Three Days to New Year
It had been snowing for weeks and there seemed to be no end to the coldness. The sun was hiding behind the clouds, so it was never really bright even during the days. It was the coldest winter in years and no one went out unless there was no choice. The children were happy to have snow and not even the cold could ruin their fun. Parents watched through the windows with a fond smile, trying to remember what it was like to be a child.
Harry Potter could do none of these things during the cold days. He was not that much of a child to be able to resist the cold and he had no children of his own to watch. He had broken up with Ginny after they had had a huge fight right after she had graduated from Hogwarts. Strangely, he didn't suffer from the break up as they both had thought he would and he had not gone back to her. Just as well, he needed some time alone. He had distanced himself of the fight against Voldemort, because he really had stopped believing in the side of the Light after too many years of fighting and not gaining anything from it. Not for others and not for himself.
It was boring for Harry to be alone in his cabin by the sea, but he didn't want to go to town, as he didn't need anything for the time being. He also had no desire to tell everyone where he was by practising spells out of the Dark Arts book he had bought when he broke up with Ginny. There was nothing to do, but write and draw. So he did both. He drew his cabin, the landscape, the inside of his cabin and self-portraits. He wrote about his childhood with the Dursleys and his school years in Hogwarts. He also wrote about Ginny, but there was not much to write about her. Harry would have written about his friends, but it was all packed in his school years.
So, after a while of drawing and writing about the things that were there and had been there, he started to draw out of memory and write about things as he wished they had been. During the long, cold winter he had also managed to write a few poems, but he didn't really think they were good. There was too much of hurt and death in the poems for them to be truly good.
The closer it got to New Year, the lonelier he felt. He had hoped for his first New Year's kiss, but without someone by his side, it would not be happening. After Ginny, he had given up hope on someone wanting him for who he was, not he they thought he was. So he stayed alone in his cabin, writing and drawing his hopes and dreams. It was three days to New Year.
***
Hedwig deliver a letter to Harry in the morning. He was so surprised of it that he spent ten minutes just staring at the letter draped on the bird's leg and another ten minutes staring at the letter lying on the table, when he had unwound it from the annoyed bird's leg. Slowly he reached for the letter and opened it dreading what he would read in it. He didn't recognize the hand it had been written with, which made him frown. He took a deep breath and looked at Hedwig.
"Here we go, my girl. I hope it's nothing serious", he muttered to the owl and began reading.
Dear Harry Potter,
I happened to notice your owl flying around, so I called her to me. I have wanted to write you this for a while now, but no one seemed to know, where you are. It would be a pleasure to meet you again, but not in a battle scene. I wish no harm upon you, not any more. I deeply regret the harm I already have put upon you and want to make it well. I do not seek for a miracle. I only wish to apologize. Could we meet?
Sincerely yours,
Lord Voldemort
Harry stared at the letter for a while and then burst out laughing. The dark lord Voldemort wanted to apologize for making his life miserable? What a joke! He would have been sure it was a letter from Fred and George if he had recognized the hand the letter had been written in. He smiled broadly and scribbled on a peace of paper:
Hey Voldemort,
Sure I can meet you. The directions to my cabin are on the other side.
Harry
Snickering he tied the letter to Hedwig's leg and sent her back. Then he sat down on a comfortable chair by the window where he could see the ocean and waited for the dark lord to arrive. It was two days to New Year.
***
Voldemort received Harry's letter and went on his way to the cabin. He was thrilled to finally have the chance to try and make things right between him and the Boy-Who-Still-Lives and didn't waist any time to Apparate to Harry. It was a long distance, but as a powerful wizard it was an easy task for him. A small distance away he saw the cabin beside the sea. The sun was setting down and the sight was breathtaking. It had finally stopped snowing and the clouds had moved away to reveal the purple sky behind them. With a smile and a confidant gait the dark lord made his way to the lonely cabin. He knocked politely on the door and it was opened very fast, as if the boy had just been waiting for the knock so he could open the door. Man, Voldemort had to correct himself as he took in Harry's appearance. He had grown somewhat since their last encounter and his hair was longer. There were no glasses to hide his beautiful green eyes and the cheeks were pink. He was lean and beautiful.
"Are you just going to stay there and stare at me or are you coming in?" Harry asked with a grin and Voldemort raised his chin with a smile.
"I never stare", he told the young man and strode inside the cabin. He heard the beauty chuckle and close the door behind him. The cabin was small, but seemed comfortable enough to live in. The desks were full of papers and pens lying around and there were some journals on the tables as well. The living room, if you could call it that, had two comfy chairs and a couch facing the fireplace. There was a working table by the window facing the sea, also full of papers. Voldemort sat down on the couch and looked at the young man he had wanted to kill for so long. Harry stood there leaning against a wall and looked at his guest with waiting eyes.
"You have a nice cabin", the dark lord stated into the silence and he was given a lazy smile.
"You have not seen the bedroom."
Voldemort nodded and a strange lust raised his head. He wasn't sure, if it was an invitation, so he had to wait for something else to be said before he jumped into conclusions. He sighed and leaned back in the soft couch. He didn't know how to apologize. He had never had to do it before and was now at a loss of words. Harry moved fluidly towards one of the armchairs and sat down with one leg under him. He looked down right sexy.
"You think too much. Just say what is in your heart", he whispered softly and with compassionate eyes. No one had ever looked at him like that or spoken to him like that. It was like a warm breeze and he relaxed.
"I am sorry for what I have done to you, Harry", he whispered back and the beautiful young man nodded. Without words Voldemort knew he was forgiven. He was offered tee, and he accepted it without a second thought. With that he knew that it was going to be a long night. It was not a bad thought.
***
With shaking hands Harry tried to fill the kettle manually, but it was nearly impossible. Stubbornly he forced his hands to cooperate. He couldn't believe what had just happened in his living room. He had practically flirted with the feared dark lord and then accepted his apology. He knew he would have accepted it even without the emotion that was evident behind the spoken words. Taking a deep breath he put the kettle above the fire and leaned against the wall. Watching the fire helped calm him down and he didn't hear the steps from behind him. He was startled when a hand touched his shoulder and he turned around to face Voldemort so very close to him. The red eyes were not cold, as he had expected them to be. He let a smile spread on his lips and the dark lord smiled, too.
"I think the tee's ready", Voldemort whispered against his lips. Harry closed his eyes for a moment before opening them again and looking deep into the red eyes. Their lips met in a feather light touch sending shivers down Harry's spine. It was so much better than anything he and Ginny had shared so long ago. They parted for some air and the dark lord whispered teasingly:
"I'm quite sure I want to see that bedroom of yours."
Harry grinned and spelled the teapot away from the fire. Then he took Voldemort's hand and led his to the bedroom for a ride. It was one day to New Year.
***
The next evening Harry opened his eyes to the dimness of his bedroom. It had been down for a while already and the moon was making its way up the dark sky. He felt Voldemort move beside him and then snake an arm around his waist. A light kiss was placed on the crook of his neck and he smiled.
"Do you want to kiss me when it's midnight?" Harry asked with a whisper and turned to look at the dark lord. He was smiling too and whispered back:
"I can kiss you until then and then kiss you again."
Harry chuckled and they started to kiss each other slowly, moving closer with every passing moment.
It was New Year.