AN: Written for Round 1 of the QLFC Season 6

Team: Pride of Portree

Position: Seeker

Prompt: Write a pairing you've never written before

The wizarding world was progressive in many ways, but when it came to sexuality it was far behind most Muggle communities. Harry found this out the hard way when a reporter managed to snap a picture of him holding hands with another man.

They hadn't even been obvious about it! Not that Harry particularly wanted to hide it, but life in general, and Hermione in particular, had taught him that discretion is often a good idea.

They had been sitting at a corner table in a Muggle restaurant and Harry had thought they would be safe from prying eyes. Clearly, he had been wrong.

Wizarding World's Saviour Fraternizing with Same-Sex Partner.

That was the kindest of the headlines. The rest were rather more rude. At first, Harry scoffed and threw the paper in the bin, happy to ignore it as he had ignored so many other issues over the course of his life. Then, the letters started to arrive.

The slurs were the worst part of it. Harry was used to being condemned for things so far out of his control, but never had such a multitude of names been applied to him for something that, for once, actually made him happy. His boyfriend had, of course, dumped him, and Harry hadn't been able to find it within himself to assign blame. Perhaps it would have happened regardless of the bad press. Still, it was beginning to look like he would never be able to have a normal, healthy, private relationship.

"What's bothering you, Potter?"

Harry looked up from the paperwork on his desk to see the familiar smirk of Draco Malfoy in his office, and the rest of Malfoy unfortunately attached to it. Inwardly groaning, Harry attempted to adopt a professional expression and trained it on Malfoy.

"Is there something I can help you with?"

"I've been assigned to assist in a case you're dealing with." Harry was confused, and, judging by Malfoy's comments, it showed. "The one with the untraceable poisons? Ring any bells? Come on, Potter, you've been at it for weeks and you're getting nowhere!"

Harry signed in resignation. It was true that the investigation had come to a standstill, and equally true that Malfoy was the Ministry's top potions expert. Well, they were both adults, they could easily co-operate. At least, for the length of time they were forced to be in close proximity, which hopefully wouldn't be very long.

"Fine. That's fine. Bring anything you need down to the office, I'll get the paperwork and we'll go through what I have so far."

Once Malfoy's potions equipment was in the room there was barely any space left for Harry's own things. He had pulled his desk into a corner and the two of them sat on it, rather than faffing about trying to find room to pull out the chairs. Paperwork balanced on one knee, Malfoy smiled at Harry.

"Bet you never thought this would happen, Potter. You and me, all cosy on a desk, working together on something rather than shooting off hexes at the first sight of one another." Harry nodded in silent agreement. "Not too bad, is it? In fact, I would go as far as to say that it's rather pleasant."

"I suppose so," Harry replied, fighting down a blush that threatened to light up his cheeks. Why were Malfoy's words causing such a reaction in him?

"So, want to show me what you've got?" Malfoy asked. Harry gave up on his battle against the blush as the unintentional innuendo registered in his mind.

Over the next few days, Harry and Malfoy managed to make more progress on the case than Harry had made alone in six months. It was impressive, and Harry found that he didn't even resent Malfoy for being more useful than he was himself. He supposed it was a sign that he was growing up, and had absolutely nothing to do with the way Malfoy's hair shone in the dull lights of his office, or that the fitted robes he chose to wear ought to be outlawed as a danger to the sanity of the general public.

In fact, Harry realised, he was actually rather enjoying Malfoy's company. His former rival was actually rather entertaining when he wasn't being an absolutely terrible person.

Harry chastised himself for the thoughts he was having. This was Malfoy! Even if they hadn't hated each other since childhood, no wizard would be seen dead with Harry after the articles the papers had been publishing about his preferences.

"Hey, Harry, why don't you come over to mine tonight? We could work there, it would be more comfortable than sitting on this desk for ten hours straight again."

Malfoy was exaggerating, of course. It had only been nine hours last time. But while Harry couldn't deny that he would be more comfortable elsewhere, Malfoy Manor was probably the one place in the world that he would be less happy.

"Not to the Manor, of course," Malfoy hastened to add, as though he had read Harry's mind. "I've a flat in London." Harry nodded, before noticing that Malfoy was no longer meeting his eyes and realising he'd need to give verbal confirmation.

"Sounds fine, Malfoy. Give me the address and we can apparate over now."

"Actually, Harry," it seemed like Malfoy was having trouble looking Harry in the eye. "It's probably easiest if I just side-along you there. It's a Muggle neighbourhood, you see, you've got to get the destination just right to not be seen."

Harry nodded, wondering when Malfoy had stopped addressing him as Potter. It seemed like that ought to be important, but Harry found his arm in a tight yet gentle and rather intimate grip and Malfoy stating his address before he was able to devote much time to the mystery.

Walking into Malfoy's house was like stepping into the Slytherin common room. Everything was decorated in green and silver, and snakes adorned every available surface.

"I have a confession to make," Malfoy stated, flopping down elegantly onto a sofa and staring at Harry.

"Go on," Harry prompted with trepidation, curious and a little worried at the same time.

"I actually brought you here to ask you something rather personal, and I don't want you to storm off without discussing it properly."

Harry considered for a moment, then nodded. His entire life was displayed for the viewing pleasure of the public regularly in the papers, what was the harm in telling Malfoy a few things?

"Well, I've been wondering why you're not more angry at those reporters. Back at school you would have been blowing things up and stomping around the castle in an almighty strop, but not now." Harry's lips quirked upwards in a reluctant smile, acknowledging that Malfoy had a point.

"But these last few weeks," Malfoy continued. "You've not been angry at all, or at least not that I've seen. You've just been..." Malfoy trailed off, waving his hand in the air as though trying to grasp at a word that was just barely eluding him.

"Well, a while back, Hermione told me I needed to stop being so angry all the time. She said it was a defence mechanism, and that it was an unhealthy way of dealing with my more complex emotions. So I've been trying to stay calm, work through things without flying off the handle."

"That does sound like something Granger would say," Draco muttered, and, for the first time, Harry heard no tone of disgust in Malfoy's voice as he said Hermione's name. "But, Harry, don't you see? Stopping yourself from being emotional isn't really any better than getting angry. It's not healthy. And, most importantly, it's not you."

Harry's eyes widened. Why on Earth did Malfoy, of all people, care?

"Perhaps you should try to let yourself feel something. Maybe something really good could come of it. Maybe not, but that's life, isn't it? But maybe, just maybe, it would be worth it."

Harry barely had time to register just how close Malfoy was sitting on the sofa, how close their faces were, before Malfoy's lips were on Harry's and Harry was thinking he should really be calling him Draco if they were going to be doing things like this.

Harry considered Draco's words and decided that if this was the sort of thing Malfoy had in mind for making Harry feel, then it would be well worth giving it a go.