Perfection

by aNGELIC mURDER

Ignoring the past doesn't mean it won't come back to haunt you.

… Perfection?

A small sigh filtered out of the mouth of the blond as he placed his brushes on the cloth near his coffee cup. This habit has led to him drinking some of his paint on occasion. Just like his coffee he was a simple man but, held within his depths secrets that would have to be pried from his dead hands before he tells. He grunted and pulled the collar of his white smock up to cover the large yawn that fell from his lips. His masterpiece would soon be complete and the time for sleep would be welcomed.

One thing could be said for him, he was diligent in his work. His canvas moved suddenly below him and let out a breathy giggle. This was the part of the job that he could do without. His work was his pride. His new self after his old self faded.

'What would you say if you could see me now?' He asked his father's ghost. He sucked at his teeth as his canvas moved again. "Would you stop it? I'm trying to make this as smooth as possible and I don't think you'd want it to smudge" His canvas muttered a soft apology before returning to its still state.

Again the pale man sighed and picked up a thin brush. He grabbed the black paint and started adding thin highlights to the swirls of red, green and blue that decorated his canvas. He wiped his forehead with his smock as he added the final touch to his canvas. The loft he was working in was hot and humid even with all the windows open. Across from him sat a young man with sandy blond hair. He was reading a copy of '1st To Die' By James Patterson and every now and again he would look up to see what the other blond was doing.

"Are you finished yet? We haven't got all day," he said in a bored voice, turning to another page before he continued reading. "I want to get out of this furnace."

The blond painter glared at his canvas. "You can leave if you like, no one is forcing you to be here" he said, not acknowledging the other man's irritation. How was he supposed to work with this idiot nattering at him?

"How rude," the Sandy haired man said. He put his book away and began to stand up.

"Fredrick just shut up" The canvas said, moving onto to her elbows and turning towards her companion. "I for one quite like it here and want to see this finished even if it's a bit hot and you know Dominic is the best there is" The canvas was about to move again when Dominic placed his hand on her shoulder to steady her.

"Judy!" Fredrick said, he snarled and picked up his bag. "Call me when you stop with this foolishness," The sandy haired man walked away snarling, he cursing the blond painter with aristocratic features. Judy lay back down and turned her head to the side.

"I'm sorry for Freddie's behaviour" She whispered, staring at the wall. Dominic didn't saw anything. He grabbed his cup of coffee and drowned it. By this time it was cold and had a slightly bitter taste that he didn't like. "It's done; relax while I get the fan."

The young painter got up and went to get his fan. He plugged it into the extension cord and set it on the chair. He flipped it on and went to get his digital camera. He stood opposite the light source and turned on his camera. It was a simple Nikon camera; he had it so long that it was as much a part of him as his love for body painting. He snapped three pictures. One of the paint wet and two of it with the paint dry, one of which he would send to the client when he cleaned the memory card.

He assembled his three sided mirror and allowed Judy to view his work. She got up and looked at it, gasping as she did so. On her back sat a mermaid so life like she thought she could reach out and touch her. She looked at the fin like appendages that extended from the mermaid's face. Hair the colour of crown royal whiskey fell over her shoulder and down her stomach. Judy tentatively touched the mermaid's head over her shoulder and moved her hand down to poke at the crashing waves that sat on her lower back. She could see why Dominic was the best; not only were his works life like but they were also a display of his vivid imagination.

"Wow, Dominic, it's beautiful" she whispered. He was drying his brushes when she came out. He didn't say anything but the faint redness in his cheeks told her that he was embarrassed. She reached for her bag and handed him a 100 pound note. He took it and pocketed it before pointing her to the bathroom. She took her bag and went into the bathroom; this gave Dominic time to his thoughts.

Dominic began recapping all his paints and gathered the plastic from the floor. He folded her towel and put it on the chair near her shoes. Yawning openly and he put his coffee cup into the sink to be washed with his water cup. He gathered up his paints and brushes and put them away. He thought about how his life had changed so drastically over the past six years. Back when he was similar to Fredrick; high and mighty, seeing the entire world as beneath him. Dominic sighed as he put away his Nikon. He then got out his rag and began cleaning off his plastic and hung it out on the balcony to dry before he put it away.

Dominic sighed when he thought about the cold and hunger he had to endure before he came to London. He couldn't even afford the clothes he was wearing now and this loft, one that someone might see as a poor man's home, was well beyond his reach six years ago. He thought about his mentor. Never in all his life had he thought he would need a mentor.

"Who's the lucky lady" A soft voice startled him out of his thoughts and he turned around to face Judy. She was wearing a lilac coloured string top and a jean mini-skirt with stockings. She grabbed her towel and put it around her neck he mumbled that he wasn't thinking about a girl. She laughed and asked, "a boy then?" He shook his head and took the glass that was left behind by Fredrick.

Judy smiled and shook her head, "Seems like a waste to me" Dominic just chuckled, and handed her back a five note. She pushed it back at him. "Keep it. Thanks for the great work" She quickly kissed him on the cheek before he could protest and grabbed her shoes. She left without another word. He sighed and started washing up his dishes. It wasn't that he didn't have someone he wanted, that was far from the case, but that person was a part of his past. A past he would like to forget. He sighed again, putting his dishes in the drainer to dry before grabbing a copy of 'Darwin's Radio' and heading to his bed.

Later that week, Dominic was taking care of a new client. This one was also a woman. She had long apple red hair that shone in the sun and high arching eyebrows. Her eyes were a bit too close together for his liking and made him a little cross eyed; however they were a striking Hazel colour. Her lips were plump but small and her cheeks puffed out a little as she smiled. Her skin was tanned and he shuddered as green eyes flashed across his vision.

"Good afternoon Mr. LaBorde, I came here because I heard you were the best for body painting." She extended her hand and he grabbed it in a firm shake.

"I see my reputation precedes me Ms…"

"Barker, Joanna Barker" she replied with a smile.

"Ah, so what can I do for you," Dominic asked, tying the strings of apron together and inviting his new client to sit. She sat down as Dominic offered her some water. She accepted and began her tale.

"I always wanted a tattoo, every since I was a child but have always had a very low pain threshold." She took a sip of water and smiled. "I thought I was out of luck until a friend of mine pointed me in the direction of body painting." Dominic nodded and wondered why she couldn't just get to the point. If he had seen her on the street he wouldn't have thought she would have been a talker. "… This week is my big performance and I need you to paint this on my front" She handed him a photo of a golden mountain lion stalking towards an unseen prey. He frowned, it wasn't hard but if it was for her dance she would need to be in early on the day of the performance.

"How big do you want it," he asked, sipping his coffee.

"I want it to fit my whole body; from face to knees at least" she replied, taking another sip of her water as she adjusted her skirt.

"I can do that, but you have to come in early on the day if you want it for a performance" Dominic countered, he watched as her brow furrow and blinked away the image of a girl who once did that same think.

"How early," Joanna asked.

"When is your performance?"

"It starts at eleven but I have to be there for nine before the rush of people."

Dominic sipped his coffee again. "Then you would need to be here by four on both days" He shuddered, every since he was a child he hated having to work in the afternoon; especially at Hogw- 'Don't think too much on it' He thought.

"That is fine with me" Ms. Barker replied, placing the empty glass on the table. "Thank you for your time Mr. LaBorde, I'll send you your deposit later today."

Dominic led her out of his loft and shut the door behind her. He slip to the floor and choked back a sob as the memories he worked hard to block out invaded his senses. He saw a girl with a pug nose and a black boy sitting near a fireplace. He shuddered as a boy with flaming red hair and fiery eyes flashed before his eyes; he could tell the boy was shouting but couldn't make out any words.

The images changed from benign ones to ones that made the painter shiver with fear. He saw many people dressed in black with white masks covering their faces. He saw men and women from different walks of life convulsing on the ground with their mouths opened in silent screams. He curled into foetal position. 'Just ride it out, just ride it out, just ride it out.' He chanted in his mind, as the images got bloodier and gorier until a pair of bright green eyes filled his vision and he passed out.

Saturday morning came and he was still shivering from his slight panic attack. He got up and showered, noticing he still didn't get a morning erection. He shuddered as he heard a faint scream and saw a red head being castrated. He turned the tap and stepped out, wrapping a towel around his waist and getting his toothbrush and some toothpaste. When he was finished with the bathroom he got dressed and prepared his work area. He set down the soft mattress first then layered the piece of plastic over it. He then put a sheet over the mattress and finally he placed a small pillow at the top of mattress. He then got to work setting out his paints. He got various shades of brown and gold to fit the picture of lion he had. He also got a few greens and greys to add to the background. Next, he laid out a few pastel colours to mark the outline of the picture. He got a mixing board to mix the colours and then set out a few jars of water; the only thing left to do was to wait for Ms. Barker.

The doorbell rang and Dominic went to answer the door. It was Ms. Barker; she was wearing a terracotta trench coat and a pair of multi-coloured flip-flops. "Good morning Ms. Barker," He said, moving aside to let her in. She got in and, without shame: took off her coat, hung it on the coat hanger and lay down on the mattress. "Make yourself at home" He said dryly, moving over to her.

She smiled up at him and replied "I shall" before wiggling into the mattress. He chuckled and grabbed the soft grey pastel and set to work.

He started on her face, softly tracing the outline of the tail. He made it curl around her left eye, across her nose and down the right side of her neck. He brought the tail down her chest where he began to outline the flank. He started work on the body and drew the hind legs starting near her arms on her breasts. He moved down more, making a curved line to indicate the stomach and another one on her left side to indicate the curve of its back. He drew in the outline for the forepaws which started a little below her pelvis.

"You're really odd" Joanna said, staring intently at the ceiling. The only things handing from the ceiling were spiders.

"Really? How so," Dominic asked, getting the head outline down. It started just below her navel and the muzzle continued over vagina. Joanna giggled but kept still.

"You live alone and don't seem to have a girlfriend."

Dominic chuckled, "How does that make me odd?" He added in the ears that sat on each side of her lower pelvis and continued down to put on the forepaws. They ended around mid-thigh. "Well, you're handsome, kind, and can obviously take care of yourself" She replied with a sniff. She kept her legs still while Dominic drew in the rocks on her thighs. "Maybe I just like being alone."

"You don't seem that way, your eyes are so sad." She whispered, as he moved away and let her get up. She moved off the mattress with the skill of someone use to body painting and went to see how her outline looked. She gasped; it wasn't finished yet but already it looked so intense. The eyes were lacking colour but they still seemed to bore into her every soul.

"It's beautiful." She whispered, touching the image's reflection reverently.

"I'm glad you think so, but get back here, we need to finish." Dominic said, uncovering his paints and mixing the appropriate colours for the image. Joanna got on the bed without smudging her sketch, raising Dominic's respect for her. Not having to touch up the sketch gave them more time to work with.

He continued his work, this time adding colour to the sketch and then to the background. Joanna gasped and sighed every time the brush moved across her skin. "Are you this sensuous with all your clients?" The red head gasped out.

The blond painter smiled and said "Only with you" He felt like teasing the woman in front of him. She wasn't like his first perceived impression.

"I can see that" she countered with a laugh as she stared at his crotch.

He followed her line of vision and immediately blushed. He couldn't remember the last time he was able to hold an erection but he was holding one now with no problems. He continued to paint her this time no words were exchanged between them. He would sometimes brush her hair out of her face and she would sometimes brush his leg. He was in the final stages of his colouring near seven O' Clock. The mountain lion was more than just an outline now, but a master of the hunt on a rocky mountain ledge. Joanna was quietly stroking Dominic's leg and he was working hard to finish his colouring and ignored the memories of a blonde who once did the same thing.

He finished painting after six O' Clock and set the fans out so she could dry. He took his customary three photos and then let her get up. The painter set up his three sided mirror and allowed his client to take a look at her new paint job. He cleaned up and put his things away as Joanna came over to the kitchen and began putting dishes in the sink. She kissed him on the cheek.

"Come tonight, I have always admired your work" She whispered, pushing a VIP parse into his hand.

He chuckled, "are you always this demanding of people?"

She smirked and he had to stop the tightness in his chest when he remembered a girl who used to look at him like that. "Only with people I like" She put her trench coat on, handing Dominic his pay check as she did so and left. He took the money and mulled the parse over in his hand. He set it on the counter and began to clean up his kitchen.

It was nine when he got to bed, his book wasn't of interest to him and the VIP parse was burning on his desk. He lay in bed with only his boxers on, mulling over the events of the day. More of memories flooded him, they seemed to be growing by the day and his client tried to flirt with him… he flirted back. He rubbed his face and thought about the erection he had that day. The first he was able to hold for the past four years. Dominic groaned as his eyes rolled shut. He remembered the last time he had sex, screams and moans of pain filled his ears and the partial erection he had; fell.

He groaned and watched images flash across his eyes yet again; this time of a blonde haired girl with a pug nose. He sighed as his sex filled with blood. This memory wasn't as bad as the others. The painter watched as the blonde girl got on her knees and took him into her mouth. He groaned and wrapped his hand around his cock and pulled. He grunted at the memory of her mouth on his sex and he thrust up as the image of the girl began to suck on his cock. He shivered and thrust up again he grunted as his hand moved faster. The girl's pale skin turned bronze under his gaze and her hair began to darken. He thrust up faster and harder almost lifting completely of the bed. The girl in front of eyes moaned huskily and began to roll his balls in her hands and with a shout, he came. Sweat glistened on his skin and he lay back panting hard as he placed his arm over his face. He messaged his cock slowly to get the rest of his spunk out.

The painter smiled; eyes hazy and a symphony of colour flashing through his mind. Within the swirling colours were an Otter, a phoenix, a Lion, a Wolf, a Dog and two Weasels. He smiled as they flirted between colours and then he fell asleep.

Sunday with Joanna was similar to the Saturday they spent together. This time Dominic was able to go through the outlining process faster after getting to know her body. She asked him about the parse and he gave a weak replied of "I fell asleep" It was true but it was not exactly why he didn't attend. She smiled at him and stroked his face, he brushed her hand away. "Promise me you'd come tonight yea?" He looked into her hazel coloured eyes and was almost swept away by the swirling determination in her eyes.

"You'd get to see your art in motion, everyone loved it yesterday." She whispered. The blond heard about clubs were they danced in body paint under the UV light, that's why he made sure to get glow in the dark body paint. He wondered how his creation would move under that body. Would her breast sway to beat of the music or would she take measures to tape them down. "Maybe" He whispered, adding in a few lines of black to accentuate the muzzle of the mountain lion. Joanna looked up at the young man before her. He still looked tortured but today something else swam in his eyes.

On Sunday they managed to shave a half an hour off their time and she spent the half an hour going through his loft. She found a photo album and began leafing through it as Dominic washed up. She saw various pictures of his former clients, many of them actually repeated. Dominic was done in the kitchen and came to sit with Joanna. "You found my album"

"Are these your clients? Or is this the catalogue you show to people who are new to body painting?"

"Both" He went to get her a stool so she could sit without smudging her painting too much. "I would love a few of these when I have to dance again"

"Then stop by when you're ready." She laughed and agreed.

"Please come tonight Dom. I have always admired your work and I know you have never seen it move as it should"

Dominic didn't know why he felt so close to this girl, this mugg - 'Don't think about it' – but he did and he couldn't help how he felt about that: lost, confused, alone. This girl, 'Joanna' made all of that go away and made him want to try socializing. "I don't have anything to wear" Her eyes lit up at that and she stood up. Joanna held out her hand and he grabbed it. "No problem Dom" She said with a smile. "I'm sure we can find you something"

The club's strobe lights flashed and Dominic had the feeling that he was going to pass out if the bass got any louder. He was sitting in the VIP section of the club drinking Heineken and wondering why he agreed to come here. Out on the dance floor a mob of men and women grounded themselves against each other to the beat of the heavy music. Soon the song died and the poles situated around the room were filled with painted dancers. The black lights went on and their patterns glowed in the dark. Strobe lights of green and blue flashed across the dance floor and Dominick groaned as children on broom sticks flew through the air across his vision.

A strong drum beat filled the air and the people on the poles started to move. At the same time the crowd moved back a few feet. On stage a whole forest of animals danced. A man with a brown bear painted on his body attacked the crowd by jutting out his hips and waving his arms. Next to him a graceful female Gazelle spun around the pole making Dominic flinch as he wondered what would happen to the paint. Afterwards were a male and female condor who spun around the poles using just their hands, looking for all the world as if they were about to take flight. Next came a female snake that writhed against the pole and bend into the crowd by hooking both legs to the pole. Finally, his mountain lion was at the centre of the entire zoo. She looked majestic in the centre of it all. She took with her back to the pole and jutted her hips out.

Joanna grabbed the pole as Dominic watched on mesmerized; he didn't realize his hand was shaking until he felt his pants grow wet. He throat constricted as the lion on stage caught him in its stare. He bit back a moan as the lion stalked him, its eyes green and its movements graceful. He gripped the bottle tighter as the lion's head turned to the side and the dancer on the pole spun around, hand holding the pole while her feet were flat against it. He swallowed thickly and for the first time saw why people enjoyed his art work. He drained his Heineken and thought, 'I need another drink'

That incident had occurred two months ago. Dominic and Joanna had been in a relationship since; building their attraction for each other on their love of body painting. Every week Joanna would get something painted and dance for the blond and then they would shag on the nearest flat surface. Joanna enjoyed the sex; Dominic enjoyed his erections. It had been awhile since he was able to hold one. Their relationship wasn't casual but it was easy. He would fall asleep at night listening to her talk about her job as a social worker and awaken to the smell of her and coffee in the morning. While he slept the images that assaulted him when she wasn't there were kept at bay. She was his personal Dream Catcher. He knew the easiness between them could not last forever but he enjoyed every second of it anyway.

"Dom, do you mind if I bring a friend to see you? He's new to the scene and wanted to explore it a bit." The ginger said, tying her hair back with a black pony ring. Her towel was tight around her body but weak defence against Dominic's preying hands. "Then bring him by"

"You do men?"

"It would be bad for business if I didn't"

He smirked into her shoulder and cupped one full breast, the sun hadn't even risen yet and already the streets below were filled with honking cars. "Stop it!" She batted his hand away. "Since you have no objection I'll bring him by tomorrow afternoon around five, yea" She wrinkled her nose and batted his hand away. She went into his room and grabbed a bra and a thong. Dominic followed her. "Dom, stop it, shouldn't you be preparing for your new client?"

"Maybe if you tell me more about this new client I can prepare for him" Dominic grabbed her arse and squeezed while she buttoned up her shirt. She grabbed his package and squeezed, effectively putting a stop to his wandering hands. "Well he's somewhat innocent." She started, jumping into her pants "But he has a mean streak and likes wings and birds a lot. He very uptight with his morals and tends to do really foolish things without any forethought." Joanna rolled her eyes at this point and buckled her shoes. "He also has a rough past so be gentle with him yea?" She kissed his cheek and grabbed her keys "I'm always gentle love" He replied, leaning against the door. "Always?" He laughed, and kissed her forehead.

"No innuendo outside of the bed room"

Joanna laughed and exited the loft, kissing her lover and wishing him a good day. The painter sighed and went back to his bed; he had some business to take care of.

It was five in the afternoon and Dominic was relaxing on his couch. He had a catalogue of paints to test, his album and few leaflets to give to the beginner. He read his book in peace, knowing that as soon and Joanna came inside all since of quiet would be lost. A knock came at his door and he sat, grabbing his navy blue sleeveless tee and pulled it over his head. He opened the door and a flurry of red hair attacked him. He almost scowled when he saw who was behind her. He may have changed his glasses and clothes but the overall look was still the same.

He had grown since the last time the painter had seen him. His hair was just as black and messy as it was six years ago but had a shine to it that he didn't remember. His clothes fit him better; probably costing more than Dominic's loft, and showed off the Qudditich body he had build over the seven years they had been in school. His glasses were square now and frameless, making his eyes stand out more. He had lost that shyness that had been part of his persona for years but in its place was a gloom that permeated the air around him. 'Potter…?' They both started wide eyed at each other.

"Dom? What's wrong?" Joanna, whispered looking from one man to the other. Harry grabbed at his long sleeved cotton shirt and scuffed at the floor with his timberland boots. "Never figured you'd date a red head Malfoy" He whispered, breaking the awkward silence. Draco exhaled sharply, about to tell Harry just where he could shove it when he was assaulted by visions of his past. There was Cho Chang flying on the opposite end of the field trying to get the snitch before him but failing. Next was Pansy sitting in his lap in the common room as he held the first and second years in his power during fifth year. Afterwards there was a memory of himself as a ferret bouncing and then one of a Hippogriff attacking him during third year. He groaned and held his head, swaying into his loft. He tried to grab for his wall but missed and fell.

Harry and Joanna called after him but he was in too much pain to care. The memories came faster now. There were ones with masked wizards tormenting muggles, ones with a sea of Weasely children, another with Hermione punching him in the face and countless others resurfacing by the second. He curled up in foetal position and moaned in pain before everything went black.

Draco Malfoy awoke in his bed room. He shot up so fast that his vision swam. On his right side Joanna cooed in his ear and fed him some water. On his left side sat the one and only Harry Potter. 'So it wasn't a dream' He thought, making it a point to ignore the other wizard. Harry was leafing through one of the leaflets he had prepared for the day but it was obvious that it was the last thing on his mind. "What are you doing here?" He rasped, coughing a bit as he did so.

"Joanna told me her boyfriend was a body painter, if I had known it was you…" the end of the sentence hung in the air, quietly accusing. Draco growled, "Get out." Joanna tried to placate her lover "Wait, Dominic -"

"I said, get out!" Draco raised his voice and made to sit up, the raven remained stationary. His gaze was impassive but something swam too deep in it for Draco to decipher. "Get the bloody hell out of my loft!" The former aristocrat screamed; he grabbed the nearest thing he could find, a bottle of lube, and tossed it at the former Gryffindor. The other man's seeker reflexes kicked in and he caught it. He set it down on the table next to him while Joanna chastised Draco for his behaviour.

"Fine, I'll leave Dom…" He said, getting up and turning to head out. Draco sneered at the boy, an action he hadn't performed in over four years; he was surprised at how naturally it came back to him. Harry turned his head to look at him and then left without another word. Joanna screamed and raved at Draco after that. She couldn't believe his behaviour and how he had embarrassed not only himself but her as well. She even rounded on him for not telling her who he was. She snarled at him until he broke down and agreed to apologise to Harry for his behaviour. Joanna scheduled a meeting for next week.

This time when Harry came back, Draco was sitting in his couch in a pair of khaki shorts with a high collar vest. He glanced at Harry and smiled at his girlfriend. She plopped down beside him and told him to play nice. He grunted a reply and sipped his coffee. She rolled her eyes and said to Harry, "I'm sorry he's usually friendlier than this." She elbowed Draco who just sipped his coffee.

"You'll have to stop drinking that sometime"

"I can always make more"

Joanna laughed and kissed him, "I'll leave you two alone now. Be nice Dom" She said, getting up and straighten her skirt. "You too Harry, I don't want to come home and find I'm out a best friend and boyfriend" She hugged Harry who hugged her back, promising to be good if Draco –Dom- was. Draco glared at him as he did so. Joanna left the two to their own demise.

Draco started at Harry and Harry just started back. "So, how long have you -"Draco glared at him. "We don't speak of the past here" He said sternly. He folded his arms and glared at the raven who was wearing long sleeves despite the heat. "Are you ready to listen and learn or do you want to keep probing me for answers"

Harry muttered about moving on and Draco got up to offer him a drink. He sat down across from the raven and began to explain. "Body painting is one of the oldest forms of art there is." He started, drinking his refilled coffee. "It was once used in both tribal wars and ceremonies as form of respect to each tribe's god. Nowadays it's more a fun art." Draco handed the raven a leaflet to go over at his leisure. "There various forms of body painting you can use. These are: Face art, hand art and full body paint. If you are new I suggest face painting" Draco looked Harry over for any change in facial expression. He noticed two piercing in his ears in the shape of wings. 'I wonder…'

"If you feel bolder then you could try a full body painting but you cannot wear clothes." Draco handed the ex-seeker his album and watched as Harry flipped through it. Eyes flat as he did so. "If you choose to do a full body painting you should bring a friend with you if you don't feel comfortable around others naked."

"No thank you" Harry replied, staring intently at a photo. "You do art like this?" He asked, holding the book up for Draco to see. It was a picture of a man completely naked but painted with feathers. He had a prop beak and fake wings for the occasion, giving him the look of a red-breasted robin. "They ARE my art works" Draco drawled, eyes locked on Harry's hypnotized expression. "I want this one" He whispered. "You don't even know the rest of the information yet or even if -" Harry cut Draco off, giving him a look Draco hadn't seen since Hogw- School. He snarled "Fine, you need to be completely void of hair, you can keep the one on your head though" Draco got up and fetched his appointment book. He sat down and opened it. "When do you want to come in?"

"Can we do it now?" Harry asked, grabbing at his gold pouch.

"No we can't! It would take hours and hours of painting to finish if you want it full scale like this" Draco snarled, "Now you can have Tuesday" Harry glared "That's next week Malfoy! Don't you have anything closer?" Draco glared at Harry, 'I swear to god I'll-' He clenched his fist remembering that he no longer had his wand. He sucked his teeth. "You want it full scale or not Potter!" Draco hissed; he grabbed his head as a dementor swam across his vision. Harry snarled, going over his options. "Fine Malfoy, see you Tuesday" He got up to leave and was at the door when he turned back. "By the way, how much does it cost?" Draco wanted to strangle the other man.

Draco lay in bed; Joanna was sleeping over at her apartment that night. He sighed and wondered why the world hated him so. He had left that world behind after the war. He ignored everything that had to do with it. He stared at his left forearm and shuddered in revulsion. He tossed a hand over his face as images of a reptile faced man bombarded his thoughts. He even saw his father's incarceration again and again. His mother's determined face back at him from behind prison cells. He recalled running through muck and mud in order to escape the aurors chasing him and finally losing them in London. He didn't like the dark turn his mind had taken. He wanted his mind to be calm. The same way it was when he was his lover. His cock jolted at the thought of Joanna. He saw her bright red hair which and hazel eyes which over lapped with blue. He recalled the first dance he saw of her and his mountain lion. He growled and grabbed his cock.

In his mind, Joanna danced against her pole, jutting her hips and arching her back. He tugged his sex. She continued to spin around the pole as her skin darkened a bit as the lights moved. He arched up into his hand and tugged more. His eyes followed the wave of her abdomen as she thrust forward repeatedly. The lion on her skin called to him with a near wild-like ferocity. He thrust up again. He pulled and tugged at his sex as his eyes met hers in the light; but instead of hazel they were an intense shade of bottle green. He came hard at the sight. That night, his dreams were filled with flying brooms sticks and a warm toasty common room.

"You're late Potter"

Harry didn't bother to say anything and moved inside. He set his bag down by the couch and there waiting. "Bathroom's over there, change and come here." Draco instructed, moving to sit by the bedside. Harry complied, leaving Draco with his thoughts for the moment. He went over his bank balance in his mind and bean calculating his expenses. There was the rent to be paid, food to be purchased, his paints brushes, sponges and pastels to be replaced soon and then he need to pay utilities. He shuddered as the number rose, he definitely needed this job. The door swung open behind him and Harry stepped out in all his naked glory. The painter watched his client carefully, his skin shone in the limited sunlight and appeared to be smooth but it wasn't. Every part of the Raven's skin was covered with paper thin scars; they crisscrossed and were the reason his skin shone so brightly. He lay down on the mattress and stared at the ceiling. Draco stared at the man below him and wondered if he was really that stupid. "Just get on with it Malfoy"

"That's LaBorde to you Potter." He sneered, pulling the other man up into a sitting position, brushing a few of the older scars as he did so. Harry snarled but didn't say anything. Draco grabbed his face, and stared at it. He took up his grey pastel put down a few marks where he wanted the beak to go. He looked at the photo he was referencing. The same picture Harry was staring at last week. He then put marks over his eyes and began to outline the feathers that would take up his face. Harry shifted and streak appeared over the other feathers. "Potter, move again and I will kill you" He said, getting a cloth and removing the feathers from the side of his head. "Gee Malfoy are you this nice to all your customers?" Harry asked, glaring at the other man but remaining still.

"No just you" He replied, drying the skin and replacing the feathers. He made sure to make them as thin as possible and moved in the direction each feather would lay for a more natural look. As he reached the infamous scar he added a little paint to that area to smooth it over. He continued to fill out the left side of his face and the top of his neck. Draco sipped at his coffee before starting the outline for the chest. He started at the apex of the throat and drew feathered lines down the former Gryffindor's throat. Draco kept his hand steady as he drew the outline, going no further than his diaphragm and rounding out. He continued from the side of what was going to be the red breast and made small feather like marks moving towards the sides of the abdomen and onto the back. He continued filling out the pattern of the feathers until he hit the pelvis. At this point he finished marking the feathers that would sit above the legs of the robin. Draco moved back to Harry's forehead where he added in the missing feathers and then moved back.

"You can get up now Potter" He said, moving back as the scared man got up. He realised that Harry had grown since they last saw each other. Harry was still short and thin but he had definitely grown. "That booth is a three sided mirror" the painter said, pointing at the booth near the bathroom. "You can see your outline in there" He went into the kitchen and refilled his coffee. He took a large gulp and sighed. 'Why me?' he thought, draining the last of his coffee. He filled up his cup again and wondered if he might be slightly addicted to the stuff. He shrugged and got a glass of water for his client before moving to sit back down.

While Draco made his coffee Harry stood in the mirror booth. He examined his markings. There were circles around his eyes and feather patterns moved subtly down his flesh. There were even some on the base of his sex but none on his arms. He looked back at his reflection and sighed. He left the booth and moved back to the mattress. Draco offered him some water and he sat down and drank it. It was quite eerie for both men to be sitting together without hexes flying. "When you're done Potter, get on the bed and sit facing that wall" Draco said, getting another mug full of his delicious coffee.

Draco sat down and harry sat between his legs. He bent the raven forward and started drawing feathers down his back. He made a few long lines down the centre of Harry's back and the other man shivered. Draco worked diligently from there. He feathered out from the centre, giving Harry a break every five minutes to stretch. They worked in the quiet of the loft, listening as cars passed by honked their horns. Draco was surprised at the number of cuts running down the ex-seeker's back. He worked around the raised ones and finally ended the out lining at the buttocks where he made long hard lines to represent tail feathers.

"Do you want me to draw the tail on the back of your legs?" the painter asked, guiding Harry into a standing position. Harry shook his head and muttered something under his breath. "I didn't catch that" Draco made the final tail feather before starting on the legs. "I have something for that" Harry said, moving his feet as the pastel tickled his legs. "Potter stand still goddamn it!"

"I'm trying Malfoy" Harry snapped back, not liking the way Malfoy grabbed his hip to steady him. He had to stop himself from kicking the blond. Draco snarled and continued outlining Harry's leg; he put just a few lines in so that he would know where to bold and where to add thinner lines. When he was done he started on the colour, allowing Harry to take a few breaks in between. It was late by the time Draco finished colouring Harry's face, back, abdomen and legs. He then sat down and started on the arms; giving Harry a whispered threat of "Move and die" before starting on his arms.

Harry watched as Draco worked. It was the first time he could do that without straining his neck or incurring the blond's wrath. Despite the odds, Draco had changed since he had last seen him. The other man was still taller than him and still hated him. He watched as Draco drank more coffee and wondered vaguely if he drank anything besides that. He watched the painter's face and blinked at the look of determination and concentration that covered his face. He would never have thought that Draco Malfoy would be doing any form of work, much less enjoying it.

Draco worked quickly to finish outlining and colouring the arms. It was dark out by the time he finished with Harry and he couldn't have been happier. The blond painter got up and headed out to the kitchen to begin washing out his brushes and mixing boards. He then washed his cup and the glass Harry drank from, scrubbing that one especially hard. Draco tried to ignore the rustling in the background but it was hard to do so when he had nothing to occupy himself with. He sighed and went to get his camera. He didn't want the bane of his existence in his album but he loved having copies of his work. He strode into his living room as casually as possible and ended up catching his breath. In the centre of the room where Harry once stood was a giant red breasted robin.

He stared at the bird or rather bird-man for the bird had a distinct humanoid shape. From the arms hung wing like protrusions and around his waist was a very realistic tail. His feet were similar to scaly bird feet and had three toes with one hooked toe and wicked claws. Despite all of the odd appendages the most striking had to be the beak that stuck out of his face. It curved at the tip and opened to let out a small 'caw'. Draco held his camera tight, afraid he might drop it. "What…" The bird man in the centre of the room slowly moved to the window and Draco noticed that there were no hands on the creature.

The painter moved towards the former Harry Potter and stroked the side of his wing. The feathers were real. He ogled the marvellous sight of his painting coming to life. "Potter…" As Draco stroked the wing he noticed that Harry also transfigured his hair, it was brown and looked alot like feathers. Bird Harry cooed a bit and peaked at the window. Draco 'tsked' at him, "No, this is a muggle area" The blond held his head as pictures of screaming muggles flew past his vision.

The bird man tapped the glass with his beak again and this time he pointed at the three sided mirror. Draco blinked before understanding dawned on him. Potter wanted him to do magic and turn the glass, but he didn't have wand. He hadn't had a wand since he left that world. He ground his teeth as images of a tall stern witch entered his mind. She turned into a cat and back again while seeming to berate his miserable match stick needle. "Sorry Potter, no wand" The bird man looked ready to attack him but he just moved to his booth and began to open up the mirror. After he saw what the blond was doing the former raven moved back across the living room and stood in front of the mirror to look at himself. He stood there until an hour later when the spell wore off.

After that faithful day when Harry transfigured himself into a bird in Draco's loft he came back every week to get various bird prints done on his skin. Whenever he came by Joanna was not allowed to be in the loft due to Harry's lack of thought whenever he cast his spells. Joanna wouldn't stop talking about Harry which made Draco more than a little mad. She was his girlfriend wasn't she? Why was she talking about the bane of his existence? He couldn't deny that his patronage was beneficial but he still couldn't stand him. 'Stupid Golden Boy' He thought, trying to shake off the visions of Slytherin losing the house cup. He was pulled from his thoughts when Joanna placed a hand on his chest. Her hazel eyes were a little more green that night and stared at him with worry. "Are you ok Dom?" He smiled; at least someone respected his wishes to forget his past life. "I'm fine" He replied, kissing her.

"Don't lie to me, you have frown lines" She said, poking him in the head. He poked her back while muttering about not having them. She laughed "Don't lie they're right there" She poked again, this time in the cheek "Are you thinking about Harry?" Her sudden question put a stop to his revenge filled thoughts. He frowned, remembering his most recent painting session where the scars on Potter's arms and legs seemingly doubled. "You make him happy you know"

"Excuse me" Draco gaped, how was it possible that his ex-rival was happy with him?

"Oh he complains about you a lot and thinks you must be doing nefarious things to me but I could tell he loves your sessions." She clarified "I just hope this friendship helps him-"

"With his cutting" In the past Draco would never have been so bold but that was a past him. Joanna glared him and rolled on top of him. "Don't hurt him Draco" She hissed, giving him a piercing look. "You saw what he was like when he first came here, he was so sad and distraught. I had to force him to come here Draco. He's been through a lot and won't tell me why he's so against anyone helping him and if you hurt him we are over. Do you understand?"

Draco was a bit put out by this but he wasn't surprised. Everything was always coming up Harry wasn't it? He snarled at Joanna and got up, dislodging her as he did so. "It's always about Potter isn't it?" He got out of his bed and began stalking up and down the room. "Everyone always wants Potter-"

"Dom what are you talking about" The ginger sat up on the bed, confused and wondering what was wrong with her boyfriend.

"What am I talking about?" Draco was now too angry to focus on what he was saying "You know what I'm talking about! YOU AND POTTER MADE UP THIS PLAN TO FUCK WITH ME" He stalked across the room and ran his hands through his hair. Joanna frowned at the painter. "I have no idea what you're talking about Dominic" She said, "Harry isn't like that-"

"Oh he isn't is he?" The blond hissed, "Maybe you should ask him about these one day" He gestured at the scars that crisscrossed his chest "MAYBE THEN YOU'LL FIND OUT WHAT HE'S REALLY LIKE!" and with the final shout the blonde left the bed room and took up residence on the couch. His girlfriend shocked at having the mysterious scars clarified and her boyfriend's hatred of her friend.

Harry showed up for his appointment four days later. He was still wearing his long sleeves and this time he also had a scarf despite it being the middle of June. He handed the painter a crumbled up piece of paper and began to strip. Draco snarled and opened it. He was angry at Potter and is the other man didn't want to speak to him who was he to refuse. The paper turned out to be a wizarding photograph of a snowy owl. He almost wanted to burn it but the writing on the back kept him from doing so.

'Hedwig – Loyal Friend; 1990-1997'

He briefly wondered about his own owl but crushed the idea, the ministry probably had her killed for being associated with him. He shivered as the memories of various raids washed over him. When he looked up, Potter was already sitting down and stared at the wall with vacant eyes. Draco looked through his album for any owl prints. He couldn't find any. He booted up his computer and began searching the web for owl pictures. He found one of a snowy owl and printed it. He sat in front of the raven and began to paint. The green eyes of his former rival started back at him vacantly. He frowned but kept working. By this time the other man would have said something or moved but he was still.

Draco continued to paint, ignoring Potter. He worked quickly and was done around six. Potter refused breaks for anything but the bathroom making the time fly by faster. He had learned from experience that he had to take the photo before he washed up or Potter would go bird man. He took the three of them and then went to wash up. He came back outside drinking his third cup of coffee for the day. Potter was in full bird man form again but this time he was sitting in front of the mirror and cooing at his reflection. Draco stared at the bird man, the only thing left of his former self were the green eyes.

He rolled his eyes and sat down to read. If Potter wanted to stare at himself who was he to stop him. He was reading 'A Tale of Two Cities' by Charles Dickens and he could help but model the protagonist with the bird man in his apartment. However, the comparison was ruining his mood. The hour for the spell was up and Draco went to check his client. The man was still in front of the mirror staring at himself, the print had gone back to normal and so did his hair. Tear tracks ran down his face and glittered in the light from the blubs.

"Potter, time to- mmhmm!" Draco was tossed off his feet by Potter when the other man tackled him and kissed him. It was hard and wet. Draco pushed back against the raven but the other man held tight. His tongue invaded the blond's mouth with a reverence that Draco had never experienced. He tried to push away but Potter's grip was like steel and didn't give an inch. He tried to protest but opening his mouth just gave Harry's tongue more room to dominate his. His eyes widened when he felt Harry's cock rub against his leg. The painter closed his eyes and allowed the raven to dominate him. He saw a boy with dark skin behind his closed eyes. After he released his inhibition he realised that Potter wasn't a bad kisser. His hands let go of the raven's biceps while the raven grabbed his hair and gently bit his lip. He grunted and felt one hand move from his hair and down his chest.

Harry's eyes opened wide, lust swam in their depths, but the over all emotion was horror. The man scrambled off of Draco and hit the mirror. Draco noticed that the tear tracks were dry. "Oh God, Malfoy I'm – I-" He scrambled to his feet and grabbed his stuff. He hastily pulled on his pants and shirt before apperating out of the loft and into the night. Draco was still on the ground still in a daze over the current events. He shivered as the sight of those green eyes bombarded him again. They swam with a range of emotions from anger to lust. He licked his lips and spat, tasting paint. He remembered a ginger headed girl who he had once made him do the same thing. He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. Maybe he shouldn't have been worrying about Joanna's motives after all.

Draco lay back in chair contemplating how Harry was doing. Since Harry apparated out of his apartment he had not seen the man. All through his days thoughts about that night haunted him. He wondered why Potter just had to turn his life around after he gotten so use to it. His girlfriend was beginning to worry. She pestered him endlessly about the night Harry came over for his scheduled painting. From what he learned, Harry had stopped responding to her messages and had simply appeared to drop off the face of the earth. Draco knew he must have crawled back to that hole he came from, telling his friends all about how he screwed up Draco Malfoy's life once again. In a rage he stormed out of his apartment and left Joanna.

Draco found himself at the bar near the end of the street. It was almost empty; not a surprise considering it was Monday. He went up to the bar tender and asked for a Heineken. He growled out a thank you and drowned the beer in two gulps before calling for another. The bar tender, an older man with striking red and black hair and black eyes, looked him over. He handed another glass over to the young man and kept an eye on him. Draco noticed the other man staring at him and glared. "What do you want," he snarled, chugging back the second Heineken. He called for another one and the bar tender gave it to him. He began muttering about rude strangers judging him. The bar tender just smiled and began cleaning his counter.

"Girl trouble?" He inquired when he was done. Draco stared at him and called for a fourth Heineken, this one he started to nurse. "Maybe" He bit out, taking a sip of the liquor. He savoured the taste and began to wish he had order something heavier. "Aaaahhh," Draco frowned, "What the hell does that mean?" The bar tender just laughed, "Let's just say I've been there" Draco glared at him, before asking, "Really?" in a quiet voice. "What did you do?"

The Bartender looked Draco up and down before smiling. "I came out of the closet." Draco's eyes bugged out and then gasped as a picture of a small pale boy with Prussian blue hair flashed across his vision. The boy was in tears and held a letter in his hand. Draco knew it was a disownment; he, like everyone else, had smelt the blood on it. "You must have some balls" He whispered, after he recovered. He took a drink of his Heineken and began to mull. In his past life coming out was a shameful and terrible thing, punishable by disinheritance. After living among –these people- for so long he came to know himself a little more than he ever gave thought to. His dreams and goals changed and so did his values. He thought of his rival and wondered about his scars. Were they self-inflicted? He took another sip of his beer. Why the hell was he thinking of Potter anyway? The man sure never did him any favours.

"You know, I get off in half an hour," The bartender began, leaning down in front of him. Draco smirked, feeling more like his old-self. "Really?" He drawled, draining the last beer, after fire whiskey, it tasted a bit bland. "I'll see you outside then."

It was two in the morning when he came back home. He was drunk and tired and thoughts of Harry filled his head. Harry in various bird forms and Harry during their time at school filled his drunken mind. He fumbled with his keys and leaned against the door when he dropped them. He kicked at the door in a rage when it opened. Joanna stood in the doorway, hands on her hips, face a portrait of rage. He gulped. "Jo I-" She glared at him and pulled him inside. She was never one to make an unnecessary scene especially at two in the morning when all the neighbours would most likely call the cops. If that happened Draco knew he would be in it deep.

She pulled him onto his couch and proceeded to poke him repeatedly in the chest while she ranted, "Draco Malfoy how dare you treat me like I am some piece of trash you could boss around! I have been worried about you these past three weeks and even took time off to help you when you burnt your hand gazing into space hoping to see who knows what and this is the thanks I get? Being told I won't understand? First I find out that my boy friend and a close friend of mine have known each other since high school then my friend goes missing the same time my boyfriend starts daydreaming and I am being told to ignore it or I am being ignored in general! I won't stand for it Draco! Either you tell me what's wrong or we are through!"

Draco always marvelled at Joanna's ability to induce fear into the people she was angry at, he just never imagined he would be at the end of one of her tirades. He looked up at her and raised his arms. She smacked them away in a huff and glared at him. He pouted. He wanted to tell her everything about his life; from his impressive ancestry to his shameful recent past. He wanted her to know everything but at the moment all he wanted was to enjoy his Potter free thoughts with his girlfriend. He sniffed and she sighed, sitting down next him against her better judgement.

Joanna lost all her anger towards the blond but he wasn't out of hot water just yet. "Just tell me Dominic," She whispered, grabbing his hand as he moved to nuzzle her neck. "Does any of this have to do with why Harry disappeared?" He shook his head and continued to nuzzle her neck. She smelt nice, like soap and mint. "Coffee" He rasped as she pulled him to his feet. She laughed, her red hair flying behind her and her hazel eyes shinning. "Not now Dom, first to bed and when you get up there'll be a pot waiting for you" He grumbled but let her lead him away. He could use the sleep anyway.

When Draco got up he was hung over and cold. The sun was already up but it was barely strong enough to pierce the thick cloud cover over London. He thought to himself, 'At least something is going my way.' He squinted and covered his ears, wishing the owl at his window would just go to bleeding – 'Wait a minute' He got out of bed and almost fell over. His head was heavy and he wanted to puke but he summoned all his strength to move towards the window where a barnyard owl was tapping furiously on the window. He opened the window and the owl flew in and rested on the dresser. The owl had a letter in its beak and stared hard at Draco in distain. He took the letter and placed it on the dresser next to the bird. He could see many birds like this one flying over his breakfast when he was younger but his hangover made the memory nauseating.

The bird picked at his wrist and hooted. He wanted to glare at it but the headache he was forming wasn't helping his hangover too much. "What do you want?" He rasped, head in one hand, letter in the other. The bird didn't move; it probably wanted a reply of some sort. 'Ruddy bird' He thought, opening the letter. It read, 'Dominic, I am sorry for what happened last month. I know I am possibly the last person you want to hear from but I really am sorry.' It finished with Harry's initials written in the familiar chicken scratch hand writing. He scowled as more images flashed through his head. He leaned against the mirror and allowed the cool glass to soothe him. It didn't help too much. The owl hooted again, louder this time prompting Joanna to inquire about his well being.

"Dom! Was that an owl?" Draco cursed violently and started looking for some paper. At least he knew what the owl wanted now. "No Jo! It was probably a pigeon" He called back, searching for a pen. He found a pastel and a stick of eyeliner. The owl was getting ready to hoot again when Draco waved the eyeliner in his face. "Shut up! Shut the bloody hell up!" He hissed and it glared at him. He dove onto the bed and scrambled over the side to grab his sketchbook. He ripped the back page out and scribbled out a hastily written and horrible spelt acceptance. He handed it to the barn owl who refused to take it, giving Draco a look that clearly said 'I have standards.' Draco grounded his teeth and began pulling his hair. His headache was pulsing behind his eyes now and made him sway on his feet. "What in Morgana's name do you fucking want!" He hissed out in defeat, he sagged on the bed and covered his eyes with his hands.

It was not a very wise move on the blond's part. The owl, seeing as it wasn't going to get what it wanted took to the air and flew over the blond. When it was at the perfect position it swooped down and took a bite out of Draco's nipple causing the blond to jump off the bed screaming. The owl then made its way to the top of the closet where it hid in the corner, avoiding all the projectiles that Draco threw at it.

"Dominic! What in the bloody seven hells are you doing?" Joanna screamed, putting his breakfast down on the dresser and grabbing the bottle of Channel from his hand. "Don't toss that it's expen- AAAHHHH!" The owl swooped off the closet and towards the breakfast that consisted of crispy bacon, toast and two fried eggs. The owl took a strip of bacon and picked at one of the eggs. It torn off a piece of toast and ran off with it but not before taking a shit in the remains of the painter's breakfast.

"Draco Malfoy!" Life wasn't fair; he was hung over, attacked by an owl and now had an angry girl friend on his case. He couldn't take it. It was just too much the blond. Pansy flashed through his mind in all her fiery fury and another girl, bushy haired this time was screaming at him along with his girlfriend. He put his hand to his mouth as his stomach rebelled but before it could come up, he fainted.

It was the beginning of October when Joanna called him. At the time he was working on a man, who for some reason, needed to look like a playboy bunny. She was raspy and stuffed up in a way dictating that she was sick as a dog. She begged him to come over and help her while she got back on her feet. He agreed, and was currently on his way to her house with a bag of cup noodles. The cup noodles were another reason Draco loved having Joanna around. She was the best cook he ever saw and even just watching her make the food was satisfying to him. If it wasn't for her cooking he would never had known food could be so sexy. By the time he got to the front door he was drooling over the images of all the times he had wonderful food sex with Joanna. In the back of his mind, a small voice wondered how he could have sunk so deep.

Draco took his key out and began opening the door to Joanna's apartment. It had two locks and the top lock was always tricky. He smiled to himself as he thought about the day ahead. He would finally get to spoil his strong-willed girlfriend without having to suffer the consequences (Mainly a ten minute speech about women not being possessions and giant Barbie dolls). He fiddled with the top lock a little more, cursing it hell and back and for the first time in three years wishing he had his wand so he could 'Reducto' it to the lowest part of hell. He was about to give up and kick the door in when it opened up. He was about to throw himself onto his girlfriend before he realised that the person in the door frame was none other than Harry Potter, bane of his existence.

The raven was framed by the door way and wrapped from neck to hips in bandages, as far as Draco could see. He had various sized bandages on his face and a split lip. Draco's mouth went dry and his heart skipped a beat. He could understand why sadists loved to beat their lovers so much (Disclaimer: Author does not condone spousal abuse in any form), if they all ended up looking like fallen angels. He cleared his throat, more to clear his thoughts than to get Harry's attention. "What are you doing here Potter?"

Harry blinked at him; he wasn't squinting as much as he did in school. "Draco?" Draco held still. "Come inside it's cold. Jo's really sick and she can't move at the moment." The raven stepped aside and allowed the painter into the house. He took a whiff of the house and almost smiled, it still smelt of Jasmine and cinnamon, not unlike his girlfriend; however, the scent of peppermint was beginning to take over.

"How long have you been here" asked the painter, unloading his cargo.

The other man watched him from the table and replied, "about a week, Jo is very kind. You're lucky to have her."

Draco almost winced at the sadness filling Harry's voice. He wondered what happened to make the other so melancholy. "I'm going to see Joanna" He said after he was done. Harry just nodded and began to heat the kettle. Draco watched as he struggled to grip the matches with fingers that once plucked snitches from the air. He wondered what the hell happened to the other man for him to be so beaten up.

The painter moved down the hall. It was filled with many pictures of Joanna and her family. In one she was with a tall man with dark hair and jovial blue eyes, who stood on her left while a short woman with dark blonde hair and hazel coloured eyes stood to her right. They were at Tokyo Tower judging from the background and all wore happy faces. He smiled. Near the end of the hall and closer to Joanna's room stood pictures of her and him with a few pictures of the family scattered through out. There was even one of him and Joanna's dad in front of the Bar-B-Que grill. In it her dad was laughing while he was trying to hide behind the other man. To this day he has never been able to live the incident down.

Draco sighed and entered his girlfriend's room. Her room, unlike the rest of the flat, had the barest of items. Even the bed was a small one. He sat next to Joanna and stroked her hair, it was dull and limp in her sickness and she groaned in her sleep. "… 'omni..." She muttered, shivering a little. Draco kissed her forehead and pulled the duvet over her. He should at least start on some soup.

Draco was sitting around the flat with Harry. The other man was sitting across from him this time he was wearing a shirt. The entire flat was quiet as neither knew how to address the other. The blond stared at the other man, wondering why he was there. No one had seen him for over three months and here he was, battered and bruise in his girlfriend's living room looking as if he belonged there.

'Stupid potter.' He watched as the raven folded his arms in his lap to cup the book there. He didn't know what it was but it properly belonged to Joanna. Draco's eyes roomed further south taking in the small bandages that wrapped around the toned legs and down to his feet where the toes were black and sickly looking. Bile rose up in his throat. What the hell was Potter up to for the past six years?

Finally Harry spoke, "You don't mind if I watch a little tele do you?" Draco snapped out of his trance slightly unnerved by the blank stare he was being levelled with. "I know they're not pretty but I still like them." Draco heard, more than saw the sad smile in Harry's voice. He shivered and wondered where his fire went to.

"I'm going to check on Joanna." Harry nodded and began flipping through the tele before settling on an episode of Doctor Who. Draco got up and grabbed a cup of instant noodles and added the hot water before heading down the hall.

He knocked quietly and heard a soft "Come in" from the other side. He pushed open the door and saw the dancer lying in bed covered from head to toe in the duvet.

"Jo, come on, wake up." The woman groaned and cursed before sitting up.

"Dom…." She croaked out, swaying on the spot. Draco put the soup down and steadied the dancer. "Dom, it's cold, I want soup." She sounded weak and fragile making Draco's chest tighten. He kissed her forehead.

"I have some here Anna, now open wide." He picked up the bowl and began to feed her. She didn't object to his actions and Draco smiled. He slowly fed her until she didn't want anymore. He sat with her for awhile and was about to leave when she called to him.

"Dom, you probably saw Harry by now right." Draco froze but then he nodded. "Please be nice to him. I found him out side The Swing and he was bleeding a lot." He knew the Swing, it was a notorious Bondage bar that was frequented by muggles and… wizards alike but it was well known because it had exceptionally safety measures. So why was Harry bleeding outside of it?

"He was unconscious when I found him and when I took him to the hospital they said any later and it would have been too late. It was a miracle that he even woke up." She began coughing hard and Draco held onto her when her coughing subsided he feed her some water. She drank liberally before pushing the glass away. "Don't push him Draco." She whispered eyes fevered and wide. "He's been through a lot and refuses to talk about it. Please, just be nice to him." If Draco were with anyone else he would have laughed and said no but he would try for Joanna's sake. Though something else told him he was not too adverse to the idea.

Draco lay down on his sofa in his loft. He went over the events of the past three days and sighed. He had spent a few hours a day over at Joanna's house and with Harry. His girlfriend spent most of the time sleeping off the sickness which left him with Harry most of the time. The man was like a spectre. He glided in and out of the living room as quietly as a ghost and said very few things to Draco during the time he was there. The one exception being the dinner they had to celebrate Joanna's recovery yesterday. It was the first time the man had said more than three sentences to him.

Joanna, being back to her usual self refused to go out for dinner for such a small event and had to cook the entire dinner. After the last time she allowed Draco into her kitchen she refused to let him help, even though he had been practicing. Instead she had enlisted Harry's help and they had spent all that time teasing him about not being able to cook real food. By the time they sad down he had lost his appetite and Joanna was feeding him food. Harry would laugh at him every now and again prompting him to glare and giving Joanna a good reason to smack him. "Dominic!" She would whine in the way she knew he couldn't refuse. He would sigh and then start eating only to have the cycle repeat itself. The conversations were safe enough, no one was threading on anyone's toes until Harry had to open his big mouth.

"How did you get into body painting Draco?" The painter gripped his fork. He knew the other man would ask that question. He probably wanted to gloat.

'The might have fallen eh Malfoy.' Yea Potter and his friends probably had a good laugh at his expense. He felt Joanna's hand on his knee, squeezing it gently. Her eyes were a bit greyer matching his own. He relaxed his grip. The conversation had stopped; all eyes were on him waiting for his answer.

"It was the only choice I had really. I wasn't seen as very trust worthy as you could imagine," began the blond. He put his fork down and put his hand on Joanna's under the table. "It was the middle of winter and I was about ready to do anything to get some warmth and food when Ben found me and took me in." No one made a sound as Draco thought about his saviour. "He told me I had to earn my keep and made me clean out the studio for a living. Eventually I asked about his job and instead of telling me he showed him and I have taken it up every since."

Harry didn't say anything but Draco saw the shadow that rolled in his eyes. He understood why Draco ended up on the streets of muggle London, cold and hungry but Joanna didn't and that was what prompted the downward spiral of the evening. "But why were you on the streets? From the way you talk about your parents I don't think you're the type to run away." He squeezed her hand under the table and brought it to his mouth for a kiss.

"It's the past now Anna, please do not fuss over it." He whispered. He gave her a levelled look, making her quiet her protest.

Draco groaned internally and wondered why his rival had to make his life a living hell. He covered his face with his hands and released a long breathe. After Harry's question, the dinner was uneasy and filled with platitudes until it was time for Draco to leave.

'Stupid Potter' He thought, going to bed. His dreams seemed out to get him that night. They were filled with hazel eyes and bottle green eyes as well. He would shiver and twist in bed while his dreams jumped from the toned tanned body of a man and the soft pale body of a woman, both lost in lust. He jumped out of his sleep as a pair of lust filled green eyes stared at him from his girlfriend's body. He shuddered as the last bits of his orgasm left him. He turned over on his bed and checked his clock. It read four fifty-six; he had another hour before he had to get up. "Fuck you Potter." He whispered into the early morning before getting up and head out to make some coffee.

Draco shivered, as he made his way over to Joanna's house. It was two months after the dinner and smack dab in the middle of December, when his roof had collapsed. He hated moving. It was bothersome and irked him to the highest degree but he couldn't fully well stay in his loft when the roof caved in. His only condolences were that he wasn't under the roof when it happened. That and he got a rent free year. He got out of the cab and began unpacking, dropping a lot of his stuff in the snow before the parasite could suck anymore of his money out of wallet.

"Sir, do you need any help?"

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure sir I could help you-"

"I said I'm fine" Draco said, putting the last of his suitcases on the ground before grabbing his wallet. "How much do I owe you?" The taxi driver took his time walking around the cab to check the price. "Don't make me call your manager" He said, forcing the taxi driver to hastily give the price. He paid him and watched as the man drove off. The only problem he had now was getting all his stuff upstairs without someone stealing it. He growled in frustration and wished he had taken Joanna's advice and had gotten a cell phone; especially now that he can't use his home phone.

"Hi Dominic" The blond nearly jumped out of his skin. He turned and faced the newcomer. It was Harry, dressed from head to toe in winter gear.

"Potter" He growled. He looked at the raven and thought something was out of place. "Did you cut your hair?" Harry blinked then smiled but it seemed foreshadowed but a strange sadness.

"Oh yea, I cut it," he said, pulling on the now short strands. They weren't even long enough to touch his ear lobes. "My previous partner liked my hair longer."

'Partner… wait a minute' Draco levelled the other man with a stare, in his experience, the only people who said partners were old married couples and gays. Was Potter…? "Are you-?"

"Hey get out of the goddamned road!" A crazy cyclist screamed as he sped down the side walk. They could tell he was American from his accent and way too white teeth. "Use a bike lane you bloody arse!" Draco bellowed back. He kicked some snow as Harry offered to help him take up his bags. Draco nodded his acceptance and they began moving his things up to the loft. When they were done Harry turned to the blond, allowing silence to fill the space.

"Dominic," Draco thought he could never get use to hearing his alias being said in that voice.

"Potter…"

"Let's bury the past alright, for Joanna." Harry said, holding out his hand, Draco stared at it. A small part of him wanted to push it away in disgust and gloat but another part of him remembered those blank eyes from October and with a bit of reluctance, he grasped the other's hand and shook it. Hopefully this reunion would go better than the first one.

It had been a week since Draco moved into his girlfriend's loft and already he was in hot water. The catalyst? Harry Potter. This time his girlfriend was fighting him on the issue of calling Potter by his first name; he didn't want to and why should he? They were never friends, never mind that he had agreed to bury the hatchet while at Joanna's place.

"Dom! Harry has been calling you Dominic out of the kindness in his heart, the least you could do is call him Harry;" she said, but there wasn't much bite to it. They had been having the same fight for the past three months… and they say brunettes are stubborn. She had her lags draped over Draco's while the blond added random doodles to them with his pastels.

"It's ok Jo, if Dominic doesn't want to call me Harry then he doesn't have to" Harry interjected; he was sitting adjacent to them in the single seater and was writing in a green and silver spiral bound notebook.

"Harry don't take his side in this, you have the right to be respected just as much as Draco does."

She glared at her boyfriend who huffed and replied, "Potter doesn't care Anna, so drop it."

Draco noticed that her eye twitched and prepared himself for the worse. "Draco, come with me," she said, getting up off the two-seater and pulling Draco with her to her room. Once inside she shut the door and folded her arms before levelling Draco with a burning stare, she maybe short but she was ferocious. Draco was mentally kicking himself for forgetting. "Draco" She started, making sure that the blond was listening, "Harry has been through a lot this past year and you, calling him Potter, are not helping. Do you even realise that he flinches every time you call him that?" She paused allowing him to compose an answer. Draco gaped, then shut his mouth, then opened it to say something before closing it again. He hadn't noticed that all. In fact he had noticed very little in the way of Harry Potter.

"Yes Draco, he flinches and he refuses to tell you to stop it because he is afraid of you." She hissed, "afraid you'd hurt him like his boyfriend did, don't give me that look. I know you guessed at what happened Draco. He's deadly afraid of people bigger than him Draco and look at him, he's barely even the size of a bean pole. The least you can do Draco is get over what stupid thing happened in your past and call him by his first name." With that Joanna left the painter to contemplate what he just learned.

Of course he had suspected that Harry's partner had done something to him but to have it all lain out before him was shattering. He leaned against the wall and fell to the floor, head in his hands. He shuddered as he remembered how it was under HIS reign. He couldn't walk around his house without a jibe at him and his family. In his own home he could even hold his head up in fear for being killed. Even his name had lost its value and all the faith he had in it was lost to that megalomaniac. He shuddered once more; maybe it wouldn't kill him to be nice to… Harry. With his resolve strengthened Draco got up and went into the living room. Joanna and Harry were in the kitchen talking and laughing. He took a seat with his sketch pad and began planning a few new designs he might like to use for his next big event. While he did that he continued to say Harry's name in his head so he didn't accidently call him Potter.

That night, dinner was an awkward affair. Draco was mostly silent while his girlfriend and Harry made quiet conversation about old time television shows. Draco was completely lost and would only answer politely when asked a question.

"Dominic," Harry said, trying to get the sulky blonde's attention. "Do you remember Ron and Hermione?" The raven inquired, he put his fork down and picked up his drink to sip while he waited for the blond's answer. How could Draco every forget Granger and Weasley? They were the sidekicks and together made up two thirds of the Golden Trio.

"Um, yea Poh-Harry, I remember them" he said, mentally patting himself on the back for the save. Joanna gave him a sweet smile and rubbed his knee.

"They got married last year," Draco choked on his coke, his drink of choice when he couldn't get coffee.

He spluttered out, "how? Wasn't Weasely castrated?" Joanna gasped, she may not know who they were talking about but that didn't mean she couldn't be sympathetic.

Harry bit his lip and nodded while Draco let the information flood over him. So despite dooming them both to a sexless, childless life they still married. "Weasely must angry he can't have little Weasels running around" Draco muttered, taking a swig of coke. Harry laughed and waved Joanna off when she was about to poke the unsuspecting blond in the ribs.

"Not really, Hermione is somewhat happy with it. She wanted to wait to have kids anyway."

"And how are they going to do that? Have kids that is"

"Charlie said he donate some sperm. As long as he can come to England when they're ready."

"And here I thought we had a few less of the redheads to worry about" Draco said, "Can you imagine what the kids would look like. Blue eyes, red, bushy hair with freckles and buck teeth." Draco held up his hands to imitate a beaver before Harry tossed a roll at him but Draco still had his seeker reflexes and had caught the roll with ease.

"Come of it Dom! Just because they had a large family-"

"Large family? Pott-Harry, they had seven kids! It was an entire Quidditch team." Draco countered, "A hundred galleons says there'll be at least four of them at Hogwarts-"

"What's Quidditch?" Joanna interjected before anymore could be said, the two wizards looked at her. They had completely forgotten that she was there and even worse yet, that she was muggle. The spirited conversation from before grounded to a halt and both men were at a lost for what to do. If Draco had his wand he would have 'Obliverate' her but he didn't have it and he wasn't sure if Harry had his. "Well? Aren't you going to tell me?" She asked, gaze expectant as she stared at them both.

"Um," Began the painter stalling for time. He didn't want to lie to his girlfriend but there was a reason the secret of magic was kept from muggles. "Quidditch is a game love," He said.

"I get that but what is it? How do you play?"

"Well," Draco couldn't continue he didn't want to keep lying to his girlfriend or even tell her half truths, it was becoming so draining and he wondered quietly in the back of his mind if it was worth it.

"Obliverate" a quiet whisper filled the room and Joanna slumped over. Harry stood behind her, pulling his hand back and pulling down his sleeves to hide the bandages. Draco sighed.

"Thank you Harry" he whispered, picking up his girlfriend.

"No problem," the raven replied, picking up the dishes. Draco took the redhead to her room and changed her into her sleeping gear. He kissed her fore head and whispered in her ear. "When you wake up you won't remember Quidditch or Hogswart in any way." Joanna whimpered in her sleep but settled down a bit giving the blond a chance to sneak out of the room.

When he made it back to the kitchen, Draco noticed that the other man was finished cleaning up the table and was drying the last dish. "So" Draco began, leaning against the counter as he watched Harry dry the last bit of wares.

"So" Harry countered a small smile on his face as he put away the last plate.

"Where did you learn the wandless magic Harry?" Harry turned to the blond and smiled. It was actually more of a smirk and made Draco's chest constrict.

"Trade secret" he whispered, walking out of the kitchen in such a way that Draco couldn't help but check out his arse. Draco's mouth dried up and he quickly followed the raven. Repeating to himself that he couldn't, wouldn't grab Harry's arse, no matter how soft it looked.

Two weeks after the dinner Draco was preparing his body painting kit. He wanted to get out of there as fast as possible so he wouldn't have to take Harry with him. Their relationship was getting better. Draco had only called Harry Potter a few times while Harry began speaking to him more. But the new change in their relationship didn't mean the uncomfortable silence that hovered between them left; it just meant that there were less of them. Harry stared at him from above his new book. 'Animal Farm' by George Orvil. The blonde looked away and continued packing

"Dominic, why are you packing your make up bag?" Joanna asked, stepping into the room wearing only a large shirt and some socks.

"I have a job today Joanna" Draco replied, lacing up his shoes.

"But you said you'd take Harry… Wait a minute. Did you purposely plan that outing on a day you had to work?" Joanna screamed, moving to stand in front of the door.

"Well, you see Jo. I completely forgot-"

"Bollocks!"

"Jo come on I have to work, get out of the way"

"Not unless you agree to take Harry with you" she said, glaring at him with hands on her hips.

"But it's a kiddie party! He would hate it!" Draco stated, thinking about how much he already hated it.

"Harry loves Kids. I'm sure he'll like it more than you" Joanna countered, expression harder than steel. "Wouldn't you Harry?"

Harry looked up from his book. He had heard the fight get progressively worse and honestly wanted no part of it. However he had heard someone mention kids and he wanted to go; very, very badly. "Jo, I don't think you should force Dominic to do something he doesn't want," He designed, trying to avoid the answer altogether.

"No Harry, this is making him take responsibility for his actions."

"Gods Joanna I'm going to be late!"

"Yea right I know you Draco Malfoy and you're probably going to be the first one there." The two glared at each other for the better part of five minutes before Draco gave up and screamed, "FINE! I'll take him with me but I swear if he does anything that makes my client refuse to hire me…"

"I am not a child Dom you do not threaten me" Joanna countered but she moved and allowed the two men to leave. She squeezed Harry's hand and he smiled at her. "Have fun Harry."

Draco growled and hefted his bag over his back and headed off. They headed down the road and stood at the bus stop both freezing. "You don't have to come if you don't want to Harry" Draco commented, scuffing at snow on the ground. Harry just smiled.

"It's ok I don't mind at all" Harry replied. They stood in awkward silence. The only sound came when either man would move to keep the blood flowing. Soon the bus came and they were off. Draco silently prayed to every god he knew that the day ended well.

They finally got off a half an hour later in front of a house on a very familiar street. Harry looked around, tense. "Well come on, we don't have all day" Draco said, heading down the street. They passed number four Privet Drive without slowing down which let Harry breathe a sigh of relief. They got to the end of the street and turned the corner where a rather new building stood. It was three stores high and made of brown bricks and had a galvanize roof. There was a sign out front that was partially covered by a banner that Said 'Adam Brakken's fifth birthday. Basement.' Balloons were tied to the sign and beneath it were the words community centre. The headed inside and down the stairs. The room was filled with decorations and in the midst of it all was a small boy barely as high as the table his gifts were on. He was screaming and shouting out instructions to the adults who would pat him on the head but otherwise ignore him.

Harry shadowed Draco as he walked up to the nearest adult and began asking where he could set up. They pointed him out to another guy and went there. He was around five nine and had a full head of dark blond hair. He had a build like a swimmer and had a scowl on his face. Draco repeated his request and the man instantly livened up.

"Oh yea. You can set up over there in the corner. It's the only place left that can still hold a table. Probably best to keep to walls, you know kids; they wanna run and jump and touch stuff. Who knows what they'll knock over eh?" Draco blinked; He had never heard a Canadian accent in real life before. It was just as annoying as the ones on TV, more so because he could hear the British dialect underneath. Instead of telling him how annoying he sounded he just nodded his thanks and went over to his corner.

"Harry, stay here and guard my stuff. It isn't cheap" Draco said, making his way across the room. Harry saluted him and took a seat. He wondered a bit more about the blond. They were supposed to be getting to know each other today after all and they had barely said more than ten words to each other. He wondered if the blond had parties like this one when he was younger. He was an aristocrat after all.

"Push the chair back Harry, we have to make room for the table." Harry got up and pushed back the chair, moving Draco's trunk to the front. He watched Draco arrange his table as the Canadian from before appeared.

"Oh hey, I thought you'd need a table but I see you already found one. There are a lot of people here eh?" The man commented, standing around. "It's like a street fair here. Everyone's mostly finished by now though." Draco ignored him and told Harry to move out of the way. "Hey I heard that a body painter is coming today. It sounds kinda shady don't you think? Body painter, sounds like an excuse to peep on people eh" Draco stopped moving.

In the background the man's babble continued but inside his own world he was angry. How dare that bastard discount his work, his life just because he wasn't a freaking CEO of some stupid company getting ready to rape England Dry of any dignity! He slowed down here… maybe it was time for him to cut back on the Daily Show segments.

"Yes, they are perverts aren't they?" The blond seethed, opening his trunk to display the various paints and tools. He began seething them out starting the paint bottle and then using those as a barricade for his pastels. "I'm sorry, I-I uh didn't know." Draco glared at him and he quickly left.

"Fucking bloody arse" he muttered before heading back to set up.

Two hours later the party was in full swing and Draco and Harry had figured out that despite there being one name on the banner that it was actually a combined party for Adam and two of his friends who shared the same birthday as he did as well as a fourth person who had an early birth date. Draco sighed as yet another kid came up to him begging for Transformer face. Where did the originality go anyway? He frowned as he worked on the kids face. Cleaning it first before him even touched it with his paints.

'At least somebody is having fun.' He huffed, watching as the kids got Harry to play a game of Marco Polo with them. On the sidelines the parents watched the other man carefully. He did come with a body painter after all; he might be a shady character too. After he put down the base colours he added lines to the kid's face to complete his mask of Optimums Prime. At least each Transformer was different.

Around the room sat tables that had origami, little snacks, little cupcakes and candy, there were games and they even managed a clown who, thanks to Harry, was ignored. Draco watched the little group of transformers huddle around a tap. He knew they had to be filling up those toy water guns you could get from that mini game. This group of kids were around seven and had a look in their eyes that could only be translated as trouble. He had to rub his head to stave off a headache. It didn't matter, what they did as long as he was exempt… but just in case he began to pack up his dry stuff and sketch book. After he was done Draco sat back and watched the show.

Harry was sitting in a circle of kids, age three to four and they were playing 'Duck Duck Goose'. The Transformers came up behind him and poked him in the head with their water gun. He looked around and blanched.

"Release those kids you fiend" Optimums Prime commanded, his brown cowlick spinning in the air. The entire room was quiet, eyes turned to the scene.

"And if I refuse?" He asked, the smaller kids all huddled around him. A few of them were pulling on his sleeves and wondering what was going on. A few parents looked ready to intervene but did nothing. Harry hadn't hurt anyone nor did anything they saw as inappropriate, so they would give him a chance.

"Then we would take them by force!" The leader shouted, letting go all sorts of hell when he doused the raven with water.

There parents were appalled by the action and got ready to get them when a small girl ran up to the bigger boy and kicked him in the shin. Optimums Prime went tumbling down in the guy behind him who shot off his water gun and hit a five year old standing nearby. Draco knew that they had hit the point of no return and only the wise would be seeking cover. He ducked under the table with his trunk and in that moment, craved the invisibility that helped Harry sneak out of Hogwarts in their third year.

He peeked over his trunk to see that Harry wasn't taking the dousing lying down. He had used his new found wandless skills to summon a bottle of water and doused the gang's leader in return. All the while the previously passive four and three year olds were attacking the other kids. Draco wondered how anyone could find those devils cute. He huddled under his table while various other workers did the same. He watched the fight get larger as various other liquids entered the fray. From apple juice to fruit punch the entire birthday party become a watery (and juicy) battle field.

No one knew how long the war had continued on for but the brave parents had managed to put a stop to it when the Transformers had captured Harry and hog tied him. Their leader stood on his back, former white shirt stained red and purple and drenched in other unknown fluids.

Proudly he proclaimed "you're all free we've captured the giant!" His men roared behind him and began screaming when their parents picked them up. The four and three year olds were being soothed by their parents and the party came to a stand still. The painter hoped he would still get jobs after this.

"Damnit Harry!" Draco muttered, rubbing the raven's messy hair with a few more paper towels. He sucked at his teeth when the other refused to hold still. "Would you stop moving, Joanna would kill me if you get sick." The other man stopped moving and muttered his tenth apology. He didn't like causing the blond and ginger trouble but he couldn't help himself. When Draco thought he was suitably dry he sat back and sighed, "why the hell did you throw water on that kid's head?"

Harry's eyes went big and shiny as he began retelling the tale. He hadn't meant for any of it to happen. In fact all he really wanted was to play with the cute three and four year olds. They were all so sweet and he couldn't help himself. But when the transformers showed up he just felt a little mischievous and he wanted to play with them as well. He didn't think it would end up as one big water fight.

"That's all fine for you but how am I suppose to explain why you're dripping wet in the middle of winter?"

"I'm not wet."

"What are talking about Harry you're- oh"

The raven was bone dry and had a sly smirk on his face, Draco wanted to smack him. "Fine whatever let's go" Draco huffed, moving towards the main road with his charge. Harry followed behind him, a big smile on his face. The painter smiled to himself and thought the other had looked quiet cute playing with the little kids, maybe when he had kids the raven could... He paused in his thinking. Did he really think that Harry had looked cute with kids? And even worse, was he about to think that not only should he have some of those monsters but that Harry should care for them? He shivered from more than cold and thought about the large bottle of scotch Joanna had given him as an anniversary present. Yes… that would do nicely.

Draco was grateful Joanna had to dance that night because he was bone tired. He went straight to bed after showering and fell into a deep sleep. He tossed and turned in his sleep, body heated as his girlfriend did things to him that he never knew she could do. He arched up as the mouth attacking his nipples moved south and began to attack his stomach, marking his skin with hickies and bites. He prayed the Joanna would move lower and take his cock into her mouth. He was disappointed when she moved further north and straddled him. All movement stopped, bar his heavy breathing he cracked open eyes he had never closed and gasped, instead of a soft feminine body a larger more muscled form was balanced over his waist. He had colourful hair but his face was obscured with the exception of his lips. The unknown man smirked and poised himself over the painter.

"I'm going to make you feel so good Draco." The voice whispered, lowering his body down onto Draco's. The blonde arched into the tight heat. His eyes rolled back and he gripped the hips moving over his own. "Draco" The man screamed, staring him in the eye. His eyes were the most striking shade of green he had only seen once before.

"Harry!"

He shivered as the channel tightened around him and with an arch he woke up. He fell to his bed in light sweat. He looked around, Joanna had come in while he was asleep and was now snuggled into his side. She sniffed in her sleep but otherwise didn't wake up. His erection taunted him from the raised sheets. Being on the edge like that hurt but it was nothing compared to the disgust that filled his throat when he thought about his dream. He wanted to smack himself but instead he lay back down and tried to go back to sleep, promising to dealt with it when the sun was in the sky.

When Draco woke up the next morning he was tired and stressed and fighting back images from his dream the night before. He walked into the kitchen and started brewing some coffee. It was already eleven, but this time Harry would have been camped out on the sofa reading the classified ads while Joanna did some marking. However this Sunday was different. Harry was missing and Joanna was sitting on the sofa. Her leg was crossed over her knee and her eyes actually made it to a shade of grey he loved but rarely saw. "Jo-"

"Come Draco, sit. We need to talk." She said, the cup of tea next her was stone cold, giving away the fact that she was waiting for him. He sighed and tried to take a seat next to her but her glare made him take a seat across from her. He sat watching her as she uncrossed her legs and began speaking. "When were you going to tell me?" Silence swelled between them as Draco swallowed. He knew what she was getting at but how did she know.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb Draco. You know what I'm getting at" Joanna retorted, tone sombre. Draco froze, another girl in his life spoke like that once. She was a very strong person, just like Joanna. He shifted and contemplated playing dumb some more but he knew it was no use. She was serious about this. He put his hands on his knees and replied.

"What do you know?"

"It's true then." The way she said it made it more of a statement that a question.

"It depends on what you're asking me" the blond remarked, listening to his pot go off in the background. He thumped his foot as the thought of caffeine made his blood sing. He really should quit that. Silence filled the air again. It was oppressive and made the three foot gap between them seem like a canyon

"Are you gay?" His girlfriend finally asked. She tucked a strand of red hair behind her ear and locked eyes with him. He stared back, confusion clouding his vision. He began making confused sounds when Joanna cut him off. She sat up straight, Hazel eyes flashing grey with anger as she spat out, "You're gay and you're using me to pretend you aren't, aren't you?" She got up and stomped in front of him holding onto his shoulders and screaming in his face. He was shock still as she accused him of having numerous affairs behind her back with Harry and the two of them having a laugh at her expense.

"NO!" He finally screamed, finding a voice to defend himself, and as a result Harry, with. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He wasn't gay and he never had an affair with Harry or any man, conveniently forgetting Brad; and he told her so. She was crying by the time he was done and her knees buckled. He caught her and kissed her forehead as she cried it out. "It's ok Jo, it's ok" He whispered, stroking her hair. She sniffed and buried her face in his chest.

"Did I tell you about my first boyfriend?" Draco didn't really want to hear about it but he shook his head no all the same. "He was a closet gay and he dated me for an entire year before we had sex. When he came he was screaming his boyfriend's name instead of mine like you muttered Harry's name in your sleep. Ever since I was afraid other guys would turn out like him." Draco was surprised, he didn't realise that he spoke in his sleep and that such actions had such consequences.

"It'll be alright Jo, I'm bi no need to worry"

"That doesn't help"

Draco resolved to add get better at comforting along with kicking his coffee addiction.

Weeks turned into months and Draco was back at his own place. Harry had gotten a job at a local Day-care centre which surprised no one and had begun paying Joanna rent; or rather he was trying to and managed to end up somehow offending her. During the those months Draco's dreams didn't stop, in fact they had gotten worse and had reached a point where Draco couldn't even look at Joanna in fear of seeing Harry's eyes stare back at him. He had dreaded sleep and had upped his coffee intake to seven cups a day. He was a walking wreck but managed to find reprieve in his work. When he saw his art dance on the canvas of the human body he was at peace and putting it there allowed his mind a form of numbness he no longer had in his sleep.

Apart from his sleep problem his love life was also suffering. He knew he couldn't drag Joanna along but he couldn't let her go. He had a hard time admitting to himself he no longer wanted her and she was again beginning to suspect him of cheating on her. Not that he had, if you ignore Brad the bartender, but she thought so anyway. He put the rest of his brushes into the sink and began washing them while the two girls in the back giggled at each other. They were both Ravens and tanned, somewhat reminding him of a certain dark lord slayer. He let them out, wishing them a good day when his door rang again. This time when he opened it, Harry stood on the other side. He seemed a little nervous and hopped from foot to foot waiting for the blond to say something. The blond sighed and let him in; it was going to be a long night.

The Raven sat down on the sofa and began fidgeting. "What is it Harry," He said, sipping at cup number five and waiting for the other man to reply.

"I want to make another appointment, to get a print done" He said, looking anywhere but at Draco. Draco smirked and went to get his book. He wondered when Harry would come back.

"When would you like it?" He asked, "and what would you like?"

"Next Saturday if you can" Harry whispered, playing with his long sleeves. "And I wanted an eagle"

Draco noted both down and closed his book. "Alright, see you then Harry" He got up to shake his hand but Harry didn't move.

Draco stared at the Raven as he worried his lip. The other man looked angelic in the light of his studio, making the blond want to possess him.

Eventually, Harry whispered, "I'm sorry about making Jo break up with you." His head was downcast and he bit his lip.

Draco blinked, he was expecting that. The other man wasn't even home when it happened and only knew what Joanna told him, unless he had the habit of gossiping with the neighbours. If he did he would probably have heard that Joanna had tossed several plates across her flat and tossed his pale arse out into the spring weather. He would have also heard that Draco was "an unscrupled man-whore" who loved to string his lovers along. "You didn't do anything Harry Joanna has her issues."

The upturning of Draco's nose made Harry laugh. Both men got up and headed to the door. Draco walking a few steps behind Harry, willing his urge to kiss him to go away. The raven stood in front of his door and slowly did up his coat. Harry licked his lips, green eyes glowing with desire, Draco mirrored his actions. "So I'll see you then Harry?"

"See you then" Harry replied as he shook the hand offered to him and left the loft.

Saturday approached faster than the two men expected and Draco was swallowing down his nerves. His dreams were just as graphic as ever and he couldn't fight off the need to keep checking his reflection. Did he look ok? Was he too dressed up? He ran his hand through his hair and ended up having to fix it again. He cursed the muggle world for not having the talking mirrors that were so readily available back in his old world. To kill time, he laid out the paints and set up. When that was done he brewed some coffee and took his second cup of the day. He relaxed in his chair, the coffee ironically helping his nerves, when there was a knock from his door. He went to answer it and Harry stood out front in his long sleeves. This time he was wearing earrings that featured birds.

Draco invited the raven in and had him strip naked for him, the raven consented and was sitting on the mattress as Draco stooped in front of him. The blond began to lay down the outline on Harry's body starting with the outline for the eyes and the moving down to the beak, drawing a few feather lines here and there. This particular eagle was a golden eagle and had beautiful splayed out wings with splotches of white everywhere on them. When the blond was done with Harry's face he began on the neck, and that was where the real trouble started. Harry seemed to have grown more sensitive since the last time he was there. He fidgeted and moved as Draco passed the pastel down his neck, shoulders and chest.

He finally screamed, annoyed with having to constantly correct mistakes. He had painted kids who didn't move near as much as Harry. Harry glared at him and for a second he was reminded of their fifth year together and his hatred for the toad woman who had taken over the school. He shuddered and almost missed Harry's words.

"You're the one doing it on purpose Dom. You're moving the pastel too lightly on my skin, it itches" The raven pouted and Draco's eyebrow twitched he was not going to continue to entertain that stupid idea. It was always light; he couldn't fully well dig into a customer's skin could he? He moved the pastel further down Harry's left arm and then right. He mentioned for the other boy to hold his arm up and he began putting down the guide lines for the wings when something caught his eye. It was a long thin cut that had scabbed over. He looked further up when he saw two more crossing each other.

"Harry… what the hell are these?" The other man yanked his arm away and shuffled over to the other side of the room as fast as he could. He muttered something the blond didn't understand and crossed his arms over his chest, bringing up his knees to shelter him from Draco's fury. "You have to speak up, I don't speak idiot." The blond said, moving closer to Harry and pulling him to his feet.

"Listen I didn't say anything before because I hated you and Joanna asked me not to but you're going to tell me why the hell you're cutting yourself now! Didn't that arse beat you enough? Do you like abuse?" He didn't know where this anger was coming from and at that point he didn't really care. The raven tried to smack him but the blond pinned his arms to the side and they both went down in a combination of arms and legs. Harry hit head on the floor and Draco landed awkwardly on his left arm.

The Boy-Who-lived kneed him in the gut and tried to run away but the blond grabbed his ankle and he went down again, this time smacking his chin as he did so. "Get the bloody hell off me!"Harry screamed, unable to move once Draco put his full weight on him.

"Not until you tell me why you're cutting again. You haven't cut since you left the hospital"

"How would you know?"

"Remember, we shared a house together" at this point Draco squeezed Harry's arms as the memory of Joanna's scream echoed in his mind. "Of course I would notice"

"Oh so you were staring at me then? Did you like what you see?"

"Malice doesn't suit you Harry, and tell me what made you want to cut again?"

Silence stretched between them and it wasn't long before Draco heard Harry crying. He inquired about the other and was met with sobs and sniffs. "Please get off me." Draco stopped moving.

"Please I'll be good, I promise. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" Harry quivered and shook under the blond as the other man moved off him. Harry continued muttering and had pulled himself into a ball after the blond had gotten off. Draco spent the next hour trying to comfort the boy; his mind going back to his now ex-girlfriend's warning.

Night had fallen on the two after they returned to normal. Both were determined to push the earlier outburst from their minds. To help, Draco drank nine cups of coffee and Harry kept himself as still as he could. Neither spoke for the hours of silence that followed allowing the work to go quickly. They finished a little earlier than usual but for both it wasn't fast enough. Draco hurried out of the living room and started cleaning up his paints. He felt pretty stupid and more than a bit angry with himself.

He went through his usual after painting sessions and began to clean up while Harry turned himself into bird man. He sighed, and walked into the living room to find his former flatmate sitting on the couch still completely human. He was staring into a window across the room and had tear streaks down his face. He stood perpendicular to him and watching for a few more minutes before he cleared his throat. The raven jumped and the blond almost kicked himself as the raven crawled to the other side of the couch and hugged his knees, this time he began to sob in the silent room, face hidden behind his knees.

The painter moved forward, reaching out to the crying figure sitting on the bed and hoping he didn't scare him. He softly called out, "Harry" and watched as the raven stilled before continuing to cry, this time, even louder than before. Draco sat on the opposite end of the couch to Harry, moving slowly up the middle until he sat at his feet. He put one hand on his knee and the raven began screaming.

"Don'thurtmedon'thurtmedon'thurtme" Harry muttered, folding up more on himself and covering his head with his hands. "Harry, I'm not going to hurt you" Draco whispered, patting his head. He didn't know what was wrong with the former lion but he might have been the cause of it… as usual. His hand almost cramped when the image of a hazel eyed red-head flashed through his mind. She was angry and he felt pathetic. He couldn't have foreseen the results of his kind actions. Harry's leg shot out and caught him in above his stomach, right in the diaphragm. He went flying across the couch and began coughing and trying to catch his breath after the attack. He cursed in his head as Harry screamed. His vision swam and Harry's voice faded as he fell into the growing darkness.

When Draco came too, he was on the floor staring up at the ceiling and wondering how he got there. He didn't have to wonder long because Harry appeared above him with worry soaked green eyes. He tried to get up but a sharp pain in his chest stopped his ascent and he had to lie back down. Harry placed a pillow behind his head and Draco wondered how the man got his pillow so quickly.

"Are you ok Dom? You've been out for half an hour, wheezing and holding your chest." Harry said, going into the kitchen. When he came back he had a steaming cup of coffee.

Draco groaned and sat up against the couch, taking the offered cup with a small thank you. His head was pounding and he hoped the coffee helped. The blond looked towards the raven who looked away in shame. He felt his chest hurt and it had nothing to do with the kick from earlier. He moved his hand to hold his but changed his mind midway. The painter looked at the raven, observing the paint on his skin, it was still holding up well and even looked a bit shiny in the light. A small voice shook him out of his thoughts, making him refocus his attention on the other man. "I'm sorry."

The painter blinked. He didn't understand why the other was apologizing to- oh. When he kicked him. Draco's confusion must have still shown on his face because Harry continued "You know, for kicking you. I didn't mean to you know" Draco snorted; he'd already figured out that much. The former Golden Boy didn't have a mean bone in his body. He sipped his coffee and let out an inaudible sigh. It was pretty good, when did Harry learn how to make his favourite coffee?

"Does it taste ok? I know you don't like a lot of sugar in your coffee" The other man sat across from him with his hands folded in his lap. He couldn't even face him.

"It's ok" Its richness was better than ok, however Harry steeped the coffee he needed to find out. "So are you going to tell me why you found the need to kick me?" The blond watched Harry stiffen but said and did nothing. Every breathe he took was already painful he didn't want to add other bodily pains to it. He sat there in silence waited for the former Boy Hero to say something.

"It's nothing, it's just that, well you see. When you grabbed me, you reminded me of Roderick" The raven whispered, rubbing his scars and messing up his painting at the same time.

Draco blinked, "Excuse me I didn't quite get that. Are you saying I remind you of your abusive ex-boyfriend?" Draco didn't know if he should be insulted or not.

"No that's not what I'm saying! I mean yes sorta but not quite." Draco watched the raven stuttered into whispers and wrung his fingers. "Don't take what I'm saying the wrong way. My ex… he was a good guy one of the best Aurours in the field and was always kind to me. When we went for dates he would be so sweet and caring but he got horrible after we started living together. At first it would only be on the days we had the memorial ceremonies for the victims of the war but then he started shouting and screaming more."

Draco watched Harry bit his bottom lips and still. The other man was a striking contrast; he was naked, dressed only in adhesive smelling body paint fashioned into a bird of prey while his eyes and posture suggested a more submissive attitude. Draco reached out and grabbed his hand causing Harry to stiffen up. The raven's face dusted red and he looked away, continuing with his story as he did so.

"Roderick became more violent as the years went by. He would shout and scream at me for no reason but we would always work it out you know? But then he started… hitting me. He cried about it and told me about his mom and little brother. They died in the war you know, they were muggle, and he's a muggleborn." Draco watched Harry swallow and tears fall from his eyes.

"You don't have to finish Harry" The blond wanted to give the raven a way out but the raven was stronger that he looked he shook his head and continued.

"I want to tell somebody Dominic and I feel like I can tell you," Draco felt the air escape his lungs when Green eyes met his. His strength and bravery that he scorned in his youth was now a glowing beacon to the blond

"Like you would understand." Draco took a deep breath and moved closer to Harry. When he spoke his voice was a whisper.

"Alright Harry."

Harry took the liberty of leaning on Draco's shoulder before continuing. "Anyway, it got worse until one night after drinking with his aurour friends he came home and…" Harry bit his lip and squeezed Draco's hand tight. It was the only grip he had in the nightmare he was currently reliving. "I started cutting the next day. Until eventually I ended up in the muggle world, made friends with Joanna and you know the rest."

By the end of Harry's story, he was curled up in Draco's lap, head resting on his shoulder while Draco ran his hand through his hair. The blond moved his head to take a whiff of the cinnamon, coffee and sharp peppermint coming off the man in his lap at the same time Harry raised his head. Their lips touch for what was one endless moment. Both men had heated faces by the time they pulled away and a myriad of emotions swimming in their eyes. That one mistake brought about the kiss that changed their relationship from that day onward. They couldn't pretend to be rivals or even friends after something like that.

"Dom- I'm-Mwahmm" Harry couldn't squeak out another word as Draco took his lips again. There was no tongue or pressure; it was just a simple kiss with no motives behind it. Harry relaxed into it until the blond pulled back.

"Sorry" he said, moving in again as Harry pulled his face down. Their third kiss was less innocent. Harry took the lead and pressed his tongue against the blond's lips. Draco didn't waste a second and had his tongue inside Harry's mouth. He pulled Harry closer to him and drunk in the scent of the other man. He squeezed his arse and smirked into their kiss when he heard a small moan escape the raven. He lay down on the couch pulling Harry on top of him. Harry pulled back and lay on the painter's chest.

"What do we do now?" The raven asked, stroking his shoulder.

"Hmmm, I don't know but I'm tired. Let's think on it more tomorrow" Draco kissed Harry's head and stroked his back, eyes slowly drooping as Harry's soft snores became his new favourite lullaby.

When Draco awoke he had some trouble breathing. His arm was numb and a small wind kept ruffling his hair. He groaned and tried to roll over but found that he was stuck in place. "Whaaa- ooh" The painter smiled as he remembered the night before and how the Boy-Who-Lived had finally loosened up to him. The raven snuggled up to his chest and sighed. Draco kissed his head and checked his brand new cell, its purchase inspired by his roof cave in and subsequent destruction of his house phone, to find the time. He almost choked on his spittle when the flashing digital numbers read 9:09, about twenty minutes before his first appointment of the day.

"Harry wake up!" He kept his voice at a reasonable pitch and shook the raven awake.

"Wha-" Harry's mouth fell open and he looked around, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He sat up in Draco's lap and stretched. He was still tired from the night before and Draco knew how he felt but he couldn't afford the time it took Harry to become aware. He pinched his thigh and the raven jumped into full consciousness.

"Oi! Malfoy, some habits did hard or what?"

The blond bit back a smile and pulled the raven to his feet. "I've got a client coming in around" The painter checked his cell, "ten minutes and nothing is set up yet. If you want to sleep go in my room but right now I need to get ready!"

With a shove he pushed the Boy Hero onto his bed and closed the door behind him. "I'll bring you some tea later!" He called, setting out his mattress and plastic. Sometimes he wondered why he bothered giving out early jobs.

The brunette was gone before Draco could absorb her presence. She left a wave of flowery perfume in her wake that did nothing to over power Harry's scent that lingered on both his clothes and couch. He sighed, picked up a large paint bucket cover, currently doubling as a tray, and took off to bring Harry something to eat. When he found his former rival, he was lying on his stomach and poking at the spots on his headboard, face contorted in a look of heart shattering boredom. He set the tray down on the side table and took a seat on the edge of the bed.

They both took some toast, but only Harry used marmalade on his, and ate in relative silence. During the meal they both ignored the elephant that sat between them heavy and sweaty, waiting for someone to include him. They shifted nervously around, picking at the remains of their breakfast when Harry's Gryffindor nature saved them from sitting around for the rest of their lives waiting for the answer.

"About last night-" What wasn't muffled by the pillow was whooshed away by the sound of mid-morning traffic outside Draco's Studio's window.

"What was that Harry? I'm afraid I don't read minds"

Draco laughed at Harry's expression. Without his glasses the raven could barely see making his glare look more like a squint "I think we should talk about last night Dom," Harry rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. "You did kiss me."

"You kissed me first,"

"I did not! You kissed me!"

The painter shook his head and turned to face the raven. "No I didn't, you're the one who said I reminded you of your boyfriend and started crying." Draco cursed after the words left his mouth. He knew he shouldn't have brought up Harry's ex.

Harry held his breath, body stiffening after the accusation. Before Draco could apologize Harry was off the bed and out in the living room looking for his clothes. He pushed at the table and chairs with such strength that they scratched the floor and fell over. Draco stalked behind him, righting all his furniture and trying to calm the other man.

"Harry what the hell!"

"Shut up Draco obviously I had you figured wrong" Draco winced at the bite in those words, catching a cup of brushes as they tipped over. "Where the hell are my clothes?"

Draco jumped when Harry sent the sofa flying onto his toes. "Damn it Harry! Stop destroying my house!" Draco's answer was a brush to the head. "Goddamn it Potter! Fine be a stupid brat!" The blond stormed off to his closet and tossed a coat, a pair of pants and a shirt at the raven. "If you wanna leave so badly get dressed and get out!"

Harry stared hard at Draco, both of them willing the other to back down and take responsibility. For the next five minutes neither moved until Harry donned his clothes, muttering under his breathe as he did so. He rushed past the blond in an unorganized sweep, tossed two hundred pound notes in his face and slammed the door.

"I hope you choke on them."

The former aristocrat stood shock still in his living room. The sounds of the midday London madness was drowned out by the slammed door and Harry's final words in his ear.

The wind was biting and cold, indicating that a new season was staking its claim on London. Draco pulled his coat all the way up and headed to the coffee shop near one of the most famous wizarding pubs in London. He rarely ever went there, considering its location, but lately business was good and he wanted to treat himself. He pushed passed the crowds of people rushing to but Halloween decorations and tuned out the sounds of the peddlers pushing their ware on him. When he finally he got to The Creamery, he pushed the door open with a sigh and let the scent of pumpkin pie and spices envelope him along with the warmth. The cashier greeted him warmly and served him a large espresso with a hot chocolate infusion and extra whipped cream. He smiled at her and tipped her generously.

He made his way to the back where very few people were sitting when someone pushed him from behind. His good mood was still strong allowing him to forgive this stranger. He heard the beginnings of a muttered apology when he realised that he knew that voice. With a quick turn he found himself face to face with a raven he hadn't seen for over two months and right behind him was a very familiar ginger. His words made a u-turn in his throat and suddenly the warmth of the café was approaching boiling.

"Dom" Joanna stated in greeting, unheeding of the people trying to pass around her.

"Jo, Harry" He could play civil too if that was her game.

Harry stared at him, lower lip between his teeth and eyes darting everywhere but at him.

"So Harry and I were going to get a cup of hot chocolate wanna join us?" Joanna offered, she tucked her hair behind an ear and began steering the two other men towards the back booth.

Draco didn't bother responding. She pushed Harry inside and sat Draco across from him before taking the end seat next to the Boy Hero. Their silence rang heavy despite the jovial laughs from surrounding tables. Draco took a sip from his espresso, he didn't want this conversation and didn't feel like helping his ex with any match making scheme she might be pulling. He squeezed the cup when he saw a pug nosed girl, dressed in green push a black boy in his direction. He cursed and tried to push the memories from his mind.

"Oh for the love of god would the two of you just talk to each other!" Joanna slammed her fist on the table, creating a second long hush over the café. "Harry has been sulking around for the past month and you, Dom, every time I call you it goes to voicemail what's your problem?"

Draco winced at the accusation but remained silent. If he didn't know better he would have thought that Joanna was that new Granger come back to haunt him.

"Listen Jo, Potter made his choice and I made mine" He hissed as the irate red head kicked him.

"Same with me Draco," Harry smirked at him and the blond was on his feet.

Joanna kicked him again and he fell back. "Listen I don't have to stay here and take this kind of abuse from you."

"Don't you dare leave Draco!" Joanna pulled the blond down back to his seat, her eyes a green shade of fury. "I'm tired of seeing Harry looking like a zombie everyday because of you! When are you going to grow up and take some responsibility for your actions?"

"Joanna stop, you don't need to continue this" Harry said, trying to push Joanna out of the booth. His cup was still full in front of him and had gotten cold.

"No Harry I don't want this arsehole thinking he could just run away from his problems." She turned back to her ex and sneered, "I don't care if you hate me and don't want to speak with me but I'm not going to sit back and watch Harry starve himself to death over you!"

Joanna watched Draco's face flush red while Harry tried to push past her. The red head ignored the Dark Lord Slayer, waiting for his former classmate to process the information and make the right choice. She watched Draco's mouth work hard but was disappointed when no sound came out. A shrill screamed burst from her mouth as Harry pushed her and she found herself sitting on the ground while Harry put his seeker toned body to use and sprinted out The Creamery. She got up and chased after him, glaring at the blond she left behind.

When Draco bummed into Harry again he was drained and couldn't take another confrontation with Harry's fiery headed protector. He stood next to the raven and waited for the lights to flash green.

"Dominic, I'm sorry about what happened last week with Jo" The raven muttered next to him. He shuffled and pulled at his bag.

"Don't mention it. Jo was always headstrong" Draco huffed when he remembered how Joanna would attack him over nothing.

"I know but I feel like I have to apologize or something" They crossed and awkwardly tried to avoid brushing against each other.

"Consider it done then Harry," They turned down a side street, matching each other pace for pace in complete silence.

"Let me buy you a cup of coffee to make up for it" Draco watched the raven bit his lower for another minute before finally agreeing.

"Sure Harry, only if you're buying" He could use a cup of coffee about now and with the conversation they were having he really needed some caffeine. He paused when Harry smiled in his direction. He clenched his fist, biting back a growl as memories of that smile filtered past his eyes, all of them aimed at everyone but him.

"Sure we could head back to The Creamery and I'll buy you a special." The small laugh in Harry's voice made a smile pull at Draco's lips.

"You know how I take my coffee Harry" The Raven laughed and the blond's ears tingled at the sound.

"Black with a sprinkle of cinnamon? You really are a creature of habit Dominic"

"Like you're one to talk Harry, You only wear those wing earrings when you're planning something" He brushed against the ex-seeker when he pulled his ears.

The familiar Khaki coloured building appeared over the horizon, bringing with it the sweet scent of caffeine. They nodded at the couple who held The Creamery's door open and sighed. They ordered their own drinks and found a booth for two in the back. Their conversation carried on from Joanna's straight forward attitude to Harry's job at the day-care and Draco's painting.

Draco pushed his glass away and smiled at Harry, "You mean to tell me after all the sleeping you did in history that you ended up a museum curator?"

Harry flicked at his hair. "Yes. That's exactly what I mean. Besides don't pretend you didn't sleep in class too."

"How would you know if you spent all your classes sleeping?" He ducked the ball of tissue that Harry tosses at his head.

"Keep talking like that and I might not come back to your studio Dom." Harry teased.

Draco poked his cup. "I don't see that as a great loss Harry" He remarked, tongue firmly in his cheek.

He didn't want to comment that he hadn't been back to his studio for months and ruin the moment. Harry seemed to sense his discomfort and grabbed his hand. His emerald eyes shone with unsaid apologies and understanding, mirroring the emotions he felt himself. He felt crushed under those eyes and looked away.

"You know Dominic, I have some time tonight maybe I could come over and talk for a bit."

"Come over?" Draco scoffed, "Are you sure you want to?"

Harry pulled at the hairs on Draco's fingers smirking when the blond hissed in pain. "Well between you and your paints and Joanna and her hatred of you, I think it'd be best to come over for a bit. You know to tell her about how nice and repenting you are for making me feel so bad"

Harry held back a laugh at the chocked sound coming from the other man. The squeaky "repenting" almost had him bursting out laughing but he held himself in check.

"Fine, come over if you want but I have to see a client around seven and won't be done until nine" Draco stated, checking his watch. "Crap I need to go if I want to get ready in time."

Draco got up and pushed in his chair, noting Harry's frown as he did so. He headed to the door, making sure that Harry was following behind him every step. He turned around at the door and stared at the other man. "I'll see you later. Call me when you're close" He bit back a smile when Harry nodded and went to catch his bus.

Draco couldn't keep the smile off his face. He and Harry's relationship, if lounging around Draco's studio and chance meetings for coffee constituted a relationship, was getting better by the day. It was already January but Harry was no longer acting shy around him and had even managed to convince Joanna to stop hazing him. He did a little jump when he went to grab the water cups off his counter. The mattress was already laid out for another of Harry's paintings. This time the Boy-Who-Lived wanted a flaming phoenix and Draco was more than happy to oblige him. As he laid out his paints and brushes, he couldn't help but shiver at the thought of a phoenix he was once knew. He grimaced and went to study the images of phoenix he had compiled for this painting.

The blond sipped at his coffee and continued scrolling through the images on his web search when his doorbell rang. He got out of his chair and ran to the door, stopping at the mirror next to it to smooth his hair. He opened the door and saw Harry standing in the frame with a boyish smile on his frame. He stepped aside and allowed the raven to enter. The other man was wearing his wing earrings but didn't have his glasses. Draco stared at his arse as he took off his coat he almost hugged the raven when he noticed the short sleeve he was wearing.

"You ok Dom?" Harry rubbed his arms under the painter's stare, a heated look in his own eyes.

"Umm, yea, yea I am, get ready I'll be there in a second." Draco muttered, embarrassed that he had been caught staring. Another cup of coffee in hand and he was ready to take a seat behind his client. The blond ran his hand through the raven locks in from of him and sniffed at the other man. He started drawing the feathers on the other man's forehead, giving each one a few curls to simulate the fire the bird was known for. Draco blended the famous scar into the stem of one feather and felt a sense of pride at how well it disappeared. He moved quickly down the other man's face making sure to accent the feathers around his eyes and adding hard lines for the beak. He ran his pastel down his neck putting more feathers on the cinnamon coloured skin. There was a faint light mark around his neck where he had been cut.

He continued down to Harry's chest, marking the back of his neck and shoulders with feathers as he did so. The raven didn't move but would take in sharp intakes of breathe when Draco's pastel moved across the sensitive parts of his skin. Draco continued even further south, stopping just above the base of Harry's cock and starting on his back. Harry turned his back towards the blond and remained still. Draco continued adding the feathers to his butt and then down his legs. He smiled to himself when he noticed the reduced scaring on the other man's back.

"What's with that smile?" Harry's smile was audible in his question and made Draco pause.

He chuckled under his breathe and kissed Harry's big toe. "No reason" He added a few more feathers to the leg he was holding and let the raven get up. "I'll get the paints you just check out the outline."

Draco mixed the famous gold and red colours of the phoenix on a mixing board. He set out a tub of black paint to fill in the harder lines. He set out his paint brushes and sponges and enjoyed watching Harry examine his outline. He smiled when Harry smiled at his reflection.

During the filling in process Draco took in every inch of Harry, from the small hooked shape birth mark behind his left ear all the way down to the cluster of freckles on his left ankle. Every mark and blemish still visible on the other man's body was covered with the gold and red paint. He stood back from his work and allowed Harry to get to his feet. The raven headed off as Draco cleaned his cups and brushes. He wondered how Harry would look this time, covered in flaming feathers. He grabbed his crouch at the image of green eyes blazing back at him from fiery feathers.

He put away his paints and made his walked into the living room. The light was off but small floating fireballs had taken their place; in the centre of his living room stood Harry. He was Human and his eyes were like the one Draco had seen in his image of him. The blond moved to the centre of the room. His eyes ran up and down the other man, his feathers simulating movement with the small flames.

"Draco…" Harry moved towards the blond, pushing him on the couch as he did so. He took a seat next to the other man. "I-I…"

Draco watched the other struggle before he threw himself at him in an intense kiss. The painter leaned back eyes widening in shock as the other man gripped his hair. He felt the ex-seeker's tongue push up against his lips and he parted them in response. He pulled Harry close to him and gripped his arse. He ground his erection up into the other man and melted into his moans. When Harry pulled away both their faces were flushed and their chests laboured.

"I love you Draco."

Harry stared at Draco, lower lips firmly between his teeth. The blond gaped at the raven, his heart almost swelling up at proclamation. He grabbed the other wizard's arm when he made to leave and pulled him into another kiss. He took advantage of the shocked gasp from Harry and plunged his tongue into his mouth. He pushed Harry onto the couch, spreading his legs.

Draco moved into the space they provided and sucked on Harry's neck, revelling in the mewls and gasps the other wizard made. He grimaced at the taste of paint in his mouth and spat.

"Move up Draco," Harry hissed in his ear, undoing his pants. "I need to get your pants off."

The painter gasped when the raven bit into his ear but obliged none the less. When his pants were off he pulled off his vest and kicked off his boxers. Harry's gaze swept over him just before the blond found himself on his back and on the floor. The raven hovered over him and with a flick of his wrist summoned the lube from the bedroom. He flipped the cover open when a pale hand grabbed his feathered one.

"Are you sure about this Harry?"

The raven nodded dislodging his hand and pouring a generous helping of lube onto Draco's cock.

(Edited for Mature content)

The lay back on the couch, sweat pooling in the creases of their bodies. The small fire balls went out and the only light pole outside. Harry put his head on Draco's left pec and sighed.

They lay in silence for five minutes before Harry kissed the other man. "Draco, does this mean we're lovers from now on?"

Draco chuckled, "Let's not get carried away Harry"

The Raven glared at him in the limited light and poked his cheek. "Hahaha Draco, very funny."

Draco kissed the frown off his face and pulled him close. "Let's talk it over more in the morning and we can discuss where we'll have our next date."

"Next? We didn't even have our first!"

"Potatoe, potato" Draco laughed when Harry poked him in the chest. He grabbed the other and kissed his forehead. "Night Harry"

"Night Draco"

Notes: Yay Are you happy beta? No more two thirds over. ^_^ Thanks to anyone reading I hope you enjoyed it. Ironically this was supposed to be a 2k fic around how much Draco loved painting on Harry's skin. _ Originally, after the fic had mutated, Joanna wasn't even suppose to date Draco XD. Please leave some constructive criticism because I really wanna know what you think of this style.

Happy Holidays!