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"Potter." A girl pulled him away from Ron. "We're going clothes shopping."
"We're actually headed for the Three Broomsticks." Harry tried stepping back for his red headed friend.
"Nope. You're going with me. I'm fixing your wardrobe. You can get a butterbeer later."
"We're meeting friends." Harry protested even as he was dragged further from his friend.
"Have fun, Harry. I'll tell everyone I finally found someone who'll force you to go shopping." Ron called out with a grin. "Oh, and Greengrass, he better still have his balls later tonight. You're not allowed to hex someone you've kidnapped even if I asked you to kidnap him."
"Don't give her ideas." Harry yelled back, recovering from a full body cringe at the pictures Ron's words brought into his head.
"Oh, please. You're about the last person I'd end up hexing."
"What?" Harry stared up at her in shock as she pulled him down the street.
"You're about the safest guy in Hogwarts. In fact, if I didn't know that you were attracted to girls I'd assume you were gay."
"I get in a hexing match with Draco every other month." Harry looked at her skeptically. Both because she was wrong but he also didn't know what fighting had to do with liking girls.
"Oh, trust me, I know it's unsafe to be around you because of the troubles you cause." Daphne pulled him into one of the smaller clothing shops in the village. "However, Draco starts most of the fights and half the time its because you told him off for saying something sexist when no one else would. Making me believe that I don't need to worry about you trying anything without my consent. Therefore you are 'safe.'"
"That's what you mean?" Harry was horrified at the implication.
"Why else would I be targeting guys' private bits?" She asked callously.
"It's more painful."
"It's the symbolism I'm after but the pain is a fun side effect." Daphne admitted, stopping near the back of the store. "Now honestly tell me, do you care about your clothing at all or can I just make all the choices?"
"I don't care and I also really don't need much." Harry waved her off, seizing on what he hoped would be an opportunity to keep this short. "Plus I only have a little over a galleon on me. So it's not like I can buy a lot anyways."
"Oh, I'm buying. Don't worry too much about the costs." Daphne said, handing him a pair of black jeans and a navy t-shirt.
"I'm not allowing you to spend money on me." Harry pushed back, taking a step for the door.
"You can pay me back but you're going to walk out of here with a new wardrobe even if I need to stun you and do the shopping myself." Daphne stepped in front of him, accidentally trapping him against a shelf giving him an unknown spike of emotion which he tried to ignore as he reluctantly took the bundle and headed into the changing rooms.
"So what do you think?" Daphne asked once he was out, positioning him in front of a mirror.
"Meh." Harry shrugged, trying to push down the dislike that he felt at the sight. "I understand that it fits me and that it's a nice color but I like the baggier look of my stuff. The jeans aren't too bad but they kind of have the opposite problem."
"I'm not over sizing a t-shirt." Daphne rolled her eyes in annoyance. "What about this, it's a basic button down but the green should bring out your eyes."
"I'll try it." Harry sighed reluctantly and headed back into the dressing room.
"Wow, you look handso-" Daphne fell silent as she read his posture. Slowly she deflated and Harry gained a glimmer of hope that she might give up on this crusade. Softly she asked. "You hate it, don't you?"
Harry turned slowly towards the mirror to examine himself. "Yeah, I hate it," he muttered but refused to look away. "It's not even that I can't see that it looks good. You could probably call me classically handsome. I've been told I look like my dad enough to know that. I swear, if my body was someone else's I'd think that they looked amazing, if a bit on the short side. But it's my body and I can't help but hate it every time I look in a mirror."
Daphne stared at him for a second as he looked at his feet. "I saw a really nice jumper near the front that looked like it would look like it was purposely over sized. If that's the style that you like then let's at least make it look like a choice and not an inability to size your clothes. Oh, and I found these shoes. They're a muggle brand but someone's gone and rebuilt them with all the typical runes and enchantments."
"There are magical converse?" Harry let out a laugh, so surprised by the absurdity of the idea.
"They aren't too popular as they're still new but I've been seeing them more recently. If you don't like them I'll put them back. They just caught my eye, that's all."
"No, I'll wear them." Harry gestured for her to set them down. "There was this one older girl who was always in the library when I was in muggle school. She wore them and I thought she was so cool and I wanted to be like her. At least now I can say that I have her shoes."
"Okay, good." Daphne turned towards where he'd taken off his trainers and vanished them with an aggressive flick. "Whenever I saw you wear those shoes with your school uniform, I'd have to fight off the urge to strangle you until you promised to never wear them again. Your uniform was your only decent outfit but then you’d go and ruin it with the most battered, beat up, and frankly ugly shoes."
Her rant over, she headed for the front of the store. Harry shrugged because what she'd said was true, spotting a line of skirts, he started sorting through them out of boredom while Daphne searched for the jumper.
After a few he paused on one that reminded him of the girls uniform but it had some subtle red accents, really giving it life. It was surprisingly soft and Harry found himself looking for the size just out of curiosity.
"What do we have here?" Daphne scared him as she wrapped her arms around him and rested her head on his shoulder.
"Nothing." He tried to spin out of her arms but she tightened her grip. "You're back quickly. Did you find it?" Seriously though, why was she holding onto him? If the Hogwarts rumor mill was anything to go by then she was a lesbian.
"Yeah, but then I remembered jumpers are always charmed to fit perfectly. I'll stay behind and work with the shopkeeper to get the charms removed. Go join your friends at the Three Broomsticks and I'll get a house elf to bring a few things to your dorm when I’m done."
"Do I need to pay for the shoes?" Harry asked, surprised to realize that after a few seconds he actually didn't actually mind the feeling of her arms around him. It was rather comforting to be held.
"No, I'll talk to the storekeeper while you change back into your clothes. It should be fine by the time you leave." She released him and headed for the desk in the front.
*****
Harry stared at his bed in shock. There were easily ten bags covering his bed and they all seemed to be completely full of clothes. Not really believing what he was seeing he examined the first bag full of an assortment of dark colored jeans. Dumping them into his wardrobe he moved onto the next bag to find a bunch of jumpers that looked to be just too large to fit him properly.
He put away bag after bag of clothes and quickly found himself dumping his old stuff into his trunk where it'd probably stay until he threw it away after a few months of complete neglect. There was even one bag that held three other pairs of the magical converse just in different colors.
"I thought that was the last one?" Harry muttered, seeing an additional bag on his bed he hadn't noticed before. He wasn't even sure what it could be at this point. Daphne had covered basically everything, even down to new pairs of underwear — although he couldn't stop being a little bit insulted at that one. He wasn't a monster. He’d bought his own underwear, no way would he ever wear Dudley’s old ones.
Putting the thought aside, Harry pulled it open and immediately stilled, his heart in his throat. Quickly double checking that his dorm mates were in fact, not in the room, he pulled out the skirt Daphne had caught him looking at. Emptying the rest of the bag which must've had an expansion charm on it, Harry gazed down at an all inclusive expanse of girls clothes with a racing heart.
He gingerly went to lift a soft cream blouse when he realized anyone could walk in at any time. In a rush he piled everything into the unused bottom drawer of his wardrobe and hastily added a few more warding charms than he'd added to the other drawers.
Sitting back down on his bed, he noticed a folded note in the bottom of the bag. With shaking fingers he picked it up and unfolded it.
I went out on a limb here but I hope it was money well spent. I'm not going to take it back and I asked Amy — the shopkeeper — not to accept them as a return. They're your clothes to do whatever you want with. You don't ever need to wear them, you could even donate them or simply throw them out. I'd just like to ask that you at least let them sit for a few months before doing that though. I spent too much money for them to be tossed to the side and never worn by their intended owner.
Harry stared at her words for a long second. Glancing at the door to make sure nobody was heading up, he quickly pulled out a set of soft, pink pajamas from the bottom drawer and placed them under his pillow. Because, really, why go for boring guy stuff when he could wear pajamas that were both soft and cute.
Double checking that nothing peaked out from under the pillow, Harry closed the curtains on his bed and headed for the common room.
*****
Over the next couple weeks Daphne kept on doing small things that only he seemed to notice. She'd remove a strand of hair from his cloak, ask him a mundane question about the homework, or simply bump into him in the hallways. Every day it was something small but he was becoming aware of her presence to the point where when he'd walk into a classroom it was her he'd notice first.
Watching the door for charms, he unwittingly found himself perking up when Daphne entered and their eyes immediately locked for a second. She tilted her head for a second as if pondering a decision before locking eyes with him again and striding purposefully for the open spot next to him usually reserved for Ron.
"I heard Weasley was in the hospital wing with Tracey. Some type of snack box was going around making everyone really ill and forcing them to skive class," Daphne said with faux concern.
"It's always bad on the days we have Potions. I swear, Snape's class is so bad people get sick at the thought of it." Harry grinned.
"It is a shame." Daphne grinned back. "So tell me, have you tried on any of the stuff I got you?"
Harry swallowed nervously, knowing she wasn't talking about the clothes that had completely replaced his cousin's hand-me-downs. "I've tried on a thing or two and I sleep in the pajamas but a dorm room really isn't the place to be trying anything on."
"The room Tracey and I share is pretty private."
*****
Harry looked around Daphne's room, taking it in, surprised at just how warm and welcoming it felt. "Here we are." Daphne dumped an armful of clothes on the bed and Harry immediately picked up the pastel pink jumper. "The bathroom is through that door. You can change in there."
Harry's throat dried up as he suddenly realized what he was doing. He was in the Slytherin dorms, Daphne could betray him at any time, leaving him at the mercy of Draco and his goons. "Maybe this actually isn’t the best idea."
"Why not? They are just clothes," Daphne asked casually, searching for something in her trunk.
"I don't have any reason to trust you," Harry admitted after a second.
Daphne studied him for a second before walking over and handing him her wand. "Do you trust me now?"
"Yeah," Harry replied, completely shocked. Quickly putting the wand in a pocket, he picked up the clothes she'd laid out. If she was willing to give up her wand then he had no reason to complain about wearing cute clothes.
Stepping into the bathroom, Harry unfolded everything, glad to find he didn't need to make any uncomfortable choices about unmentionables. Quickly stripping down, he took a deep breath and rushed through pulling on a white button down, a pair of gray tights and a black skirt. Finally, he pulled a soft pink jumper over his head.
Grabbing his glasses with a rapidly beating heart, Harry placed them on his face and found himself immediately smiling at his reflection. Setting his feet, he giggled as he spun around and the skirt puffed out. Dropping out of the spin, Harry landed facing the mirror with a big grin and then frowned. He looked like a boy in girl's clothes. Then, as if his magic knew what he was thinking, his hair grew down to his chest and Harry could only laugh. Even my magic thinks I look better as a girl, he thought, resisting the muscle memory to cast a spell to cut his hair back to an acceptable length. Spotting a clothes hamper in the corner, Harry draped his school robes off a side and with a steadying breath decisively stepped out back into the two person dorm.
Daphne turned around at the noise and stilled in shock. "Merlin, you're beautiful," she exclaimed, crossing the room and pulling him into a hug.
"Thanks," Harry said, his voice wavering.
"Is everything alright?" Daphne whispered in his ear, tightening the hug.
"I wish I was a girl," Harry admitted in a whisper, feeling like a huge weight was lifted off him even as he started crying into her shoulder. Was he crazy, wanting to be a girl was one thing, telling a Slytherin while crying over it was something else entirely. He could already see the headlines: boy-who-lived a nutcase. "Sorry, I'll leave." Harry tried to pull away.
"It's okay, you don't need to leave." Daphne tightened the hug until she was confident he wouldn't make a run for it before leading him over to the bed. Wrapping an arm around his shoulders, Daphne delicately asked, "do you want to be a girl or just look like one?"
"I want to be one," Harry muttered, not that it mattered. He was born a guy, he was the 'boy'-who-lived for Morgana's sake.
"That's harder but not impossible," Daphne said more to herself as she fell into thought. Harry's head whipped over to stare at her while he tried to process her words. There was magic which could change him into a girl?
It was impossible but so was changing into an animal and pretty much all of magic. Why couldn't people change their gender? Hell, polyjuice potion was a thing, surely there must be some potion which would change him into a girl. But there was still a big problem. "What guy wants to be a girl? I’d just be a freak."
"How do you know you aren't a girl who doesn't want to be a boy?" Daphne asked, falling back onto her bed and pulling him with her.
"Well last I checked I have a dick. Kind of hard to be a girl with one," Harry sighed bitterly.
"And here I was thinking it was the brain which made someone who they are."
"The brain?"
"The brain is what makes you, you, not some private bits. The brain not aligning with the body happens all the time. Guys liking guys, girls liking girls, people not identifying with any gender, and of course people who were born with a body incongruent with their brain."
"So what am I?" Harry whispered, almost fearing the answer.
"It sounds like you're a transgender female - a trans girl. I can't decide that for you but if it helps your magic definitely agrees."
"My magic agrees?"
"Mhm. It's decidedly fem."
"It is always trying to grow out my hair." Harry agreed with a giggle, liking that Daphne thought of his magic as fem. "Can you tell me more about being trans?"
*****
"Harry," Daphne stopped her as she was leaving, "let me fix your tie."
"My tie?" Harry looked down in confusion as Daphne pulled out the knot.
"It's the wrong one." Daphne pulled out one of her own ties from her pocket while keeping a firm grip on Harry’s collar.
"Daphne," Harry said warningly as Daphne deftly pulled it over her head and into place.
"Don't pretend it isn't hot." Daphne pulled them towards her by the tie. "Plus it's basically tradition that the guy switches the girl's tie out for one of their own."
"Perhaps a bit hot," Harry admitted in a whisper, trying to ignore the blush which hit her cheeks as she tilted her head up.
Daphne smirked triumphantly for a second, before dipping her head towards Harry's. Her lips were soft against hers, moving gently in a slow caress and then she pulled back while Harry desperately tried to follow. Opening her eyes in defeat, Harry saw Daphne only an inch above them. "Next time."
*****
"Slytherin's aren't allowed in Gryffindor tower," the fat lady tried to warn her off as she walked up.
"Norwegian Forest Cat," Harry told the painting the pass code and ignored her protests as the portrait swung open. Now all she had to do was dash up to her bed without anyone noticing.
He hadn't even made it halfway across the common room when a seventh year stepped in her way. "You aren't supposed to be here."
"I'm a Gryffindor," Harry protested, wishing she'd just pulled off the tie after leaving the Slytherin dorms.
"Harry?" Hermione's voice rang out from the group of onlookers. "It's okay, he's one of us."
"Thanks, Hermione." Harry shoved the older Gryffindor off her and gave her best friend a small smile.
"So are you going to tell me who?" Hermione gestured towards the tie while pulling Harry towards a ring of couches in a corner where Ginny and Neville were already sitting.
"Merlin Harry, where'd you get that?" Neville asked in surprise, drawing Ginny's attention.
She stared at Harry for a second not comprehending what was going on. Then her eyes dropped to the tie and for a moment jealousy split onto her face only to be replaced by mirth as she started breaking down laughing. "You really just let some Slytherin mark you as their territory? When will we meet the lucky guy?"
"Lucky girl," Harry corrected. "Daphne Greengrass."
"Daphne Greengrass? Isn't she a lesbian?" Neville asked in confusion.
"She is," Harry tried to say as lightly as possible, as if there was no hidden meaning.
"That explains having to chop your hair every few days at the burrow." Ginny stood up and pulled Harry from her seat. "Why did you even have me cut it if you didn't like it short? And are you going to keep it long now?"
"Dunno and definitely." Harry shrugged, not really wanting to think about how automatically cutting it was a holdover from Petunia cutting it short the second she saw long hair and telling her that it wouldn't do for a boy to have long hair. She was so wrapped up in thought she didn't even realize where Ginny was leading her.
"Climb." Ginny demanded pushing her towards the stairs to the girls dormitory. Nervously Harry did as Ginny asked and nearly let out a jig when she got to the first flight unscathed. "Yeah, I was like that the first time I climbed them. Like I knew I was a girl but it helped having an entity as old as Hogwarts confirm it. We'll get the elves to move your stuff over tonight."
"So you don't mind that I'm trans?" Harry asked in surprise.
"I mean, it'd be a little hypocritical don't you think?"
"Wait, so you were born a boy?" Harry asked in confusion while Hermione stood to the side, her brain still too busy playing catch up to talk.
"Technically but I don't even remember it." Ginny shrugged. "Luckily my magic started acting up because I was way too much of a tomboy growing up to have noticed."
"You still are a tomboy," Hermione scoffed, her mind finally catching up. "But Harry can't be a girl and what do you mean you were born a boy?"
"Holly can be a girl because their brain and magic are that of a girl. As for me being born a boy, yes, technically I was the seventh son of a seventh son but we figured out pretty quickly that wasn't true and I was given the potion."
"Did you just call me Holly?" Harry asked, filing the mention of a potion away for later.
"It's pretty close to your birth name, it's cute, and it follows the tradition your mum's family had of naming their girls after flowers. If you don't like Holly you could pick your own name."
"I like Holly.”