Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to the amazing JK Rowling, and sadly, not me.

Thank you to my beta, HPalto87, and hearts to my reviewers!

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10

Quidditch was our undoing, wasn't it?

Harry stared at the letter in disbelief. The irony was too much. The situation had been completely different, but still, it was Quidditch that had gotten in the way of their plans again. Regardless of whatever Draco had meant when he wrote that line, it couldn't apply more than it did now.

'Damn you, Draco Malfoy!'

Harry read about the Quidditch accident that had revealed their relationship.

I heard the bludger hit you. I turned around in time to see you lose your grip on your broom. I looked around the pitch quickly. I was the closest one to you, and damned if I was going to let the guy I had fallen so hard for die like that.

So I dived.

I swooped under you, caught you in my arms, and lowered you safely to the ground, slowly to keep my balance while holding you. Do you remember? You were barely holding on to consciousness.

Harry remembered it all as if it were in slow motion, or a dream. It had never quite seemed real, even as it was happening.

I placed you on the ground and held you against me. I looked into your dazed green eyes and told you that you'd be okay. You were safe now. You were with me.

Our teammates rushed over.

"You saved me," you said. "My Angel."

Harry finished the entry crying, because the love and protectiveness that Draco had showed back then had been non-existent in their relationship for the past few months. He wanted it back, but he just didn't think they could make it work anymore.

Eventually he fell into a fitful sleep.

---

The dream began innocently enough. Harry was flying on his Firebolt, sweeping through the clouds, enjoying the wind rushing by. He looked down to discover a Quidditch game going on below him. He looked at his arms, and realized he was wearing his Howarts Quidditch robes. He supposed that he should be looking for the snitch.

He flew a bit lower, looking at the faces of the players. His team was in red. There was Ron, Ginny, Oliver, Fred and George, Angelina, Katie, and Alicia.

Wait, that was too many players.

Harry watched the keeper, and realized that Oliver and Ron were actually one person, and they kept switching. At the moment Harry was looking at Oliver, but then Oliver circled the goal hoops, and when he came back around Harry found he was looking at Ron. Angelina, Katie, and Alicia kept switching places. Fred and George kept yelling, "Oi, heads up!" before hitting the bludgers. Ginny was weaving in and out of the game, apparently looking for the snitch.

The rival team was wearing green. Slytherins. Six large, rabid-looking boys on brooms rushed around the field, bullying the smaller (but faster) Gryffindors.

And then there was Draco. He was sitting on his broom on the edge of the pitch, eyes darting around, searching for that little flash of gold. He looked up, noticed Harry, and smirked. Harry held the silver gaze intently as he descended to the game.

"Finally!" A voice broke through Harry and Draco's moment.

Harry looked toward the voice to find Ginny circling him.

"You're back," she stated simply.

"Err… yeah. Where did I go?" Harry asked.

Ginny just shrugged and sped toward the stands to let Harry take his place in the game.

Draco approached Harry. "Ready to lose, Potter?" he drawled.

"Not on your life," Harry replied with a smile. He loved a challenge.

It was then that they both saw the flash of gold. There was a moment when the whole world stilled around them. They regarded each other with a competitive stare, and then they were off.

All of Harry's attention was focused on the snitch. It was almost within reach. The world blurred around him. Almost there. Almost. Got it!

Harry suddenly felt sharp pain in his head and shoulder. It slowly registered that he had been hit by something. He lost his grip on his broom and fell backwards.

It all seemed to happen in slow motion. He grabbed for his broom, but it was out of reach now. He felt the wind rushing by. He was looking up at a sunny sky.

This day is too beautiful to die, he thought.

Then an angel appeared. He was pale, blonde, and wearing Quidditch robes.

No, not an angel. Draco.

Harry tried to grab the outstretched hand, but he couldn't. No matter how close it seemed, it was always just out of reach.

So this is how it ends, Harry thought as he hit the ground.

---

Harry jolted awake, breathing hard. He was okay. It was just a dream. His glasses were askew on his face, and he had a cramp in his side from falling asleep in an awkward position on the old couch.

Harry was suddenly aware of a baby crying from somewhere nearby. He took a moment to remember where he was. Hermione and Ron's study. That meant the crying baby was Penelope. Harry fixed his glasses looked around. His eyes focused on a baby monitor on the desk. Hermione must have left it there the night before.

Harry pushed himself off the couch and wandered out of the study. He walked through the familiar house to the baby's room. It was smaller than his and Draco's home, but comfortable. Hermione had a practical design sense, so there was nothing overly expensive or gaudy. Ron was a bit of a packrat, however, so there were piles of random objects in odd places.

Harry smiled as he passed a stack of back-issues of the Quibbler with little action figures playing a game of Quidditch over it.

The baby's room was the only frilly place in the house. Everything was delicate and lacy, and designed by Molly Weasley. It had been a surprise for Hermione and Ron, who had never had the heart to tell Molly they didn't really like it. The room had grown on them, however, and now they didn't mind so much; although they both agreed that should they have another baby, they would insist on decorating the room themselves.

Harry carefully lifted Penelope from her crib. Early morning sunlight streamed through the window and touched the child in his arms, making her red hair glow. She was beautiful to Harry. He hugged her close and rubbed her back, whispering comforting words. He could smell something less-than-pleasant on her though, and dreaded the inevitable.

He looked at the little girl in his arms, then at the changing table. He could wake Hermione or Ron. No, he couldn't do that. Besides, he wanted a baby of his own someday. He couldn't avoid diaper-changing forever.

He placed Penelope on the changing table, and gathered the necessary items. New diaper, baby powder, wipes.

As he set about his task, Penelope kicked at him.

"Don't- ow!" he grabbed her legs. "Don't do that!"

He managed to clean her up and put a new diaper on her with minimal injury to himself, and quite a few giggles from Penelope. He sat her on the floor.

"Now, don't go anywhere, I'll be right back," he said to her, before leaving to wash his hands.

When he returned, Penelope was banging on a toy xylophone. Harry rushed over and picked her up.

"No, no, you don't want to wake Mummy and Daddy," he said.

She giggled in response, and Harry melted at her smile. He sat in the rocking chair and cuddled the little girl, wondering how it was possible to love someone so much. He had loved Draco, but this was different. He felt that he would protect this little girl with his life.

"You're adorable, Penny," he told her. "You're lucky, too, to have so many people who love you. You've got Mummy, and Daddy, and me, and your uncles and aunts, and Grandma Molly. I never had that growing up. You're lucky." He paused, thinking. "And when I finally found someone who I thought loved me, who I thought would give me everything I need…" he wasn't sure where he was going with this. This definitely wasn't a topic for a one-year-old. "I lost him," Harry finished.

Penelope yawned and cuddled into him.

"That was sweet, Harry," Hermione said from the doorway.

Harry turned his head to look at her. "Hermione! How much did you hear?"

"Enough," she said.

Penelope looked ready to fall asleep again, so Harry put her back in the crib and tucked her in. He placed a teddy bear next to her and she wrapped a little chubby arm around it.

He stepped out of the room and closed the door softly. Hermione hugged him.

"You'll make a great father someday," she said.

"I'm gay, I may never have that opportunity," Harry replied.

"Being gay doesn't change anything. If you want a family, you have every right to one," Hermione replied.

Harry was silent for a moment. "Right after I got out of St. Mungo's, Draco and I talked about adopting a baby and starting a family someday. We both decided we weren't ready then, but we would keep the possibility open."

"Harry," Hermione started.

"No, listen," Harry interrupted. "After a while, it seemed like… I don't know… like Draco just didn't want it anymore. He had gotten distracted or something. When you had Penelope, I opened the subject up again, and he shot it down. He said that the life we had was good, we didn't need to do anything to change it so drastically."

Harry paused. He looked like he was on the verge of tears, and Hermione felt like she should say something.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"And it was like, he just shot down everything that I was hoping for, as if the mere suggestion was stupid," Harry finished.

Hermione wanted to help him, but she didn't know how. She pulled Harry into another hug in yet another ineffective attempt to comfort him.