He could sit and look at his food all evening. In fact, if he moved the mashed potatoes around just a little more, they almost took on the shape of a duck. Without a bill, but a duck nonetheless. It's not like he was going to eat any more of it, pushing his food around the dish did, however, give the distinct impression that he just might take a few more bites.

Instead of just staring at it all evening.

Sighing quietly, Harry put his fork and knife down on the edge of his dish. He probably wasn't fooling anybody, least of all himself. The food at this year's Halloween feast was excellent, as usual. The decoration were superb, too, spangles of orange, black and silver criss-crossing over the midnight blue canopy that was the Great Hall's ceiling. But what should have been festive and enjoyable was, frankly, to Harry, annoying. The chatter of voices was too loud, the flickering candlelight at once too dim and too bright, and the large hall felt cold. With a shiver, Harry tucked his arms close to the sides of his body and sniffled.

It wasn't simply that the room was too cold, that he could deal with. It was more a cold that you felt inside, from the chilled tips of your fingers to the dull ache in your head, to the slightly upset, hollowness in your stomach. With another sniffle, Harry rubbed his nose with the back of his palm. An itchy feeling had crept into the back of his throat and his nose, something like a tickle, but in the case of his throat, more painful than annoying.

A warm hand slid over his leg, settled on his thigh, and managed to distract Harry and pull him out of his musing.

"You doing all right, Harry?" Ron asked slowly. His touch was comforting, to match the slight concern in his voice.

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine." He followed Ron's gaze down to the plate of mushed up plate of food before him. "Just not that hungry, I guess."

Harry shrugged, a sudden shiver crawling up his spine and making his nose run. The few sniffles he managed kept his nose from dripping, but aggravated the tickle that lingered there. He breathed in delicately and raised a fist to his face.

"Ehh, Ishhhah! EhpTishhoo!" Bending forward a bit, Harry pressed his fist to his nose. He could feel his glasses slide down the bridge of his nose, yet couldn't quite bring himself to do anything save concentrate on the sneezes he could still feel coming. After a few false starts, he dared to open his a bit, then immediately shut them again with a sharp gasp.

"EhhKishhhoo! Ch'shhh! ahh, huh! Tshoo!" He pulled a damp hand from his face, now sniffling madly, and pushed his glasses back up. Looking up, he saw Ron frown a little at him, then quickly change it to a smile.

"Bless you. That sounded less than fine, you know." Ron said as he picked up a crumpled napkin from the table. "Here, this looks pretty clean, I think you can use it to blow your nose."

Harry took the napkin from Ron, still looking at the other boy as he did so. There was something about Ron when he smiled that just made Harry feel warm inside. Red hair and hazel-gold eyes (and that smile, especially Ron's smile) reminded Harry of the way tea with a lot of honey tasted or the way late summer sun felt on your back. Not just warm, but wonderfully warm and like nothing else in the world.

"Thanks." Pausing to blow, he wiped his hand first, then his nose, glad to save his sleeve from further abuse. It was already looking kind of soggy. Harry lowered the napkin a few inches and took an uncertain breath. "I think I might, oh, wait, hold on "

His last few words already muffled by the cloth he held to his face again, Harry rested both elbows on the table and waited. A prickling in the corners of his eyes produced tears and quickly spread to the back of his nasal passages, nothing short of a sneeze slowly forcing its way out.

"Huhshhoo! huh, EhhShooo! ahh.." After the two sneezes, powerful enough to make his throat ache, Harry slumped forward with a long sigh. He nodded as a few people at the table blessed him, then gave his nose another swipe with the napkin.

Ron's hand slipped of his leg as his arm came to surround his waist and Ron leaned closer to him, almost protectively. A twinge of embarrassment rose up inside Harry. It's not like he was dying here or something, he didn't need anyone to take care of him, even if it was just Ron.

"Bless you. Again." Ron ignored the look Harry gave him and started to rub the small of his back. "You're catching a cold?"

Harry opened his mouth to deny it, but he realized that would be just ridiculous. With resignation, he nodded and smiled weakly. "Too much Quidditch in the rain."

"When everyone else is sleeping?" Ron asked. "And it's bloody cold outside?"

"That too." Harry coughed sharply. "Not like I pick the practice times."

"I know." A slow grin spread across Ron's face, more subtle, but just as warm as his usual smile. He kept massaging Harry's back, easy, tight circles, until Harry relaxed into his touch.

The flicker of uncertainty melted away. It wasn't just Ron who was here, making him feel better. It was Ron, his best friend, his, yeah, his boyfriend. And god, did it feel good. Almost good enough to make him want to curl up and fall asleep right then and there. The sudden clash of silverware against a plate brought Harry back to reality quickly and he pulled away from Ron. They were in the middle of the dining hall; after all, he couldn't just slide into Ron's embrace.

Shaking his head slightly, Ron gave Harry a fast hug and settled into his own seat. He studied the assortment of cakes and pastries that appeared for pudding, then turned back to Harry with a serious expression on his face.

"Maybe you should go rest, or, something."

Rest? Well, sure, Harry thought, he'd like to go rest, but walking out of the Great Hall in the middle of the Halloween Feast wasn't exactly his idea of fun. Especially if he was going to walk out sniffling and sneezing.

"After I finish eating." Harry shrugged, and reached forward for a cup of tea. He swallowed harshly, past the pain in his throat, to quell the urge to cough.

"Finish?" Incredulous, Ron took the cup away from him when a sudden burst of coughing forced Harry to draw his hand back. "You haven't even started, Harry!" "Here, calm down," Ron continued and put the cup down carefully, "I'll go upstairs with you."

Caught between sniffing and clearing his throat, Harry took a few seconds to process what Ron had just said. His head ached, his throat felt sore, his nose was either constantly running or itching and he had that odd sick-tired feeling all over. And Ron, his hand resting lightly on Harry's wrist, was offering to stay with him anyway.

"But you'll miss dessert." Harry hesitated as Ron started to push his chair away from the long table.

"So?"

Grabbing a digestive biscuit, Ron tugged Harry up from his seat and smiled crookedly. He broke the biscuit in half, gave part to Harry and stuffed the rest into his own mouth.

"See, dessert." He mumbled around a mouthful of crumbs. "Let's go."

- - - - -

Having slipped quietly out of the Great Hall and into the corridors, Harry paused before they could start the walk toward Gryffindor Tower. If the hall had been chilly, the corridors were positively freezing. A shiver passed up through Harry's spine and tingled out through his fingers and toes. He could feel the cold of the stone floor though his sneakers and the whisper of dampness in the air. The slight shuddering that passed through his very bones ended in a desperate tingle in his nose.

Harry motioned Ron away before he could ask the question the lingered in his eyes. Taking a soft, deep breath, Harry cupped both hands over his face, head tipping back as the sneezes built up.

"Ahishhih! Ehh, Ishhoo! Kishhah! Shoo!" Body-bending forward, Harry's hair fell over his forehead and his glasses slid down his nose again. "Ehhh, hep!Tishh, ehhYishhoo! Kishhoo!!"

He pushed the glasses back up with the tips of his fingers, not quite ready to take them away from his nose yet. The tickling was still there, strong at the tip of his nose as it dripped, more faint at the back where he could sense more sneezes coming.

"Ihh, huh UhHUShhoo! Uhshhahh, k'tshoo! Ihhshoo, ihShoo! huh, ahh! Ahhuh. ESHHHOO!!"

With a soft groan, Harry blinked open his eyes. That was the last sneeze, but only for the time being. While relieved at getting the itchy feeling out of the way, the sneezes had left him a little more tired and feeling a little worse off. As he straightened up, rubbing his nose into the palm of his hand and sniffling strongly, a warm body pressed up against his side.

"Why didn't you tell me how bad you felt?" Ron stood close to him, easily sliding an arm around Harry's shoulders. He still was a few inches taller than Harry, but only enough so that their bodies matched up perfect when they walked together like this. Or so Harry thought, and rather often at that.

"I don't know, didn't feel too sick until before dinner I guess." Harry wiped his hands in the front of his robe.

"Well, you should've told me anyway."

The tone of Ron's voice was close to offended, but the look in his eyes was simple concern. He leaned over and gave Harry a quick kiss, then squeezed his shoulders as they walked slowly.

"It's not like you could really do anything." Harry mused, leaning into the touch.

"That is not the point." The arm around Harry's shoulders fell; slim fingers stroked his neck and feathered through his hair.

"And the point?" He started to ask Ron, turning away quickly with a sharp inhalation. "EhhKishhoo! K'chsshh! Chhshoo!"

"The point... " Ron ventured to say, then paused as Harry brought a fist to his nose again.

"EhhKishh! Yishhahh!"

"Bless you?"

Harry nodded and pressed the base of his nose into his wrist. He'd need tissues -- and lots of them -- very soon if this kept up. Another few wet sniffles and a small cough, then Harry started walking again.

"Thanks."

The rest of the way to Gryffindor Tower was pretty quiet, the sound of their footsteps only interrupted by the frequent sniffs and coughs that Harry couldn't seem to prevent. He had tried to keep his runny nose in check, but it seemed useless. Until he could blow his nose, he could either snuffle the runs back or mop his nose in the sleeve of his robe. He soon realized that alternating between the two was the best strategy.

As the approached the Fat Lady's portrait, Ron took a step to stand before Harry, clasping both his shoulders gently.

"The point," he said gravely, a smile hovering at the corners of his mouth, "is that I need to know."

A full smile now on his face, Ron pushed the hair off Harry's forehead and adjusted his glasses. Harry, the warmth he felt at the dinner table filling him again, rested one hand on Ron's hip and let himself be pulled into a hug.

"I just care, 'kay?"

"Yeah. It's more than okay, actually." He tightened the hug, then stepped away from Ron. They stood, silent, for a moment, until a teeth-chattering shiver made Harry look away.

"Come on, you just need to warm up some." Fingers interlacing with Harry's, Ron gave the password and climbed through the portrait hole.

His fingers were sort of warm and cool at the same time, Harry thought, as the two of them walked up the stairs to the seventh-years' dormitory. Not that he hadn't ever noticed what it felt like to hold Ron's hand, but it felt different. His own hands were cold, even to his own touch, but Ron's hand felt comfortable, not too hot or anything, just nice. Soothing. Every so often he would turn around as they climbed the stairs and grip Harry's hand a little more firmly. That felt nice, too.

The nuisance his nose was making of itself tempered the 'niceness' of the whole situation, however. No amount of snuffling, snorting or pushing it into his shoulder got rid of the sneezy feeling. It did manage to push the tickle back far enough to prevent him from launching right into another fit. The in-between feeling was probably worse, though. He could almost, but not quite, work up the urge to sneeze and besides frustrating Harry, it was making his eyes water and sting.

Shoving the black-wire frames of his glasses up, Harry knuckled his eyes. The sting worsened, his nose running in sympathy, as he walked through the door to the dormitory. Ron's fingers untangled from his and he pressed his hand to the small of Harry's back. Too disoriented to pay much attention, Harry went where Ron directed him, stopping only when Ron pushed him down to sit on one of their beds.

He sank down onto the mattress, thankful, and let out a heavy breath. The ache was spreading from his head to the rest of his body and the soft bed felt more comfortable than it ever had to Harry. Ron sat next to him, rubbing up and down his leg.

"Now, first, do you need anything? I could get you, uhm, well, do you need anything?" Ron asked uncertainly.

"I think," Harry pressed two fingers to the bridge of his nose and took a few careful breaths, "tissues."

"Right." After a quick look around the room, Ron hopped off the bed.

Harry felt, more than saw, Ron get up. Eyes squinching shut, he took a wavering breath and held his hand before his nose. The tiny prickling in the back of his nostrils quickly flared up into a bout of sneezes that tumbled him forward.

"EhhTishhoo! Kishhahh! Huhp!Choo!! Choo! Huuh. CHOO! EhCHOO!" His head bobbed forward with each sneeze, his hand catching more spray than sneeze. With barely enough time to take a gulping breath, Harry clapped his hand over his face. "Ishhhhh!! Tishhoo! Heshheh! uhhhCHSHH!!"

The bed dipped behind him and Ron dropped what he assumed to be a box of tissues next to Harry. Eyes watery, he glanced to his side to locate said tissues. The one hand still held over his nose and mouth, Harry pulled a few of the tissues out and brought them to his face.

"Wait there." Ron slid his glasses off, deposited them on the bedside table, then put his arms around Harry's waist. "All right, go on."

"HihhTishh! Ishhoo! ehh..." Drawing his brows together in concentration, Harry pulled the tissues away from his face and sniffed lightly. "ehehh... ihh.. IhYIshhhahh!! Hushhooo!"

It was a little awkward, having to blow your nose with someone hugging you, their head resting gently on your shoulder. Awkward, but not bad, Harry thought. And besides, his nose was dripping all over his hand by this time; he couldn't put off blowing it any longer.

After filling the tissues he took, then a few more, and wiping his nose and hands off, and blowing it again just to make sure, Harry finally eased back into the hug. Ron's lips grazed over his ear a little, a small, quick kiss.

"Feel a little better now?" He nuzzled Harry as the other boy nodded. "Good."

Harry closed his eyes, the warmth and feel of Ron just so comforting. In fact, it was better than comforting, it was like having your friends and your family care for you, something Harry had not felt until he came to Hogwarts. Something he not felt with anyone, really, until he and Ron became close.

He opened his eyes to glance sideways at Ron, the two of them sharing a smile. Harry snuggled against Ron, then moved forward a bit as he squinted at the table. A jumbled collection of quills, Quidditch souvenirs and Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Bean wrappers told him that both the table and the bed belonged not to him, but to Ron. He twisted around to look at the other boy.

"Er, Ron?" Harry asked hoarsely, the sneezes and coughing having affected his throat.

"Yeah?"

"This is your bed."

" 'Course it is." Ron shrugged and started to undo the buttons at the top of Harry's robe. His own must have been removed when he got the tissues, because, as Harry now noticed, he was wearing only worn jeans and a green pullover.

"Oh." The cold air that rushed in as his robe fell open was quickly replaced by the soothing touch of Ron's hand on his chest. "Aren't you worried you'll get sick, too?"

"Hmm?" Ron pushed the robe off his shoulders. "Again, you're just not getting the point, are you, Harry?"

"Getting the point?" He rubbed an itchy nose into the dry cuff of his shirt.

"Yeah. You're sick. You feel bad. I don't want you to feel bad, so I try to help you feel better." He frowned. "I guess I thought my bed was more comfortable than yours."

The somber look on Ron's face lingered for a while, until the two of them looked at each other and immediately smiled.

"Thanks, guess I just didn't realize." Harry answered, his smile broken off by a sudden gasp. "ehh! HuhChshoo! huhhnn UhSchshhoo!" Sniffly, he took the tissue that Ron handed him.

"Bless you. And you're welcome."

He gave his nose a few quick blows and added the tissue to the pile on the bed. Kicking off his sneakers, Harry slid closer to Ron. "So, are you going to make any room over there for me? Your bed is pretty comfortable, you know." He flopped blissfully down onto a pillow. "But I thought I'd mentioned that to you before?"

Propped up on one elbow, Ron looked down on him. He raised a curious eyebrow and dipped forward to give Harry a quick kiss on the mouth. "You're feeling better all of a sudden."

"Well, that was the point, wasn't it?"

"Shut up."

"Mm... 'kay." Harry mumbled, pulling Ron down next to him, content to take the care that Ron was willing to offer.

Sleepy warmth filled Harry, the room quiet as he snuggled up against Ron. Yes, this was definitely nice, definitely worth leaving the feast or missing dessert for. With a yawn, he decided that he'd gotten the point, and quite well at that.

finis