Disclaimer: Harry Potter and etc, belong to the lovely J.K. Rowling. If I could only see into her mind for a day – the wonders I would see! (Jin is mine. I suppose Darren is too.)
Warnings: Non-magic, AU, Language, OOC, MALE ON MALE RELATIONSHIP(S)!!! I warned you, don't bitch to me.
A Lover's Passion – Chapter Ten
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The Narcissa appearance here was mostly the work of Dark Nuriko, since I struggled with her character. Thank you.
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Draco bounded into Harry's apartment, which they had left only hours ago, a happy smile on his lips. He was more than determined not to let last night get him, and was having one of the best days ever.
The same probably couldn't be said for Harry though. He didn't appear to have enjoyed their early morning painting session, preferring to sit on his favourite grassy knoll sipping coffee and staring at the fairly busy city. How it could possibly be this busy, this early, Harry had no idea.
So Draco painted, and Harry sat there, silently, and sometimes loudly, wishing he was still in bed.
He did brighten up considerably when Draco finally took him to get breakfast. Digging into his ham and eggs, he managed to compliment the sunrise that morning, but stopped short of saying that Draco had had a good idea of getting up to paint it.
Draco just went along with everything, as if nothing had ever happened to threaten his life or happiness. He criticized Harry's eating habits, and got into a fight over manners, of which Harry insisted he had some – just not a lot, and Draco insisted he had none at all.
"Look, you can't even hold your knife properly! You are going to stab someone if you keep using it like that. And it will most likely be yourself!"
"Ergh! If I'm lucky, it'll be you I stab while holding a steak knife! Just because you grew up in a bloody manor with proper manners and butlers and whatever else, doesn't mean everyone else learned the same set of manners you did! I don't particularly care which fork I use for salad, thanks!"
"Well, you could stand to learn them!"
"I don't want too!"
It finally ended with them both glaring at each other and silently finishing their meals in whatever manner they chose.
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Harry walked into the apartment after the blond, and dropped onto the couch. Draco gracefully lowered himself into the chair beside it.
"Why are you still here? You did your painting, now you can go watch it dry in your studio."
Draco leaned forward, resting his elbows on the arm of the chair to support himself. "Because that's not any fun. You are though. Besides, you saved me. What if I need saving again?"
"You won't." Harry said, ignoring his closeness.
"I might." He whispered close to Harry's ear.
Harry struggled not to squirm from the tickling sensation that breath of air caused. "No, you won't. Because you're never going to that club again. And I don't think you should go to any other ones for awhile."
"Just who are you to dictate my actions? I'll go wherever I please." Draco sat back, smirking since Harry couldn't see it, happy that his actions hadn't been wasted.
"You do it to me all the time. What was that this morning?"
"Ah, you are right. I suppose I do that occasionally."
"Occasionally? Try all the bloody time!"
"Oh hush. I do not. Well, I suppose I'll leave you for now. Be ready by 3 though, and try to look decent will you? Maybe one of those shirts I picked for you yesterday."
"What? Why?"
"Because we have to be at my mother's for tea at 4, silly. What did you think? That we were going on a date?"
"No! And why am I going to tea at your mother's? I've never spoken to the woman in my life!"
"Don't talk about my mother like that. It's most rude. We were both invited. Apparently, Jin's been talking to her. Most likely told her something along the lines that we have been spending a great deal of time together, and that we make a good couple."
"Wait a second. Your cousin is telling your mother we'd make a good couple? Why?"
"Some little plan of his probably. You should expect a little matchmaking as well. My mother enjoys that. Be wary of what you say though. Besides promising something suitable like a date, try not to get in too far, like marrying me and allowing me to have intercourse with some woman so the Malfoy name can be carried on. I don't think you're ready to commit that much to our relationship just yet."
"WHAT! Why the hell would she try and get me to agree to THAT? As if I would! And we don't have a relationship to speak of! Friends! Just friends! Do you remember that? You were the one who seduced me in the first place!"
"I believe it was you who seduced me. I distinctly remember it as you kissing me, not the other way around."
"You were the one lying there looking all sexy and desirable!" Harry gasped, clamping a hand over his mouth.
Draco turned towards him, an amused grin on his mouth. "I beg your pardon? I think you just said I was 'sexy and desirable'. Do you have something you want to tell me, perhaps?"
Harry shook his head. "I don't have anything to tell you. I didn't say a thing."
"Very well. See you at three, Harry." Draco said, showing himself out.
Harry dropped his head in his hands and groaned. "I shouldn't have said that. I really shouldn't have said that…"
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When 3 O'clock rolled around, it found Harry still anxiously trying on his new dress shirts to find the best one, and perhaps a tie. It seemed he didn't own a tie though. Slamming the side of his pinkie finger in the drawer, he let out a yell of pain and frustration.
"What the devil are you doing in here, Potter?" Draco asked, appearing suddenly in the bedroom door.
"AHHH! What are you doing in here?" Harry said, having quickly recovered from his surprise.
"The front door was unlocked, so I came in to see what you were doing."
"Just because it's unlocked, doesn't mean you can just waltz in like it's your own apartment."
"Well, with all the yelling and cursing you were doing, I doubt you would have heard me knocking. Here." He went over to the bed and picked up one of the least rumpled shirts of all that Harry had tried on. Black silk slid wonderfully over Harry's arms and shoulders as he was helped into it, Draco doing up the buttons as if he was a child.
"There. Now you at least look presentable."
"I would have been fine without your help. But thank you."
"You're welcome. Now, let's get going. It's a bit of a drive to mother's, and we can't be late."
"Oh no. Mustn't be late. Wouldn't do at all." Harry mocked.
"Watch it, Potter. You're lucky it's only a curious tea. It could be far worse."
"I don't see how."
Grimacing, Draco straightened his collar and ignored Harry.
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"Welcome, dear. Lovely to see you. You really should get out of that studio more often and come visit your dear mum… and I suppose this is Mr. Potter? Nice to meet you, dear. Come in, come in, I won't have you standing on the doorstep all evening…" Narcissa greeted the both of them.
"Hello mother, yes, this is Harry, and I do go out. I went out last night and nearly died, all right with you?"
"Don't talk to your mother that way, Draco. I taught you better manners than that." Narcissa admonished him.
Draco lifted a sleek eyebrow in Harry's direction, clearly saying 'I told you so.'
Harry rolled his eyes. His manners were fine. "Thank you, Mrs. Malfoy. It was nice to be invited. Even if Draco neglected to tell me until just this morning."
"Draco! You must give your guests more advance warning than just that. Really, where have your manners gone? Mr. Potter seems to have a fine set of them. Maybe you should borrow a few."
Draco glared. Harry grinned.
"Why, thank you, Mrs. Malfoy. But I'm sure Draco's are better than mine. Just this morning he was complaining about how I held my knife."
"Draco, it took me four years to teach you how to hold one properly. You can't judge anyone else." Narcissa said, leading them into the drawing room. "And call me Narcissa, dear. Mrs. Malfoy makes me feel older than I am."
Draco's glare deepened, and Harry looked positively elated. "I'll do that, Narcissa." He looked around the new room he found himself in.
"You have a very lovely home from what I've seen so far. Draco was very lucky to grow up in such a place. Is that a Van Gogh on the wall there? Amazing."
"Oh, yes it is. My husband bought it for my birthday one year. Knowing him though, it's probably a fake."
"Well, even still, it's a lovely painting and the sunflowers really brighten up the room."
"Why thank you. That's nice of you to say." Narcissa said, glowing a little at the compliment. They sat, Draco and Harry on the couch – though Draco chose to sit as far away as possible, while Narcissa had the chair near them.
A young little maid came in, and set a silver tea service on the table next to Narcissa.
"Thank you, Bitty." She said as the maid made a polite little bow and left the room. "How do you take your tea, Harry?" She asked, pouring some of the warm liquid into a fine china teacup.
"Quite a lot of sugar and a bit of milk. Ruins it perhaps, but I like it so I can taste the sugar."
Narcissa nodded and handed him the cup and saucer before fixing Draco's, already knowing how he liked his.
"Jin tells me the two of you have been spending a lot of time together." Narcissa stated, getting right to the point.
"Yes, that's true. We have been." Harry confirmed.
"He's in my class mother, I invited him out for coffee a couple times, nothing to it."
"Jin doesn't seem to think so. He tells me you make a… 'cute couple'."
"Jin thinks everyone makes a cute couple." Draco told her, rolling his eyes.
"Draco, don't say things like that about your family. And he must have had a reason." She said, eyeing the two of them over the rim of her cup.
"Even if he did, it's not the kind of thing I relish discussing with my mother."
"Draco!" Narcissa admonished him. "Really! I won't take that from you in my own home!"
"I'm sorry, Narcissa, I don't know what's wrong with him. He was happy this morning."
"Well, maybe I would be happier if someone wasn't getting all cosy with my mother! Especially since that someone didn't want to come in the first place!"
"I apologize, Narcissa. Apparently, Draco wasn't as eager to have me meet you as he made it seem he was."
"That's all right. He's just having an off day. Drink your tea, dear." She assured him.
Harry did as he was told, sipping the warm liquid. "As for our… relationship, your son and I are not dating. He has made it more than plain that he wishes to have a relationship with me, but I told him I only wanted to be friends. I've promised him to think about it, and who knows? With a few recent events, I might be changing my mind. As irritable as he is now, he's an amazing young man, and you should be proud." He sat back, taking another sip of the tea.
Narcissa raised a single blond eyebrow, which arched beautifully, and looked at Harry. "Draco wants more and you don't? If you think he's an amazing young man, then why not give it a chance?" she asked, casting a glance at her son.
Harry flushed and set down his cup. "Well, no, that's not really what I meant. I mean, he is amazing, as in what he's achieved and done in his life. Many people our age have yet to do even half of what he has. I just disagree that we would make a good couple."
"Well, dear, if you disagree about being a good couple, why even mention that you might change your mind."
"Um... because I told him I would think about it. Look, I just had a terrible break up not that long ago, and I realized some things about myself. So I've decided not to date anyone for a while. Your son included."
Narcissa shook her head, clucking her tongue. "Oh dear. If that's the case, you shouldn't have given Draco any hope. You'll just hurt him later on should you not want to be with him," she murmured, as if worried for her son's heart, which she knew would survive anything. After all, he was a Malfoy.
"I... uhh... er, I didn't think of that actually. But it doesn't matter; he'd be more hurt with me."
Narcissa snorted, but with her, it still sounded lady-like. "Oh, tish-tosh. Unrequited love always hurts worse than giving it a chance and it not working."
Harry just gaped at her. He didn't have any arguments left for this woman. He turned to Draco. "Do something will you?" He hissed at him.
Draco turned a bored look on him. "And what, pray tell, do you expect me to do? She's my mother, making arguments in my favor. I have nothing to say."
Harry stared again, made a strangled noise in his throat, and drank more tea. Maybe he would choke on it, and this nightmare would end.
He did choke slightly, but Draco merely thumped him on the back before addressing his mother. "Thank you mother, but I don't mind waiting a little for Harry. He'll make the right decision soon."
Narcissa smiled sweetly. "Oh, of course he will, Draco. I was just hoping he'd stop toying with you before you really got hurt. I don't want a repeat of you hiding in your room for a month."
Now, the fact that Draco had hid in his room was because of something very embarrassing. Something he would never tell Harry, which also played into Narcissa's matchmaking plans.
"Mother... don't. Please. I'm not going to get hurt. I have a solution." Draco said, looking a little frightened at what she might share.
Harry was a little curious now. He wondered what had kept Draco hidden in his room for a month, but he didn't want Narcissa to keep trying to set them up. And he had a feeling that this story would be part of it.
Narcissia sighed, sitting back and pouting softly. "Well, do let me know if your status changes, won't you?
"Will do, m'am."
Narcissa smiled and nodded, before snapping at Draco to straighten up.
Draco just sighed, and let Harry and his mother talk about other things in their lives.
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Harry opened the door to his apartment later that evening, and Draco breezed in after him. It seemed he no longer liked to live in his own apartment.
"Well." Draco stated.
Harry rolled his eyes. "Well what, Draco? And are you ever going home?"
"Not right now, I'm not." He flopped down onto the chair. "You and my mother seemed to get along."
"You wanted us too. Is that why you're so snotty today? We acted civil together, she complimented my manners and invited me back at anytime – with or without you. Is that the problem?"
"Yes." Draco pouted.
Harry sighed, and ran a hand through his brunet locks, sticking them up further. "You are absolutely impossible. You know that don't you? Thank the stars I said no to you. Ha! As if that helped! I still have to deal with your crap everyday!"
"We don't even see each other every day. Maybe every other."
"There you go again! Do you have to separate every little thing! Geez!"
Draco stared at him. "I think we switched somewhere in between walking in the door and sitting down. You're angry, I'm calm."
Harry stared at him. He sat down on the couch, his head in his hands, and laughed. Loudly, and for quite a number of minutes.
Finally, Draco looked at him with a bored expression and asked; "Are you quite done?"
Harry wiped the tears from his eyes. "Y-yeah. I'm done."
"Good."
Harry leaned forward over the couch, to the chair, getting right into Draco's personal space. "Draco Malfoy, you are something else." He told him, moving even closer and kissing the rather surprised blond.
It was over before he could say anything, and Harry was up and moving away. "Now, get your clothes and get out of my apartment." He said, shutting the door to the bathroom on anything Draco might protest.
Draco sat there, shocked expression painted on his face. Slowly, he went and gathered up his clothes, deciding to give Harry's back to him next time, and left.
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Harry let his head fall back against the door as he heard Draco leave.
'About time.'He thought to himself. He hadn't really known what he was doing, but this whole day and the night before had been absolutely insane. He stripped of his clothes and got into the shower. Maybe if he just slept, he would wake up and everything would be normal. He knew it wasn't a dream. That was the only thing he knew for sure.
And maybe you just need to stop ignoring everything, and admit you like him as more than a friend. Maybe even love him.
Harry didn't know where this inner voice was coming from, he quickly shut it up. It was wrong. Completely wrong.
The inner voice just sighed and wished for a heavy object – like a frying pan - to hit Harry over the head with. Maybe then he would finally get it.
Sometimes admitting you were falling in love took a very long while.
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