Dream Connections: Chapter 13

What Have We Here?

Draco sighed as he read once more over his father's letter:

Draco,

My son, you deeply disappointed me with your response on Christmas. I decided, however, to give you one last chance to redeem yourself. You know that I am not a very gracious man, Draco. The Dark Lord alone has convinced me that it would be worth the effort to make one last attempt. My offer of returning your inheritance to you if you will agree to obey my wishes still stands although my patience wanes. Reply to this as soon as you have given yourself time enough to make a wise decision. Do not take this lightly, Draco.

Inevitably,

Lucius Malfoy

Yes, Draco knew that the time had come to make his decision final. He pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill as he hovered over a desk in the Owlery. He just had to find the right way to word his response. He had to seem humble, yet he couldn't seem weak…

"Draco."

Draco didn't need to turn around to know who was at the door. "Yes? May I help you?"

"Draco, I… what is that you've got?"

"Certainly it is none of your business. Now, if you would kindly leave me alone, I can return to what I was doing." Draco hoped desperately that Harry would just go away. It would make everything easier if he just went away.

"No, Draco. You know as well as I do that I can't just go away. This isn't a good decision and you know it. Yes, Hermione told me, and yes, I've had many talks with Sirius about what an idiot I've been. Draco, let's not both be idiots. Just… let's talk." Harry touched Draco's shoulder softly and hesitantly.

Harry's hand on his shoulder made Draco uncomfortably warm. "I don't know what there is to talk about, but, if you insist…"

"I do."

"Alright then, Potter. Let's hear it. You have five minutes to talk me out of whatever it is that you think I'm doing." Draco turned to look at Harry, shrugging away from the boy's touch and crossing his arms.

"Draco, I've been an ass." Harry began to speak but was cut off by Draco's derisive snort. "Fine, I've been a completely unforgivable blast-ended skrewt. I'm sorry, but I was mad and too stubborn to get over it. It was childish of me to act the way that I did."

"Like you said," Draco drawled as callously as he could, "completely unforgivable…" He turned back to the desk. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I believe I was in the process of doing something rather important."

"Stop, Draco. Please stop this. Don't go back to your father." Harry wanted Draco to look at him, but the blond only turned farther away.

"What I do is none of your concern, Potter." Draco sneered though Harry couldn't see his face. "Oh, I'm sorry, it is your concern as to whether I go to the Dark Lord's side or not, isn't it? You don't want me out to kill you. Well, rest assured, if I was to come after you, it would be out of my control."

"That is not the only reason, Draco, and you know it." Harry's eyes were watering and he bit the inside of his cheek. He was mentally kicking himself for being so stupid for such a long time.

"I know nothing." Draco shook his head. "I thought I knew, but I was wrong. I thought…" He trailed off, eyes cast downward.

"You thought what, Draco?" Harry reached for Draco, but was shrugged off.

"Nothing… I thought nothing." Draco crossed his arms and hung his head sadly.

"Draco, just tell me. What did you think?"

"I thought you loved me! I was wrong… so wrong. How could you love me? How could anyone? No, no… We weren't even in a relationship! How stupid I've been! Just leave me alone, Potter!" Draco shoved past a stunned Harry and ran from the room.

Harry took up the chase, following almost throughout the entire castle before he overtook Draco. Dragging him into an empty classroom, Harry slammed him into a wall. "Listen to me, Draco."

"What the hell for? You've got nothing to say that I want to hear right now." Draco grasped Harry's arms and pushed him fiercely away before pulling him back and slamming him into the same wall.

Draco pressed his body full against Harry's and leaned in dangerously close. He could smell Harry's cologne, a rich heady scent. Soft lips brushed lightly across the boy's cheek and down to his warm neck. He bit the soft flesh, flicking his tongue across the red splotch left when he let go with his teeth.

Draco pulled back when he heard Harry moan softly. Narrowing his eyes, he pulled back his fist and punched the Gryffindor.

Harry's eyes widened suddenly and he instinctively swung back. His fist connected roughly with Draco's jaw and the blond stumbled backward a few steps. "Draco, I'm sorry. I…"

Draco punched Harry in his stomach, swung his legs out from under him, and threw him to the stone floor. Swinging almost blindly at the boy beneath him, he inflicted as much pain as he possibly could.

Harry bucked underneath the Slytherin, causing him to fall forward. Catching him in strong arms, Harry pulled him against his chest, kissing him fiercely.

Draco pulled away, rolling onto his back in the process. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Harry straddled him, trapping his arms above his head. Lips met roughly as the two struggled together on the floor, each battling for control.

"Draco, now… please." Harry panted heavily and released Draco's arms before hastily taking off his own shirt. He unbuckled his jeans and began unbuttoning Draco's shirt as well, but quickly found himself on his back on the floor, the blond kneeling over him menacingly.

Draco swiftly removed Harry's shoes, pulling his pants clear off. Shoving his own pants around his knees, he spread Harry's legs and moved between them. He grasped the slim hips firmly in his hands and positioned himself at Harry's entrance. Closing his eyes, he thrust his erection in, not stopping at Harry's painful cry. When he was fully inside the boy, he paused only momentarily before thrusting in and out forcefully.

Harry's eyes were shut tightly as he gasped for air. Pain was shooting through his body and his muscles were seizing up. He tried to relax as Draco continued thrusting and almost died when Draco hit that sensitive spot. Pleasure flooded out the pain and his eyes shot open to see Draco, eyes still shut, with a rapturous expression plastered on his face.

Completely entranced by Draco's expression, Harry grasped his own erection, stroking in time to Draco's rhythm. He could hear the other boy's breath becoming wildly erratic and could tell the blond was nearing completion. His excitement at being the source of Draco's pleasure overtook him, sending him on a wave of ecstasy. As his body continued to spasm, he felt warm liquid shoot onto his own stomach which quickly became cold and knew that it was over for him. His climax obviously put Draco over the edge as the boy nearly collapsed on his chest.

Draco rolled off of Harry almost immediately, completely removing himself from any contact with the Gryffindor's warmth. He turned his back to the boy who was still panting from what they had just done. He was ashamed of himself, completely sickened by his lack of self-control. He had hurt Harry. He had heard the boy cry out in pain and hadn't stopped. It was wrong. What they had done was so wrong on so many levels that Draco couldn't bear to think about it.

"Draco?" Harry whispered, trying to move closer to Draco. "I love you. I want you to know that."

Draco cringed as Harry's hand made contact with his arm. "No," he choked out bitterly. "Nobody loves me. I'm vile and disgusting. I'm not worthy of anyone's love."

Harry moved closer still to Draco, wanting to hold him in his arms and assure him that everything was fine. "Draco, I do love you and you are not any of those things you just said about yourself. You deserve to be loved just as much as anyone else, if not more. What we just did…"

"…was a mistake." Draco balled up his fists and shivered against the cold stone floor. "I'm sorry and it will never happen again… ever."

Harry shook his head, though he knew Draco couldn't see it. "No, Draco, you're wrong. That was not a mistake and it hurts me that you think it was. That was one of the happiest moments of my life."

"Merlin, Harry, you are delusional!" Draco pulled away from Harry violently and rose to his feet. "That was horrifying. That was… so wrong. I can't even believe that I let myself do that. It was possibly the worst thing I've ever done in my life."

Harry blinked up at Draco before scrambling to clean himself off and get dressed. "I see. Well, I'm sorry you feel that way. I was apparently wrong and I think I should leave now. I won't stick around to remind you of how horrifyingly disgusting having sex with me was."

Harry's heart seemed to be shattering inside his chest. He felt as though all his hopes and dreams were coming crashing down on him. He felt tears beginning to sting his eyes, but held them back. He wouldn't cry. He refused to cry. After what he and Draco had just shared, he couldn't show any more weakness than he already had. It just killed him that it didn't mean to Draco what it had meant to him before his world had begun crumbling.

"Harry," Draco could tell that Harry had completely misunderstood him. He just couldn't bear to let Harry be so heartbroken over him. "I didn't mean it that way. I meant what I did was wrong. What we did was beautiful, but it was all wrong. Another time and another place would have made it perfect."

"Nothing is perfect, Draco." Harry shook his head. "Sometimes you have to take the bad with the good. I never said these were the circumstances under which I would want to have my first sexual experience, but I can't change what happened. You can't honestly tell me that you wish we didn't just have sex, can you?"

"I wish things had been different." Draco hung his head in shame.

"So do I, but things aren't different." Harry moved over to where Draco stood and grasped his shoulders. He waited until Draco looked at him before he continued. "I love you."

Draco smiled bitterly. "I love you too, Harry, but…"

"… but nothing… Draco, if I love you and you love me, nothing else matters." Harry pulled Draco into his arms, squeezing him tightly. "Can't you understand that?"

Draco wrapped his arms around Harry's waist and buried his face in the boy's shoulder. "I don't know. It just seems so difficult. I don't know what to do."

"Life is difficult, Draco." Harry lifted a hand to smooth back Draco's hair and let it linger as he spoke. "All I want you to do is trust me and promise me you won't leave me."

Draco sighed heavily. "You know I trust you, but I don't know how we're going to be together if my father is hell bent on getting me back."

Harry pulled away from Draco so that he could look into his stormy eyes. "If you trust me, let me take you to Dumbledore. He can help us."

"I don't know, Harry." Draco still hadn't decided whether he wanted to join forces with the light just yet, and the prospect of aligning himself with Dumbledore against his father was intimidating. "If I do that, it's all over. My decision is made from then on."

"This is not the time for straddling fences, Draco. Are you with me?" Harry waited anxiously as Draco seemingly thought over his options.

"Alright," Draco sighed again, "take me to Dumbledore."

As he and Draco stood outside the Headmaster's door, Harry silently thanked Merlin that it was a Saturday. He heard Dumbledore ask them to come in and opened the door, leading Draco into the office.

"Hello, Mr. Potter. I see you have brought Mr. Malfoy with you this morning. How I may help you?" Dumbledore motioned for the boys to take a seat and settled into his chair behind his desk.

It was quite apparent to both Harry and Draco that Dumbledore was not the least bit surprised that they had come to see him. He didn't even seem slightly perturbed that they were together and not fighting. Harry sent Draco a look that clearly read "He's known all along."

Dumbledore cleared his throat as no one spoke. Harry sent Draco a pointed look, which Draco imitated, clearly not going to be the one to start that conversation. "Professor," Harry began, "for some time now Draco and I have been… friends."

"Yes, I know." Dumbledore smiled kindly. "From what I hear, you're a lot more than friends."

"Well, I…" Harry stuttered a little. He had known Dumbledore was most likely aware of their relationship, but he didn't think the man would be so blunt about it.

"You should be a bit more careful about when and where you choose to conduct your private activities." Dumbledore winked at Harry and folded his arms. "If you aren't, in the future, I cannot protect you from the rules of the school."

"I understand, sir." Harry glanced at Draco out of the corner of his eye and saw the boy sitting in stunned silence. "The reason we're here, as you probably already know, is to ask for your protection for Draco. We're afraid that his father will take his refusal to join him badly."

Dumbledore nodded and turned toward Draco. "Is this what you want, Mr. Malfoy, or is Harry making choices on your behalf?"

"It's what I want." Draco spoke so quietly it was hardly above a whisper.

"Then it's settled. You may continue to reside with Professor Snape. We had already discussed this some time ago and he is more than willing to act as your guardian. It will have to remain a secret that you are staying with him, however." Dumbledore smiled at Draco, who attempted smiling in return but failed miserably.

"It's that simple?" Draco looked around the room anxiously, as though his father was sure to pop out of a wall at any moment.

"It is that simple." Dumbledore chuckled softly. "You are safe now. I must ask you one thing, however."

"I knew there was some catch." Draco crossed his arms and glared at Harry.

"No, there is no catch, Mr. Malfoy." Dumbledore laughed a little more loudly than before. "In accepting you into our midst, we are placing our trust in you. All I ask in return is that you place your trust in us. Can you do that?"

"I think I can, sir." Draco shrugged but relaxed visibly. He knew it was going to take a while for him to actually trust the people he had been taught to hate, but he figured he could do it.

Harry leaned over and kissed Draco cheerfully on the cheek, causing the boy to blush profusely. They politely said their goodbyes to the headmaster before slipping out of the office and walking aimlessly through the castle.

"So…" Harry prompted Draco anxiously.

"So what?" Draco shrugged.

Harry bit his lip and began doing something that Draco perceived as bouncing. "Are you bouncing, Harry? I can't believe this. You are way too excitable."

"No, I am not bouncing!" Harry stopped bouncing, looking thoroughly ashamed. He ducked his head and blushed slightly before nudging Draco slightly. "Well…"

"Well what?"

"Well, I was just wondering." Harry's blush deepened and he cast his eyes toward the floor. "Where does this leave us?"

Draco smiled at the obviously embarrassed boy walking along beside him. "Honestly, Potter… I have sex with you, defy my father, side with the light, and you still don't know where we stand? You really are a slow one."

Harry shoved Draco softly and laughed. "Hey, I don't need your sarcasm. I just thought that we should make things official, you know?"

"It's not as though we'd be signing a contract or something… official…" Draco rolled his eyes but took Harry's hand in his. "If you insist, though…" He stopped walking and turned Harry's face so that he was looking into green eyes. "Harry, I would be very much obliged if you would accept my courtship."

Harry blushed even more deeply than before, his complexion rivaling Ron's hair color. He shoved Draco again and rolled his eyes. "That's just like you, mocking me every chance you get. I don't care, though… Yes."

Draco smiled and kissed Harry softly before resuming his trek through the castle. "You know, Harry. I think that makes you my girlfriend."

"What?" Harry shrieked indignantly. "If anyone is gonna be the girl in this relationship, it is going to be you! Look at you! You're…"

"Finish that statement and you're a dead man…" Draco narrowed his eyes challengingly, smirking when the Gryffindor backed down.

They walked on in silence for a moment until Harry stopped suddenly.

"What?" Draco looked over his shoulder at the boy.

"You're courting me." Harry furrowed his brow, cocking his head to the side adorably.

"Yes, your point being…"

"Courting is with the intention to marry. Hermione said so when… ok, it doesn't matter when or even why she said it, so don't ask. The point is… you court someone when you plan on marrying them." Harry shook his head and held his hands out, as though at a loss.

Draco smiled slyly. "I don't see your point."

"Well, if you said you were courting me, it would mean you intend on marrying me." Harry looked even more confused than ever as he watched Draco smiling oddly.

"Yes, I know. And I do."

"Do what!" Harry asked exasperatedly.

"Intend to marry you." Draco smiled smugly, taking in a single glimpse of Harry's shocked face before turning around once more and walking away.

"What!" Harry called after Draco, still planted in the same spot. "Wait!"

Draco didn't respond as he continued to walk farther and farther down the hallway.

"Draco! Draco, you can't just say something like that and walk away!"

Harry watched as Draco turned a corner, disappearing from sight. "DRACO, WAIT FOR ME!" Harry cried out impetuously, hurrying to catch up with his confusing yet oh-so-wonderful boyfriend.

Author's Note: Alright, so that's another chapter for you. There will probably only be a few more chapters of this and I'm going to try to get them out quickly so that it will be finished with and I can focus on other things. For those of you who actually read "Faded Pictures," I pretty much have the last chapter finished. Azu Luna just thinks it needs a kick ass fight scene. Then I'll probably write a short epilogue or something. As always, thanks to my favorite beta reader and one of my bestest best friends, Azu Luna. Thanks also to my little sister who effectively threatens me into writing and to my fiancé who I just love a lot.