Disclaimer: I do not own any characters created by J.K. Rowling.
A/N: Thank you for the reviews & and birthday wishes! I had a lovely weekend celebrating and now it's back to the grind!
Chapter Forty-One
.
Now that Ron and Hermione had officially finished all of their exams, Draco saw a lot less of Harry than he had anticipated. Sirius and Remus had volunteered to do the Potter-sighting on the last weekend after exams, and sure enough, like clockwork, a photo of Sirius black and his godson appeared in the Daily Prophet a mere twenty-four hours later. On the odd rainy day, Hermione and Harry would help him brew some Polyjuice potion as well as Remus' wolfsbane, but most days Harry went off to the Burrow, flying with the other Weasley's. Draco tried his best not to feel jealous, but he could tell that even Kreacher was picking up on his temper flares.
Being alone more often than not resulted in long sessions of practicing spells in the third floor dining room. Remus had noted that his reflexes were now sharper than ever and Draco had felt his chest swell with pride. Duelling with his ex-professor was an interesting feat. Who else would say that they made their old DA teacher fall hard on his arse, and uttering a string of curses so colourful that even Draco blushed.
As June was drawing to a close, Sirius seemed a little lighter. Whatever weight that had a chokehold him seemed to have vanished, at least for the time being. It was impossible to understand the warping twelve years surrounding by dementors could do to the human mind. The man was both older than his years, and perpetually stuck in the mindset of a twenty-one year old. The mood swings could be especially jarring.
Draco hoped that Remus was enough.
He had pondered Remus' brief love affair with his cousin, Tonks, a lot since his stay at Grimmauld place and -honestly -he just didn't see how it would have happened if they hadn't been thrust together on missions and Order meetings all the time. He found especially telling that nothing happened until after Sirius had … died. Personally, he chalked it all up to circumstance, but what did he know?
.
On the last week of the month, Hermione and Ron had come over and had helped set-up a massive paddling pool in the back garden. It was a muggle pass-time for the summer, and though it wasn't like the pool at his mother's Chateau, Draco had to grudgingly admit that he saw the appeal. Besides, it did feel nice to dip his feet into the cool water, drinking iced tea and throwing brightly coloured balls to Teddy as he splashed around. Remus was waddling around behind his son, his t-shirt sopping wet and hanging around him, while Sirius had just dunked himself straight in, legs spread in a V as he juggled the balls back and forth. The laughter and merriment were intoxicating; Draco was still jarred by it sometimes.
"So, I had an idea, and I wanted to know what you guys thought about it," Hermione broached, pushing her sunglasses up into her caramel curls.
"What's that, Mione?" Ron asked.
"Well, fourth year we had the Yule ball, right? I was thinking that we could have a little garden party here, give Harry a better experience."
Ron wrinkled his nose, "I'm not inviting Padma Patil over just to ignore her again."
Hermione swatted at his arm, "I still cannot believe you two did that to those poor girls! You could have just gone stag with Dean and Seamus!"
"We live and learn," Ron shrugged. He cocked a ginger eyebrow at the blonde sitting adjacent to him, "Who did you end up taking? Was it Parkinson?"
"Of course, who else was I meant to take?" Draco said sarcastically.
Hermione rolled her eyes, "Well, we can have a little do-over and invite any of the Weasley's who fancy a little dance." Casting a quick look around, she lowered her voice, "Do you think -should we invite Ginny?"
Draco stiffened, feeling his heart thud heavily in his chest. Glancing across the pool, Sirius caught his eye and cocked a dark eyebrow at the suggestion. Swallowing, Draco dropped his gaze to his lap, refusing to acknowledge the twisting in his gut.
"I don't know," Ron admitted quietly. "On the one hand, she doesn't seem as angry anymore. I just … don't want things to blow-up between her and Harry."
"It would be weird if you didn't invite your own sister," Remus stated pragmatically from the other side of the paddling pool. He levelled his gaze at the three young adults and gave a smile. "Just don't let them be alone together."
"There's our Moony, the brains of every operation," Sirius grinned.
Remus splashed some water at him, but he was grinning too.
"I think it sounds like a great idea!" Sirius encouraged, a cheeky gleam in his eye as he allowed Teddy to pour water over his face. "Teddy likes it too, don't you cub?" He tickled the toddler who squealed and splashed around some more.
"What's a great idea?"
All heads turned up to see Harry looming above them. His hair was a ruffled mess and the summer tan he was accumulating was making his toned arms and legs look positively edible. Not that the moron had any idea. Draco bit the inside of his cheek and shook the thought aside. This was nothing compared to how Potter was when he was seventeen. That had been eye-opening.
"We were just thinking of having a little party here, sort of like the Yule ball," Hermione smiled up at her friend as he came to sit on the side of the paddling pool.
Harry ducked his head a little, his cheeks growing pink. "That was such a disaster!" he groaned, dropping his head into his hands. "I couldn't even dance, Mione! I'm pretty sure Parvati was grateful she only had to suffer one dance with me."
Ron snickered, earning him a swat on the arm from Hermione.
"Can we not just … have a party next month or something?" Harry asked shyly, glancing up at his friends with wide, pleading eyes. "The memories are so fresh and bad right now, I'd only make a tit of myself."
"You can't avoid unpleasant things forever, Potter," Draco smirked across at him. "If we all learned to dance, then I'm sure you're not a total lost cause."
"Bloody hell, did you hear that Hermione? Draco Malfoy has rewired my brain so that I just ooze self-confidence!"
"And sarcasm, apparently."
Harry grinned at the blonde. "Well, I learn from the best."
"Hey!" Remus and Sirius barked in protest.
"Of course, I meant you two!" Harry sighed exasperatedly. Placated, the two older men went back to juggling the balls for Teddy to try and catch. As he turned back to the others, Harry discreetly winked at Draco, which absolutely did not make the blonde's stomach somersault at all, thank you very much!
.
That evening Ron and Hermione stayed for dinner. Sirius and Remus had opted to grab a Chinese takeaway, which Ron seemed especially keen to try. With the two men gone, strolling hand-in-hand down the road, the four teenagers relaxed in the lounge, the windows thrown wide open to let the soft, summer air inside. They were all lying around in shorts and t-shirts, bare feet and legs stretched out. Draco still felt dazed that this was his reality.
"I never thought I'd see the day where Draco Malfoy was lounging around in a muggle t-shirt and shorts combo," Ron mused, breaking the companionable quiet they'd settled into.
Draco tore his gaze away from the window, where the sun was starting to sink below the line of houses opposite, to raise his eyebrows at the redhead. "You and me both, Weasley," he readjusted himself in the armchair. "How has your sister been getting on with that Dr. Lisa bint?"
"She's coping better," Ron said. "I think just talking to someone impartial is helping, to be honest. Everyone at home is -it's all too –" he choked a little, trailing off. He cleared his throat loudly and tried to regain his composure. "Have they -er -found you anyone new to go and see?"
"Not that I've been told, no," Draco said. "I'll imagine they'll look into it now that the exams are over."
"Oh yes, how do you think you did? Were they harder on you at the Wizengamot?" Hermione asked, sitting up against the back of the sofa.
"Not especially, I don't think. Kingsley was there."
"He's a fair man. Firm when he wants to be, but fair."
"I just hope the results reflect just how damn hard you've been working," Harry voice from where he was half bent over the back of his armchair. "You literally did nothing but study for a year! I hope you get O's in everything!"
Draco snorted, "I'm not sure I will, Harry."
"Want me to go and throw my name around?" Harry grinned, straightening up and playfully nudging Draco's leg with his foot. "I'll go down there and demand perfect scores for you!"
This time, Ron and Draco snorted.
Hermione had a curious little smile on her lips.
Harry barely had time to ponder exactly what that meant, before the front door was kicked open and Sirius appeared with a plastic bag bulging with aluminium containers in each hand. He was quickly followed by Remus who looked a little pink around the cheeks, glaring down at his partner, before he closed the door, one arm laden with bottles of drink and yet another plastic bag of food.
"We got a little bit of everything, since Ron hasn't really tried Chinese before," Sirius grinned as he set down the bags and withdrew his wand which had been knotted into his hair. He waved it, summoning glasses and plates from the kitchen.
"Yes, any excuse for Padfoot to flaunt his dead parents' money," Remus deadpanned.
"Ah, come on, Moons! The old bag would absolutely keel over if she knew I was dolling out the family money on muggle take away with all of you."
"You were born to provoke people," Remus sighed, before dropping a kiss to Sirius' head. "I'm going to wake Teddy up from his nap."
Sirius took the food and drinks from the taller man and watched until he disappeared from sight, before turning his attention to helping Hermione and Draco pries open the contains and setting them all out across the coffee tables.
It was no surprise to anyone that Ronald Weasley fell in love with Chinese food that night.
He had at least three plates -although Draco suspected a fourth snuck its way into the mix -of the muddle of food, and couldn't keep his satisfied moans to himself. Harry watched his friend attempt to use chopsticks and fail, biting back his laughs as he speared a duck spring roll with a fork.
"Honestly, it's a wonder you wizards ever coped without take-aways," Hermione said once she'd eaten her fill. "Friday night take-aways are almost as classic as a Sunday roast dinner."
Draco snorted, inclined to agree despite himself. With wizards it was usually either sit-down meal, sweets or nothing at all. There really was no in between. There really was no in between. They didn't bother with the TV, instead whiling away the evening with embarrassing stories about the Yule ball, how awkward teenaged boys were around girls and how Sirius had actually taught Remus how to dance in the privacy of the boys' dorms over Christmas break in their third year.
.
By the time 10 o'clock came around, everyone had eaten their fill, Teddy had thrown a tantrum about going back to sleep and refused to stop his squalling unless Remus took him upstairs to read to him. Sirius grumbled about having a toddler kicking him in the gut all night, to which Remus had replied, 'welcome to my world.' Draco had given Hermione and Ron a somewhat awkward 'goodbye', knowing full-well that he'd probably see them the following week, and made up an excuse about needing to check on the potions he had setting. Harry saw through the charade, but appreciated it, nonetheless.
Standing out on the front steps, Harry pulled the door to and turned to his friends. It was still disturbing seeing them older than he currently was; the bags and lines around their eyes, the scarring on their arms, both faded a little, but pink and risen all the same. There was no way to hide them under short sleeves. There were a few sneaky white hairs threading through Hermione's frizzy curls, but only because he'd looked for them.
Following his curious gaze down to her arm, Hermione looked up and gaze a sad smile, "You'll remember soon enough, Harry."
He twisted his lips, "This isn't like the time turner, you know? You can tell me what happens, clearly things work out otherwise I'm pretty sure none of us would be here right now, right?"
Hermione blushed a little, her eyes immediately flicking to Ron. He cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. "It's just -the thing is Harry -you dealt with so much. Do you really want that weighing on your mind?"
"How is not knowing any better?"
"We just worry that you'll overthink things and drive yourself crazy with the what if's."
Harry sighed and sat down on the top concrete step. Hermione followed suit, two steps down, and Ron settled in at her side. Even sitting down he was almost level with Harry. "Don't you two worry about what you could have done better?"
"Of course," Hermione sighed, propping her head up with her hand. "The thing is, Harry, what good will it do? We just have to focus on making sure the Ministry gets properly reformed, we get good grades and decent jobs to push these changes. Overthinking about what could've been done better won't help."
"I suppose that makes sense."
"Just … remember, mate, that whatever happens, whatever you remember -we won. We're alive. Yeah, we could have done things quicker, been better, saved a lot of aggro. We're all still paying for it," Ron clapped a hand on his knee. "You just have to remember that you have a support system. And me and Mione are always ready to apparate over."
"Of course!" Hermione chimed brightly. "Don't ever think you're alone, Harry."
An overwhelming sense of gratitude rushed through him, his eyes growing misty with tears as he threw his arms around both their necks. "I love you guys so much. I'm so glad we're all alive and together."
Over his head, Hermione shot a bemused look at her boyfriend, their arms winding around one another and squeezing in the soft evening air. Pulling away, Hermione swiped a tear away. "Have you thought about advancing the aging process?" she asked carefully. "You only have a couple of years to go, and you didn't even experience your eighteenth birthday."
Harry furrowed his brow as he looked out towards the muggle courtyard across the road. "I -no, I haven't really thought about it. Draco, he -we did it once. Do you think it would be worth accelerating it?"
"I'm not sure I see the harm," Hermione said softly.
Ron frowned, "What if he ages too fast? Won't the mental exhaustion drain his magic?"
"I'm sure Draco wouldn't accelerate it to that degree. He knows what he's doing, he'd be a good potions master."
Harry shot Hermione a grateful smile, even though Ron hadn't even pulled a disparaging face at the comment. "I can always ask him before he goes to bed," he pondered, ruffling a hand through his black hair. Then a thought flickered through his head. "Hey, can you two cast a patronus charm?"
"Yeah mate."
"Yes, Harry. Why?"
"What shape do they take?" he deflected, his eyes wide and earnest.
"Mine's a Jack Russell terrier," Ron grinned proudly. "Boisterous little sod."
"Mine's an otter," Hermione smiled softly up at her boyfriend, before turning back to Harry. "Why do you ask, Harry?"
"Draco was practising, and I've made a few attempts when I practice alone with Sirius. Mine's a stag, I know that. I just don't think Draco has seen his patronus form yet."
"Can he produce a rudimentary patronus shield?" Hermione frowned. Harry nodded. "I wouldn't worry, Harry. These things take a lot of skill and sometimes the mind can get a bit too muddled to focus. Now that the exams are over, he might be able to focus more."
"Gosh, I forgot how common sense sounds!" he bemoaned with a grin.
Hermione rolled her eyes and stood up, dusting down her summer dress. "Right, we'd best get back otherwise my parents will have a fit." She bent down and hugged Harry tightly, "Owl us if there's anything on your mind. We love you and if we can fill in any blanks, I promise we'll do our best."
Harry squeezed back and allowed himself to be dragged up to his feet so he could hug Ron. "We'll have a game of Quidditch next week, yeah?"
"Sounds good, mate," Ron grinned, clapping him brotherly on the back before stepping down.
Taking Hermione's hand somewhat hesitantly, they passed through the wards and crossed the road into the courtyard. As soon as they slipped past the nearest tree, there was a faint crack, and they were gone.
Harry stood on the step for a while, watching the spot they'd been standing at, letting the lilac evening wash over him, cooling the baked earth. A soft breeze rustled the leaves overhead and a plane streaked a pale smudgy line across the cloudless sky. It truly had been a perfect day. Smiling wistfully to himself, he turned and went back inside, fully intent on hunting down Draco to discuss the patronus charm again.
He skidded to a stop when he caught a flash of bright blonde hair in the dimly lit lounge. Sirius and Remus must have still been dealing with a fussing Teddy. Grinning broadly, Harry went into the room.
"Draco, I was thinking that we could practice some more with the patronus -uh -what's all this?" He frowned, as he took in the assembled gramophone in the lounge along with the fairly lights they'd used in their blanket fort. The slow winking lights reminded him of stars and he felt awestruck as soft music caught his ears.
Draco smiled down at him and extended his hand, "I am going to teach you how to waltz, Harry Potter."
"What?!" he gawped. "No, you're bloody not! I have three left feet and I have no ear for the music!"
"Look, if Remus can be taught how to ballroom dance in a dorm when he was thirteen, I sincerely believe I can teach you something basic."
Harry felt his stomach drop into his shoe. "Dra-a-a-a-c-o-o-o-o I don't want to!"
The blonde wrinkled his nose, "Stop whining, Harry, you're fourteen for Merlin's sake."
"I have every right to whine! I didn't get to before so I can fucking do it now!"
"Be as petulant as you like, Potter, but you will learn to dance and you will do as I say," Draco turned his nose up haughtily. "Besides, you'll eventually have to make an appearance at those ministry functions. You can't avoid those forever. You may as well go and dance with some dignity."
Harry glowered up at the blonde, though there was no real heat behind his eyes. "I hate you."
"That's nice," he quipped. "Now, head up, shoulders back, take my hands -what? -No, Potter, what makes you think you get to lead?"
"Because … I'm a guy?"
"What does that make me then?"
"Er … well … I'm not being the girl, Malfoy!"
"You couldn't lead a werewolf to meat, Potter, now hand on my shoulder, head up and for Merlin's sake, if you so much as tread on my toes I will flush your head down the toilet."
Harry snorted as he allowed Draco to pull him close, his hand curving around to the small of his back. He tried to bite back the blush he felt creeping up over his skin, but it was no use. He felt like a fumbling idiot already and Draco was watching him, cool and calm as anything, as though dancing with your school nemesis was an everyday occurrence.
They went over the basics and when Draco finally felt Harry was ready to attempt the waltz, they'd barely gotten a verse into the song, before Draco yelped in pain. Harry was suddenly hyperaware of his feet and how uncoordinated everything felt as he stepped on Draco's foot again, caught the blonde to curse a storm under his breath. After the third time, Draco pushed them apart, flicking his wand so stop the music and then pointed his wand at his shoes and murmured a spell to quiet for Harry to hear.
"Right, let's try this again," Draco said clearing his throat and taking the lead position.
Harry grudgingly stepped into his space and felt his mind go dizzy as Draco slipped his hand around his waist and pulled him close, so that they were almost touching chests. "So, um … w-what was that spell you put on your shoes?" he croaked, "a cushioning charm?"
Draco smirked the familiar, challenging smirk he'd always worn at school. "No, I put a stinging hex on my shoes, so the next time you step on them, you'll get a little shock."
"What?!"
"Better be careful this time, Scarhead."
"But -I -that's not fair!"
"Neither is ruining a perfectly good pair of shoes, now pay attention and remember what I taught you," Draco straightened up, towering over the brunette and got into the starting position. With a flick of his wand, the gramophone set into motion and the opening bars of the song start to keen into the quiet air.
Harry chewed on his lip, suddenly aware of how sweaty his hand was as it rested in Draco's. Was he shaking, as well? Could this situation get any worse?
"Harry," Draco's voice was soft in his ear. It made his stomach flip and his body to blush ever more and he felt everything tense. Peeking up through his fringe he saw grey eyes staring down at him in a bewitching manner. "Look at me, focus on me. We'll go slowly, okay?"
He nodded mutely.
"One … two … three … One … two … three … that's it … One … two … three … steady the arms …"
Harry couldn't believe how exhilarating it felt, an hour later, when he was able to do a waltz, albeit a very basic one, around the lounge with Draco Malfoy leading him effortlessly by the hand. The tension ebbed from his muscles as he leaned into Draco's body, feeling his heart beating erratically beneath his ribs as he felt the blonde's breath against his cheek, the smell of his cologne flooding Harry's senses as they glided from one side of the room to the other, Draco deftly adding a twirl that almost made Harry lose his footing, but he managed to regain himself with a laugh.
This was so much better than learning to dance for the Yule ball. There was no embarrassment, no gaggle of people watching him and waiting for errors, there was no jealous, anxious glances over at Cho and Cedric as they twirled beneath the Christmas lights.
Even if Draco had looked a little like a vampire, at least he'd had good grace and sweeping black robes. Would Harry have felt better if he'd known how to dance better? Would it have been better if he had gone with Cho instead of Cedric? Would he have made Cedric enjoy that dance even more, knowing it would be his last?
Cedric had laughed as he'd twirled Cho around and kissed her. Harry had watched on, jealous, as he and Ron glowered out at the party goers.
Cedric had still been alive to laugh …
It wasn't fair …
"Ouch!"
Harry jerked away as pain shot up through his foot. "What the fucking, Malfoy, that fucking hurts!"
"I did warn you," Draco said placidly as he swiped his hair neatly back into place. Adopting a tentative tone, he settled on the arm of the sofa, flicking his wand to silence the music. "What happened there? We were doing so well."
"It doesn't matter," Harry snapped hotly. He balled his hands into fists and desperately wanted Draco to be sarcastic, to start a fight so he could unleash this ugly feeling inside his head.
"I suppose it is getting late," Draco conceded with a distance tone. He flicked his wand and the fairy lights went out. "I'm going to bed. I hope you sleep well."
Without a backwards glance, he ascended the stairs, leaving Harry in the dimly lit lounge, feeling flustered and agitated. He could feel his magic zapping angrily inside of him, boiling along his veins. He jumped when a loud crack resounded, a deep groove appearing along the chimney breast. Paling, Harry shut off all the lights with a hasty 'nox!' and scarpered up to his bedroom. It took him a couple of hours, but he eventually fell into a fitful sleep.
.
A loud bang jolts Draco out of his sleep. Cracking bleary eyes around his room, he barely noted the vague lightning of the sky through the gap in his curtains. Pulling his wand out he cast a quick 'Tempus' and groaned loudly at the time.
5 o'clock.
With uncoordinated legs, he managed to drag himself out of bed and stumble clumsily down the stairs towards the entrance hall. The house remained silent; the faint noise of Sirius' snoring could be heard through the floor the only disturbance. Draco furrowed his brow; he knew he'd heard something.
A draught skirted around his ankles, making him flinch. The back door was open. Brandishing his wand, he slid through the shadows, feeling the hairs on the back of his neck prickling. Pushing out through the drapes that hung around the French doors, Draco stopped short when he saw Harry kneeling in the dried grass, hunched over with his fingers digging into the dirt.
Then the screaming came.
"C-E-D-R-I-I-I-I-I-C! CEDRIC! NO -NO! LEAVE HIM AL-O-O-NE!"
Draco quickly fired a silencing charm at the back door and prayed that Harry's screams didn't trouble the teens godfather's upstairs. Hurrying to Harry's side, he tried to grapple the brunette into submission, but Harry was fuelled by his delirium and the onslaught of memories.
Kill the spare!
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! CEDRIC! CEDRIC! I'M SORRY! I'M SO, SO SORRY!"
"Harry!"
"No -it was all my fault! I told him to take the cup!" Harry's voice broke, his cries growing hoarse as Draco managed to wrestle him down onto his front. Tears streamed down his face and he choked on his saliva as he cried out, desperately trying to reach for a phantom that wasn't there. "Let me go, I have to save him!"
"Harry's there's no one there!" Draco snapped. "Cedric's dead, I'm sorry, but there's nothing you can do!"
"No! No, you're wrong, I can still save him!"
"Harry stop!" Draco forced the brunette onto his back. Under any other circumstances he'd feel a myriad of emotions at straddling the Boy Who Lived in just a pair of cotton shorts and a vest, but right now all he cared about was shutting those screams up.
Harry writhed and wrestled beneath him, his chest heaving as Draco pressed a hand firmly over the younger teens mouth. Panting, Draco stared down into Harry's tear-stained face and felt his heart rip in two. "Now," he grunted, the angle uncomfortable as Harry's hipbone dug into his thigh. "We're going to wait here until you remember the rest of that night, okay?"
Harry narrowed his eyes, his wet eyelashes standing in thick, jacket spiked behind his glasses. After a moment or two he nodded.
Draco waited and managed to regain his breathing as realisation dance in Harry's eyes. A fresh wave of hot tears leaked silently from his eyes. He curled into Draco's chest, burying his head against the cotton of his vest and wound his arms around the older boy. Quiet sobs starting to wrack through his body and Draco had no other choice than to envelop the Boy Wonder in his arms and comfort him as best he could.
"I'm sorry," he murmured, stroking the brunette's unruly hair. "I'm so sorry for everything."
Harry let out a loud sniff and choked as Draco shifted off of him and pulled him up into a sitting position. He immediately curled into the blonde yet again, his face buried in the crook of Draco's neck. Harry noted that he smelled soft and sleep with a hint of his cologne from earlier. More tears ran down his cheeks and he snuffled a little but made no move to wipe them. Instead, his eyes focused on something else.
The tattoo.
The stark lines against Draco's pale arm were mesmerizing, the curves of the lettings, the petals looking so soft as though they'd float right off his skin. Harry didn't even notice his breathing calming down as he ran his fingertips over the black ink. Draco's breath hitched, a far away sound from another time entirely, but all Harry had eyes for was the tattoo and committing every drop of ink to memory.
.
That's how Remus found them two hours later as dawn finally broke out over Islington. He staggered out into the pearly dawn light and found Draco slumped over with Harry cradled awkwardly in his lap, the latter tracing Draco's tattoo over and over, barely daring to blink. A soft hand on Draco's shoulder had him jumping from shock. He grunted at the pain of Harry's weight keeping him trapped.
"What's going on?" Remus asked softly, curiously peering down as Harry fought to keep his eyelids open. "Did he have another nightmare?"
Draco nodded, his eyes feeling dry and sore. "I think he saw Cedric Diggory get killed."
Harry gave a stifled whine but didn't say anything else.
"Come on, pup, let's get you to bed," Remus said, bending down as though to pick the teenager up. Draco was going to protest but blinked in surprise as the tawny-haired man straightened up, cradling Harry to his chest. Nodding towards the house, Remus said, "Come on, let's put him to bed."
Draco could only nod and followed mutely, his limbs aching and -despite it being summer -a chill had settled into his bones.
Once Remus had settled a troubled Harry into the master bedroom, lying him down next to his Godfather, who curled protectively around him, the werewolf returned downstairs to fix some breakfast for himself and Draco. They ate mostly in silence, until at least two mugs of coffee had been drunk, each. Draco toyed with a piece of toast, nibbling at it half-heartedly to the point where Remus either wanted to ram it into the blonde's mouth or throw it in the fireplace. He did neither.
"I think we should accelerate the aging process again," Draco murmured, his eyes never leaving his plate.
Remus blinked, somewhat surprise as he took another swig of his drink. "Are you sure that's wise?"
Nodding, the blonde said, "the traumatic events only seemed to happen at the end of the year. He'll still gave enough time in between to settle."
Remus swallowed thoughtfully. "You'll have to confirm with Sirius once he's awake but … if you feel like that's what we should do …" He peered up at the blonde, "Are you prepared for what might happen?"
The fights. The squabbles. The bullying. The insults. The Quidditch matches. The Inquisitorial Squad. The Astronomy Tower. All of these things were yet to come, and all of those memories had the power to rip whatever budding affections he had for the Boy Who Bloody Lived Twice. Yet, for once, Draco was determined not to be selfish. The world needed Harry Potter back and said Harry Potter had been avoiding his problems for too long.
It was time.
"Yes," Draco replied stoically, his throat feeling tight. "Yes, I am."
A/N: Please leave some lovely reviews! I hope you liked the update!
B x