Title: Appreciation
Pairings/Characters: Harry/ Draco; Ron/Hermione
Rating: PG-13
Word count: ~7,000
Genre: Romance
Summary: After three years away from London, Draco learns something called Appreciation. And as Harry is turning 21, he finds that maybe Malfoy isn't as bad as he used to be.
Warnings: slash. some profanity.
Beta (if any): None
Disclaimer: Harry Potter is owned by J.K. Rowling and Warner Brothers. No copyright infringement intended.
DM
Draco Malfoy was intelligent. There was no fighting it—it was true and he knew it. There were things he knew, things that he was capable of doing, which the other boys his age couldn't even dream of knowing. But one thing Draco did not know before the war was the word "appreciation".
Sure, he knew its definition— an act of gratitude and thankful recognition—but he had never actually felt it before. Maybe when he was a child, and he thankfully recognized his loving mother and nice broomstick. But it was nothing compared to Draco's appreciation now.
It was as if he were in a cocoon for his whole life, and just then, he was blossoming into a butterfly—beautiful without being vain, and loving with lots of humility, and most of all… appreciating.
After the War, the Malfoy family wanted to spend time alone, to wither in grief and loss, as many families did. They had lost the war—a feeling that was not even close to the loss of their family, friends, allies, and that damn Malfoy pride.
While Malfoy manor was being renovated after the damage of the War, the family moved and bought a small villa in South France. They had lost most of their fortune in the punishment for their involvement in the war, but they had some left. It was beautiful and peaceful, but it did not assuage the heartache or despair for a while, until their family came to an understanding and they began to look to each other for comfort.
Over the three years, Draco did not change very much on the outside. No, he was still just as breathtakingly attractive with his paleness and sharp features; but on the inside, he could feel the change… from his perfect white hair down to his manicured toenails. Draco had begun to appreciate things.
He appreciated his life, family, childhood, manners and elegance. He appreciated the world's beauty and knowledge—taking long walks down France's borders, and reading novels about the many cultures that the world offered. He learned what grace and couture really meant, and he understood how to apply them now.
It wasn't about getting what you wanted, about being spoiled rotten as he was before… it was more about getting what you needed, in the way that hurt less people. Life was about getting what your heart truly desired—all though Draco hadn't figured exactly what it was just yet, but he was working on it, which was remarkable.
Oh yes, he started to see things completely differently. He wrote to his 'friends', who were all around the world now—living with their various broken families—and they all noticed a change as well, but they said nothing of it. They were not changing themselves, and he took notice of this. He became more and more distant with them, and then finally their communications came to a healthy end.
He began to appreciate muggles as well. How had he never noticed all of their fascinating technology and interesting cultures? And suddenly, he could not get enough of it—he submerged himself in learning about these humans that he had scorned for the past 18 years. And although his parents were not completely on board with the muggle association, his mother still enjoyed her laptop and his father bought many televisions.
Mostly, Draco loved muggle music. He listened to a myriad of varieties, picking and choosing his favorites while tasting new ones everyday. He was just starting on American music, and he knew that would take another few years to delve into completely.
Over the time period, Draco took up photography. Using both muggle and wizard cameras, he saw the world in a new way, and with this artistic talent, he also discovered something else as well… Draco appreciated men.
He saw how beautiful they were—they're postures and mannerisms. He realized he was homosexual, and it didn't bother him a bit. It was a bit startling, because although he knew about the whole concept, he had never met a gay person before, and could only read about it in the many books he had… until that day in the coffee shop of course.
He had been on a jog down the beach in France, and had seen a small coffee shop. He went inside and purchased a latte—he enjoyed coffee even more than tea now—and saw a man sitting at the table next to him. At first, he noticed how engrossed the man was in the sleek black muggle camera that his lithe fingers held.
Then, he saw how…attractive he was. It threw Draco off for a bit—did he just describe a man as attractive? But it was not as distracting as what he noticed next—the man had a wand in this pocket. He could tell when the man moved his legs to the side, accepting his drink from the waitress.
His eyes widened, and he thought for a few minutes on how to engage this gorgeous man—how did he go from attractive to gorgeous?—in conversation.
He started with a friendly hello tossing in a remark about the weather, and from there he began his relationship with Gaspard. Dazzling, commanding, irresistible Gaspard. He was about as French as you could get, but he was kind and observant. Not only was he an excellent wizard—something Draco appreciated—but he was also a wonderful photographer. Gaspard took Draco to his photography studio and they talked for hours on the subject.
Gaspard had broken English that he learned from his mother, and Draco could only barely converse in French, but they began an evolving friendship. They were both intelligent and learned from each other, and Draco became comfortable with his own sexuality as Gaspard explained it.
Of course, after months of learning photography and other things from Gaspard, the young Malfoy brought him home to his parents. He was as nervous as a snowman on a sunny day—but things went better than expected.
Lucius and Narcissa had begun their own evolving, now realizing how many horrible things they had done, and what was truly important to them. Needless blood wars or a loving family?
They had been a bit unnerved at Draco's new discovery—is this the end of the Malfoy bloodline?—but at least Draco was safe, and happy.
After the relationship ended—because of course it would end, Gaspard was way too demanding of him—Draco remained in love with photography and his mother had taken notice of his change. She enjoyed it when he took her on his walks and discussed the many issues of the world as he took thousands of pictures. She observed his carefulness with the camera and his unique view of the world. Narcissa decided it was time for her family to go back to their home and clean their name from its foul connotation back in London.
And here, at this moment was one Draco Malfoy, carefully packing his clothing and camera equipment into his bags, his anxiety getting the best of him.
"Draco, you must trust yourself," Narcissa said, sitting on his bed and watching him with a hawk-like stare. "I know you'll be fine."
"Mother, I don't think so. England is… I just don't think I'll fit in there anymore," he said delicately. All of his movements were delicate, almost graceful in a way that made your heart ache. His mother knew it wouldn't be long before her son was in love—she could feel it in her bones.
"Don't let your father hear you talking that way," she laughed lightly. She was still as beautiful as she once was, but now slight wrinkles decorated her face and her eyes were full of wisdom. "You know what he says… A Malfoy can do whatever he wants, whenever he wants."
"Yes, but why must you give me the responsibility of clearing our name? You know I'll never be accepted..." he said, worriedly biting his lip. His father would've glared at the gesture, but his mother smiled at her son. "It's been two years, and none of my past friends will be there. I'm a different person, what will I do?"
He sounded whiny and pathetic, but it was safe to talk to his mother this way—she seemed to understand him when no one else could.
"You'll achieve it, son. You are the new face of the Malfoy family, and you will do the right thing. I know we can trust you with this," she kissed his forehead and left to resume her own packing.
Draco sat heavily on the bed and took a sip of his coffee. How had he lived without coffee for 17 years?! Reaching over, he opened the drawer of his night table and pulled out an old newspaper clipping that came only a few months after they moved to France.
HARRY POTTER, SAVIOR OF WORLD, BECOMES AUROR. He sighed and looked down at the picture of his childhood rival; feeling ridiculously worried all over again. Those green eyes gazed up at him and he bit down harder on his lip.
Yes, he appreciated a lot of things now, and he had thankful recognition. But most of all, he appreciated Harry fucking Potter.
A/N: Please comment/review! This is my first Harry Potter fic, so I need all the help I can get! Thank you!