Disclaimer:This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling. The cards used are copyrighted by Lynn Gordon/ A Spark! production and published by Chronicle Books.

No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

Author's Note: When we were on one of our shopping spree's in Amsterdam, we ran into several card decks…. This story sprang forth from the '52 Ways to find your true love' card deck. The idea is that we each take a POV and write alternating chapters, as you will see when the story develops. – Veer and Nat –

Thank you to our betas Tip and Keikokin!

Chapter 9

Receiving Potter's owl had been a surprise to Draco. He honestly hadn't thought Harry would write to him. Especially not when Draco had seen the Gryffindors go into a frenzy when they couldn't find Harry. He'd told Blaise and Pansy about it, and they were very curious as to whether or not they'd be able to find out what had actually happened. The note wasn't exactly what he'd imagined it to be, although he had to admit to himself he hadn't really thought about what it would be.

However, he intended to keep the appointment, because wasn't that exactly what he'd been aiming for? The time remaining until Thursday, eight o'clock, Draco spent telling himself that he wasn't nervous. But he was. Terribly so. What if he'd gone through all this trouble only to have Potter tell him that he didn't want him?

Finally it was time to go, and Draco checked himself once more in the mirror. Happy with the way he looked, he made his way to the Astronomy Tower, all the while careful not to get caught.

When he walked in, he found Harry already there, staring out of one of the windows.

"Hello, Potter." Okay, he thought, that was nice and neutral and suitable for any conversation Potter wanted to have.

Harry slowly turned around and looked at him. "Hello Malfoy."

He pushed his nervous hands back into the pockets of the jeans he was wearing. When they had stood there for a while, just staring at each other, Draco decided that he might as well start the conversation.

"So, you wanted to talk to me, Potter? Go ahead then," he said trying not to snap because he was so nervous.

Potter stood there, just looking at him. "Would you mind if I asked you some questions first?"

"No, go ahead. But it might be a better plan if we sat down."

Draco transfigured two old chairs into something more comfortable and sat down in one of them, followed by Harry. Harry took a deep breath and tried to still his hands. Draco was glad to see he wasn't the only one with nerves about this.

"Right. I suppose the first thing I'd like to know is why you sent me the Owl-O-Grams." He looked expectantly at Draco, who was looking down and avoiding Harry's eyes.

"To tell you how I felt, basically. When I declined the Mark, I'd been doing a lot of thinking and re-evaluating. Having my father in Azkaban made that a whole lot easier. That's why I stopped insulting you and your friends so much last year. This summer I realized that I actually missed you. Not that we've spent a lot of time together, of course, but being able to say something to you without it having to be insulting. It took me a long time to realize that I have feelings for you."

"What kind of feelings?" Harry sounded…well, not suspicious.

Draco sighed deeply. He had hoped that Harry would figure it out for himself, but that wasn't happening.

"I'm in love with you, Pot- Harry," he said softly, dragging a hand through his hair and so making his hair come out of its ponytail.

Silence.

When Draco had the nerve to look up, he saw Harry look at him with big surprised eyes.

"Harry?"

Slowly Harry snapped out of it.

"You're in love. With me..." he said as if testing the words out.

Draco nodded, waiting for the explosion to begin. "How do you know?"

Draco blinked. He hadn't seen that one coming. He'd expected Harry to laugh at him, tell him he was straight and to get over it. That, apparently, wasn't in the scenario.

"Well…like I said, it took me a long time. At first I was amazed that you seemed to catch on that I wasn't simply Lucius' pawn anymore, you know, that I was trying to start figuring things out for myself. That we were able to talk for five minutes without wands being drawn."

Harry nodded and smiled.

"After a while, when it became clear that I wasn't going to relapse, we were able to have a bit of a conversation. A decent conversation I mean. But I could sense you were still expecting something to happen. Then, at the end of last year, at King's Cross, you came to say goodbye and wish me a nice summer, do you remember?"

Again Harry nodded, listening intently.

"That was most unexpected. And all the way home I had this warm feeling inside. I thought it would go away the longer I stayed at the Manor. But it didn't. The longer I was there, the more I was thinking about you. How nice it was to talk to you. How I liked it when you'd smile at me. How your hand had felt in mine when you said goodbye that day. How I wanted to hold you and never let you go."

Harry was baffled, "Erm, right."

"Next question?" Draco asked him, trying to get past the awkward moment.

"Erm…" Harry was still working on the 'never letting go' part of Draco's statement.

"And the rumours people say you've spread?"

"Did I really spread them? Or are they true?"

"Both."

"Yes, obviously, to the second question, but also to the first. You weren't very open in showing how you felt about that first Owl-O-Gram, Harry, and I thought that maybe if I spread the rumours it would help." Draco did feel slightly embarrassed, having admitted to them.

Harry had started to pace the room.

"The thing is, Malfoy, I'm not buying it," he stated.

"You're not buying what, that I started the rumours or that I did, in fact, send you those Owl-O-Grams?

"That you're in love with me."

That took Draco by surprise. "That's the part you don't believe? Why?"

Harry swallowed, "Because I am not a person people love. Oh sure, they like to read the gossip in the papers, especially with some juicy photos, and they like me so that I stay happy and eventually will take on Voldemort, but that's about it."

Draco was stunned. Harry sounded so sure of what he was saying. "But, you were with someone before!" He shook his head.

Harry just shook his head. "That was a mistake, on more levels than one."

"Share it with me?" Draco asked him.

"Well, there was the fact that she mainly adored the attention she was getting because she was dating the famous Harry Potter." He was sneering now, "She didn't have an ounce of interest in me only in how much attention she was getting."

"What was the other level?" Draco now asked, certain that there was more to it than just that.

"I don't think I do well with girls," Harry stated.

Now Draco started to smile and walked over to Harry. "Do you think you'd do better with a bloke, Harry?"

Harry looked into his grey eyes and gulped. Draco could clearly see it. "I might, but I don't know."

"You didn't have a boyfriend before?"

"No," Harry shook his head. Did he sound disappointed?

"Would you like one?" Draco's heart was pounding in his throat.

Harry sighed in defeat, "What's the point? When he finds out that I am not like all the papers and magazines make me out to be, he'll just leave. Like everyone leaves, even-" He abruptly ended his sentence.

"So you don't want to be my boyfriend. That's okay, Harry, really."

Draco was slowly making his way to the door, ready to dash to his own room and have a sulking and pouting fit there. Harry remained silent.

But just as Draco turned the doorknob to open it, he heard Harry's soft voice say, "Don't go, please?"

Draco turned around. "What is it?"

"It's not you, Draco," Harry sighed.

"Is it the fact that I'm a Slytherin? I'd love to get resorted for you Harry, only I don't think the other Houses would be very happy to have me."

"No! No, it's not your House. I could care less which House my boyfriend would be from! It's…" Harry took a moment to gather his thoughts. "It's just that I don't think I'd believe it from anyone. I wouldn't believe it from Terry Boot and I wouldn't even believe it from Bill Weasley for that matter."

Draco was distracted for a minute. "Bill Weasley is gay?"

He then quickly turned his thoughts back to the problem at hand.

"So, if you aren't having any problems with me being from Slytherin, and you are gay… would you mind terribly spending more time with me? So I can show you that I mean it? Of course, you would be on and in even more papers and magazines than before, seeing who you'd be spending your time with."

Harry looked at Draco for a while, "You really mean it don't you?"

Draco nodded, "So you will?"

"Yes, I will." And Harry gave him a big bright smile.

"But, you do realize that there will be even more rumours about you once we start dating?" Draco felt like he really should point it all out to Harry.

Harry now shrugged his shoulders, "There will always be rumours about me I suppose. But when rumours are based on something that is actually true, I don't mind so much. I couldn't really care less as long as they're about someone who likes me for me for once."

Now Draco's smile grew wider and wider. Tentatively, he came closer to where Harry was standing. "Do you mind if I give you a hug?"

Harry nervously shifted from foot to foot, answering, "No, I suppose that's okay."

Draco stepped closer approaching him like one might approach a scared animal. He slowly raised his arms, first stroking Harry's arms very softly. When he noticed Harry relaxing a bit, he slowly pulled Harry to him and wrapped him in a loose hug. Nuzzling Harry's neck he softly said, "You feel really good in my arms."

Harry shivered in Draco's arms.

"Is something wrong?" Draco asked worriedly.

He could barely hear Harry's whispered, "Nothing's wrong."

"Harry, I felt you shiver. There's obviously something wrong."

"No, really, there isn't. I just didn't expect to feel this." Harry was still whispering.

"Feel what?" Draco asked.

"Warm and safe." But even as Harry said that, Draco could feel Harry withdraw, fidgeting more and more.

Very slowly, Draco pulled his arms back but not before he gave Harry a soft squeeze.

"I really like it that you feel warm and safe in my arms, but I think that we have to practice a bit more to get you to feel very safe within my embrace. So I hope we get to practice a lot over the next couple of months."

"Months?" Harry asked softly.

"Well, you didn't think I would tire of having you in my arms so easily now did you?" Draco asked with a big smirk on his face.

Harry chuckled.

Draco felt giddy because he hadn't expected that Harry would react so lovingly to him and he didn't think it was exactly punishment to practice hugging for a few months.

Reluctantly they pulled back from one another, transfigured the chairs back to how they had been before and walked down the stairs from the Astronomy Tower. They intended to return to their dorms, but right before they separated, Draco turned to Harry and asked, "Why were Ron and Hermione running all about in such a frenzy this afternoon?"

"They were looking for me," Harry said simply.

"Hmmm. Yes, that's what I thought. But why couldn't they find you?"

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Thanks for reading! – Veer & Nat –