Author's Note: Here it is guys, last chapter! I've basically prepared the entire fic for this one sooo… Hopefully it'll satisfy! I'll write an epilogue if you guys want me to. I'll ask again at the end of this. :) This is Draco's POV.

Chapter 24

Draco fiddled with the collar of his robes for the third time since he had put it on. He fiddled with his hair. He fiddled with his badge. He fiddled with the tassel on the ridiculous hat they were all required to wear. In other words, Draco was positively, undeniably, and irrefutably going mad with nerves.

Harry watched him fuss over his hair once again and laughed easily. "Draco, calm down. You look stunning, like always."

Draco's only response was a disgruntled snort as he continued to manipulate his locks. The full-length mirrors in Gryffindor tower were not nearly as large as in the dungeons and they didn't give any feedback, either. They were just plain, ordinary muggle mirrors. Trust Gryffindor to be the only House to have them, he thought with dry amusement. Since they'd given Rebecca back to Snape, it wasn't required of them to stay in the same dorms and sleep in the same bed anymore. Draco had even tried to go back to Slytherin that night and had felt absolutely miserable and alone without Rebecca and Harry cuddled up beside him. Apparently, Harry had felt the same and snuck into the Slytherin dorms under his invisibility cloak to join him. Draco had no idea how Harry had even gotten inside in the first place because the passwords had been changed since he was there, but he didn't question it at the time. They were too busy doing… other activities.

Harry walked over and wrapped his arms around Draco, gazing at their reflection in the mirror. "Look at us, all ready to graduate. Together," he observed softly, pressing a gentle kiss to Draco's neck.

Draco smiled wistfully. "We're quite the pair, aren't we?"

Harry chuckled and glanced at their reflections again. "Yeah, I'd say we are."

Draco turned his head slightly so that he was facing Harry and kissed him on the nose. Harry gazed at him with amusement and Draco smirked teasingly back, kissing him on the mouth this time. He turned his body and threw his arms around Harry's neck, kissing all over his face frantically, desperately. If everything else was to change rapidly without his consent around him, he only had one request: to stay like this forever, in Harry's arms, on Harry's lips. Harry pulled back suddenly and looked down at the muggle watch on his wrist. "Ah shit," he said, gasping a little from their exertions.

Draco stared at him impatiently. "What?"

Harry smiled apologetically at him. "I've got to go somewhere before the ceremony. I'll meet you down at the Great Hall, okay?"

Draco frowned. "Where are you going?"

Harry eyes shifted so that he wasn't looking directly at Draco. "Um, the library."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Why? Classes are over."

Harry shook his hair so that it was covering his eyes a bit and coughed. Draco caught the movement and stared at Harry in disbelief. He was hiding something. "I—I've got to… Actually, I'm just going to… Go to the kitchens and—"

Both of Draco's eyebrows were raised considerably high now. "Alright, the kitchens then. Who are you going to go meet… there, Harry?"

Harry looked visibly ill at ease. "Uh, nobody. Just hungry."

Draco narrowed his eyes and sneered with incredulity. How dare Harry just stand there and lie blatantly to his face! "You've always been a terrible liar Harry, this is not an exception! Tell me who you are going to meet there now!"

Harry flinched at his sharp tone and answered meekly. "Hermione… We're going to go over my speech to make sure there are no errors, and I want some food. Okay?"

Draco eyed him suspiciously. Harry was stubbornly refusing to meet his gaze, so therefore he was still lying. He sighed in an irritated manner, giving up. "Fine. I'll see you there, then."

Harry's green eyes shone with relief when he shifted them back to Draco. "Alright!" He started to untangle himself from Draco's grasp, but he held him tighter. Draco's hand clutched at some of Harry's hair and pulled his face forward aggressively, seizing his lips with his own. He ravished Harry's mouth with unreserved passion, possessively invading every inch of it—his lips, his tongue, his teeth—everything. Harry was his and only his. Draco had to make him remember that.

"Mine," he growled, nipping at Harry's lips with his teeth. "All mine." Harry moaned mindlessly at his words, gasping and gulping for air, his bright eyes glimmering with need. Draco took that as unspoken compliance to his statement. He pressed tiny, sensitive kisses upon Harry's swollen lips to say sorry for bruising them.

Harry sighed and pulled away from him gently. "I've really got to go," he said. Draco nodded mutely and stared at Harry's reddened mouth before Harry turned and left the room. Draco looked back to the mirror at his own reflection. His hair was mussed, his lips were scarlet, and his eyes were wide with a wild expression. It was quite a compelling image, but it frightened him at the same time. He sighed and fiddled with his collar again.

Half an hour later, Draco wandered down to the Gryffindor common room to burn off some extra time before meeting Harry for the ceremony. He frowned when he saw Granger sitting on the couch next to Weasley. It was true that he had suspected Harry was lying to him, but it was a whole other feeling when he could actually see the evidence of the lie with his own eyes. Draco clenched his teeth and took a deep breath, trying not to get emotional. Not here. He walked over to sit across from the pair. "Weasley, Granger," he said, greeting them both with nods.

Weasley nodded back stiffly and Granger smiled at him. "Hello Malfoy," she said benignly.

Draco tried to smile back, but it seemed as if his mouth was permanently set in a firm line. "You… Have you seen Harry recently?" he asked her casually, hoping that maybe they'd already met and Harry was just at the kitchens by himself now. His hopes deflated when Granger shook her head.

"No, haven't seen him in hours. Why?"

Draco gazed at her questioningly. "Didn't he need help with his speech?"

Granger raised an eyebrow. "I helped him with that last night. And it's not as if he needs to be especially eloquent anyways because everybody knows that he's not. He doesn't even care much about it at all, you know how he is."

"Do I?" Draco muttered bitterly to himself under his breath.

Granger, with her ears like a bloody hawk's, heard his words and shot him her surely-patented-by-now Look of Concern. "Is something wrong?"

Draco glared down at his feet, not wanting to meet her scrutinizing gaze. "No."

She sighed and pulled him to his feet and led him to a more secluded area of the common room. He looked at her with surprise. "Really. What's going on?" she asked with her hands on her hips, the tone of her voice firm and motherly.

Draco raised his chin. "It's nothing, Granger," he replied curtly.

"Malfoy!"

"Okay, okay!" he said, raising his hands up. "I think—well, I know— that Harry's been lying to me about all sorts of little things for a couple weeks now. I just… I don't know why."

Granger frowned. "He's lying to you? About what?"

Draco shrugged and looked away. "Where he's going, who he's meeting and why."

Granger's eyes softened and she put her hand on his shoulder gently. "He would never hurt you, Malfoy. He's Harry, for Merlin's sake, he's incapable of deliberately hurting anyone."

Draco looked at his feet. "Deliberately," he repeated softly.

Granger gazed at him sympathetically. "Don't worry. It'll be okay, I promise."

He nodded wordlessly at her and walked towards the portrait hole. It was almost time to meet Harry now. "Thanks," he called over his shoulder at her. He saw her smile in response.

Draco was just about to turn into the corridor towards the Great Hall when he heard voices coming from inside a nearby classroom. He spun around and pressed his ear to the door with interest. "So your parents are okay with this? I didn't get the chance to meet up with them, Draco stalled me considerably... I mean, I know they aren't fond of gay couples, but—" Draco frowned when he heard Harry's earnest voice.

"No, it's fine Harry. My parents know that I care about you and this means a great deal to you. Besides, they wouldn't discriminate against the Boy-Who-Lived." Draco glowered. It was Finch-Fletchley! He would know that pitchy voice anywhere.

"Good," Harry sounded relieved. "This is very important to me. You didn't tell anyone, did you?"

"No. And I assume that Malfoy doesn't know either?"

"Well he was a bit suspicious, but I think I threw him off... sort of. I don't know. I'm pretty nervous. What if he gets angry?"

"Why would he get angry?"

"Oh, I don't know. But it could happen, I suppose."

"Are you sure you want to do this, Harry? It's quite a risk—"

Harry's jingling laugh interrupted him. "You know how I am about risks, Justin! Anyway, come here, I want to see it again."

Now Finch-Fletchley laughed. "I've already shown you a million times!"

"But I'll never get enough of looking at it! Come on now, take it out!" Even Harry's whining was lovely. Finch-Fletchley chuckled again, and there were some shuffling sounds.

"Merlin, it's beautiful." Harry sounded out of breath.

Finch-Fletchley's voice was tender. "And it's all yours now."

Draco stumbled back from the door, his mind reeling with sick comprehension. No. No. Harry was his. Harry would never— He started to sprint down the corridor blindly, deceiving tears falling from his eyes. How could he? Harry said that he loved him, he made Draco love him back, and now he was throwing it all away planning a future with another bloke? Oh gods. He couldn't breathe. He ran all the way to his mother's room and threw the door open without even knocking.

His mother looked up from her seat by the fireplace, a book open in her lap. "Draco, what are you—?" She stopped as she saw the wretched look on his face. She got up and rushed to his side, wiping the tears from his cheeks. "What's wrong?" She asked urgently, gazing into his eyes. Draco felt his lips tremble as he saw the genuine concern reflecting in her eyes. He broke down into her arms and confessed all of his worries—about his future, about change, about life and finally, about Harry.

After he was done ruining her silk blouse with his tears, she sat him down on the chair. "Draco, it'll be okay. I promise." Her words were the same as Granger's not only 30 minutes earlier. "You are a brilliant, talented young man. Your future is bright, your opportunities are endless—don't let people tell you otherwise. Yes, you will have to fight for your right to be there more often than the average wizard… but that's what makes you so strong. You handle change better than anybody I know—actually, you handle everything better than anybody I know. I know that you can do anything you set your mind to, Draco." she paused, an odd expression appearing on her face. "And Harry… Don't worry about him. He truly loves you, he does. I see it in his eyes when he looks at you—it was the same look I used to give your father…" she trailed off, a hint of pain flickering in her eyes. Draco took her hand comfortingly and she cleared her throat and continued.

"But what I'm trying to say, Draco, is that Harry won't ever hurt you. Okay?" She rubbed his arm consolingly. Draco blinked slowly, processing the familiar words again. Sometimes, his mother and Granger could be quite eerily similar when it came to advice.

He gave her a slight smile and got up. "The ceremony is going to start soon."

She nodded, heading towards her bathroom. "Go on, Draco. I'll see you there." But Draco didn't move. He wasn't about to go meet Harry after his little breakdown. He needed time to think. She shrugged and let him stay.

Draco stared intently towards the front of the room, not meeting anyone's gaze as he sat down in his chair. He knew before he heard the voice that Harry was right behind him. "Draco! Why didn't you meet me before?" Harry asked hurriedly, appearing in the seat next to him.

Draco didn't look at him. "That's not your seat," he responded evenly, not answering the question.

Even though Draco couldn't see him, he knew that Harry looked extremely bewildered. He put his hand on Draco's arm. "What's wrong, Draco?"

Draco jerked away from him. "Nothing. Go away, Potter." He sensed Harry jump back at the use of his surname and leave to his own seat without a word. Draco clenched his fists, attempting to ignore the tingling spot where Harry's hand had been a minute ago. He bit his lip to keep his Malfoy mask from slipping and continued to stare ahead.

"Welcome students, faculty, and parents!" Dumbledore's mild voice echoed throughout the Great Hall. "It is an enormous pleasure to see this fine group of students graduate today. They have my greatest admiration for having had to grow up far more quickly than they should have, providing an invaluable source of bravery and heart. I am proud to send these students off to their undeniably bright futures, as they are the era whose courage and will has brought us the world we have today and we could not be more grateful. Now before we begin the ceremony, we shall have a few words from our own Mr. Harry Potter."

The crowd erupted in ear splittingly loud applause. They cheered boisterously as practically every person in the room stood up to clap for him. Draco looked over and saw Harry embarrassedly smile at everyone around him, then turn towards Finch-Fletchley and hug him. When Finch-Fletchley pressed his hand into Harry's, Draco saw red. He jumped up, shoving the people in his way aside and marched over to where they were seated.

He shoved at Harry's shoulder violently. "HOW COULD YOU?" he screamed. His shouts echoed as the Hall grew quiet.

Harry pulled away from Finch-Fletchley quickly and put the offending hand in his pocket. "What are you talking about?" Harry asked calmly, not quite meeting his eye.

Draco felt his face heating up with anger. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, WHAT AM I TALKING ABOUT? YOU THINK THAT YOU CAN JUST WALTZ IN HERE AND PRETEND LIKE YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT IS WRONG? LOOK AT ME!" Draco grabbed Harry's face and turned it towards his. Harry had that puzzled look on again.

"Why?" Draco asked, quieter this time. "What does he have that I don't?"

Draco saw Harry's eyes widen. "What? Who? Wait—Justin?" Harry sounded legitimately perplexed.

"What?" Finch-Fletchley screeched in mortification, "No, no I'm not—!" Harry suddenly interrupted him with a loud giggle. The giggle turned into a few small chuckles and then erupted into full-blown hysteria. Draco stared at him in disbelief.

"What the hell are you laughing about?" he demanded, folding his arms across his chest defiantly. "This isn't funny!"

Harry stopped hooting and wiped his teary eyes. "Oh, oh Draco, you silly git! Why couldn't you just have waited another five minutes for my speech!" he started laughing again.

Draco frowned. "For what?"

Harry faced him, his laughter slowly dying down. "When are you going to get it through your thick head that I'm not interested in anybody but you?"

Draco gaped as Harry slowly got down on one knee in front of him. "Wha—What?" he stuttered.

"Justin's parents sell jewelry," Harry said slowly. "He was merely delivering my purchase to me." He looked up at Draco, his vibrant emerald eyes absolutely iridescent. "I'm never going to want anybody else, can't you see that? You're the one… the one that I wish to spend the rest of my life with." Draco stared in shock as Harry pulled out a small box from his pocket and opened it, revealing a sparkling silver band.

"Draco Malfoy, will you marry me... again?"

Draco's mouth uncharacteristically hung open in complete disbelief as the room exploded with excited whispers. Harry was proposing to him? He wasn't cheating on him with Finch-Fletchley? Draco thought back and analyzed the conversations that he had overheard. Oh. Well, it all made sense now. Merlin was he wrong! As usual… He glanced over apologetically at Finch-Fletchley, silently taking back all of the nasty things that he had wished upon the Hufflepuff. Then he looked back down at Harry, who was still kneeling and holding out the tiny box. Harry's eyes shifted around anxiously and he was biting his lip in the most adorable manner, looking entirely uncomfortable with himself.

"Er—" Harry said weakly, trying to invoke a response out of him. When Draco remained silent, Harry started to get up in defeat.

Draco grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him into a bone-crushing embrace instead. "I hate you," he said, crashing his mouth onto Harry's with vigor. His lips moved in a desperately eager way again—this time in liberation and euphoria rather than insecure possessiveness.

Harry broke away from him, his eyes shining with elation. "I love you too," he said, slipping the ring onto Draco's slender finger with a grin. Draco beamed back and started kissing him again, even more fervently than before.

Dumbledore cleared his throat at the front of the room. "Gentleman, if we could proceed—" Harry pulled away again and interrupted him.

"Right away, sir." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he stepped away from the podium for him. Harry, still pleasantly flushed from their embrace, smiled out at the crowd. "Sorry about that, I was going to do that at the end of my speech, but I think someone was a little too impatient," he winked as the audience laughed and Draco blushed furiously.

"Anyway, I just wanted to say thank you. To all of my professors, my classmates and their families—the battle for peace could not have been won without you. We've achieved our goals then and we can achieve them now and in our futures. Hogwarts has been my haven and home for the past 8 years. Yes, it has taught me how to use magic properly, but it has also given me so much more than that. It has given me the opportunity to explore the endless possibilities of life and has shown me how a real family should function—because that's what we are, a family. It has taught me never to give up on or shy away from the things that I believe in. It has trained me to become the person I've always wanted to be. But most of all, it has taught me that I am never alone. I will be forever grateful for what I've gained here. We may be leaving here today, but we will always be that generation—the one that fought for peace, the one that has been with each other through thick and thin, and the one that will continue to do so for the rest of our lives. I am proud to call you guys my classmates and my friends and I wish you all the best of luck in your futures. Thank you."

Harry stepped down from the podium and the crowd burst into booming applause again. Draco could see many people in the audience dabbing their eyes. He saw his mother smiling brightly, Pansy and Blaise beaming with their arms around each other, even Granger and Weasley grinning from ear to ear—at him. But the most beautiful of all was Harry's glowing smile, the heart-shattering one that was meant only for Draco. He felt tears sliding down his own face, but not out of sadness. He had everything that he could ever want now.

Harry walked over to him but before either of them could say anything, someone tapped him on the shoulder and he turned around. Snape stood there, holding the Rebecca doll awkwardly in his arms. "Here," he mumbled, handing the doll over to Harry. "It doesn't function anymore, but… I thought you might like to keep it. For the memories, I suppose." The words he said weren't much but the meaning went deeper than that, as everything Uncle Severus said did.

Harry gazed up at the professor's face with unadulterated respect. "Thank you sir, I mean it. For everything."

Draco grinned and added, "And we will miss you, as well." Snape looked thoroughly uncomfortable with that and slinked away without another word.

Harry smiled and grabbed Draco's hand, pulling him into the line that was forming to receive their diplomas. Draco took a deep breath and looked forward towards the podium, towards their futures, towards the beginning of the rest of his life.

(Another) Author's Note: Sorry, I had to add a bit more drama in there. Why? Because this is a Drarry fic, of course! … So did you guys want that epilogue? ;) Anyways, thanks so much for sticking around with me! I love you all!