Locked to Lyra. Backdated Opp!plot.

[ferretface_git]

If there was one thing that would truly make his day complete, this would be it.

Draco stood in the kitchen, apron tied firmly on, peeking into the oven window to check the delicious brownies he'd prepared for his very best friend in the entire world.

Universe, even.

The sun was beginning to set, and his cheeks had ached since noon from all the smiling, but he certainly couldn't complain. If his muscles were unaccustomed to the simple act of showing his pleasure, he would just have to retrain them.

"They're almost ready," he said, looking up at her with his eyes bright, and there might have even been a flush of color in his cheeks.

This was a good day.

Comments

[alethioliar.livejournal.com]

Lyra's eyes shown with a peculiar brightness as well as she gazed back at Draco.

It was possibly a cruel brightness, though, since it had everything to do with the snickering currently in progress deep on the inside. "You promise they'll be absolutely scrumptious?" she prompted, coiled tight with a certain brand of pompous satisfaction that Lyra shamelessly passed off as colluding excitement.

[of-badfaith.livejournal.com]

"Oh yes, of course!" he enthused, stopping just short of clapping his hands in all his excitement. He couldn't help it. She looked so happy, it would be silly of him not to share her good mood.

"Well, I hope so. I've never made brownies before."

[alethioliar.livejournal.com]

"There's a first time for everything," Lyra nodded enthusiastically where she sat.

Pan nipped one of her fingers, obviously displeased with the way she was treating her friend. But honestly, she couldn't be bothered to feel a lick of guilt. They weren't doing anything horrible, were they? Just baking brownies together. "What shall we do after the brownies are done?"

[of-badfaith.livejournal.com]

"Whatever you'd like," he said with the utmost sincerity, donning a pair of oven mits and reaching in when the timer gave a merry little ding.

"We'll have to wait for these to cool." He certainly didn't want her to burn herself.

[alethioliar.livejournal.com]

"Oh, that's all right, I'm not busy," Lyra made a careless gesture with her hand, successfully bopping Pan aside as she did so.

Her eyes failed to lose their luster as she climbed down to sniff at the tempting aroma. "Oh, it's a good thing my stomach doesn't hurt like my back does," she idly commented.

[of-badfaith.livejournal.com]

"Oh, does it hurt terribly?" he asked, latching onto her complaint and worry welling up in his wide, gray eyes. "Is there anything I can do for you? You'd tell me, wouldn't you?"

[alethioliar.livejournal.com]

A quick pout made the corners of her mouth dip before vanishing in a valiant attempt not to let her aches and pains dominate the moment. Lyra's sigh spoke of her noble struggle as she reached over one shoulder and rubbed between her shoulder blades.

"Oh, I would, I really would!" she insisted. "But I wouldn't want to ask you to do something you wouldn't want to..." she admitted.

[of-badfaith.livejournal.com]

"Of course I want to. I'm your friend," he said with only the deepest sincerity, "I'd do anything you ask me to, you know that."

In his mind, this was not a new development, but the way things had been, all along.

[alethioliar.livejournal.com]

It was too queer, hearing those words from Draco Malfoy of all people. Too queer, but not queer enough to make her change her mind, of course.

"In that case!" she perked up immediately and reached over to drag Draco around behind her by the wrist. "A back massage is in order, my dearest, bestest friend in the whole world. Not too hard, now."

[of-badfaith.livejournal.com]

Just as he was about to touch her, he realized how terribly chilled his hands were, and he briskly rubbed his palms together, trying to draw up a little heat. They still weren't warm, by any means, but bearable, and after a moment of awkward hesitation, he began to give her the best back massage he could manage.

And it wasn't half bad, considering it came chocked full of friendly love.

[alethioliar.livejournal.com]

Lyra was impressed. Relatively speaking, Draco was fairly useless without a wand, and that was being kind considering she'd never actually seen his magic in action. As she sighed and sagged heavily to let the massage serve its purpose, she contemplated the peculiarities of the island's most recent show of sentient insanity.

Apparently, not only were people transformed into raving lunatics but also were allowed the pleasure of discovering previously hidden talents within themselves. She grinned and rolled one shoulder, and said, "Oooh, get the other shoulder too, it's all stiff there. Like someone took a big bundle of knots and shoved it right under the skin."

[of-badfaith.livejournal.com]

"Oh, we wouldn't want that," he said with utter conviction, going to work with equal care on her other shoulder, her skin quickly warming his hands. She had nice shoulders, he realized, then wondered why he'd never noticed before. There certainly wasn't anything strange in noticing such a simple thing about a friend.

[alethioliar.livejournal.com]

Her mind lost elsewhere, it took a fair amount of time for Lyra's senses to prickle in that peculiar way she'd yet to grow used to.

It was a good massage, serving to loosen her muscles considerably. Only when her mind set its usual course for Will Parry and what he might be doing back in his Oxford right that instant did she frown, rolling her shoulders in an attempt to buck Draco off. "Okay, that's good," she managed as casually as possible, loath to let a sour mood over come her mischievous one.

[of-badfaith.livejournal.com]

"Oh, alright," Draco said, pretending he hadn't noticed the way she'd tensed, but how could he really ignore the discomfort of someone he cared about?

"Do you need anything else?"

[alethioliar.livejournal.com]

"Well," she considered the offer, suddenly restless with that niggling feeling she had a difficult time pinning down. "You've always been a clever dancer, Draco. I don't think I've ever told you that before," she cast her eyes upward, as if she might recall having done so if she studied the ceiling hard enough.

Happily, she reached for a brownie and let out a light hiss at the heat still thick in the flakes. Pan scrabbled along the counter, his little nose twitching. "Kind of hot, still, but they'll do."

[of-badfaith.livejournal.com]

"A dancer? Really?" he said, looking terribly surprised and possibly just a bit embarrassed, but immediately he forgot all that, breaking out in a bright grin as she watched her take her first bite of the brownie.

"How are they? Are they all right? I really think I should have put in more sugar."