Chapter Text
CHAPTER 1
2003 October 30
I hear the door click open as Draco steps in.
He puts his briefcase down and comes to the kitchen.
"Hmmm, smells delicious."
"Yeah, it will be ready in a minute." I say and smile.
He gives a tired smile and goes into our, no his room.
By the time he returns I am done setting the table. We take our seats and I immediately dig in. It's very late and I am starving. I was held up doing paperwork. I had assumed that he would be here by the time came but he wasn't.
"How was your day?" I ask.
"Don't even ask. It is horrible enough to be called on a Saturday and the old lady who called us kept on insisting that there were dark curses around but we had already checked her house three times."
" Sounds awful. "
" Oh, it gets worse. She obviously recognised me and didn't trust my team. So we called on back up for nothing and we had to file the blasted paperwork which Simon fucked up which means I and Jordan had to fix it and here we are."
I laugh. He glares at me." So what was it anyway?"
" Squib lady in muggle neighborhood. Some kids were testing out their Halloween pranks or whatever. She thought it was dark magic. I would have been funny if it wasn't so annoying." I hum in agreement. Apparently, this happens every year around Halloween. Newly turned 18 kids taking younger ones to pull pranks on neighbours.
"Anyway, why did Robards call your ass back to the ministry ?"
"Paperwork."
He gives me a look. " So either he couldn't understand your chicken scrawl or you had made mistakes in the filing, or you had left things pending. Am I right?"
My response is almost like a recording playing on repeat. Every time I am called for paperwork it is the same.
"All of the above." I say. At first, he would tell me to do better. Boring paperwork is part of the job and all. Now he has just accepted it as reality. I wish Hermione would also do the same.
He takes both of our dishes and spells them clean.
I am sprawled on the couch watching TV.
Once he is done cleaning, he comes and switches the tv off. I am about to protest but he beats me to it.
"We both have to wake up early tomorrow."
"Fine. But I am not running."
"Really now? You asked me to wake you up and take you with me. Going to give up that easy."
" Oh, I'll outrun you," I say even though I probably won't .We have always had a competitive streak after all.
He smirks and says, "Do your best, Auror Potter."
We have changed into our night clothes and he is reading a book like he usually does. My head is resting on his shoulder. I am pretending to read. I know I am not fooling him but I like to think I am.
And he smells amazing. Like soap and cologne and the eucalyptus thing he uses.
"You know I was thinking." He says without any preamble.
"Well, that's never a good sign," I say. He swats me on the arm but does not otherwise indicate to lift my head. So I don't.
"I am seeing my friends tomorrow. Maybe I should tell them about you. And us."
" Umm sure." I mumble. He puts his book down and turns around.
" Umm sure. That's it really. Come on. You can do better." He looks at me annoyed and with something else in his expression. Is it lo— No. It's not. It's not that. It can't be.
"Look I understand why you don't want to tell people but it's just close friends and it's been long overdue."
"Ronalreadyknowsaboutus," I mumble.
" What?"
" Ron knows."
" When did you tell Weasley and why didn't you tell me?"
" I….it just never came up."
He is about to say something but he closes his mouth. I can sense an argument coming up.
"You know what more on this tomorrow evening. You have lunch with the Weasley family tomorrow. You have already missed three weeks and I refuse to deal with Granger's howlers." He snaps.
He leaves for the bathroom. It takes a while before he comes back. He pushes me away when he is mad.
I say sorry the moment he returns. He nods and pulls me in for a kiss with that look on his face again. I push my guilt down and kiss him back.
I try to put all the love I feel for him in that kiss. In a way I never can with words.
An eternity later we pull away. His lips are swollen red and his face is flushed pink. His eyes are unfocused. He pulls the blanket on us and I settle next to him.
Draco's eyes are never unfocused. They are always a cold shade of grey. But looking at him like this tugs at my heart. Both with love and guilt.
He flicks his wrist and turns off the light. I snuggle up next to him in an effort to shove down the next wave of guilt.
His smell, as I bury my face in his neck, is familiar next to the bile rising up my throat. He puts his arms around me and I relax. We are the perfect heights for him to do that.
I feel safe in his arms and his blankets more than behind any shield or protection.
I have always wondered how such delicate silk blankets can do that.
" Good night Draco."
"Night." He wisphers into my ear as I fall asleep.