Chapter 10: It Takes Two

"You!" Fee screamed.

Draco stared at the man in the window—almost a boy, really, with light brown hair and beautiful, pale green eyes—hanging half in and half out of the tower. Fuck. The prince. Draco's mind scrambled, moving the pieces around the chessboard.

They'd planned to get the spindle and save Rapunzel. Draco had promised Harry. Then, she'd not been there, and the plans changed. Get the spindle, Apparate the fuck away from the angry Fairy, and save themselves. It was perfect.

But now there was the prince.

Draco glanced at the look on Harry's face—eyes wide, mouth agape—and knew there was no way the Gryffindor would forgive him if they Apparated away now, leaving the prince to the Fairy's wrath. Merlin.

There was no help for it, really. Both Draco and Harry already had their wands drawn. He tried to catch Harry's eye as the Fairy's wind grew, tossing dust into his face and probably making him utterly filthy. He really hated being filthy. And he couldn't even bring himself to think about what it must be doing to his hair.

Harry turned, and Draco nodded towards the prince. They needed to get to him, pull him from the window, and then, maybe, they could all three Apparate out together. Harry inched closer to the prince, trying not to draw Fee's attention as she ranted and yelled at the young man in the window for any manner of sins that Draco couldn't be arsed to pay attention to. Draco eased closer as well, keeping his wand focused on Fee, pushing hard against the wind circling through the room.

The prince, however, seemed not to know that he needed to stay put. Instead, he stepped away, further into the room, still yelling for Rapunzel.

"She's not here!" Harry yelled over the wind. "We have to get you out of here!"

Fuck.

Fee turned her gaze onto Harry. "Thief and now a betrayer!" She reached out, and Harry's wand flew from his hand and landed on the floor somewhere deep in the room.

"Shit!" Harry yelled, and Draco cringed.

He spoke clearly and loudly, willing himself to be heard over the wind. "The deal was for knowledge, Fee. We would tell you what we know, but we told you we'd not contribute to you hurting him. We will save him if we must."

"He has taken my daughter from me!" she yelled. "You cannot save him!" The wind kicked up stronger and converged near where Harry was approaching the prince, pushing them both towards the window. Draco knew the fall would kill them, or, if the tale was to be believed, kill Harry and blind the prince.

Able to move easier now that Fee had her fury focused on the others, Draco manoeuvred himself behind her, angling so that nothing would hit the men across the room. He needed to get her to stop. He didn't want to hurt her, simply disarm her.

The thought made him grin, and he raised his wand, thinking of Harry. "Expelliarmus!"

The wind pushed Harry towards the window. With no wand, he was nearly as helpless as the prince. The Fairy's magic was so raw, so intense, so pure; he had no idea how to combat it. The storm whipped his face and pulled at his glasses, debris stinging his eyes. He tried dropping to the floor, but the wind held him up, pushing, pushing, pushing.

Draco moved up behind her, and Harry hoped he had a plan. He couldn't keep his focus. He had to fight the force pushing him towards the ever-approaching edge. He saw the prince, nearly two feet from him, bump into the wall near the window, the gale edging him closer with every moment.

"Expelliarmus!" Draco's voice soared over the roar of the wind, and the Fairy screamed.

The wind turned and caught her in its centre, pulling her with it towards the opening of the tower. She reached the window, arms scrambling to grab hold of something, anything, as her Conjured storm swept her out through the only possible means of escape.

"No!" the prince called, Fee's hands finding purchase on his arm, dragging him with her the final few inches to both of their deaths.

Harry threw his arms around the prince's waist, attempting to haul him back. The Fairy's strength, combined with the wind, was too much. The prince pulled Harry with him, his feet slowly sliding towards the window.

Something slipped around Harry's waist, and the added weight slowed his progress. He stopped moving, the prince still in his arms.

"I've got you," Draco's voice said in Harry's ear, his breath warm and hot and entirely too intimate for Harry to think about given the current situation.

Fee finally let go, the wind sucking her from the tower and into the open sky where it dispersed, dropping her more than seventy feet to the meadow below.

"Oh gods," Harry gasped, slowly letting go of the prince who was trying to slump to the floor. "Do you think—?" He couldn't bear to look, but they had to know.

Draco walked to the window and then backed away. "She's dead."

"Are you—"

"I'm sure, Potter," Draco said, his voice chilled. He took a deep breath as he turned to Harry, his face pale and drawn. "Apologies. Yes, quite sure."

The more Harry watched, the more he realised that Draco appeared more than ill. He looked exhausted, dishevelled, and filthy. There was no gleam of victory in his face, just sorrow and regret.

"Draco," Harry said softly, "are you okay?"

A loud sob interrupted any answer Draco might have given, and they both turned to the prince now huddled near Harry's feet.

"Rapunzel, my love," the man cried. "My love…"

Harry looked to Draco, hoping he'd get no argument for what he was about to propose. He huddled down next to the prince and put his hand upon his shoulder. "She's alive, Your Highness."

"What?" He looked up, his pale green eyes hopeful. "Truly?"

Harry smiled, somewhat jealous of such a pure and true love, even if it were only to be found in a fairy tale. "Truly." He glanced at Draco again and grinned, giving a little shrug. "And we'll help you find her."

Harry heard a little gasp behind him, but the prince stood up suddenly, causing Harry to stumble back.

"No," the prince said, his voice strong. "No," he said again, looking at the room. "I will find her and take her home with me. Please, thank you for helping, but I shall save her myself."

Harry looked to Draco who just shrugged. "It's a Prince Charming thing, maybe."

Snorting, Harry turned back to the prince. "Can we at least help you get down?"

"Nope!" the prince said, smiling and stepping up on the window, holding onto the rope of hair. "Thank you again." He dropped down and was gone from view.

"Bloody hell," Harry said after a moment.

Draco nodded. He stepped closer and handed Harry his wand. "Hang on to this better next time, would you please? That's twice in two days."

"Fuck you," Harry said, elbowing Draco with a chuckle, but then he remembered. "Are we going to talk about that Expelliarmus?"

Draco's face darkened. "No. Not yet."

Harry nodded and took Draco's arm and then Apparated back to their camp.

Harry watched Draco closely for the rest of the day.

They sat by the fire, only inches separating them as they ate their spaghetti rings.

"So, what do you think?" Harry nudged Draco's foot with his own. "Is it horrible?"

"Is this truly considered pasta?" Draco asked. "It's edible, but the sauce, if you can call it that, tastes like the damned tin and these rings might as well not be here. Don't get me started on these tiny little disgusting balls of…meat."

Harry laughed. "I don't think anyone actually considers this pasta, no, but it's not that bad. Kids like it."

"Children have no taste."

"Teddy makes a mean lasagna."

Draco turned to look at Harry, raising an eyebrow. "Does he? Well, I'm not sure I've ever had him in the kitchen. House-elves and all."

"He won't have house-elves to rely upon when he's an adult, most likely. It's good for him to learn."

Draco nodded but remained silent as they finished their meals. Finally, he said so quietly that Harry almost missed it, "I miss him."

Harry, not sure what Draco was talking about, cocked his head. "Hmm?"

"Teddy," Draco said, louder. "I miss him. He's such a good boy, and he's the only person I know who looks at me with no judgement, no hidden opinions on what I should or shouldn't be doing, or on what I could be doing differently. He simply looks at me as if he loves me, and he makes me want to be better." He paused. "Merlin, I killed a woman tonight. How is that being better? How can I look at him after that?" He dropped his head into his hands.

Harry sat, his mind spinning in several directions, but immediate comfort won out. He rested his hand on Draco's shoulder. "You defended yourself, and me, and an innocent man."

Draco scoffed.

"You hit her with an Expelliarmus, for fuck's sake. You didn't intend to kill her, Draco."

"I didn't intend to kill Dumbledore either, but they both seem to be dead. And off a fucking tower."

Harry froze. He hadn't made that connection, but now his heart bled. He needed to find a way to help. His therapist's mind wanted to ask Draco how it made him feel, or push him to think it through from other perspectives, but he couldn't do that. He didn't want to. He just wanted to make him feel better.

"You were incredible up there," Harry said quietly. "I was so fucking impressed the entire time. I knew you had it under control, every step of the way. Even when she took my wand, I knew you were there, that you had my back, and I felt safe."

Draco looked up, his eyebrows wrinkled and his eyes searching. "What…?"

Harry didn't drop his gaze. He held Draco's grey eyes and watched the firelight reflect inside them.. "I couldn't have done this all without you. And if I had, I wouldn't have done it nearly as well." Harry blinked and took a deep breath. "Kind of like raising Teddy. It works better with your help."

"Harry," Draco said, his voice deep. "I wouldn't ever take Teddy from you."

"I know, but he needs you, too, not just me. We'll make it work."

Draco's mouth twitched in what could have been a smile, and Harry's eyes fell to those lips. He couldn't think about anything right then but how Draco made him feel, and how good those lips looked, and they seemed to be moving closer. Harry could feel Draco's shoulder, where Harry's hand still lay, coming nearer. He couldn't breathe. He tilted his head and leaned forward, and—

"Gentlemen!"

Rumpelstiltskin's cheerful voice rang through the night, causing Harry and Draco to jump back. The Fairy stood on the other side of the fire, looking far too pleased with himself. Arsehole.

"So, I hear you had a run-in with Fee!"

Draco shifted.

"Oh, fear not, fear not. She's fine, though she's in a bad mood. She won't be able to retake mortal form for at least another two hundred years. Losing your human body isn't something to play around with."

Draco let out a little sigh, and Harry relaxed. It was one less chain Draco had hanging around his neck for the rest of his life.

"So, let me see it," Rumpelstiltskin said, an eager smile on his face as he held out his hand. "We must make sure it's the correct device."

"Fee tried to take it from us," Draco said, a hint of warning in his voice. "But we need to get home."

"And you will. Make no mistake."

Draco looked at Harry and nodded, so Harry withdrew the spindle. They'd examined it earlier but hadn't been able to make it work. Harry hesitantly handed it to the Fairy.

Rumpelstiltskin hummed—reminding Harry of Arthur Weasley with a new Muggle appliance to play with—and he examined the spindle. "Wonderful. It's just how I remember it. You, gentlemen, have done a good job. I'm most impressed."

Harry cleared his throat. "And now you'll return us home as agreed, yeah?"

Rumpelstiltskin cackled, making shivers run up Harry's spine. "I did not say I'd do it now. In fact, I did not say when at all. I have things to do first." He grinned, showing his pointed teeth. "I'll be in touch." And he popped away.

Harry's stomach twisted, and he jumped to his feet. "Goddammit! Fucking bastard!" He kicked a log sticking out of the fire, throwing embers in every direction, and then turned on Draco. "What the fuck just happened? You said they had to abide by their deals."

Malfoy's eyes blazed, but his manner turned cold. "He found the loophole."

"Fuck!"

"Indubitably."

Harry stalked over to Malfoy. "So now what, huh? Any other fucking plans in that slimy, Slytherin head of yours?"

Draco stood, and for the first time, Harry realised that the man had about two inches of height on him. He used those two inches to loom, but Harry refused to be intimidated.

"What happened to 'I trust you, Draco', and 'You were incredible, Draco'?" Draco mocked.

"What happened is the fucking Fairy double-crossed us!"

"He didn't. He's completely playing by the rules. I just fucked up the rules."

Harry stepped forwards, the anger and frustration struggling to get out, and then reached up and pushed.

"What the hell?" Draco cried, stumbling back. His eyes flashed, and he pushed Harry back. "I get that you're pissed off, Potter, but aren't you going to go off and meditate it out or some shit like that?"

"Meditate this," Harry growled, putting all of his weight into the next shove. Draco, unfortunately, hadn't been expecting it and fell onto the ground, carrying Harry down with him.

Draco rolled, pushing Harry down from his place on top and leaned into his face. "I'm just as mad as you are, but you know that this was not intentional on my part. Get over yourself."

Harry let his body go slack, but when Draco relaxed his grip, he pushed his foot off the ground and flipped them again, this time holding Draco down. "I'm stronger and a lot more flexible than you, Malfoy."

Something flashed in Draco's eyes, and he sneered. "Don't be such a bloody tease."

All of Harry's emotions from the past several hours rose through him: fear, gratitude, anger, admiration, frustration, and lust. It all came out on a growl, and he leaned down and kissed Draco hard, pushing every feeling out into the other man. It was rough, and angry, and mean, and Draco matched him completely. Teeth bit at lips, and tongues swiped hard.

And then something changed. A moan escaped one of them. Harry couldn't tell who it was, but it was as if a signal flared that they both followed. They pulled back, eyes locked, Harry laying on top of Draco next to a flickering fire in the middle of a fairy-tale wilderness, and the anger left. Harry leaned back down, slowly this time, and hesitated with just a sliver of space between them.

"I trust you, Draco."

Draco didn't say anything, but he closed the remaining space, and this time, it was like magic. Harry's lips tingled as Draco's slowly brushed his, and when his tongue outlined the contours of Harry's mouth, Harry let Draco in.

He let Draco in, and there was a flash of light so bright that Harry was glad his eyes were still closed. He didn't dare pull away from the kiss. He was lost in the hum of intimacy and buzz of attraction, in the sheer delight of the moment.

His mind could only repeat one thing. I let Draco in.

Meanwhile…

Teddy Remus Lupin is nine years old. He's not a baby. He doesn't cry or moan, and he doesn't need constant supervision. He's going to go to Hogwarts in two years, and he won't have anyone to watch him there except the teachers.

But watching your dad and your only cousin argue and then fall on the floor after a big flash of light is different. A kid isn't supposed to see the adults he counts on lie unconscious after some kind of freaky magic that nobody can identify knocks them out. Not even Aunt Hermione knows what it is, and she bloody well knows everything. Uncle Ron and Dad both agree, so Teddy knows it's true.

When it happened, and Teddy ran to his dad and Draco and tried to wake them, and they wouldn't get up, well, Teddy may have cried. And Alex saw, which Teddy figures might mortify him later, but for right now, he just wants his dad and Draco to be okay, so he doesn't care.

He watches Aunt Hermione examine them, along with someone she brought over from the hospital whom she says knows all about curses. Teddy knows that the Healer, Theo, likes Draco and is married to Draco's best friend Pansy, so he'll help if he can. And everyone likes dad, except Draco, so they'll be okay. Aunt Hermione and Theo will help them.

A hand falls on Teddy's shoulder. Uncle Ron's freckled face has the same look on it he gets when the Cannons are losing, that one where his eyebrows are all scrunched up and his mouth is tight, so Teddy doesn't believe him when he tries to say everything is fine and that Teddy shouldn't worry.

"It's been almost an hour, Ron," Aunt Hermione says. "If they were going to wake up quickly, they'd have done it by now. We'll have to get them to St Mungo's. Can you call Draco's mother? She'll need to know, and maybe she can take Teddy for the night until we know more."

"No!" Teddy interrupts. "Aunt Narcissa can go to the hospital with me, but I'm not leaving them!"

"Teddy," Aunt Hermione says. Her voice is kind, but Teddy doesn't care. "We need to take care of them, and they'd want to know that you're someplace safe while they're getting better."

"I'm not fucking leaving them," Teddy growls.

Uncle Ron turns his head while Aunt Hermione's eyes widen. But Dad says that sometimes swearing helps people take you seriously, and they need to take Teddy seriously.

Aunt Hermione opens her mouth, and Teddy braces himself for the repercussions of his word choice, but a super bright flash like the one Teddy saw earlier covers the room, and everyone shouts, covering their eyes.

And then, then, the best thing Teddy has heard all day comes from behind him.

On the floor, Draco groans.