A/N: I borrowed a short scene in here from the movie "The Proposal", just wanted to make it clear that it was not my original idea, even though it's not quite the same. And I suggest seeing that movie, it's great!
Updated: March 2015
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July 29
Harry stood wide-eyed in the middle of the most beautiful master bedroom he had ever seen. The regal, old-fashioned architecture that seemed rather typical for Draco meshed perfectly with the modern conveniences that suited Harry so well. The balcony off the room offered an unbelievable view of the French landscape. Through a small hall, there was the largest bathroom imaginable. Harry stood in awe of the Olympic-sized swimming pool that Draco called a bathtub; it could put even the Prefect's bathroom to shame. Wandering back to the bedroom, Harry threw himself on to the plush, king-sized bed with a happy sigh, sinking into the large pile of blankets and pillows.
Draco laughed. "Glad to see you find my bed so comfortable," he commented teasingly.
Harry struggled to resurface from his cocoon of pillows. "Your bed?" he repeated slowly.
With a small smirk, Draco nodded. "My bed."
"Oh," Harry replied, his face falling in disappointment. "Sorry."
Draco shook his head in amusement and grabbed Harry's arm, hauling him off the bed. "Come on, I'm sure you'll find the guest bedroom just as enjoyable," he said, pulling Harry through a small passageway that connected the two rooms.
"All right, all right," Harry laughed. "No need to manhandle me!"
Draco rolled his eyes and loosened his grip but didn't let go. "Voila!" he proclaimed seconds later, revealing the guest bedroom with a flourish.
"Oh!" Harry exclaimed with a grin. The room was nearly identical to Draco's own, lacking only the balcony. The brunette took a running jump and landed on the bed, burrowing in the innumerable pillows.
Draco grinned as well. It felt great to see Harry so happy. So carefree. So childlike. The war had certainly taken its toll on them all, but he was glad to see Harry could still enjoy himself with the simpler things in life. Draco cleared his throat after a moment and said, "Well, your belongings are in the closet, and the house elves will come at your summon. They only respond to wizards and witches, so as not to scare any Muggle guests," he smirked. "Feel free to do as you like, but I would advise saving exploration for tomorrow. Wouldn't want you to get lost now, would we?" he teased with a wink towards the mass of pillows that was Harry.
Said brunette laughed and replied, "I think I'll just head to bed; it's been a long day."
"Well, I'll be in my room, if you need me," Draco said, turning to leave.
"Draco?" Harry's voice came, slightly muffled.
"Yes?" the blonde answered, turning back.
Harry sat up enough to make eye contact. "Thank you," he smiled. "For bringing me here, I mean. I know you technically had to, but…"
"Of course, Harry," Draco interrupted, returning the smile. "Anything for you." With that, he turned and left.
Harry flushed and smiled to himself before sinking back on to the pillows once again.
x
Draco sat up suddenly, jerked immediately from sleep by a bone-chilling scream. He rubbed his eyes and blinked slowly, his eyes adjusting to the darkness, only the moonlight streaming through the balcony doors. The scream came again and brought him to action. Instantly, he was on his feet and tearing towards the guest bedroom. Throwing open the passageway door, he ran to Harry's bed to find the brunette tossing and turning, obviously having a terrible nightmare.
Draco perched on the edge of the bed and placed a calming hand on Harry's shoulder, shaking him slightly. "Wake up, Harry," he urged soothingly. "It's only a nightmare, you're fine."
Harry took a great breath, and his eyes flew open. Panting heavily, he turned slightly hazy eyes on Draco. "Oh... Oh...," he breathed, resting a shaking hand on Draco's cheek. "You're alright."
"Of course I am," Draco reassured him with a confused frown. "You were just having a nightmare, Harry."
"Oh, Merlin," Harry sighed. "I've had a lot of war nightmares, but this one… I had a dream that you and I were back in the Room of Requirement and... the fire...and you...," he choked on his words, tears pooling in his eyes as he fought to hold them back.
Draco bit his lip, his eyes watering as well. "Oh, Harry," he said softly, pulling the brunette into a close hug. "I'm alright, it was just a bad dream. You saved me, I'm here," he whispered over and over again as Harry finally broke and began crying on his shoulder.
Once he had calmed down, Harry took a shaky breath and pulled back slightly. "Thank you," he said softly, his voice rough from tears. After a moment, he continued, "I've been having quite a few bad dreams lately... Most of them involve the battle at Hogwarts, and...," he paused and flushed, "well, a good majority of them have been about you. Losing you in that fire...," Harry shook his head and looked down.
The blonde stared at him in awe before replying, "It's because of you that I'm even alive today, Harry. You're my hero," he said, giving him a small smile.
The brunette looked back up and returned the smile. The two sat together in companionable silence for what felt like hours but could have been only seconds.
After awhile, Draco cleared his throat and said awkwardly, "Well, I think I'll just head back to bed, then..."
As he made to stand up, Harry put a hand on his arm and said in a small voice, "Please stay?" At Draco's uncertain glance, he rushed to continue, "I just... It might keep the nightmares away, knowing you're here... you know?"
Draco froze in surprise. On the inside, the butterflies started churning in his stomach, and he felt fit to burst. On the outside, he fought to keep a huge grin off his face, barely succeeding. "Like I said, anything for you, Harry," he smiled, pulling back the blankets and settling in next to the brunette.
Harry smiled back and rested his hand on Draco's cheek again. "Thank you," he said earnestly, before rolling over and falling asleep nearly instantly.
Draco grinned and bit his lip to keep the joy inside him from escaping. "Good night, Harry," he whispered into the darkness.
x
July 30
Harry awoke early the next morning (again?!) to find a pale arm draped across his chest and a warm body close to his back. At first, he panicked and began to move away before he remembered the events of late last night. Breathing a soft sigh of relief, he rolled over and settled himself comfortably under Draco's arm, watching the blonde sleep with a peaceful look on his face.
How long he spent watching Draco sleep, Harry will never know. What felt like hours later, but was truly mere minutes, the blonde awoke as well. His eyes fluttered open slowly, and he gave Harry a sleepy smile.
"Morning," Draco whispered in a raspy voice.
"Same to you," Harry smiled.
"Been watching me long?" teased Draco.
Harry made to pull away in embarrassment, but Draco's arm held him in place. "No, I just woke up… I just –"
"Just teasing, Potter," the blonde smirked. His face then grew serious, and he asked, "No nightmares?"
Harry was touched by his concern and replied, "None, thank you so much."
"Oh, you know," Draco flushed. "I didn't really mind." He then realized his arm was still wrapped tightly around Harry, and that the brunette really didn't seem to mind any longer. Draco's cock twitched a the idea of being so close to Harry in bed… Flustered, he pulled his arm back, pushed back the blankets, and slipped out of the bed, taking great care to shield his growing erection from view. "I'll go, uh... I'm going to take a shower. Meet me for breakfast after, yeah?"
"Sure," Harry answered with a small smirk.
"Great," the blonde said, already bolting from the room.
Once Draco was safely in his master bathroom, he began running the shower and slumped against the bathroom door. "Pull yourself together, Malfoy," he chided himself. "Harry's practically a married man! Control yourself, for Merlin's sake."
With that final chastisement, he stepped into the shower, all thoughts of Harry's upcoming marriage washing down the drain with the water as he remembered the feel of the man in his arms throughout the night...
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Meanwhile, Harry stepped into his shower as well, a smile inescapably playing across his lips. Last night had been wonderful; he hadn't slept that well in ages. Try as he might, Harry was unable to deny that he was, without a doubt, falling for Draco Malfoy. Surprisingly enough, he felt no guilty feelings over it whatsoever. How could he feel guilty over someone who made him so happy? Harry's smile grew as he rubbed soap over his chest and back, remembering Draco's strong arms holding him and comforting him...
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In the other room, Draco had just finished with his shower. He stepped out and wrapped a towel around his waist. Hearing the sound of water running coming from Harry's bathroom, his thoughts again began to wander...
"Stop it, Draco," he growled after a moment, shaking his head. Grabbing another towel, he began drying his hair. A few moments later, he heard the water turn off, and he swore under his breath – he had forgotten to have the house elves place new towels in the guest bathroom. Draco picked up another towel from the rack and headed through the passageway to Harry's bedroom, only to run face first into a tan... chiseled... dripping wet body...
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Harry finished his shower rather quickly and stepped out. Looking around for towels, he groaned – the rack was empty. He opened the door and stuck his head out. "Draco?" he called, none too loudly. At the responding silence, Harry bit his lip and ventured out into the bedroom. "Keeps all the bloody towels to himself," he muttered in amused exasperation, moving towards the passageway to the master bedroom. Before he could get very far, he was knocked right off his feet by one Draco Malfoy. One perfectly pale... toned... half naked Draco Malfoy.
Harry landed on the ground with a thud, Draco falling on top of him. The two stared into each others' eyes for a moment before both blushing almost simultaneously.
"Er, I haven't got... any towels...," Harry said, turning even more red. "Obviously."
"Yeah, I was just... bringing you one...," Draco replied, gesturing towards the spare towel on the ground beside them.
"Right, thanks."
"No problem."
After a lengthy pause, Harry cleared his throat and raised an eyebrow.
Draco blinked at him stupidly. Seconds later, the thought registered that he was atop Harry – naked Harry! – and he rushed to stand up. However, in the process of doing so, his towel caught beneath his knee and fell off.
As both men were now rather... well, exposed, the two spent a long minute gaping at each other before coming to their senses.
Draco snatched up his fallen towel and hurried to cover himself, while Harry did the same while struggling to stand up.
"Er... thanks," Harry squeaked, before fleeing to the guest bedroom.
"Fucking hell," Draco groaned, running a hand through his tousled hair.
x
Harry threw himself back onto the bed with a moan. He had managed to ward off all sexual thoughts of Draco throughout his shower, but fuck... that body! He willed his threatening erection away, forcing himself to remember Ginny.
After he had sufficiently composed himself, Harry pulled on a pair of Gryffindor red and gold boxers, along with a small pair of denims and an old Quidditch jersey. Taking a deep breath, he steeled himself and ventured out to find the kitchen.
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Fifteen minutes later, Harry was growing very frustrated; the kitchen was nowhere to be found! He frowned and angrily kicked at a closed door. Seconds later, the door swung open to reveal Draco, wearing an old, faded pair of denims and a plain black t-shirt.
"Harry, there you are, I thought you were never coming!" he said distractedly, opening the door further. "Come in, I'm making breakfast."
Surprised, Harry followed him in silently and took a seat on a bar stool next to the tall table.
Draco placed a plate full of French toast in front of him, along with syrup and a tall glass of pumpkin juice. "I hope you like French toast, it's really all we have on hand. How fitting, since we're in France!" he laughed nervously. "I'm sorry if they're a little cold, it's just it took you so long to get here! I was afraid you weren't coming... But I can warm them up for you, if you'd like," he rambled, reaching for his wand to cast a spell to warm the food.
"No, no, they're fine!" Harry assured him, taking a bite. "Delicious, in fact, thank you." After swallowing, he continued, grumbling, "And I would have gotten here earlier, but I got lost. You and your fancy houses."
Draco chuckled under his breath. "Yes, they're a bit big. I can give you a tour, though, after you eat. That is, if you want to," he said, beginning to ramble again.
Harry noticed how jumpy the blonde was being, and he smirked to himself. "Hey, Draco," he said. At Draco's nervous look, he smiled. "Relax, eh? Take a load off, have some food. They really are good."
Draco took a deep breath and sat down across from Harry. "Sorry," he smiled. "I'm just feeling a little... anxious, for some reason."
Snorting and rolling his eyes, Harry replied teasingly, "Couldn't be that we slept together last night? As well as getting quite the eyeful this morning?"
At Draco's astounded look, Harry chuckled. He cut a piece off his French toast, putting the bite in the blonde's gaping mouth and then closing it.
Draco recovered and stuck his tongue out at the brunette before chewing the bite. After he had finished chewing, he flushed slightly and answered, "We didn't sleep together... in that sense."
"I'm aware of that," Harry teased again. Draco shot him an exasperated look, and he laughed. "I know what you mean. Just eat your breakfast, hmm? Then you can take me on that tour of this bloody place."
"Okay," Draco replied, looking somewhat relieved.
The two spent the rest of the meal in comfortable silence, although Draco was sure he caught Harry watching him at times.
x
Later that day, Harry collapsed onto one of the sofas in the estate's built-in home theater. "That has got to be the longest tour I've ever been on," he grumbled.
Draco chuckled. "Well, now that you know your way around, would it be alright if I step out to pick up a few things?"
"Yeah, sure," Harry mumbled. "Normally, I'd put up a fuss about how I'd like to come and be a tourist, but I can't be bothered with getting up at the moment."
"Lazy arse," Draco teased. "I'll be back later, then," he continued, walking towards the door.
"Bye, Draco," Harry called. Then he added, "And shut up about my arse!"
Draco grinned.
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