Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter!
The next morning, Draco stood at the mirror appraising his reflection. He looked wrecked. Eyes red with dark bags, evidence of the late night. His hair damp from the shower and mussed from the towel clenched in one fist. The blond locks tickled his cheeks where they rested, moving with the man's slight motions.
Nothing's changed about him. The same eyes, same white- blonde hair, same thin face, and sharp nose. Nothings. Different.
He looks the same as when he was that stupid, naïve teenager. Back when he thought his parents could do no wrong; that they would always do what's best for him. But looking into grey eyes and thinking about last night, Draco had a realization.
He wasn't the same.
It took him standing there in front of the mirror, hands braced on the marble surface to come to this epiphany. A scene so like the one in sixth year, but this time was different as well.
Before, when he thought of the future and what he was doing caused him to sob, but now the same thought brought a hopeful smile on his face.
Maybe the hero won't barge in, a curse on his lips, ready to vanquish the enemy, but that's not what Draco needed.
There was no one left to fear. He couldn't change his past, but he can choose how to live in the present. So, he had better make each decision count.
Draco decided that he has grown up and would probably continue to grow as a person, so it was time to show the world that change. That he was no longer letting the war, or his past mistakes hold him back. He was done regretting and feeling sorry for himself. It was time to move on and live his life in his way; not the way of his parents or that of a madman.
He was free to make his own decisions and beliefs based on his experiences.
Summoning his hair trimming kit, Draco brought the razor to the side of his head and flipped the switch. Buzzing filled the room, and soon delicate blonde locks fell to the floor.
They were staring, it was making his skin crawl. Draco ran a hand through his new cut feeling the soft, recently shaved hair. The sides and back were cut short, while the top was kept long an loose, letting it swoop back.
The five kids were already sitting at the table. Already eating, Draco noted glumly, they hadn't even waited for him.
"What are you all looking at?" He asked, pretending to not know exactly why they were.
"You cut your hair." Jasmine remarks looking surprised.
"Why?" Macy says.
"You guys are making me feel like it was a mistake." Draco said feeling rebuffed, and slightly amused.
"I like it." Isabelle says, emphasizing the I in the statement.
"So, do I. It looks so cool." Max quickly agrees.
"Thank you! That's why you two are my favorites." Draco says and gave them a hug. Isabelle giggled, giving him a kiss on the cheek, while Max went bright red with a stuttered, "Your welcome."
He playfully stuck out his tongue at the three teens when stepping away from Isabelle and Max.
"Oh, that's mature." Thomas says with a laugh.
"I don't pretend to be." The blonde bantered back, then sat ready for breakfast.
With a sly look, the begets how the rest of Draco's day would go, Macy opens her mouth.
"I think Draco's ready to go hunting for a date." Then started to mockingly make kissy faces toward Draco.
"What's a date?" Isabelle asks Thomas, who answers the girl saying. "It's when two people want to get to know one another better, so they go out to places. Like the forbidden forest or the owlery.
What kind of dates has Thomas been on, Draco thought appalled. He's going to need to talk to the boy and tell him those are not places to take anyone. And if they were the ones bringing him to those places he should run in the other direction.
Isabelle looks at Draco excitedly, "Can we go on a date?"
Before he can answer Macy says, "No honey, a date is for people who want to fu-"
"Macy!" Draco practically shrieks, then in a more hushed tone, "How'd you even know that, your thirteen!"
She shrugs and bits into a piece of French toast, "People talk."
"You know it's common for those of both sexes to preen while looking for a partner. There's no reason to be embarrassed." Jasmine interjects, Draco stares at her, eyes wide.
"What? I read."
Max leans close to Isabelle and whispers, "Can I go on the date with Draco too?"
"We all can go on the date, that way it'll be more fun!" Isabelle cheered.
"No one is going on a date. I wanted a change." Draco announces, frustrated with the conversation. Putting a pout on Isabelle's face.
The rest of the meal was filled with jokes about his haircut. They call it playful teasing, Draco calls it harassment. While Isabelle continued to pout from his rejection and Max sat looking sad.
Draco kept apologizing to them, ignoring the comments regarding his nonexistent love life. Max and Isabelle wouldn't accept the apologizes until he agreed to go on a date.
Thomas started to make fake whipping noises. To get him to cut it out Draco hissed, "This is your fault for tell them what a date was!"
This elicited a laugh from the three.
"Technically, it was Macy who brought it up." Jasmine says between laughing. Draco's head met the table, he could feel his life span shorten as he continued to argue with these people.
After that annoying morning, he really didn't need this right now. He thought as he took in the appearances of the two Aurors at his doorstep. One who he'd rather never to see again.
When Mittsy had told him that Senior Auror Terrence McClain and Junior Auror Harry Potter were walking up his pathway, he thought she'd taken a few of his hallucinogenic potions. But here they are.
Terrence McClain was an older man, skin worn and wrinkled, his spine curved with age. His voice crackled like that of burning wood from smoking for most of his life.
Standing beside him, almost a head taller than his older partner was Harry Sodding Potter.
And Merlin did he look good, blast him. He'd gotten taller and broader. Not quite as tall as Draco, mind you, he still had half an inch on the brunette.
While Draco's muscles were lean, Harry's were more pronounced. It was evident in the way his robes would tighten with the young Auror's movements. Draco begrudgingly conceited a point to Potter in his mental tally system.
If Potter were anyone else, he wouldn't hesitate for a second to go out with the man. But unfortunately for Draco's libido, this was Harry "I'm better than everyone else" Potter. Harry "I can beat you at everything" Potter. Harry "Green eyes as bright as an Avada Kedavra" Potter. Harry "messy hair, chiseled jaw, sun kissed skin, red lips… Draco mentally shook himself before his mind could wandered farther.
McClain was the first of the three to speak up. "Mr. Malfoy, the DMLE have received some concerning reports that you're harboring a group of dark wizards."
"Well, I'm not so you two have a great afternoon and I'll just..." Draco begins to close the door.
"They're saying you're starting a new Dark Order." Potter's words froze Draco, the door half closed.
Glaring at the Aurors Draco replied, "Did your reports tell you that the oldest of these "Dark wizards" is barely fifteen years old."
By the way, McClain coughed in his hand and Harry shifted his feet, they did not.
"That- That doesn't matter. You were one when you were sixteen." Harry lashed out.
"I was declared innocent. You do remember, right Potter? You were there after all." Draco grounded out, teeth clenched. Harry was at a loss of words at that, so Draco continued, "So unless you're here to arrest me I want you both off my property." Then slammed the door shut.
But McClain called through the door, "Mr. Malfoy, please. As part of the release deal, your place of residence is susceptible to random inspections for dark magic."
Draco closed his eyes and rested his head against the door, weighing the pros and cons of keeping it shut forever. Reluctantly, he re-opened the door to admit the two and led them into the tea room.
"Mittsy could you go and inform the kids of our guests." Rolled his eyes as Potter's eyes hardened when his house elf appeared. "And could you tell them to meet us here. Thank you."
"Right away Master." Then she was gone.
"You still have house elves? How pathetic." Potter mutters, which Draco ignored. He knew the other man was just trying to rile him up hoping for an excuse to bring him into the DMLE.
"Can I get either of you some tea?" He asks, honey-sweet. McClain accepted with a head bow, Harry remained silent which he took as a no.
Draco rushed to the kitchen and prepped the kettle for tea. The small tremors of his hands made the task difficult; he clenched them to try to steady himself.
Damn, He'd honestly forgot all about that term in his release. Until next year, the Ministry could barge into his home and anything was found that they didn't like he'd be dragged away in chains. The kettle whistled, causing Draco to jump.
He just had that revelation this morning, it wasn't time to cower like before. This was his chance to prove to them that he changed. Picking up the tea cup, Draco hoped that Potter could look past their history to see that.
The kids were already in the tea room when he arrived. Thomas had placed himself in front of the others, eyeing the Aurors with suspicion.
"Draco what's happening?" Thomas asked when he caught sight of the man entering.
"These Aurors are here to talk to you all. This is Auror Potter and Auror McClain. They are Thomas, Jasmine, Macy, Maximus, and Isabelle." He said indicating each person.
"Nice to meet you all." Harry said with a disarming smile. Although, it didn't seem to soften the kids any.
"My partner and I will need to talk to them alone." McClain addressed Draco.
"Absolutely not! You can't interrogate a minor without their guardian present. And as I am their guardian," Draco left the statement open, letting the others fill in the blank.
"We can if it's the guardian that is under suspicion of abusing said minors," Potter replied, smug.
"And if I was sure that your goal was to protect them instead of trying to discredit me, I would let you." Draco said voice increasing as he stepped closer to the other man.
"What exactly are you accusing me of Malfoy?" Harry asked darkly.
Before Draco could start listing the accusations, starting with the letter A, a laugh rang out. The three adults turn to the owner of the noise and saw Macy's frame shake in mirth.
"Sorry, but the thought of Draco hurting us." More laughter erupted from her. "I've seen puppies that were more ferocious. He's all bark."
The image of Draco as a puppy, barking, sent Jasmine into her own fits of laughter and Thomas gave out a loud snort. Not wanting to be left out, Isabelle let out a boisterous and fake laugh.
Max looked to the laughing individuals hoping for a hint about what was so funny. Unable to find any, he looked up at Draco confused and shrugs.
Watching this, Draco felt strangely offended at the remark, causing his nose to lift in the air. But the look on the savior's face went along way to soothe over the damage to his ego. It seems Potter hasn't been able to curb that short temper of his.
"What is so funny?" The green-eyed man growled, his dark aura stopping the laughter.
"You know what I find funny," Thomas spoke up. The teen stared defiantly into the eyes of the man who defeated the darkest wizard of their time. "That you came here accusing someone of a crime with no proof. He took us in and fed and clothed us." He finished in whispered disbelief, with a gasp and a hand over his mouth.
Jasmine punctuated this with, "Oh the horror."
"But when we spent weeks locked in a room at the Ministry, were we treated with kindness? No! They passed us off to an orphanage, where we were abused by the kids and adults there. The Ministry officials that came to check on us refused to listen to our pleads. They only held scorn and contempt for us, leaving no hope left. So, don't come here pretending that you care now."
"You don't know him like I do. He aligned with Voldemort, and never had anything good to say. You want me to believe that's the kind of person who should be raising kids." Harry exclaimed.
"If I may, Auror Potter." Jasmine said, adjusting her glasses, "I wasn't privy to your fights at school, but I've heard of your rivalry and Draco's bullying tendencies. In fact, when Draco revealed himself I was prepared to run. But after diner with everyone I thought one night wouldn't hurt, and one night turned to two and here we are. I never met the Draco you knew but the man I know is not him."
Draco felt a tug on his hand, where Isabelle was pulling on his fingers. "Are they being mean? She asked worriedly, before he could give an answer, she was yelling at the Aurors.
"Stop! Draco's my friend and I love him, so stop being mean." Clutching his hand tighter, as if to squeeze the others harsh words away.
Another small voice spoke up from his other side. "Leave him alone. I want to stay with Draco." Max said, standing behind Draco, his shaky hands tangled in the blonde's robes.
Letting out a sigh, McClain stood with some difficulty, "Come Harry, we should go."
"You can't be serious! What about them?" Harry gestured to the group, "we can leave them here with Malfoy."
McClain gave his protege a stern look, "Harry, despite your many achievements you can't go do what you want. Besides, I see no crime here. When you've been in this line of work as long as I have, you'll start to get a feeling about these things. Thank you, Mr. Malfoy, for the tea and I apologize for the inconvenience."
Draco gave them a short nod, a hand on Max's head and the other still in Isabelle's grasp.
"Mittsy can show you the way out." With that the house elf appeared and with a, "Exit be this way," the two were gone.
Draco felt the tension in his body drain away. "Thank you, guys. I wasn't sure how to approach the situation without sending Potter in a rage. That was always something I was good at." He said, eyes suspiciously wet. He lifted the two children into his arms.
"We have your back." Macy said, wrapping her arms around the three.
"Uh, I'm not really one for group hugs." Draco voiced stiffly.
"Is that so." Thomas said, and evil glint in his eyes. The boy wrapped one arm around Jasmine and dragged her into the group hug. She complained but went with little resistance. Thomas' tall frame dwarfed the rest, staying like that until Draco relaxed into the hold.
It's been a week since the confrontation with Potter and Draco had been tense every minute of it. He'd half convinced himself that Potter was going to retract his testimony and he will be back in cuffs, waiting for an available cell in Azkaban.
Even the kids have noticed his mood. They kept trying to distract him, Isabelle and Max keep inviting him to tea parties. And Macy would ask for his advice on songs she was writing, "They don't sound right when I try to sing them. I need your help."
But it was Jasmine who snapped him out of his paranoid state, the day before.
"They'll come, or they won't there is no sense in worrying about something that might never happen."
It was such a simple thought, but true. And surprisingly enough it did make him feel more at ease. So, he informed everyone that he was going to try to relax by doing something that he hadn't done in a while, yoga.
He began when he was fourteen with his mother. When Narcissa returned after a visit from France, she'd introduced Draco to the exercise. She said that it was good for the mind, body, and spirit; Draco loved it.
Before the war, Draco used to do an hour of yoga a day, even at Hogwarts. He would sneak out after dinner and do his favorite poses in the fresh air at a deserted part of the grounds.
He received an enthusiastic response from everyone at the recommendation. They encouraged and expressed interest in the activity. Even Thomas said that he'd join Draco, which was a testament to how on edge he'd been.
Draco told them it wasn't necessary for them to join. He appreciated the gesture, but they didn't have to if they didn't want to.
Thomas responded, "We all could do with a little relaxing." Which had everyone nodding in agreement.
"If you all insist, then I recommend clothing that can give you a wide range of movement."
Then they all split up to get their outfits. Draco had changed into a muggle work out clothing, when Mittsy came to inform him he had a visitor.
And that brings us here, Draco staring at Potter, who once again stood at his door, arms crossed and sans Auror robes.
"What are you doing here?" Draco exclaimed.
"Look Malfoy, Terrence may have been fooled by your whole innocent act but I'm not!" The brunette hadn't looked at the other, instead inspected the engravings on the door frame.
"You're not dressed in you Auror robes," Draco observed, sizing up the man.
When a thought struck him, "You're not supposed to be here are you?"
Potter's eyes finally fell on Draco, green eyes like acid, "Malfoy, that's none of- What are you wearing?"
Harry's eyes, once slits, were now wide taking in the sight of Draco Malfoy. Hair styled, a baggy gray shirt on that revealed his collar bones and a generous portion of his chest. The shirt brushed his upper thighs where it met a pair of tight elastic pants that were tie dyed dark purple and black. To finish it off he was barefoot.
"Seriously, what do you want from me? If you were so sure of my evilness, then why'd you testify for me?" Draco yelled, throwing his arms in the air.
"uh, your outfit?" Potter said, dazed.
"I can't talk to idiots." Draco said, a hand to a temple. He walked away, breaking whatever trance that fell over Potter. And he was quick to chase after the other man.
"Wait, I'm not done talking to you."
"Well, I'm done talking to you." Draco called back, picking up the pace. Hopefully, Boy Wonder would get lost then eventually leave or get kicked out but Mittsy.
Draco dashed into the garden where everyone was already gathered in their most comfortable attire.
"Where have you been, we've been waiting for ages." Isabelle said, bounding to Draco to grab his hand.
"Nowhere important. Now let's-" he was cut off by a shout of "Malfoy" from behind him. Harry stood there panting for air, a hand resting against the door frame.
"Shouldn't an Auror be in better shape? Did you run around the whole Manor?" Draco asked with a raised eyebrow.
"You shut your mouth. I said we need to talk."
"And we need to start our workout." The blonde said gesturing to the kids, "So, if you want to talk it's going to have to wait until afterward."
Draco smirked he could almost hear potter grinding his teeth.
"Is he going to join us?" Max asked, scared by the angry aura the other man was exuding.
"Oh no buddy," Thomas began, resting a hand on the gingers shoulder, then with a devious smile toward the Auror. "With the way he is breathing I doubt he works out much."
"That's true, you don't get a body like that if you exercise regularly," Macy accused, eyes falling to Harry's stomach and shook her head sadly.
Which was a goddamn lie, with how Potter's shirt hugged his arms and torso, the Auror had one amazing body. At least to Draco's expert eye.
Bless the siblings, they were egging Potter on, but they didn't know what they had done. Draco could practically hear what little common-sense the man had leave and by the looks of it the Boy Who Lived was about to do something stupid.
"Oh really. Go on show me what to do and I'll be running laps around you all in no time."
"We're doing yoga." Isabelle supplied helpfully.
All his bravo seemed to leave him, "Yoga?"
"Yes, yoga, the discipline that includes breath control, simple meditation, and body postures that is used for health and relaxation." Jasmine stated, she had no doubly looked that up in the time they were getting ready.
"Ya, Jasmine said that it has a lot to do with balance and flexibility. There's even a pose where you touch your head with your toes by laying on your stomach and bending your back until the two meet." Thomas mentioned, casually sensing a weakness in Potter.
Draco blinked, surprised at the amount of research they'd done on this topic.
The man paled, but he wouldn't be Harry Potter if he'd back down from every challenge presented to him.
"T-that sounds fun."
That's how Harry ended up surrounded these kids and an ex-death eater, standing in the backyard of a place he has despised since the war. Grass crushed under his feet, legs spread apart and arms wide in the warrior two pose.
Now the thing about Harry is that he had come to terms with the fact that he likes the company of both men and women. And since his relationship with Ginny never went anywhere, he's been able to explore his options. So, he is comfortable admitting when he finds someone attractive.
As he watched Draco Malfoy guide them all gracefully through the poses, ever confident in his abilities without the usual arrogance, he could admit that Malfoy was bloody attractive.
What surprised him was that the blonde never lorded the children's mistakes over them. He would gently manipulate their limbs until they were in the correct position, before returning to his place. At that moment Harry would describe Draco as soft, an adjective he'd never associated with the man before. He was fascinated by this New Malfoy and couldn't keep his eyes off the man.
Harry wasn't having too much trouble moving from pose to pose. Sure, he wasn't as elegant as Malfoy, he was half convinced no one ever would be, but he wasn't struggling too much. That was until Draco went from the Mountain pose to the Downward Facing Dog and Harry's brain short circuited. Eyes trained on a certain part of Draco's anatomy.
Merlin, Harry thought, those pants leave nothing to the imagination. He was busy appreciating Draco's strong legs, shapely ass, and the little bit of creamy skin that was showing as Draco's shirt slide down the blonde's body, when a high-pitched voice ratted him out.
"Draco, Mr. Auror man's not doing the pose correctly." Isabelle tattled, drawing all their sights to the man still in mountain pose.
"Really Potter, if you can't keep up you're welcome to sit out or better yet leave but stop distracting my kids." Draco said before continuing to the next pose.
With a bright red face and loud giggles in the background Harry gets into the correct position. God, Malfoy may be one of the most attractive men he'd ever seen and could have walked straight out of one of his wet dreams, but he was still a git.
They were finally done. Max was the only one not resting on the grass. Instead, he'd was passing out water bottles to the exhausted group. When Mittsy turned up with the seven bottles Max immediately claimed the task of giving them out. He handed Draco one and smiled brightly at the head pat he received. That is until he realized there were only two bottles left, one for Harry and one for himself.
Harry gave the boy a smile and held out a hand, understanding that the boy was nervous about him from the time they meet. But instead of walking over to give it to him, Max threw the bottle at Harry; unwilling to get closer to the scary man.
Not expecting this, the bottle hit the man in the chest with a thud and the sound of air leaving his lungs forcible. There was a moment of silence before Draco fell back to the floor laughing.
"What the hell Malfoy," Harry gasped rubbing his chest, "Are you training them to be prats like you?"
Draco's mirth was instantly gone. He wrapped both arms around Max, who was staring at Harry mouth open, and pulled him back in his lap keeping a tight hold on him.
"I didn't mean to. But he's scary." Max explained to Draco, a fistful of the blonde's shirt in his hands.
Then looking at Harry in concern, eyes wet, "I'm sorry! Are you hurt?"
"Of course, he's not poppet. Mr. Potter is being the one being a prat. It's his own fault for scaring you, he should know better than to throw blame and call you names." Draco gave Harry a hard glare and got a contrite look in return.
"He's right. I'm the one who's sorry. And look I'm fine, it was only a surprise." Harry said holding up his hands in a surrender position.
"See! But next him don't throw the object instead roll it to him or place it on the ground for him to get himself."
Harry gave Draco a really look which went, predictably, ignored.
"Now you all go on Mr. Potter and I have some things to discuss. I'll head in soon, with luck without the interloper."
The kids left, with only one look back from Thomas whose expression seem to say, if you need help just call.
"What did you want to discuss Potter?"
"Like I said earlier, even if no one else believes that you are up to something I think it's for the best if we keep an eye on you. So, I talked to Kingsley about it, and you're now looking at your handler." He said with a smirk.
"Handler? Don't you Aurors have more important things to do then bother me, like I don't know catching actual criminals."
"The Head Auror agreed that I could do this if I don't let it affect my work in other cases. So, Malfoy you're stuck with me as your liaison with the Ministry." He finishes as he stands up.
Draco returned to laying on the ground with a groan. How is this his life.