Disclaimer: Not Mine in any way shape or form. :)

Author's Note: You guys have been so patient waiting for this chapter, I really appreciate it. This is a lovely smushy sexy chapter - the calm before the storm, just warning you now. Thanks for all the gorgeous reviews, too, I love them all.

have fun

jamie

xxxx

Some time later, Draco woke. Harry's arms were still wrapped around him, holding him close like a barrier against anything that might possibly cause him any distress. Draco felt warm and safe with Harry's slow, regular heartbeat under his ear. He moved far enough back to watch Harry as he lay sleeping. His features, even partially shadowed by the dulled light of the moon looked so young, Draco thought, smiling at the man he'd come to … love…?

Six months ago, he'd hated Harry – told himself he'd hated Harry – and now… he could hardly credit the changes. Somewhere along the line he'd grown up, he realised. Perhaps that was what happened when you had someone trying to kill you, although he'd lived with much worse crippling fear so maybe that wasn't entirely the reason. Perhaps it was merely Harry's influence rubbing off on him, making him see how things could be if he would only let them.

He smiled and pressed his lips to Harry's chest, the coarse hairs tickling his lips pleasurably. He could easily get used to spending his nights wrapped up in Harry, where there was a contentment he'd never felt before and an intimacy that went beyond physical.

He quite suddenly understood what Harry meant by something more than sex. Of course, he'd understood what Harry meant before, but this was the first time he'd actually felt like he didn't need the sex to make this connection between them sparkle with the welcoming of a homecoming candle. Sex would come in its own time when they were both ready for it.

Draco had fallen asleep earlier thinking that nothing could hurt him when he was with Harry. A tired thought, appearing in his mind as something to grasp on to for safety. But thinking about how safe and protected he felt now, he was ashamed of the manipulations he'd employed in order to trap Harry. Along with the shame, came the determination to ensure that he never found out about how it all started, rather that he'd ensure he made Harry happy for as long as he was allowed to. He was not naïve enough to think that everything would be perfect; no, the exhilaration of their verbal and sometimes physical battles was a vital part of the attraction and he wasn't sure he wanted to give that up.

Startled at this declaration of commitment, Draco almost recanted, the fear of letting Harry down fuelling doubts about his ability to accomplish it. And they were valid doubts; his success rate in the past was virtually non-existent. Could he even make Harry happy? What did Harry see in him that would make him think Draco was so special? He wasn't sure how he'd cope now if Harry left him.

Losing Harry, along with the very real fear that Nott was still out there waiting to kill him, turned his peace to insecurity. Merlin, he hated this side of himself. He'd always prided himself on never needing anyone, always doing things on his own in his own way and he'd enjoyed being like that. The last six months had shown him a different side of himself and now it mattered that he had Harry in his life.

Harry shifted under his cheek, his arm tightening around Draco's back and shoulder. 'You all right, there?' came Harry's sleep-filled voice.

'Yes, why?' Draco asked quietly, slipping his arm across Harry's warm skin and holding on.

'You feel tense. Thought you might be having a nightmare or something.'

Draco sighed and looked up into Harry's face.

'I'm not about to let Nott give me nightmares, Harry,' he said as sharply as he could manage. He was not about to show any more weakness in front of Harry than he'd already shown earlier in the evening. He wasn't weak and he could look after himself, although he did appreciate the safety Harry afforded.

'Good for you,' Harry replied, yawning. 'Can't you sleep then?'

'No.' Draco let his hand trail through the soft hair on Harry's chest.

'Want to talk about it?'

Draco frowned. 'I'm not a girl; I don't need to speak about my feelings all the time.'

Draco could feel Harry's chest shaking with silent laughter and he scowled.

'No, but you sure do know how to tell me when you're feeling angry or are after my body.'

'That's different.' Draco's voice softened and his lips curved into a smile.

'How?' Harry's hand moved into Draco's hair, fingers threading through it as he massaged Draco's scalp. Draco almost purred in pleasure and he stretched his limbs as he pressed closer to Harry's side, entwining their legs.

'It just is,' Draco said. But perhaps here in the darkened room, the moonlight shedding barely enough light to see Harry's eyes, confidences could be shared. Perhaps sharing these intimacies was normal for people in a relationship. Draco remembered back to when Harry had told him about finding his peace; in being able to share vulnerabilities without being mocked for them. He sighed and tightened his arm around Harry's waist. 'I can't help but be horny whenever you're around,' he said in an attempt to deflect the desire to reveal his true thoughts.

Harry chuckled sleepily. 'That wasn't the tension I felt.' The hands were still threading through Draco's hair, relaxing him into docility.

All these years, Draco had refused to let anyone close; thought intimacy a weakness pursued only by those who had no self-respect or dignity. And only now did he realise how much he'd been missing.

'Why do you like me, Harry?' Draco asked. 'I mean apart from the fact that I'm bloody gorgeous.' He smiled as he felt Harry laughing again. Draco pinched his nipple. 'Stop, I'm being serious,' he said, unable to keep the amusement from his voice.

Harry's free hand covered Draco's where it sat on Harry's chest. 'Because behind the superiority complex, the sarcastic comments and the arrogance is a man who wants to be loved, just like the rest of us,' Harry said softly.

Draco had opened his mouth to protest, but shut it again with a snap as the truth of Harry's words sank in.

Harry turned onto his side, dislodging Draco's head to bring them face-to-face. When Draco settled on the pillow and looked at Harry, he found the light from the moon had highlighted his serious expression. The angle of the light gave Draco some comfort knowing his own expression was likely hidden in the shadows as he studied Harry's. He could still have the illusion of hiding his vulnerability.

'Because you push me,' Harry continued. 'You make me work for every step forward we take in this relationship. You weren't just handed to me on a plate.' Harry reached out and brushed a stray lock of hair away from Draco's forehead and Draco, touched, unconsciously leaned into it. 'There's a softness under that rough exterior that very few people get to see. You love your mother deeply, and Pansy and Blaise run a close second. You've made such an effort to get along with my friends and even Ron likes you.'

Draco leaned forward and kissed Harry very gently on the lips, a bubble of emotion blocking his throat.

'Besides,' Harry said, smiling, lips still pressed to Draco's, 'You make it virtually impossible for me to keep my hands off you.'

Draco found his voice and whispered. 'What if I told you I thought I was falling in love with you?' To Draco, the whispered words cracked like thunder around the room.

'I would say I'm already there, waiting to catch you.'

'Oh.' Draco let out a shaky breath as he searched Harry's face and could only find sincerity. Draco smiled, his heart full of happiness. His only concern was his uncertainty of being worthy of such love.

After all his plans and machinations, he'd been the one to say it first after all.

Draco slid his hand behind Harry's neck and pulled him closer for a deep kiss, almost laughing at the irony of the situation but being too giddy with love to care. Before the kiss robbed him of breath completely and made his limbs too weak to work properly, he rolled on top of Harry and spread himself out over warm skin and firm body, wanting to both cover Harry completely and cling to him so tightly that no one could ever pry them loose. He sought out every inch of Harry's skin he could reach, finally slipping under the cotton boxers to grasp onto a rapidly filling erection. The small hitched gasps Harry made and the way his body moved into each touch, gave Draco the confidence that this time, he would not be told to stop.

Draco broke the kiss and raised himself on to one elbow. The familiar length in his hand was warm and felt weighty, and as he continuously stroked he felt every tiny jolt. Poised over Harry, he could see, even in the dim light, the desire darkening Harry's eyes. Draco leaned down and nuzzled Harry's cheek. 'I want you,' he whispered, smiling as Harry shivered. 'My head knows we're together, my heart knows, too, now make sure my body never forgets who it belongs to.'

'Yes,' Harry replied, raising a hand to caress Draco's face. 'You'll show me what…?'

'You just lie there and let me do all the work,' Draco replied, reassuring as he pressed kisses to Harry's throat and worked along his collarbone.

Fingers as gentle as butterflies trailed along Draco's spine and he shivered in pleasure, gasping as they gripped his arse and held on. From under him, Harry rolled his hips, forcing their erections together, which sent shock waves of desire down to Draco's toes and right back to his groin. Even through the cloth of their underwear, Harry still felt hard and hot and Draco wanted him inside, now!

Draco reached for his wand and Vanished the remains of their clothing, then performed the lubrication charms, readying himself and slathering both their cocks in the slippery substance. He looked down at Harry's eyes, gleaming now in the moonlight. 'Are you sure this is what you want?' Draco asked.

'Yes.' Harry smiled. 'Now get a move on or I'm going to come embarrassingly early.'

'I wouldn't care if you came right now,' Draco replied, grinding his hips downwards and crushing Harry's erection to his own.

Harry moaned and gripped Draco's arse even tighter. 'I would. After waiting so long, when I come I want to be balls deep in your arse, watching you come.'

'Merlin, yes,' Draco breathed as he rose shakily to his knees and straddled Harry's hips. There'd deliberately been no stretching charm when Draco lubricated both of them; he wanted to remember every inch of Harry's penetration, paying dues for the way in which he'd started this relationship. He knew it would hurt, but only for a short time and part of him demanded that.

Taking several deep breaths, he took hold of Harry's slick cock and positioned it, feeling the blunt head brushing over his hole, both welcoming and dreading the anticipation of the burn of being penetrated. He watched Harry bite his bottom lip and a small frown line appear on his forehead, but the eyes were what captured Draco's attention. The green eyes that looked almost black in the moonlight were pinned to Draco's face, watching his every move. Draco smiled, braver with Harry watching him, and sat back on Harry's cock, forcing it in an inch or so.

The burn made him hiss; his eyes watered and stung and left his vision blurry for several seconds before he closed them completely when a sob worked it's way shakily from his throat.

'Draco…?'

Draco stilled his trembling with great effort and opened his eyes, blinking hard to clear his vision. The burn spread through his whole body, the pain tingled in his toes and increased his breathing to rapid, shallow panting, but he held Harry's eyes defiantly and shook his head.

'I'm all right,' he managed. 'Just been quite a while. I want this; I want my body to know it's been taken.'

Draco's voice ended in a hoarse, desperate whisper as he pressed down with every word, taking Harry deeper inside him, feeling like he was being split apart, until he was sitting on Harry unable to go any further.

'You're so tight,' Harry said, hands running along Draco's thighs, their warmth giving Draco something else to focus on.

Draco smiled tightly, hands pressed to Harry's chest, eyes half closed as he tried to will his muscles to relax. 'That's what comes of not stretching beforehand,' Draco said, moving his hands to cover Harry's.

Harry took Draco's hands and entwined their fingers. 'Next time we'll stretch you properly; you're in pain and I don't want…'

'Shh…' Draco said, gasping as Harry moved under him. 'I wanted it this way; just don't move yet.' As the waves of burning passed with the relaxing of his muscles, Draco's head dropped back and his breathing became exhalations of relief. Draco rolled his hips experimentally and exclaimed in surprise as a frisson of arousal hardened his partially softened cock once more.

'All right; you can move now,' Draco said, not letting go of Harry's hands, rather using them to brace himself as he rose and then dropped once more. Harry's grip tightened on his fingers and Draco sought out Harry's face in the gloom in order to watch as he fucked him.

'Don't be gentle with me, Potter; I won't break,' Draco hissed as he continued to raise himself and drop back onto Harry's cock.

'I might, though,' Harry said, grunting as he thrust up to meet Draco's downward movement. 'You feel so fucking amazing, and you look like…something out of this world with the moonlight shining on your skin like that.'

Draco adjusted his angle and shuddered as Harry hit his prostate and the dull, odd throbbing pleasure expanded, catching him in a web and spinning him tighter and tighter until he could barely breathe from need. All he could focus on was the knot of pleasure deep in his groin, their stuttering breaths and the faint smacking of flesh on flesh. Though all that was background to the deep emotion he felt emanating from Harry's eyes. It may have been a trick of the light, but Draco found himself floating jubilant on a wave of pure love in Harry's eyes. He collapsed onto Harry's chest, exhausted, and let Harry hold him while he thrust up into him, content with slipping his hand between them and stroking himself. Hot lips claimed his and a heavy hand held his head still while Harry kissed the rest of the breath out of him.

By the time he was desperate to breathe, his body, hovering on the edge of orgasm, betrayed him. He gave one startled cry as he seized up and came shaking and shuddering all over Harry's chest.

'Oh fuck…' he moaned as his body liquefied where it rested against Harry, giving small, spasmodic shivers. Harry held him close and came barely a minute later, breath harsh and loud and hot in Draco's ear. Weakly, Draco wrapped his arms around Harry and held him while he rode out his orgasm, thinking nothing could be quite so wonderful as holding someone you love as they fell apart. Knowing that you'd aroused them to that state.

'Oh, bugger,' Harry said several minutes later. 'Why in Hell did we take so long to do that?' He gave a small rueful laugh.

Draco smirked, but he was too tired to make a big deal out of it. In fact, he was quite comfortable and, splayed out over Harry or not, he could easily sleep right where he was. 'I could say I told you so…'

'Why did I know you were going to say that?' Harry chuckled and let his fingers dance over Draco's skin.

'It was the obvious answer.' Draco smiled tiredly into Harry's shoulder.

'Hm,' Harry said. 'I suppose that makes it official, then?'

'What?'

'I am officially completely under your spell.'

Draco laughed softly and kissed Harry's chest before disentangling himself reluctantly and cuddling up to Harry's side. 'About bloody time,' he said, yawning.

Harry snorted. 'Wanker.'

'Not any more,' Draco teased, smug.

Harry laughed and pinched Draco's bum. 'Go to sleep, you, there'll be press and statements to deal with tomorrow and you won't want to see them with dark circles under your eyes.'

Yawning again, Draco snuggled closer into Harry's side, pleasantly aching in places that had not ached so much in six months, and content beyond anything he had ever imagined in his wildest dreams. Tomorrow's unpleasantness could be dealt with tomorrow.