A/N: Hello all! Wow, less than a month between chapters! That's big for me lately. And I think chapter 7 will be along in the next day or so too! I'm feeling particularly productive this week.

Part Six – Friends and More

An unfortunate consequence of Harry's complicated life was that he had been severely neglecting his other friendships. He made time for Lily, but the rest of his free time was spent usually out looking for company. After the break up with Blake, Harry figured that he would spend more time with Ron and his wizarding friends, but it seemed like he actually had less time. Instead of evenings with Blake, Harry was going out on his own and spending the night with whoever he wanted. Draco had joked that he was making up for the good times he missed by settling down early with Ginny. Still, sometimes he missed his old life.

Going out for drinks with Ron after work used to be one of the highlights of his day, but now it had become something they did every other week. And through October and most of November their schedules had conflicted so terribly that it didn't happen at all. So when they finally found time to get together at the end of the month, Harry jumped at the chance.

Since the divorce from Ginny their relationship had been different. As good of terms as Harry and Ginny had parted on, some of the family felt it was a bit unnatural to not pick sides at all. There had been no hostilities, but the tension was enough to make Harry avoid many Weasley interactions. Ron and Hermione were by far the most accepting of it. They were the first to know of the divorce and Harry and Ginny had sat them down together to tell them. In order to stay as neutral as possible, they had all agreed that the subject wouldn't be discussed again. It was the one thing that Harry was specifically forbidden from speaking to Ron about. It was frustrating at times, to be unable to open up to him, but if that was the price Harry had to pay to keep his best friend, then so be it.

He still saw Ron at work every day, but they had very different jobs than they had in the early days of Auror work. As Head Auror, Harry didn't go out in the field as much as he used to. He was in charge of the training program and schedules and paperwork. In the old days, Harry and Ron had been partners and gone on nearly every mission together. When Neville was still an Auror, the three of them had actually had fun rounding up the last of the Death Eaters and were seen as national heroes. When Neville left, the job was still fun for a time. Harry loved working alongside his friends and was honored when Kingsley made him Head Auror. He still loved his job, but absolutely detested the bureaucracy of it. He would prefer fieldwork to paperwork any day. But working closely with Ron was the main thing that he missed about the old days.

"Hermione's going to kill me if I stay out much later."

"One more drink," Harry begged. He didn't want to go home to his empty flat quite yet. Luckily Ron didn't need much persuading and ordered another round from Hannah. Halfway through the drink Ron nudged Harry and pointed to the door. When Harry looked up he almost spit out his drink. Malfoy was walking toward them, smirking.

"Well, well. Potter and Weasley. It's not a Gryffindor reunion, is it?"

"Bugger off, Malfoy."

Draco frowned. "That wasn't very nice. Can't a fellow get a drink without being harassed, Weasel?"

"What are you doing here anyway?"

"It's a free country. I'm getting a drink. Though it's not my favorite place to frequent, I was just doing business in Diagon Alley and thought I'd stop in." Draco ordered a firewhiskey from Hannah and then looked over his two former schoolmates. He smiled, noticing the way that Harry was purposely not looking at him. "Potter, do know of any place I could go to not be bothered by the local riffraff?"

"Sorry, Malfoy, you're on your own."

"I was sure you would have some suggestions."

Harry did look up at him then with a look that clearly said not to push his luck. Draco was thoroughly enjoying this. There was a sparkle in his eyes that rarely appeared these days. As if fighting made him feel more alive. But Harry knew that in a few hours Draco will have drunk enough to drown that sparkle, replacing it with that glassy, vacant look that had become so common now.

"Leave Harry alone, Malfoy." Ron spat out the name as if it were a dirty word.

"Aw, that's so sweet, defending your boyfriend, Weasley."

"Shut up."

"And there's that Weasley wit I remember. Thank Merlin your daughter inherited Granger's brains. Of course even with her diluted genetics she didn't make the number one spot last year, did she?"

"She's second in her class!" Harry rolled his eyes at how easy it was for Ron to get defensive about his family, which was exactly what Malfoy was counting on.

"Yes, and who was it who was first? Oh, that's right, Scorpius was."

Harry sighed and put a hand on Ron's shoulder to keep him from replying. "Malfoy, do you have a point, or do you just want to gloat about how great your son is?"

"Me? I just miss the witty banter with the two of you. Too bad Granger couldn't make it, could be truly like old times."

"Too bad you don't have your two goons to back you up," said Ron. "Oh, that's right, what happened to Crabbe and Goyle again?"

Harry watched as the smile slid from Draco's face. The carefree Draco was gone again, and the guarded one took his place. Draco swallowed his drink and set down the coins to pay for it. "It seems I was wrong. Can't get back there even if I wanted to. Good evening, Weasley." His eyes shifted to Harry. "I'll see you around, Potter."

"Why will he see you around?" Ron asked as soon as Draco was out the door.

"I don't know. Just an expression I suppose."

"He acted like he actually would see you. Like he's seen you before."

"I ran into him at a muggle bar a while back. And here, back in May."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Harry shrugged in a way he hoped was casual. "Didn't seem important. He's a prat, but he didn't do anything horrible. We apparently have a lot in common."

"Like what?"

"Fathers, recently divorced and in the habit of going to muggle places. I acknowledged him, he acknowledged me and we went on our way."

"I don't trust him. He's still a git."

"Yeah," Harry agreed absently. "I suppose he is."

"So, a muggle place, eh? Is that where you met this person you're dating?"

"Yes."

"When do I get to meet her?"

"Um… You probably won't. We're not really dating anymore."

"What happened?"

"Just… I don't know.

"It's because you're a wizard. You should have just told her."

"It wasn't that serious. I'm not even really upset about it." Harry tipped his glass back and forth in his hand absently. "I figured I may as well enjoy being single for a while."

Ron grinned, figuring out immediately what that meant. He was most likely picturing Harry surrounded by beautiful muggle women and Harry felt horribly guilty for still keeping this secret from his best friend. If he couldn't tell Ron, who could he tell?

Harry cleared his throat. "Ron, I have to tell you something." He looked up from his drink, waiting for Harry to continue. "I… er, I lied about Malfoy. I see him around a lot. It wasn't just a couple times. He's… I don't know, I suppose you could say he's become… like a friend."

"You're friends with Draco Malfoy?" He laughed. "You've hated him for as long as we've known him."

"And we're all grownups now, right? He's changed. He's not too bad."

"Well, I get why you didn't want to tell me. I mean, Malfoy? He must have changed if you can stand to be in the same room with him."

"You don't think I'm completely mad then?"

"Of course I do, Harry. Always have. But I expect you know who you can count as a friend. Just as long as you still know that when he turns back into a snotty annoying arse, I'll be here."

"I'll have to remember that."

They were quiet for several moments and finally Ron remembered something. "So what was all that that subtext just now? He was asking if you know a good bar and you were acting weird."

"He knew that you didn't know that we were talking I suppose."

"He thinks the fact that you go to muggle bars is some big dirty secret then?"

"I dunno."

Now it wasn't that Harry enjoyed lying to Ron. In fact, he was feeling extremely guilty and was close to just telling him the truth. Except he couldn't. The words wouldn't come out. Ron had been great so far. He'd handled the information about Draco better than Harry could have expected and he wasn't ready to push his luck. Ron was the one person he couldn't lose. Besides being Harry's best friend he was also the key to keeping the peace in the family. If Ron or Ginny turned on him, then his relationship with everyone he loved was in danger. He didn't think that would happen, but the fear was paralyzing.

Draco was flirting with Cameron the bartender when Harry entered The Stag that Friday night. It was nothing out of the ordinary, since Draco generally flirted with anything with a pulse, but for some reason the sight of it bothered Harry. Draco had been acting more and more careless lately and that included going out with more men. He'd always been promiscuous by Harry's standards, but recently he'd created a whole new definition of the word. And it wasn't just the men. It was the alcohol and the very real possibility that he'd been taking more drugs. And while Harry did know many things about muggle drugs, he didn't know the first thing about how to counteract them. Draco could easily overdose and there wouldn't be a thing to stop it.

And then Harry remembered that he didn't have much room to judge Draco's behavior when his own had become so entirely out of character for him. After he and Blake broke up Harry didn't see the harm in having a little fun. It couldn't hurt to get a little wild and no one ever said that the love of his life would just fall right out of the heavens now that he knew he was attracted to men. What good would it do to go searching for "the one" like some virginal teenage girl? He didn't really think it was healthy to be as ambitious as Draco was, but a little variety wasn't a bad thing. He just drew the line at experimenting with the various mind-altering substances that Draco seemed to be into.

"Malfoy, leave the poor man alone. I'm sure he has his share of drunken fools hitting on him every night."

As Draco turned Harry noticed that his eyes were quite red and his pupils dilated. He was clearly on something. Harry glanced at Cameron who shook his head slightly, as if to say that Draco was not right.

"Potter, I can't help it. He's the only one here I haven't been with. I had to try."

Harry laughed. As promiscuous as Draco was, he had most certainly not been with everyone in that bar.

"Maybe that's a sign that you should take a break."

"You're one to talk." Cameron was apparently forgotten as Draco turned his full attention on Harry. "I've been watching you."

"I'm flattered."

"You went home with Timothy last night."

"Once more, I'm flattered."

"Timothy has a small penis."

Harry shrugged. "It's not the size that counts, but how one uses it."

"You're an idiot."

"Well we all have our opinions, don't we?" Draco looked blank, as if he had just forgotten what they were talking about. A good time to change the subject. "By the way, thanks a lot for butting in on my night out with Ron."

"Did I interfere with you making your move?"

Harry rolled his eyes and resisted the urge to gag. He loved Ron like a brother, but he did not want to even think about making any moves on him. At all.

"You're the idiot, Malfoy. Ron's my oldest friend."

"Good, because the thought of you and him together would just make me vomit. You're too pretty for a Weasley."

"Why is it that you only hit on me when you're high? Subconscious telling you something?"

Draco ignored the comment completely. "Did you come out to Weasley?"

"No. You know I wouldn't. Though you almost gave me no choice."

"Have to eventually."

"I'm sorry he brought up Crabbe and Goyle. You know Ron, when he's angry he says stupid things."

"And when he's not angry, funnily enough."

Draco was playing with a napkin on the bar and had suddenly lost interest in the conversation. Cameron used that opportunity to work his way back over to Harry. He pointed to Draco and shook his head again.

"How long has he been here?" Harry asked quietly. Draco didn't even look up.

"Stumbled in about three hours ago and then stumbled out with a friend, then back in again within the past half hour."

Harry groaned. "Which friend?" It could make a huge difference. Harry had been around enough to know which guys were into which bad habits. The bar followed a strict anti-drug policy, which was one reason why it had quickly become Harry's favorite place. He'd been to other places that were more relaxed about following the law and others that downright defied the law. But here, if a bartender knew of any use going on those individuals were quickly removed. Still everyone knew those that found ways around watching eyes. He'd learned many names of muggle drugs and knew which regular patrons used them. He also knew that, aside from the very high quality marijuana that Draco always kept on hand, Draco also had started doing whatever the people he was with were doing. So depending on who Draco left with, Harry may be able to discover what he had taken.

"He left with Jared, but came back high and morose."

"Well lately he's morose when he's perfectly sober too."

"More than usual. He told me that his son was better off without him and something about paying for crimes… I couldn't really follow it all. And I didn't even know he had a son."

"Yeah. Jared didn't come back with him?"

Jared was bad news. The guy was known for his drug habit, but generally stayed away from the more respectable businesses as he'd been banned from most of them. The problem was that he was into so many different things that it was hard to tell exactly what Draco was on. Lately his motto had been to try anything at least once.

Harry touched Draco's arm lightly. "What did you take?"

"Don't know what you're talking about."

"Draco, I know you're on something. Isn't it too early in the night for this?"

"Don't know what you're…." He'd found the bowl of peanuts fascinating and once again lost the conversation.

"Harry! You're here."

He looked up to see Mark and an unknown man approaching. Mark was someone Harry had gotten to know very well indeed since the breakup with Blake. Mark was tall, brunette and a great dancer. Harry had noticed him around ever since he started going out, but when Blake was out of the picture he got bold enough to make a move. Since then they'd become friends and very casual sex partners. And he was always on the lookout for men that he could send Harry's way. And the man he was with at the moment was very cute.

"What's going on?"

Mark smirked. "I have a proposition for you."

Draco let out a bark of a laugh just then startling them all.

"Sorry, he's… a little out of it. So what's the proposition?" Harry looked the stranger up and down and then smiled back up at Mark.

"This is Brian. Brian just got into town and doesn't have anyone to stay with tonight. Isn't that sad?" He made a pouty face that made Harry laugh out loud. "So I have come up with a solution. I thought you and I could show him around town, maybe stop at my place for a drink or two before tucking him into bed."

"You want… both of us?" Harry asked uncertainly. That would be something new. He liked Mark and trusted him, but they'd never invited a third person to bed with them. "Yeah, I could…" He stopped and looked at Draco. He couldn't just leave Draco there alone, tripping on Merlin knows what. "I need to take him home, I think. I can catch up with you later."

Mark's face gave away his disappointment. He looked down at Draco with open disgust. "Well, I won't hold my breath waiting for you, but if you can tear yourself away from the train wreck we'll be at my place."

"I'm sorry. It's not like I planned this."

"No, you're right. Take care of him." Mark shook his head and leaned in closer to Harry. "I'll never understand why you waste your time with this mess he's become, but when he sobers up make sure you let him know that he cost you the hottest night of your life."

He turned around and Brian gave a little wave before following. Harry waved back and turned to Draco who had laid his head onto the bar and had his eyes closed, possibly asleep.

"I don't deserve this, you know. I didn't do anything to be cursed with your dumb arse."

"So end the curse, Potter," Draco mumbled.

"Oh? How do I do that?"

"You could always kill me."

Harry paused, waiting for Malfoy to laugh or indicate that he was joking. But he didn't. "Uh, no I couldn't."

"No one will care. In fact, they might even give you another holiday in honor of getting rid of another Malfoy."

"Cameron wasn't lying about being morose."

"I want to die."

"So you've told me. But only when you're tripping. Which is funny because I always thought drugs were supposed to make you feel good."

"Maybe they just make you honest."

The process of getting Draco home that night was very similar to what had been happening more frequently over the past few weeks. It was becoming routine. Harry was able to find all the light switches in Draco's flat in the dark without trouble. He knew where the hangover potions were and that Draco always kept pumpkin juice in the refrigerator. And he knew that before he left for the night Draco would ask him to stay. He knew that Draco would pull him toward the bed and it would be completely innocent. Aside from a few flirtatious remarks he never made a pass at Harry at his home. He just wanted Harry to stay.

The first time this happened it startled Harry. It was only the second time he'd ever helped Draco home and he was still feeling awkward being there. He was getting ready to leave a very drowsy Draco in his bed when a hand caught his. He looked down, but Draco's eyes were closed and looked every bit as if he was asleep until he mumbled, "don't go."

"I have to. And you have to sleep it off."

"Mm… no, stay. Please."

Out of curiosity Harry sat down on the edge of the bed. "You're just going to fall asleep anyway. Why do you need me here?"

"I'm alone, Harry."

He never remembered it the next day. There was something about Draco that made it impossible for Harry to turn him down. He'd justified his friendship with Draco many times by saying that they were alone together. They were the only two wizards they knew who were out among muggles. They were both hiding major secrets from their families and friends. Draco had become the only person that Harry trusted with this huge part of his life and Draco was the only reason Harry wasn't completely alone. How could he deny Draco that same kind of comfort? So he stayed until Draco fell asleep and didn't mention it to him afterwards. As far as he knew the drugs erased Draco's memory.

Unfortunately that meant that he wouldn't make it to Mark's house for his little impromptu ménage trios. In fact, he found himself dropping a lot of things for Draco lately. He reacted to Draco's drunkenness with superficial annoyance, but when it came right down to it, he wanted to be there. He wanted to take care of Draco. And Harry wasn't sure what to do with that thought. What did it say that he would rather be with a drunken, miserable Draco than with Mark and his new friend, Brian?

He sat next to Draco's pillow for several minutes after the other man had fallen asleep, watching his face. Everyone looked so much more peaceful when they slept. Everything that haunted him in the day seemed to fade away, leaving just deep, even breaths. Draco didn't do that. Instead of a peaceful expression, his dreams left him frowning, his forehead wrinkling in pain or anger. He was restless, always changing positions. Tonight Harry reached out and placed a hand on his head. He stroked the blond hair, smoothing it away from Draco's forehead, until Draco stopped turning. After a few moments of that Draco's face relaxed and he appeared to be just a little more peaceful. But Harry couldn't stay forever. Eventually he tore himself away for the night, wondering if Draco was ever actually at peace.