Chapter 14 is finally finished! I wanted to make the best out of it and had a really busy weekend, so that's why it's a little later! Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about you guys! This will be the one but last chapter, I think... or maybe I'll do an epilogue after... :D

Enjoy for now!

Chapter 14
Another chance

After all, it was merely a lucky chance that saved you from me.
-Tom Marvolo Riddle, The Chambers of Secrets-

Harry looked around the Great Hall, searching for a certain Slytherin. He scanned the Slytherin table and found him sitting alone. He walked over to him and plopped down on the bench next to him. This was it. He had once chance.

"Here you are. Aren't you joining us?" Harry questioned. Malfoy looked up, a frown on his face. He left his cutlery for what it was, slightly turning away from Harry.

"Of course not." His tone was icy.

"I... I'm so sorry Malfoy. I – I shouldn't have pushed you away, but I was confused and scared that you'd be disappointed in me."

"You got that part right," Malfoy sneered. But Harry could see how hard he was trying to hide the pain and tears. Harry wanted to reach out to him and pull him close, caressing those soft locks and whispering soothing words in his ear. But remained where he was. Malfoy deserved an explanation.

"I've figured it out now. I want to try again." The Slytherin's head shot to the side, throwing a piercing glance at Harry.

"You can't do that to me again, Potter! Losing you once was hard enough as it was. You just need to stay away for good. It'll be better for both of us." With those words, Malfoy got up from his chair and left the Great Hall, an unfinished plate. A dumbfounded Harry was left behind, along with a small gust of wind where he had passed by, carrying a trace of his scent.

What was this supposed to mean? Did Malfoy not want him any longer? Harry's heart sank into his shoes. Malfoy really was disappointed in him. Harry should have known he couldn't live up to his previous self. He just wasn't the same anymore. Different things had happened. He was a different person. A person Malfoy didn't love.

He got up from the Slytherin table and slowly made his way to his friends. He sat down, feeling defeated. He had thought confessing what was really going on inside his mind would have made Malfoy realize that he actually cared about the man. Maybe Malfoy thought he was making a fool out of him. Either way, Malfoy had given up on him. The memories in his dreams would never become reality. And he would never know how it felt like to be loved by Malfoy.

"What happened?" Hermione asked. Harry shrugged in reply, staring at his hands. He couldn't grasp what happened himself, let alone explain it to someone else. "What did he say?" Hermione urged him to reply.

"It's over. He doesn't want me anymore." Ron looked up from his plate, a thoughtful glance on his face. He swallowed his food and cleared his throat.

"Look Harry. Of course he says he doesn't want you anymore. He's been hurt. He thinks you don't love him anymore and he feels you're just confused and taking him back out of pity. You have to convince him that you're serious this time. Show him that you mean business. Prove to him that you are going to stick around this time." Hermione had an admiring glaze in her eyes.

"Ron. You…" she stammered. Ron instantly turned red.

"What?" he exclaimed.

"That was very clever." She kept looking at Ron, as if it was the first time she saw him, then leaned over and kissed him. Harry looked at his two best friends. Ron could have a point. But right now, he couldn't think about anything else but the tormented look in Malfoy's eyes.

Harry waited in front of the Potion's classroom with the other students. Horace Slughorn would be their professor, until the school found another applicant for the job. Harry dreaded the lesson, since professor Slughorn's obsession with him had only increased upon winning the war. They each took t their seat around a cauldron, Hermione teaming up with Ron. Harry took the one next to them, feeling slightly out of his element as he usually sat with Malfoy. The blonde didn't sit next to him.

On the board, the instructions for today's Potion were already written:

Draught of Living Death

Add the Infusion of Wormwood.

Add the powdered root of asphodel.

Stir twice clockwise.

Add the sloth brain.

Add the Sopophorous bean's juice.

Stir seven times anti-clockwise.

"Good morning, class. Today we'll be revising. I want to test how much your skills have improved since last year, by letting you make the Draught of Living Death. Last time, only very few of you were able to bring this task to a good end. I expect each and every one of you to do better this time. As we only have two hours, you'll be working in pairs. Therefore you will be quoted on the potion as well as your teamwork. Those who don't have a partner yet, hurry up. Your time starts now." Harry looked around the room to see who was still available. He was thrilled to see that Malfoy was the only one without a partner.

"Looks like you're stuck with me anyway," Harry noted, as he took his seat next to Malfoy's Cauldron. Malfoy shot him a glare, but Harry didn't avert his gaze. "I was the best in class the last time. You might as well be happy you're teamed up with me." Malfoy remained silent and Harry scowled.

"You're a coward, Malfoy," Harry growled under his breath. "You think you can ignore me like that? I won't give up that easily, Ferretface."

"Whatever you say, Potter. You got your chance. You've made it very clear that you despise me and dumped me like a bag of dirt. I'm not your toy that you can pick up and play with when you feel like it." Malfoy's words stung, especially because he had a point. Harry pouted.

"You should be grateful that I'm the one you got teamed up with. I'm good." Harry blew up his chest, pushing it forward, boasting.

"You're better than Longbottom. But apart from that, you're rather worthless without Severus' book." Harry let his shoulders hang. At least he had got the man to talk. Malfoy got up to get the ingredients for the potion, and Harry followed him.

"Don't start. I'm better at Defence Against the Dark Art," Harry noted, grabbing a big jar of powdered root of asphodel.

"I wouldn't take that one. The jar has been opened, and the root moisturizes very easily. We don't want that." Harry wanted to kick Malfoy in the nuts for correcting him, but restrained himself. He glared at the jar disapprovingly and took the one behind it.

"Got it, boss. You're even worse than Snape," Harry grunted. They took their places around the cauldron again and Harry looked at the blackboard to see what came next.

"I had a dream about us, a while ago, you know?" Harry mentioned while stirring the potion.

"Did you now?" Malfoy clearly tried to sound as uninterested as he could.

"Yeah. Do you remember that time I prepared a picnic for you? We were seeing each other for four months and you didn't remember," Harry chuckled. He looked to the side at Malfoy and was startled by the pained expression in his eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Could you just stop? I don't want to remember. It hurts too much." Malfoy's voice was unsteady, and his hands were trembling while cutting up the Wormwood. Seeing Malfoy hurt like that split his heart in two, but the way Malfoy had brought it to words set Harry's teeth on edge.

"But I want to remember, Malfoy. Maybe you should've been hit with that spell, then maybe you would understand what I am going through." He had raised his voice without wanting to and quickly lowered his voice again, so the other students wouldn't hear him.

"Oh, don't get me wrong Potter. I completely understand what you're going through. But maybe you're right. If I'd been hit with that spell, then maybe you could start to grasp how much it hurts to see the one you love hate you, forget about all the wonderful things you've done together and make all your memories a joke!" Harry instantly felt sorry for his outburst. It was all Malfoy's fault. If he would just give him another chance!

"Boys. Could you focus on the potion please?" Professor Slughorn questioned, while passing by their table. If Harry's eyes had been bullets, the cauldron would be leaking through several wholes right there and then. Luckily, the professor walked on without saying anything else. Harry turned towards Malfoy, continuing in a whisper.

"I'm trying Malfoy. I truly am sorry for the way I behaved. And nothing I say can undo the things I did, but I'm willing to change. I want you back. I want us back." His tone was urgent, but Malfoy could care less.

"Do me a favor and focus on the potion." The blonde sneered, turning his face away. Harry remained silent. It would be more difficult to get through to the Slytherin than he thought. They continued working in silence, because Harry didn't know what to say anymore and Malfoy wasn't very talkative to begin with.

Every now and then, they would accidentally bump into each other. Their fingers would touch while they both reached out to grab something for their potion, sending a shiver through Harry's entire body. Their legs would brush past each other while shifting their feet and moving around the cauldron. Malfoy's blonde eyebrows were knotted together in concentration, his eyes fixed on chopping Sopophorous bean'sto get the juice. Harry's gaze kept turning towards the blonde, gazing away when their eyes met, or when he caught himself staring for too long.

The intensity of the atmosphere around them turned Harry on, causing Harry's pants to get uncomfortably tight. He shouldn't be feeling this way right now. Malfoy could eat him raw, but yet he was standing here, completely flustered.

"You're adorable," Malfoy mumbled between his teeth. Harry coloured even darker, shooting the blonde a warning glance.

"You meant that in a platonic way, if I'm not mistaking," the Gryffindor shot back, not having forgotten Malfoy's constant coldness. The tone of his voice did not suit his blushy state at all. Malfoy quickly turned his gaze back to his work. Harry smiled in triumph and started stirring in the right direction again. Malfoy would have to watch out. Because he meant business now.

Harry was sitting between Hermione and Ron in Defense Against The Dark Arts. The new professor was giving a boring explanation about what they would be treating this year, and it looked like this one would not live up to the marvelous teaching skills of professor Lupin. Harry wondered whether this professor would last more than a year, now that Voldemort had fallen.

His gaze quickly got hazy as the professor lost Harry's attention. He got out an empty piece of parchment and started writing. Hermione tried to see what he was doing, but Harry covered it with his arm, shushing her away.

"Harry. You should be paying attention," Hermione whispered between her teeth.

"Wake me up when it starts getting interesting," Harry muttered grumpily. "Could you pass over your ink please, mine is running out."

"I figure you're not writing anything school related," she reprimanded with a disapproving tug around her mouth. She passed him the ink nonetheless.

"You shouldn't be talking. You're not paying attention to the professor, 'Mione," Harry fired back sarcastically, but still with a playful shimmer in his eyes. Hermione shook her head in disbelief, but remained quiet. Instead of trying to stop him from writing, she should be rooting for him because he was trying to reach out for Malfoy.

Harry folded the letter and cast it towards Malfoy with a swing of his wand. The blonde looked around questioningly, then quickly folded the letter open.

Hi Malfoy

I know you will not want to come, but I dare you to meet me at the Room of Requirement tonight. If you're not there, that means you're a coward. I know you want to you, so you'd better show.

PS. Your ass looks nice from over here.

Harry

Malfoy's head shot in Harry's direction, but Harry avoided crossing eyes. He couldn't meet his eyes right now, that would ruin his message. Especially that last part. Harry felt his cheeks grow hot, ruining his fake interest for whatever the professor was saying. Harry crossed his fingers under the table, hoping Malfoy would give him another chance. Just one.

And if all that still wasn't enough to convince Malfoy that he was serious, then it would be over. For good.

Harry paced back and forth impatiently. He'd walked past the long wall several times now, but there was still no sign of Malfoy. He had heard no movement whatsoever on the seventh floor, and Harry was starting to doubt whether the man would show up. If he'd only had put the exact time on that stupid letter, he wouldn't have get so fed up about this. His nerves were slowly consuming him and Harry felt like pulling out his hair.

"You're pathetic, Potter." Harry's head shot up, recognizing the voice in a heartbeat. Harry hadn't heard him coming! How long had he been standing there?

"You showed up. I was starting to think you really were a coward, little Ferretface." Harry tried to sound as strong as Malfoy had sounded, but the long wait had taken its toll. He sounded nearly desperate.

"You didn't say when to come. It's still evening." Harry wanted to smash in Malfoy's perfect pointy nose, just for trying to mock him – and for letting him wait this long , but he refrained himself. He needed to focus on the task before hand.

"Alright, alright. If you continue like this, I'm not sure I want you back, to be honest," Harry grunted, while walking past the wall three times, focusing on his thoughts. He couldn't be distracted now, this had to be perfect. A door appeared, and Harry turned back to Malfoy, gesturing to the door. "For all it's worth, Malfoy. Follow me."

"I never thought you would try to win me for you, Potter. I think it's cute." Alarm bells started ringing in Harry's head. The look in his green eyes was as murderous as the Killing Curse.

"Don't call me cute." An unhappy frown rippled the raven-haired man's forehead, covering up the part of him that was flattered by the compliment. "And don't use the words 'trying to win you', that sounds wrong. I'm just trying to prove to you that I love you, that's all. It's not like I'll be tricking you into hooking up with me." Harry turned around towards the entrance, feeling pleased about the way he had spoken his mind.

"As you wish, almighty Survivor," Malfoy grinned, joining Harry inside the Room of Requirement. Harry was painfully aware of Malfoy's gaze. They had entered a living room. A beige carpet covered the floor, a large snugly cream sofa facing the crackling fireplace. The coffee table was made of glass, the support shaped in two hands holding a wand.

Not far from the fireplace sat a white oak cupboard with a Muggle Television on it. On the other side, there was a buffet, containing the chinaware. On top of the long cupboard, several frames were placed. The nearest one showed a moving picture of two men embracing each other. One had platinum blonde hair, the other one a untidy mop of black hair. There was another one where they were each holding one hand of a young boy with bright green eyes and the same blonde hair as the other man in the picture.

On the other side of where they had entered, there was a half-open kitchen. The small hard wooden table was made for three people with two regular plates and one smaller plastic plate with moving drawings on it. A large casserole was stewing on the stove, the wooden spoon moving in circles completely by itself.

There were three closed doors in total, two in the kitchen and one in the living room.

"What is this place?" Malfoy questioned looking around in amazement.

"It's a glimpse," Harry explained, stepping further into the living room.

"A glimpse?" Malfoy questioned, puzzled. He looked at Harry as if he had grown two heads and then looked around the transformed Room of Requirement again.

"A glimpse of our life together. What our life would look like if Lucius hadn't torn us apart. It's… stupid, I know." Harry wanted to run away and never look back, feeling ashamed of himself. Malfoy didn't like it. He clearly didn't like it.

"It's beautiful," Malfoy breathed. Harry's eyes shot up in surprise. He didn't think he was a creep? "How? I mean… You imagine us having kids? That's incredible." Malfoy walked around the living room, too astonished to talk. "This isn't something you just come up with, Potter. Merlin, we talked about his stuff," Malfoy's hands slid over the sofa, feeling the soft fabric. Harry's eyes were as big as saucers, both from Malfoy's appreciation and the fact that they'd talked about this before.

"We did?"

"Yes. Well, not so vividly like you see it right here, but still. We talked about moving in together, getting married and your everlasting wish to clear my name for good." Malfoy smiled as the memories replayed in his head.

"I didn't know…" Harry breathed. The thought that there were still memories he didn't know about made him feel uneasy and angry at the same time. The only thing he wanted to do right now – apart from kissing the living hell out of Malfoy – was apparate near Azkaban and make Lucius suffer. He wanted the vicious man to feel the same despair as he had and hoped with all of his heart that the curse of the Dementors could match that feeling. "I just wanted to show you that I'm willing to put the fear aside. Like you said that time in the boathouse, I don't want all the memories back. I want you back, and I want to make new memories to fill the emptiness."

Both men just stood there for a while, the last sentence hanging in the air between them.

"So, what's behind those doors?" Malfoy swiftly avoided Harry's indirect question and changed the subject. A pang of disappointment shot through Harry's body, but he covered it up quickly.

"The doors in the kitchen lead to the toilet and the cleaning room. That one over there leads to the stairwell. There's a bathroom and two bedrooms upstairs."

"Let's have a look, shall we?" Malfoy lead the way up the stairs. Malfoy seemed very pleased about the house, but still he hadn't taken notice of Harry's words. Was he still afraid that Harry wasn't honest with him? Did he think this was a prank? They entered the first bedroom. A four-poster bed took up most of the space in the room. The curtains and blankets were emerald green, with silver pillows to break it up.

"Why green and silver, Potter? Those are the Slytherin House colours," Malfoy noted, looking around the room. There was a painting hanging on the wall, where you could see Harry and Draco walking down the aisle together, dressed in wedding robes. They were holding hands and only had eyes for each other. Harry's robes were mainly emerald green, while Draco was dressed in silver.

"I like those colors. They're the colour of our eyes together. And we got married in those colours." Harry gestured to the painting. Malfoy looked at it in silence, a content expression on his face.

"I can't believe this, Potter. It's so different from the way you behaved before." The man seemed lost for words.

"I'm not going to be a softie all the time, Malfoy. You can be an annoying brat sometimes. But I love you nevertheless."

"You really love me?" Malfoy's words were hardly audible, the uncertainty of them hanging around it like a protective film. Harry took a step closer and nodded slowly.

"Luna told me a while ago: You can trick the mind, but you can't fool the spirit. I thought she was just saying that I would get my memories back, - and at that point I realized my dreams were memories, but that was not exactly what she meant. What she implied was that even though someone erased everything we had done together, I was still in love with you, although I had no clue why." Harry paused, giving Malfoy the time to process what he was saying. "There was absolutely no reason to love you, to feel nervous when I was around you because we had always hated each other. But still, Lucius wasn't able to erase the feelings I had for you. He just wiped out our actions together. So yes, I love you. I never stopped loving you."

Tears appeared in Malfoys eyes, his gaze fixed on his feet. "I don't understand." His voice was soft and shaky. Harry wanted to run up to him and hug him close, but he waited for Malfoy to express himself. "I… I thought I lost you forever. I've been feeling so… miserable the past two weeks and now you come and tell me this?" He looked helpless.

"I'm sorry, Malfoy. It took me a while to figure it out, but I know what I want now. I want you." Harry's green orbs locked with watery grey pools. Harry reached out an arm, his fingertips reaching Malfoy's shoulder. He gently pulled him closer, embracing him in a tight hug. Malfoys shoulders shook, a soft sob escaping his mouth. Harry could tell he was trying hard not to cry, but the sobs gradually grew deeper. Harry caressed the back of his head, the weight of Malfoy in his arms feeling comfortable.

Harry leaned backwards, trying to catch Malfoy's gaze. He put his finger underneath his chin, making him look up, then captured his lips in a soft kiss. Malfoy's eyes closed, another tear falling from his blonde eyelashes. The taste of Malfoy on his lips was sweet. They clumsily stepped towards the bed and sat down on it, their lips still locked. Their fingers intertwined. They broke apart again, and Harry looked at Malfoy. He was calming down, tears trying up on his porcelain skin.

They lay down next to each other, wrapping their arms around one another. "I'll never let you go, Malfoy." They both remained like that, losing track of time, floating somewhere between awake and asleep. Neither of them returned to their dormitories that night.

To be continued…
:D