Disclaimer: I do not own any characters created by J.K. Rowling.

Chapter Forty-Six

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After the incident at the Burrow, Grimmauld place was run as a much tighter ship.

Everyone was free to come and go as they pleased, except for Draco. Every morning around 9 o'clock, Auror Buxley would come in and take Draco and Sirius into the study, have a brief chat with them and then used the floo to head back to the Ministry. Apparently daily inspections were to be a routine for the next couple of weeks. It irked Draco, but what could he do? He held his tongue around Buxley -he wasn't a bad bloke after all -and threw himself into duelling with Sirius or Remus as well as making more Wolfsbane. Thanks to Hermione, the idea of a small, independent business had taken root in his mind, and it was a hard one to shake.

Currently, he was testing himself to see just how many batches of wolfbane he was able to make in a single month, with the ingredients at his disposal, now made even easier with the plant boxes that Harry had made for him.

That wasn't to say that he didn't have an inordinate amount of time to while away.

As July was drawing to a close, and the full force of summer bled like lava across England, Draco was forced to remain confined to Grimmauld place. It was a good thing that Hermione and Ron were happy enough to come over, otherwise he was sure he would have gone out of his mind with boredom. He knew they were only really here to spend time with Harry, but when he was included into their conversations, he felt some of the loneliness ebb away.

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Draco had just gotten out of a lukewarm shower and was ruffling a towel over his hair. His room was pleasantly cool and the muggle t-shirt and shorts he donned were more than equipped to keep him cool for the remainder of the evening. He knew the moment the sun arose in the morning; the house would become stifling. Even cooling charms had little effect on the oppressive atmosphere. With a sigh, he threaded his fingers through his hair, grimacing at how long it had become. There was no way he could survive in this state with long hair.

'Perhaps I could ask Sirius about getting a haircut?' he chewed on his bottom lip.

As he made his way towards the staircase, he heard a wet whimpering sound coming from the nursery. Nudging the door open, Draco was greeted with the sight of a red-faced Teddy, standing up in his cot with his little fists clutching at the white railings.

"Hey now, what's all this then?" Draco pondered aloud as he hoisted Teddy out of the cot and planted him firmly on his hip. He held the toddler with an ease that he didn't know he'd have ever possessed before coming to live here. Brushing Teddy's thick red hair to one side, he wiped the tear tracks away with his thumb. "There, now, no more tears. What's gotten into you?"

Teddy looked up at Draco with wide, watery eyes that immediately flashed to a familiar grey. His bottom lip trembled, but he had stopped crying. He gabbled some nonsense and toyed with the collar of Draco's t-shirt. Peeking inside the kids' mouth, Draco grimaced.

"Merlin's beard, you're teething," he sighed. "No wonder you look so miserable. It really is a nasty business."

Teddy nodded.

"Okay, let's go find your dad's and they can figure out how to calm you down, eh?"

Adjusting his grip on his baby cousin, Draco turned to head downstairs.

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Opening the kitchen door, he paused in the doorway at the sight before him; Remus stood at his colossal height of 6'3" and had Sirius curled up into the planes of his body, his chin resting comforting on Sirius' mop of black wavy hair. Draco was always struck by just how different the two men were; Remus was tall and gangly, sinewy muscle and baggy, comfortable cardigans, whereas Sirius was short, compacted muscle and power with a muddle of pureblood and muggle clothes tossed together as he hugged Remus close. Remus reached up and scratched his fingers through the tangle of dark curls and Sirius hummed appreciatively.

Draco felt like he was intruding on a private moment, yet he couldn't bring himself to turn away.

His mother and father certainly hadn't shared such intimate moments where anyone could walk in on them. He knew it must have happened though, based purely on the way they had talked about one another.

Teddy started to fuss in his arms, immediately drawing both men's attention to the doorway.

"Ah Draco," Sirius smiled, slowly unwinding himself from Remus' torso. "What're you lurking around for?"

"Oh, I actually came down to ask a favour. I heard Teddy fussing so I thought I'd bring him down with me."

"Come here you little monster," Remus lifted Teddy from Draco's arms and propped him on his hip. "Let's see if we can find you something to nibble on."

Shaking his head fondly at the other man, Sirius returned his attention to Draco. "So, what is it I can do for you?"

"I was … sort of wondering about getting my hair cut."

"I think I know the charm for that? Mind you, it's been a long time since I've needed to use it."

"Actually -I was wondering if I could get my hair cut … the muggle way?"

Remus chuckled at Sirius' stunned silence. "I don't see the harm it could do. Men's hair usually goes quicker than women's anyway, from what I remember."

"So, you'll take me?"

"Sure, I wouldn't mind getting a trim myself," Remus admitted. "I might even get Teddy's done too, while we're there. It's starting to reach his shoulders."

Sirius gawped at them. "And what am I supposed to do while you lot are off galivanting around muggle London?"

"Honestly, Pads, you can come with us."

"But I don't need my hair cut," he whined.

"Why don't you go over to the Burrow and see Harry?" Remus suggested. "You'd only be waiting around with us lot, and I know you're going to get bored and make a fuss."

Sirius straightened up and narrowed his eyes at Remus. "You say that as though I go around acting like a toddler."

Arching an eyebrow, Remus snorted, "Now where would I get an idea like that?"

Sirius gasped and swatted the taller man across the arse. "Fine," he sighed. "I shall go and spend some time with my godson. If Molly forces another casserole onto me, do you want that for dinner?"

Remus shrugged. "I suppose it will save us the effort of cooking."

Nodding, Sirius stood on his tiptoes to give Remus a smacking kiss on the lips, pecked Teddy on the forehead and gave Draco a clap on the back as he made his way outside, whistling as he went. It didn't take long before the undeniable sound of the motorbike's engine roaring caught their attention. Draco listened to the engine fading away into the distance before Remus bothered to break the silence.

"That man," he sighed. "Right, let's get ready and head into town. I'm sure there's a barber shop nearby that'll do walk-ins."

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The bell jingled over the door as Draco followed Remus inside. Teddy swung his arm from Remus' as they walked up to the front desk. The girl stationed behind it had long black lashes, bleach blonde hair and far too much lip-gloss on her mouth. She was chewing gum as she spoke on the phone to someone, nodding her head and scribbling into a fat ledger.

"Okay, have a good day. Bye!" she hung up the phone and seemed surprised to find three pairs of eyes looking down at her. "Oh, hi. What can I do for you three today?"

"Would you happen to have a space for three walk-ins?" Remus asked.

Draco furrowed his brow, his eyes wondering around the room. He felt decidedly uneasy with the large leather chairs facing the even larger mirrors. There were basins lined up along the back wall with chairs in front of them. It all seemed rather peculiar to him, but he didn't comment on it. The jar of blue liquid looked lethal, especially with the sunken brushes sitting at the bottom. A tremor ran down his spine as he tuned back into the receptionist assuring Remus that they'll be seen to shortly, and to please take a seat. He followed Remus to a couple of chairs off to one side, a coffee table with glossy magazines strewn across it. Teddy was agitated, scrunching up the pages of one of the magazines in his fist. Remus kept trying to pry it away, but that didn't deter the toddler.

"Which one of you is Teddy?" asked a thirty-something man with tanned skin, a black t-shirt and a dense, close-cropped bears.

"Here he is," Remus gave a wry smile, grabbing Teddy up under the arms. "Is he going into the airplane chair?"

"He is."

"Awesome. How about that, Ted? You get to go in the plane!"

Teddy squealed, "Plane, plane, plane!" as he was nestled into the large plastic plane that sat quite high at the front of the shop.

Draco hesitated a moment before getting up and standing beside Remus, determined to watch how everything was done so that he didn't freak out halfway through. Teddy made a disgruntled fuss about getting his hair wet, although the amount of thrashing that he did only serve to make him wetter. He seemed content to sit in the plane-chair again and didn't seem to notice too much when the barber brought those sheers -something akin to the ones used to trim ivy in Greenhouse 3 -were brought close to his head and cut! Draco's heart was beating erratically as he watched Teddy's curls drift away around his shoulders. A mop of tawny curls was left on top, and it was no mystery that he was definitely Remus' son.

Teddy was allowed to sit and play in the plane-chair while Remus got his hair done. Once his hair had been washed and towelled, he came to sit in the chair beside Teddy, towel around his shoulders and his hair darkened and slick against his head. Draco felt tense and jittery when he was called over towards the basins.

The leather creaked under his weight, and it was a strange experience to have to tip one's head backwards and rest it on a ceramic rim. The water came out like a small jet stream and was a touch warmer than he was used to. However, as soon as the girl started scrubbing her fingers through his hair and massaged his scalp, he felt his troubles melt away. Why did wizarding salons not have this? A good head massage seemed like the perfect thing to pay-out for, especially if it was done properly. Was this woman an expert? Did they always feel this nice or was she just really good at her job?

He almost whined when the water was shut off and a towel was ruffled over his hair.

Remus was already in the process of having his hair cut. He shot Draco a covert smile whilst trying not to move his head. Draco was suddenly wound tightly with nerves once again.

He flinched when the man behind him combed his hair back. It was like looking into a mirror of his past self. He dropped his gaze, chewing on his lip. Even wet, his hair was still noticeably blonde. When asked was side he wanted his parting, he blanked for a moment before saying, "The left?"

He didn't flinch or jerk away while the back of his hair was being cut, mostly because he didn't see the scissors. He heard the rasp of the steel on his hair, but other than that, he was able to sit quite calmly in the chair. It was only when they started to style his fringe into a 'sweep fringe' that he went catatonic. Seeing those blades up close and mere millimetres from his eyes, he almost jerked away in a panic. The only thing that stopped him, was the thought of ending up like Teddy, and making matters worse.

Either that or his hair would have been uneven!

He did lurch forward in the chair when a loud whirring sound and a stream of hot air came out of nowhere and blew his damp hair into his face. He gripped the arms of the chair so tightly, the nylon cape choking him, as the machine was turned off.

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you," the man apologised with a frown. "Did you not want your hair dried?"

Draco unclenched his eyes and looked up at his reflection. He was pale and had his hands clamped over his ears. A pink stain crept across his features. Dried? This was how muggles dried their hair? It seemed unnecessarily loud. Hot air from a machine? He may as well ask a dragon to steam it for him!

"I … uh …"

"You don't have to," the guy shrugged. "It can always air-dry if that's what you'd prefer."

Draco took a long moment to look at himself in the mirror. His shoulders were hunched around his ears, and he looked like an absolute prat. How the Hell did he survive through a war while being this much of a coward? Hell, may he could have defeated Voldemort with a blood air-dryer if all wizards got as freaked-out as he did.

Releasing the tension in his arms, he gave a stiff nod and forced himself to sit up straight. "Y-yes, I'll have it dried. Uh … please? It just caught me by surprise."

The man gave a smile, before turning the hairdryer on in a slower manner, so as to get Draco used to it, before he slowly started to comb, style and dry Draco's hair.

By the time he was finished, Draco barely recognised himself in the mirror. His hair felt silky soft and swooped over the right side of his face just above his eyebrow. The rest had been trimmed a few inches back and seemed to have a fluffy body quality he knew he would be unable to replicate with charms.

He looked … good?

'Wow,' he thought. 'I haven't thought that about myself in a very long time.'

Looking up in the mirror, as the cape was unfastened from around his neck, he saw Remus at the front desk, paying for the three of them. They all looked fresher and renewed with just a little bit of TLC. Draco couldn't deny how amazed he was. His mind wondered to Pansy for a brief, startling moment. She had always prided herself on her appearance, especially on her hair, even if no one else shared her sentiments on the matter.

Draco could definitely see the appeal of a hairdresser. Though he wouldn't have necessarily styled his hair liked that himself, maybe that was a good thing. Having all these new, mainly muggle, experiences was opening his mind to numerous things. Maybe a tweak to his personal grooming was in order as well?

"You all read to go?" Remus asked as he plucked Teddy out from the plane-chair, much to the toddler's annoyance.

"Yes, yes I think so."

Draco gave one last, fleeting smile to his reflection, before following his guardian out of the shop.

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~0~

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Sirius wiped the motor oil from his hands with a rag and blew a few stray strands of hair from his eyes. It was getting a little later, hovering in that twilight zone between lunch and dinner. Harry had asked to stay at the Burrow for dinner and Sirius had reluctantly agreed on the promise that Arthur would floo him home by 9 o'clock. Casting protective charms around the garage, Sirius traipsed up the back steps to the house. He always surprised him how different Grimmauld place had become since the end of the second war. It had been a whirlwind of redecorating. He and Harry had thrown themselves into the details, blasting old walls out, opening rooms up, setting fire to old drapes, carpets and some heirlooms that were just hideously evil-looking.

Sirius wasn't entirely sure if it felt like 'home' but it felt a lot better since all the remodelling.

It definitely helped that he could wake up with Remus wrapped around him, strong, warm limbs cradling him and warding off the cold chill of the shadows.

Soft voices were coming from the kitchen. He trailed in and stopped in the doorway; Remus looked up at him, his amber eyes flashing brightly as a slow smirk crept across his face. He knew exactly how his new haircut made him look and judging from Sirius' gawping expression, someone was going to get lucky tonight. Shaking the thoughts aside, he prayed his jeans were forgiving as he took in Teddy's bouncy curls and Draco's new sweeping style.

"Wow! Look at my boys all spruced up!" he grinned, coming up behind Remus and kneading his shoulders, "So how was the barbers? No drama?"

"Nope, Draco handled himself rather well," Remus grinned at the blonde over the table. "Much better than you and James."

Draco's interested piqued, "Oh, is that so? What happened?"

"James freaked out when they buzzed the back of his neck with the electric razor. Sirius, on the other hand, was a demanding little prick," Remus shot a smirk up at the man behind him. "The conditioner was too greasy, have they NEVER styled hair before? Were there no gold flakes left for a facial?"

"Hey!" Sirius jerked the chair back, making Remus wobble. "I NEVER said anything about gold flakes, Lupin!"

Remus snorted, tipping his head to the side and leaning against Sirius' arm. Sirius ran his fingers through Remus' hair and dropped a kiss to the taller man's forehead. "Is Harry still at the Burrow?"

"Yeah, he's staying for dinner. Arthur is going to bring him home by nine."

Draco felt a heaviness weigh down his chest. It wasn't that he didn't mind spending time with Remus and Sirius. He'd come to love their banter with one another, Remus' effortless affection towards his son, and the way they would listen, joke and give advice all at the same time. However, the evenings with Harry were starting to become gaps throughout the week. Maybe it was just because of summer, everyone taking a proper break after the war and whatnot, but Draco couldn't help but feel envious. The skin around his tattoo prickled a little, but he ignored it. It was not irked by Harry's absence.

He could feel the two men sharing a look behind his back, but he didn't slow down so they could interrogate him. He just carried on up the stairs to his room.

The moment he flopped down on the bed, he regretted it. Harry had spent a good couple of nights with him, recently, and the pillows still smelled like him. Draco would late cringe about how he rolled onto his side and buried his nose into the pillow on the other half of the bed, but for now he wanted to indulge. By the next time Harry aged again, all the bad blood between them would reach its crescendo and there was no telling how this version of Harry was going to react. As per usual, Draco braced himself for the worst.

He tossed his wand up onto the bedside table where it landed next to a copy of the Daily Prophet.

The front page article depicted a large photo of him sleeping across three chairs with his head nestled in Sirius' lap. The man in question had his head tipped back against the wall and had a protective hand resting on Draco's shoulder, his thumb moving every so often against the thin fabric of the t-shirt. If it weren't for some subtle movements, and the flash, Draco could have thought it was a muggle photograph. Ignoring the accompanying article, it was a tender moment forever immortalised. Not necessarily a good thing, as Draco loathed to be seen as vulnerable in any way. However, Remus had said maybe it was a good thing to show he was vulnerable. That he was a kid coming out of a war and dealing with the aftermath.

"Or that the mighty have fallen and he's an easy target," Sirius had groused over a mug of coffee.

Draco could easily see both sides of the argument, but whenever he looked at that photo all he could think of was, 'Did my own father ever hold me like that?'

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He must have drifted off and napped for a few hours. The room was dark, the curtains drawn back to expose an almost-full moon. His heart sank, knowing that he had a long week of brewing ahead of him. His bed was warm, and his skin was cool as he turned on his side and let out a sigh. He wondered what time it was. He didn't smell dinner so that probably meant that Harry wasn't back yet. The house around him felt still. A heaviness settled in his stomach.

He didn't really feel like he could eat anyway.

Grabbing his wand, he turned the bedside lamp on, casting a soft glow across the bed. Reaching for his Charms textbook, he started to idly flick through. Now that he didn't have an assignment due, he could let his mind wander as he read.

He didn't know how much time had passed.

There was the distant roar of the floo from the kitchen. The sound of footsteps hurrying up the stairs to the second landing, easily matching with the rhythm beating in his chest.

The door to his room swung open. Harry stood in the doorway, chest heaving, his face split into a wide grin. Draco frowned, sliding his legs over the edge of the bed. A shiver ran through him. He cast a swift 'incendio!' at the fireplace, grateful when the warmth flooded the room.

"What're you grinning about?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow as Harry shut the door behind him and came over to perch at the foot of the bed. He toed his shoes off and leaned back on his hands, stretching his legs out towards the fire.

"Went up to Diagon Alley today with Ron and Hermione."

"Is that safe?" Draco frowned. "You're still not completely aged."

"We cast a disillusion charm before we went in," Harry shrugged. He started to empty his pockets. "I don't think anyone noticed. Besides, I got sweets! I thought we could hang out, just the two of us."

"Just … the two of us?"

Damn, his hearting beating so fast!

"Yeah, we haven't really done it in a while and … honestly? I've missed it." Harry fucked his head, his fringe called in front of his eyes. Draco resisted the urge to brush the fringe aside.

"What about Sirius and Remus? Aren't they cooking dinner?"

"I think they've already eaten?" Harry chewed his lip. "I can run down and grab some from the fridge?"

Draco shook his head. "Nah, all these should be fine," he said, shifting through the pile of sweets, jellies, pasties and liquorice wands. "We can always sneak down and have a midnight snack when it's actually midnight."

Harry grinned and hopped to his feet. "Want to play some exploding snap? Or one of those muggle games Moony taught us?"

Draco rolled his eyes, "Sure, grab the cards. I'm going to sit in front of the fire."

As Harry hurried off to his room, Draco swiped the pile of goodies from his rumpled duvet and shifted everything over to the hearthrug. As he organised the treats into two piles, keeping them on his right side, away from the heat of the fire, he listened out to the quiet life of the house. Teddy rattled one of his toys lazily in his cot. Remus snored quietly; the noise muffled by half-closed doors. He usually slept earlier before a full moon as he tried to conserve as much energy for the transformation as possible. Either that or Sirius had spiked his bedtime tea with a dreamless sleep. The gentle sigh from Sirius was far too alert; he was probably reading in bed, most likely petting Remus' hair. They must have come up to go to bed when Harry crashed into his room. No way would they have left the floo open to all and sundry.

Harry returned with a pack of playing cards in hand. He closed the door, then settled across from Draco, leaving just enough room between their knees for the cards. They started with a game of SNAP first just to get themselves warmed up. They quickly moved onto CHEAT and after Draco won that last hand, they decided to up it to poker, using jellybeans instead of money.

"Who was your first kiss?"

Draco stilled, his finger tightening around his playing cards. The bite of pumpkin pastie he'd just taken, felt dry and stuck in his throat. Sipping his water, he cleared his throat and tried to keep his voice level. "W-why do you want to know?"

Harry shrugged, "Just curious. I just wondered who yours was with."

"Pansy Parkinson, if you must know."

"Ew, Parkinson really? Why?"

"She had a bit of an obsessive crush on me, and she came from a good family, so my parents wouldn't have minded if we'd gotten together."

Harry scrunched up his nose. "Was it … good?"

"Nope," Draco rolled his eyes. "We tried a couple of times, but it did nothing for me. This was about two years before I was able to accept, I'm gay."

Harry hummed, shuffling his cards and frowning down at his hand. "Do you … do you know about mine?"

"I do recall something about a rather sloppy, wet kiss with Cho Chang," Draco smirked. "Although, I'm told it was wet due to her crying uncontrollably, not that you were a bad kisser."

"Uh thanks? Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

Draco shrugged, "I don't even know if that was your first kiss."

"I don't remember any others. Pretty sure Hermione said Cho was my first kiss. It was after one of the DA meetings." He grimaced, "Either way, it sounds like a disaster! I'd definitely want a do-over of a first kiss, if that was the crappy first attempt."

Draco felt his cheeks warm up a little. He told himself it was their proximity to the fire and nothing more. However, when he looked up, it was to see a pair of sparkling green eyes already watching him. The corner of Harry's mouth quirked up into a shy smile and Draco wanted to flop down onto his back and hide under the rug.

Harry leaned across their little came, a blush ghosting across his cheeks which was definitely the fire's fault! It was only when he was close enough that Draco could count the freckles on his goddamn nose that reality slammed into his chest and propelled him backwards, leaning out of Harry's reach. They both froze. Draco blood was roaring in his ears, screaming in tandem with his aching heart and dear Merlin what was wrong with him? His stomach twisted, churning all the sweets inside him, making him feel nauseated.

Anyone would kill to be in his position to kiss Harry Potter, de-aged or not.

The world around him unfroze, the sounds coming alive around him as though a silencing charm had been taken away. Harry leaned away from him slightly, frowning heavily. "Shit! Have I … have I gotten it wrong this whole time?"

"I … it's … um …"

The frown deepened. "Do you not want to kiss me?"

Draco dropped his head forward into his hands, elbows on his knees, and let out a groan. "It's not about that, Harry. If I kiss you now … I can't have you hating me. In a few weeks time, you'll remember everything. You'll hate me for what's happened, for what I've done."

"But I don't hate you!" Harry gave an exasperated laugh. "I don't hate you, not right now and not before, doesn't that count for something?"

"Because you don't remember!" Draco snapped, clawing his hands through his hair. Frustrated, he leapt to his feet and started to pace, his entire body thrumming with constrained erratic magic. "That's the whole point! That's the reason I'm here!"

"To give you a second chance, I know."

Draco stilled, his voice low as he bowed his head and squeezed his eyes shut, "But you don't know all of it."

The sound of Harry standing to his feet made Draco stiffen all over. His fingers tightened around his wand, ready to ward the brat off, but he was keenly aware that anything other than a basic spell would get his arse landed in a ministry cell for the night. "I'm not stupid, Draco!" Harry growled, marching over so that he was standing in front of the blonde. "I know what you've done. I know! Dad and Remus don't like to me, I've known about it for a while now."

Opening his eyes, Draco stared into the fierce gaze of the teen before him. Features imprinted themselves in his memory; black hair alight with the glare of the fire, fierce eyes boring into his own, tight muscles, a firm, solid determination that permeated the air and seemed to give Draco the very strength to stand upright.

"Then … how can you still want to kiss me?" he asked, barely breathing the words.

Reaching out, Harry took one of Draco's hands in his own. He didn't lace their fingers together, Draco couldn't imagine that happening anyway, but he did press Draco's hand against his chest, pressing his own over the top. Draco felt the steady drumming of Harry's heart beneath his Weasley jumper.

"Draco," he squeezed the blonde's hand. "You're not the same person anymore. If even Ron can see that and have a civil conversation with you, then I'd have to be the biggest idiot on the planet not to notice that you've changed."

Draco remained silent, not daring himself to believe his ears.

People like him didn't get second chances, or happiness or a family life. They got darkness, rot and decay. The shavings of success from dirty deals and bribery. He was rotten down to his core, and he was even screwing up his second chance. He knew the Minister was only being lenient with him because of Sirius and Harry's influence. Otherwise, he'd be in a cell right now NOT having his hand held by one Harry sodding Potter.

"Draco?"

"Yes?"

"Will you be my second first kiss?"

That surprised a burst of distressed laughter from the blonde. He looked down at Harry with a mixture of derision and elation. He rolled his eyes with a shake of his head, "Only to save you the horrible embarrassment of using that line on a normal person."

Harry beamed at him and went in for a kiss, but Draco stopped him with a hand across his mouth.

"Dear Merlin, if you want a good first kiss, you have to do it right!"

Harry gaped at him, "Are you mad?"

Draco swatted him lightly on the cheek, "You can't rush into these things. That's what happened before, and you got a face full of a wet girl."

Harry cringed.

"Now, just … follow my lead," he dropped his voice lower and inched forward, closing the space between their bodies.

He wished he felt as calm as he sounded. He wanted to remember every second of this moment, so he could cherish it forever. Sliding a hand around Harry's waist, letting it rest in the small of the teens back, he drew him closer. Harry's hands splayed against his chest. He could probably feel Draco vibrating with nerves. He willed his hand not to shake as he stroked his thumb along Harry's cheeks, as though he could remember every freckle, before letting his fingers ghost down the teens jaw down to his chin. He gently tipped Harry's face towards his, leaning close so that their noses and lips brushed together. Harry was thrumming with the need for more, Draco could practically taste it.

He touched his lips to Harry's.

It was a shy press of the lips, warm, dry and soft.

The second kiss was just as chaste, teasing, gently asking a silent question. The third and fourth followed in quicker succession, until Draco boldly pressed Harry's against him, held his face in place and opened his mouth against those pliable, hungry lips. Harry opened his mouth, deepening their kiss, his hands sliding from against Draco's chest, up and around his neck, drawing him closer, deeper, greedily kissing him.

Draco barely resisted moaning into the kiss as his hand moved from Harry's jaw and into the hair curling at the nape of his neck. He languidly broke the kiss, their lips red and swollen, chests heaving as they looked into one another's eyes. They both grinned giddily, noses bumping slightly. Feeling more at ease, Draco dipped his head in for another kiss, inhaling deeply and nearly coming undone there and then as his senses were overloaded with everything that screamed 'HARRY!'

When they did finally break the kiss for the second, or possibly third, time they both smiled at one another dazedly. Harry ducked his head, biting his lip, "Bloody hell that was … wow …"

Amused, Draco breathed, "That was rather wonderful."

Harry blushed, teasing at the freshly cut hair at the back of Draco's head. "I didn't mention it earlier but … um … y-your hair looks nice …"

"I went and got it cut today, with Remus," Draco quirked an eyebrow. "Potter have you gone shy on me?"

"Shut up!" Harry shoved him lightly, putting a bit of space between them. He immediately missed the feel of those elegant hands against his skin. The cool air fought against the blush on his cheeks, and he suddenly felt awkward under Draco's lingering gaze. "Um … it's getting pretty late …"

"It is. We should probably head to bed."

Harry watched with a sinking heart when Draco muttered a quick charm, sending the remainder of the food, sweets and cards over to his desk and placed a stasis charm over them. He yawned, stretched and went over to his bed and pulled back the covers. When Harry didn't move, Draco cast a look over his shoulder and offered him a small smile.

"Aren't you coming, Potter?"

Harry swore he had never moved -or changed -so fast in his entire life. However, a night of kissing Draco Malfoy until his jaw ached? How on earth could he say 'no' to that?

A/N: Please leave some lovely reviews! I hope you liked the update!