Chapter 6: Letters

Draco laid in his bed staring into the darkness. He couldn't sleep, so he recalled what he did during the day. After he and Harry ate breakfast Draco took him on a tour of his house like he promised. He was amused at Harry's open mouthed reactions to each room they entered. To occupy the rest of their time the boys decided to get through more of their Potions project. This time Draco helped out Harry whenever he had a problem, and to his surprise he enjoyed teaching the boy. Harry grinned every time he understood something, and kept thanking Draco.

Draco smiled into the darkness, rolling over to hug his spare body pillow and trying once again to get some sleep. After ten minutes of rustling under his blankets and repositioning himself Draco decided to give up. It felt different to him, and he wasn't sure why. He was in his familiar bed, holding onto his body pillow, which always put him to sleep, and still his body was fighting him.

Across the hallway and in another room Harry was having the same problem. Even though he had numerous heavy fluffy blankets over his body he still felt….cold. Like something was missing. His fireplace was lit so he didn't have to stare out into the darkness, but instead he just stared at the crackling fire to take his mind off sleep. A creak could be heard somewhere in the house and Harry pulled his blankets up to his chin. He figured the reason he couldn't sleep was because he was sleeping in a new environment, but his body felt so tired and he really wished he could sleep. Harry closed his eyes and told himself not to open them, this method usually worked but it took a while to drift off.

The next morning Draco had dark circles under his eyes. He finally was able to sleep, but it took much longer than he liked. He yawned as he went down to the kitchen to see if the house elves started making breakfast or not, and was surprised to find Harry already up and about. Harry too looked like he didn't sleep that well, and Draco wondered why.

"Morning," said Harry, obviously trying to be perky.

"Morning," Draco mumbled, obviously not a morning person.

"I told the house elves to start making breakfast, I hope that was okay," Harry said.

Draco just nodded, and proceeded to sit at the table and wait for the food to be ready. Harry sat across from him and looked uncomfortable.

"Didn't sleep that well?" he asked. Draco nodded.

"I'm not sure why," Draco said being interrupted by another yawn, "but it was difficult for me to fall asleep."

"Yeah, me too."

"Hey Draco?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you mind if I spend Christmas with my friends?"

"No," he said hesitating, "I mean the whole reason we were going to be together over break was to work on our potions project, and by my math we should be able to finish it by the end of the week."

Harry smiled, but Draco could see that it wasn't his full smile. He's still worried about something, he thought, but decided not to pry any further. The rest of breakfast was filled with small talk and laughs. The two boys spent the rest of the day working on their project, this time actually taking out their cauldron and starting to prepare the ingredients. The paperwork for it was done, and they each looked over each other's paper. Draco was very pleased with how far Harry had come. Just a few weeks ago he seemed hopeless in potions, and with only a few lessons from Draco had he really improved, and most probably surprise Professor Snape. Draco snickered at that, he did wish that he could see the man's face when he read Potter's paper.

The boys took a break to allow their cauldron to simmer with its new ingredients added. Draco was in the shower, while Harry was in the reading room. He was looking at the extensive library that the Malfoy's owned and was surprised with how many titles he wanted to read. He wasn't much of a reader, but he had to admit that the Malfoy's certainly had taste.

A tap-tap-tapping sound pulled him away from his thoughts. His eyes rested on the window where he saw a brown colored barn owl with a letter. Curious, Harry opened the window wondering if he should even take the letter off the owl. He wasn't sure who it was for, but his eyes widened in shock once he recognized Hermione's handwriting, and his name on the cover. Harry quickly untied the letter from the owl's leg and ripped it open.

Dear Harry,

I hope you're having a wonderful break. It's very lively at the Burro and Ron's mother keeps asking me if you'll be coming over for Christmas. Please respond quickly, because I'm not sure how long I can hold her off without flying over to get you personally.

Love,

Hermione.

P.S.

If you're in trouble just say the word and me, Fred, and George will pick up so quickly you won't have a chance to say Spiders. –Ron.

Harry grinned. He hadn't realized how much he missed his friends. It felt good to know that people out there wanted him to be happy, and his heart felt full of love with learning about Mrs. Weasley's attempts to get Harry over there. His smile dropped when he saw the date on the letter. It was addressed three days ago, and Harry's heart dropped. He quickly ran to his room to take out a piece of paper and quill, before beginning his reply.

Dear Hermione,

I've been having an eventful break, to say the least. I'm sorry for getting back to you late, but I had an unscheduled move. Draco and my uncle had a disagreement and now we're staying at his place. Tell Mrs. Weasley that I'll be glad to come over for Christmas, and I can be there by the end of the week.

Harry

P.S.

Break the news gently to Ron, I feel like he'd try something stupid and storm Malfoy Manor.

Harry nodded at his letter, satisfied that it said everything that she needed to know, before rushing back to the reading room and giving to the owl, who had entertained itself by cleaning his feathers, and sending the owl on its way again.

Draco turned the water off and stood in the shower for a minute, allowing the excess water to naturally drip off his lean body, before stepping out and toweling himself off. A pitch black owl greeted him when he stepped into his bedroom. It was resting on his pillow and holding a letter in her beak. Draco took it, knowing it was from his father, and began to read.

Draco,

You made the right decision in not hurting that muggle, although I wouldn't have thought any differently if you had cursed him. While your mother and I are upset, she's convinced me to stick to our schedule. We'll be back by the end of the week, make sure Potter doesn't do anything stupid.

Lucius

Draco sighed in relief as he read that his parents weren't ruining their vacation for him. Although he did get annoyed that his father thinks he controlled his anger, when in fact it was Harry, he was pleased that he had a few more days alone with the boy he was growing very fond of.

After dinner the boys returned to their bubbling cauldron and was pleased to see the color had turned aquamarine. Draco started stirring the liquid, while Harry read off the next bit of instructions. For the next two hours they stirred, cut up ingredients, and mixed their potion into a magenta color before leaving it to simmer through the night.

Draco walked Harry back to his room. Harry stopped with his hand on his door and turned back to Draco. He was really not looking forward to sleeping again. Last night had been filled with strange noises and an emptiness he couldn't explain.

"Hey Draco…"

Draco watched Harry, waiting for what he was going to say, eager to answer his thoughts.

"Nevermind," Harry finally said after a short moment of silence. Draco watched as Harry quickly slipped into his room and shut the door. Draco felt disappointed, and retreated to his own room. Once in there he felt the cold presence of loneliness. He stripped and put on his pajamas before slipping into bed. He pulled his body pillow close to him and just watched the eternal darkness about in his room. Harry plagued Draco's mind, in one form or another Draco was always thinking of him. It mostly happened at night when the two boys were in their separate rooms, but when he was with Harry, Draco felt…like he could do anything. And that's when it clicked.

Draco bolted up in his bed as the thought struggled to the surface of his mind. He remembered his time getting to know Harry during Snape's detentions. The time with Harry when he was staying at Privet Drive, and how he slept so peacefully, more so than he could ever remember, when he was holding onto the boy. And then he remembered last night, and how empty his sleep was. He didn't dream, he barely felt rejuvenated, he just felt….there. Am I really falling for Harry, he asked inside his head. Wait, when did I start calling him Harry?

Draco wrestled with these thoughts in the dark for what seemed like eternity before he finally made up his mind. Fine then, he thought, I'll do an experiment. Draco hopped out of bed and tip toed out into the hall. He made his way over to Harry's door and knocked lightly. No sounds could be heard inside, and so Draco opened Harry's door a crack to peak. Draco saw Harry's fire blazing in the fireplace, which he was thankful for, since he could now see Harry sleeping in his bed. Good, thought Draco. As quiet as a serpent, Draco Malfoy crept to the edge of Harry's very comfy bed, and looked down on him. His eye were closed and his breathing slow. Draco watched as his chest moved up and down under his blankets. Okay, you can do it. You can do it, he kept telling himself as he picked up the blanket very carefully and slid next to Harry. To his amazement, Draco felt Harrys arms immediately envelope his body. His heart was pounding excitedly, and loudly, in his chest that he was afraid it would wake up the other boy, but if anything it lulled Harry into a deeper sleep. Very carefully, Draco also put his arms around the sleeping boy, and relaxed once his body recognized that familiar heat source. His eyes drooped and felt very heavy before sleep took him moments later.

The next morning Harry awoke in a good mood. In fact Harry felt revitalized somehow. As he stretched his body under his enormous blankets, Harry felt a warm patch next to him. Confused he threw the blankets off and saw an imprint of a body in the bed. Confused, Harry just shrugged it off as him turning over in his sleep shortly before waking up. He yawned once more and got up to get dressed, and before long he was heading downstairs.

Draco was already at the table with the house elves putting the last of the food out. Draco looked up to see Harry smiling at him, at least he hoped it was at him, as he drank his coffee.

"Morning!" Harry said cheerfully.

"Looks like you had a good night's rest," thought Draco, amused that Harry didn't fully know why he looked and felt better than the previous day.

"Yeah, I guess I got used to this house finally."

You certainly got used to something, thought Draco with a knowing smile.

"Speaking of which, it looks like you had a good night's rest as well."

"Yeah," said Draco, "last night was the best sleep I ever had."

Harry nodded in approval before digging into the delicious breakfast options that were out. He began with a muffin, to his delight it was blueberry, before stuffing his face with eggs and cinnamon rolls. Draco took his time eating, making sure he fit one thing in his mouth at a time, and smiled as he watched Harry eat. Yes, he thought, I have definitely fallen for him.

"We should be finished with the last phase of our potion by the end of the day," Draco said wanting to hear Harry's voice more.

"Oh," Harry said in an almost disappointed tone.

"What?" asked Draco raising his eyebrow.

"Nothing…I just didn't realize that the week was almost up."

Is he sad at the thought of leaving, asked Draco, can't be. Draco said nothing as he watched Harry fumbling with a banana. Oh now he's just torturing me, thought Draco as his thoughts changed to action. Action that involved sweat, and heat, and lots and lots of moans.

"Are you okay?" asked Harry looking concerned at Draco.

"Yeah," he said confused, "why do you ask?"

"Because you're looking a little red."

"Oh," said Draco, fumbling over his words. He tried to hide his obvious blush with his hand mumbling, "I'm fine," so that Harry could focus once again on his food. This is going to be troubling if things like that pop up a lot, he thought.

The rest of the week felt strange to Draco. At points he was happy that he and Harry were hanging out, and the fact that he always snuck into Harry's bed at night and left before he awoke was always a plus, but he couldn't help feel a shadow fall on him the closer they got to the end of the week. Harry took him out of his thoughts as he continued to read the potion instructions, Draco quickly followed what he said, and once again his mind was lost to Harry and school.

Lucius Malfoy and his wife exited the fireplace in his study. His eyes zoomed around the room as if looking for something before his wife tugged on his arm signaling him to continue. Lucius opened the door for her and he promptly stepped out following her. They made their way to the parlor, empty, and then to the dining room, empty, and continued to do this until they entered the reading room. There, Lucius expressed his first emotion since entering the house: surprise. Laying in front of him and his wife were his son, and his ex-enemy Harry Potter, sleeping on the couch with their arms around each other. Draco's head was nestled in the crook of Harry's neck, and Harry's arms held tightly around Draco's waist. Lucius wasn't sure what to do. His first instinct was to yell and wake them up, but his wife once again held onto his arm and dragged him away from that sight.

In the hallway Lucius could see his wife smile, and he knew that he couldn't argue now. He still had a right to be angry, but if in fact that Draco had settled for Harry, and his mother was going to support him, which by the smile told Lucius that she had, then all he could do was shut up and try to be happy for his son too. He shivered, but why did it have to be Harry bloody Potter, he thought.

The next morning Harry found Draco sound asleep in his arms. He was surprised that they fell asleep on the couch, and happy that he got to wake up to a sleeping Draco. It was rare to see this side of the boy, and Harry held back a chuckle at how innocent he looked. The problem was that he really had to pee and there was just no way he could leave without waking Draco. Harry fidgeted, and Draco mumbled in his sleep before slowly opening his eyes to meet the sweet green ones he's been admiring lately.

"Morning," Draco said.

"Morning," Harry smiled.

Draco stayed where he was, looking longingly into Harry's deep green eyes. Harry fidgeted again.

"Um…Draco?"

"Hm?"

"Do you think you could…let me up?"

"Maybe," Draco said with a sly grin, still under the aftereffects of sleep.

"It's just, I need to visit the bathroom."

Draco's eyes widened, what his body wanted to do, and was about to do, was lean in to give Harry a good morning kiss, but that last statement brought him out of dreamland and reminded him that he was awake.

"Oh, of course," Draco said, flustered, "Sorry about that."

He and Harry got up, stretched, and Harry went straight for the bathroom for a nice release.

Harry changed before coming down for breakfast, and was surprised to see that he and Draco had company this morning. Lucius Malfoy turned to look at him as he entered, expressionless as always. Harry wasn't sure what do to, last time he encountered Draco's dad Dobby had sent him down a flight of stairs.

"Harry, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Draco's mother," said the woman who got up and shook Harry's hand. Harry returned the handshake and tried to smile. Narcissa sat Harry down next to her son and returned to her seat. "So," she continued, "will you be staying with us for the rest of break?"

Her son winced at her question. Harry didn't catch that and just looked at his plate feeling nervous.

"No," he said, "Draco and I finished our project last night so I'll be leaving in a little bit."

"Oh but we just met," Narcissa looking shocked, "surely you could spend an extra day and leave tomorrow?"

"I'm sorry, but I already promised my friends that I'd be with them today."

Narcissa tsked. When she looked back at Draco she saw that he looked disappointed, like all the color in him had drained. Oh young love, she thought.

A little after breakfast, just like he said, Harry and the Malfoy's were gathered in Lucius' study. Draco stood in front of Harry with his parent a little bit behind him.

"I guess I'll see you at school then," Draco said softly.

"Yeah, see you then."

"You're always welcome here if you ever want to pop in for a visit," Narcissa said. Harry smiled and nodded at her. He was glad that Draco's mom wasn't what he expected, she was at least loads more fun than Draco's father. Lucius said nothing, but smiled at Harry. He couldn't be sure, but Harry thought that the smile physically hurt the older man. Harry once again said a quick goodbye, grabbed a handful of floo powder, and said "The Burrow" clearly. Green flames sprang up and licked his body, sending it through the chimney ways and threw him out into a cozy looking home.

"Harry!"