So, I'm not a huge football fan. In fact, I don't watch it at all. However, I am from the Philly suburbs and the city is going a little nuts with the Super Bowl win and the parade tomorrow. In that spirit, my good readers, you have gained the next chapter a little early. I do have an ulterior motive, though. This fanfic is keeping me from making any progress on some originals I'm working on. And I planned on being finished with this story sooner rather than later. But these two boys are so much fun to write!

Thanks to EllenZzzz, sjrodgers23, hidden shades, little sprout, yukino76, CaelynAilene, Marsh12, and hotflower901 for reading and reviewing the last chapter. Special shout out to the troll, Simianpower, who was stupid enough to leave his username. I'm still considering leaving an extremely detailed description of Draco's anus in his messages. lol

Dreading any upcoming conversation with Ron regarding his "date" with Malfoy, Harry dragged himself into work. The only silver lining was that the other Aurors weren't aware that he had gone out with Malfoy.

"Good morning Mr. Stopper, er, I mean Potter," Peter giggled.

Harry sighed. "Can we stop with the names already? Or shall I start calling your Peter Quim? Now there's a sexually suggestive name if I ever heard one."

Peter pouted. "Fine."

As Harry walked into his office, Ron glanced up. "That bad?"

"What? I didn't say anything," Harry protested.

"You didn't have to, mate. So, what happened?"

Harry plopped himself into his chair. "He's a fucking–" Harry nearly said wanker, but that would be all too accurate. "Prat."

"No kidding. But what did he do?"

"We had a fine meal and pleasant conversation, considering. Then he tells me he's the one who sent all that shit to me during Secret Santa. And the arsehole had the nerve to expect me to praise him for his honesty."

"No fucking way. Maeve Cosgrove was your Santa. I saw her give you your last gift."

"He nicked her gifts and replaced them with the sex toys. The bastard. He said he did it because I wasn't nice enough to him when he first started working here."

"I also said I was sorry," Malfoy said, standing in the doorway.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" demanded Harry.

Carrying a small bag, Draco walked to Harry's desk. He placed the bag down. "These are the things I took. Miss Cosgrove wanted you to have them, so . . ."

"Oh, how gracious of you," Harry mocked.

"I'm not trying to be gracious. I'm trying to apologize. Again."

"Maybe you shouldn't have done anything to apologize for in the first place. I was nice to you and you rewarded me with smutty gear. Maybe that's what you need to get going but I don't."

The corner of Draco's mouth lifted. "No, you certainly didn't."

Ron's mouth dropped open.

"Get out, Malfoy!" Harry shouted.

Even long after Draco left, Harry could feel Ron's stare on him. He refused to look at his friend, though. There was a conversation he truly didn't want to have.

"Get back to work Ron."

"Harry," Ron whispered. "Did he mean what I think he meant?"

Harry sighed and pushed his paperwork away. "Do you really want to know?"

"No." Ron shook his head. "But I think you need to talk about it."

"I was a fool. I never thought I'd be the sort to get taken in by a nice meal and expensive wine."

"How expensive?"

"You're missing the point Ron. I practically let Malfoy buy me. I feel like a bloody slag."

"Don't tell me you shagged 'im."

"No. But . . . I can't even say it."

"If you don't, my imagination will run wild," Ron said.

Harry groaned. "Fine. I let him wank me."

"Blimey Harry. It's Malfoy."

"Don't you think I realize that?" Harry sighed again. He was still conflicted. If Draco hadn't confessed what he'd done, Harry might be thinking about Draco in a very different way. Even with that knowledge, Harry couldn't help mull over the previous evening's events. He'd be lying to himself if he didn't admit that he was attracted to Malfoy.

He didn't want to be. But he was. Very much.

Just sitting there thinking about the way Draco's fingers curled around his cock made him rise beneath his robes.

"Fuck."

"What?" Ron asked.

"Nothing."

For the remainder of the day, Harry vacillated between loathing Draco and lusting after him. He chalked up the lust to his lack of intimate contact the past six months or so. He never did make his way to chat up the bloke in DME.

At the end of the day, Harry stood up abruptly and announced to Ron that he would right back. With purpose, he walked down the hall to the alcove that housed the Education Department. The cute bloke glanced up, then down, then back up again. Harry smiled.

"Hello."

The man's eyelashes fluttered. "Hello."

"I was wondering if you could help me out," Harry said.

"Of course. What can I do for you?"

"Well, it's near supper time, but I've nobody to eat with tonight."

"You want to eat with me?"

"That is, if you're free."

"Absolutely." The man sat up a bit straighter.

"Good. Shall we meet in the Atrium?"

The man nodded.

Harry held out his hand. "I'm Harry, by the way."

"Donal." He took Harry's hand. "I'll be there."

With a little more spring in his step, Harry went back to his office to tell Ron he was finally ready to try dating again. He decided to keep it casual by taking Donal to The Three Broomsticks, requesting a corner booth for privacy.

Harry ordered a couple of butter beers for them while they perused the menu. Though, Donal seemed to be much more interested in looking at Harry than the menu. Once they ordered, and it was just the two of them, Harry found himself once again in awkward silence on a date.

"So, tell me a little about yourself, Donal. How do you like working in Education?"

"It's all right. There really isn't much to do. It's a very small department."

"Oh. Have you been to Hogwarts lately?"

"At the beginning of this term. We go for inspection twice yearly."

Donal's answers weren't exactly lengthy. He wasn't asking Harry any questions, and Harry feared Donal would be like most of his former dates. The best thing Donal had going for him was that he appeared to be the literal opposite of Draco. Donal's hair and eyes were both a deep brown. He smiled often, showing dimples in both cheeks. Unfortunately, he lacked Draco's charm and wit. Still, Harry thought perhaps the evening wouldn't be a total loss.

Toward the end of their supper, Harry was losing interest. He had ordered the same old food he always ordered out. The conversation was largely one-sided, as Harry did most of the talking. Sure, Donal answered Harry's questions, but they were short without much detail. Donal wanted to hear about exciting events Harry and his friends had been through. The last thing Harry wanted to do on a date was relive the war. When he was out with Draco, they managed to find things of interest to both of them without mentioning the war once. Harry realized he'd spent the entire evening with Donal comparing him to Draco.

Omitting an offer of pudding, Harry paid the bill.

"Well, I suppose we ought to call it a night."

"Oh, already?" Donal asked. "It isn't that late."

"We both have work in the morning."

"Hm."

The clock above the bar chimed seven o'clock.

"I'm sorry, Donal. I just don't feel there's any chemistry between us. You're a perfectly nice bloke. But . . ."

Donal's shoulders slumped. "I'm disappointed. But I can't disagree. You're perfectly nice as well. Actually, you're a lot more modest than I thought you would be."

"Uh, thanks?" Harry wondered if other wizards thought he was full of himself.

"Thank you for supper." Donal held out his hand. "It was a lovely evening."

Nodding, Harry said, "Thank you for joining me. Good night."

After leaving the Three Broomsticks, Harry considered going out to a pub where he might not be recognized to pick up a one-off. Perhaps if it had been the weekend, he may have. Instead he apparated home and wanked during a long, hot shower. He just wished it wasn't Draco's hand he was imagining stroking him off.

hdhdhdhd

"Oi, Harry, did you ever look in that bag of gifts from Maeve?" Ron asked.

"No. I forgot all about it."

Harry looked around for the bag Malfoy left him. He found it under his desk and began to rummage through it.

"Cashmere socks?" Harry lifted an eyebrow.

'Those are nice."

"Oh, they match the jumper she gave me."

Peeking in, Harry chose another item.

"A Gryffindor scarf?" questioned Ron.

"And tie," Harry said, as he pulled it out of the bag.

"Doesn't she realize you're not at Hogwarts anymore?"

Harry shrugged. "There's also a book about Quidditch, an everlasting candle, a bottle of mulled cider and . . ."

"What? what is it?"

Grinning, Harry held up a miniature dart board. "Look, I can play with it at my desk. Maybe I'll put Malfoy's face over it." He laughed.

"Kind of boring stuff she gave you," Ron said. "At least the stuff Malfoy replaced it with gave us all a good laugh."

Harry glared. "Speaking of which, I'm going to bag all of that up and return it to him. In front of his coworkers. See how much he likes it."

So Harry did just that. He found Draco at his desk looking at some sort of blue print design. He tossed the bag on top of it.

Angry at first, Draco snorted. "Do you mind?" Then he looked up. "Oh. Harry. What's all this then?"

"Returning your gifts."

"You can keep them if you'd like. They were gifts, after all."

"I don't bloody want them." Harry leaned forward, and upended the bag, spilling the contents over Draco's desk for all to see. He was disappointed to see that Draco didn't seem the slightest bit embarrassed. "I don't even know what good half of them are for."

"Well, the cock ring–

"I'm not asking for an explanation," Harry sputtered. How was it he was the one who was embarrassed? Malfoy should have been the one. "You keep them, if you find them so necessary."

"But I don't need them." The corner of Draco's mouth curled up. "I already have these. And more."

Harry stood dumbfounded. How could Draco so casually talk about his depraved sex life in front of other wizards in the office?

Draco leaned forward on his elbows. "I'd be happy to demonstrate for you."

Flushed and pissed off that his attempt to humiliate Malfoy had completely backfired, Harry stomped his way back to his own department. He barely got any work done, turning the whole experience over in his mind, trying to figure out how Malfoy got the best of him–again.

Down at the canteen, Hermione went on and on about different venues for holding her wedding. She mentally picked out flowers and bridesmaid dresses.

"Ginny will of course be my maid of honor. And Harry, the best man."

"Don't I get to pick my best man?" Ron asked.

"Yes, but who else would you choose?"

"I do have four brothers."

"Exactly. How could you choose one without slighting the other?" Hermione asked.

"Right." Ron's brow furrowed. "But you didn't even let me ask Harry myself. Harry?"

"Harry?" repeated Hermione.

"What?" Harry looked into their expectant faces. "Sorry. I wasn't listening."

"What's got your attention?" she asked.

"Malfoy," grumbled Harry. "Every time I look over, he's staring at me. The git. Probably trying to concoct another scheme to humiliate me."

Hermione cleared her throat. "It seems to me that the only reason you keep catching him looking at you, is because you keep looking at him."

"Shut up."

"Ron." She elbowed her fiancé in the ribs.

"She's sort of right, Harry."

"Great, now you two are against me."

"We're not against you, mate. But you should ignore him. It's probably attention he wants."

"That's not all," Harry mumbled. "I'm finished. I'm going back to the office."

Harry tossed his tray and made his way to the lifts. Before he could pull the gate across, Draco appeared there, quickly stepping in.

"Get out Malfoy."

"It's a public lift," Draco said, then pulled the gate closed himself.

"This one doesn't even go to your level."

"I know." Draco paused and pushed a button to stop the lift. "I'm sorry if I embarrassed you earlier."

"You keep saying that. And yet, you keep doing it," Harry pointed out.

"I know. I can't seem to help myself. You're great fun to tease."

"Fuck you."

"I'm trying. Believe me."

Harry's mouth dropped open.

"Obviously, I've cocked things up," Draco began. "The things you did for me during Christmas really touched me. And what I did to you was bollocks. I admit that. Please let me make it up to you."

"You already tried that."

"But now you know what I did and I have nothing else to hide. When you came to my office with the intent of shaming me in front of my office mates, I had to defend myself the only way I could, by deflecting the attention from me and putting it on you. I apologize."

"You can't just say you're sorry, then turn around and do it again. That's not how apologies work."

"Then tell me, how do they work?"

"You apologize sincerely, then move on. You show that you're sorry by not repeating the behavior."

"All right. May I try again?" When Harry didn't respond, Draco whispered, "I'm sorry."

Then he leaned forward and kissed Harry.

Harry silently cursed his body for responding for him. He let his eyes drift shut and reveled in the feel of Draco's lips against his. Draco's hands grabbed Harry's hips and pulled them into his own. Only the moan from Harry's own throat brought him out of the dizziness he was spiraling into.

Leaning back, Draco smiled. "You have to admit, Potter, you may not like me much, but your body certainly does." He whispered in Harry's ear. "We could be amazing together."

Staring into those stormy grey eyes, Harry nearly gave in right there in the lift.

Instead, he said, "I have to get back to work."

Without protest, Draco pushed another button to restart the lift. When Harry's level came up, he didn't try to stop him from leaving.

Harry walked out, heading for his office, and resisting the urge to turn around and look at Malfoy. He didn't rust himself not to give the man the satisfaction of knowing he was getting under Harry's skin.

hdhdhdhd

All day, Saturday and Sunday, Harry had too much time to think about Draco's words. Unfortunately, he was right that Harry's body responded to his. And though Harry tried to write that off as animal instinct, that was only half of it. He could have easily shagged Donal after their date. He was certain the young man would have been willing. But neither Harry's body, nor his mind were interested.

"Fucking Malfoy." Harry cursed himself as much as Malfoy.

Busying himself with household chores, Harry's mind kept wandering to their not-date. But it had been the best supper out with a man he'd had in quite a while. Malfoy never asked Harry to regale him with war stories. He never told Harry he was his hero.

Harry laughed to himself. Malfoy would never consider Harry his hero. Perhaps when he got him out of the Room of Requirement. In which case, Harry actually was his personal hero.

Malfoy never put Harry up on a pedestal. Rather the opposite, he took delight in making Harry feel uncomfortable. But he also seemed to back off before he took it too far. Most men and women treated Harry more as a legend than a man.

He didn't want to be a legend. He wished everyone would treat him the way Ron and Hermione treated him. The way the Weasleys treated him. And if he was being honest, even the way Malfoy treated him.

hdhdhdhd

Harry found himself once again, dateless on a holiday. He joined Ron, Hermione, George and Angelina at Ron's flat for New Year's Eve. Ginny and her new boyfriend showed up as well. Though he and Ginny had patched things up between them, it was still a bit awkward for Harry. He broke up with her, yet she was the one moving forward and happy.

"You're here alone?" she asked him when she found him in the kitchen.

"Yeah. Again."

"Ron told me you haven't been being particularly social lately."

"I went on a couple of dates," he said. "They just didn't work out. But enough about me. How are you and . . ."

"Ewan."

"Ah, Ewan. How are you and Ewan getting on?"

"He's Muggle born. So you can imagine Dad is always bending his ear about one Muggle thing or another. But Ewan's been exceedingly patient about it."

"Does he treat you as well as it appears he does?"

Ginny cocked her head.

Harry smiled. "He looks at you as though you hung the moon. I hope it's genuine."

She nodded. "He's very sweet."

"Good. You deserve it. I'm sorry I couldn't–"

"Stop." She put a finger up to his mouth. "It's not your fault. I think we were both in a little bit of denial."

Harry chuckled. "I was in a lot of denial. But thank you."

"I think it's getting on midnight," she said. "We should get some champagne and join the others."

At the stroke of midnight, as the others were kissing their respective partners, Harry sipped his champagne. He couldn't help wondering who was kissing Draco.

"Happy New Year, mate." Ron had quite a bit to drink and squeezed Harry tightly before giving him a peck on the cheek. "It's gonna be the best year yet."