Disclaimer: I don't own, J.K. Rowling and friends don't sue... Deal?
cinnamin: ROFL. I'm going to take that as a hint that you want slash and soon? Lol. Don't worry babe, it's coming. It just might be a while. I'm not one to write smut for smut's sake. Plus, I've never written slash before, so I'm scared.
fanandfuturewriter: Thank you sweetie. That's what I was trying for because hey, let's face it, that's life. Nothing is completely perfect, but you can always find happiness if you look.
hpbrat2: Thank you! I've got three chapters coming your way now.
GalynSolo: Read on to find out dear! And let me apologize for the confusion. I went back to read that section and realized that it came across as Lucius's trial coming after Narcissa's that day. I meant it as his trial being the next trial to come up, but on a different day. Two trials in one day seemed a little cruel to put Harry through.
Guest: Mego? Is that you? It reads like you. I'm glad you enjoyed it hon. Aw! Does that thought of Harry maturing make you blush? Lol. I just like to think of him teetering on that edge between childhood and adulthood like most seventeen year-olds. They have theri moments of maturity, but they can still be silly and fatuitous.
twypsn.78: Thank you!
Roz just Roz: Hehehe. It was such a serious chapter. It needed a bit of levity. Thank you!
Author's Note 1: I am so very, very, very, very, VERY sorry that it's taken me so long to update. I had a story float into my head for a Criminal Minds fanfic and it wouldn't leave me alone until I wrote it out. Couldn't stop until I was at 30,000 words on the subject. O.O Anyway, thank you all for being so patient and sticking with me! You all are awesome!
Author's Note 2: I know this is completely off subject, but one, I just realized it actually have two pages of comments O.O and that people are actually favoriting, not just following, me and my stories. I nearly had a heartattack! You have to understand, I think most of what I write is terrible, that's why I'm such a review whore (constant reassurance), so to realize that people actually like what I write is palpatation worthy! Thank you all! You're awesome, amazing wonderful people and I'm sending you all internet kisses. :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-* :-*
Harry finally managed to get away from the reporters and apparate home. It took three hours and the promise of private interviews with Witch Weekly and The Quibbler before he could, but he did by Merlin! Making a short stop by the remains of Malfoy Manor, he appeared in his living room to find anxiously awaiting friends and… friend's mother.
"Finally! Where have you been Potter? We've been worried sick!" Severus exclaimed, the tight hug he gave the raven-haired teen belying his supposed irritation.
Narcissa came next, smile widely despite the concerned lines still marking her brow. "You really should have sent on owl or a patronus to at least let us know you were ok."
Harry was baffled at the real anxiousness tingeing the Malfoy matriarch's voice. He barely knew the woman! Yes, she'd saved his life in the Forbidden Forest and he'd just kept her from a life sentence in Azkaban, or worse, but that was no reason for the obvious amount of real care she was showing him.
Draco came forward and silently gave Harry a near-suffocating squeeze. He felt slight shaking in the blonde's arms and Harry found himself offering silent comfort. He didn't even notice the look Narcissa and Severus exchanged when he started to softly rub Draco's back. "I'm home. I'm safe. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you worry." He murmured to the young man in his arms. "I promise I'll owl next time."
Draco nodded against his chest and reluctantly let go, his silver-eyes swimming with the promise that they'd talk more later. "So how'd it go Harry?"
Harry smiled. "The interviews were terrible, but with Rita Skeeter there I didn't expect anything less. Did you get out without too many problems?"
Narcissa nodded, settling back onto the couch. "A few people spit curses at us, but other than that, it was uneventful. Did the interviews really take so long? It seems you would have gotten out of there as soon as possible."
The Boy-Who-Lived laughed and settled onto the love seat across from her, jerking lightly on Draco's shirt in order to get the blond to sit next to him. Severus had already returned to his chair by the fire. "I tried my best. And I did have to make one quick stop before I came home."
He silently withdrew three shrunken packages from inside his robes. Tapping them lightly, they grew to their appropriate sizes, and Harry levitated them to their respective recipients. Narcissa gasped and her eyes welled with tears when she saw the good majority of her jewelry sitting in her lap. Draco's hand found Harry's knee and squeezed tightly at the sight of the family photo albums in his box, all of the pictures that had included Lucius suspiciously missing save one family portrait that had been taken right before Voldemort's return. Severus, who had received only a yearbook from his final year in Hogwarts, sent Harry a small smile. They were the only two that knew the significance of the one picture Harry had circled in there.
"Malfoy Manor was almost completely destroyed, and most of it had been ransacked." Harry said, breaking the silence that settled over the room. "I wish I could have saved more, but out of what was left, those seemed to be the best to grab."
Narcissa nodded, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye. "It was more than I ever hoped for. Thank you Harry."
He blushed to the roots of his hair and stared resolutely into his lap. He knew what it was like to lose everything. Even the small reminders of home helped keep you sane. It had been his photo album of his parents and friends that kept him going during the past year while he was hunting horcruxes. "Are you hungry?" Harry asked, suddenly enraptured by the carpet pattern. "I know the food in Azkaban was probably unpleasant."
"Kreacher has already fed us dear, but I'm sure a spot of tea or chocolate wouldn't go amiss." Mrs. Malfoy replied with a soft smile, although Harry wasn't looking up to see it. "And Kreacher has already shown me to my room. It's the one next to Severus's, if that's alright. He and Draco have been telling me about the parties you throw here on weekends, and I wouldn't want to take a room that one of your friends had claimed as their own."
"It was Hermione's room before the war." Harry replied, "But she shares with Ron now, so it's no problem. And could we please have some chocolate? Dealing with reporters always makes me a bit shaky."
"It's your house Harry. Why are you asking permission?" Narcissa laughed and called for Kreacher, who appeared immediately. "I believe Harry is feeling a little peaked. Would you mind bring us a some chocolate?" Harry couldn't help arching his brow at the polite way she addressed Kreacher. "Draco told me you preferred to be civil to your elves." She said by way of explanation. "Personally, I prefer it as well. They're still living beings after all."
"Do not, whatever you do, say that in front of Hermione." He warned with his first real smile since he'd given them the things he's managed to salvage from Malfoy Manor. "You will find yourself recruited into S.P.E.W. before you can blink."
"S.P.E.W.?"
"You really do not want to know Mother." Draco said from beside Harry.
Narcissa nodded but still looked curious. Harry couldn't wait for the next party. He just knew the woman would ask and Hermione would go into crusade-mode. Mrs. Malfoy didn't stand a chance.
Kreacher came back in just then with a tray of chocolate, and, to Harry's delight, miniature treacle tarts. Ever the perfect hostess, despite the fact she was in someone else's home, Narcissa passed everyone a cup and offered up the platter of tarts. Harry accepted both gratefully. "Are you sure you're ok Harry dear?"
"Yes ma'am." Harry mumbled around the treacle he had just stuffed in his mouth, earning him a disapproving glance from Draco. "It's just been a long day."
"And you're to have another long day tomorrow Harry." Severus said from behind his mug. "You're to testify as Lucius's trial and I believe the minister wishes for you to give your statements regarding the lack of charges filed against myself and Draco immediately afterwards." He gave his former student a firm look. "That means you must get to bed a decent hour young man. If you need me to, I have a Dreamless Sleep potion you can take to help you rest."
Harry blanched. He hated potions of any sort since second-year and the Skele-Gro. It was only compounded by sixth year and the incident in the cave with Dumbledore. But he also knew he'd never get any sleep tonight if he didn't take it. He'd be kept awake worrying that his testimony wouldn't be enough to get Mr. Malfoy the Kiss. "Thank you Sev. I'd really appreciate it."
The Potion's Master nodded once and went back to staring into the flames. Uncomfortable in the resulting silence, Harry quickly finished his chocolate and stood to leave. "I'm going to go to Diagon Alley and pick up some extra books from Flourish and Blott's. I'm falling behind in History of Magic. Would anyone like to join me?"
Narcissa shook her head. "I believe I'm going to hide for a bit. Give the wizarding world some time to calm down."
Severus simply stared at Harry as if he were an idiot. Sighing dramatically, Draco stood. "I'll come with you Harry. Care of Magical Creatures is giving me a bit of trouble. Some extra material may help."
~*~GREY~*~
"Perhaps I should have stayed home." Draco whispered in an undertone after yet another passerby hissed threats at him.
Harry glowered, casting a Notice-Me-Not spell over the both of them. "No. You shouldn't have. You didn't do anything wrong. These so-called 'good people' need to learn not to make assumptions about things they know nothing about."
The blond laughed. "They're humans, just like us Harry. Of course they're going to assume. Especially with all the bad publicity my family has at the present moment." He nodded toward a copy of that morning's Prophet as an example. The headline screamed Narcissa Malfoy to be Tried Today! Another Deatheater to Receive the Kiss?
The brunette rolled his eyes, muttering darkly under his breath about buying the Prophet and firing the whole staff. "It doesn't make it right."
"Can you say you're innocent?" Draco asked, walking a little closer to Harry as they made their way through an especially crowded area of the busy shopping district. "After all, you've even admitted to hating Slytherin from the beginning, when you knew nothing about the school, houses, or people, just because someone told you that it produced dark wizards. And you allowed a six-year fight with me just because the Weasel." Harry glared at his companion. "Sorry. Just because Ron told you that I was destined to be dark like my father."
"I'm pretty sure your attitude didn't help that one along any Dray." Harry replied. "But I see your point. Doesn't stop me from wanting to hex them all, but I see your point."
Draco chuckled and shook his head. "Damn Gryffindorks and their tempers."
"Better than Slimyrins and their sneakiness. Oh. Excuse me. I meant cunningness." Harry shot back with a grin, visibly relaxing with the banter. "So what was it you wanted to say earlier?"
"When?"
"In the parlor. When I got home. You wanted to say something, but you stopped yourself."
Draco flushed. "I just wanted to say thank-you. Having my mother back, essentially free, is amazing and it's all thanks to you."
Harry arced a brow at the blond, not believing him for a moment. "And you couldn't say that in front of your mother and Severus because…"
Because that's not the way I wanted to word it then and I don't know if mother will accept my sexuality or even if you're gay. Draco thought, but said instead. "Because you did this as a favor to me and it seemed more appropriate that I thank you in private. Here we are!"
The blond slipped inside the bookstore before Harry could ask him anymore questions. Shaking his head at the blonde's defection, he followed, immediately heading to the history section even while he kept one eye on the head of white blond hair bobbing through the sea of books. He found many texts that looked like they would help, and, with a laugh, even Hogwarts, A History in what looked like the wizarding version of Spark Notes. The cover boasted that you could tap a certain section with your wand and receive practice tests and essay questions seen on former O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. exams to help you study. He picked that one as his extra resource.
Holding the book tightly in his hand, he noted with a relieved smile that the Notice-Me-Not was still in effect. Not a single soul had said a word to either himself or Draco during their time in the bookstore. Silently, he made his way behind his former foe and tapped the boy lightly on the shoulder. "Are you ready to go?"
Draco nodded absently, handing off three Care of Magical Creatures texts to Harry while continuing to peruse the shelf in front of him. Harry saw a version of The Monster Book of Monsters in the same style of the History of Magic text he'd picked up and grabbed it for Draco as well. "Is there anything else you want to get while we're here?"
Draco pulled an advanced potions manual from the shelf and added it to the stack in Harry's arms. "Would it be possible to stop by Madam Malkin's? I've been transfiguring the clothes you and Sev let me borrow and my mother only has the clothes on her back… literally."
Harry gaped and felt like slapping himself. He'd completely forgotten about clothes for his household. Severus had been taken care of, of course, since they'd retrieved all of his belongings from Hogwarts during one of their first trips to help with the reconstruction, but Harry hadn't even thought about Draco. And now he had Narcissa to worry about too!
"Come on Draco!" Harry said, shifting the books into one arm. "I can't believe I didn't think to get you new clothes before!"
Draco laughed and trailed the brunette to the counter. "Don't worry. I've been doing fine with transfigured clothes. But male clothes won't transfigure properly for Mother so we should really get her some dresses."
"You know what she likes, correct?" Harry asked, sliding five galleons and a knut to the cashier.
"Of course."
"Then we'll stop by Madam Malkin's and outfit both you and Narcissa. You pick the clothes. I'll foot the bill."
Draco gaped after Harry as the teenager shrunk the package of books and slipped them in his pockets. Quickly, he hurried after the brunette as he practically marched from the store. "Harry, are you sure you want to do that?"
Harry stopped in the middle of the street, turning to face Draco. "You are my friend. Your mother is under my care. With your funds frozen pending the outcome of your father's trial, I should have realized you needed your own clothes and taken you to get some weeks ago. As it stands, I'm going to take care of that now. And don't tell me I don't have to, because I do. Sirius left everything to me, including the title of Lord Black. That means that your mother, and you, are my responsibility. Plus," He sucked in a deep breath, "you are… Severus pointed out… There are some things we need to talk about. Not the least of which being that I'm at least bisexual. According to Charlie I'm completely gay since I refer to breasts as being there but I've never dated a man so I'm not really sure. And I'm pretty sure that…"
His ramble was stopped by Draco's doubled over laughter. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry." He gasped out, still breaking in sporadic guffaws. "It's just. It's too funny when you rattle on like that." Slowly, he straightened and gave Harry a hug. "I don't care that you're a ponce." He flushed and lightly chuckled. "How can I when I'm one too."
The brunette grinned as if Christmas had just come early. "Really?"
Draco nodded, still hugging Harry. "I figured it out fourth year. You?"
"Umm… A few weeks ago at the Weasley's. Charlie helped me figure it out."
The blond ignored the surge of jealousy that statement brought and cocked one white-blond eyebrow. "Really? Do I want to know?"
Harry laughed and pushed Draco away. "Nothing like what you're thinking. He told me he was bi and asked what I was. I admitted I didn't know and he asked me a lot of questions until I figured out that I stare more at y… at other boy's than I ever did at Ginny. I never thought you'd be though. Charlie said most old pureblood families are homophobic."
Draco flushed and ducked his head. "They are." He admitted quietly, and Harry, realizing the connotations behind that, pulled the blond in for another hug, uncaring of how it looked to a passerby. "Can you please not mention this to Mother?"
"Your secret's safe with me." He assured his friend, squeezing tightly. "Who does know?"
"Severus, Blaise, and Theodore Nott. You?"
"Charlie, Severus, and most of the Weasley clan by now. Charlie isn't known for his ability to keep a secret. Which also means Dean, Neville, Seamus, and Luna probably know as well since Ginny would have told Dean, Dean would have told Seamus and so on."
"Have they said anything to you about it?"
Harry shrugged. "Not really. I caught Ron giving me a couple funny looks when you and I were dancing the other night, but other than that, nothing."
"Would they? If they knew?"
"Maybe. Depends. Ron and Hermione are probably just waiting for a chance to get me alone, but you and Severus are always around nowadays. The other will probably wait for me to tell them myself."
"Will you?"
"Eventually. We still need to heal from the deaths of our friends and family. Then there's the rebuild. Ron and Hermione have decided to retake their seventh year at Hogwarts instead of studying for the N.E.W.T.S and taking them at the Ministry, and they're going to need all the support they can get. I'd rather focus on making sure my family is happy and healthy than do some big production of coming out."
"Why does it have to be a big production? Why not just tell them all when they come over this weekend?"
Harry shrugged. "Why do you want me to?"
Draco shook his head. "Because they care about you and will be hurt the longer you wait to tell them. This is an important part of your life. They'll want to be privy to it. You should tell them."
Harry sighed. The things he'd do when Draco turned those damn puppy-dog eyes on him. "Fine Dray. I'll tell them. But you've got to tell your mum at the same time." He held up a hand to stave off the protests. "No. Listen to me. She loves you, unconditionally, like a mother should. She's not going to care. I'm going to guess your father beat it into you that you couldn't be gay." Draco nodded reluctantly. "Did your mother ever agree with him? Did she ever tell you that it was wrong? Or that she didn't approve of it? In your entire life, there had to be some point when you passed a same-sex couple on the street or saw in them in one of the shops. Surely she said something."
The blond shook his head. "Never. Father would always comment on how disgusting it was, but Mother would either stay quiet or tell Father to keep his voice down and that such base judgments were beneath us."
The Boy-Who-Lived gave a short bark of laughter. "Honestly Draco, that sounds like an aristocrat's way of saying "Shut up and stop being such an idiot." Just tell her. I'm sure she'll be ok with it."
"And if she's not?" Draco asked in an impossibly small voice.
Harry squeezed Draco tightly. "Then you'll still have me and Severus and I'll ship your mother off to some hole in the wall shack the Black's own in Wales."
"Harry!" Laughing, the brunette rubbed the spot where the blond had just punched him. "That's not funny!"
He shrugged. "I thought it was pretty good. Come on my fellow poof, let's go shopping."
~*~Read and Review Please!~*~
