"You really care for him don't you?" Hermione had cornered Harry while Draco and Ron were at the bar getting them more drinks. They are sitting in a room that Harry could only describe as 'creepy drawing room', but that Hermione had assured him was the sitting room from the Adams Family. As soon as they had entered, they had been turned to monochrome. It makes Hermione look even more like something from the Night of the Living Dead.
"Yeah, Hermione, I do," Harry says, leaning forward. "And I tell you this not as my boss but as my friend." As soon as he says it, he's sure it's the wrong thing to say.
"Oh Harry," she says with a sigh.
"Just like I care about you and Ron," he adds.
"So like a friend?"
"Draco and I are friends," he says. They are more than that, but he's never going to tell her that. The thought saddens him.
"I mean, I should hope so, mate. You're dating him." Harry looks up with a start to realize that Ron is standing in front of him. He is clutching a clear tumbler of a dark liquid and an enameled tiki mug with an embossed, colorfully-painted monkey along its side. He hands the tumbler to Hermione and then takes a slurp from the straw sticking out of the tiki mug.
"Harry?" asks a voice from the doorway. "Ron? Hermione?" The three of them turn to look and see Seamus Finnegan standing there (dressed as a leprechaun). Harry jumps up, runs to the irishman and throws his arms around him. The three of them pile around him, and then greet Dean Thomas (who is wearing a Michael Jackson Thriller costume) equally as warmly when they find he is standing right behind Seamus. Draco waves at them from afar, but keeps his distance.
"It's so good to see you," Harry says once the greetings have died down. "It's been too long."
"It's always too long, Har'," Seamus says. "So when Hannah invited me, I just couldn't say no."
"Hannah told me the whole DA is invited," Dean adds, his face lighting up. Harry grins.
"The whole DA?" Hermione asks. "Even Ginny?" She looks nervously at Harry and then, after a moment, at Dean.
"Ginny and I are friends," Harry says firmly. He does not look at Ron. Ron does not look at him. Draco picks this moment, perhaps the worst of moments, to walk over to them.
"Hello," he says, breaking the awkward silence that has sprung up.
"Hey Draco," Seamus says. "How are you?" He crosses the space between them and pulls Draco into a quick, one armed hug and it is only because Harry has trained as an Unspeakable and has worked very hard on keeping his emotions in check that the surprise that he feels does not show on his face.
But, Harry tells himself, before The Reliquary, he had not seen Draco in ten years. Of course he might have friends that Harry doesn't know about. And of course one of those friends could be Seamus Finnegan, one of the friendliest people Harry knows.
Dean and Seamus leave to go get drinks and Hermione sidles up to Harry.
"Are you sure it's going to be alright if Ginny shows up?" she asks in his ear.
"Yes," Harry says firmly - more firmly than he feels, for he worries that Ginny will take one look at Draco and do her infamous Bat Bogey hex on him. "We're both adults and we've been broken up for years now."
Harry and Ginny, as it turned out, had been better together when their time in each other's company had been limited. After the war, with nothing stopping them from seeing each other all the time, they had quickly realized that familiarity bred contempt. They had fared better once Ginny had been accepted onto the Hollyhead Harpies, for she was traveling with the team for large swathes of time, but that was also their downfall. It was during one of her away matches that Harry had stumbled across the club he had taken Draco to and realized that actually, he rather preferred men.
Ginny had taken it as well as could be expected. She had been rightfully upset, but had realized that Harry couldn't help liking who he liked. However she has never actually seen him with anyone else. None of his previous relationships have been this public, or even public at all. And Harry isn't sure how she will react.
But when Ginny arrives ten minutes later, she is nothing but happy for Harry.
"It was a surprise seeing you on the cover of Witch Weekly, of course," she says once she has a gin and tonic in her hand. "But you looked so happy that I couldn't help but be pleased for you." She puts a hand briefly on his arm and smiles at him. Across the circle of people, he sees Draco stiffen. He jerks his head, indicating that Draco should join them, and the blond does.
"Draco, I'm sure you remember Ginny," he says. Ginny holds out her hand and Draco takes it without hesitation.
"Weasley," he says with a nod of his head.
"Oh please," she cries with a laugh. "We've both seen Harry's cock. Call me Ginny." Draco lifts one eyebrow at her and she smirks back at him.
"Oh shit," Harry mutters as Ginny links her arm in Draco's and drags him off to gossip. "What have I done?"
...
"Greg," Draco calls, walking from room to room looking for his friend. Ginny is in tow. "We have someone who wants to learn Exploding Gobstones Snap." The alcohol in his system is telling him this is the most important thing in the world right now. Ginny is chattering in his ear as he looks for Greg and Draco is surprised to realize he is enjoying her company.
He had half thought that spending time with Harry's ex might be awkward, but Ginny is nothing but friendly. The part of his brain that thinks that he is still in Slytherin wonders if it is all an act, aimed at getting his guard down so that she can destroy him later. And he puts his guard up.
He is glad that he is already thinking about controlling his emotions because he nearly yells in surprise when he finds Greg and Pansy locked in a passionate embrace, their faces pressed together. He stops walking, staring at the pair of them, his jaw on the floor. Then he pulls himself together and turns to Ginny.
"Are you seeing what I'm seeing?" he asks in a low voice.
"You mean those two acting like sixth year Hufflepuffs who have just discovered fire whiskey and hormones?"
"Yes. That."
"Yep," she says. "That's happening." Draco slaps a hand to his forehead.
"I'll have to teach you Exploding Gobstones Snap on my own then." He takes her by the arm and they make their way out of the room. Draco keeps his eyes on Greg the entire time but Greg does not look up. (But then, why would he?)
"Draco, there you are." They have walked out into the hallway and right into Harry, the other Weasley and Granger.
"Do you want to play Exploding Gobstones Snap?" Draco asks. Greg is temporarily gone from his mind as he concentrates solely on the thing he wants to do with his evening. Or, at least, the one thing he wants to do while keeping his clothes on.
"What's that?" Granger asks. Draco opens his mouth to answer, but Ginny, who has clearly been listening to Draco rattle off the rules, explains it before he has a chance. He stares at her, his mouth still open, impressed.
"So it involves drinking, exploding snap and gobstones?" Ron asks. Draco realizes with a flash of irritation that he can't just call Ron by his surname as there are multiple Weasleys at this party. Then he supposes that he should go ahead and call Granger by her first name as well. They're Harry's friends, and though they haven't seen much of them since they started pretend dating, he gets the feeling they will going forward.
"Yes, and there are very sensible and not at all ridiculous rules that go along with it," Draco says.
"The best kind of game rules," Ron says and Draco finds himself warming somewhat to the redhead. Somewhat.
...
"Oh, fuck me," Ron says as a Gobstone sprays him in the face.
"Drink," Harry intones. "Once for the stone and once for the swearing."
"Yes, well, Potter," Draco says. "Imbibe. You said the "D" word." Ginny laughs into her cup. Seamus points at Harry and nudges Dean. Draco sighs and points at Seamus using his elbow. "You too, Finnegan," he says. "Pointing." Seamus scrunches up his face in irritation as everyone laughs. Draco turns over the next card in the pile and the whole thing explodes.
"Swallow it, Mr. Malfoy," Harry says, smirking at him and gesturing to Draco's cup with his head. Draco scowls but downs the rest of his drink as dictated by the rules. He notes, with interest, that Harry has absorbed the rules, and then wonders if he had used the word drink on purpose so that he might have to imbibe as well.
"Oh, fuck you, Potter," Draco says, swearing in spite of the rules.
"You can later," Harry says with a wink and Draco's stomach turns over in excitement. He's not sure if Harry means it or not - they haven't discussed what it means that Harry said he was Draco's. Does he get to fuck Potter again? Whenever he wants? Circe, he hopes it means that. But for now, he has to play along for their cover and not think about it too much. So he smirks at Harry and the game, and conversation, moves along.
...
"It's been a while," Seamus says to Draco later in the evening. The game had ended a short while earlier and most people have dispersed into other rooms. Draco has lost track of Harry but is sure he will find him before the evening is out. Harry won't let him walk the few meters across the street to his own house alone after all.
"It has," Draco agrees. "How have you been?" Seamus is Draco's account manager at Ashe bank, one of the smaller Wizarding banks that had popped up after Harry, Ron and Hermione had broken into, and subsequently out of, Gringotts during the war. Ashe's had been the first bank that would accept Draco as a client, in part because Seamus had taken a chance on him. Over the months of working through mortgage paperwork, they had become friends. In fact, Seamus was the first guest Draco had ever had over at his house for dinner. (Hannah had been the second, while they planned the Leaky Cauldron makeover.)
Of course, Draco had made the dinner slightly awkward by clumsily hitting on Seamus after too many glasses of wine, but Seamus had been gracious about it. He stops by the bookstore from time to time, but Draco hasn't seen him since he started fake dating Harry. (Or is it real dating now?)
They make small talk about work for a while before Seamus nudges him and says,
"So, you and Harry then?" Draco flushes and nods.
"Yes," he says.
"Six years I shared a dorm with that man, and never once did I get the impression that he liked blokes," Seamus says, shaking his head. "Granted, I didn't get the impression he was much interested in anyone."
"Oh?" Draco says, more to be polite than anything else.
"Alas," Seamus says. "Missed opportunity." Draco lifts an eyebrow at him and Seamus pats him reassuringly on the arm. "Not that I would try anything now."
"I didn't know you swung that way."
"I swing all ways," Seamus says with a wink.
"So we could have-" Draco starts to say, but Seamus cuts him off.
"-It would have been ill advised."
"Of course. I didn't mean-" he stops himself there and Seamus smiles at him.
"Plus, then you might not have found Harry." Draco can't argue about that. "How did you two get together anyway? Last I heard he was with Ginny Weasley."
"My ears are burning," the aforementioned redhead says. She has been in conversation with Hermione, standing behind Seamus, but Draco hadn't noticed her. "Someone must be taking about me." Seamus flushes. He mumbles something to do with Harry, that Draco can't quite catch, but Ginny clearly does because she laughs and pats Seamus on the arm.
"Oh, no," she says. "Harry and I haven't been together for years." Draco extricates himself from the conversation, worried that Ginny's magnanimity towards him will fade if he stays. She had insisted to him earlier that she was over Harry, but Draco isn't sure anyone can ever truly get over Harry.
He wanders the party in search of the brunet, but instead runs into Greg. He is no longer attached at the mouth to Pansy, something that Draco is grateful for. In fact, she is nowhere to be seen.
"Are you going back to Harry's tonight?" Greg asks. He says it casually, but Draco feels like it is a leading question.
"We hadn't discussed it. Why?"
"Well, uh, can you?" Greg scratches the back of his head like this conversation isn't a big deal. He clearly doesn't know that Draco, and quite frankly a lot of people, saw him and Pansy earlier. Or perhaps he is just not thinking about it.
"Sure," Draco says. "Do you want to tell me why you're asking?" Greg flushes crimson. It contrasts with his green jersey.
"No," he says, but he can't keep the smile off of his face. It is infectious, and Draco finds himself smiling too.
"Have fun with Pansy," Draco says. He claps Greg briefly on the arm and then walks away. He spots Pansy standing behind a decorative ghoul and he gives her a thumbs up. She scowls at him and he winks but walks past her. It is not her that he is looking for, after all.
He finally spots Harry walking up the stairs in conversation with Ron. He follows them at a distance, not wanting to interrupt. He frowns as they climb the stairs to the third floor and then laughs as Ron catches sight of the third floor corridor and promptly runs back down the stairs, pushing past Draco in his hurry.
"That seems rather mean," Draco says, walking up to Harry who is doubled over laughing. "Irrational fears are nothing to scoff at, even if they are of spiders."
"If I hadn't brought him up here, he would never have seen it," Harry says.
"So? He would have been happier for it."
"Are you on Ron's side?" Harry asks. He seems genuinely curious.
"So what if I am," Draco replies haughtily. He crosses his arms in front of his chest to make his point.
"Ooh, Draco," Harry coos. "I didn't know you had this soft side."
"Fuck off, Potter," Draco snaps. "You most certainly did." He crosses the space between them and wraps his arms around Harry's waist. Harry turns his face to him and smirks.
"That's true," he says. "And it's quite lovely." Harry leans in and captures Draco's lips with his. And Draco is in heaven. Because he's quite sure that Harry means it. That this kiss is real. (And that perhaps some of their earlier kisses may have been?)
He pulls Harry closer to himself, if that's possible, and deepens their kiss. He reaches up with a hand and rests it against Harry's cheek, gently brushing Harry's face with his thumb. He feels Harry relax into the kiss and pushes his tongue into the space between Harry's teeth and his upper lip. This elicits a moan from the brunet and Draco smiles into the kiss. He feels Harry's hand move slowly down his back until it is resting on his arse.
"Oh, sorry," says a dreamy voice behind Harry. "Am I interrupting something?" Draco reluctantly pulls himself away and sees Luna Lovegood standing there. She is dressed as a multicolored unicorn. An uncomfortable knot forms in Draco's stomach. He hasn't seen Lovegood sine the war. Anytime she has come into the bookstore, he has hidden in the back room, too ashamed to face her after his family kept her in their cellar for months.
"Hi Luna," Harry says brightly.
"Hi Harry." She waves at him. "Hi Draco." Draco blinks at her. There is no dislike in her tone.
"Uh, hello," he says.
"Ron mentioned you were up here," she says, more to Harry than to Draco. "But I didn't realize you were busy."
"We weren't," Harry says quickly.
"It's ok if you want to have time with your lover." Draco bites his tongue so as not to laugh at Lovegood's use of the word lover. "Mine is downstairs."
"Oh?"
"Yes," she says. "His name is Rolf. We met while I was out on my travels. We were both attempting to study the same thunderbird nest in Arizona, and kept running into each other's observation posts, but instead of fighting about it, we decided it was best to work together. Unfortunately, we missed the hatching of one of the thunderbird chicks as it happened during the time of our first coupling-"
"-That's fascinating, Luna," Harry says, cutting her off. "He sounds like a lovely fellow."
"Oh, he is." She continues to stand there, staring at Draco in interest, for a long moment. Then she says, "By the way, Draco, you don't have to hide when I come into Flourish and Blott's."
"I don't," he stammers. "I don't hide."
"You do," she says bluntly. "But I wish you wouldn't. Rolf says you are the most helpful person there."
"Sorry," Draco says to his feet. "I just feel so bad about-"
"-The war?"
"Yes." He still can't look at her and so is surprised to see her feet come into view in front of him. She is wearing shoes that make her feet look like unicorn hooves. He looks up as she reaches forward to hug him.
"I forgive you," she says into his ear.
"But," he stammers.
"I didn't think you really wanted to be there anyway. You always seemed so scared." It is such a reflection of what he and Harry had been talking about earlier that Draco half wonders if Harry had asked her to do this. But even if he did, it feels nice.
"I didn't," he mumbles. "But I'm still sorry." Tears threaten again, encouraged both by the alcohol in his bloodstream and Luna's words.
"Well that's settled then," she says, releasing him. "And now you can help me at the bookstore!" She smiles at him and he nods. "Great! That Joe fellow is nice but he doesn't know anything about magizoology." Her apparent mission accomplished, Luna wanders off again, turning after a moment and heading back downstairs. Draco watches her as she skips down each stair, the mane of her unicorn costume bobbing behind her.
"Did you put her up to that?" Draco asks Harry once she is out of earshot.
"No, but that is a very Luna thing to do."
"Does she often use the word lover?" Draco asks, unable to keep an amused smile from crossing his face.
"Not a clue," Harry says. "But perhaps I should start using it." He reaches out and pulls Draco against him again. "Lover. Hmm. Lover boy."
"Oh dear god," Draco says. "No."
"Lover boy," Harry says again. He opens his mouth to say it again, so Draco shuts him up by kissing him.
"D'you want to get out of here?" Harry asks once Draco pulls away and Draco's grin is answer enough.
...
They are barely through Harry's front door when Harry pushes Draco against the closest wall and presses their lips together. His hands fumble at Draco's coat, trying clumsily to undo the zipper. He has months of pent up longing and Draco doesn't seem to mind. Indeed, the blond is eagerly mirroring Harry's actions.
"Wait," Harry says, pulling away for a moment. He is breathless. "We should go upstairs."
"Are you taking me to bed, Potter?"
"Of course I'm fucking taking you to bed," Harry growls. He scoops Draco up in his arms and before Draco can say anything, Harry has apparated them up to the master bedroom where they tumble onto the bed.
...
A moment later, Harry's lips crash into Draco's with a force that takes Draco's breath away. He returns the kisses with the same vigor, pulling Harry firmly against his body. His hand ends up resting on Harry's arse and he gives it a small squeeze.
Harry responds by pushing Draco onto his back and straddling him. As Harry leans down to kiss him, Draco tenses his abs and rises up to meet him. Harry smiles against his mouth and pushes him back down again. Draco feels Harry's fingers scrabbling for purchase on the buttons of his shirt and reaches to help.
"Do your own shirt," he growls.
"Are you telling me what to do now?" Harry asks.
"Yes. I am clearly in charge."
"Of course," Harry agrees. "Flat on my back is my most powerful position too."
"Do you want to fuck me or not?"
"Who said anything about fucking?" Harry asks, the side of his mouth lifting in a smirk. Draco relinquishes his buttons and puts his hand over the outline of Harry's cock through his jeans.
"You did," he says as Harry bucks slightly. Harry finishes undoing the buttons on his flannel shirt and slips it off of his shoulders, letting it drop onto the bed next to Draco. Draco bites his lip, looking up at him, and then reaches out and runs one hand over Harry's toned stomach. He pushes Harry away while he pulls his arms out of his own shirt. He is desperate for the feel of Harry's naked torso against his.
Once Draco's shirt is gone, Harry leans down again and begins kissing the side of Draco's neck. He slowly makes his way down Draco's torso, kissing and nipping as he goes, until he reaches the waistband of Draco's trousers. He pauses there, staring up at Draco with unconcealed lust in his eyes.
"Yes, carry on," Draco says. Harry raises an eyebrow at him.
"What did we decide about who was in charge?" he asks.
"It's me," Draco says. "I am in charge. Because you are clearly lusting after me right now, so I hold the upper hand."
"Mm," Harry says. "Sure you do. And if I just stopped." He sits back on his thighs, away from Draco. "You would be ok with this?" Draco regards him coolly for a moment before shrugging.
"If you are," he says. He shifts slightly under Harry and sees a spasm of desire flash across Harry's face again. And he knows he has him. He jerks his hips up and is rewarded by Harry's raised eyebrow again.
"Is that how it is?" the brunet asks.
"Yes."
Draco looks Harry square in the face as he continues to move ever so slightly under him. After what feels like an age, Harry lowers himself back down to Draco's level. He kisses him briefly before moving down his body again. This time, he catches the waistband of Draco's trousers between his teeth and tugs. Nothing happens. Draco lifts his hips up and Harry tries again, before Draco bats him away and pulls down his trousers on his own, bringing his underwear with them.
"You too," he says, as his cock bobs loose from its cloth confinement.
"As you wish," Harry says. He clambers off of Draco and shimmies out of his jeans. And for half a second, Draco is nervous. It's been so long since that first night.
But then Harry throws his trousers to the side and lowers himself back over Draco. He hovers above him for a moment, teasing, before his lips meet Draco's again so hard that Draco is afraid they will bruise. But he doesn't mind. He has wanted to do this for months. But now is not the time to dwell on his agonizing over Harry Potter. Now is the time to run his hands down Harry Potter's perfect back to then rest them on Harry Potter's perfect naked arse.
He gasps as Harry gently nibbles his bottom lip. Harry pulls back for a moment, a wicked gleam in his eye, but Draco isn't having any of that. He sits up slightly, pressing their mouths back together. For good measure, he gives Potter's arse another good squeeze and feels Harry smile into the kisses. He lets his fingers slide into the cleft of Harry's butt cheeks and hears Harry moan ever so softly. And if he hadn't been turned on already, he sure as hell is now.
He shifts again under Harry, grinding their matching erections together.
"Oh yes," Harry says. This voice is heavy with desire.
"Yes, what?" Draco asks.
"Yes, I want you."
"I guess we're in agreement then," Draco says.
Their lips meet again and this time neither of them hold back. Whatever restraint they had shown thus far (very little, if any) is gone. Draco feels practically devoured as Harry licks, sucks and nibbles his way around his neck. He hopes Potter won't leave a mark, though a small part of him hopes he will. Harry had said that Draco had Harry, but Draco would argue that Harry has Draco too and he wants the world to know it.
He gasps in delight as he feels Harry wrap a hand around his dick. He moans and thrusts into it.
"Not so fast," Harry says, loosening his grip. Draco pouts at him. "No," Harry insists. "You're not allowed to come yet."
"What are you trying to say?"Draco asks.
"Nothing, I just want you to be inside me when you do." A thrill of excitement goes through Draco.
"Ok," he says.
"First though," Harry says, pulling back for a moment. The brunet reaches over him and scrabbles around in the bedside drawer with his hand. He pulls out a tube of lube and then grins down at Draco. "Now where were we?"
"I wasn't allowed to finish yet," Draco supplies. Harry nods. He opens the tube and squeezes some of the lube into his hand, which he then wraps around Draco's cock, slathering it.
"Do you want to?" Harry gestures with his hands to indicate that they should switch positions.
"What?" Draco asks, momentarily confused. "Oh. Yes." Harry rolls off of him, onto the bed beside him and spreads his knees wide. Draco needs no more invitation.
He shifts until he is hovering over Harry, his shoulders taught, holding himself up. He bites his lip as Harry grasps his cock with a slippery hand. He looks down and sees that Harry's other hand is working, gently opening up his hole, finger by finger. He closes his eyes and thinks about anything other than being inside Harry. He can't get too excited now or he'll never last. And he wants to savor this.
He shifts his weight to one arm and then pushes Harry's hand away, off of his cock. The head is already slick with both lube and pre-come. With his free hand, he reaches over and pushes a lock of Harry's hair off of his forehead. Then he steadies himself on two arms again and leans down to kiss Harry. Harry's mouth opens for him and he worries Harry's lower lip between his teeth. Harry moans and Draco gently releases him.
"I'm ready for you," Harry says.
"You sure?"
"Fuck me, Malfoy," Harry whispers. Draco shivers with anticipation. Harry reaches down and grasps him again, guiding him into position. Draco pauses, poised above him for a moment before slowly pushing himself in, centimeter by centimeter. He watches Harry's face as he does, taking in his slightly glazed expression, his brilliantly green eyes and his sweaty, messy hair.
Once he is all the way inside, his balls resting against Harry's arse, he stills. Harry is so tight around him he is almost afraid he will come just from holding himself still. He can feel Harry clenching and unclenching around him and it sends shivers of desire through him.
"Are you okay?" he asks. Harry bites his lip and nods. Harry's hands are now on his own erection, and as Draco begins to move his hips, Harry strokes himself to the same rhythm.
"Yes," Draco breathes. The sight of Harry's hands on himself while Draco is inside him is so intoxicating that Draco knows he will be using this mental image with his own hand for months to come. Except, he might not have to.
Oh, Circe. If they can do this every night, Draco's not sure they're ever going to get much sleep.
He feels that he could do this forever. He could stay in bed with Harry and never leave, perhaps occasionally summoning Kreacher to bring them meals. In his mind's eye he can see Harry, spread out the way he is, but bathed in golden sunlight and he wants that. He wants this to be real. He wants the feelings they have to be real.
But now is not the time for feelings. Now is the time for actions.
Draco picks up the pace, watching Harry's face to make sure that he's fine with that. It is hard to tell. Harry's eyes are closed now and while Draco has seen his orgasm face, it has been a while and the memory is hazy.
"Oh, fuck," Harry moans. "Yes, Draco. That's it. Fuck me." Draco doesn't need telling twice. Any witty response he might have had about the fact that he is, in fact, already fucking him is cut off as Harry abruptly sprays Draco's chest with semen and all of his words devolve into sounds of pleasure.
Draco feels Harry's orgasm spasm around him and he lets himself go over the edge, coming hard into Harry. The feeling takes him over, flooding all of his senses, and he cries out.
It is heaven. Harry is his heaven. He's his world. His sun, moon, stars. Harry is oxygen. He's gravity, and Draco is orbiting him, lucky enough to be in his sphere. It is bliss.
Then he collapses, spent, onto Harry who is equally gone. Draco slides slowly out of him, and they lay there for a long moment, their sweat and spunk mingling. Draco kisses Harry's damp forehead.
"Oh my god," he whispers.
And that's when they hear the scream.
