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I lie on my back, unable to fall asleep, and sigh. Looking out the window to my right shows me a pitch black sky full of stars shining brightly over the castle. I reach for my glasses on the bedside table and turn to the Marauders map which is kept under my pillow. My eyes scan the map curiously until I'm drawn to the name of a certain blond boy.
His dot is in the 8th year common room as usual, I think he has trouble sleeping too as the Slytherin 8th years dorm is opposite my dorm and I hear him leave his dorm in the middle of the night a lot, and I watch as his name slowly leaves the common room. He goes on late night roams of the castle quite a lot. He usually sneaks out of the castle and sits under a tree by the lake, in direct view of my dorm window which means I often find myself watching him through the window next to my bed.
I watch Draco's name go past the library and feel a strong desire to go and see him. I move carefully off of my bed, as to not wake up Ron, Seamus, Dean or Neville. I grab my invisibility cloak and the map before leaving the deserted common room. I walk towards where Draco is and feel nervous. I don't know why I feel nervous about seeing Malfoy, or even why I am going out of my way to see him. It has nothing to do with his amazing grey eyes or his soft hair that's just below his ears in length as he let his hair grow long after the war.
I walk through the halls under my cloak until I see Malfoy's name in the corridor near mine. I shove the map in my back pocket and pull my cloak off so I can walk round the corridor as if I was just aimlessly wondering like he seems to be. I take a deep breath before rounding the corner and pretty much walking right into Malfoy. I thought he was still half way down the hall; I guess it took me longer to compose myself than I thought.
"Potter?" Draco asks and I look up at him, his eyes a mixture of confusion and annoyance.
"Malfoy." I mutter and he takes a step back.
"What are you doing up?" He asks and I suddenly feel like telling him all about my nightmares and why I never sleep.
"Couldn't sleep." I mutter, "why are you up?"
"Couldn't sleep." He says too and I frown slightly.
"How come?" I ask genuinely curious and he raises an eyebrow.
"I'm not sure why it's your business." He says trying to sound aggressive but it's like he's too tired or he just doesn't want to commit to the anger.
"Just curious Malfoy." I mutter as there's a meow from behind me and I jump. Shit. Filch is always near Miss Norris. I grab Draco's hand and yank him behind the statue near by.
"The fuck Harry?" He growls halfheartedly and I guess he didn't hear the cat. I realise that Filch will still be able to see us so I press Draco against the wall before covering us both with the invisibility cloak.
"Shut up Malfoy." I whisper annoyed and a second later Filch enters the hall and starts talking to his tabby cat. I stop focusing on filch long enough to realise Malfoy and I are standing so close that his nose is basically pressed against my cheek.
I turn my head and look at Malfoy, who I notice is already watching me. Then realisation hits me.
"You called me Harry." I mutter and Malfoy presses his finger to my lips, silently telling me to shut up. After about a minute Filch has left the hall and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding whilst pulling the cloak off of us both with my left hand.
"Why did you call me Harry?" I ask and I realise his hand is still in my right one. Malfoy looks panicked for a second before it looks like he's having an internal battle and finally he sighs.
"I don't want to fight with you anymore Potter. I would like to have a relationship with you like you have with Weasley, he tells you things and you listen and you comfort him and you help him. I would like that for us." Malfoy says and I'm slightly surprised for a second before deciding I would love that.
"I'd like that too." I say after a few seconds and Malfoy bites his lip. He's silent for a few seconds before he leans forward and presses his lips against mine. It only lasts a few seconds and far too soon he pulls back and looks at me with wide eyes before letting go of my hand and all but sprinting down the hall way. I stand still in shock for a while before smiling slightly. Not only did Malfoy kiss me, but he got flustered about it!
Harry shoots up in bed and sighs as he looks around his dorm at his sleeping roommates. It was a dream; of course it was a dream. It felt so real. But Malfoy would never feel that way about him, he'd never want to be his friend. Harry looks at the watch on his bedside table and sees that it's 2:30am. If he's not waking up from nightmares he's waking up from dreams about Malfoy; either way he gets barely any sleep.
Harry lies in bed for half an hour before giving up on sleep, like he does every night. He can't clear his head enough to fall asleep anyway. Harry decides to go and fly for a while around the quidditch pitch to relax a bit, so he throws on some jeans and a hoodie along with his converse and grabs his broom before leaving the 8th year common room.
He sneaks all the way to the quidditch pitch and smiles at how quiet it is, especially since it's quite far away from the castle so no one will be able to see him. Harry mounts his broom and kicks off, flying laps and allowing his brain to empty of all stress and worry and thoughts of anything. That is until he looks down and sees a certain blond standing at the entrance to the pitch, broom in hand and looking directly at Harry. Harry flies down to him and frowns.
"What are you doing here?" Draco asks and Harry shrugs, dismounting his broom.
"Couldn't sleep. Flying helps clear my head. Why are you here?" Harry asks and Draco looks at him suspiciously for a second.
"Couldn't sleep. Same here." He says and Harry nods.
"Well since you're here you wanna play 1 on 1 seeker?" Harry asks nervously, figuring Draco hates him still and would never want to, but Draco just shrugs.
"Got nothing to lose." He says, walking towards where madam Hooch keeps the quidditch balls. He walks back to the pitch with the snitch and lets it go as the two of them mount their brooms and take off after it, their competitive natures kicking in. Harry can't help but admire the way Malfoy looks when he's flying, he hasn't been on the quidditch team since 5th year and Harry forgot how much he loved playing against him and secretly watching the way his body moves as he controls his broom.
After half an hour of playing they decide to have a break so they land on the floor and sit in the middle of the pitch next to each other, Harry with his legs crossed and Malfoy with his legs out in front of him leaning back on his arms.
"So how come you couldn't sleep?" Draco asks the question Harry so desperately wanted to ask him but was too nervous to; just because they've spent half an hour playing and joking and actually having the most fun Harry has had since before the war, doesn't mean they're friends or Draco's obligated to tell Harry anything. Harry sighs as he stretches his legs out in front of him and leans back on his elbows, looking up at the amazingly clear sky full of stars. Something about being the only two people for ages and the darkness of the night and the beautiful stars makes Harry want to be so open with Malfoy, so he decides to tell him the truth.
"I have nightmares pretty much daily, nearly always about the war. About people I didn't save, about what could have happened, I dream Voldemort won and killed everyone, I dream about him torturing the people I care about. The look on his face when he killed me. How I could have done more and saved more people. Having those thoughts on your mind all the time, the pure guilt, makes you really fucking tired too, so it's a vicious cycle." Harry finishes with a tired sigh and looks over at Malfoy to see him frowning at him in sympathy, sadness in his eyes.
"You actually died during the war?" Draco asks, shocked and Harry nods. He hasn't told anyone this, they all just assume he survived the curse like he did when he was a baby, barely affected by it, but no one, apart from Draco now, knows that the curse actually killed him.
"Yeah. It was weird, but I had the choice to come back or stay there. I came back, obviously, because he was still alive and I needed to finish what we'd started. But sometimes I wish I didn't come back. It was oddly peaceful and calm and welcoming." Harry explains, he's never admitted that out loud before. "I- I've never told anyone that before. No one else even knows that I died." Harry adds and Draco watches him carefully.
"I- I'm sorry you had to go through that alone. I'm glad you came back, Potter." Draco says and Harry decides to change the subject.
"Why can't you sleep?" Harry ask and Draco lies back on the grass.
"I have nightmares too. About the people I let die when I left the war before it had really started. About the dark lord torturing people right in front of me, making me torture people too. I dream that you left me in the room of requirement, letting me die. I dream that the dark lord hurt my mother. I dream about the screams of the people in pain. He lived in my house for years, I should have stopped him. I could have saved them. The screams haunt me everyday." He says and Harry looks down at him and sees that he is so broken, so guilty for doing only what he had to in order to survive.
"I would never have left you in the room of requirement." Harry says before adding "You saved me. I owed you. But even if I didn't I wouldn't have left that room without you." Harry says and Draco frowns.
"How did I save you?"
"When we were caught and taken to Malfoy Manor. You said it wasn't me but I know you knew it was. You lied to them, risking yourself, for me." Harry says, lying next to him.
"You can't save everyone Potter." Draco says, his tone softer than Harry has ever heard it.
"Neither can you Malfoy." Harry murmurs back and he hears Draco take a deep breath.
"We should probably head back to our dorms." He says and Harry sighs before agreeing, standing up and holding out his hand for Draco. He looks at Harry's hand for a while before smiling the smallest smile and taking his hand, letting him pull him up.
From then on it became an unspoken agreement that the two would meet on the quidditch pitch and play around for half an hour before talking until they have to go back. They never agree on a time, because it's definitely not something they both enjoy or look forward to so they don't plan it. They go to the pitch if they wake up from a nightmare or can't sleep and simply fly around until the other gets there. They don't speak during the day anymore than they used to, although they share acknowledging nods or secret knowing looks. And if they're both in the library at the same time they might happen to coincidentally sit at the same table in a comfortable and welcomed silence. That's something they figured out they loved during the second middle of the night meeting. They both get so much attention and hassle during the day so when they didn't know what to say and instead just lay side by side in silence it was oddly comforting. And all the while Harry is falling deeper into this thing he thought was just a crush.
It's currently a Saturday night/Sunday morning and Harry is lying next to Malfoy at 4am.
"So I see Granger and Weasley were arguing earlier." Malfoy says and before the war a comment like this would have made Harry think he was gloating, but he can hear the concern in his voice. Not for them, he doesn't speak to them and Harry is pretty sure they hate Malfoy and he still doesn't like them, but concern for Harry.
"Yeah, they broke up yesterday." Harry sighs, "I mean it's been a long time coming, 'Mione has known she didn't love him for a while, like since before we came back here." Because she realised she was bi and has a crush on Pansy but Harry doesn't mention that.
"She's kept quiet for a couple of weeks because she didn't wanna upset him. They just didn't work. But now it's a whole thing like if I talk to Ron then Hermiones mad at me but if I talk to Mione then Ron gets mad and I get they don't want to be near each other but I can't just pick a side. It's exhausting." Harry says, leaving out the fact that he keeps having nightmares of Draco being murdered by Voldemort which means he's still getting no sleep.
"That's shit. They shouldn't put you in the middle like that." Draco says and Harry knows he's not saying much because he knows Harry need to vent.
"Mione isn't obvious with it. She says she doesn't mind me talking to Ron but I see that it hurts her. Ron just flat out blanks me if he sees me so much as smile at Mione. It doesn't help that he's still pissed I broke up with his sister." Harry mutters.
"You and Weaslette broke up?" Draco asks curiously and Harry nods.
"Yeah couple weeks ago. I mean she was cool with it and we're still okay but I think Ron had it in his head that I was going to marry her or something." Harry explains and Draco nods. Harry hasn't told Malfoy he's gay yet, only Ginny and Hermione know, because Harry's not sure if Draco's okay with it and Harry loves their secret meetings and he would hate to lose them.
"How about you? Aren't you dating Pansy?" Harry asks and Draco chuckles.
"No, Potter. We are not dating." He says and Harry figures he may as well ask if she's single so Hermione can either make a move or try and get over her.
"Is she seeing anyone?" Harry tries to sound subtle but he sees Draco turn his head towards him and look at him with a strange expression.
"No. Why? You interested?" He asks.
"Asking for a friend, Malfoy." Harry says and he raises an eyebrow.
"Well she's flying for the other team so you should let that friend know it's not gonna happen." He says, sounding as if he doesn't believe Harry, who just smiles up at the sky.
"She'll be thrilled to hear that, actually." Harry says, feeling kind of happy for Hermione but also because Pansy is gay which means Malfoy can't have a problem with it which means Harry can probably tell him that he's gay. At some point.
"Well Pansy has her eye on someone already. Which friend is this?" Malfoy asks and Harry bites his lip, she'd kill him if he told anyone, let alone Malfoy. Harry is the only person she told about her being bi.
"You tell anyone and I hex your dick off." Harry says and Draco gives him an amused smile.
"That's fair." He says and Harry smiles slightly at him.
"Hermione." Harry says and Draco's eyes go wide.
"No way." He says and Harry throws him a harsh look.
"You say anything to anyone and I swear-" Draco cuts Harry off.
"No, it's just- Granger happens to be who Pansy has her eye on. She's been so happy that Granger and Weasley are fighting." He says and Harry relaxes back against the floor. He knows Hermione can be happy and he's happy for her.
"You might wanna tell Pansy to make a move cause Mione won't ask her out, she's too shy for that." Harry says fondly and Malfoy smiles slightly.
"Well we should probably head back anyway." He says, noting that the sky is considerably lighter than it was as the sun has just started to rise.
Harry walks into the great hall for breakfast and sits next to Hermione, Ron still mad at him, and throws his arm around her shoulders as a hello hug.
"Hey." Harry say happily and she looks at him suspiciously.
"What's got you so happy?" She asks and Harry looks over at Malfoy and sees him talking to a very happy Pansy. Harry catches his eye and they give each other a knowing look before he looks at Hermione again.
"Let's just say I heard through the grape vine something that may be of valuable interest to you." Harry says, nicking the slice of toast she'd just buttered and removing his arm from her shoulders.
"What did you hear?" She sounds intrigued but also nervous and Harry grins, she's gonna be so happy when Pansy asks her out. Harry plans to not tell her so he just winks at her and takes a bite of the toast but she pleads with her eyes and Harry rolls his eyes.
"All in good time, young one." Harry says, patting the back of her hand that's on the table.
"I'm older than you." She says and Harry raises an eyebrow telling her he's not gonna crack and she just sighs.
"Alright fine. So what are we doing today?" She asks and Harry shrugs.
"I need to get some new quills and I wanna get something for Teddy and Andromeda. Wanna head to Hogsmeade?" Harry asks and she thinks for a second.
"Well we can go for a few hours, I could use more ink. But you still haven't done that potions essay so we should spend most of the day doing that." She says and Harry sighs but he knows she's right.
"I can't stay in Hogsmeade too long anyway, I get 'fans' following me around. But I suck at potions. Can you help me? Please please please?" He asks and she chuckles and nods. Harry turns back to finish breakfast in time to see Ron storming out of the great hall.
Harry's getting dressed after his shower so he can meet Hermione in the common room and just as he pulls on his plain white T-shirt the door opens and Ron walks in, shutting it behind him with a bang.
"YOU'RE A RIGHT FOUL GIT, YOU KNOW THAT?" He shouts and Harry's suddenly glad the door is shut.
"Erm... hi Ron?" Harry says, confused as to why there's a sudden outrage.
"YOU BREAK UP WITH MY SISTER AND PRETEND TO BE MY FRIEND AND THEN YOU START DATING MY EX GIRLFRIEND TWO DAYS AFTER WE BREAK UP!" He shouts and Harry raises an eyebrow, shoving his money in his pocket.
"Ron I honestly don't know what you're on about mate." Harry says, deciding that his best bet is to stay calm.
"I SAW YOU AT BREAKFAST TODAY, AND YOU WERE ON HER SIDE WHEN WE BROKE UP, YOU'RE GOING OUT TOGETHER TODAY!" He shouts and Harry sighs.
"Ron you've got it all wrong." Harry says and Ron glares at him.
"ARE YOU OR ARE YOU NOT GOING TO HOGSMEADE TOGETHER?" He yells.
"We are, but-"
"SO I'M RIGHT." Ron yells and there's only one way to show him he's wrong.
"I'm gay, Ron." Harry says and he stops mid rant to stare at Harry.
"You're- what?" He stutters and Harry sighs.
"I broke up with Ginny because I'm gay, Ron. Hermione and I are going to Hogsmeade as friends because that's all we are. I was on her side because you had Ginny and Dean and Seamus and Neville and she didn't really have anyone. I'm not dating Hermione, Ron, I'm being a good friend. Now I'm sorry I told you like this but I really need to get going, I was meant to meet Hermione 5 minuets ago." Harry says leaving a stunned Ron alone in the dorm.
"So how come you were late?" Hermione asks as her and Harry walk to Hogsmeade together.
"I had a run in with Ron in our dorm." Harry says and she looks at him in concern but stays quiet so Harry continues.
"He said I dumped his sister and pretended to be his friend but then I started dating you, he heard us at breakfast and misunderstood, and I tried to tell him he had it wrong but he refused to listen and was shouting and stuff so I just told him that I wasn't dating you and I dumped his sister because I'm gay." Harry says casually and Hermiones eyes widen.
"Wow. How did he take it?" She asks.
"I'm not sure. I left before he responded. He looked kinda shocked when I left though." Harry says and she sighs.
They walk to Hogsmeade and buy everything they need before going to the three broomsticks for a butterbeer. They sit and talk and after a few minutes Harry sees Malfoy and Pansy walk in. Malfoy is wearing slim fit gray trousers and a white shirt and they both fit his body perfectly and he looks good.
"Look who it is. " Harry says to Hermione and she turns to look before turning back to Harry blushing.
"Oh god. Have they seen us? Can we sneak out?" She asks and Harry catches Malfoys eye and smiles before turning back to Hermione.
"Don't think so." Harry says and she looks at him questioningly before Malfoy walks over with a nervous looking Pansy.
"Potter. Granger. Mind if we join you? It's busy and there's no free table." Malfoy asks and Harry shuffles over on his bench.
"Not at all." Harry says and Hermione blushes slightly as Pansy slides onto the bench next to her.
"Been doing some shopping?" Harry asks to break the nervous silence. Him and Malfoy talk every night but he doesn't talk to Pansy and Hermione still probably thinks Malfoy is evil.
"Yeah, just having a butterbeer then we're gonna head back to Hogwarts." Malfoy says and Harry smiles slightly.
"Same here." Harry says.
"Actually, about that. Erm, Granger I was looking for a new jumper but Draco here, as much as he knows what to wear to show off his arse, has no idea what suits me. You wouldn't mind helping me would you?" Pansy asks sounding uncharacteristically nervous, making Malfoy blush when she mentions him, and Hermione bites her lip whilst Harry just mentally agree that Malfoy knows exactly what to wear in order to show off his body.
"Oh, Er. I was meant to help Harry with his potions essay." Hermione looks at Harry who rolls his eyes.
"Mione it's fine." He says and she frowns at him.
"Are you sure?" She asks but Harry can see she really wants to go with Pansy.
"I can help Potter with potions." Malfoy offers and Hermione looks at him in surprise for a second before smiling.
"Okay then. I guess I'll see you back at school Harry." She says, and Harry knows she's confused as to why Malfoy offered to help him. Hermione and Pansy grab their bags before leaving the pub and Harry turns to Malfoy as he finishes his drink.
"She gonna ask her out?" He asks and Draco winks knowingly at him. Harry rolls his eyes and they leave the pub, starting to walk back to school. Harry gets the usual girls giggling at him or trying to flirt or boys acting as if they're best friends on the walk, as well as a lot of odd looks because he's walking with Malfoy, and when they reach the library Malfoy sighs, falling into a chair in the back corner hidden by bookshelves.
"No wonder you're always exhausted. I thought getting threatened was bad but I'd take a threat over that shit any day." He says and Harry nods, sitting next to him and yawning, but making a mental note to hex anyone he hears threaten Malfoy.
"I thought all the attention would have stopped by now but apparently it never ends." Harry mutters as he pulls his potions work out of his bag and puts it on the table.
"Hi Harry." Harry hears and he looks up from his bag to see a 7th year Ravenclaw girl with long black hair and brown eyes standing above him.
"Er, hi?" He says and he sees Malfoy roll his eyes and start to turn Harry's potions textbook to the right page.
"Me and my friends," She starts, motioning to a group of around 5 girls near the opening in the bookshelves that they walked through to get to this table, "were wondering if you wanted to come and sit with us instead of sitting with him." She says 'him' in a disgusted way and Harry frowns.
"Er, no I'm good here thanks." Harry says bluntly, really not wanting to hang with a bunch of girls that will giggle at everything he says or be judgmental, and she flutters her eyelashes.
"Are you sure?" She says in a way Harry assumes is supposed to be sexy but he just nods and turns back to his notes.
"Pretty sure." Harry says without looking up and he hears her huff and walk away.
"She was pretty." Malfoy says and Harry rolls his eyes.
"Then you go sit with her and her friends." Harry mutters and Draco rolls his eyes.
"People don't tend to appreciate it when a death eater sits with them." He says and Harry frowns sadly, he didn't want to be what he was.
"She was a judgmental bitch. And she's not my type." Harry mutters before starting on his essay, Malfoy pitching in if Harry makes a mistake or needs help in general.
By the time they're finished with the essay it's dinner and they walk to the great hall together before going to their respective tables. Harry sits next to Hermione and she blushes.
"So what happened?" Harry smirks knowingly and she blushes harder.
"You knew she was going to ask me out didn't you?" She asks and Harry winks at her.
"Of course I did. I know everything." Harry smiles. Hermione tells Harry all about what happened and he tells her about his study session with Malfoy and about halfway through dinner Ron sits next to Harry nervously.
"Er, I Er, I'm sorry I was so rude to you earlier. I er, got mad but I regret it and I'm sorry. And I'm totally okay with it by the way." He says referring to Harry's sexuality and Harry smiles.
"Thanks man. I'm sorry you found out like that." Harry says and Ron shakes his head, "don't worry about it." He says before moving back over to where Seamus is sat.
"So do you want me to read your essay?" Hermione asks once Ron has gone and Harry turns to her.
"I don't mind. You can if you want but I think it's pretty good." Harry says and she nods.
"I know it will be, Malfoy is the best at potions, I just want to read it." She says and Harry raises an eyebrow.
"Was that a compliment? Directed at Malfoy?" Harry asks in playful shock and she rolls her eyes.
"Pansy said he's changed a lot since the war, and seeing him at the pub and how he was actually nice to you and willingly helped you, I believe her." She says and Harry smiles slightly as they finish dinner and make their way up to the common room.
It's pretty empty when Hermione and Harry enter so they sit in the armchairs by the fire. Harry throws his legs over one of the arms and leans back against the other, getting comfy, before handing Hermione his essay. He watches her read it and when she hands it back to him she has a smile on her face.
"I think this is your best yet." She says and Harry smiles, slightly proud of himself, as he puts it back in his bag.
They chat for a while, more and more 8th Years filling into the common room and the room growing louder, and after a while Pansy and Malfoy walk in with Blaise. Pansy and Blaise walk over and sit on the empty sofa close to Harry and Hermione, Pansy and Hermione immediately starting a conversation, and Harry sees Malfoy walk towards the dorm room stairs with a sad expression on his face.
"I'll catch you later." Harry says briefly to Hermione and he feels hers and Pansy's eyes on his back as he follows where Malfoy went. He drops his bag off in his dorm room and walks across the hall to Malfoys dorm room and knocks.
"Yeah?" Malfoy calls and Harry prays he's the only one in there. He opens the door and leans back against the door once it's closed, frowning at Malfoys expression. He notices his shirt is undone and his thin pale body has big scars from when Harry cursed him a few years ago.
"Yeah?" He asks again and Harry notices Dracos eyes travel down his body slowly before looking back into Harrys eyes.
"You okay?" Harry asks and Draco frowns.
"Yeah, why?" He asks and Harry raises an eyebrow as Draco pulls off his shirt and pulls on a hoodie.
"Because I can see the look on your face." Harry says and Draco sighs, kicking off his shoes.
"I'm fine, Potter." Harry sighs before deciding he will find out what's wrong. One way or another.
"Quidditch pitch. 15 minuets." Harry says before walking out of Dracos dorm room and towards his own so he can pull on a hoodie. He's already wearing skinny jeans and converse so he's dressed appropriately. Harry and Draco keep their brooms in the cupboard with the quidditch balls on the pitch so they don't have to sneak them down there every night so once Harry's pulled on his hoodie he makes his way to the pitch, praying Draco shows up.
He gets his broom and frowns when Draco hasn't shown up within 15 minuets, deciding to just fly laps of the pitch. After a few minutes Harry sees Malfoy grabbing his broom and he stop moving and hovers where he is in the air, waiting for Malfoy as he flies over.
"Didn't think you were coming." Harry says and Draco looks down.
"I need to talk to you." He says and Harry frowns.
"You okay?" Harry asks and Draco shrugs before flying back down to the ground and Harry follows him before dropping his broom and sitting down next to Draco, leaning back on his hands. Draco lies back and looks at the dark sky; it's midnight and the stars are very bright.
"I got a letter from my Mother." Draco says and Harry looks down at his face, the moonlight making him look even more gorgeous.
"Is she okay?" Harry asks worriedly. He hasn't really spoken to Narcissa since he spoke at their trials.
"She's great, yeah. She, erm," Draco starts and Harry frowns, Draco's never this nervous.
"She asked me to go back to the manor next Saturday for tea." He says and Harry watches Draco's face as his eyes flicker from the sky to Harry's face.
"Yeah?" Harry asks, unsure why him going to see his mum is an issue.
"She wants you to come with me." He says.
"Oh. How come?" Harry asks. He would actually love to see Narcissa again; she did save his life after all.
"She didn't say." He says before adding, "You don't have to come. If you don't want to." He says and Harry smiles slightly.
"No, I would love to." He says and Draco looks at him again, his eyes shining but his face remaining neutral.
"Really?" He asks, confused, and Harry doesn't know if Draco's mother told him about how Harry spoke at her trial and how she saved Harry's life during the war. Harry lies down next to Draco and looks up at the sky.
"I've been meaning to talk to her actually." He says and Draco turns to face Harry.
"Why?" She hasn't told him then.
"She saved my life during the war." Harry says and Draco sits up slightly so he's leaning on his elbows.
"She did?" He asks, looking down at Harry, who nods as he leans up on his elbows too.
"When I was in the forest, after Voldemort hit me with the curse and stuff, she was the one to check if I was dead or not. She asked me if you were alive and when I said you were she told Voldemort I was dead." Harry says before smirking at him.
"Seems like saving me runs in your family." Harry teases and Draco blushes slightly before shoving Harrys arm so he falls to the side and Draco laughs at him. Harry chuckles and grabs his wrist before pulling it so Draco loses balance and falls too, causing them to start wrestling. Draco grabs Harrys wrists and rolls on top of him and Harry smirks before rolling them over so hes on top of Draco and he stops laughing as he looks down into Dracos gray eyes, Draco staring up at him with an expression Harry only sees when they're alone.
"You saved me too Potter." He says softly and Harry smiles.
"You're a prat Malfoy, but I wasn't about to let you die." Harry says and Draco rolls his eyes before taking a deep breath.
"So should I tell mother you're coming?" He asks and Harry grins.
"Absolutely." Harry says before rolling off of Malfoy and onto the ground next to him. The good thing about being 8th year students is that it's not technically an actual year, it was only made so those who weren't able to complete their 7th year could do so, Which means they have a lot more freedom, they're allowed to wonder the grounds more than the younger years as long as they go to classes and do their work and their curfew is 11pm rather than 9:30pm like the rest of the school.
"Should we head back and at least try to sleep?" Harry asks and Malfoy nods. They put their brooms back in the cupboard before going back to the castle. It's around 1am now and the common room is empty apart from a couple of people that have fallen asleep in armchairs with textbooks open or parchment in front of them. Draco and Harry quietly make their way up the stairs and stop on their floor.
"We still gonna play 1 on 1 if we can't sleep?" Malfoy asks and Harry smiles before nodding.
"You wanna meet in the common room though cause it's kinda cold outside?" He asks and Draco nods before they turn to their respective dorms.
"Night Malfoy." Harry turns back to whisper and he sees Draco smile and blush slightly before going into his dorm. Harry grins at the fact that he can make Draco blush so easily and makes his way into his dorm, stripping to his boxers before going to bed.
It's 3am and as Draco waits in the common room for Potter he allows his mind to wander, as it so often does, to thought's of him. Draco is glad he's coming with him to see mother on Saturday and he can't get the memory of Harry lying on top of him out of his head.
"Hey." Draco hears a soft murmur in his ear and he feels Harry lean on the back of his chair, so he looks up to see him looking down at him.
"Hey." Draco whispers as there are still people asleep in the armchairs.
"You wanna play some quidditch?" Harry asks and Draco notices his eyes are red and slightly puffy and wonders if his nightmare was worse than usual.
"Yeah. You okay?" Draco asks as they walk down the corridor.
"Er, yeah." Harry mumbles as they exit the castle and Draco raises an eyebrow at him.
"Potter?" He asks and Harry sighs.
"Nightmare was particularly bad today." He says before biting his lip as if he's remembering it.
"You wanna skip the quidditch today?" Draco offers and Harry sighs.
"Can we just fly instead?" He asks nervously and Draco smiles at him, something he never does if he knows Harry's looking but he can't help it right now, Harrys so fucking cute.
"Of course." Draco says as they reach the quidditch pitch.
"Actually-" Potter says as they reach the cupboard their brooms are in. Harry turns to Draco with a small smile and looks him dead in the eyes.
"Do you trust me?" He asks and Draco looks at him, slightly suspicious.
"Sometimes." He says and Harry smiles brighter.
"Make this one of those times." Harry says before grabbing only his broom, closing the cupboard and mounting the broom. He looks at Draco expectantly so Draco rolls his eyes at him and climb on behind Harry, wrapping his arms tightly around his waist so he won't fall off. Draco tries and pretends he's not enjoying this but he can't help but feel so amazingly content with his arms wrapped around Potter and his back pressed to Dracos chest.
They're only flying for a few minutes over the forbidden forest and suddenly Potter is doing a steep dive into a gap in the tops of the trees. He flies in and out of tree's for a minute until he lands in a clearing next to a small stream that Draco assumes is connected to the lake. There are Thestrals drinking from the lake and a few Hippogriffs are watching Draco and Harry curiously. They both climb off of Harrys broom and he leans it against a tree before walking slowly towards the Hippogriffs. He stretches out a hand and strokes the biggest one's beak and it pushes against his hand in appreciation whilst Draco watches Harry in awe. Harry looks back at Draco, his hand resting on the neck of the hippogriff, and rolls his eyes, a small smile on his face.
"Come here." He whispers and Draco raises an eyebrow at him. Harry just rolls his eyes again and walks towards Draco, taking his hand in his.
"Trust me." Harry says as he slowly pulls Draco over to the big hippogriff he was just stroking. As they reach it Harry strokes it's beak slowly as he moves the hand of Dracos he's holding and places it on the hippogriffs neck.
"Hey Fleetwing." Harry says softly to the hippogriff, his hand still on the back of Dracos, and Draco smiles at how kind Harry is, even to animals. The hippogriffs feathers really are incredibly soft and he is beautiful, all grey and white. Draco strokes Fleetwing carefully for a few minutes before he feels a nudge on his hip and stops staring at Fleetwing and Harry and look down to see a beautiful mainly black Hippogriff, obviously only a baby.
"Stormswift." Harry says to Draco and Draco places the hand that isn't on Fleetwing on Stormswift's neck and strokes slowly, looking into its deep brown eyes. After a few minutes Draco looks up to see Potter leaning carefully against the side of another one of the big Hippogriffs watching Draco with a cute little grin on his face.
"What?" Draco asks confused and Harry looks at Dracos face for a few moments before uncrossing his arms as he stops leaning on the Hippogriff.
"Nothing, Malfoy." He says, but the look in his eyes tell a different story. Draco decides to drop it and walks over to Harry, standing in front of him.
"You wanna talk about what you dreamt?" Draco asks and he swears he saw Harrys gaze flash to Dracos lips but he probably imagined it. Draco sees fear flash in Harrys eyes for a split second before he sighs and nods, walking over to the edge of the stream and sitting down, his legs lying out in front of him, his feet almost touching the water. Draco sits next to him, so close that Harrys right arm is pressed against Dracos left and their little fingers are overlapped.
"It was- I was- Voldemort tried to kill Teddy, but you stood in front of him and took the curse but it didn't kill you for some reason so he crucio'd you and you were screaming and Teddy was crying and I was trapped by some spell he cast and I couldn't stop it and he kept torturing you and you were in so much pain and the look on your face was awful and Teddy was watching and I couldn't do anything to stop it-" Harry cuts himself off and Draco looks at him to see silent tears running down his face. Draco's speechless. The worst nightmare he's had and it's of Draco getting tortured to save his cousin and Harry's godson. Draco doesn't really know what to say to make Harry feel better, so he just links their hands and rubs the back of Harrys hand with his thumb whilst Harry rests his head on Dracos shoulder.
Over the course of the week they've been spending most nights by the stream just talking, occasionally playing quidditch after they talk instead of before. It's currently Saturday morning and Draco is sat in the common room waiting for Harry to come up from Breakfast. He started calling him Harry a few days ago, not out loud obviously, he's still Potter out loud, but he doesn't need to know that Draco calls him Harry in his head. Draco has already had breakfast and he told Harry last night to meet him there after breakfast so they can go to the manor together. Harry walks into the common room and Draco has to remind himself to breathe. Harry's wearing some black skinny jeans and a white shirt and he looks absolutely stunning. He sees Draco and smiles, walking over to the blond. They talk occasionally in the common room and of course they got odd looks from people as well as a shocked and almost accusing look from Ron yesterday which Harry said didn't bug him but it really did; Draco can tell.
"Ready to go?" Draco asks and Harry nods, biting his lip nervously. They walk out of Hogwarts grounds and stop once they've crossed the threshold. Harry grabs Dracos hand, knowing they need to apparate, and Draco ignores the butterflies in his stomach as he transports them both to the gates of the Manor. Draco looks over at Harry nervously and sees he looks nervous too. Draco leads Harry down the pathway and to the front door which opens to reveal Narcissa.
“Draco, darling." She smiles as a welcome and Draco grins and she pulls him into a hug.
"Good morning, mother." Draco says happily; he's missed her. Narcissa then turns to Harry and smiles warmly at him before pulling him into a hug.
"I'm glad to see you. You look well, Harry." She says in his ear and he smiles slightly.
"It's good to see you too, Narcissa." He says and she pulls out of the hug before ushering the two into the living room.
Narcissa sits in an armchair next to a fireplace and Harry and Draco sit on either end of the sofa. They sit and chat and it surprises Draco how easily his mother and Harry get along. He finds himself watching Harry whilst he and his mother talk and Draco swears he can feel Harrys eyes on him when he's talking to his mother. After around half an hour of chatting Harry asks where the bathroom is and Draco gives him directions and the second Harry's out of earshot Narcissa smiles knowingly at Draco.
"What?" He asks confused.
"I knew you were in love with Harry Potter." She says and Dracos eyes widen slightly.
"What do you mean?" He asks and she rolls her eyes, something Draco never would have seen her do when his father was there.
"Draco, dear, you forget I'm your mother. You don't look at just anyone the way you look at Potter. Besides darling, you spent every summer and Christmas holiday since you started Hogwarts talking about him." She says.
"Mother I spoke about how much I despised him." Draco says and she chuckles.
"Draco we both know that's not true." She says and Draco rolls his eyes.
"Alright fine. Is it an issue?" He asks, finally admitting it and worrying that she'll have a problem with the fact that he's kind of in love with Harry fucking Potter.
"No Draco, of course not. I've always known you like the boy, your face when we thought he was dead said it all. And you two are getting along well. Is there something I should know? How did you and your so called 'enemy' become so close?" She asks and Draco bites the inside of his cheek.
"We've kind of been talking in private. We both have nightmares and so when we can't sleep we go and play quidditch or chat and I think we're both too tired to fight and the only reason I kept up the whole hate thing is cause of father anyway." Draco says and Narcissa smiles.
"Lucius would have a fit if he knew." She says and Draco chuckles before agreeing.
Harry finds the bathroom after getting lost just once, this house is huge, and as he's walking back to the room he takes a moment to look at the pictures that line the walls. Most of them are of the Malfoy ancestors but there are quite a few of Draco and his mother as well. Draco was adorable when he was younger. Harry makes his way back to the room Draco and Narcissa are in and just before he rounds the corner he hears them talking.
"...too tired to fight and the only reason I kept up the whole hate thing is cause of father anyway." Harry hears Draco say and he frowns in confusion when Narcissa says "Lucius would have a fit if he knew." Harry's curious as to what they were talking about but he also doesn't want to eavesdrop so he just enters the room and sits back down.
"Draco, why don't you give Harry a tour whilst I go and check on the lunch." Narcissa says and Draco nods before standing up.
"Sure why not." He says and it's weird to Harry how relaxed him and his mother are without Lucius here, they're so much happier. Narcissa leaves the room and Draco turns to Harry.
"Let's start with inside." He says before leading Harry around his house and telling him about what each room is.
"This is the house elves room now. We don't go in here often. It used to be where, er, meetings, were held." He says nervously and Harry immediately knows that this is where Voldemort did most of his work.
"How about this room?" Harry asks trying to take Dracos mind off it by motioning to a room further down the hall. They're on the fourth and top floor now.
"That's another Library." Draco says, opening the door for Harry and leading him into the room. It looks like something straight out of the beasts castle and it's beautiful.
"Wow." Harry breathes out, walking over to the nearest bookshelf. It has a mix of wizard and muggle books which surprises him slightly. Harry runs his finger over one of the Shakespeare plays and imagines Draco sitting in a chair in the corner of the library reading Macbeth.
"This is probably my third favourite place in this house." Draco says and curiosity gets the better of Harry.
"Third?" Harry asks, turning to look at Draco and he sees he's leaning against the door frame watching him.
"Yeah. We still haven't seen my top 2 yet." He says and Harry smiles.
"Let's go then." Harry says and Draco chuckles before leading Harry down the corridor and he sees there are only 2 more doors on this floor. It makes sense that there's only 4 rooms on this floor because that library was huge. Draco motions to the door on the left.
"That's just a spare bedroom. Not that exciting." He says and Harry nods as Draco turns to the door on the right and opens it.
"This is my room. Second favourite place in this house." Draco says as he leads Harry inside his room and Harry's surprised to see quite a lot of deep red, even though it is a mainly black and silver room. It's amazing, with a huge window on one side and a huge bed with silk green sheets which doesn't surprise Harry at all. There's a grand piano in one corner next to a window that looks out over the front gardens and there's a door that leads to a balcony that overlooks the back. Harry sees 2 doors leading off the room and Draco explains they're an ensuite and a wardrobe.
"Do you play?" Harry asks, motioning to the piano and Draco nods and Harry swears he sees Draco blush slightly.
"Do you?" He asks and Harry shrugs.
"Hermione taught me Für Elise last year but I'm not that great." Harry says and Draco nods.
"That's one of my favourite things to play. Apart from Le Onde by Ludovico." He says and Harry smiles.
"Play it?" Harry asks and Draco bites his lip but walks over to the piano and Harry walks over and stands next to it.
"I will if you will." He says and Harry shakes his head.
"I haven't played in ages I'm honestly not good." Harry says and Draco smirks and nudges Harry over to the bench. Harry sighs and rolls his eyes but starts playing anyway. It takes him a few seconds to remember how to play but he gets there eventually. Harry can feel Draco's eyes focused on him and he feels very exposed but he realises he gets to watch Draco play after so he continues. When Harry finishes Beethoven Draco smiles.
"You're not as bad as you made out to be." He says and Harry blushes very slightly before nodding towards the piano.
"Your turn." He says and Draco hesitates for a second before sitting on the bench next to Harry, nudging him over with his hip so he can sit comfortably. Harry watches as Dracos fingers fly across the piano gracefully and Harry turns his gaze to Dracos face. His eyes are shut and his brow is creased ever so slightly in concentration but he also looks so relaxed and Harry finds himself smiling at him.
Harry stops looking at Draco just as he stops playing and Draco looks at Harry.
"You're not so bad yourself." Harry says and Draco rolls his eyes.
"Anyway. So yeah, bathroom there and wardrobe there. Now for my favourite place." Draco says as he stands up and leads Harry back down the hallway and to the ground floor. They walk outside and Draco smiles slightly as they walk round the grounds of Malfoy Manor. There are flowers of every kind and colour and smell and there are trees and fountains and it feels like Harry's walking through an enchanted garden. They walk through a hedge archway into a smaller area with a fountain in the middle and a few benches around the edge of the fountain. The area is secluded due to the hedge that borders it and it's beautiful due to the many flowers that are planted around the outside.
"Favourite place number 1." Draco says softly and Harry's too in awe to say anything. The Dursleys garden was okay but Harry was only allowed out there to do actual gardening, and it's not even a tenth of the size of the Malfoys garden. The garden at the burrow is big as the burrow is just in the middle of fields, but there aren't many flowers and it's basically all just grass; and the garden at Grimmauld place wasn't bad but it was only small and Harry wasn't really meant to go out there when Voldemort was still alive because he couldn't risk being seen.
Draco turns to look at Harry when he hasn't said anything for a few moments and sees him with the most adorable look on his face.
"Potter?" Draco asks and he snaps out of his trance and his gaze falls on Draco.
"I can see why this is your favourite place." He says softly and Draco smiles slightly.
"It looks better at night when the stars are out. You should see it then." Draco says before he realises what he actually said and blushes slightly just as there's a crack and a house elf appears in front of them.
"Master Draco. Sorry to interrupt." He says and Draco smiles slightly.
"It's fine, Sebby. What is it?"
"Master Narcissa would like you and Mr Potter to make your way inside for lunch." He says and Draco nods before he disapparates with a crack. As Harry and Draco walk back through the garden Draco notices Harry's eyes darting around and looking at every plant or thing they walk past. His gaze pauses on a patch of lilies and Draco guesses he's thinking of his mother.
"Potter, are you okay?" Draco asks hesitantly and Harry nods, putting on a smile that doesn't quite reach his eyes so Draco can tell it's fake.
"It really is beautiful here." He says as they walk up the stairs that lead to the backdoor and Draco smiles slightly.
"I think so. A bit too big, maybe, but beautiful nonetheless." Draco smiles and Harry nods as he follows Draco into the Kitchen.
After lunch Harry and Draco sit and chat with Narcissa for a while longer before making their way back up to the top floor library. They walk in and Harry looks over at Draco.
"Which book is your favourite?" Harry asks and Draco bites his lip before pushing himself off of the bookcase he's leaning against and leading Harry down round some corners and to a back corner hidden by bookcases with a fancy but comfy looking small love-seat and a coffee table. It's a cosy little corner and Harry can tell Draco reads here often. Draco sits on the sofa and picks up the book on the table, holding it out for Harry. Harry takes the book and looks at the cover. Persuasion, by Jane Austen. Harry sits next to Draco, his body turned towards him, and reads the back of the book.
"Why this one?" Harry asks, curious. He saw his aunt reading this book once, he remembers her enjoying it. Draco shrugs.
"Well what's it about?" Harry asks.
"Two people that were told can't be together, and who are driven apart by everyone they know, as well as society. Things keep getting in their way." Draco explains, his voice soft as if he's speaking about his own life and Harry can't help but watch him talk with a small smile on his face.
"Well how does it end?" Harry asks, wanting to hear Draco talk about it more because he sounds so beautiful and he looks so beautiful and hes a very beautiful person.
"You'll have to read it." Draco says before he looks at Harry who is watching him with a strangely adorable look on his face that makes Draco blush.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Draco asks and Harry shakes his head before opening the book.
"I don't know what you're talking about, shush I'm reading." Harry says, bringing his knees up to his chest and somehow making himself look so small. Within moments he's entranced in the book and Draco smiles slightly at how much Harry is making an effort to learn what he likes. Draco watches Harry as he reads, taking in every detail of his face and hair and body and the way he mouths the words he's reading sometimes and he smiles at cute bits and bites his lip at awkward parts. What Draco doesn't know is that Harry isn't just reading the book, he's imagining what Dracos reaction to each page was and if he relates to the book and how Draco feels reading it but mostly he's wondering if Draco dreams of a story like Anne Elliott and Captain Wentworth and if he realised when he reads it how scarily similar it is to Draco and Harrys relationship.
After watching Harry read for 20 minutes Draco decides to grab a book too, so he picks up the closest one, which happens to be Othello, and starts to read. Harry glaces up at Draco to see him reading, leaning back against the sofa. With how Harry is sitting, his feet are touching Draco's thigh and even that isn't enough contact in Harry's opinion. Harry looks back down at the book and continues reading, but moves so his legs are thrown across Dracos lap and he leans back against the corner of the sofa. Draco looks at Harry when he moves his legs and he would tell him to get the fuck off but Draco is actually loving the contact, his thigh is pressed against Harrys upper thighs, so instead he rests his hands on Harrys thighs and continues to read. The only problem with this position, Draco finds, is that Harrys leg is basically touching his dick and resisting the urge to kiss Harry when he's this close is quite a challenge.
Harry knows Draco is watching him, but he can't bring himself to look away from the page he's on. He knows if he looks at Draco right now, this close to him, he's going to do something stupid. He's no longer reading. He's intrigued about the ending of the book but he can't focus. It's around 4pm. They've been sat reading since 1pm, and Harry's had his legs in Dracos lap for the past hour and a half. Draco is reading too, and every so often he absentmindedly rubs Harrys thigh whilst he reads.
Draco knows they should head back to Hogwarts soon, but he can't bring himself to say anything. He would love nothing more than to stay here with Harry and if that means staying at his house for the night then he would willing do that. However Draco guesses Harry probably won't want to stay. Draco got bored of reading at around half three and has spent the past half an hour watching Harry read. He notices Harry hasn't turned the page in a while and frowns.
"You okay?" Draco asks and Harry nods, keeping his eyes trained on the book, not letting himself give in and stare at Draco. Anne is at an opera with her family and honestly Harry just wants to know how it ends. He just wants to know if they end up happy. He sighs and closes the book.
"How does it end?" Harry asks, taking his legs off of Dracos and looking at him and Draco rolls his eyes, immediately missing the contact.
"I'm not telling you." He says and Harry pouts before smirking, getting an idea.
"Please Draco! Teeeeeell meeeeeee!" Harry whines, leaning towards Draco.
"Do they get together?" He asks softly and Draco blushes slightly and he needs to remind himself to breathe.
"Do you want them to?" Draco asks nervously and Harry knows he's not asking about the book.
"Yes." Harry says, deciding to give Draco the truth rather than tease him.
"Why?" Draco asks and Harry rolls his eyes.
"Because they are in love. Just because Anne's family think she should be with someone else doesn't change the fact that she loves him." Harry says, trying to tell Draco without having to actually say it that he loves him.
"But, they are so different." Draco mutters.
"But they're still meant to be together. Do you not want them to be together?" Harry asks, frowning slightly. He thought Draco was on the same page as him.
"No, I do. I really do." Draco says and Harry smiles slightly.
"Well you know if they do or not." He says softly, giving Draco the choice. "So how does it end, Draco? Do they get together?" Draco blushes harder.
"Yeah they do." He mumbles after a pause and Harry grins.
"Do they actually?" Harry asks and Draco nods, his gaze flicking down to Harrys lips before shooting back up to his eyes. Harry realises that they're so close all he has to do is lean forwards slightly and they'd be kissing, so he leans forwards and presses his lips against Dracos. Draco automatically wraps his arms around Harry's neck and Harry wraps his left arm around Dracos waist and threads his right hand into his hair. Harry kisses Draco for a few minutes before they need to breathe.
"Did they actually get together? In the book?" Harry asks and Draco nods.
"Yeah, Captain Wentworth wrote Anne a letter telling her that basically he's all in so it's up to her. Then the last chapter is like a few years later and they're married and stuff." Draco explains and Harry smiles.
"Good." Harry says, smiling, and Draco plays with the hair at the nape of Harrys neck.
"So why is that your favorite book?" Harry asks and Draco blushes which makes Harry smirk.
"I don't know." Draco mumbles. Harry leans into Dracos ear, still smirking, and places a kiss on his jaw.
"Yeah you do." Harry whispers and Draco shivers.
"Alright, fine. I guess I just saw us in them and I liked the thought of having the same ending as them." Draco says, his face blushing bright red, and Harry sits up and smiles at Draco. Not a smirk but a genuinely happy loving smile.
"Ours will be better." Harry promises and Draco smiles, a blush still very prominent on his cheeks.
"How do you know? We could both die tomorrow. And actually if my father finds out we both will die tomorrow." Draco says and Harry rolls his eyes and sits back against the corner of the sofa.
"You can't let us have one moment can you?" Harry jokes and Draco bites his lip.
"It's weird having a moment. You have no idea how long I've wanted this to happen, and now it actually is happening I feel like it isn't real and I'm gonna wake up sad and go and meet you on the quidditch pitch and we'll play a game or two and we'll chat but then you'll go back to being Potter, and I don't wanna get my hopes up, I guess. Cause waking up sucks." Draco says and Harry smiles softly, takes Dracos hands and places them on his cheeks so Draco is cupping Harrys face.
"Draco this isn't a dream. I'm real, Draco. This is real." Harry says, his hands still holding Dracos against his face, and Draco smiles slightly.
"So we just made out and it wasn't a dream?" He asks and Harry chuckles.
"I'm afraid so, darlin." He says and Dracos eyes are shining.
"It was so much better than a dream." He says and Harry nods.
"I would have to agree." Harry smiles before leaning in to kiss Draco again. No, this is definitely not a dream.