Beta'd by the lovely wendypops.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter is © J. K. Rowling, Warner Brothers, Scholastic Books, Bloomsbury Books, and all other entities involved in the Potterverse.
Remember, Remember, the Fifth of November
It was a frosty afternoon, fog rolling all around him as Draco strolled around the grounds of Malfoy Manor. It was eerily beautiful and yet he didn't notice it at all.
He walked through the orchard; squinting at the sunlight glaring through the empty trees. It was too bright, too harsh. He missed the leaves and the shade they provided on warm summer days.
Draco was sitting with his back against the tree, the love of his life nestled between his legs. They could glimpse the sun peeking out from between the leaves above them. All that could be heard was the faint rustling of the wind rushing through the leaves and the incessant crunching noise Harry made while eating a juicy green apple.
"Would you like to eat that any louder, Harry? I think there are some birds still up there that you haven't yet scared away."
"Okay then, Mr Malfoy. I want to see you try to eat this without making a sound," Harry said, turning so that Draco could take a bite.
Draco did just that.
"Mmm, delicious," he said, smirking.
"I am terribly sorry Your Highness. I shall endeavour to keep my crunching down to a minimum in future."
Laughter bubbled out of Harry as he gave his boyfriend a very juicy kiss.
"Make sure that you do, scoundrel." Draco stuck his nose into the air, sending the both of them into peals of laughter that left them panting and entwined on the lush grass.
Draco walked on through the orchard, kicking at the dry leaves beneath his feet. He bent down to pick up a handful. They really were appealing colours; orange, red, brown. He closed his fist and crushed the leaves into tiny pieces before throwing them to the wind.
They were running as if they were children, all worries put aside for one afternoon. It was the day after their wedding and two people more in love could not be found. Harry scooped up some of the crispy leaves littering the ground and threw them aver Draco's head.
"Watch the hair, Harry!" Draco laughed, as he brushed the offending articles out of his fine blonde locks.
Harry noticed the glint in his eye a second too late; he only saw the wand peeking out of Draco's sleeve before a torrent of leaves flew up off the ground and headed towards him. Harry made a dash for it, closely followed by his husband and a whirlwind of autumn colours.
Draco caught up to Harry and tackled him to the ground. They crashed into a bank of leaves, giggling.
"Gotcha!" Draco cried. He clasped hands with Harry, their wedding bands clinking together. They lay there like that until the sun started to set, smiling and perfectly comfortable.
Draco walked on until he reached the quidditch pitch. He stopped suddenly, looking up at the hoops glistening in the sunlight. It looked lonely, it needed a game. Draco lay down in the centre of the pitch, watching the wispy clouds as if they were players chasing the quaffle around.
It was the last week of school, and after a gruelling schedule, they had finally completed their NEWTs. The group of friends had decided on a quick friendly game of quidditch to make the most of the bright and sunny afternoon. Harry and Draco were chosen to be on the same team but they couldn't agree on who would play Seeker. A galleon toss later saw Harry circling the air with Ginny following his every move while Draco mirrored Ron as Keeper. Even Hermione and Pansy had joined in as Chasers, although neither could actually take their hands off the brooms long enough to try and catch the quaffle.
They played a fierce but fun game, bantering back and forth and simply enjoying the first stress free weekend they had had in months.
"Come on Potter! Catch the bloody snitch or I'll come up there and grab it myself!"
"Bugger off Malfoy! You just keep your eye on the quaffle and leave me do my job!"
The rest of the group rolled their eyes at the exchange. Harry and Draco didn't even notice as they only had eyes for each other.
Finally, Harry spotted the snitch above Draco's left goal hoop. He set off at speed with Ginny close behind. Draco saw the blur coming towards him but was unable to get out of the way in time. Harry, Draco and Ginny all tumbled to the ground and, rather luckily, landed on a soft cushion of air that Hermione had helpfully provided. They were a tangle of legs, brooms and arms with one arm held aloft, bearing the golden snitch.
"Haha, it's mine!" Harry cheered.
The laughter started when the first person decided to join their scrimmage. It got progressively worse as every player and even one or two spectators, chose to jump onto the pile of chuckling school friends.
A loud bang roused Draco from his daydream. He stood up and realised that day had turned into night. Another bang was accompanied by an eruption of light; green, red, gold. Fireworks were being set off all around. It was breathtaking to see.
It was New Year's Eve and Draco and Harry were hosting a party for all their friends. It was held in the grand ballroom of the Manor, sumptuously decorated in purples and silver. The party was in full swing and it was nearing midnight. Draco scanned the crowd for sight of his Harry as he felt a pressure on his elbow, guiding him through the opulent French doors that led out onto the magnificent moonlit terrace.
"Harry?" Draco sounded confused to be pulled away from the guests.
He spun around, only to be greeted by the sight of Harry down on one knee. He was holding open a small box that contained a set of matching platinum bands.
"Draco, I didn't know whether you wanted to do this part, or whether you even wanted to do this at all but I love you so I thought I'd ask. I want to spend the rest of my life with you and I would love to show the world how much you mean to me. Oh Merlin, I had this speech planned out and it's gone all wonky now. Draco, will you do me the honour of consenting to be my husband?"
Draco stifled a laugh at his bumbling love.
"Oh, Harry. Shut up and kiss me! I'd love to marry you!"
There were cheers all round as Harry stood up and embraced his fiancé. The guests were streaming through the doors to congratulate the happy couple and two redheads lifted their wands into the air and let loose a barrage of Weasleys' Wild-Fire Whiz-Bangs. Dragons chasing lions, a phoenix exploding into flame, splashes of light in every colour imaginable lit up the night sky.
In the middle of all this, Harry and Draco stood wrapped in each other's arms, laughing at the spectacle before them.
Draco walked back into the house. He opened the closet door to put his outer robe away when he noticed an auror uniform hanging in the back.
"Mmm, Harry!" Draco panted as he reluctantly broke the steamy kiss he was getting lost in."Look at the state of me now. All rumpled."
"Well, if you will pounce on me as soon as I walk into the kitchen!" Harry countered, smiling as he went to make a cup of tea.
"Hm," Draco huffed, "you know I can't resist a man in uniform."
"Does that go for any man in uniform, or just me?" Harry laughed. "Because I can ask Ron to stop by after work if you'd like!"
"Oh, shush you," Draco silenced him with a kiss, "I'll see you after work. Alone please. I have plans for you. And your uniform."
Draco stretched out a hand to touch the robes, his fingers curling around the fabric as he slipped down the wall of the closet.
The front doors of St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries slammed open and Draco ran straight to the first nurse he saw.
"Where is my husband? I was told he was brought here after an incident in work. Please, help me," Draco's voice cracked, "please!"
"Of course, Mr Potter is on the spell damage ward. He has the best mediwizards with him. Please follow me, Mr Malfoy."
As they reached the correct floor, Ron Weasley was there waiting for him. Hermione, Pansy and Ginny came running down the corridor towards them.
"What's going on?"
"Where's Harry?"
"What happened?"
"Draco, please come with me." Ron's request was greeted with a shake of his head and one word.
"Harry?"
The look on Ron's face gave him the answer he needed. Draco shook his head, shock evident across his face.
"NO! NO! That's not right. He's Harry Potter. NO! Help him! Heal him! Where is he? Where is Harry?"
Draco crumpled to the floor. He felt gentle hands lifting him up and carrying him somewhere. Tears were rolling down his face. Tears were rolling down everybody's faces.
"Harry. Harry. Harry." It was all he could say.
He felt those same gentle hands lifting him off the closet floor and carrying him to his bedroom. They carefully took off his smart robes, his dress shoes, leaving him in his black suit. He felt the slightest brush of lips on his forehead as the bed dipped. His friends climbed onto the huge bed and they lay there together, the only noises were small sobs and one word.
"Harry."