Draco searched through the shelves, frowning. They had to have it here- it was the shops goddamn specialty. 

He was quickly losing hope, however, as his fruitless attempts grew more and more vain. 

"Can I help you with something?"

Draco jumped, whirling around. A small, short girl with bright pink hair had somehow crept up on him. "Oh. Hello. If it's not too much trouble."

"Of course not! What are you looking for?"

"Cover scent and scent gland coating."

"Ah, I see. Follow me."

She turned, leading him through the mildly cramped isles until stopping in the first aid section. It sort of made sense, and Draco chastised himself for not thinking of it sooner. 

"Be warned, the side effects can be horrid. You might not want to use it often-"

"It's not for me," Draco blurted, without really meaning to. She rose a brow. "I mean, my friend- He's- He's scared. And I figured..."

He shrugged helplessly, adverting his eyes and scan along the shelves, among the various supplies. "What works best?"

She plucked to things off the shelves. "These pills get rid of an Omegas scent entirely, though they're suppressive and should only be used in emergencies, no more than twice a month at most. They can make heats sporadic and much more painful if taken more than that. And this..." she dropped a small vial in his hand, alongside the bottle of pills. "Is basically an Alpha repellant. It smells like a nice perfume, but contains ingredients that weaken and disorient Alphas as soon as they taste it. Omegas just apply it to their scent glands- Though you said it was a he? He might not want to smell like perfume... Hm." She scanned the shelves, finally replacing the vial with a new, slightly larger one. "There. Scentless, with the same effects, and no negative affects to the user. The only downside is Alphas might bite before they taste it- but it'll be quick, and not as potent, and it decreases the chance of... Further activities."

Draco nodded, clutching the items firmly in his hand. "Thank you very much, miss."

"Are you finished or would you like to keep browsing?"

"I'll keep browsing. Thanks."

She nodded and flounced away, busying herself with arranging items on the shelves while he looked through the shelves. 

What would Harry like? Food? Too big of a gamble- he had no idea what types of foods Harry liked. Sweet? Savory? He frowned, searching down the isles, shoes clicking somewhat harshly against the tile flooring.

The pink haired woman appeared in front of him again. "You're pacing, buddy. I have a sneaking suspicion this Omega 'friend' of yours is a bit more than that."

Draco scowled, though mainly to himself. "It's... Complicated. We don't like each other. It's just... Pheromones. Being stupid."

She laughed, her hair bouncing and seemingly sending off light in every direction, just about glowing. 

"Well, I'm avoiding working and you seem to need a talk. Spill. What's this omega like?"

He found odd solace in the girl, and he found himself spilling his guts about how he felt, their history, and why it would never work.

"Enemies to lovers is like, totally the most 'in' thing right now," she simply said, shrugging. "He seems sweet. And..." She dropped a bar of chocolate in his hand, winking. "Omegas have a thing for cherries. Give him this, I guarantee he'll love it."

Draco looked down at the bar, frowning. Dark chocolate with a cherry flavoring and paste in the center.

"Why cherries?"

"Because cherries are the fruit of Veela's- the fruit of love and seduction- and that's where they stemmed from. I've never met an Omega who didn't melt at the very prospect of cherry chocolate."

She winked again and Draco's jaw dropped. "You're a veela."

She nodded with a small smile. "Yes."

He looked where she had grabbed the chocolate from, and, after a moment, grabbed four more bars. She rose a brow while he blushed. "Shut up. Not a word from you."

She raised her hands in mock surrender. "I told you it's more than pheromones. You're not even together and you're still thinking of him. They goes beyond pheromones."

Draco shook his head, walking to the counter, her skipping just ahead so she could get behind it to ring him out. "Nah, we're scent marked. I've apparently got strong genetics, so marking him would help keep him safe." Without shame, she leaned forward and tugged on the collar of his shirt to the reveal the hickey, smirking slightly while he rolled his eyes. "You are one bold woman, Mrs..?"

"Miss Kaye. And he claimed you to protect you from the ferocious omegas?" She teased as she rung up his items.

"We were getting sick because of past hatred, so it had to be mutual," he corrected, rolling his eyes. She just scoffed, dropping his stuff into a bag, reaching into a vase that was sitting on the counter and dropping a small rose into his bag with a wink. He cursed himself for blushing again.

"Whatever you say, Mr..?"

"Malfoy."

"Mister Malfoy. A pleasure. Do come back- your stories make managing this store much less droll."

He gave her a mock salute, taking the back and backing towards the exit. 

"Good day, miss Kaye."

"And you."

-

Draco walked up to the Gryffindor dormitories, knocking carefully on the portrait. It took a few moments for it to open, but when it did, it was Seamus Finnigan. 

"Malfoy? What you doing all the way up here, lass?"

"Is Potter in?"

"Harry?" Finnigan frowned, looking down at the bag in Draco's hands. "It isn't hexed, is it?"

"No, no, certainly not. Would you mind retrieving him for me?"

He shrugged. "Sure. Give me a minute."

The portrait fell shut and Draco leaned against the wall, tapping his foot against the stone floors nervously. What if he hated it? Threw it away? Panicked because Draco was there and started freaking out again?

Before he could bolt with his tail between his legs, the portrait swung open. Draco ushered to stand up straight, meeting him head-on.

"Potter."

"... Malfoy. What are you doing here?"

Draco paused. I just bought you a few things because I can't get you off my mind. He internally sneered at himself. 

"I saw some things and... Figured you might like them. Or like to have them, at least."

Harry's eyes widened, flickering down to the bag. "Oh?"

Draco cleared his throat, awkwardly holding it out, watching as Harry gingerly took it, as if it was going to shatter if he moved it wrong. As soon as it was fully in his hands, Draco took a step back, sniffling awkwardly. "I'll... See you later. Read the warning label."

Draco was half-way down to the dungeons before he remembered the flower that Miss Kaye had tucked into the bag. 

Fuck.

-

Seamus, thank god, had retrieved Harry quietly, so no one knew who it came from when Harry pulled a rose from the bag. A rose. 

Seamus rose a brow but didn't say anything, only smirking to himself. Reaching back in, he found a bottle of pills and a vial of liquid. Reading the labels, he blushed vividly. Of course Malfoy would be the type to get him that.

In the bottom of the bag, were several bars of chocolate- and a note.

Potter,

I received word from a very enigmatic and excitable shop keep that omegas positively adore cherries- especially when it involves chocolate. I'm not sure if she was telling the truth or trying to get me to waste my money. Her tale was convincing enough.

Don't take the pills often, no matter how tempting- no more than twice a month, and only for extreme situations. The warning label says more than I can hope to write. The vial has no side effects, but read through incase you're allergic to any of the ingredients. Same with the pills.

Yours, D.M.

P.S.- I'm sorry about what I said during my rut. The very thought of it absolutely abhors me.

P.P.S- My hickey is fading. Does that mean the bond is, too? 

Harry had flushed down to the bone, earning him another amused look from Seamus, as he shoved the stuff back into the bag, save for a bar of chocolate he studied curiously as he carefully tore the wrapper that was wrapped around it.

Breaking off a square and taking a bite, his eyes immediately widened. It was so good. The sweetness of the chocolate, even dark chocolate, contrasted so perfectly with the flavor of the bitter-sweet cherries, which were blended into some sort of jam-type liquid in the center of the chocolate. He typically didn't care for sweets all that much- too much sugar, he had a low tolerance for it and they wound him up and made him sick, but this was just perfect.

He was so caught-up rereading the letter and eating chocolate that he hadn't noticed how late it had gotten, the common room empty and the only noise coming from the dying embers of a fire.