry's. His hands were in Harry's hair, apparently eager to turn it into an even more horrid mess. Malfoy pulled him closer, close enough for Harry to feel Malfoy was goddamn hard.

All the aches in Harry's body slowly turned into pleasure.

Malfoy jumped away, leaving Harry standing there with his head spinning.

"It worked," Malfoy announced. His face was very red. He was blinking and breathing hard and seemed to focus a lot of his energy on it. He was straightening his robes, too, unnecessarily, and Harry knew exactly what it was he was trying to hide.

"Yeah." Harry licked his lips. "Definitely worked."

"I should…" Malfoy cleared his throat. "I should alert the professors. Tell them we found the one they've missed."

As though it heard him, the mistletoe spun around and dashed away, disappearing behind the corner.

"Er, I'll go after it, then," Malfoy said.

"Very kind of you." Harry licked his lips again. He couldn't help himself. They wouldn't stop tingling.

"Right, well." Malfoy nodded. "Potter."

"Malfoy." Harry nodded back.

Malfoy turned and walked away, his back stiff. Harry suspected he was trying hard not to run.

He also suspected their future encounters would be even more awkward now.

Harry bit his still tingling bottom lip. He was rather looking forward to it.