"Well boys." Harry could hear the tiredness and disappointment in Professor McGonagall's voice. Everyone has been tense for the past two weeks with the O.W.L's and N.E.W.T's coming up. And then the news of the Dark Lord rising again and the Ministry denying it and instead trying to take over Hogwarts...

Harry would feel bad, but it was not his fault Professor McGonagall had put him in Detention. "I can't be here to supervise your detention, but when I came back, I expect these tubs to be usable again."

Harry looked down into the big tubs where some slimy Flobberworms and Skrewts had been in. He grimaced and instinctively grabbed into his pocket, but Professor McGonagall was faster. "And no wands." She held her hands out. Reluctantly, Harry put his wand into her hand. "Can't have you two murder each other." With that, Professor McGonagall turned around and left the room with forceful steps.

The door clicked closed and slowly, Harry turned to his cleaning partner for the next hour. The boy looked up and glared at him. Harry glared back. "Well, let's get this over with, Potter." The boy snapped, stomping over to the sink to fill a bucket. "Make yourself useful."

"Don't tell me what to do." Harry snapped back, but looked around, spotting some magical cleaning soaps and some sponges. He held them up and wondered if you used them the same as the muggle cleaning soaps. He had used those plenty of times at home with the Dursleys.

"I'm not." Malfoy said. "I was hoping you would have enough wits to figure that out by yourself."

"Well, do you know how to use these?" He held up the bottled soap and sponges. Harry really doubted that Malfoy knew how these were used since he was pretty sure that he had house elves for this at home.

"I do." Malfoy crossed his arms and held his head up high. "Don't you?"

"Me too." Harry said and, for the sake of his pride, he did not read the instructions and warnings on the bottle. He just hoped it was the same as muggle soap. "Then you can help me already, don't you?" He held a sponge out for Malfoy.

He eyed the thing apprehensively, then stood up straight. "I don't do this peasant work."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Malfoy. This is our detention. The earlier we are done the earlier we can leave each other's presence."

"If you hadn't hexed my hair we wouldn't have to be here." Malfoy argued.

"If you hadn't almost hexed mine and my friend's hair I wouldn't have hexed yours." Harry retorted.

"If you hadn't looked like twats I wouldn't have to hex your hair."

"Can you just-" Harry sighed. "It wasn't the most stupid thing we've done to each other so can we just get this over with and move on?"

"Oh, since when so pacific, Potter?" Malfoy said sarcastically.

"Since I really don't have the time to deal with you." Harry held the sponge up higher.

Malfoy snatched the sponge out of Harry's hand. "I'm hurt, Potter. I always have the time to deal with you."

"Thanks." Harry said sarcastically and went to put some soap on his sponge.

"Wait!" Malfoy said. "Shouldn't we put the soap into the water and then just put in into the tubs and wait?"

"But what about the sponges?" Harry wondered, but he already tipped the bottle over the water.

"Careful!" Malfoy exclaimed and ripped the soap away from Harry, but it was too late. The water started to form bubbles that got more and bigger, exceeding the volume of the bucket and higher and wider. "Don't you know how to use magical substances, Potter!" Malfoy snapped, trying to find something to burst the bubbles with. Harry just went to use his hand but Malfoy screamed again, "No!"

The next moment, Harry pulled his hand back with a hiss. The foam was stinging. "What kind of stuff is this?" Harry exclaimed.

"Magic dirt remover." Malfoy said. "It removes everything that's not magically protected from it. Go wash your hands quickly."

For once, he followed Malfoy's instructions and washed his hands in the sink. There were a few spots on his skin that were feeling more tender but all in all, his hand was still intact.

"Okay, let's just-" Malfoy had found a towel, grabbed the overspilling bucket with it and tipped the content into one of the three tubs where it continued to built up foam. "This would have been sufficient for all the tubs together." He mumbled more to himself than anyone else.

To Harry's surprise, Malfoy started to put tiny amounts of the soap into each tub that was left before he turned to Harry. He schooled his expression into one of malice that Harry was only too familiar with. "What are you waiting for? We need water."

"Well, get water." Harry snapped back.

Draco rolled his eyes. "I did the precise, careful work. You have to do the hard work. That's life, Potter. Some people know, other's have to follow."

"With all this bullshit coming from your mouth it's no wonder that this tub is turning green." Harry said. Harry thought this was just a normal process of cleaning. But seeing Malfoy's face paling at the sight of the green tub overflowing with bubbles, Harry knew something went very, very wrong.

Carefully avoiding the bubbles, Malfoy came over to Harry with five small jumps. "Uuh, Malfoy?" Harry asked as the other boy pressed against him into the corner, plastering himself into his side.

"Shut up, Potter." Draco hissed. "Damn it, why did McGonagall take our wands?"

Harry watched as green vapour came out of the first tub, flying up, concentrating and bundling, until a figure could be made out. The green, transparent looking bubble-vapour figure looked like a huge woman with a long flowing dress and a shawl swept elegantly over her head. Nevertheless, Malfoy was pressing Harry more into the corner in fear. The vapour woman spotted them. He face looked sour and with a voice that seemed to fill the whole room, she said, "Oh, boys. Can't you read? High folk that never had to wash before, huh? I hate people who think they know without ever having washed before. And then they are too lazy to read the instructions. I, with my beautiful voice, would have even read it to you, but no... These stupid boys, just think they know..."

With each of her sentences she seemed to get closer and Malfoy's scared shaking was making Harry anxious himself. "No, no, no. Ms Bumbledrella. We're very sorry. I just didn't want him to know that I don't know."

That was astonishingly honest of Malfoy. This green woman seemed to think so too, because she stopped floating closer and scrutinized them from above. "Two boys constantly trying to impress each other... Well, at least you know my name. Now chop, chop. Fill the other tubs with one bucket water each then blow away the bubbles and let them do their work."

With that, she abruptly sunk into the bubble water again.

"What was that?" Harry wondered.

"Ms Bumbledrella." Malfoy said, going to the sink and starting to fill the bucket with water like he had not just pressed himself against Harry for the last five minutes. Harry tried to ignore the weirdly cold feeling where Malfoy had been before. "My mum used to tell me about her when I was young. I guess it's a figure to tell young children to always clean their rooms and not get their clothes dirty. If you don't, Ms Bumbledrella comes and takes all your things away and you will never get them back... Stop laughing."

Harry could not help it. It was such a stupid story. "And why were you so scared of her then? Scared she would take away your teddy bear?"

"Shut up, Potter." Malfoy said, but Harry heard the amused tilt in his voice. "You've seen what effects this stuff has on your hand. Imagine these bubbles on your whole body. And then we dissolve because we don't have the magical varnish like normal objects they use this stuff on."

"Oh, I guess that... actually sounds reasonable." Harry admitted.

"You guess, yeah?" Malfoy said, pouring the water into the first tub. Harry liked this Malfoy. The playful one.

Malfoy pressed the bucket to Harry's chest. "You do the last one."

Harry obeyed, filling the bucket with water. "What did she mean," Harry asked randomly, "blow away the bubbles and let them do their work? Aren't those way too many bubbles to blow away? And how do they do what work?"

"Don't you know anything about house products?" Malfoy wondered. "I mean, I also never used them but I've seen how the bubbles clean around the house at home."

Harry shrugged. "I live with muggles."

To Harry's surprise, Malfoy looked intrigued before his face was schooled into a disgusted expression. "Poor famous Potter." Harry did not answer. He carried the bucket over to the last tub and poured the water in, all while wondering what Malfoy was really thinking and what he was trained to say. He had always wondered, but in that moment, he could actually imagine getting to know this boy better.

"Now let's blow." Malfoy said, leaning down and blowing at the bubbles of the first tub. Unbidden, Harry got the image of Malfoy... blowing something else. He burst out laughing. Malfoy threw him a confused look before realization dawned on his face. "Not like that, you dirty minded prick." It was the first time Harry saw a genuine laugh from Draco...Malfoy. He meant Malfoy

They blew the bubbles in comfortable silence. With one blow, about a quarter of the bubbles in one tub flew into the air, blinking in all colours of the rainbow and danced around the tub to clean them. Through some kind of magic, the water slowly but steadily disappeared along with the dancing bubbles, leaving behind pearly white tubs.

Towards the end, Malfoy discovered something though. "Wait- we've done a mistake." Harry looked to what he was pointing at and frowned. There was still a disgusting brown spot in the corner of an otherwise perfectly clean tub.

"Eww, what is this? I think we have to use the sponges for that." Harry said.

"No." Draco said, holding up another bottle that looked like varnish. "I think we need this in the last step."

Suddenly, a familiar green vapour lifted itself from the tub, although this time, Ms Bumbledrella looked much more white than green. Harry jumped back, fearing her scolding them again. Malfoy was right next to him. "I left this there on purpose." Ms Bumbledrella's voice filled the whole room again. "I will only disappear after you've done something for me."

"Umm, okay." Malfoy said. "What is it?"

"Kiss."

"Who?" Malfoy asked. "You?"

"No." Ms Bumbledrella sounded annoyed. "Each other."

"What?!" Harry and Malfoy asked at the same time. "Why?!"

"Because of that." She smirked. "You're in sync. Now kiss or... I... will... stay..." She came closer and closer and the boys pressed themselves into the wall. She was crazy, Harry thought as he sent Malfoy a helpless look.

Malfoy looked helpless too. He looked from the scary vapour figure to Harry and back. Finally, he rolled his eyes and grabbed Harry's front. "I thought you were the Gryffindor, Potter." Then, his lips were on Harry's.

At first, Harry was frozen. He could not move. Just when Malfoy was pulling back, Harry wrapped his arms around his waist and pressed their lips together with more purpose. This was a feeling Harry never knew he wanted. But now that he had it, he had to take advantage before he would be never be able to do it again.

This was not like the kiss he had had with Cho. It was not boring, or careful, or uncertain. This one was passionate, with purpose, and completely consuming.

Malfoy did not protest. He relaxed in Harry's arms, giving up on trying to fight for his own dominance. But at the same time, he tried to give back exactly what Harry was giving him. Harry did not want it to stop.

But of course, it had to. Because there was purposeful sound of someone clearing their throat, making them pull back. The vapour woman was standing there, tall and with a superior smirk on her face. "Now since I don't have the whole day, speak after me. This is not the last time."

"What?" Malfoy asked, who was the first to clear his head enough to say something.

"Say it."

"What?" Malfoy asked again.

"Say, this is not the last time." Ms Bumbledrella said patiently.

"This is not the last time?" Malfoy said.

"Harry."

"Harry." Malfoy repeated and Harry's heart skipped. His mouth was forming his name so beautifully. If Harry's head was not still clouded he would have wondered when he had become so disgustingly lovesick.

"Now you, Harry." Ms Bumbledrella said. "Say, this is not the last time, Draco."

"This is not the last time, Draco." Harry said. "Can you clean the tub now and disappear?" Harry was anxious to kiss the boy, who was still in his arms, again.

Ms Bumbledrella smirked, "Have fun." And did as Harry told.