Draco

"Draco... I like you. I like you a lot."

Harry reaches out to me, cupping my face in his hands. I look around us. We're not in the hospital. We're standing on a beach. I've been here before.

We're in Puerto Rico. Luna brought me here once for yoga. The waves have little dots glowing in them at night. The muggles have an explanation for it, but they're wrong. The glowing is caused by rare breed of water nymphs. Their eggs float along the surface of the ocean.

It's dark now. The eggs are glowing in little clusters, making the ocean look like its own galaxy.

"You're a million miles away, aren't you?" Harry asks, drawing my attention back to him.

"This isn't real. I'm dreaming." I tilt my head. "It's a really good dream though. Usually, I just have nightmares."

Harry runs his thumb along my cheekbone. He's smiling warmly. "Maybe it is a dream. That doesn't mean it's not real right now. This is our reality. This our moment."

"In case you have forgotten, Chosen One, I'm a disgraced Death Eater." I lift my hand and pinch his cheek. "I'm not getting a happy ending. I'm not getting a happy now either."

"Are you a Death Eater though?" Harry asks, sounding a little amused.

I roll my eyes and take a step back, pulling up my sleeve to show him the mark. Harry looks at it for a moment. Then, he smiles. He raises my arm to his mouth and kisses the mark.

"I don't see the dark mark," he says matter-of-factly.

I'm about to snap at him, but when I look down, there is no mark. Just lilies and daffodils where it used to be.

"What... where did it go?"

"I told you. This is our moment. Our reality. This is who you really are, Draco." Harry wraps an arm around my waist, drawing me closer to him. "You're not a Death Eater. You were a kid trying to survive."

"I still made the wrong choices."

"Yeah, you did. I'm grateful for those choices you made though. If you hadn't made them, there's a good chance we would both be dead." Harry shrugs. "We wouldn't be here right now."

"We're only here in my head. The real you doesn't know this happening."

"You know, someone once told me that just because it's happening in your head, it doesn't make it any less real."

"Whoever told you that must be mad," I retort.

"You're probably right." Harry laughs, tucking my hair behind my ear.

I stare at him, starting to feel a bit puzzled. How would my subconscious know that someone told Harry that?

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Harry asks.

I bite back a sarcastic remark and just nod.

"Why did my wand work so easily for you when you forced me to sleep? You're a wandmaker. Do you have any theories?"

I did look into that while I was at my mother's. I was curious. Harry used my wand easily before too. I wanted to know if it had something do with our wands switching allegiances.

"The most likely theory is that our souls are connected somehow or our magic is extremely compatible. Winning the alliance of the wand is one way to use another's wand... but we both can use the others, so I think it's more likely that we're connected or we are compatible magically speaking." I say, shifting my weight uncomfortably.

"Your wand did feel natural to me when I stole it." Harry looks thoughtful. "So are you saying we're soulmates?"

"No, that's a muggle concept. Wizards call it Animactio . It's like... our magic is intertwined."

"We're soulmates." Harry starts laughing.

It's such a beautiful sound, I never want him to stop.

"Why are you laughing?"

"Everything is starting to make sense now." Harry leans up and rubs our noses together.

"Are you going to explain that or just keep being cryptic?" I roll my eyes.

"Mm... no."

Harry slips his fingers into my hair. My heart skips a beat. It's just like when we were with my bees. He's going to kiss me.

My heart leaps to my throat and I stumble backwards. Harry stops me from tripping and raises an amused eyebrow at me.

"It's okay if you're not ready for kissing. Dance with me instead." He starts walking backward into the glowing water.

I follow him automatically. "This feels more like swimming. There's not even music."

Harry looks thoughtful for a moment. "Alright. Music."

A song starts to play with no discernible source. It seems to come from everywhere.

"Our reality, remember?" Harry grins, pulling me close to him once again.

"What song is this?" I ask, my hands settling nervously on his hips.

"It's a song by David Bowie. I think he is a muggle. He might not be though. His music is certainly magical." Harry slips his arms around my shoulders.

We're dancing much more slowly than the tempo of the song calls for. The water is sloshing around our ankles, stirring the glowing blue eggs around us.

"If you say run, I'll run with you... And if you say hide, we'll hide. Because my love for you would break my heart in two... If you should fall into my arms and tremble like a flower..."

I swallow nervously. This seems a lot more intimate than any situation I've ever been in... and it's with Harry: the one person I've ever loved like this.

"Harry, I want to do this in the real world... I want to come here with you. I want to dance with you to this song," I murmur. "I want... this."

Harry's eyes seem to shine brighter. His jaw tenses. "Draco, I swear to you, I'm going to heal you. I'll catch whoever is trying to hurt you. Then, I'll go with you wherever you want. We can dance. We can go flying. We can play quidditch. We can t-"

"What is wrong with my son?!"

I jerk awake, sitting up quickly. There is a soft thud to my left. Potter is on his feet, looking like he just woke up. A book is on the floor.

"Mr. Malfoy, your son needs rest. You barging in here is not going to heal him," a woman with a heavy Irish accent says firmly.

The voices are coming from the hallway. I'm still fighting off drowsiness. I'm pretty sure I didn't hear that correctly. My father isn't supposed to come home for a few more weeks. Still, his voice rings out.

"Explain why my son is here!"

"Your dad is still the same as always," Potter mutters, shaking his head.

He summons a potion and hands it to me. I drink it automatically.

"He should still be in prison," I say, scrubbing my hands over my face.

"I'll be right back." Potter runs his fingers through my hair before leaving my room.

"Are you seriously dating Harry Potter?"

I whip my head around, feeling my cheeks color. Blaise is relaxing in an armchair. I throw a pillow at him.

"Of course not. He's my healer." I glare at him. "Shut the fuck up before my father hears that."

"Your dad still doesn't know you're gay?" Blaise blinks his dark eyes at me.

"There hasn't really been an opportunity to tell him. You know, considering he's been in prison for five years?" My voice is dripping with sarcasm.

Blaise comes over to me, sitting on the bed by my hip. "You should tell him now. He can't be mad at you while you're dying, right?"

I pinch the bridge of my nose. Truth be told, I don't think my father will care that I'm gay. I am fairly certain he would have a heart attack if he knew I'm in love with Potter.

Maybe it's time to come clean to Blaise and Pansy? Especially considering Potter almost kissed me.

"I'm going to tell you something. You can't tell my parents or say a word about it to Pansy yet."

"Not like I would tell your parents anything anyways." Blaise shrugs. "Go on."

"I'm not worried about my father finding out I'm gay. I'm worried because I don't want him to find out who I'm in love with," I mutter.

Blaise is really fucking smart. It only takes him a handful of seconds to understand.

"Wait! Seriously?! How long?!"

"Sh!" I glare at him, putting my hand over his mouth. "I don't know. I think almost since we met."

Blaise pulls my hand away and stares at me. "Wow, Goyle is a really lucky guy."

"WHAT?!" I splutter, but Blaise is already laughing.

"I'm joking, princess."

I take another pillow from behind me and hit him over the head with it.

"No roughhousing," Potter says, walking back in the room with my father trailing behind him.

"I wasn't roughhousing. That was a playful slap that escalated beyond my control." I smirk at Blaise.

There's something off about my father. I can't place it. He is thinner than I remember. His eyes are sunken in. That's normal for someone who spent five years with dementors.

My father runs to me, wrapping me in his arms. It's weird. My father isn't an affectionate person. I hug him back anyways. He's probably lonely from being in Azkaban for so long.

"Draco. Your heart. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I did." I stare at him with furrowed eyebrows. "Did my letters never reach you?"

Father looks surprised. "They must not have. They aren't very reliable at delivering letters to prisoners. No matter. Potter has explained everything to me."

Blaise wraps an arm around me. "Hullo, Lucius. I'm dating your son."

There's a moment of stunned silence. I stare at Blaise. He winks at me and leans in so quickly, I don't have a chance to react.

Blaise kisses me. I'm not sure if it's a good kiss. I know Blaise has a lot of experience in this area, but it just feels wet and warm to me.

I elbow Blaise hard in the ribs and he breaks the kiss to clutch at his side.

"Ha ha ha. Very funny." I glare at him.

Potter looks mildly upset, but he doesn't say anything. I nervously turn my gaze to my father. At least he doesn't look mad. He just seems shocked.

"Blaise and I aren't dating," I say, folding my arms.

Blaise puts his hand over his heart dramatically. "I see how it is. Keep breaking my heart."

"Zabini, stop stressing out my patient."

Blaise fakes a look of betrayal. "I'll just go then."

"I didn't say-"

"No, it's fine. I need to find Pansy. She's gone missing." Blaise winks and struts out.

I'm feeling very tired suddenly. I also feel like I need to brush my teeth. I have no idea where Blaise's mouth has been.

"I need a shower," I announce, getting to my feet.

When I come out of the shower, feeling much more refreshed, the only person in my room is Potter. He sitting beside my bed, reading a book.

"Where's my father?"

"He went to the manor. Something about wanting to go home and freshen up. Luna is at the chateau taking care of your mother with Ginny. " He sets the book aside.

I sit down on the bed, facing him. "Aren't you supposed to be somewhere?"

"Nope. I don't have a shift today."

"Why...?"

"I was worried about you." He shrugs. "We need to talk."

I frown at him apprehensively. "About what?"

"Draco, do you remember what I told you about Cor Ejus?"

I swallow nervously. "Isn't that a last resort?"

"It is. We're running out of options." He takes my hand in his.

I think he's trying to comfort me. I feel numb and vaguely sick.

"No." I shake my head, shrinking back into the bed.

To my surprise, Potter tugs on my hand. He pulls me forward, straight into his arms. I end up in his lap. I'm too stunned that Harry Potter is embracing me to struggle. His fingers are in my hair, pressing my face into his neck.

Why is everyone being so touchy with me today?

"It's going to be alright," he murmurs. "I'm not going to let anything bad happen to you. There's still a little time."

I feel myself tremble. The idea of someone transfiguring my heart is terrifying. I absolutely do not want it to come to that. What if it goes wrong? What if I die? I really don't want to die.

Potter is murmuring in my ear. He's telling me I'll be okay. I don't feel okay, but here in Potter's arms, I feel a little better. He's hugging me tightly. It's like he's keeping me from falling to pieces.

I carefully wrap my arms around his shoulders. I'm half expecting him to push me off him, but he just strokes my hair. This feels surreal.

"How bad is my heart?"

"It's barely functioning. Magic and potions are keeping you alive. Another attack could be fatal." He hesitates. "There's more."

"What is it?" I feel sick with dread. I lift my head to meet his worried green eyes.

"I think it's a curse. There are some curses that can affect a person's health. I need to know what happened to you during the war, Draco. I need to know what triggered the curse in order to break it."

The instinct to recoil and hide myself in the bathroom is almost unbearable. I think he can tell, because he presses my face back into his neck.

"I don't want to think about it."

"We can take it slowly. Tell me what you can handle. We'll work our way to the harder stuff," Potter suggests, resting his cheek on the top of my head.

I want to shove him away from me, but the feeling of being held like this stops me. I've never felt so safe.

I consider not answering, but I know from experience just how persistent this man is. He'll keep asking until I tell him... and I trust him.

"The Dark Lord spent a lot of time torturing me," I force out. "Every small mistake was met with Cruciatus curse. He kept threatening to kill my parents and make me watch."

I take a deep breath. Now that I've started talking about it, the words come easier. I've never explicitly talked about what happened before. It's almost a relief to finally say it.

"He would send Nagini to me. The snake would lay on top of me while I was sleeping. I would wake up to her hissing in my face. She tried to bite me whenever I was off guard... or if I was doing something without permission, she would... kind of loom behind my parents. The Dark Lord told her to kill them if I stepped out of line."

I pause, forcing myself to take deep breaths. I need to stay calm. Potter starts rocking me. I want to snap that I'm not a child, but I don't. It feels kind of nice.

"When I was at Hogwarts, the Carrows kept an eye on me. They reported every move I made to the Dark Lord. If I was caught talking to or associating with anyone who might be connected to the Order, they tortured me. It was hell. Every break I would go home and wonder if my parents were still alive. A few times, the Dark Lord or other Death Eaters tortured me all day long if they were in a bad mood. The only comfort I had was sneaking to the cellar to spend time with Luna."

I open my mouth to say more, but my voice fails me. Instead a broken sob escapes my throat. Harry holds me tightly as I cry into his neck. I can feel him shaking too.

"You were very brave, Draco. I'm proud of you," he murmurs.

I feel his lips brush my temple. Harry just kissed me? I look up, still crying. I can see a blush rising against his tan skin.

He cups my face in his hands and runs his thumbs under my eyes. More tears fall. I hiccup. Harry keeps brushing them away until I finally stop crying.

"You're going to be okay. I promise."

"You can't promise that." I shake my head, wiping my face with my sleeve.

"Yes, I can. Move in with me until we find out who is trying to hurt you. My house is protected under the fidelius charm."

My mouth falls open. Harry's eyes flick down to my lips, but he doesn't lean in like he did when we were at my cottage. He seems to be waiting for something.

"I can't." I feel a lump in my throat and try swallowing.

If Harry is right and this is a curse, I need to research it. There's only one place I know of stocked heavily with books on the dark arts.

"Draco, please, think about this. You'll be safe at my house. I can protect you. I'll be on hand if there's an emergency." Harry brushes my hair behind my ear.

"Why are you so set on protecting me? And when did you start using my given name?" I ask, deflecting his concern. "Why are you being so... affectionate?"

"I thought I answered this last night," Harry mutters as the blush on his cheeks deepens.

I raise an eyebrow and gesture for him to go on. He seems to be struggling to speak. Instead of words, a small frustrated noise comes out of his mouth.

Harry leans forward and my heart skips a beat. I think he's about to kiss me. He does, but not where I wanted him to. His lips find the corner of my mouth.

"I like you, Draco. That's why I'm using your given name. I want to get to know you better," he murmurs.

I hate myself in that moment because even though Harry just kissed me so close to my mouth and said he likes me, I still doubt myself. I still can't believe that it's happening. I want to reach out to him and kiss him, but the fear of being wrong... the fear of being rejected is powerful.

"You... you want to be friends then?" I ask carefully.

"Sure. We can start with friendship." Harry smiles a little. "Eventually, if you want to be more... we can take that step then."

"More?" I swallow and start fidgeting with my fingers.

I know I'm probably making him think I'm thick, but I have had feelings for this man since we were kids. If I'm misreading the situation, I don't want to embarrass myself with presumptions.

Harry tilts his head, making his messy black hair fall over his eyes. "I mean... if you like me, too, we can start dating when you're ready for it."

"You... want to date me. Harry Potter, the wizarding world's Chosen One, wants to date a disgraced Death Eater?" I shake my head in disbelief. "What would your adoring fans think about that?"

"To be honest, I really don't care. I like you. The press can say what they want to, so long as we're happy." Harry shrugs.

I stay quiet for a moment, trying to process what he is saying. It's difficult to wrap my mind around. He's watching me, giving me time to think. I don't want to think anymore.

I take Harry's face in my hands. His eyelashes flutter, but he keeps his eyes on mine. Fuck it. If he's serious, I'm just going to do it.

I shift slightly in his lap to face him better. As I lean in, I see his eyes dilate. His hands move down to my hips.

"Draco..." he breathes.